[AI translation] James is nearing the end of his letter, but he still has much more to say, as when one says goodbye and wants to say a lot of things to the departed. That is why he moves from one subject to another in great haste, without any particular internal coherence. That is why there are three different exhortations in these few verses. They express ideas so distinct that they might as well be discussed in separate sermons. But I don't want to drag on too long in explaining James' letter, so let's try to take the three themes discussed here at one time and examine them one by one!1) The first is stated thus, "And before all things, brethren, swear not by heaven, or by earth, or by any other oath. (Jas 5:12) Jesus' words on the same subject in the Sermon on the Mount are repeated here almost verbatim. So what is being said here is that the Christian man should not say yes when he thinks no and should not want to give the appearance of no when his heart is full of yes. In other words: in all situations and with all kinds of people, be clear, transparent, honestly sincere, absolutely trustworthy in every word and in all your conduct! He who knows Jesus Christ, who confesses Him as Lord - Jesus, who said of Himself, "I am... the truth..." - must in no way be in the service of a lie, must give his words and his actions to the service of truth! He must not want to appear to be other than what he is! Do not shy away from the truth, dare to say yes and no honestly! And what you say yes to, let it be an honest yes; what you say no to, let it be an honest no. Jesus says: "And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." (Jn 8,32) Yes, the truth known in Christ sets you free from that fear which in certain situations can take hold of you: "What will happen if the truth comes out? But there is an even worse fear than this: Oh, what if the lie I'm hiding inside remains? Many people live with such an inner lie: they cover up the shameful no with yes, or cover up the yes with no, even in relationships such as marriage, family life, friends.
It has been said that there are situations in which it is necessary to lie for some purpose: to keep the peace in the family, for example, or to avoid harming oneself or others by the truth, or to do what is required by courtesy or one's well-understood interests! Well, in the spirit of Jesus, a lie can never be justified, for according to Him, the truth must always remain intact. Let us not forget that God can never lie and therefore cannot give us the authority to lie! According to Jesus, what is above honest yes and no is of the devil. And that which is of the devil can never be edifying and useful, only destructive and harmful! James says: "Do not be afraid of the truth, brethren, for Jesus Christ is the truth, the Jesus Christ, to whom "all authority in heaven and on earth has been given" (Mt 28,18).
He also says that the truth does not need to be confirmed by an oath. The truth is not to be defended and affirmed, but to be confessed and represented. Whoever feels the need to affirm his own righteousness by an oath: he is led to suspect that for him righteousness is not a simple, whole thing, but makes a distinction between the less righteous and the more righteous. That is to say, that for him simple speech is less true than speech accompanied by some demonstrative expression. Yet Jesus rejects such a distinction. One can say, for example, cold, colder, quite cold - but not true, truer, quite true! True is either true or not! There is no middle way, true is a whole! Because Jesus Himself is one and indivisible truth. He who is in Christ is in the truth, and then all oaths and curses are superfluous. In Christ, a simple yes and no is sufficient. We, followers of Christ, know of nothing in the world that could be more binding, more responsible than a yes or no before God! Therefore, "...swear not, brethren, neither by heaven, nor by earth, nor by any other oath. But let your yea be yea, and your nay nay; that ye fall not under condemnation." (James 5:12)
2) In the next verse he takes up another theme. Pray. Is there any man that hath joy? Shall sing praise." (James 5:13) James is recalling here the great privilege of the believer: prayer. Suffering in body and soul is a particularly great occasion for deepening prayerful communion with the Lord. Suffering is a college of faith for the children of God, where the great riches and details of God's mysteries, consolations, help and grace can be learned by those who humbly undertake it, who attend this school with an obedient and studious spirit. Kierkegaard once said, "You suffer, therefore God loves you. God loves you, therefore you must suffer." Yes, there is some mysterious connection between God's special love and nurturing care and the suffering of the believer.
But not only is suffering a good occasion to immerse oneself in God's saving and renewing love, but the devil is also eager to use this occasion to tempt, to harden, to seek revenge, to rebel against God. I have seen a man despairing in suffering, when he cursed the cruel God with harsh words! Perhaps that is why James warns that if anyone is suffering: pray! Pray even more and more fervently than usual! And especially remember that prayer is not only asking God for help, complaining to God, but also listening in great, humble silence, listening to what God says! For in suffering, God always has something to say to the soul, something that we were otherwise deaf to hear. So, to hear it, to understand it, to receive it: that is why the suffering person should pray! And having heard this, he has already found the purpose and meaning of his suffering!
