Missions Paul

This morning I wake thinking and praying for a Pastor who has received slanderous comments from within their church. It has hurt him deeply and the reason being is not that there was any truth in what was said but the comments were too close for comfort (it was indeed personal whether or not the slanderer realised it or not).

I say that because this next verse is showing that Paul also experienced what this Pastor has.

“Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.” (Galatians 1 v 10)

When Paul was a strict Pharisee he would have looked at those who were not adhering to his righteous living as people who were compromising in order to please people. Now he is being called a people-pleaser himself. Whether it was said on purpose or not, it hurts. The irony is it comes from the preachers and teachers who were themselves doing anything they could to please the Romans. They tried to deceive the Galatia church into circumcision so that they could say there is only one Jewish group. We know this because of what he writes at the end of the letter, “Those who want to impress people by means of the flesh are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ. Not even those who are circumcised keep the law, yet they want you to be circumcised that they may boast about your circumcision in the flesh” (6:12-13). So actually it is the name-callers who are the people-pleasers, not Paul.

What happened to Paul is what happened to Jesus.

John 8 v48-59 “The Jews answered him, “Aren’t we right in saying that you are a Samaritan and demon-possessed?” “I am not possessed by a demon,” said Jesus, “but I honour my Father and you dishonour me. 

I wrote these 5 things down on a piece of paper some time back when I was praying for someone hurt by comments:-

• Words really do count and they can hurt, it is not just sticks and stones.
• Words that are slurs outweigh the over-sensitivity of people.
• Words lead to consequences.
• Words build on sand where nothing of substance is formed.
• Words come from fools who live to regret their words.

I think the answer is within this proverb:

The words that flow from the Spirit-filled believer is like honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones (Proverbs 16 v24). Words that flow from the non-Spirit filled believer do not.

If you are hurt today because of comments said to you yesterday then know that it happened to Jesus and it happened to Paul.

There is an urgency about this letter from Paul. If you looked at some of his other letters (Romans, Philippians, Colossians, Thessalonians) then you would see that here in his letter to the churches in Galatia there is no congratulations, no encouragement or thank-you. He is greatly disturbed. He cannot believe what he is hearing. He never thought this would happen.

“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— ⁷ which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. ⁸ But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse! ⁹ As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse!” (Galatians 1 v 6-9)

Be reminded of what Paul has said in v3-5, the clear gospel message is in 4 statements about what Jesus the Messiah has done:-

1. who gave himself for our sins
2. to rescue us from the present evil age
3. according to the will of our God and Father
4. to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

So what is going on in Galatia?

Paul says they are deserting the One who called them into grace, they are turning from Jesus; they were speaking a different gospel that wasn’t a gospel; they are confused by some people, preachers and teachers presumably; there is a curse of God available.

One of those places was Antioch which Paul and Barnabas had come back from on Paul’s first missionary journey. In Acts 15 the whole problem was discussed in the council at Jerusalem.

Acts 15:24 “We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said.”

What is not clear is whether some leaders had left the Jerusalem church to visit Antioch in secret and they did it with their Pharisaic spirit or that they in fact were sent by Jerusalem but they overstepped their remit and began to bring their rules that had never been laid out by the Church in Jerusalem or by Paul and Barnabas.

Some people have a personal campaign, an untested and unchallenged voice. They are the lone rangers of the church.

Some people can be within a gracious Church but come out as law enforcers. Being within grace doesn’t mean grace is within you.

Some people speak with authority without being under authority.

Some people when they speak, disturb and steal peace and think this is what God does to His children.

Some people go further and do more than what was expected or asked of them. They may have an entrepreneurial passion and belief and be willing to take risks to make it happen. But breaking from the whole doesn’t mean they are right.

Some people are just some and not everyone. It can be fixed.

The Jews in Galatia who had come to know Jesus would not be expecting the non-Jews to simply join the ‘family’ simply because of belief in Jesus and nothing else. They had special privileges from Rome as a Jew. They had permission to be the worshipper of one God. These Gentiles were threatening this. Paul had preached that Gentiles came also from the line of Abraham just like the Jew and should not worship local gods as the Jews didn’t. So to the outside position it looked like there were 2 ‘Jewish’ groups. So would Rome tolerate this? Would the Jews lose their privileges? So some preachers and teachers gave a different gospel. Every follower of Jesus should be circumcised at least and then everyone will be happy with the status quo. For Paul this was actually a curse because it was completely a different message than the gospel. The different gospel was about surviving the old age which Jesus had rescued us from not embracing the new age He had ushered in. The glory to God that the gospel brings was now experiencing a curse because it was not the gospel at all.

