Jas 5:13 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms.
Jas 5:14 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.
Jas 5:15 And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.
Jas 5:16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
Jas 5:17 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 land for three years and six months.
Jas 5:18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.
Greetings and Blessings family and friends, today I want to encourage you to always pray and not be weary or to worry! All throughout the Bible we find scriptures on the importance and power of prayer. Prayer is so important and powerful that in Luke chapter 11, the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray as John taught his disciples.
Isn’t that amazing? The disciples saw Jesus casting out demons, performing miracles and telling parables and stories with heavenly wisdom. Yet, they asked him to teach them how to pray, as John taught his disciples how to pray! Let’s read!
Luk 11:1 Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.”
As we see from the scriptures, Jesus also prayed on a regular basis and the disciples saw the Son of God and Son of Man praying with consistency and power. We also see from the scriptures that prayer can be taught. In other words there are principles that relate to prayer that anyone who does not know how to pray can learn. (we will discuss this in our next devotional)
So all throughout scripture we are exhorted to pray! Jesus told us in Matt 26:41, “Watch and pray, that you enter not into temptation, the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Jesus also told us in Luke 18: 1, “Pray always and not to faint.” Paul told us in 1 Thess 5: 17, “To pray without ceasing.” He also told us in Eph 6:18, “ To pray always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.”
So in James chapter 5, verses 13-18, we learn some powerful principles of prayer by the Apostle James. James mentions prayer at least seven times in six verses of scripture.
Jas 5:13 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms.
Jas 5:14 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.
Jas 5:15 And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.
Jas 5:16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
Jas 5:17 Elijah was a man subject to passions as we are (with nature like ours), and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months.
Jas 5:18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.
In these passages of scripture we find that no matter what you are going through, the answer to all these things is prayer! What is so profound is that James mentions the mighty Prophet Elijah who did great miracles in the name of the LORD. James said that although he was a powerful man of God, he had a human nature or was subject to passions like you and me.
Do you understand what James is saying? That although Elijah was a mighty prophet of God and stopped the rain for three and a half years, (1 Kings 17:1), he was a man, or human being like you and me! Let’s read what James said:
Jas 5:17 Elijah was a man subject to passions like as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months.
Jas 5:18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.
If you are not aware of how powerful Elijah the Prophet was, let me remind you of what he did in the name of the LORD! God used Elijah mightily to raise a boy from the dead, (1 Kings 17: 21) called down fire from heaven, (1 Kings 18: 37-38), and killed four hundred and fifty false prophets by himself, (1 Kings 18:40) but yet he was a human being with a nature like you and me! This should encourage someone that God is not a respecter of persons and that he hears the prayers of his beloved and righteous children!
I want you to know that although you may not be a licensed or ordained Minister, Deacon, or Elder. It makes no difference! James is making the case that prayer is for everyone, and God hears the prayers of all his righteous saints!
The Bible says in Jas 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that you may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
So today I want to encourage someone that prayer is important and that you should pray with power concerning that situation just like the Prophet Elijah. As a result God is going to open the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing that you would not have room enough to receive!
The Bible says in Eph 3:20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us.
May God Bless you and keep on praying with power!
Pastor Quinn
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