Devotional Thoughts | James Pt. 15

Meeting Specific Needs

Today we conclude our devotional study of the Epistle of James. I pray this has been insightful for you, and applicable to your daily life. As I said last week, I have greatly enjoyed the preparation and sharing of these studies over the course of the last few months.

As we conclude this study we find James sharing practical words of instruction for the recipients of the letter. As is often the case, there are some portions of the Scripture which need little explanation. The simplicity of the instruction, the directness of the teaching is so clear there is no need for further detail being used as illustrative material. Such is the case with most of the remainder of this epistle. There are a couple of points I do wish to comment on as we read the remainder of James chapter 5.

James 5:12-19 [NASB] 12 But most of all, my brothers and sisters, never take an oath, by heaven or earth or anything else. Just say a simple yes or no, so that you will not sin and be condemned.

13 Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises. 14 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. 15 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.

16 Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. 17 Elijah was as human as we are, and yet when he prayed earnestly that no rain would fall, none fell for three and a half years! 18 Then, when he prayed again, the sky sent down rain and the earth began to yield its crops.

19 My dear brothers and sisters, if someone among you wanders away from the truth and is brought back, 20 you can be sure that whoever brings the sinner back from wandering will save that person from death and bring about the forgiveness of many sins.

I want to thank Craig Weinberg for producing the podcast, and for hosting it on the Why Milbank Podcast Network. I have thoroughly enjoyed our time together in the recording studio. However, due to health concerns for my mother as well as travel plans and family commitments, we are not going to be doing the podcast this summer. I pray you have a blessed summer and hope to join you again in the Fall.