The Gospel is a complete new way of living not a crutch to help you survive how you have lived.

Yesterday I shared how Alan Renshaw received his home call. An Indiana Jones type of missionary. I began the devotional with him and then moved into these verses in Galatians 1 v 3-5. I want to finish what Paul said today about the clear message.

 “To the churches in Galatia: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” (Galatians 1 v 3-5)

Paul summarises that gospels into 4 statements, yesterday I wrote about the first two.

1. who gave himself for our sins
2. to rescue us from the present evil age
3. according to the will of our God and Father
4. to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Here is the clear gospel message.

a) Into a world known for its idolatry and paganism where the only monotheists were the Jews and they saw every non-Jew as an idolater and sinner, comes Jesus who gave himself for our sins. 

b) Throughout Bible history up until the moment that Jesus chose to surrender his life (Passover), we have God being revealed as the rescuer.

c) All this was not by chance but by the creative will and act of God. This was not to simply get us to heaven but to give us an opportunity to live free from this ‘present evil age’. It was always God’s will for us to thrive, to be a new creation and to live our best lives in this new age brought about by the giving of Jesus. We are not delivered from in the sense that we are taken out of the world, but we are called to follow Jesus in this present age. When we fully understand the cross then we understand our own life. He was handed over. He was nailed to the cross. He was put to death. But God was never in a crisis. It was indeed something pre-arranged. It was in His plan. Therefore, whatever bad happens to you. It sits in the hands of a good God. There is a purpose. You will see it. Just stay following Jesus in this present age. The story will unfold.

d) The result is that our lives demonstrate worship to God and in our communities we pray and praise bringing glory to His Name. Today pause and refresh yourself again in the clear message; let our Father flow through you; and move towards Him in worship in everything you do then you will know that in everything that happens you will bring glory to His Name. There is no way we will ever understand fully the glory of God this side of heaven. In its simplistic form it is to see His beauty by way of God’s actions and by His character and nature. Suffering is the place in which glorification takes place. The suffering of the cross.

There is a work on earth that we need to finish and it will involve our pain and suffering. We will struggle and it won’t be easy. We are all in the work as followers of Jesus. The work of doing what the Father asks of us. The work of every day rising to be the best disciple of Christ we can be. Richard, the Bishop of Chichester died in 1253 having only been a priest for 10 years. He lived a difficult life under the oppression of King Henry III. He ended up spending nearly 2 years walking barefoot throughout his diocese, can you imagine that? He wrote this prayer which sums up the work we are all called into until we die:

Thanks be to thee, my Lord Jesus Christ, for all the benefits Thou hast given me, for all the pains and insults thou hast borne for me. O most merciful redeemer, friend and brother, may I know thee more clearly, love thee more dearly and follow thee more nearly, day by day.

Today, your loved one may have left you. You may feel alone for all kinds of reasons. But you are still here and the work is still to be done.  Know Him. Love Him. Follow Him. Today. Finish the work. Bring Him glory on your earth. For tomorrow there is a glory to come.

Those, like Alan Renshaw, who are with Jesus in heaven right now are in the fullness of that glory! We will experience that ourselves but for now, here on earth, we finish the work and bring glory to Him who suffered for us. “I greet you with the great words, grace and peace! We know the meaning of those words because Jesus Christ rescued us from this evil world we’re in by offering himself as a sacrifice for our sins. God’s plan is that we all experience that rescue. Glory to God forever! Oh, yes!” (The Message)

Only a few months ago I spent some time in the home of Alan and Anne Renshaw. They were the ‘Indiana Jones’ of Elim Missions. If you knew them you were privileged. Anne will need our prayers along with their family. Yesterday morning Alan went home to be with His Lord.

