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.
James 5:14-16 ESV
To James’s audience, the idea of anointing a weary person with oil to refresh him would have been a familiar one. Psalm 23 was alive to them. Similarly, the idea of oil being symbolic of the Holy Spirit would have been very familiar. When we have a weary Christian who can’t seem to access the promise of healing on his own, God sends spiritual elders to pray over him not for him. When they pray over him, the anointing of the Spirit comes upon him to refresh him, renew his strength, and empower him to take hold of the promise of God. (note: even if he has committed sins, they are forgiven) Then the prayer of faith will deliver the weary and healing flows.
For a print version of this entire lesson, click here.
Click here for the list of all the Healing Help Videos.
pastorvirgil.com 