James chapter five, James chapter five. Thank you for coming this evening. Good to have you here at the house of God. And I was doing my own time with the Lord this evening. I read William Jay's books, his devotionals. And I was amazed to find that the verses that we will be studying this evening were mentioned in that very particular and in this evening's devotional. And I just thought to myself, you know, you're going to hear God's message. God's message for you this evening. Isn't that a wonderful thought? To think that God and his providence caused such a merging together of a mere devotional to our studies in the book of James and the slowness and the quickness of our pace through this particular book. So we came to these particular verses on the particular night of that particular devotional that I've been reading my way through. And so there might be others and they're elsewhere tonight and they'll hear messages. but it'll not be God's message. It'll not be heaven's message. And so you're here tonight to hear God's message. And I know that that'll be an encouragement to you, and I trust it will be to myself. Now, it'll not be anything special. I'm preaching it in and of itself with regard to oratory. But I trust that even the verses will be an encouragement as we read through them. So having said that, we're reading from the verse 10 of James chapter 5. In James, by inspiration, he says, take my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord for an example of suffering, affliction, and of patience. Behold, we count them happy, which endure. You have heard of the patience of Job, And ye have seen the end of the Lord, that the Lord is very pitiful and of tender mercy. But of all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any oath, but let your yea be yea and your nay be nay, lest ye fall into a condemnation. Is any among you afflicted? Let him pray. Is any merry? Let him sing sounds. Is any sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over them, him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up. And if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. We'll end our reading at the end of verse number 15. Amen. Nowhere in God's word is the follower of the Lord Jesus Christ promised an easy, hassle-free, unproblematic life. In actual fact, the opposite is true. The opposite life is promised for the child of God who walks faithfully in accordance to the word of God. Because the Bible speaks about the Christian facing tribulation and persecution because of their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And that is on top of all of the other troubles which are the lot of every human being in this fallen world. However, life is not always full of dark times, and not always full of valley experiences. I'm sure, not sure who it was that said it, but it has been said that the Christian life is a little like the land of Canaan. It has its many hills, and it has its many valleys. Moses informed the children of Israel in Deuteronomy chapter 11 and the verse 11 that the land, whether you go to possess it, is a land of hills and valleys and drinketh water of rain off heaven. And so this world is just like Canaan. It has its hills. and it also has its valleys. But thank God, though this world has, and our experience in it, has its valleys and its hills, thank God, our God is the God of the hills, and he's also the God of the valleys. And so whether you're on the mountaintop tonight or in the valley, your God is with you, and his presence goes before you. Now in the verses that we have read this evening in James chapter 5 we get a little snapshot of some of the valleys and the hills that we come across in our earthly In verse 13, we firstly descend into the valley of affliction. Is any among you afflicted? But before we come to exit the verse number 13, we're leaving the valley of affliction behind, and we're climbing and ascending the mountain of joy and praise. Because it goes on to say in verse 13, is any merry? And so it begins as any afflicted there in the valley, and then it seems to be that they're transported to the mountaintop. Is any merry? But it isn't long before the track turns downward again into another valley, and this time we find ourselves in the valley of sickness, because verse 14 says, is any sick? Among you and so whether you're in the valley of affliction the mountaintop of praise or joy or you find yourself in the valley of Sickness this evening the question is what are we to do in such times? when we find ourselves in such places as we make our way through this world because There are going to be times when you're going to be in the valley of affliction There are other times you're going to be in the mountaintop praise and joy and thanksgiving, and other times you're going to be in the valley of sickness. So what are we to do? Well, the inspired pen man gives us some counsel, and I want to speak on that particular counsel this evening for a few moments, in a message that I've entitled, What to do in Life's Valleys. and on lice hills. What to do in lice valleys and on lice hills? Let's consider then these valleys and hills as we meet them in this particular section of James chapter five. Firstly, as I've said, we descend into the valley of affliction. Verse 13, is any among you afflicted? Let him pray. James has just given to his readership a case example of individuals who had found themselves in such a valley. He speaks of the prophets in the verse 10, take my brethren, the prophets who have spoken in the name of the Lord for an example of suffering, what? Affliction and of patience. The word affliction is what we would call an umbrella term. It really is a term that incorporates the many troubles and the problems that we face in this world. It can mean physical pain, it can mean hardship, troubles, problems, difficulties, evils, distress