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[0:00] are going to conclude the epistle of James this morning. Not necessarily that we have to, because if there are questions that are lingering or things that need yet to be covered, we will devote whatever time and attention we need to it, because we're not on any kind of a schedule, it's rather a loose pulley thing.

[0:20] And however long it takes is however long it takes. As I've often said, rather than try to meet a schedule and finish within a particular period of time, I much prefer to scratch where people itch.

[0:34] So if you have questions or issues that you want to discuss, particularly in connection with the text, we'll stop right there and take as long as it takes to do that. Also, I want you to feel free to interrupt me while I am speaking, and in case I don't see you, if you raise your hand, while you just start talking and I'll stop and we'll deal with whatever it is you're talking about, or whatever it is that you're thinking about.

[0:58] And we are in James chapter 5, closing in on the last few verses, and we will begin with verse 12, if we may.

[1:11] And I'd just like to read the text first, down through the end of the chapter, and then we'll go back and take it apart bit by bit. But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth, or with any other oath, but let your yes be yes and your no, no, so that you may not fall under judgment.

[1:35] Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praises. Is anyone among you sick?

[1:48] 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. I want to stop there for just a moment.

[2:01] We'll probably get that far and deal with that. But just in case we don't, I want to pose this question, and that is this. Do you know of instances where this has been applied in verse 14?

[2:19] And if you do, you may have opportunity to speak of it, and we would like to know what the results were. I know of some cases of my own, and we may, by comparison, see how this plays out.

[2:33] So that's just something for you to think about. The prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.

[2:49] Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.

[2:59] Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months.

[3:13] And he prayed again, and the sky poured rain, and the earth produced its fruit. And while we're talking about prayer, that ties in with the previous verses we were reading.

[3:25] How many times do you know of where this has been realized? My brethren, if any among you strays from the truth, and one turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death, and will cover a multitude of sins.

[3:49] And there, James concludes his epistle. So, let us go back, if we may, to verse 12, and begin picking this thing apart. And like I said, if you have things that you would like to discuss, or questions to raise, feel free to stop and inject them.

[4:05] Above all, my brethren, do not swear. Now, I don't think he is talking about the use of profanity. He's not talking about cursing, although that too is something that needs to be avoided.

[4:22] But when he swears here, he is referring, I think, to the same instance in which our Lord addressed in the Sermon on the Mount, when he said, swear not, neither by the temple, nor by the altar, etc., but let your yea be yea, and your nay be nay.

[4:38] And the reason that this is given is because some were using the swearing method as a means of, what shall I say, as a means of reinforcing a position they were taking or an answer that they were giving.

[4:59] And perhaps we can best explain it this way. You are aware that when someone goes into a court of law and they are called upon to give a testimony, ordinarily, they put their left hand on the Bible and their right hand they raise and they swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help me God.

[5:27] And that is designed or intended to enter an element of sobriety and seriousness in the statement that is going to be given.

[5:42] And the thinking that was originally established with that was that, well, you know, people in our humanity and with certain things at stake, when we are called upon to give a testimony and express the truth about something, eh, it's kind of easy to lie, you know, because, after all, you're just one person lying to another person or you're just one human lying to other humans, but, if that person swears an oath to God, then they're going to tell the truth.

[6:24] It puts them under more pressure to be honest because it is the so help me God phrase that is ending it.

[6:36] And what the text is saying and what our Lord was saying in the Sermon on the Mount was, skip all that nonsense. You don't swear by this one, you don't swear by that, you don't swear by the altar, you don't swear by, you let your yes mean yes and your no mean no.

[6:55] And that is supposed to be the modus operandi for one who is coming from a spiritual point of view. In other words, it isn't necessary that you swear an oath or that you swear by this or by my mother's grave or whatever.

[7:13] your honesty and integrity is to be incorporated in your simple statement, yes means yes and no means no.

[7:30] And none of this stuff. Cross your fingers behind the back. Remember when you were a kid, cross my fingers, hope to tell the truth, how did that go, live or die, poke a stick in your eye, something like that.

