Scripture“The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”James 5:16b (NIV)Devotional ReflectionJames declares that the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. That statement immediately raises an important question: Who is righteous? Scripture tells us that none of us is righteous on our own. Even our best efforts cannot make us right before a holy God.The good news of...  Read More

Scripture“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. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.”James 5:15-16a (NIV)Devotional ReflectionJames not only teaches us to pray; he teaches us how to pray. He speaks of “the prayer offered in faith.” Faith is not ...  Read More

Scripture“Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. 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.”James 5:13-14 (NIV)Devotional ReflectionAs James brings his letter to a close, he reminds believers that what we say to God matters. Prayer, in its simplest form,...  Read More

Scripture“As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.”James 4:16-17 (ESV)  Devotional ReflectionJames concludes by shining a light on the reality of the situation. What we often call confidence, ambition, or self-reliance can sometimes be something much deeper. James calls it arrogance. He calls it ...  Read More

Scripture“Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’”James 4:15 (ESV)Devotional ReflectionAfter exposing the illusion of self-sufficiency, James presents the proper response: submission to the will of God. The phrase "If the Lord wills" is not a Christian slogan to be added to our vocabulary. It is a posture of the heart. James is calling us to a life that is ...  Read More

Scripture“Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.”James 4:13-14 (ESV)Devotional ReflectionJames begins by examining not merely what people are saying, but what their words re...  Read More