Alan had been called by God to Tanzania when he was in the Royal Navy, where he had stopped off in Dar-Es-Salam. It was in 1960 that he and Anne moved as missionaries to this nation and served there for 3 years before returning to where they were originally placed in Zimbabwe. Alan and Anne (a school teacher) threw themselves into the work of evangelism, church planting and of course it was all supported by his amazing practical skills. He was responsible for not only the building of churches but also of Pastor’s houses.

Alan and Anne have always been connected to our Grimsby church having pastored there in the late 70’s. The church released them to go back to Tanzania for 6 months in 1980 and then in 1981 they returned to Tanzania until 1998 when they retired and moved back to their home just outside Grimsby. But even in retirement Alan was preaching the gospel leading a Pentecostal Church in his village. He carried the clear message.

I wanted to share all that this morning before we move into the next sentences of Paul’s letter to the churches in Galatia. For it is a testimony in our day of what was written in the Apostle Paul’s time, around 40-50 AD.

“To the churches in Galatia: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” (Galatians 1 v 3-5)

Not only did Jesus call God this name, He taught his disciples to do the same and they in turn passed on that same baton which (coupled with the help of the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives) we all can call God ‘… our Father’. And who is our? It is everyone who follows Jesus whether from the Jewish culture (traditional greeting is peace) or the Greek culture (the traditional greeting is grace). It is Paul’s way of speaking to everyone and he has a reason to do so, it is the gospel message. Here he summarises that gospels into 4 statements:-

1. who gave himself for our sins
2. to rescue us from the present evil age
3. according to the will of our God and Father
4. to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Here is the clear gospel message.

a) Into a world known for its idolatry and paganism where the only monotheists were the Jews and they saw every non-Jew as an idolater and sinner, comes Jesus who gave himself for our sins.  This was the world, so much so that if a man wanted to leave idolatry to worship one God then they had to be circumcised to prove they were leaving that idolatrous world behind. But Jesus gave himself on the cross to defeat the powers behind such idolatry and which had such a grip on people’s lives. This is a huge message for Paul because if people are set free from idolatry because Jesus defeated the powers behind the scenes then there is nothing more that needs to be done except to live in freedom. There is no point to circumcision as a means to prove anything. Their/our identity has changed. They/we are no longer sinners.

b) Throughout Bible history up until the moment that Jesus chose to surrender his life (Passover), we have God being revealed as the rescuer. From the Exodus to Golgotha, God has rescued us, that’s what Paul saw. He sees the Passover in the shadow of the cross. Jesus is the Rescuer sent by God. David was able to say in Psalm 116:6 “When I was in great need, he saved me.” Job said in 23:10 (Amplified) “he knows the way that I take.” (He has concern for it, appreciates it and pays attention to it). He knows where you are. You may be a long way off like the Prodigal son. You may be like Moses, someone who became a-nobody. Your best days are over. Forty years ago you made the biggest mistake that altered your whole life. You may be like Elijah, running away, you’ve had enough and are asking what the point of life is. You may be like the woman who lost her husband and with that her future, her life, her security. The only thing she had in her house was a little oil. The Old Testament is full of these people needing the rescuing hand of God.

Continued tomorrow 🙂

Not everyone walks the journey with you. Some leave and for all kinds of reasons. They decide not to walk any further with you. Some want to but they cannot. There are times when you have to leave people behind. You never saw it coming but the schism was too wide to cross. I’m not speaking of those who have died and left you. I am speaking of those who are still very much alive but you now know longer do life with. You no longer talk. We have all got that experience and there is a gap in our life in such a way that when it happens it does feel like grief.

Why do I say all that?

What I have come to know about this letter is that Paul and Barnabas had visited the churches in Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, Derbe, the cities of South Galatia in their first missionary journey (Acts 13-14). Not long after this there was a confrontation involving Peter (we will get to that in chapter 2) and Barnabas moved from Paul to stand with Peter on the matter. Hold that thought.

“Paul, an apostle—sent not from men nor by a man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— ² and all the brothers and sisters  with me, To the churches in Galatia” (Galatians 1 v 2)

This is definitely a personal letter from Paul but he recognises the family of God that are around him. He would have mentioned Barnabas for sure. But at this moment in time Barnabas is not there.