[7:46] And you know, kids find all kinds of ways of fudging. But we're supposed to have grown out of that. And we are supposed to be individuals of honesty and integrity so that when you tell someone, yes, that's the truth, then that's the truth.

[8:06] Now we've got today a thing called fake news. and it's gotten so, particularly in the public arena, it's really hard to know what to believe or who you can believe because there is so much error out there.

[8:27] And you just wonder, and I know it's not going to happen, it's an illusion, it's a dream, but you just wonder what would happen in Washington, D.C.

[8:39] if for just one month everybody that spoke about anything would tell the absolute unvarnished truth.

[8:52] It would melt. It would melt. Can you imagine, wouldn't that be something, well, it's an experiment that we don't have to worry about coming to pass. And why is that?

[9:03] Why is that? It's because, it's because of that, of that fallout from the Adamic nature with which we are all imbued.

[9:16] and that means we are like it or not, admit it or not, deny it or not, we are all tainted with a thing called self-service, self-satisfying.

[9:35] That's part of the human condition. That's why we have conflict, that's why we have wars, that's why all of this stuff. We are all self-centered, essentially self-centered.

[9:47] And people lie for the simple reason they think the truth will hurt them and the lie will protect them.

[10:00] So it is in our own best interest so we think to tell a lie when confronted with a situation that might be damaging or hurtful or embarrassing or whatever.

[10:14] Well, we just fudge a little. We just tell a lie. Dan? I think some of those people don't know the difference. I get to the point where they'll say no. Well, you can become very accustomed to it.

[10:27] There are people who can become very comfortable in lying. And I think there's a hierarchy and you know what?

[10:38] One of the ways it's justified is this. Well, they all lie. They all lie. Why should you be all that obligated to tell the truth when you know the other side's lying too?

[10:50] So you kind of have to lie to defend yourself from their lies. And that's called rationalizing. Yeah? That was the very birth of it.

[11:07] That was the very birth of it. He's a liar from the beginning and abode not in the truth. Yeah. Dan? So far, one time I've gone to a courtroom and called on the stand and I hope I don't have to do that again.

[11:22] It's rather nerve-wracking. Well, yeah. But when they asked me about swearing to tell the truth the whole truth to the healthy God, I said, I believe it's a proper procedure and you would allow me to say I affirm that I will tell the truth.

[11:38] Yeah. And the judge says, yes, that's correct. Yeah. So we do have even in the courtroom setting Yeah, that's true. a way to you know kind of go by what James and Jesus said.

[11:51] Absolutely. I remember hearing an interesting anecdote about Herbert Hoover. I think he had a kind of a Quaker background if I'm not mistaken. And when he was sworn in as president he did not want to use the word swear because he considered that a negative as well.

[12:11] And he took the position that he affirmed that he affirmed to tell the truth and that too was accepted. But there's nothing there's nudging nothing magically damning about using the word swear.

[12:24] All it means is that you are placing yourself under an obligation to tell the truth. Swearing is something different you know like cursing and whatnot.

[12:35] That's not what we're talking about here. What we're talking about is the integrity of a man's word. And you know as well as well maybe maybe some of you don't because you may be too young to know this but at least a generation ago or a couple of generations ago when people did business in a community a handshake was all that was needed.

[12:59] And if a man gave you his hand and gave you his word that was good. And nothing else was needed. But today we know that things have changed.

[13:12] And there may still be pockets of what shall we say more moral purity where that exists and that still hands that shaking of the hands is still good but those places have declined in number considerably.

[13:29] And now you not only have to get it in writing maybe you ought to have your lawyer look at it because there are all kinds of possibilities and loopholes and whatnot and it's too bad that our society and our culture has come to that because it shakes the very foundation of personal and collective honesty where it just is not held with the value that it used to be.

