The Power of Persistent Prayer

The Power of Persistent Prayer James 5:13-20

Bible Passage: James 5:13-20

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Throughout the book of James we have been challenged to endure trials, reject partiality, control our tongues, pursue wisdom, humble ourselves before God, and patiently wait for Christ's return. James’ final emphasis is simple but profound: pray.

I need this lesson. I often struggle to pray or I am just outright disobedient in praying. I know that I ought to always pray (1 Thess 5:17, Rom 12:12, Col 4:2), but I regularly fail at it. Even the “Armor of God” includes prayer as the communication line for God’s soldiers (Eph 6:18).

Introduction

How important is prayer? Prayer is essential to faithfully following God. If we are to obey God, not only be “hearers” but “doers of God’s Word” (James 1:22), we will practice a persistent prayer life.

Consider the prayer habits of Jesus. He spent entire nights in prayer (Luke 6:12-13). He regularly withdrew to desolate places to pray (Luke 5:16). In what is often called the High Priestly Prayer, Jesus prayed for His disciples and those who would believe through them (John 17). He prayed with such intensity before His trial that His sweat was like drops of blood (Luke 22:39-46). Our Lord gave us the perfect example on prayer. His disciples asked Him to teach them how to pray (Luke 11:1-13).

James opened this letter by addressing the need for prayer.

5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. (James 1:5-6)

If we need something, like wisdom, we need to go to God and we need to go to Him in faith. As we come to the end of this letter, James closes with the necessity of prayer, almost like book ends to the letter - we begin with prayer and faith, and we end with prayer and faith.

This passage teaches us four things about prayer:

Pray in Any Circumstance

Pray for One Another

Pray with Earnest

Pray for Restoration

1. Pray In Any Circumstance

When do you pray? Do you “mostly” pray when things are going well? Do you mostly pray when the world is falling apart? Of course, we ought to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess 5:17), but what motivates us to pray?

In chapter one, James opened this letter addressing “trial of various kinds” they we may endure and to pray for wisdom as we endure them (James 1:2-3). Now, at the end of the letter, James mentioned again the suffering we may endure and what we should do about it.

Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. (James 5:13)

The word translated “suffering” can mean any form of hardship. So, this would be anything that might not be “good”. When we face these types of situations, what should we do? James tells us to pray. While we may be tempted to react to difficulties with grumbling, anger, or discouragement (I have!), God’s Word tells us there is one clear and proper Christian response: prayer.

If you are going through something, you should pray about it.

But, we ought to not only pray when we are going through a difficult time. We should also pray when things are going well, when we are cheerful. The word James used was actually “sing praise” (James 5:13).

It may be harder for us to pray when things are going well because we may think we don’t need God, or we may not think of God during those times. Pain and suffering have a way of focusing our minds on what we cannot control, motivating us to seek God in prayer. But, times of cheerfulness may tempt us to forget the blessings of God and neglect our relationship with Him.

James reminds us to turn to God in both happiness and hardship, reinforcing the need for prayer. By praying and praising,

We draw closer to God,

We trust in divine intervention, and

We anticipate Godly deliverance.

So, whether we find happiness or pain in life, we should always go to the Lord.

2. Pray for One Another

Do you remember James speaking about the problem of the tongue? One good way to “tame” one’s tongue (James 3:8) is to “pray for one another”. It is difficult to use our tongues in a vicious way when we genuinely lift others up in prayer. James calls us to pray for those in need.

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. (James 5:14)

The sick person is probably someone who is bedridden at home and calls for the elders (plural!) of the church to come pray “over him”. We should not assume that only the elders of the church are to pray for those who are sick or in need. Praying for others is something we all should be doing (Eph. 6:18).

Some people think that anointing with oil actually heals a person or imparts grace. The anointing oil here can be viewed as a symbol of God’s power to heal a sick person. For instance, baptism does not save or literally wash our sins aways (only the blood of Jesus does that!), but it is a symbol of the believer dying to sin and being raised to new life in Christ. Or, many will place a hand on the shoulder of the person for whom they are praying. They are not channeling any divine power or grace, but we are demonstrating the power of prayer for someone. So also, anointing oil is a symbol of the healing power of the Holy Spirit.