In our western world an individual Christian journey is common place. Yes we are in churches but for many the relationships we have are not close enough to hold each other accountable. However in other parts of the world community is hugely important and living out faith without community is not even thought of. This is the world of Paul. ‘Brothers and sisters with me’ is important to Paul and it should be to us too. Look around at the people you do faith with. Let them encourage you to live out the faith in Christ. You do the same for them.

Barnabas who had originally brought Paul into the discipleship community is now not with him. It wasn’t over a doctrinal issue it was over a personal decision. An opinion.

If only more arguments were about doctrinal issues but the Church today know more about their personal desires and opinions of how a church should be run and how people should be than what the Church believes. People walk from community all the time. It hurts for those who walk and it hurts those who stay. Paul and Barnabas never walked together again but it is clear that they both made sure their response to one another did as little damage to the gospel mission as possible.

If it has happened to you, don’t worry, it happens. Even if you can no longer say the person is still with you then you should still be thankful for the brothers and sisters that are. There may be a huge gap in your life and the adjustment is huge but the beauty of the church is that they do more than fill that gap. Make sure you stay within the family of God. Living out your Christian life has to be done within community. They will challenge you, provoke you, cheer you on and encourage you to be the best version of yourself. Do all that you can to stay in such a community for these are your brothers and sisters in God, they will fill the gap in your life. Try not to lose your friends. But if they walk then you will know there are others that God has given you.

It’s a strange way of starting a letter. We are left with no doubt that the Apostle Paul wrote it because he says he did. But the strangeness is that he begins with a defence of who he is, his calling, the work that he is involved in. Why is he beginning this way? We are going to find out.

“Paul, an apostle—sent not from men nor by a man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead” Galatians 1 v 1

Paul is clear. No one other than Jesus Christ and God the Father has raised him into the office and the work that he does, that of an apostle. He’s not one of the twelve but that does not matter. He doesn’t need to be. He has a Divine calling. Not only that. He has a definite message, the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead by God the Father. We don’t know in this opening sentence why he feel he has to defend himself. Were people belittling him? Had he received accusations of compromising the gospel and of presenting something of an easier standard to live by? We will find out. But this opening defence is of a man who is not swayed by that. He is robust in who he was. It doesn’t matter what people said about him, he knew who he was and he knew what he was called to do. Yes, he was definitely called.

This is so important for us. Can you see what Paul was saying? “There is a story to my life, it was written by God and no other and the axis of it is the message that God raised Jesus from the dead.”

That’s not bad is it?

You can say the same. Though you may have been helped by other people throughout your life. They were not the ones to have orchestrated your life. It was Jesus Christ and God the Father. God has called you. God has sent you. God has worked through you.

Paul is obviously referring to his Damascus Road experience of the risen Jesus Christ. That is his credential. His encounter with Jesus was what authenticated him. Even if others were not convinced it didn’t matter. This was his confidence.

Whatever you are facing today the confidence you need is found in your story of God and the message of the resurrection. Jesus is alive. You know it because you have experienced Him.

Go into your today with that message loud and clear in your mind.

The Nigerian Gospel singer, Sinach, has written a beautiful song, I know who I am.

We all need to be able to say that lyric genuinely, I know who I am. In the face of perhaps lies against who you are or maybe you have been mistaken by others. Of course some of the greatest battles are those we have with ourselves. Doubts flood our minds and our souls rise with a self-reflection that disturbs our spirit. Life contains seasons when you simply have to defend yourself against others and even yourself. You can only do that if you are confident in who you are. “My name is x; I am here not because of others but because of God and my central message of my life is Jesus is Alive.”

And we close this letter of James and in particular his appeal to the community of believers to use their words for God.

“My brothers and sisters, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring that person back, ²⁰ remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins.” (James 5 v 19-20)

There are times when disciples fall away from the church for all kinds of reasons and often it is too late because they had not drawn into their lives proper accountability partners to help them from falling.

This has nothing to do with getting even nor about someone dealing with their hurt or anger, venting and seeking vengeance.

This is all about reconciliation back into the community of believers.

This is all about taking responsibility for each other.

This is all about spurring one another on, iron sharpening iron, accountability and making sure disciples don’t fall away.

May the Disciples of Christ remain in position! That must be our prayer and focus of activity. This is not about what to do if you get your feelings hurt but rather about making sure no more fall away.

