Digging Deeper – November 29, 2023
Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven. 16 Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed…
James 5:14-16 (NLT)
INTERCESSION AND CONFESSION
Intercession – the act of saying a prayer on behalf of another person – is an important part of prayer. James touches upon the role of intercession in verses 14-16. Firstly, those that are sick benefit from the healing prayers of others in the church. This ought to be a common grace among a body of believers as such prayers “offered in faith” have the power to heal (v.15).
Paul instructs his companion in ministry, Timothy, to pray for others. In 1 Timothy 2:1 he states, “I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them.” Many prayers for healing have been answered in the lives of people at NorthStar. I cannot count the times that I have called on people for whom we were praying and miraculous progress had been made. Or the times I have prayed for those in the throes of addiction who were restored to their former sanity. On interceding for others the Bible says, “this is good and pleases God our Savior” (1 Timothy 2:4).
Confession, likewise, ought to be a frequent practice among faithful Christians – specifically, confession amongst one another. In the years since the Protestant Reformation took place, confession has diminished into something of a relic of Roman Catholicism. This has resulted in an overemphasis on confession taking place internally between God and oneself. It is true that “if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness” (1 John 1:9). However, James makes clear that confession of one’s sin to another believer has the power to result in healing. This is clear for two reasons: 1) it creates an opportunity for intercession 2) there is a humility involved in confession that is fatal to pride.
Ryan Hoffer serves as NextGen Production Director at NorthStar. He holds an M.Div in Church History and enjoys playing the harp. He and his wife, Tiffany, live in Acworth and have three children.