James 5:13-16 (NKJV) 13Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. 14Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
In our study of the necessity of resisting the devil as we submit to God, we have been looking at the weapons that are available to us as believers. We have looked at the Word of God as a tool of resistance against the devil’s influence in our lives. In 1 Corinthians 10:1-4 we find that we must bring into captivity every argument or imagination that tries to exalt itself against the knowledge of God. We do this by bringing these apposing arguments into subjection to that knowledge by studying and meditating Gods Word.
We have also discovered that when we join the power of God’s word with the power of praise and worship, we find a weapon that will change our perspective to the point where faith rises and is strengthened. We elevate our eyes to the real source of help. This source is not in anything the world can give. The psalmist declares that our help comes from the Lord. Praise and worship when offered from a pure heart will cause our eyes to be focused on the place from which our true help comes.
Another mighty weapons God has revealed to us in his Word is the weapon of prayer. Prayer is communication with God. It is important to understand that communication is a two-way street, not a one-way street. In any successful relationship communication is a major key. If a husband and wife never talk, they are going to have problems. Even more important, if they talk but do not listen, they will never be successful. The same is true with our relationship with God.
In James 4, we found that to be submitted to God we must draw near to him, and he will in response draw near us. Communication in prayer is one of the ways that we do so. We have already seen that the degree of success we will have in resisting the devil is directly proportional to the level of submission to God we cultivate. Prayer is a part of that process.
The Bible also points to prayer as a direct weapon against our enemy. In today’s verse we see a number of things. James asks some questions. First, he asks if anyone is suffering. If so, the solution he gives is that they pray. How is prayer a weapon during a time of suffering? For one thing it puts us in communication with the one who can alleviate all suffering. As we bring our situation to God, he will always be there to comfort us and encourage us.
On the one hand, as in praise and worship, it will change our perspective. On the other hand, as we not only speak to God but listen as he speaks to us, He will give us revelation as to how to deal with what is causing the suffering. This is a weapon against the enemy in the same way that intelligence is a weapon for any army. When we know the enemies plans and hear from God the best way to counter them, we will win the battle.
Then he asks if anyone is sick. What does he offer as the solution? He says call the elders of the church who will pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. This is good advice, but what does James say will bring healing? It is not the fact that the elders are praying. It is not the oil. He says that the prayer of faith will save the sick and raise him up. If the sick is raised up, that must mean he is healed. In the process, if sin is the cause, that sin will be forgiven. So, the key to all this is the prayer of faith. That is the weapon that will defeat sin and sickness. Why is prayer such an important weapon in our resistance? Look at the next verse in the Amplified Bible.
James 5:16b (AMP) The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working].
Prayer that comes from the heart and is born in our communication with God makes power available that is dynamic in its effect. There are two powerful things that prayer can do. It brings pressure on the kingdom of darkness directly. As we communicate with God in prayer we will sense things that God wants us to pray for a situation. As we release those words into the air, there is a spiritual pressure that is released with them. This pressure can be felt in the world of the spirit. The devil feels this spiritual pressure against his plans and purposes and even against his person. When Jesus prayed, the devil knew it and he had to conform. Look at the tomb of Lazarus.
John 11:41-42 (NKJV) 41Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. 42“And I know that You always hear Me, but because of the people who are standing by I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me.”
Lazarus was dead. Jesus was there to defeat even this enemy. How did he do it? He prayed. Although part of what Jesus prayed was so those who saw what he was going to do would give glory to God, he prayed. His prayer “made much power available” for him to minister. When he came to the point where the tomb was opened and it was time for Lazarus to rise, the words he spoke drove death from his body and cause life to return.
Not only does prayer bring pressure in the spirit against the devil, prayer also was the source of the power in the words that Jesus spoke which conquered death in Lazarus’ condition. Prayer prepares us and the one to whom we minister. Prayer strengthens our faith because faith is always a matter of relationship. Prayer shows us what to do and releases the power to be successful in doing it. Without communication with God in prayer, there can be no successful resistance of the satanic kingdom.
In Romans chapter 8 there is another scripture that shows the power of prayer.
Romans 8:26-27 (NKJV) 26Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
Part of the dynamic of communication in prayer is that the Holy Spirit is a involved in the process. When we are praying for a person or situation, there are things that we cannot know. However, God does know them. There are differing points of view about what that means, but what is clear is that the Holy Spirit can and will become actively involved in the process of the prayer weapon. He searches the hearts of men, and he knows the mind of God. As he prays through us, he directs us to pray the exact thing the person needs according to the will of God. The person can choose not to submit to whatever God is trying to work in his or her life, but the devil cannot.
There is much more to how prayer is a weapon in our resistance but let this much encourage you to pray. There is no power in studying prayer or talking about prayer. There is great power in actually praying.
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