of various kinds. The Greek term that's used here is to undergo hardship or to suffer troubles. And to believe that we are going to escape life's afflictions just because we have come to place our faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ is naive to say the least. The Bible speaks of the Christian, the Christian suffering afflictions in many passages of his word, of God's word. Psalm 34 verse 19, many, many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. In Isaiah 63 verse 9 it says, in all their affliction he was afflicted there we have the empathy and the sympathy of our Lord Jesus Christ in our afflictions and all their affliction he was afflicted he identifies with us in our times of affliction 2nd Corinthians 4 17 for our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more than exceeding and eternal weight of glory." And the readership that James is writing to here knew what it was to be afflicted. And that affliction took place on two different fronts. There was external affliction and there was internal affliction. Think of firstly about the external afflictions that these individuals were facing. You'll remember back at the opening chapter, and the verse number one we read these words James a servant of God of the Lord Jesus Christ to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad A greeting. These individuals were scattered from their homeland, the land of Israel, because of persecution. Persecution on two fronts. First of all, from the Judaizers of their day and those within the Jewish nation, as well as the Roman authorities who were clamping down on those who did not give full and complete allegiance to the Roman emperor. So they were scattered abroad because of persecution. On top of their expulsion from their homeland, the ungodly, you'll remember, were withholding their wages from them. Having themselves given a decent day's work to the ungodly, these individuals were withholding their wages from them. We read that in chapter 5 in the opening verses of the chapter verse 4 behold the higher of the laborers you have reaped on your fields which is off you kept back by fraud crieth and the cries of them which are reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of the Sabbath and then not only that but these individuals were also being drawn to the judgment seats they were being brought to court by the ungodly. And so they were scattered, dispersed from their land. They weren't getting their wages. These individuals were also in a legal battle with the Judaizers and with the, sorry, with the ungodly. And so these were individuals that knew what it was to suffer affliction externally, from external sources. But there was also internal affliction. Remember, James speaks in this epistle about the lust at war against the soul. The great battle that occurs between the flesh and the spirit within the child of God. In chapter 1 he reminds us that every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed. And so this conflict that occurs between the old nature, when it's not constrained by grace, and it's allowed to gain the upper hand in the lives of God's children at times in their lives, this would have brought affliction into the minds and into the lives of these individuals. And so these Christians, they were under pressure, both from outside and from inside. And so what were they to do? I can see this letter being read out among the congregation when it was first delivered to the congregations. Is any among you afflicted? I'm sure everyone in the congregation thought to themselves, well, who among us isn't? Who among us isn't afflicted? And that's the case for every congregation. We all have our afflictions. I have my afflictions, you have your afflictions. Sometimes they come from within, our failure with regard to our walk with God, the yielding to sin and to temptation, and then those from outside. We have our afflictions to face in our families, within our society at large, and so what are we to do? Well, notice what we're not to do. We're not to repine. We're not to murmur. We're not to complain. We're not to grumble. We're not to fuss. We're not to do any of those things. What we're to do is that we are to pray. Is any among you afflicted? Let him pray. That's the course of action to take this evening. How simple. How simple the instruction. And yet how infrequent we do what we're instructed to do. Those that were in the valley of affliction were encouraged by James to pray. Now this is something that James did for himself. Church history records that James had a nickname. Do you know what his nickname was? Old Camel Knees. That was his nickname, Old Camel Knees. The reason was because he always knelt in prayer. And James's knees, history records, had become calloused like a camel's knees. And that's why he was known as the man with camel knees. He knew what it was to pray. In other words, he practiced what he preached. That's a good instruction for every minister, for every preacher. to practice what you preach. I hear of people and they say, well, you know, they would maybe stand up in churches and say, and complain about others not being at the prayer meetings before the church services. But whenever they're at their own home congregation, they're not there. That's hypocrisy. That's hypocrisy. But James practiced what he preached. James practiced what he preached. And so he tells him, let him pray. He had learned the art and he had learned the benefit of that very action. And therefore he then counsels these people to pray, why? Because he had proved such a course of action to be most effective when he had found himself in affliction. James was aware that these individuals were pressed in on every side, but his counsel was for them to look up. Don't look around. Don't be looking around at your