The Healing Oil

Fifty-2 Sunday’s ~ Listening for God

          Sunday’s sermon was the from the book of James, a lesson the preacher titled "What Season is It”. What was described as “seasons” I might have called “conditions”, but the the main point was that the text offered a helpful strategy  for each.

James 5:13-15:

·       “Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray.”

·       “Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise.” –

·       “Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord.  And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up.” 

·       “If they have sinned, they 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 person is powerful and effective.”

In summation: Pray when in trouble, sing when joyful/happy, seek prayers of others when ill, and confess sin.

          The preacher actually spent a considerable amount of time on James 5:14 & 15 about the anointing with oil. The main points:

·       Historically oil (olive oil) was very much a part of the Mediterranean culture and way of life—as well as Jewish life.

·       James was a Jewish Christian as was the audience he spoke to/taught.

·       It is not a command to anoint the ill with oil—it is a matter of personal choice.

·       There is nothing magical in the oil that anoints—instead it is the power of prayer.

·       There is no promise of immediate or perpetual healing. Spiritual healing happens at our conversion and total healing will occur at the resurrection.

Jesus certainly was familiar with Jewish customs and the twelve he sent out (Mark 6:8-13) reported they had …”anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.” 

Vines Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words provides several uses for oil as mentioned in then New Testament:(http://www.menfak.no/bibelprog/vines?word=%AFt0001973) 

(a) for lamps, in which the "oil" is a symbol of the Holy Spirit, Matt. 25:3,4,8;

(b) as a medicinal agent, for healing, Luke 10:34;

(c) for anointing at feasts, Luke 7:46;

(d) on festive occasions, Heb. 1:9, where the reference is probably to the consecration of kings;

(e) as an accompaniment of miraculous power, Mark 6:13, or of the prayer of faith

I have been fascinated with healing (miraculous healings particularly) since I was approximately eight years old. That was when I discovered a radio station that had a Sunday morning show during which people suffering with some ailment would describe in detail their condition and that was followed by a pronouncement of how they had been healed by Jesus. I was completely engrossed by these stories of these healing. I don’t recall how long I listened to this show or why I stopped, but it certainly left an impression.

Ultimately- God is the healer. He created our bodies with self-healing capabilities, he enabled people through time to discover plants and other elements on earth to assist with healing and today, scientists and medical practitioners are making phenomenal inroads into many diseases that have plagued mankind throughout the ages. I believe the most powerful instrument any of us has at our disposal to help with healing – is faith. Faith is what moves God. Therefore a prayer offered in faith can result in healing-if not in the present temporal world we live in now-certainly in the everlasting kingdom of God. And a little oil with that prayer might help too.