CONFESSING SIN

 

CONFESSING SIN

James 5:16 Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and wonderful results. NLT

When was the last time you confessed your sins to another believer? It’s been awhile hasn’t it? Now I am not advocating confessing our sins to others for our forgiveness (unless of course we have sinned against them and need their forgiveness); only Christ can forgive us and make us right with God. However, there is great value in opening up to another about sin in our hearts.

Confession gets things out in the open. It forces us to admit that we are sinners. It makes us accountable for our sins and responsible for doing something about them. It humbles us as we no longer are able to be who we appear to be but are not. It also gives us hope as we realize we are not alone in our struggles, that we all fail from time to time. I believe this is one of the reasons why altars are still an important part of a church’s life.

Confession is good for the soul and so is praying for one another. The goal of all confession is a restoration of the soul with God. There is no way that a heart can be right with God apart from confession and prayer. There is great comfort in knowing that others are praying for us when we open up about our sins. We need to be in continuous prayer for one another so that we may have pure hearts before God.

Don’t minimize the importance of prayer when it comes to dealing with sin. The sincere prayers of a righteous person are very effective. They are powerful for they move the heart of God to act and the result is wonderful to behold. When needy people are prayed for by righteous people great things begin to happen.

If you are struggling with sin issues, find someone who you can trust with your heart and confide in them. Let them come alongside of you, pray with you, and help guide you through the Scriptures as you deal with your sins. Then, pour out your soul before Christ and you will be forgiven and find the peace of soul that eludes you.

Jesus assured us that where two or more are together and they are in agreement on anything, God hears our prayers and answer them. When righteous people pray together over confessed sin, they are forgiven and the soul is set free. Why would we not confess our sins and pray for one another?

No sin is unknown by God. The only person who suffers when sin is not admitted and not sought forgiveness for is the sinner.

PRAYING FOR THE SICK

 

PRAYING FOR THE SICK

James 5:14-15 Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. And their prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make them well. And anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven. NLT

When was the last time the church prayed over you for healing? Most churches have gotten away from this practice. I wonder why. There is something very powerful and personally affirming when the church prays over a soul for healing. Just knowing that others care and are interceding on one's behalf bolsters one's faith. It is an awesome way to strengthen faith and bind the body of Christ together.

Does God always answer prayers for healing? Certainly not in the way we want Him to. Our desire is that the sickness will go away and that the body and mind would be whole and "normal" once again. Sometimes the Lord grants us our prayers and at other times He answers prayers in other ways. Sometimes He brings healing over a period of time. Sometimes death is the way He makes a soul's body whole once again.

Our responsibility is to join together in prayer. We pray in faith believing in what the Lord will do and leave the rest to Him. When we pray in the will of God we must always submit to His workings with gratitude. Our Father knows best how to deal with a person's sickness. He knows best how it will work out for the good and bring Him the glory He alone deserves.

Doctors and medical people are important and we should never neglect going to them, but we should always bring the Lord into the mix. We should ask the elders of the church to anoint us with oil and the Lord promises to hear our prayers and answer them.

WHAT IS SIN?

 

WHAT IS SIN?

James 4:17 Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.

Has the Lord spoken to you about something you need to do and you haven’t done it yet? Be careful. Failing to obey God is sin. The Lord holds us responsible for obeying Him.

If you can honestly say that you don’t know what you ought to do, then you need to wait before the Lord until you do. We often push ahead without waiting on our marching orders. We take it upon ourselves to determine how we will serve the Lord. We go where we want to go without being certain it is where the Lord wants us to go. We miss out on so many blessings from God because we don’t wait on Him and end up doing things contrary to what He wants us to do.

There are specific things that the Lord requires from us that are exclusively ours to do and there are general things that are applicable to all believers. All of us are commanded to keep the Lord number one in our lives. We are commanded to be a holy people. We are commanded to rid ourselves of those things which are not holy within us. We are to be students of the Word of God. We are to be a people of prayer. We are to live godly lives amongst the people of the world. We are to be witnesses of Him and mentoring others in the faith. We are to be a people who live in the world but remain detached from the world and its pleasures.