Who are you walking with?

We don’t need to hang around people who tickle our ears and who sympathise with our lack.

We need friends who will not deceive us but who are not afraid to speak the truth to us.

Western Christianity is so individualistic. We have our own walk with God, we hear God individually and we make decisions alone. But not so in other parts of the world where community is powerful and decisions are made as a group. Perhaps this is the way it should be. Maybe there would be less mistakes made if others advised us.

It is never too late to bring into your life accountability partners who will continually ask you “Why do you think, speak and behave this way?”

An unchecked, unquestioned person is not a strong person. Strength is not in what you can amass, or the people around you, it is not in a title or a position. It is whether or not you have been bridled.

If you see a destructive flaw in your friend’s life and say nothing then you are no friend.

A friend continues to reach out to save spurred on by a Saviour who covers over a multitude of our sins and theirs. If there is one letter in the whole of the N.T. that is focused on practical Christianity then it is James. He doesn’t say farewell. He doesn’t sign off. He stops writing in the middle of an activity. That of helping to save our fellow believers from falling away. Practical. Very important and needed as much in 2024 as when it was first written.

Here is a Bible example of someone like you, James will say. He prayed just like you do. The power of our words given to God is what James is wanting us to see.

He is closing down his letter and he does so by looking at the words we use. He has called us to pray, to sing, to call upon the leaders of the church, to confess your sins and to pray for each other. Now he gives us the example.

“Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.” (James 5 v 17-18)

You may still be trusting God for something that is close to your heart; a desire of your heart; a sickness to be healed; some trouble to lift. Sometimes we begin to lose hope. But the “prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective” and James speaking to a Jewish audience brings in the 4^th of their Old Testament heroes- Elijah.

We find this amazing story in 1 Kings 16: 33 and 17:1 – “Ahab also made an Asherah pole and did more to arouse the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, than did all the kings of Israel before him … Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.”

Elijah, James and the people hearing this letter also knew the following: “So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today—to love the Lord your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul— ¹⁴ then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and olive oil. ¹⁵ I will provide grass in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied. ¹⁶ Be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them. ¹⁷ Then the Lord’s anger will burn against you, and he will shut up the heavens so that it will not rain and the ground will yield no produce, and you will soon perish from the good land the Lord is giving you.” (Deuteronomy 11: 13-17)

God had promised it but it did not automatically happen. It was waiting to be activated by prayer.

James says Elijah prayed earnestly. A Jewish way of saying he prayed hard. He prayed and prayed. He prayed intensely. He prayed powerfully. He prayed directly.

Elijah a) knew God; b) knew God’s promises and c) knew God’s will for this occasion. These are the keys for the power of prayer.

“And Elijah said to Ahab, “Go, eat and drink, for there is the sound of a heavy rain.” ⁴² So Ahab went off to eat and drink, but Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees. ⁴³ “Go and look toward the sea,” he told his servant. And he went up and looked. “There is nothing there,” he said. Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.” ⁴⁴ The seventh time the servant reported, “A cloud as small as a man’s hand is rising from the sea.” So Elijah said, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.’” ⁴⁵ Meanwhile, the sky grew black with clouds, the wind rose, a heavy rain started falling and Ahab rode off to Jezreel. ⁴⁶ The power of the Lord came on Elijah and, tucking his cloak into his belt, he ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.” (1 Kings 18:41-46)

You may be a king, but you are certainly going to obey the prophet who calls down fire from heaven and has killed 850 false prophets.

You may not hear a thing, but if the prophet says he’s heard a sound of heavy rain, then that’s good enough for you.

Who heard the sound? Not the king. Not the servant boy. It was just Elijah.

Elijah heard the sound in his spirit. God was speaking to him of what He was going to do. Why did Elijah pray? Because he heard the sound of rain coming.
It wasn’t because the king and the boy had faulty hearing. Elijah heard within.
He heard in his spirit. He knew God was moving again. It was then he began to pray and pray.
Have you heard the sound? Do you believe God is moving in your situation and life? Then this is now the time more than at any other time, to pray. It may be a promise in God’s Word that He has given you or a sound in your spirit that won’t go away. But you know you know you know! God is moving and so now more than ever is the time to pray!!

