“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 of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.  Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another that you may be healed.” James 5:14-16 ESV

There is so much here.  These three verses could easily warrant a 4 part sermon series.

Two words command our attention in this passage right away.  “Sick” and “healed”.  Before we go around making promises for God, we need to understand these words.  His words.  (Another post on the subjunctive (probable/possible, ie not certain) tense of the other verbs used in this text would be well worth it.  We’ll see.) To begin:

Sick

The word in the original Greek is κάμνω [kamno /kam·no/].  This word literally means, “to be weary”.  Weary implies exhausted in strength, endurance, vigor, or freshness.

Two Observations

1. Based on this, we can make no certain judgement about whether this is a physical, mental, or spiritual sickness.  An illness; whether physical, mental, or spiritual will certainly cause weariness.   Although, based on the other uses of this word in scripture, I would be inclined to believe this is a weariness of the soul, a spiritual sickness. (This is translated more accurately in Hebrews 12:3 where the same Greek word is used.)
2. My main argument for why this is a “weariness of the soul” is how this text progresses.  From “sickness” to “forgiveness”.

Healed

Again, I go straight to the Greek.  The word is ἰάομαι [iaomai /ee·ah·om·ahee/], which means to heal, renew, and make whole.  The word also could easily ascribe to either physical, mental, or spiritual situations.  I can be physically whole, mentally whole, and spiritually whole.  So which is it!?  I would be inclined to believe that the type of healing relates directly to the type of sickness (spiritual).

An Argument for Spiritual Sickness and Healing

While I am convinced that James intends to communicate a spiritual situation based on the root and context of these two words, I believe the clearest argument for this is the presence of the words sin and forgiveness in the text.

There is one who is sick.  There is a prayer of faith (in truth).  There are sins that have been committed.  There is a divine act of raising, and there is FORGIVENESS.  God is not meeting a physical need with a physical answer, he is meeting a spiritual need with a spiritual answer.  These are spiritual realities that impact every single human being.  Not every person is physically sick, but every person is spiritually sick. The real miracle in this passage is God restoring the depraved sinner to himself through faith in Christ.  This is an eternal miracle.

Following the forgiveness of the sick individual, James encourages the entire Church to confess their sins to one another, that they be healed.  Confessing sins is not a practice to achieve physical reward.  It is a practice that Glorifies God, and allows a true outpouring of Grace by means of the spirit to manifest.  This is a spiritual healing.

THIS IS AN ETERNAL MIRACLE

I do not see how James is communicating that this is a formula to achieve miraculous physical healing at a moments notice.  That would be a gross and wicked misinterpretation.

I do want to affirm that God can and does work miracles in this time.  Jesus performed miracles in this age, and I believe God continues to do so.  I have no problem affirming what God can do.  I have huge problems with predicting and declaring what God will do, if I do this or that, without significant, clear, and indisputable evidence in Scripture.

I will never say that God will heal you from your disease because The Lord left hundreds if not thousands crippled at the Bethesda pool. (John 5:1-15)  He healed one man.  However, since he healed one, we can say that he is capable of physical healing with complete confidence.  I would simply encourage you to set your eyes on that which is eternal, knowing that whatever God wills for this life, whether sickness or health, it is brief, and suffering is temporary.

“Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray.  Is anyone cheerful?  Let him sing praise.”  James 5:13 ESV

Seek God through all life throws at you.  Do not seek what God can give, but who he is, and what he has given:

CHRIST

So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. ​Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but ​present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin ​will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace. – Romans 6:11-14

The final nine words of this passage of scripture identify a powerful dissonance in today’s Christian dialogue. A dissonance that I believe neither Paul, or the Spirit of God that inspired his work, ever intended. The dissonance between Law and Grace.

It is easy to interpret this passage as implying that Grace is superior to the Law. Some circles of belief are criticized for defending the opposite. I argue that neither is superior to the other, but that they are co-dependent. Co-dependent still isn’t a very accurate way to define the relationship, as the Bible does not require any measured balance of the two in the believer’s life.

This isn’t 50% Law, 50% Grace talk.

Justification, Reconciliation, Faith, and Salvation happen completely by Grace. (Eph 2:8-10) I am simply arguing that both are equally pure, good, and holy, given by God. One does not exist without the other. For any work of Divine Reconciliation to take place (Ro 5:9-10) sin needs a law, therefore grace needs a law. Those subject to the law need grace, lest they perish. (1 Cor 15:56) Likewise, those subject to grace need a law, so they have reason to rejoice.

The presence of Grace is not an opportunity to abandon the law, for that is impossible. We know that the law is not abolished, but completed in Christ. (Matt 5:17-20) The law was, is, and always will be God’s Standard. The presence of Grace is an opportunity to pursue communion with God, who without it, would exercise Holy wrath on his people.

Consider this – prior to the outpouring of Grace through the Cross of Christ, you could neither hide from, nor pursue the Law. Utterly helpless. In a state of “Total Depravity” if I may quote Calvin. How much worse is it to be prevented from pursuing something than prevented from hiding from it?