We know what we ought to be doing. The issue is, are we doing it? Don’t live in sin by failing to do what you know God wants you to do. Give up those things which are hindering you from obeying the Lord. Surrender them to Him and confess your sin of disobedience. It is God’s will for you.

POWERFUL, EFFECTIVE PRAYING

 

POWERFUL, EFFECTIVE PRAYING

James 4:13-16 Are any among you suffering? They should keep on praying about it. And those who have reason to be thankful should continually sing praises to the Lord. Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. And their prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make them well. And anyone who has committed sin will be forgiven. Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and wondrous results. NLT

One thing that seems to be very clear in the Scriptures is that we should never give up praying. James stresses that point here when he talks about praying for the sick. So often, we fail to move the hand of God to act in response to our prayers because we give up too easily in our praying. Jesus instructs us to keep on praying. We are to be persistent in our praying. Sometimes the prayers we lift up to God are immediately answered and sometimes the answers take a lot of time. Praying is faith in action. It is believing that God hears our prayers, has a desire to answer them, and then will do it if we pray with hearts in tune with His.

The prayers of a thankful heart swell up into songs of praise to the Lord. They are centered on Christ and submissive to His will. The Lord promises that He will bring healing to the body and soul when we pray. We may not recognize exactly how our prayers are answered, but answered they are. We often fail to trust the Lord in this simply because we don't see the workings of the Spirit through His eyes. We give up praying because we lose confidence in our praying power. We want what we want and forget that what we want may not be what God wants to give. He knows how best to respond to our praying.

Powerful and effective are the prayers of the saints. It is true not because I say so, but because God says so. The rewards are great for those who earnestly seek God, submit to His will, and trust Him to work all things out according to His will and plan for our lives.

Don’t get the idea that because God doesn’t answer your prayers the way you want Him to that He doesn’t answer them. God knows best what we need and moves in response to our needs and not necessarily our wants.

Also, don’t think that because God doesn’t immediately answer your prayers that He is not hearing and answering them. He knows what needs to be done, when it needs to be done, and how it needs to be done. Keep on praying and trust Him. He answers the prayers of those who wait on Him with faith believing.

Come on out from among them today and be a prayer warrior. Wait on the Lord and see what great things He will do.

ARE YOU SUFFERING?

 

ARE YOU SUFFERING?

James 5:13 Are any among you suffering? They should keep on praying about it. And those who have reason to be thankful should continually sing praises to God. NLT

Suffering is not a pleasant thing to go through or live with. We don’t like it because it causes us pain. It prevents us from being free to enjoy life, or so we think. I believe it would be beneficial to look at suffering from a different perspective.

Suffering, no matter the cause or pain, can be good for us if it causes us to turn to God more. It is good to draw strength for our suffering from Christ. It is good to go through suffering if it helps to build up stronger and more effective faith in us. It is good for us if it causes us to admit our helplessness to make it go away. When we endure suffering it should drive us to our knees. The Lord may or may not make the suffering go away, but when we pray, we get all that we need to handle our sufferings. If you don’t like your sufferings, pray. If you don’t understand why you have to suffer, pray. If you find no help medically, pray. If no one understands your sufferings, pray. If no one comes alongside you to help you, pray.

If you are blessed to not have to suffer, pray and give thanks to the Lord and praise Him for His graciousness. Praise Him while you don’t have to suffer and you will be much more apt to praise Him while you suffer. Learn to give thanks to the Lord in the good times of life so that it will be natural for you to thank Him in the bad times.

Also, if you are not suffering, pray for those who are. We need to reach out with our prayers and love to those amongst us who suffer. Concerned compassion goes a long ways in helping the sufferer endure the suffering. Everyone needs to know that someone actually cares. We can’t make the suffering go away, but we can support those who do suffer.

Suffering is not just physical. There are a lot of different ways one can, and does suffer: emotionally, mentally, spiritually, being ostracized by others, being ridiculed, financially, etc.

