Skip to main content

Ponderize James 5:14-15 (14-20 Feb 16)


14 Is any sick among you? 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:
 15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.

James 5:14-15

As I studied and pondered this scripture I felt that there are two parts of a healing blessing that need to take place to make the healing effective.  The first part is the responsibilities of the person receiving the blessing and the second part is the responsibilities of the men exercising their priesthood to give the blessing.  

For the person who is sick
1. If you are sick, then you should call for the elders.  While it is noble for the priesthood to offer to give a blessing, the person receiving the blessing needs to take that first step of faith and ask for one.  
2.  The person who is sick needs to exercise faith sufficient to be healed.  Think of the story in the New Testament about the woman with an issue of blood.  (Matthew 9:20-22)  She exercised faith sufficient to be healed.  

For the men giving the blessing. 
1. Blessings are done in the name of the Lord.  Do not forget who’s priesthood you are exercising.  
2. Remember that it is a prayer of faith.  Faith needs to be exercised by both the person giving the blessing and the person receiving the blessing.  
3. Fasting and prayer are appropriate preparations for giving a blessing.  The act of fasting and prayer helps bring our will in alignment with the will of God.  Note this passage in the Bible dictionary.  
Bible Dictionary; Prayer  - "Prayer is the act by which the will of the Father and the will of the child are brought into correspondence with each other. The object of prayer is not to change the will of God but to secure for ourselves and for others blessings that God is already willing to grant but that are made conditional on our asking for them."
Finally, there is a connection between healing physically and healing spiritually (sins forgiven).  This supports the doctrine that all things are spiritual.  Having faith to be healed allows the atonement of Christ to cleanse and heal our body of its infirmity and to heal our spirit that is damaged as a result of sin. 

Cross References:
D&C 42:48-51 - He that hath faith to be healed will be healed if not appointed unto death.  
D&C 67:3 - If we are fearful, we will not receive the blessings
3 Nephi 17:8 - We must have faith sufficient to be healed
Matthew 17:21 - Healing takes place after prayer and fasting. 
2 Nephi 32:8-9 - Before acting in the name of the Lord you must pray
Article of Faith 7 - We believe in the gift of healing. 
Moroni 10:8-11 - The gift of healing is a gift of the spirit 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Marking Scriptures in Gospel Library

The other day as I was reading my scriptures and using a few of the available colors to do some highlights when I realized that I wasn't fully utilizing the entire pallet of colors. In the Gospel Library app there are 10 colors available.  Each of these colors can be used in the underline, highlight, or text color mode.  I asked extended family what they do and one of my niece's responded with this color code: Red- doctrine Orange- clarifications or explanations of doctrine Yellow- commandments and specific instructions Purple- promised blessings and how to attain them Grey- power phrases Blue- favorites Dark blue- ones with a deeper meaning (I always attach a note with a dark blue)  Pink- examples of Gods love/charity Brown-specific for our day Green - Not used This "Come, Follow Me" color code seems to be all over Pinterest.  I'm not sure where it came from, but it is based on the 12 colors in a small box of crayons. Here is a color coding ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Bajio, Cafe Rio, or Costa Vida?

It is time for the showdown.  Which one is best: Bajio, Cafe Rio, or Costa Vida?  Or is it (as was my opinion) that they are all exactly the same? I decided to do a taste test.  Six people participated.  Three were salad testers and three were burrito testers.  None of the people who participated have any food judging experience although a couple of them have competed in cooking contests and have a couple of first place finishes to their name.   Each couple went to a different restaurant and picked up a Sweet Pork Salad and an Steak Burrito to go.  We ordered each salad with black beans and their creamy green dressing (whatever they happened to call it).  The steak burritos were ordered enchilada style with black beans. Then we all met at a central location and judged each dish on the following: Value Score = Weight (oz)/Cost($) Overall Appeal (visual appeal, aroma, garnish) Recipe (Cooking, ingredient combination, too m...
14 comments
Read more

No, I am not a vegan

Why I'm not a vegan (or a vegetarian for that matter).  After my previous post about the Word of Wisdom , I felt I should write an additional post covering this topic.  First, the word "vegetarian" means nothing.  There are so many levels, tangents, and offshoots of vegetarianism that applying the label to yourself or anyone only causes confusion.   Some vegetarians eat dairy, some don't.  Some eat fish, some don't.  Some eat eggs, some don't.  Some are weekday vegetarians, and some only honor meatless Monday.  And the list goes on and on.  Labeling yourself as a vegetarian is simply a label that brings on a confusing discussion.  So, I don't use it.   I'm not a vegan either.  You see, vegans typically fall into three categories: - They are in it for their own good health - They are doing it to be kind to animals, promote animal rights, avoid animal cruelty, etc.  -...
3 comments
Read more