And let the rejoicing man sing praise," says James. Let the rejoicing man, who is well off in every way, not forget the giver of these good things, acknowledge the gifts he has received with grateful praise. Do not be tempted to think that because the pressure on your life has ceased, the consciousness and need of your humble reliance on God's grace has also ceased. There is a verse in the Old Testament, which I have repeatedly given and written to many people: 'delight thyself in all the good things which the Lord thy God giveth thee, and in the good things which he giveth to thy household' (Deut 26:11). If our eyes were opened to see God's good gifts, we would have no time for complaining and lamenting, for we would be singing joyful praises all the time!
We have beautiful new praises. How good it would be if we could use it at home, if we could have God's praises ringing in our homes instead of gramophone music, instead of bickering, instead of so much empty talk, or even more empty silence! When a man begins to sing such praise, his heart is lifted up and he is amazed at what he can sing praise to the Lord for! Take out your hymn-book and you will find that your joy will be enriched, all the registers of its variety will ring out, if you take in all the many colours, moods, associations that centuries of song-poetry have accumulated! This Word: "Is there joy in anyone? I would almost dare to say: start singing praises and you will be filled with joy!
3) The third theme is given by James: "Is there any sick among you? James says: "Is any man among you sick? And prayer in faith will save the sick, and the Lord will help him. And if he has sinned, he will be forgiven." (James 5:14-15) James here turns the attention of the church to the sick. Why does he single out the sick among the many suffering of all kinds? It is because James is also looking to Jesus Christ. Jesus always paid special attention to the sick. In fact, he himself became a brother to those who were sick. It is written of Him, "He bore our sicknesses and carried our sorrows." (Is 53:4) On the day of the Last Judgment He will also say, "I was sick and you visited me." (Mt 25:36) Jesus was and is very close to the sick person. Every sick person, feverish, paralytic, lame, blind, dying, has great significance in Jesus' world. With this word, "I was sick", it is as if He were extending His mighty hand to every hospital, operating theatre, clinic, asylum, to every lonely sick room, and saying: you may be a diminished person in the eyes of the healthy world, but it is with you that I identify Myself. Therefore, for His Church, too, the sick are of special importance.
For Jesus was the most despised, simply because "he bore our sicknesses". Because He became our brother in our sicknesses. Sickness is a special invitation to the marriage of the Son of the King. The sick man is an invited man because he is a helpless man, abandoned by the body, abandoned by the world, betrothed and betrothed by death. It is in the sick man that it becomes evident, visible, what we human beings are always, even when we are healthy, but soon forget when healthy: i.e. children of sin, and therefore children of death. This is what illness reminds us of. But it also reminds us of the One who bore our sicknesses, our pains, by whose wounds we are healed. The Son of God came precisely to save the sons of sin and death from sin and death. Sickness, then, is the place where man can learn what he finds so hard to learn in his healthy days, that God is a God of compassion for the afflicted, that it is not my own knowledge, my own strength, my own money that can help me, but God's redemption in Jesus Christ!
"Prayer by faith saves the sick," says James, and he immediately adds, "and the Lord helps him." (James 5:15) So he is clearly saying that it is not we ourselves who bring healing to the sick by our faith and prayer, but the Lord. We are not to believe in our prayer, but in the Lord. It is a sinful and heathen idea that a weak man, using prayer as an instrument, can influence God at his pleasure, can make him do what he will. Can there be a greater blasphemy than that man should will and God obey?!
Then he also speaks of anointing the patient with oil. Since oil was the most universal medicine at that time, he says that it should not be forgotten, nor should it be ignored. Prayer does not exclude medicine and the doctor, but neither does medicine exclude prayer. It is not prayer and not medicine that cures, but the almighty and merciful God according to His holy will and eternal law. It is obviously contrary to the Word any explanation that man is doing something here with prayer and anointing with oil as a means. That would be imputation and quackery, iron magic. "The Lord will help him up." (James 5:15b) He is the sovereign and free God! And His help is always the help that comes from the blood of Jesus, His cross, and His resurrection from the dead. In this help, then, is the assertion of the Father's rule. Therefore, pray over the sick, and with the sick, and for the sick, that God may glorify Himself in man's sickness or in his healing.
James also discusses three different topics briefly: the search for and the assertion of absolute truth, - the question of suffering and joy, - and the problem of sickness. In all three there is a solution, there is victory for the believer in Christ. The great exultation behind the exhortations is expressed by the Apostle Paul: "Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through Jesus Christ our Lord!" (1 Cor 15,57)
Give us the light to see the light,
Thy holy Word, the one truth,
The Christ Jesus: eternal consolation,
And happiness.
And know no more than Christ,
Let us love no other than Jesus;
Let us abide with your holy Son,
Christ our Lord.
(Cant. 225, verses 5-6)
Amen
Date: 20 September 1953.
Lesson
Ézs 53,1-6