During your suffering, consider this: we have eternal life in Christ. Circumstances do not dictate our salvation. We are forgiven for all our sins. We have the constant companionship of our Lord always. We have the enabling power of the Spirit of Christ always at work in us. We have the loving and watchful eye of our Heavenly Father protecting us from all harm. We have the guaranteed promise of God that we will spend our eternity with Him. Think about these things and no matter how much you may have to suffer, all will be well. You can do it through Christ who gives us the strength.

DO NOT CONDEMN

 

DO NOT CONDEMN

James 4:11-12 Don't speak evil against each other, my dear brothers and sisters. If you criticize each other and condemn each other, then you are criticizing and condemning God's law. But you are not a judge who can decide whether the law is right or wrong. Your job is to obey it. God alone, who made the law, can rightly judge among us. He alone has the power to save or destroy. So what right do you have to condemn your neighbor? NLT

Why is it that we find it so hard to listen to what James is saying here? There are very few church bodies out there who do not struggle with this. Most of us as individuals struggle with this. We have a need to be right and when someone doesn't agree with us we are quick to dismiss their opinions as wrong. We rarely are able to listen to what others believe and think it through. We know what we believe based on what we have been taught. We accept what the teachings of our particular church teaches and don't question them. We seldom ask ourselves if perhaps there might be another equally valid way to understand a text or doctrinal teaching. Rather than take an honest look at what others teach, we dismiss it and proclaim them to be wrong. Period. Depending on how strong our convictions are, we speak evil of those who think differently than us. We claim to have THE correct understanding of the Word and often avoid those who don't agree with us.

But, who are we to stand in a position of judgment? What makes us so wise that we have perfect understanding of the Word? Granted, we have the Spirit within us who guides us into proper understandings of the truth, but why then are there so many different interpretations of certain texts to the point where we are divided? Perhaps we need to mellow a bit on our staunch stand on some things and strive to be one in Christ instead of so many. As long as we do not mess with what the Lord did for us on Calvary, there is room in the Kingdom for all of us. We are one in Christ. The cross is our rallying point. We all have the same status before God through the cross. Jesus is our Savior and He is all we need in order to make it to heaven.

We waste way too much of our time and energy squabbling over the fine print. We are not called by God to have perfect understanding; we are called to obey the Word as we understand it. Our understanding evolves as we grow into maturity of faith. We often have to readjust our thoughts as we grow older and wiser in the faith. We don't have any right to condemn one another when we think differently about things. We can discuss our differences in a loving way for our mutual benefit, and when we can't agree over something, we accept our differences in love and let Christ unite us together in Him.

If changes in understanding needs to be done, the Lord will see to it that it happens in His perfect timing and ways. In the meantime, let's act like the one body we are in Christ.

BOW DOWN

 

BOW DOWN

James 4:10 When you bow down before the Lord and admit your dependence on him; he will lift you up and give you honor. NLT

Notice that it is only when we bow before the Lord and admit our dependence on Him that He lifts us up and gives us honor. Bowing before the Lord is an absolute necessity in our walk of faith. We must always remain humble before the Lord. We must always acknowledge Him as our master and worthy of our allegiance. We must always be in awe of Him for who He is and what He has and is doing in our lives. We must always acknowledge that we are nothing apart from Him.

We depend on the Lord for everything. There is no existence apart from Him. There is no hope apart from Him. There is no salvation for our souls. There is no guidance through the maze of life. There is no help in our many battles with Satan over our souls. There is no understanding of God. There is no one to defend us before God apart from Him. We must always remember that it is the Lord who gives meaning to life. It is He alone who can save our souls.

It is the Lord alone who can lift us up and give us honor. Don’t rely on man to do it for you. The praises and affirmations of man are fickle, fleeting and meaningless. But, the honor bestowed on us by the Lord is eternal. The approval of the Lord is all that matters. Strive to always please Him in all you do and He will lift you up. He alone is whom we must give an account to for our lives. Let us never forget this wonderful truth.

Don’t let sinful pride keep you from humbling yourself before the Lord and acknowledging your dependence on Him. Don’t let Satan deceive you into thinking you do not need to humble yourself before God, that you are okay as you are. God lifts up and honors those who bow down before Him with humble and broken hearts, dependent on Him.