James 5:13-20, September 25-October 1, Lectionary Year B:

This will be the lectionary epistle reading this year for Worldwide Communion Sunday.  The passage reminds us that the prayer of a righteous man avails much.  Who was the ultimate Righteous Man--in fact, the only perfectly righteous man ever to walk the earth?  Of course, it was Jesus Christ.  When you think of this passage in light of that truth, it gives the chapter a whole different perspective.  I was struck by this when I heard a presentation by a Lutheran pastor years ago.  This is why the prayers of Christ, our Advocate and Intercessor, and the prayers of His Spirit, the Comforter, are the grounds of hope for every Christian.  The prayers of Christ avail the very most because He is the Ultimately Righteous Man!

 

It is very important for us, His brothers and sisters, to pray as well.  Our prayers, however, must be through the only Mediator between God and man, the man, Christ Jesus.  Our prayers must be aided by His Holy Spirit in order that they will have any prevailing power at all.  Prayers apart from Christ are but meaningless words tossed into the wind--empty and futile.

 

The passage also has exhortation and encouragement about how to respond to God when we are merry, how to deal with sickness, and how to continue in the Christian life.  Some pastors take the comments about sickness very literally, and will not even visit someone whom they know to be sick unless they are summoned by that person or his family.  I don't take the verse quite that literally; but the point is important.  When a member of the household of faith is sick, that person needs to let the pastor and the elders know so that they may come and offer prayers and encouragement.  To fail to do this either reflects a false kind of modesty or a disinterest or even possibly  hostility toward the church and its ministry.

 

When we are told in James 5 to anoint the sick with oil, we should remember that oil was believed to have genuine curative powers.  Today, it is still important to pray for the healing of the sick; but perhaps the counterpart to the oil would be a cup of cold water, a wet sponge on the forehead, or some other known agent that would make the person feel better.  I don't think we have to assume that when we pray over someone, we should have a bottle of corn oil or cooking spray ready in reserve.  That almost smacks of superstition and may even, to some people, seem to be ridiculing the Word of God.