“The Prayer of Faith” Sunday, 18 September 2022 10:00 a.m.
We are continuing our series called: “The Potential of Prayer.” There is so much untapped power and potential that is at our disposal through the means of prayer. We have talked about the conflict in prayer; the posture of prayer and the persistence of prayer.
Last Sunday we talked about praying the Word of God. This Sunday I want to talk about the prayer of faith that James speaks of in James ch.5.
James 5: 13 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. 14 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. 15 And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
These are only a few short verses with regards to prayer that will heal the sick; the prayer of faith. But they are filled with a lot of questions. As I reread these verses over and over and studied them in their context, I came up with a few questions of my own which I will try to answer. I want to pose 8 questions based on this passage. Here are a few of them:
Is the prayer of faith for everyone? ( Believers and unbelievers?)
Why call the elders of the church?
Why anoint with oil?
Is healing guaranteed?
Does un-confessed sin prevent healing?
James assures us that: the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. That is, it is effective when it meets the criteria that is laid out for us in this passage; and it’s fervent when it is prayed in a manner that is believing, passionate, and persistent.
Join us in person on Sunday at 10:00 a.m. or via live-stream by going to https://www.firstbaptistsudbury.com and clicking on live-stream for “The Prayer of Faith.”
Blessings,
Kevin