THE BOOK OF JAMES: ON PRAYER

 The Structure of James

I. Reliance on God (1:2-18)

    A. Trials Lead to Completion (1:2-4)

        B. Asking of God (1:5-8)

            C. Riches (1:9-11)

A'. Trials Lead to Death (1:12-15)

        B'. Receiving from God (1:16-18)

                II. The Tongue (1:19-3:12)

                        III. The Spiritual Life: Part 1 (3:13-5:6)

                        III'. The Spiritual Life: Part 2 (5:7-11)

                II'. The Tongue (5:12)

I'. Reliance on God (5:13-20)

        B. Prayer (5:13-18)

    A. Saving a Sinner (5:19-20)

Two of the smaller parallel units are often ignored when studying this book: IB and I'B, both dealing with the subject of prayer.

James 1:5-8

Verse 5 “If any of you is lacking in wisdom”: Verse 3 had just alluded to the knowledge that the believers possessed. Now James mentions wisdom, which is the proper application of that knowledge.

“ask God”: The first step seems to be a rather obvious one. And it is echoed in Jesus' teaching in Luke 11:9 – “So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you...” Later, Jesus taught his disciples that after his death they should ask the Father in his name and they would receive (John 16:23-24). As obvious as it might seem, there are still believers who do not avail themselves of this help. James points this out in 4:2b when he says, “You do not have because you do not ask.”

The next aspect of prayer is the nature of our requests to God. What should we ask for? Going back to the two passages cited above, we begin to get an idea. Luke 11 goes on in verse 13 to mention the Holy Spirit as a prime example of what we should request. This is logical since the Holy Spirit is really our only sure guide to wisdom in dealing with all the issues of life we face. It is also interesting that several NT writers seem to equate Jesus as the personification of wisdom. This is another example of the interconnection between the three persons of the Godhead.

James 4:3 continues the thought of 4:2 by explaining that another of his audience's problems regarding prayer is that even if they do ask God, they ask wrongly in order to spend what they get on their own pleasures. This is a powerful message that some Prosperity Gospel preachers should take to heart.

1:6-8 Next James addresses the state of mind necessary for effective prayer. We must ask in faith. At the very least, this includes saving faith. And some would argue that James is additionally referring to supernatural, mountain-moving faith of the type that Paul alludes to in I Corinthians 12:9 when he says, “to another (is given) faith by the same Spirit.” That may be a valid sub-category of faith given to only some believers, but it is doubtful that is what James is referring to. The rest of this passage clarifies the issue.

James goes on by stating that we must not be “double-minded.” There are two ways of looking at this phrase. In Jewish thought it meant rejecting evil and choosing good. Or we would say, not being a carnal Christian. St. Augustine's famous prayer early in his life is worth recalling: “O Lord grant me purity, but not yet.” This was apparently the problem with some of James' audience, as we see from verse 4, who still sought to have friendship with the world.

There is a slightly different way of looking at the phrase “double-minded,” a compound word not found in the Greek earlier than this usage by James. It may also have the connotation of “with reservations,” in contrast to God's giving generously (v. 5). This person is asking with a certain lack of faith in either getting the desired results or, more basically, actual lack of faith in God. This latter condition is spelled out in Hebrews 11:6: “And without faith it is impossible to please God, for whoever would approach Him must believe that He exists and and that He rewards those who seek him.”

A certain “name it – claim it” theology puts the entire onus of a successful prayer on the believer, who must recite the correct promise verses in the Bible to get what they want. That practice can soon devolve into a work of man rather than a gift from God, and any resulting failure is then blamed on the petitioner not praying in exactly the right manner. This is dangerously close to treating prayer as a form of magic by which we can manipulate the higher powers to do what we want. An especially egregious form of this practice is to hold God to His promises by practically demanding that He answer our prayers positively. I even heard one teacher say that God has no choice in the matter; He has to do what we ask.

To be true to the whole of Scripture, it is helpful to be reminded that there are other conditions attached to our prayer requests: first being right with our spouse and Christian brothers and sisters, asking in Christ's name (and all that might be implied in that phrase), asking in agreement with other believers, in accord with God's will in the matter, practicing persistence, etc.).

James 5:13-18

Verse 13 Two situations are presented here, which cover the range of human experiences:

1. If we are suffering, turn to God for help, don't just complain about the situation. Many of the petitions in the Lord's Prayer refer to what is lacking in our life, asking God to fill those needs.

2. If we are cheerful, we shouldn't just boast about our good fortune to others or be frivolous with the blessings God has provided. The specific act of singing is singled out as an appropriate response since (a) it involves the emotions as well as the mind and (b) it openly witnesses to those around us. We should remember that praise, such as we see in the Psalms, is both private and corporate in nature.

Verse 14 A third situation involving prayer is in mind here, but the language used is purposely vague as to what that situation is exactly. Is the person spiritually in need or physically ailing? Our appropriate actions in either case may be the same. We are told to call on the spiritual leaders, who will anoint the person with oil and pray for him. The more sacramental understanding of this teaching says that the duly designated authorities in the church are necessary, accompanied by the proper words and symbolic physical actions. A more Protestant understanding feels that although the elders may be more spiritually mature than others, they are merely representatives of the whole congregation. The fact that oil is used may be symbolic such as the laying on of hands, but it also represents one of the only medicinal tools the people at that time had to alleviate physical pain. Only oil is mentioned, however, and not folk medicines, incantations or the use of magic charms. In any case, the action would have a beneficial psychological effect as well.

Verse 15 But as one continues to read in this passage, it becomes clear that the final cause of the cure will not lie in the super-spiritual faith of a certain group of believers or in the oil, but in God alone.

Verses 17-18 This fact is explicitly stated in these verses by giving Elijah as an example. Our first reaction would probably be “I'm certainly no Elijah and neither are any of our current church leaders.” But James characterizes the prophet as “a man of like nature with ourselves.” What set him apart was his persistence in prayer.

One final aspect of prayers of petition bears discussing. Critics pose the following question: “If we are praying for something that is outside God's will, then He will not answer our prayers favorably. If what we are praying for is good, then God will do it whether we pray for it or not...But if this argument is sound, surely it is an argument not only against praying, but against doing anything whatever.” C. S. Lewis discusses this issue in his essay “Work and Prayer” (in God in the Dock). Here are some selected comments from that essay, but the whole piece can be read with profit:

“Pascal says that God 'instituted prayer in order to allow His creatures the dignity of causality.' It would perhaps be truer to say that He invented both prayer and physical action for that purpose. He gave us small creatures the dignity of being able to contribute to the course of events in two different ways... that is why we can wash our own hands and feed or murder our fellow creatures. Similarly, He made his own plan or plot of history such that it admits a certain amount of free play and can be modified in response to our prayers.

The two methods by which we are allowed to product events may be called work and prayer. Both are alike in this respect – that in both we try to produce a state of affairs which God has not (or at any rate not yet) seen fit to provide on His own.

Prayers are not always – in the crude, factual sense of the word – 'granted.' This is not because prayer is a weaker kind of causality, but because it is a stronger kind. When it 'works' at all it works unlimited by space and time. That is why God has retained a discretionary power of granting or refusing it; except on that condition prayer would destroy us."