Faith in Practice
Notes
Transcript
Introduction: Last rites, Catholics, Priest
The last rites, also known as the Commendation of the Dying, are the last prayers and ministrations given to an individual of Christian faith, when possible, shortly before death.
Add the picture of a painting.
When a faithful Catholic faces imminent risk of dying or is on the verge of death, the last rites can be administered to offer them a final chance to be absolved of their sins in preparation for entering heaven, to denounce their sinful ways, and face their individual judgment to avoid hell. The dying or their family members may request it. So what does last rites entail? (Reconciliation (confession) and Penance (Apostle’s creed) - Anointing of the sick (ease suffering as they die) - The Viaticum (a prayer and final Holy Communion))
They also do anointing for serious illness, or prior to an operation. Only the Priest.
These are Catholic Traditions based on James 5:13-18
13 Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray. Is anyone cheerful? He is to sing praises.
14 Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord;
15 and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.
16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.
17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months.
18 Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.
Transitional sentence: Catholics traditionally practice last rites, however, for Protestants anytime is the right time to pray and to call on the Elders - as an act of Faith!
When do we pray? 1 Thess 5:16-18 Paul told the Thessalonians to:
16 Rejoice always;
17 pray without ceasing;
18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
But James tells us to pray when we are suffering.
When suffering - James 5:13
13 Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray. Is anyone cheerful? He is to sing praises.
(Greek - kakopatheo - suffer hardship or misfortune, enduring hardship) This is the idea that bad things are going on in your life. A good example might be your house burning down, an auto accident, or persecution because of your faith.
But if this isn’t illness or physical problems then what do you do about that?
Well, what James tells you to do when you are sick is to call the Elders. But what does it mean to be sick?
b. When sick - James 5:14
14 Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord;
(Greek - astheneo - Be sick, be weak - Physically, Spiritually, Morally, Emotionally, or just plain lacking in vigor)
c. Call on the Elders
This is an act of faith. Does anyone like being sick? So when we are we want to keep it to our selves. We don’t want to bother anyone with our issues so we don’t call anyone - especially the Elders of the church; we don’t want to cause a fuss.
In this church family we have five Elders at this time. Dick, Mike, Jim, Rich and myself. We are all willing to answer a call to come and pray. There are others here who would be willing to pray for you - especially for you ladies who would rather have an Elderish lady come to visit instead of one of us men.
This plurality of leadership is different from the Catholic tradition. The Priest is the one to call on in the Catholic church. He will listen to confessions, pray and anoint.
But there is a plurality in the scriptures - Elders. Not a single Elder, but many.
2. So why should you call the Elders? To Pray over and anoint with oil.
a. The Prayer offered in faith James 5:15 - what is it?
15 and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.
Pray in the Lord’s authority and subject to His will. With faith that the Lord is able to heal if it is His will.
The individual will also be restored or raised up. This doesn’t necessarily mean that physical healing will follow, but it does bring spiritual and emotional comfort and the ability to accept God’s will in the entire situation.
b. Anointing - Verse James 5:14 says:
14 Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord;
What is it?: Anoint the sick person. Anointing is spreading of oil over them. Type of oil is not specified - olive oil was the most common oil at the time. There are many other oils available but oil is used for many ailments. The oil is also consider a representation of the Holy Spirit and His power coming upon the one being anointed.
When: Whenever someone is sick. This isn’t last rites time - while you are on your death bed. This is when you feel the need.
Why: You should do it as an act of faith, but you should also do it because you want healing from your suffering or sickness. It can be emotional, spiritual or physical. . Mk 5:34
34 And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace and be healed of your affliction.”
This is Jesus’ comment to the woman who was ill for 12 years and finally was able to just touch the hem of Jesus’ clothes.
Is it not better to believe and act in faith rather than simply trusting in doctors and medicine.
15 and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.
c. You will be Forgiven of your sins -
So what does forgiving sins have to do with being sick?Some times our illness is caused by our sin, or in other words our lack of good judgment.
When this was written, illness was often associated with sin. John 9:1-2
1 As He passed by, He saw a man blind from birth.
2 And His disciples asked Him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?”
If the sickness you are struggling with is caused by sin the Elders can listen to a confession and forgive the person in Jesus’ name. We can do this because Jesus has given us the keys to the kingdom — He has given us the authority in His name to bind and loose! The authority to bind up evil spirits and the authority to loose the captives from their tombs. Matthew 16:19
19 “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.”
3. So, how do we put our Faith into practice!!!
a. First of all Call the Elders, it is an act of faith. Just do it. Don’t wait until you are on your death bed to call for last rites. Call before you even go to the doctor. Let your faith in the healing power of Jesus be first on your to do list. Give Jesus the opportunity to pour out His grace and mercy on you before you trust medicine.
b. Second of all Confess your sins. Confession is an act of repentance and some illness may be caused by sin. Especially if you are so distraught over what you have done that it is eating you up on the inside. Confession and forgiveness are the only medicine that will really work in this case. Doctors and medicine will only treat your symptoms - they won’t heal you.
c. Finally believe that prayer works. James 5:17-18
17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months.
18 Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.
Elijah wasn’t overly special but he believed and he prayed earnestly. What could happen if we believed and prayed earnestly?
Just remember some of the things that James tells us. Don’t be double minded James 1:7–8 “7 For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, 8 being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.” and don’t have the wrong motives James 4:3 “3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.”
Believe without wavering and ask for the healing that it might bring Glory to God. Just make sure of one thing - when the healing comes you testify and give glory to God for healing you.
Exit: So according to James the proper action to take when you are suffering or sick is to pray about it with a pure heart (correct motives) and believe (without wavering) that Jesus can and will act on your behalf according to His will for your life.
And then, call the Elders of the church. Allow us the blessing of praying over you in faith and anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord so that you might be healed and raised up.
The Catholic tradition waits until things are sever before calling the Priest. When you are going into surgery and you may not come out alive, or you are on your death bed and you aren’t expected to last much longer, but this isn’t a Catholic Church. You don’t need to wait for imminent death before calling on the Elders. The Elders here at the Chapel know what it means to be called upon to anoint and pray for the suffering and sick. Mike called upon the Elders when he found out he had cancer. I have called upon the Elders in the past to be anointed and prayed over in the name of Jesus. Jesus is the great physician, He can and will heal. Jesus’ healing ministry for His Church did not end with the death of the Apostle’s. It is alive and well, but you have to have faith and follow the scriptures.
So, let’s put our faith into practice. We are going to provide some time for prayer and anointing.
