During my college years, there were few people I admired like Rich Mullins. Rich was my favorite musician. I admired him for the things he sang about in his songs and for the simple way he lived his life. He was well known, but he wasn't pretentious. He was a big deal, but everyone seemed to know that except him.
Whenever I had the chance to see him in concert, I went. I once got shushed by someone sitting in front of me because I was singing along with every word of his songs. I didn't realize they could hear me, but they made it clear that I wasn't the one they paid money to hear sing.
After one concert, I hung out for a while to attempt to meet him. I even jumped in to help the crew as they were breaking down the stage and getting all the equipment loaded for transport. As we were carrying and wheeling things into the truck, Rich walked by. I had the chance to talk to him, but I was too nervous to do so, so I just kept loading the truck and trying not to act like I was as big of a fan as I certainly was.
A year later, our college brought him in for a concert and I was asked to be his primary contact during the day of the show. My task was to take him out to eat and help him with any odds and ends that might come up over that six hour stretch. To say that I was excited was an understatement. But I was also a little bit nervous that I might discover that the image I had of him wasn't accurate. I wondered if he conveyed an image on TV or on stage that wouldn't match reality.
I was grateful when it became clear that he wasn't being duplicitous. We didn't eat at a fancy restaurant. He wanted Arby's. When fans recognized him at Arby's, he asked me if I could get them into the concert somehow because they didn't have money to buy tickets. Throughout the night, he walked with a limp because he had stepped on a nail a few days earlier. When I asked him to sign all my albums (I had every single one), he cringed when he realized I owned copies of the two early albums that he thought were his worst.
In that experience, I realized that one of the people I admired most in this world was no different than anyone else. He enjoyed fried foods. He limped, and he felt insecure about the art he created.
How often have we talked ourselves out of doing the very thing God has equipped us to do simply because we don't think we're celebrities? How many times have we avoided doing what we're being called to do simply because we've convinced ourselves that someone else with more name recognition can do it better?
The people we admire are just like us. The only difference between us and them is that they have a habit of taking action and some of us seem to have a habit of standing still because of our self-doubt, weak faith, and irrational insecurities.
The Bible attempts to talk us out of those doubts and insecurities in James 5:13-18.
I. Christ has given you His power. Are you willing to use it?
““Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is 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.””
One of the great blessings of being part of the family of God is that He graciously grants us His power to navigate the trials and tests of this age. Our lives are filled with ups and downs. Some seasons are marked by pronounced suffering. Other seasons are light and cheerful. Sometimes we endure illnesses and infirmities. Sometimes we feel healthier than ever.
Regardless of whichever season we may be in at present, we need the power of God. Through Jesus, we have been granted that power, but many believers spend the bulk of their days forgetting to access it or failing to use it.
What does James instruct us to do when we're suffering? He challenges us to access the power of God through prayer. And when we're cheerful and everything seems to be moving along smoothly, he encourages us to use God's power to express our thankfulness. If we're sick, he instructs us to gather our spiritual leaders to collectively access the power of God on our behalf as they lift up their voices to pray for our healing.
We haven't been left powerless in this world. Through Christ, we've been given great power, but are we willing to use it or would we rather stumble through life like people who are completely unaware of the gift they hold right in their hands?
II. What might you see if you just took the time to ask? (James 5:15)
““And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.””
A few days ago, I received a call. It was from one of my college roommates informing me that one of our other roommates, a good friend to both of us, was just flown to the hospital via helicopter for emergency surgery on his heart. The situation was very serious and everyone was told to prepare for the worst. It was one of those moments when you feel compelled to do something, but you know there isn't anything in the physical sense you can do to affect the situation. The only thing I could do in that moment was pray. So that's what I did, as did many of our other friends as well as our church prayer team. I found myself praying for him all throughout the day.
Later that day, when I saw my wife, we also took time to pray for him together, and I said to her, "I'm praying in faith that the Lord will spare his life, and I truly believe in my heart that He will." The words of James 5:15 were on my mind. If I am going to bother to lift something up before the Lord, I need to pray in faith, not doubt. I was ready to accept whatever the Lord decided regarding my friend's condition, but I prayed in faith knowing that the Lord had the power to miraculously save his life. We learned the next day that he lived through the surgery and is in the gradual process of recovery.
I was grateful the Lord allowed us to see that outcome, and it makes me wonder what else we might see the hand of God accomplish if we just took the time to ask for His intervention? James teaches us that the Lord heals and raises up the sick. He also forgives the deepest offenses and sins, so what else do you suppose He's waiting for us to approach Him about?
Are you familiar with the hymn "What a Friend we have in Jesus"? It's a hymn we used to sing regularly at my home church when I was a child. It was written by Joseph Scriven, a pastor, who was living in Canada and wanted to comfort his mother who lived in Ireland. This is what he wrote back in 1855;
What a friend we have in Jesus
All our sins and griefs to bear
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayerOh, what peace we often forfeit
Oh, what needless pain we bear
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer
His words always make me wonder what peace I'm forfeiting and what needless pain I'm bearing simply because I haven't asked Jesus to intervene on my behalf.
III. Don't let worldly desires rob you of your confident access to God's throne.
“ “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” ”
Many people are fearful of meeting God someday. What do you think He would do if you walked right up to Him? Do you believe He would reject you or welcome you into His presence? Do you think He'd be irritated with your boldness or glad you came to Him? Is there something in your life that gets in the way of your willingness to entertain the thought of approaching Him?
Our desires for worldly things frequently hinder our relationship with God. The more we welcome worldly values and the sins our generation embraces to enter our life, the less we will feel confident approaching God. He offers us the solution to that in James 5:16.
In this passage, we're told to confess our sins to each other and pray for each other. When sin is called into the light, it's robbed of its power. And when we aren't saying yes to sin, we're free to say yes to Jesus who has given us the gift of His righteousness.
The prayer of a person who has been blessed with the presence of the righteousness of Christ in their life is more powerful than most people realize. Such prayers affect change. The prayers of the righteous invite the hand of God to intervene in the most impossible situations. And as Scripture demonstrates, the Lord is delighted to accomplish the miraculous on behalf of those He has blessed with the gift of His righteousness.
IV. Remember what God has already done through people just like you.
““Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.” ”
It's interesting to look at what Scripture reveals to us about the people we admire. Of the people mentioned in Scripture, one of the most admired is Elijah. He was a prophet in Israel during the reign of King Ahab, and he prayed that the Lord would withhold rain for three and a half years. Israel was consumed with idol worship at that time and Elijah felt compelled to pray in such a way that they would see a demonstration of the power of God through the lack of rain. Then he prayed again and the Lord brought rain upon the land.
Was Elijah special? Was he magic? God's word makes it clear that he wasn't. He was a man with a nature just like ours. When we read about his life in the Bible, God isn't trying to impress us with Elijah. The Lord is trying to show us what He's willing to do in a life that's submitted over to Him. If He was willing to do what He did through Elijah, what might He be willing to do through you?
The people we admire are just like us. In fact, I think it's wise for us to stop treating the people we admire like they're heroes or exceptional. The only real hero I want my heart to latch onto at this point is Jesus. From what I see in Scripture, everyone else is just like me, and I know myself well enough to know the limits of my strengths and weaknesses.
If your admiration for other people is getting in the way of your obedience to God's calling, then your admiration has become an idol. Respect the people who inspire you and set a good example for you, but don't turn their success into your excuse for inaction.
Differences are illusions. The people you admire are just like you.
© John Stange, 2021