[13:57] And we ought to be the kind of people as believers in Christ we need to be the kind of people where your word is your bond and you don't speak with loopholes or double meanings or intended to be taken one way or misleading somebody intentionally we need to be frank up front open faced no hidden agenda honest and let your yes mean yes and your no mean no and people can count on that that's I think the essence of what he's talking about here and it reinforces what our Lord said in the sermon on the mount in Matthew 5 6 and 7 and then he goes on to say and by the way let me just as an aside I understand that just recently in the house of representatives in the judicial committee where they were taking testimony they swore in someone and and they deliberately omitted under

[15:16] God deliberately omitted it and when they were asked later they said they just didn't think it was necessary and this is just one more instance of edging God out of the picture more and more and you can expect that because we're going to be seeing it in spades over the next couple of years and it's just a sign of what's happening all right let's move on is anyone among you suffering let him pray is anyone cheerful let him sing praises 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 and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick and the

[16:17] Lord will raise him up and if he has committed sins they will be forgiven him and to preface this subject I want to give you an illustration about it and a personal illustration although it did not happen in my presence but it did happen in the presence of my wife and her first husband to whom she was married for almost 50 years she was married to Dave I'm talking about Marie and Dave Weinbrenner and they were married more than 50 years I think about 50 and a half and my wife and I just came up nine months short of our 50th before she passed away but at any rate at the church that they were attending and I was attending at the time which happened to be a Baptist church in Springfield an evangelist and Bible teacher was called in for a week of meetings and this would have been in the 1960s in the 1960s and the subject came up in the context of the message that he was preaching about this verse and he encouraged the people in the congregation to implement this and right here it states it rather clearly in James chapter 5 the principle that's given call for the elders of the church pray over him anointing him with oil in the name of the

[17:50] Lord prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick the Lord will raise him up well it so happens that Dave and Marie and Dave at the time was a deacon in the church they had invited this evangelist guest speaker to their home for the evening meal and in the course of the conversation the subject was brought up that he was told well we're really glad to have you here this week we're only sorry that your wife couldn't come with you we would have liked to have met her and he said well I'm sure she would have liked to have met you also but the problem is my wife is a severe arthritic she has rheumatoid arthritis now if you're like I am you've probably got a dab of arthritis in your joints and etc and aches and pains and what not but that's osteo arthritis and that's kind of common and it comes with the aging process but rheumatoid arthritis is serious stuff and it can be very crippling and I know most of you here remember

[19:02] Ron Keplinger a prince of a guy and he dealt with rheumatoid arthritis for years and was on gold shots and all kinds of exotic medicine and I remember him telling sometimes some mornings it took two of his sons to get him out of bed that's severe arthritis and that's the kind of arthritis that this pastor this preacher wife had and and Dave asked him well did you did you do this what you were talking about in in the message last night and he said yes we did he said the deacons of the church came over they laid hands on her they anointed her with oil and they prayed and he said so what happened and he said well there wasn't any change nothing happened we we don't know why we don't know if we didn't have enough faith or what and

[20:16] Dave at the time was giving some thought to some of the things that we've been considering here in connection with this principle and it caused him to wonder and it causes me to wonder too and I would just like to ask any of you by personal experience have you had an experience with this have you dealt with this and what were the results anybody have any incident like that that they would like to Dan what okay okay okay now and

[21:17] I don't know what to attribute that to I'm not saying that it is not an answer to prayer but do you not know several instances where people and my wife Marie she suffers from severe insomnia if she gets two hours a night she's doing good and I suspect that others have had that problem too but the point that I'm making is this sometimes there very definitely appears to be a response and a healing to what the request was and very often there is not now here's an important point that I want to make in connection with this and I hope you can see the validity of it because to me it's very powerful and that is this what James is giving here ties in not only with the oath that he was talking about not taking and not swearing an oath and it refers back also to our

[22:24] Lord in the Sermon on the Mount but this healing practice and the praying over I am contending is or was a modus operandi a standard method of operation under and with and pertaining to the kingdom motif the kingdom gospel where is the Sermon on the Mount in this picture it's kingdom stuff and it starts out even before repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand and everything our Lord did was related to that subject of the kingdom and it is reflected in the prayer that is so often mentioned our father who art in heaven thy kingdom come thy will be done what is that that is a prayer it is a prayer for the coming and the arrival of the kingdom and there are those who believe the kingdom has already come it is here this is the kingdom but it isn't physical it isn't literal it isn't