affliction. Don't be looking into your valley and getting into such a depressed, downcast state. Don't be looking downwards. Don't be looking around. Look up. Look up to God. Look up to the throne of grace. Look up to the God of grace who reigns upon the throne of grace. And so they were to look up in their day of affliction. You know, that's one of the benefits and advantages, if we could call it that, to our times of affliction. There are times that we pray. Affliction leads us, let me use a stronger term, affliction drives us to the throne of grace and prayer. Have you found that in your Christian life? I'm sure you have. In times of affliction, our prayers seem to be just that more real. They are certainly more frequent, they are definitely more intense, and they are, without doubt, more sincere. When life is difficult, when faith is weak, when we're weary with persecution and we're crushed by affliction, We are to bring ourselves before God in prayer, and we're to ask him for the grace and the strength to continue, to persevere. That he'll carry us through the affliction until he sees fit for its removal. Albert Barnes says, it matters not what is the form of trial. It is a privilege which all have to go to God in prayer. It is a privilege. Health fails, friends die, property is lost, disappointments come upon us, danger threatens, death approaches, and to whom shall we go but to God? He ever lives. He never fails us or disappoints us if we trust in him. and his ear is ever open on to their cries. And so brother, sister, having brought your burden to this meeting tonight, don't take it home, but bring it to God in prayer. Is any among you afflicted? Let him pray. Even when you don't feel like praying, let him pray. He wants to hear about your affliction. Isn't that a wonderful thought? You just imagine someone, and every time they meet you, they always talk about their problems and their troubles and their afflictions. You're a bit like a minister if you feel like that. But imagine if you did meet someone like that, and that's all they ever talked about, their afflictions and their problems. Do you know what you would want to do? You would want to avoid that person. You know, brethren and sisters, we go to God and we tell him our problems and our afflictions and our troubles, and he never turns us away. He's never weary of us bringing such to him. He never grows tired of hearing, but he invites us to come boldly to the throne of grace. For there we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Having first descended into the valley of affliction, we now come to go upwards, we come to ascend, and now we're coming to ascend the hill of praise, because verse 13 goes on to say, as any Mary, let him sing psalms. Like a rotating cartwheel, We can be one day in the depths of despair, and the very next day we can be raised to the heights of delight. You know, in life there are seasons of pain, but there's also seasons of prosperity. There are times that cause us to sigh, no doubt about that, but there are also times in life that lead us to sing. There are periods in life that are marked by turmoil, but are also periods in life that are distinctly tranquil. It is the happy times of life that we're now transported by James, who encourages us to be merry. He encourages the cheerful one to sing, to sing in such times. Now we can feel guilty in our happiness, especially when others around us are going through great troubles in their lives, but we must remember that we too will pass through difficult days. Days whenever singing will be the furthest thing from our minds, and so express your joy. Express your joy by singing when you're in a happy state of mind. Beloved. Now that's not to say that the body will not be wracked with pain. That'll not say that the troubles will not be many. That will not say that you'll not be going through difficult streets or that life's circumstances are not dragging you down in despair. But even if that is your lot, you can still be merry and sing. We have an example of that with the Apostle Paul and Silas there in Philippi's Geo. though mistreated cruelly by their enemies, they sang. They were merry inwardly. And that inner merriment expressed itself in singing. And so while days of joy are, and so days of joy should be times of singing, but they're not the only times. Singing is comely for all of life's seasons. It was the tonic of singing that Martin Luther took to in times of extreme opposition. He would say to his friend, Philip, Philip, come, let us sing the 46th Psalm. And that raised his spirits. Think of what singing can do. Singing can do many a thing, but it is a witness to the ungodly. Psalm 40 and the verse 3, He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God. Many shall see it and fear and shall trust in the Lord. According to the sweet Psalmist of Israel, David, when we sing our great Redeemer's praise, the ungodly, they take notice of it. They see, they see the happy state. They see the happy state into which salvation has brought us. They fear that they are not in such a state themselves, and then that leads them to trust in the Lord themselves. That's the very tenor, that's the very movement of that verse. He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise under God, many shall see it, and they'll fear because they do not possess such, and then they shall trust in the Lord themselves. Is it the case that many sinners are not trusting in the Lord because many saints aren't singing? Have you lost your song, brother? Have you lost your joy? Has the devil stopped us singing? Maybe we need to pray as David did, restore unto me the joy of thy salvation. Thomas Manton, who wrote Thanksgiving, or singing to God's praise, is the proper jury in the time of mercies and comforts. And then he said these words, every new mercy calleth