Furthermore, the anointing is done “in the name of the Lord” (James 5:14), that is, we are calling on the Lord to heal. Thus, it is God that heals. When we pray, we are asking God to intervene and heal that person.

But wait, there is more to praying for others. There is faith.

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 5:15)

The prayer of faith here is not the faith of the sick person but the faith of those praying over him. The elders have been called to pray over the sick person, thus it is their faith that is in view. It may be best to see this as “prayer offered in faith”. The faith of the sick person here is to call for the elders to pray over him.

Now, should we always expect healing when we pray? One distorted form of Christianity says that Christians should always expect to be healed from sickness in this life. If one is not healed, then that person lacks faith, some will say. If we read this passage in isolation, we may come away with that interpretation. However, other passages of Scripture make clear that the sick and suffering are not always healed—even the Apostle Paul was not healed of an ailment (2 Cor. 12:8–9). The 100 percent mortality rate of humanity shows the fact that all of us will eventually succumb to sickness, injury, or old age.

James is not teaching that all illnesses will be healed if people would simply call on the elders, or try to make themselves have enough faith. Healing, when it does come, is always a gift from God, who is sovereign over all circumstances, including sickness and health. It is the sovereign God, and no one else, who determines the answers to our prayers. We may faithfully pray for someone or for something and the answer is still…“no”, or “not yet”. We need to understand that and trust God’s will and timing.

“Will save” perhaps carries a double meaning here: (1) the sick person will be physically healed, and/or (2) the sick person may also experience spiritual salvation, or spiritual healing. Sometimes sickness is a result of sin, and when it is, “healing” can be both physical and spiritual (i.e., forgiveness). Forgiveness presumes repentance. However we should not assume that all sickness is the result of sin. Certainly, some is, but most human sickness is simply the result of living in a broken world.

There is another way for us to pray for one another: confession.

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. (James 5:16)

Here James moves from the prayers of the elder to the prayers of the whole church. While not all the time, sometimes unconfessed sin can result in physical sickness (v. 15b). James tells us that all believers should regularly confess their sins (and, implicitly, turn from their sins in repentance). Although confession to God is the most necessary form of confession (Ps. 51:4), any genuine Godward repentance will be mirrored in relationships within the church community.

Sometimes confession in the community is needed before healing can take place, since sin may be the cause of the illness. The healing James mentioned here may be primarily spiritual.

Lastly, James mentioned that the prayer of a righteous person is powerful. The 80s contemporary Christian artist, Carman, released a song called “The Prayer Anthem” in which he said in the intro: "I believe in the power of prayer. I believe that prayer changes things because the Bible says the fervent prayers of the righteous man gets a whole lot done.“

Do you believe that in the power of prayer? Do you believe that prayers gets things done?

3. Pray With Earnest

When you pray, do you expect God to answer your prayers exactly how you ask them and when you want them? Honestly, I suspect many of us pray at least wanting the answer to be whatever it is we want (We think we know best!), and we expect God to answer our prayers NOW! For some, if God does not answer their prayers in that way, they just give up. They may say to themselves, “Well, I tried praying and it did not work, so I am moving on.”

James presents Elijah as an example of a righteous man who prayed effectively. The thing about mentioning Elijah is that James does not hold him up as a “super disciple of God” that we could never imitate. To the contrary, James said Elijah was just like you and me.

17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. 18 Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit. (James 5:17-18)

Elijah displayed in prayer how human weakness paired with divine power can alter even natural courses. Elijah is an example of how a man like us could have the powerful prayer life of “a righteous person.” The drought recorded in 1 Kings 17–18 was punishment on King Ahab and Israel for idolatry.