[23:48] Christ ruling and reigning in Jerusalem on the throne as the kingdom of heaven talks about but it is a spiritual kingdom and Christ is ruling in heaven and the kingdom of heaven is in your hearts and that's all the kingdom there's going to be now that is fellas that is the majority position in Christendom today with Roman Catholic and Protestant but what I'm saying is the modus operandi that is given here the method of operation the standard fare is for this and James to whom is James written anybody 12 tribes scattered abroad who are they they are Jews if you think you are one of the 12 tribes scattered abroad which tribe are you from well we're not this is written to the same ones that the epistle to the

[24:57] Hebrews now that ought to be a no brainer to the Hebrews is written this is one of the general epistles and it is operating in that kingdom motif which is really different from the grace of God dispensation in which we find ourselves today so what I am saying is this principle of healing here ties right in with what the apostles were doing in the book of Acts which was standard fare for the kingdom motif and what do we read about we read about Peter and his miracles Peter and James or Peter and John healing of the man at the temple gate beautiful in chapter 3 and Peter performing all kinds of miracles and they were still preaching the kingdom of heaven after the ascension of

[26:01] Christ back to heaven in other words the offer for Israel to receive the kingdom was still available and the Jewish nation continued in a position of rejection not only did they reject Jesus before the crucifixion they rejected him in his resurrection after the crucifixion and when the disciples the apostles insisted on preaching Christ had risen from the dead they persecuted them imprisoned them beat them because of what they were preaching and this kingdom concept Jesus validated with the miracles he performed when he came and presented himself as the Messiah of Israel the savior people had every right to say well if you are the king and you are going to bring the kingdom what do you got to show for yourself and

[27:09] Jesus performed the miracles he did to authenticate the fact that he was indeed Israel's Messiah because what's going to happen when the kingdom comes in when the kingdom of heaven comes to earth what will happen I'll tell you what will happen when the kingdom of heaven comes to earth then the will of God will be done on earth as it is in heaven is there anybody today that believes that's happening is there anybody who can mistake this what we're dealing with today this conflict and death and disease and corruption you're kidding me you're calling this the kingdom of heaven come to earth wow who wants anything to do with that listen when the kingdom of heaven comes to earth

[28:12] Jesus will be ruling with a rod of iron you know what that means that means no nonsense he's got he's going to conduct business in the way that it ought to be conducted and when the kingdom of heaven comes the lamb will lie down with the lion and the child will play on the den of a poisonous serpent but he need not fear because it will not ensue in his death and the lame will leap like a deer and the eyes of the blind will be opened and the deaf will hear and one who dies at an age of a hundred will be considered a child what is that that is kingdom stuff that's not fairy tale stuff that's the way it's supposed to be but when the fall came in genesis three everything came crashing down and nothing has been the same since and the first and most major consequence of that fall was the day you eat you will surely die and they did and the day they died the day they ate they died death comes in two forms death comes in death always means the same thing it doesn't mean cessation death does not mean sensation since it's cessation it means separation that's what death means spiritual death is separation from

[30:05] God physical death is a separation of your spirit from your body and your spirit goes to be with the Lord if it's a redeemed spirit and the body goes to the grave and when Jesus told Adam and Eve the day you eat you will surely die and they ate and they died right away separated from God and that's why they hid Adam Adam where are you and he found him hiding and he had this apron of fig leaves he created and Adam says well we we were afraid because we were naked and the Lord says that's strange it never bothered you before you were created naked that wasn't a problem before did you eat of the tree of the knowledge of good the woman the woman you the woman you gave me she she she gave me and

[31:13] I ate and he said what about it Eve and Eve said it was the serpent and I told you before the serpent didn't have a leg to stand on so but here guys this is where it all starts so anyway they were separated from God and they hid because guilt guilt guilt is an emotional reality it is an emotional pain and guilt produces fear because the fear is you're going to be found out or you're going to be punished and you hide to escape the consequences that's what they were doing so they were spiritually separated from God and when Adam was 930 years old he died physically it just took a lot longer but the spiritual death was right away and then of course the whole principle of redemption sets in because