for a new song. Did God crown your life with a mercy today? He crowned your life with many mercies. God's word says that every day, Every morning there are new mercies. And so therefore, new mercies call for new songs. May God help us. And we find ourselves in the valley singing, and on the mountain singing, as any merry let him sing sounds. Like Peter, James, and John on the Mount of Transfiguration, we all would love to remain on the mountain tops but God has other plans for us and so he directs life's pathway to take a downward turn into another valley and so we come to verse 14 and 15 and we descend this time into the valley of sickness this is the final The thought for this evening is any sick among you, let him call for the elders of the church, and let him pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. In the prayer of faith shall see if the sick and the Lord shall raise him up, and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and pray for one another that ye may be healed. Verse, that's into verse 16. Now there are two lines of thought with regard to the nature of the sickness that James refers to here. Some suggest that it is of a physical nature. Others suggest that this sickness is of a spiritual nature. For my own part, I would side with those who speak of it as being a physical illness. And I say that for a number of reasons. The word sick, once translated, or when translated elsewhere in the New Testament, almost on every occasion is used in relation to some physical ailment or some physical disease. So using as it is used or employed this word sick, is any sick among you using the majority of ways in which it is used, it always seems to point to a physical ailment. The second reason is that the person is to call for the elders in their sickness, suggesting that their sickness physically impairs them themselves going to the elders, and so the elders must come to them. If it is but a spiritual illness, well then physically they would be able to go to the elders in and of themselves. They would have the physical capability of going to the elders, but it seems to suggest here that this individual has been reduced to a bed from which they cannot move, a bed of sickness. And this is why I suggest, but there are others and they suggest that it is a spiritual illness. Now James teaches us in these verses that physical sickness can sometimes be the result of sinful living. where it says, and if he hath committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another and pray one for another that ye may be healed. Now I hasten to clarify that it cannot be concluded that if a person is sick, it is always because of sin. You cannot conclude that. Gian or Job's friends jumped to that incorrect conclusion when they looked at his sick freedom. They questioned his integrity, his walk with God. However, there are times when God chastens his child, his disobedient child with sickness, when they stubbornly refuse to relinquish their sin. Paul writes concerning the taking of the communion, there in 1 Corinthians 11 concerning the Lord's Supper, he states that many were weak and sickly among the partakers of the Lord's Supper because they were partaking in an unworthy manner. And so there are occasions when sickness is sent to chasten the child of God. What did the psalmist say? Before I was afflicted, I went astray. Now we don't know what his affliction was. It may well have been sickness, but sometimes sickness and illness can be the road that the father chooses to discipline his erring child. We can't get away from that. God has many roads by which he uses to chasten his children. And on some occasions, sickness is one such rod. So what does James encourage the people to do in sickness? He encourages them to call for the elders of the church and let them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. Now there are a number of points of observation from this verse and from these words in verse 15 that I want to close with. Firstly, the person is to call for the elders of the church. The word elders is the Greek term presbyteros. We get our English word presbyter from this word. And so James was a Presbyterian. He believed in Presbyterian church government. That's the first thing that needs to be said. James did not believe in independency. He wasn't a Congregationalist. He wasn't a Baptist. He didn't believe in Episcopalianism. He wasn't an Anglican. He wasn't a Methodist. James was a Presbyterian. He spoke of presbyters. Let him call for the presbyters, for the elders of the church. He believed that the church should be governed in a manner that was Presbyterian in form. Let him call for the elders of the church, not the deacons, not the bishops, not the curates, but the Presbyters, the elders of the church. Secondly, the sick person is to call for the elders, not just the minister, not just the minister. The burden of visiting the sick and tending to their spiritual needs is not to be the sole responsibility of the minister of a congregation. Thomas Manton, again in his commentary, he said, visiting of the sick should be performed with the joint care of church officers. It is a weighty work that needeth many shoulders. It is a weighty work and needeth many shoulders. Does not say call for the minister. It says call for the elders, plural, of the church. Thirdly, when visiting the sick, the best thing that we can do for the sick is to pray for them. Pray, and let them pray over him. We commend such people to God. And we pray in faith that if it be according to his will, that he will raise them up again to health and strength. And thus praying for the sick, And praying with the sick is spiritual, and it is scriptural. It is scriptural. And so when you hear of prayer requests regarding people who are sick, it is scriptural that we take these people to God in