“13 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven” (James 5:13-15).
I do not think these verses should be overlooked.
Many times we like to do that—overlook verses. This often happens with Psalm 37:4, where the first part of the verse is skipped, and the last part of the verse is quoted, “God will give you the desires of your heart!”—as it is proclaimed. Well, this verse is sandwiched between two very important verses that give context to “the desires of your heart.” 37:3 says to trust the Lord, do good, and befriend faithfulness. 37:5 says to commit your ways to the Lord and trust in Him. Therefore (watch for this word!), if an individual is (a) trusting in God, (b) befriending faithfulness, and (c) committing their ways to Him, then (d) the desires of their heart will be—you guessed it—the Lord Himself!
So how does this relate to James 5:16?
Well, it doesn’t relate directly. What it does offer us, though, is another example of how to interpret Scripture in light of context. So, in the passage in James 5:13-15, Christians are told to bring thier prayer requests to God and the elders of the church, which is directly related to being healed from sickness and forgiven of sins. V.13 we pray to God for suffering and to sing praise for joy, and then all the sudden v.14 we are told if we are sick to call on the elders so that they can pray for us, followed with v.15 being forgiven for sins! This is interesting. You mean I should bring my requests and sin confessions to my local church elder(s)?
But isn’t that for Catholics?
We Protestants think that since we have direct access to the Father (which we do), we do not need an “elder” or “pastor” or “priest” to confess to; we can simply do it ourselves! In a sense, we can. In fact, we should practice personal prayer to our Lord and continual confession to Him. We can talk to one another and confess to one another without the help of a pastor. Actually, James 5:15 says it better: “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.”
However, that does not mean we forget about our church leaders.
Here’s what I mean: When ever you see the word “therefore,” you must ask, “What is it there for?” In other words, the word “therefore” tells us that this verse is in the middle of a particular context and message the author was conveying for a particular purpose. In this case, it is the preceding verses (James 5:13-15).
We who are Christians confess to each other and are therefore priests of confessions. We are a “royal priesthood” (1 Pet. 2:9). We listen to one another’s confession and extend the love of Christ we are blessedly gifted to extend. It is not we who forgive each other, but Christ who forgives, and allows a process of healing. However, we should not neglect our church leaders in these matters either. Remember the context of the passage is important.
Please, do not swarm your pastor(s) or elder(s) with every conceivable confession under the sun!
But if it is something you need guidance and/or help with, remember that they love this stuff and it is their calling. At least they ought to. They are shepherds who should lead by example, not domineering (1 Pet. 5:2-3). If you do not have a church, find one! And if you are part of an abusive church, find another one! Get in, and get on board. (I am also preaching to myself here, if anyone knows my story)
Talk with them, meet with them, and above all listen to them. They usually have good stuff to say.
The idea: Biblical accountability. Never leave home without it.
- Jonathan J.
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Ah, the lost art of confession. Too many times we listen to others confess and do not do it ourselves. BTW. That picture is crazy!
Yes, we ought to be practicing this a little more with our church leaders – and each other.
The Picture: it was difficult to choose; so many good ones!
I've always thought it would be cool if Protestant churches had confessionals. The Catholics have the right idea here, with the exception of all that "Hail Mary" stuff.
There's a Catholic church near my house. I've tossed around the idea of making a habit of visiting their confessional for a while now, though I suppose it would make more sense to just talk to someone at Church of the Broken now.
lol, I suppose COB would make more sense for you. But I wonder if you have to be a parishioner in order to visit their confessional. I know they withhold communion if you are not a parishioner.
As far as them "having it right," they may to a certain point. Though, I am not at the place to be able to say we can absolve each other our sins, even if you are a pastor/elder/priest.
I I went to confession, I would be in there so long that priest would have to tag out
You mean "Tap" out?
OOOOHH BURN!!!
lol
What the Catholic "confession" is lacking is the personal accountability that helps you to truly repent from the sins that are driving you there to begin with. I love the help that I've received at my church from the elders and minister. Again, every little thing doesn't require their mediation, however their position is given to them for a reason and is laid out in 1Tim.3: their older (at least not new converts) and wise with their money, marriage, and so on…. I highly recommend daily prayers and daily confessions, sometimes you know you are about to sin, whether it's a "minor" offense or not, take it to the Lord, we gotta remember His hands ARE bigger and we can only handle so much, He made it that way for a reason! If we are the body then we need all parts in order to function, if you aren't tellin' the brains your toe is broke and you are the foot, how you gonna get to the Dr.? Go to God first, He'll point you where you need to go and like it says in 1 Tim. the elders are more than willing to help!
Great preaching my brother. Let's accept the Word of GOD as it is. no exceptions.
Right on!