Yesterday after the service had ended I saw a small group of people gathered around a man who clearly was not well. In fact he has outlived the time the doctors had given him to live. The church attribute this to prayer. This group were fervently praying for this man. They want him to live. They were speaking words to God. It was a reminder that prayer works. Words to God can be powerfully effective.

James is closing down his letter and he does so by looking at the words we use. He has called us to pray, to sing, to call upon the leaders of the church, to confess your sins and ‘to pray for each other.’

“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. ¹⁵ 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. ¹⁶ 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.” (James 5 v 14-16)

“Poverty-stricken as the Church is today in many things, she is most stricken here, in the place of prayer. We have many organizers, but few agonizers; many players and payers, few pray-ers; many singers, few clingers; lots of pastors, few wrestlers; many fears, few tears; much fashion, little passion; many interferers, few intercessors; many writers, but few fighters. Failing here, we fail everywhere.” (Leonard Ravenhill)

The greatest need for the Church today is not a move from God but a move to God in prayer.

The world is not waiting for the Church to become modernised and slick with its presentations but it is waiting for the Church to discover the ancient paths of presenting itself in front of God. Great communication is only successful if there has been communication with a great God.

Never stop praying. If you have, start it up again. Make a determined effort to pray every day and throughout the day. Stay up late and pray. Get up early and pray. Spend the night in prayer. Fast things so you can pray more.

For when you are praying you are hoping. You are waiting. You are expecting God to answer. When you are praying you are focused on Him. Prayer keeps your eyes lifted upwards even when your heart maybe heavy. When we pray we are acknowledging that we are not alone in this life but there is another presence, the Living God.

In this letter James has taught on double-mindedness, humility, perseverance, temptation, deception, hearing and exercising God’s Word, favouritism and love, faith and works, controlling the tongue, divine wisdom, a pure heart, submission to God and each other, slander and gossip, knowing God’s will, the dangers of money and living in the light of His coming again. Why? His Churches were righteous but the evidence was lacking. James was saying be who you are, be righteous.

The key to effective prayer is a close relationship with God and His Word. This is not a reward for obedience. No. The righteous prayer is powerful not necessarily because it is related to the nature of the one praying but because they are able by their close relationship with God to discern how to pray.

Pray today for someone and if there is a prayer meeting at church this week then go to it.

A recent study of those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder found that 88.3 percent of those who participated in group therapy no longer exhibited PTSD symptoms, versus just 31.3 percent of those who received minimal one-on-one interaction.

There is also evidence that the act of confessing one’s faults to a few safe people—enshrined in AA’s fifth step—helps in changing addictive patterns. According to researchers, “Revealing one’s deepest flaws and hearing others do likewise forces a person to confront the terrible consequences of their alcoholism—something that is very difficult to do alone.”

Conversely, some research studies have shown how friendships can also lead us to adopt negative behaviours. For instance, a paper published in the Annals of Internal Medicine found that a person is 50 percent more likely to be a heavy drinker if a friend or relative is a heavy drinker. Also, a study concluded that a person’s odds of becoming obese increase by 71 percent if he or she has a same-sex friend who is also obese.

The Church continually needs to ask the question: what do we do with sin? Simply because it is inside and outside the Church. Politics, private agendas, whisperings, plans, stubborn refusal to move forward, to listen and learn, to change, criticisms, manipulative abuse, I see it every week and so do you. Worse, we have partaken in this.

James is closing down his letter and he does so by looking at the words we use. He has called us to pray, to sing, to call upon the leaders of the church and ‘to confess your sins’.

“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. ¹⁵ 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. ¹⁶ 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.” (James 5 v 14-16)

See how the whole point of confession is to be healed. The result is that you are free from that what you have confessed about.

I know someone who had an old life-time friend but only hears from the person every few years when that ‘friend’ has sinned badly. They will phone up and confess and ask for prayer. However, they will then continue to live their sinful lifestyle as usual and that will be the last this person hears from them for a long time. This is not the confession James speaks of.

The need to find people you can walk with is huge. Those you find make sure you can be as open as you possibly can. If they knew the very worst of you, your deepest flaw, would they still be your friends? If you can find such a friend, then walk openly and honestly before them and then not only will you survive but you will thrive and be healed of that which is the burden of your life. This is the power of confession.