prayer. We can pray for the sick. Did John not pray for that with regard to Gaius, that he would be in health? It was his desire. He would be in health bodily as he was physically. And so he took the matter to God in prayer. Fourthly, it's interesting to note that James does not say for the sick person to call for those who had the spiritual gift of healing. Now, when you thought that that was a person that you thought you would have called upon, If the sign gifts were still in vogue, if they were still operational, James should have said, call for those who have been given the gift of healing. But as you know from our studies concerning the Holy Spirit, the sign gifts were on their way out. They were on their way out. With the death of the apostles, the same gifts ceased, tongues and the healing gifts, these miraculous gifts that accompanied the preaching of the word of God. And so he does not tell them to call for the miracle workers of his day, but simply those who were in eldership within the church. Fifthly, concerning the anointing of oil. Well, again, there are many There are a number of various ways in which that can be looked upon. Some see oil that was used in this anointing, the prayer of faith of verse 14, let him pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. Some see the oil as nothing more than the medication that was employed in the healing of the sick in James's day. And there is biblical warrant for such a view. You remember the parable of the good Samaritan and the man that was battered and left for lying for dead and the Levite and the priest they pass by and the good Samaritan, the Samaritan man comes along and the record there in Luke chapter 10 tells us that he poured in what? What did he pour into his wounds? He poured in oil and wine, oil and wine. And so in that parable, there is the thought that oil was used as a medicinal product in the healing of a particular wound or a particular disease. And thus, this pouring of oil is really simply the application of the medication of the day. And thus to hold to this interpretation teach that medication along with supplication is to be employed when it comes to the healing process of the sick. In other words, if there's medicine for your illness, you are to take it, but also to pray as you partake of it, that God will use it to the healing of your body. That is one line of thought. Others see the anointing of oil as being symbolic. You'll know that men were anointed with oil in the Old Testament to consecrate individuals into a particular office, whether that was the office of a prophet, whether that was the office of a king. They were anointed with oil. And some suggest that this anointing with oil is that the person is being set apart. Now the question is asked, well, what are they being set apart for? Well, they suggest that they are being set apart for God's special attention and care with regard to the healing process. In other words, the elders are committing that individual to the care and the keeping of the great physician. consecrating, they are setting them apart. And they do so by this anointing and by the offering of prayer. Sixthly, the aim and end goal of what is being performed was the saving or the healing of the sick. And that's what the word means, to heal, to restore, to health, to make whole. That was the end goal for this particular activity. And really, That is the job, metaphorically, of the work of an elder, not to the physical healing, but to the spiritual healing of the sick. In compassion, an elder is to reach out, to strengthen and to stimulate and to bind up and to restore those who are falling, to see that such a one is restored in the spirit of meekness. Seventhly, whatever the anointing of the oil means, it must be emphasized that James does not regard the oil as the healing agent. That's very clear from his assertion in verse 15, where he states that it is the prayer of faith that shall save the sick. And ultimately, it's not even prayer itself but rather it is the one to whom we pray to. And James makes that clear because ultimately the raising of the person to their health lies in the hands of God. Because what does James go on to say in verse 15? And the Lord shall raise him up. The Lord will do it. With all the medication, with all the prayer that's being offered, with all the attention that's being given, it is ultimately in the hands of God. God will raise them up if it is his will. And so these are the instructions that are given. The individual who is sick, sickly among you, and call for the elders, that he may pray over them, anointing them with the oil in the name of the Lord. I trust that what I've said I trust that it hasn't blurred, but it has brought into maybe focus what these particular verses are bringing to our attention. And if it hasn't shed the light on it that you desire, well, you can pick up all the commentaries that I have picked up and see all the varied thoughts with regard to these particular verses. Do a little reading on yourself. Ask the Spirit of God. open the scriptures to you. But life is full of valleys and hills. May God help us, whether we be in the valley or whether we be on the mountain. May we follow the counsel here, and may we be found then the better for it. May the Lord be pleased to bless these thoughts and truths to our hearts, even this evening for Christ's sake. Amen. Let's bow briefly in prayer. Loving Father, bless now thy word to our souls. Grant, dear God, in our days of affliction to be praying, in our times of merriment and joy to be singing. Lord, in times, oh God, when we find ourselves sickly, we come to place our cause and our care and our case into thy good hands. believing that it is the Lord that shall raise us up, if it be his good and perfect will. And so prayer, we offer prayer in Jesus' holy name. Amen and amen.