Grace does not erase the Law. How can sin be sin if there is no law to condemn it? If there is not a law, it can’t be sin. If it isn’t sin, then it doesn’t merit the need for grace.

Key Thoughts:

• Grace does not make sin any less real, painful, dreadful, or evil in the sight of God.
• Grace does not allow for the willful ignorance to the pursuit of discipline, accountability, or holiness.
• Grace is not a trump card to disobey the commands of scripture.

What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Romans 6:15

Grace is not in any way like the social concept of acceptance and allowance, allowing us to do what we please and accepting it. Grace does not permit us to live in a way the pleases ourselves. Grace permits us to live in a way that pleases God, when we have absolutely no chance of fulfilling his law in this lifetime. Grace permits us to strive for obedience. Grace permits us to love God. All things we cannot do under the dominion of sin.

So, the call is to escape living under sin’s dominion, which brings death, and pursue Christ’s dominion. Then to live under his Grace. So let us affirm the Law, which exposes our sin, and then flee from sin into the riches of Grace, that is Christ.

Grace | Peace

“Finally, brothers, rejoice.  Aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.” – 2 Corinthians 13:11

I would wager, the most attractive words in Paul’s closing statement to the Church in Corinth are ‘live in peace’.  Most attractive in the sense of our current social culture especially. Peace is popular topic.  It’s been a popular topic for centuries, because we’ve never gotten there in a complete sense.  If peace was achieved in the social context we seek it, there’d be nothing for us to talk about. There has always been, and always will be conflict, war, pain, and suffering on this planet.

At some level, Paul’s parting words seem impossible to achieve.

“All we are saying, is give peace a chance” – John Lennon

Truly, the late and great Lennon was echoing Paul the Apostle’s plea. (In a social context) Paul was reaching out to a culture infected with division, anger, and chaos.  (2 Cor 12:20)  Rejoicing is good, restoration is good, comforting one another is good, mutual agreement is good, and peace is certainly very good.  That being said, the implications Paul upholds in his letter stretch beyond social order alone.

“Live in peace’ and the God of love and peace will be with you.”

Why is social order important?  Simple.  Social Disorder does not cultivate the unmatched love and peace of God.  Social Order’s aim is not the peace of men, but the peace of God.  What’s the difference?

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.  Not as the world gives do I give to you.  Let not your hearts be troubled neither let them be afraid.” – Jesus (John 14:27)

“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace.  In the world you will have tribulation.  But take heard; I have overcome the world.” – Jesus (John 16:33)

The peace found through Jesus is not the same as the peace attempted by men. God by grace, removed an infinitely more challenging barrier of disorder through Christ. The barrier created by sin between man and God.  So Paul’s plea is to ‘Rejoice’! Rejoice that the disorder we have no control over has been resolved through Christ. Then, Paul would bid us to aim to mirror this miracle of grace in community.  So that the love and peace that come’s through Him would increase.

The peace of God provides the ability to seek the peace of men, which in turn gives increase to the pleasure found in Him.  We naturally want to strive for peace in a complete sense.  So, may we seek it from Christ who gives a taste now, and in fullness with Him in eternity.

Grace and Peace

Why?

First, I’d like to offer an observation. Many of us are slaves to a system of progressive advancement and self-improvement. I have news for you. In the ultimate sense, you’re not getting better, you’re getting worse.

You’re dying.

Now, this isn’t some self-loathing, emo, let’s all join a depression support group post. Rather, simply an attempt to enlighten us to the lie we digest daily from, well, everywhere.

24/7, We are faced with an onslaught of products, programs, and procedures that will help us feel better, live longer, get rich, and be happy. Oh, so happy.

False.

At the end of the party, you go in the dirt. Not happy. No programs. No products. Dirt.

Disclaimer – Let me point out that I do not believe your life has no value. What you leave behind may very well be important to your friends, family, or if your influence was grand, the whole world. You should work in your sphere of influence accordingly. Use it wisely. Your stuff and achievements might stick around, but you won’t.

So what is life for? Life is predominantly one thing:

An Opportunity, to experience and share Christ.

“To Live is Christ, and To Die is Gain” Paul the Apostle Philippians 1:21

As much as the Gospel is about grace, redemption, miracles, healing, ethics, morality, and so on. It is a story of pain.

Jesus Christ lived a life free from sin, but no where even close to free from pain. He was homeless, poor, tired, hungry, and ultimately murdered in the most horrific manner known to human history.

To Live is Pain. Paul understood this very well, for his story unfolded very much the same as Jesus’. (Minus the Divinity) He also understood that in his story of pain, he was graced with the most significant opportunity has to offer. Christ.

See for Paul, once he had acquired Christ, there was nothing further be found. There was nothing further to be lost either. To him, Christ is complete.

To us also, Christ intends to be complete.

So, do we mirror Paul’s attitude? Do we see life as a daily opportunity to experience Christ and share the complete joy found in Him? Or is life a series of events, progress, achievements, and self-improvement?

Life is either Christ, or nothing.

Death is either Gain, or total Loss.

