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Faith is Trust, Not a Cure
St. James wrote the health prescription for first century Christians: "Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." (James 5:14-16)
Oil was frequently used as medicine in the first century Mediterranean world. The Bible was encouraging prayer and the best medicine available. The same goes for twenty-first century Christians-- Prayer/Faith and the best medicine available.
Does faith make a positive difference in health? Absolutely. Is a cure always guaranteed? No, faith means trusting God for the outcome, not for all our problems to be always solved.
By
Leith Anderson
|
June 17, 2008; 12:12 PM ET
| Category:
Spirituality
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Posted by: Robert | June 17, 2008 2:50 PM
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Well said Pastor.
Psalm 118:14
"Yah is my strength and song.
He has become my salvation."
Posted by: Patrick@OnlyJesusSaves.com | June 17, 2008 1:35 PM
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Christians must read their scriptures through a pair of special decoder goggles not available to us unsaved.
How else to explain the plain contradiction between the cited verse and the good pastor's preaching?
"Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well..."
So prayer, offered in faith, will make the sick person well.
Will make the sick person well.
Seems fairly clear to me. Yet, Mr. Anderson, seemingly oblivious to the very words he just quoted, states:
"Is a cure always guaranteed? No..."
Sorry, that's not what "James" says.
In response to this plain contradiction, Christians apologists will no doubt reply, "scripture must interpret scripture!" Fine, use whatever exegetical gymnastics you need to explain why scripture doesn't actually mean what it says, but don't quote it and expect the rest of us to blindly swallow your doublespeak.