[32:23] God is going to slay animals and take the animal skin and cover them and it's going to cover their nakedness and by the way guys this is a fascinating thing to think about but I've been giving some thought to this of late you know the big argument with creation and evolution has gone on for a long time still goes on now hot and heavy but you stop and think about it and I am convinced and I realize I'm biased as a preacher but I am convinced that human humans wearing clothes is a testimony to creation because if you follow the evolutionary model there isn't any reason why you guys should be sitting here with pants and shirts on you ought to be naked women ought to be naked everybody ought to be naked you realize that it's unnatural for us to be wearing clothes why are we wearing clothes anyway well you wear clothes because it would it would be embarrassing it would be indecent if you weren't clothes why why there is something about human guilt and human nakedness that goes together and you don't develop that right at the first but but you know a little toddler two years old they don't think a thing about being naked as a jaybird you know that they they run outside out in the yard to play don't have a stitch of clothes on and mother is oh my goodness and she runs out there and everybody's embarrassed and of course the kids they just laugh they think it's a you know it's a lark but that little youngster doesn't have any sense of shame at all he's not embarrassed he doesn't know he's doing anything wrong but we cover our what do we cover we cover our privates is there anybody that's embarrassed because they have an elbow showing no what is it about our privates our privates our genitalia male and female are the elements used not only for producing the next round of humans but it also extends and perpetuates the ingrained inborn element of sin of human sin think of that now this doesn't mean that there is something sinful about sex or procreation because after all

[35:47] God thought it up God's the one that designed sex but it has to be conducted within parameters and so often it is not and this is why this is why a man and a woman who are wedded together married don't have a sense of shame of being naked in each other's presence why not because the two have become one and you should be no more embarrassed or ashamed of your wife's nakedness than you are of your own because the two are as one and what she is and what she has belongs to you and what you are and what you have belongs to her this is what

[36:48] Paul is talking about in first Corinthians when he says the woman has power over her husband's body and the man has power over the woman's in other words she is your legal property and you are her property and neither of you belong to anybody else and in that concept even though it is a beautiful thing and that's the way God designed for procreation the sin factor that is introduced only applies to humanity you will never see animals cows horses dogs or pigs you never see them embarrassed because they have no moral capacity they are all moral we are moral beings they don't have the ability to feel shame and guilt because they are not imbued with that sin principle that we are now all of this is tied together and of course if evolution has any merit we shouldn't feel that way we ought to be just as comfortable walking around naked in public as we are walking around the clothes on but everybody knows you're not going to do that well

[38:03] I guess there are nudist colonies and I think these people who seek out nudist colonies have a special kind of quirk that most normal people don't have okay I'm going to open this for anybody yeah do I am conflicted I thought that when we pray we are not supposed to ask for a specific outcome if we pray for sickness to be healed that's an outcome that we expect or rain rain to fall yeah or whatever we're expecting an outcome we are asking God for an outcome I thought we were not supposed to pray for an outcome we are supposed to pray for God's will to be done whatever it is if your example of praying over

[39:10] Dave's wife anointing her with oil they were expecting her to be healed that wasn't God's will so why do they not understand why she wasn't healed well I think in my estimation I think the reason they don't understand why she wasn't healed is because they look to principles like this and when it doesn't work the common answer is well we didn't have enough faith you know we didn't have enough faith that's why she but how do you square this principle in James with what Paul said in Romans 8 when he said we know not how to pray as we ought are you kidding me what we don't know how to pray for something as we ought or as we would like what does that mean

[40:14] I think it means exactly what it says I think in connection with what you just said Dave that like like Paul said I had this thorn in the flesh and we're still not completely sold on exactly what that thorn in the flesh was there's different theories ideas that scholars have but we do know this Paul in his human reasoning rationalized that if I did not have this thorn in the flesh to deal with boy I could do a lot more I could get more things done I could do this I wouldn't have this to contend with so I just prayed and asked the Lord to remove it and he didn't and I think well what's this about well maybe I didn't make myself clear or maybe whatever so he prayed again and the Lord did not remove it and the third time and the