“No Pain, No Gain”

All the programs and products in the world can’t measure up to the gain Christ offers on the other side. May we find Him, and may we treasure Him more than anything else. Through every hardship and struggle. Through everyday we are granted, until our Gain is realized completely.

Grace|Peace

While these descriptions may be a component to your community, they in no way shape or form define it.

Community is deeper than proximity and identification.  Community implies an exchange.  An exchange of mercy.  Reading Luke 10:25-37 is encouraged now.

‘Which of these…do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?’ – Jesus ‘The one who showed him mercy’ – The Lawyer  ’Go and do likewise’ – Jesus  Luke 10:36-37

Isn’t interesting that this conversation is between Jesus and a Lawyer?  One could imagine the Lawyer was looking for a clearly observable, measurable, and quantifiable answer.  Something he could prove, or distort, to his advantage. We thrive on these boundaries, don’t we?

Because, what is quantifiable, is avoidable.  We can easily rearrange the equation.  If a neighbor is based on proximity, we can relocate according to our desire. However, to Jesus, being a neighbor, requires being inconvenienced.  It requires giving.  It requires going out of your way.  It requires serving another before yourself. In this exchange, a connection is birthed, that dwarfs those defined by proximity.

Anybody can look to the left or to the right.  But who is willing to blur the lines of proximity and action, and be a neighbor?  The community depends on it.

Go, and Do Likewise.

Let’s imagine that the ‘goodness’ we work to maintain is like a nice clean shirt.  We’ll use a massive spaghetti sauce stain for our ‘failure’.  Now in this simplistic example, the logical resolution is to remove the shirt and to clean it.  However, in the very real and very complicated mess that is sin, simply ‘changing shirts’ is a troublesome task. We would rather not draw attention to the fact that we had to change our shirt.  So we put another shirt on over the stain.  You know, like an ‘excuse’.

Eventually we end up wearing way too many shirts.  We can’t function, and there is obviously something wrong with us. Changing shirts looks pretty painless compared to walking around like the stay puff marshmallow man.

So why is it so hard?  Our experiences may have taught us that being thrown into the fires of judgement and criticism simply isn’t worth the honesty. We live in a culture that does not condone failure but worships perfection and success. Unfortunately, this doesn’t get us anywhere.

“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” – 1 John 1:8-9

If you can’t stand living like the stay puff marshmallow man anymore, I invite you to engage Jesus.  In him there is no fire to fear, but cleansing.  For everything.  You are not held to the standards of men. You are the target of grace and peace through Christ.

Change your shirt.

How many of those activities, where ‘new attempts’ to achieve the result you are looking for?

It is true that some ideas and ventures simply aren’t the right fit, and need to be destroyed and forgotten.  However, how many ‘failed attempts’ may have not failed. At one time the ‘failed attempt’ was an exciting ‘new attempt’.  Are we too addicted to fresh and new?  Are we so dependent on the energy high that comes with ‘the next thing’, that we habitually murder ‘the current thing’? What if the current thing is diligently and consistently taking us to where we want to go?

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.” – Galatians 6:9

So pick something.  Pick something that you feel semi-bored with.  How you work. What you’re working for.  What you’re working with.  Who you’re working with.  Put the neural engines that are calculating how to abort ‘the current thing’ and engage ‘the new thing’ on standby.  Revisit the moment when ‘the current thing’ was ‘the next thing’.  Take note of how far it is brought you.

Now, be persistent. Stick with it.  Reboot it.  Tweak it.  Don’t bail on it.  You’re making progress.

Don’t kill it.

Often times the answers are additive.  More effort.  More resources. More people. More tools.  More. More. More.

I invite you to kill the more disease today.

Instead, let’s answer the question with removal.

“Take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money; and do not have two tunics.” - Luke 9:3

When Jesus sent the disciples out to preach the gospel and heal the sick, he sent them with the minimal resources to do their work.  Had they brought any excess, productivity would have been sacrificed and the scriptures may have read quite differently.

So tomorrow, as you are heading out to do your work, ask yourself two questions.

What is my work today?  This is probably the easy question.

What are the minimal resources I need to do my work?  This is the hard question. May we think hard on it.

Remove something tomorrow, and may the results you seek manifest in a display of brilliance.

escape – to slip or get away as from confinement or restraint; gain or regain liberty

Today, you will find yourself confined to a number of things.  Confined to your schedule.  Confined to your todo list.  Confined to your finances.  Confined to your studies.  Confined to your work.  Confined to you family. Confined to your friends. Confined to you expectations.  Confined to you goals.  Confined to your plans. Confined to the life you’ve always dreamed of.

You are trapped.  Trapped to dreams and desires that lie well outside the realm of certainty.

“If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” – James 4:15

“Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.” – Proverbs 27:1

It is in our confinement that we forget how wonderful life truly is.  Tomorrow is only a reality when it becomes today.  So, let us make the time to escape.  Because when we escape, we are allowing ourselves to remember that life is a beautiful gift.  In this rememberence, everyday is cherished.  No longer are days stepping stones to a self-fulfilling vision that we justify our existance upon.  Now, days are gifts.  Gifts of opportunity. Opportunities to love, learn, rejoice, and serve.

Be Free.