James urged the church to reflect on the potential for great spiritual impact through prayer through the example of Elijah. Notice that James says Elijah was “like us”. When we say we can’t pray like Elijah, or we can’t have the faith of Elijah, yes we can. That does not mean God will rain fire down on our enemies (actually His enemies!), nor does it mean it will rain (thought we need it!) or not rain because we pray for it. But we can pray “fervently” like Elijah and expect God to respond by His will and in His time.

Thus, pray fervently. Pray earnestly. This means doing something in a serious, sincere, and determined manner. It means praying with strong, sincere convictions, such as eagerly hoping and strongly believing in what you are praying.

But…maybe there are times when you have trouble praying? Maybe, you are going through something that challenges your faith and trust in God. What do you do if you do not have the words to pray? What do you do if you just don’t know what to pray, or how to pray? Have any of you felt like that? I have! Then, use someone else’s words. Use the words of someone who has gone through something similar. Where can you find that? Use God’s Word. Pray God’s Word. Pray the Psalms. But, whatever you do…don’t stop praying!

4. Pray for Restoration

James ends this letter with a loving exhortation not to neglect the straying sinner but to seek him out with love and truth. James calls the community to action in helping those who have fallen into sin, perhaps the sins he has dealt with in the book.

19 My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, 20 let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins. (James 5:19-20)

We have a responsibility to one another to call one another back to faithfulness if we see someone wander from the truth. The righteous saints (“brothers”) must be vigilant in spotting anyone who wanders from the truth, namely, by not living in accord with the word of truth (James 1:18) as mentioned in this letter.

Through gentle correction and intercessory prayer, believers can help guide people back to truth. This passage charges us with the responsibility of restoring those who stray, emphasizing grace and patience in the process. By engaging in this restorative mission, we mirror Christ's love and bring about God's healing grace, underscoring the significance of community in leading one another towards righteousness.

Ultimately, of course, only the Lord saves a person. The one who restores the person will cover the many sins of the one who had strayed, for the one who returns from the way of error receives forgiveness. Again, only God can cover sin, but Christians can be agents of God’s forgiveness.

One of the means God has instituted to preserve His people is the loving brotherly concern Christians are to show to one another. If a member of the Christian community begins to live as a nonbeliever, the right thing to do is warn the person that, from all appearances, he is running toward eternal death. That very warning may be the instrument God uses to preserve him.

Conclusion

This passage encourages the church to pray. We should cultivate an environment where accountability and mutual support flourish through prayer. The power of praying together not only strengthens our individual faith but also fosters unity and healing within the body of Christ. It reminds us of our shared dependence on God. We should not only pray individually, but we ought to pray together.

But, when you pray, don’t pray like the unbeliever who only prays to get what he wants. We should not treat God as a divine vending machine. We deposit prayer and expect to receive what we requested. The unbeliever would pray for something, and if he did not get it would say, “I’m done with this”. 

The believer will pray like Jesus did, not my will, but your will be done, Father. Let us remember to genuinely acknowledge, “if the Lord wills”. The righteous will pray, your will be done, recognizing that the Father in heaven is powerful enough to prevent and to resolve any problem, but His will is better and higher than ours.

Application:

1. Make prayer your first response, not your last resort. Ask yourself: What situation am I trying to solve without prayer? Have I spent more time worrying than praying? Commit to praying first.

2. Don't suffer alone. God expects us to involve the church. Reach out. Ask trusted believers to pray with you. Allow the church to minister to you. This may involve confession of sin. Don’t neglect the healing that comes from a clean heart (Psalm 51).

3. Pursue those who have wandered. Think of someone who has drifted from church or from the Lord. Don't simply talk about them. Pray. Call. Visit. Encourage. Invite them back. God often uses ordinary believers to bring wandering Christians home.

Finally…maybe, the real power in prayer is the change it makes in us. As we continue to exercise faithful prayer, it shows our dependency on our Father in Heaven. When we come to Him,

We acknowledge our weakness, but His strength.

We demonstrate our trust in God’s perfect will and His perfect timing.

We also follow the example of our Lord Jesus who modeled persistent prayer. We pray because we need Him.

Closing song: I Need Thee Every Hour