[41:14] Lord did what's going on now look Paul was making that request in the backdrop of a whole bunch of miracles that were taking place by the apostles including Paul and yet he wasn't getting an answer to this and was it a matter of faith Paul not have enough faith no but in connection with what Dave said Paul was praying for a specific outcome and God is in charge of the outcome and as tough as it is for us to believe this sometimes in fact more often than not when a Christian comes down with cancer or some other terminal disease and the doctor says I'm sorry we've done all we can you've got maybe two months now

[42:22] God can do anything he wants to do anytime he wants to do it but in most of those cases you're going to die you're going to die and it's got nothing to do with faith or how much you have it's got everything to do with with parameters that God has already established and we fit in with them and that's the way it is that's life that's life in a fallen world as a fallen individual and that has become fellas that has become the new standard operating procedure it wasn't in the gospels and it wasn't in early acts there were miracles of plenty Jesus has recorded in these gospels what 30 I think miracles that we know of and the text makes it clear many other signs and miracles did

[43:28] Jesus in the presence of his apostles and disciples that are not recorded in this book John says but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the son of God and that through believing you might have life in his name so he did 30 miracles that we know of and a whole bunch of diseases everything from blindness to leprosy to you name it and the text says and he healed them all where is that where is that God hasn't changed same yesterday today and forever and the apostles we say well

[44:30] Jesus is gone alright the apostles were here and he gave them the ability to work miracles Matthew 10 called them sent them forth heal the sick raise the dead cleanse the lepers preach the gospel of the kingdom and they did and they performed miracles I want to know where are they now and they're right where they're supposed to be God does whatever he wants whenever he wants to do it but the modus operandi today is not kingdom oriented it is church oriented and the church orientation is by grace through faith apart from the miracles the Jews require a sign and that means the semi on the word from which we get the word semaphore the flag the Jews require a sign but we walk by faith and we do not have to have the miracles now we got some hands going okay in the back

[45:33] Larry well I was thinking about Jesus telling the parable about the woman and the judge yeah okay okay so and what I'm saying is I agree with that 100% but that's kingdom content that's not church content some today believe if you really want to get something from God you besiege heaven and you don't quit until God says alright for peace sake I'll give it to you it doesn't work that way it doesn't work that way we are not in the kingdom age and yet that's where so many are trying to operate and you know what we get frustrated we get disappointed we get depressed because we think they prayed in faith in the

[46:37] Bible and what's wrong with me maybe I'm not spiritual enough maybe I'm not maybe I'm not even really a Christian maybe I'm not even on praying ground maybe I don't have enough faith and people can beat up on themselves for not getting the results or the answer that they think they ought to have and Dan I think one of the things that example I gave may have been somewhat trite I understand that but at the same time when you pray not mine but I will be done and if you don't get the answer God knows your prayer you need not answer the way you wanted to answer that prayer was dealt I believe you have to have the faith that you continue to trust God for whatever happens okay good point that well you know that that's that's that's a contentedness that's a spiritual contentedness that ought to be part and parcel of every believer but so often we're wont to impose our will because

[47:41] I am convinced this would be best for me for God to do thus and so and God doesn't sign off on it and we get depressed and sometimes angry and I remember hearing a fellow one time saying that he didn't want anything to do with God he'd written God off years ago and God said what happened he said what are you talking about and he said it was a seat mate on an airplane and this guy said when I was seven years old my mother was critically ill and people were praying for her and the pastor of the church came over and some of the people from the church came and they gathered around her bed and they held hands and they prayed and he said my he said everybody prayed and you should have heard the prayers everybody was praying that God would raise her up and so on and I was here a seven year old boy and I needed my mother and I was convinced that God was going to do something all these people praying God surely going to hear an answer and she died the very next day she died and right then and there I told myself if that's all

