Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev19990516.htm

JAMES: OVERCOMING DEAD RELIGIOSITY IN OUR BACKGROUNDS
Part II: Overcoming A False Spirituality's HEARTLESS Errors In Relating To Other Believers
H. Overcoming A HEARTLESS Insensitivity To EMOTIONS In Relating To Other Believers
(James 5:13-16a)
  1. Introduction
    1. We at Nepaug Church adhere strongly to the OBJECTIVE Word of God as our source of faith and practice and do not base our faith on experience. This fulfills God's demands of Deuteronomy 13:1-4 where God told His people to place their faith in His written Word above trusting even in miracles by men.
    2. However, with such a commitment comes the errant tendency to supress our emotions so that we not only deny expressing them, but also sin in failing to bear the emotional needs of others, see Gal. 6:2.
    3. James 5:13-16a offers God's answer to the heartless insensitivity to emotions as follows:
  2. Overcoming A HEARTLESS Insensitivity To EMOTIONS In Relating To Other Believers.
    1. When the believer experiences afflictions due to some misfortune in life, instead of denying his feelings of hurt, distress or grief, he must face them and pray for God's help, James 5:13a:
      1. The Greek Testament's word for the KJV's "afflicted" ("in trouble" in the NIV) is kakopatheo, and int the context it means "to be smitten by a misfortune or evil," Theol. Dict. of the N.T., vol. V, p. 937.
      2. As such, James pictures a believer in the church who is somehow emotionally hurting from what this life would send his way by way of misfortune, calamity or an evil suffered. The believer is smarting!
      3. Accordingly, instead of denying the hurt, the believer is to admit he hurts, and face the hurt by PRAYING about it for divine intervention and solutions, James 5:13a.
    2. Conversely, when the believer experiences buoyant spirits because of some great encouragement, instead of ignoring or denying his positive feelings, he should SHARE them to edify by singing psalms, 5:13b:
      1. The Greek Testament's word for the KJV's "merry" ("happy" in the NIV) is euthumeo, meaning "to be joyful, be of good cheer, of good courage," Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon, p. 258.
      2. Thus, James contrasts the believer's times of feeling UNDER life's burdens with feeling buoyant instead.
      3. In such times, instead of denying he feels buoyant, or keeping this feeling that can edify others to himself, the believer is to let his joy out by singing psalms of praise, James 5:13b,c.
    3. On some occasions, the believer may experience such a deep misfortune or a prolonged setback that he has trouble even praying effectively for help coming out of his doldrums. In such a case, James tells the believer not to deny his need, but to deal with it by asking intercession from Church leaders, 5:14-16a:
      1. Though the KJV and NIV render the Greek word asthenei as "sick" in verse 14, that term many times means weakness instead, Bib. Know. Com., N.T., p. 834. Indeed, another Greek word translated "sick" in the KJV ("sick person" in the NIV) in verse 15 to describe this one's negative condition is not the word for physical sickness, but is kamnonta, meaning "'to be weary,'" Ibid.
      2. Accordingly, James in verses 14-16a addresses the needs of a party that is WEAK due to a lack of faith or other spiritual need probably caused by distressing situations in life (acc. to the context of 5:13a).
      3. In this case, were such a person unable effectively to pray for himself due to his discouragement, he should call for the church's elders to intercede for him, James 5:14a,b. The anointing of oil was for the purpose of administering refreshment and grooming, not for religious ritual purposes at all (as follows):
        1. The Greek word for ceremonial anointing was chrio, but James used aleipsantes instead, a term meaning to "'rub with oil'" so as to refresh, Ibid. (citing Trench, Syns. of the N.T., p. 136-137).
        2. Thus, James did not picture a formal ritual here, but a compassionate act of interceding for the weak!
        3. If such a believer was weak due to personal sin, he would be forgiven by confessing his faults, so James commanded mutual intercession and confessions for resoration. (The word "healed" (NIV and KJV) in verse 16 refers to restoration in general, Ibid., Bib. Know. Com., N.T., p. 835.)
Lesson: True spirituality does not IGNORE one's feelings, but rather HARNESSES them aright! Application: Though we are not to be emotionally BASED in our beliefs, we must nevertheless accept the reality that we ARE emotional BEINGS who have FEELINGS, and FACE them and DEAL with them by God's help both in DOWN and in UP times, ESPECIALLY w hen we are OVERWHELMED.