A Living Faith Evidenced in Prayer – Part 4 (James 5:13-18)
In James 5:17–18, James illustrates the power of persistent prayer in the life of Elijah. Although we do not live in a miraculous age where God will work miracles through us directly, the principle of God’s working providentially (or, indirectly from us, working miraculously) in response to persistent prayer remains in force today.
What do we know about Elijah and his prayer of faith?
- He was a righteous man: his ethical character directed the kinds of prayers he prayed and the petitions he desired (Ps 37:4)
- He had a worthy petition (2 Thess 1:11–12): based on the context of the OT storyline, his prayer was an appropriate desire to showcase God’s power in the face of idolatry. The prayer was fitting to the context of Elijah’s role and God’s working at that time in Israel’s history.
- He persisted in prayer: he truly believed in God, truly believed in what he prayed for, and he truly depended on God to bring it to pass in His timing (see also Luke 18:1–8; Mark 7:24–30).
- His petition was powerful: it was able to do much—able to overcome obstacles and opposition; it effectively accomplished God’s work (Heb 11:6).
But Elijah was a great prophet, and his day was a unique day of great miraculous works!
- Elijah was just a man like us.
- Praying earnestly was the key—God decides to answer the prayer according to His will and power (whether providentially or miraculously); our role is to pray earnestly and expectantly.
- The content, purpose, and results of his prayer are given in detail in 1 Kings 17–18 (more context for why this prayer for drought and rain aligned with God’s will to display His glory).
- It takes great faith to trust that God can answer prayers like this. In fact, this is another reason why this passage is most likely speaking in terms of physical renewal—it takes greater faith to believe that God can renew us physically than spiritually perhaps (cf. Mark 2:9).
Personal Testimony
Working through the meaning and import of this passage is more than just an intellectual exercise for me. If you know my testimony (see posts starting here), you would know that I was struck down with an unknown muscle disease in my late teens to early twenties. When I was in Seminary, taking a class on the Greek Exegesis of James, I decided to write my term paper on this passage to truly understand how I should respond to my physical and spiritual needs. On more than one occasion people have explicitly and forthrightly (let alone many other times of indirect insinuation) accused me of grievous sin otherwise I wouldn’t be suffering with such a disease. Never mind that it turns out that it is a genetic disease since birth and always would have manifested itself at some point in my life.
Ultimately, I have never decided to request the elders of my church to anoint me with oil and pray that I be healed. That’s because I’m not on my deathbed needing to call them to me to stand over me. That’s because I view the anointing as an attendant circumstance rather than the command. I don’t view it as a magic formula. I don’t think my sickness is related to sin. And I don’t expect a miraculous reversal as one might expect in the apostolic age. God’s purposes for working miracles transcend our personal needs and fit into His larger redemptive plan—usually at turning points in redemptive history.
Nevertheless, I certainly have prayed for healing and many others have too. I certainly have asked my churches to pray for me, and I’m happy enough if people pray for healing. It would certainly be an amazing display of God’s power if ever gene repair done in an ethical and cost-effective way became possible in my lifetime. The possibilities are more real and directly being worked on for my very specific kind of disease. If you want to pray for a miracle, pray that humans would know how to do gene therapy ethically—because the unethical ramifications of trying do such are multiple and complex. But I’m happy to await the Lord’s restoration of my body at the resurrection. My main focus is always on the endurance to persevere and to be used, and not for healing. Different people may have different pleas to God in relation to different situations and understandings. Regardless, God’s grace is sufficient (2 Cor 4:16-1-8; 12:7–10).
Kevin Collins has served as a junior high youth leader in Michigan, a missionary in Singapore, a Christian School teacher in Utah, and a Bible writer for the BJU Press. He currently works for American Church Group of South Carolina. He also blogs at his other two sites, Gospel in the Marketplace and The Fire and Hammer.
Image by Kreingkrai Luangchaipreeda from Pixabay