[48:58] God cares about a seven year old boy that really needs his mother I don't want anything to do with him I don't even I'm not even sure there is a God and if there is I don't want anything to do with him and I wrote God off years ago you have any idea how many people there are like that and God gets bad press because people have expectations that they think should well hey it's in the Bible they prayed in the Bible and God did miracles and came through for them and you tell me that God doesn't change then what's going on tell us what's going on I wish I could and I may be asked to leave the room I don't know I believe that when he uses the example here of Elijah that Elijah was a prophet living on a particular time when God did sign miracles that were just that and same thing for

[49:58] Moses same thing for Jesus same thing for the apostles and personally I believe that we are living in a kingdom that is a spiritual kingdom in which God wants us to pray and as a pastor I felt very uncomfortable dealing with this passage of scripture and yet there were times when I was asked to enact this and I did and I know people would affirm I swear just affirm God healed me I asked my wife had cancer before surgery she asked for an anointing service it says here in the passage let the person ask the elders of the church she asked and we prayed it was a very moving experience for us as a family as a church to pray for her and I've done this with other people as well some have been healed some God has used doctors or medicine whatever in this case for my wife the Lord used doctors and

[51:16] I believe it's 14 years now she's a cancer survivor okay it's appointed and the man wants to die and after that the resurrection okay I know she's going to die someday unless the Lord comes back but in this passage of scripture I believe he's telling us that we should as many times he says we should pray and we should expect and we should pray with faith and we should pray with surrender yeah surrender and in the passage he says therefore confess your faults one to another and in the time when we would have the anointing service not saying okay this is a miraculous oil he puts it on her head or wherever but this is going to bring healing that there is a confession best we know we're confessing our sins as leaders and the individual as well as confessing their sin okay and there is prayer

[52:25] I appreciate your perspective and so we did that and we leave the results to God that's that's that's that's the key yeah you pray in faith believing and you leave the results with God you say Lord this this is what I want this is what I think I need well I'm sure Paul thought he needed that too but nevertheless we well you know the greatest the greatest prayer ever prayed was not answered Lord let this cup pass from me nevertheless not my will but yours be done that that ought to color every prayer that we make and I think that ties in with what

[53:29] Paul said we don't know how to pray for what we ought you know we don't know what we ought to pray for or about because in our finiteness we're just you know we're just there's so much we don't know and and where we get into trouble is when we tell God how to run his business and who to heal and when and how and and God is someone has said God is not a celestial bell hop that just jumps when we ring his bell you know he is the sovereign Lord and he does that which is consistent with his own will and and here's here's where a big element of faith comes in can you believe in the midst of your prayer however serious it might be life or death prayer can you believe that God is all powerful and all wise and he knows what ultimately is in your best interests even if it hurts and hurts a lot and those of you who like myself have laid a loved one to rest you know something of what I'm talking about other thoughts or comments anyone yeah

[55:00] Rick you were talking about God doesn't answer prayers and causes people I don't want any part of that God I think one of the best examples Charles Darwin he was a Christian pastor he prayed that his daughter be healed by God she was like nine or ten years old when she died he turned his back on God and said I don't want any part and now he wrote the theory of evolution yeah there's somebody when you said people turn their back on God just because prayers aren't answerable here's a Christian pastor how has he impacted the world with this theory of evolution because God didn't answer in his mind God didn't answer his prayer he said anything to your own daughter well you know God gets a bad rap for a whole lot of things you know he we tend to praise him when we get what we want and everything goes okay you know he's a good God and you know Job is the pastor boy the poster boy for suffering and it just wouldn't quit

[56:04] I mean it took his family and when the Lord gave carte blanche gave carte blanche to Satan with just one proviso I'll not let you take his life you can take everything else but you can't take his life and boy Satan took his children all of them took his animals took his health here he is sitting on a pile of ashes scraping his boils with a piece of broken pottery and his wife said don't you know when you've had enough curse God and die get it over with and he said you speak as a foolish woman ought not we who have received good from the Lord also receive adversity the Lord has given and the

[57:08]  Lord has taken away blessed be the name of the Lord and this is a very fitting time for me to quit and turn this over to our super efficient waitress thank you Cheryl you