We Have a Source

October 29, 2006

Rev. Eddie Smart

James 5:13-18

Are any among you suffering? They should pray. Are any cheerful? They should sing songs of praise. ¹⁴Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up; and anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven. ¹⁶Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective. ¹⁷Elijah was a human being like us, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. ¹⁸Then he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain and the earth yielded its harvest.

    The story is told of the man who got a permit to open the first tavern in a small town. The members of a local church were strongly opposed to the bar, so they began to pray that God would intervene. A few days before the tavern was to open, lightening hit the structure, and it burned to the ground.

     The people of the church were surprised, but pleased _ until they received notice that the would-be tavern owner was suing them. He contended that their prayers were responsible for the burning of the building. In a strongly-worded deposition the church denied the charge.

     At the conclusion of the hearing, the judge wryly remarked, "At this point I don't know what my decision will be, but this appears to be the situation: The owner of the tavern believes in the power of prayer, and these church people don't."

    Are we like the tavern owner, or are we like those church people? Do we believe in the power of prayer? Are we like James? James believed in the power of prayer.

    While James believed in the power of prayer, he also taught us something about the dynamics of prayer. He asked, “Are any among you suffering? They should pray. Are any cheerful? They should [pray]. ¹⁴Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray...” BUT James is not talking about just any kind of prayer! James speaks of “prayers of faith.” He mentions, “prayer of the righteous.” He describes prayer as “powerful and effective.”

    James knew that life does not always unfold the way we would like. There are times in this life that we suffer. There are times in this life that we experience great joy. There are times in this life that we are ill. James says whether things are going well or ill, whether we are suffering or cheerful, in all circumstances of life, we can and should turn to God.

      When terrorist deliberately flew passenger planes into the World Trade Center and Pentagon, there were Americans from coast to coast who turned to God. Patrick Chaney went to ground zero this summer. He and others from the Wesley Foundation at Texas Tech offered to pray with people near that scene of horror. Patrick returned home disillusioned because far fewer people were interested in praying in June. The apostle Paul said, “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (1 Thes. 5:18)

      As Maxie Dunnam put it, “Praying is not our idea, it’s God’s.” James is not telling us to pray come what may because it is his idea. James is telling us to pray because God has commanded it, and Jesus demonstrated it. If Jesus felt the need to pray, who are we to think we can coast by without it.

      By the way, while Patrick was in New York near ground zero was a billboard. An ad had been placed there in late August-early September. It was a part if the Igniting Ministry campaign of the United Methodist Church. Superimposed over a pair of hands folded in prayer are the words, “Fear is not the only force at work in the world today.”

      In recent weeks there has been much criticism of the sincere efforts of people to offer security in an America that has been visited by terrorism. Fingers are pointing in all directions. James would tell us today that all our fingers should be placed together and pointing up as we unite in prayer.

      When James addresses illness, he doesn’t say the ill person should pray. James says the ill person should call the community of faith together so they can pray. There are things in this world that require the entire community of faith in prayer. The only hope we have for physical security is world peace. The only hope we have for world peace is a world in prayer.

      James also gives specific help on how to pray effectively and powerfully. It is the prayers of the righteous that are effective and powerful. The minute James mentions the community coming together to pray for the ill, he mentions SIN. He assures us that those who have committed sin are forgiven. He encourages us to “confess our sins to one another and pray for one another.” Are we a righteous people? Can we stand right before God? Do we love God and neighbor? John’s gospel says we are to love one another, just as Jesus has loved us. (John 15:12) Jesus said we were to love our enemy and pray for those who abuse and persecute us.

      James backs up what he says about the prayers of the righteous being powerful and effective. He goes to the example of Elijah. When we are first introduced to Elijah in I Kings 17, he tells King Ahab that there will be no rain except by Elijah’s word, and for 3 ½ years there was no rain.

      It is interesting that James speaks of Elijah in terms of powerful and effective prayer. The same Elijah restored life to a widow’s son. Elijah asked that same widow for bread and the little bit of water, flour, and oil that she had lasted for years. Elijah confronted the Priests of Baal on Mount Carmel and after his God did what Baal couldn’t, he kills all the Priest of Baal. This man of miracles, was a man of prayer. Elijah is our example of a righteous human being whose prayers were powerful and effective. James reminds us that he is no “superman.” Elijah was as human as you and I. God answered the prayers of Elijah, and God will answer our prayer.

      At over 52,000 tons, capable of moving 30 knots and armed with the biggest, most advanced guns ever put to sea, the Bismarck was the largest and most deadly battleship ever built. Her discovery by a reconnaissance plane off Norway started one of the most dramatic stories of WWII. For four days, the British Navy devoted every resource to destroying the German monster.

      The Battle Cruiser Hood and the Princes of Wales were the first of the British fleet to encounter the Bismarck. From the time the first shot was fired, it took the Bismarck six minutes to sink the HMS Hood, the largest battleship in the world prior to the commissioning of the Bismarck.

      Once it was spotted again, aircraft with torpedoes attacked again and again. One torpedo hit mid-ship causing little damage. Another torpedo hit aft, seeming causing little damage. However, that torpedo jammed the two rudders at 12 degrees port. The Bismarck could do little more than go in circles in the North Atlantic. The British fleet caught up with the Bismarck and pounded it for over two hours until it sank.

      The most powerful battleship ever built was helpless when its rudders failed. Dr. Terry Teykl asked the students in the chapel of Asbury Seminary to place their hands palms together in front of themselves. Turn them to the right. Turn them to the left. It looks kind of like a rudder. Teykl says prayer is the rudder of the church. Without prayer, the church is like the wounded Bismarck, crippled to the point it can be sunk. Is the rudder of our church stuck?

      Elijah gave us the example of powerful, effective prayer. Elijah also prayed fervently. James said Elijah was no better than you or me, but he was righteous. As we remember 9-11, also remember: “Fear is not the only force at work in the world today.”