Do you believe God still heals today? It is always difficult when people are suffering to watch them go through it. James challenges us that there is a time when we are supposed to call for the leaders of the church to believe for God to heal.
Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven. James 5:14,15
James is writing, if someone is "sick" meaning frail, extremely sickly, feeble, so much so that they are unable to make it to the fellowship, homebound, they can "call" request, ask, invite, certain people to come to them and pray.
Jesus commanded all of us, if we are filled with the Spirit, to lay hands on the sick and they will recover. However, James is talking about a different circumstance here.
There is an authority that comes with ordination. The word James uses, interpreted, "elders," means those in authority, the ones that are ordained, and chosen for leadership. This word is used over sixty times in the New Testament and each time means those who are leadership, officially recognized in the church.
When these leaders come to those who are frail, feeble, extremely sick, they are to "petition with great passion," specifically asking God to perform the needed miracle. They are to do this by anointing with oil. The type of oil normally was a simple olive oil. However, the emphasis is not on the oil itself. The oil has no power it is merely a symbol of the Holy Spirit's presence to heal. When the oil is applied the leadership and the ill are to believe the Presence of God is coming upon the person to heal!
As faith is applied to this prayer, there is an expectation of God's power pouring out over the person. The "name" of the Lord is an important part of faith. The name represents the authority of Christ. As the elders are anointing and praying in that authority of Christ, we are standing in the position of Jesus as his representative. This is powerful but the prayer offered in faith is absolutely necessary, or there will be disappointing results.
Despite all of this, James is making it clear it is the Lord who does the healing! God is always the healer, no human possesses the ability to heal. We possess the faith to believe for it, but all healing is performed by God. However, we must respond the way God designed in order for the healing to take place.
James is giving us hope here. Those who have extremely difficult illnesses will be healed as the prayer is offered by the leadership, anointing representing the presence of the Holy Spirit, calling on the name of the Lord, to heal. There is no time limit here, it is simply God will act according to His will and purpose as we cry out to Him.
In the church, pray for the colds, backaches, toenail fungus, it does not take the special authority to believe for these and other type things. However, if someone is gravely ill, this requires for the authority of the leadership to come and pray. So as a part of the church function in the power of the Holy Spirit to allow the Lord to heal through you, but difficult circumstances require the authority and anointing of leadership. As the church, we need to believe God still heals and wants to heal, and He makes the impossible possible!
Let's begin to believe for the impossible!
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