.........by James in James 5:14,15,16. It reads, "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: and the prayer of faith shall save the sick and the Lord shall raise him; and if he has committed sins, l they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."
I do not believe that the present day anointing services are Biblical, because, from the context of the above verse, the sick person was to call for the elders of the church for prayer, rather than be emotionally charged up enough by a preacher inducing him to come to the altar for prayer. The elders were the pastors, or leaders in the church who were of course, believers. The fact that they are considered righteous from vs. 16, proves they were believers, because they would have needed the righteousness of God in Christ in order to get their prayer answered, as their own righteousness is as filthy rags, we are told in Isaiah 64:6. Also, since the elders were to pray over the sick person who called them to do so, this is an indication the person was lying down,, too sick to get up, or come to the elders on his own power!
This fact can be further verified, due to the fact that the prayers of the elders would raise him up (vs. 15). Also, notice it was the Lord doing the healing, and more than one elder was praying. Therefore, this eliminates the use of the "gift of healing" by any particular person, and when the Lord raised the sick person up, none of the individual elders could take the glory for it, as they would not know whose prayer brought the healing! The Lord gets all the glory, by this method, in answer to prayer!
I believe this is the most effective method of obtaining healings from the Lord today, however, that privilege is not exercised often enough! It is very rare, indeed when the sick actually call for the elders3 to come pray, and anoint with oil. The fact that they must call, exercises faith right at the start! However, it is usually the person praying who volunteers the prayer of faith, if the sick person can be induced to come forward in a meeting or service.
Notice that confessing of sins4 to each other was also another requirement (vs.16). Since all are sinners (Romans 3:23), the sick and the elders alike, all sin should be confessed to allow a holy, sure surrounding before the prayers and anointing with oil. This is another indication of a private setting, such as a sick room, either at home or elsewhere. How could this take place in a healing line at a church service? Can you imagine the healing evangelist confessing his sins to everyone before he prayed for them and vice versa? Verse 16 states, confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another. The prayers were to be a two way requirement, which would eliminate sin (vs.15) and then bring healing (vs. l6).
Therefore, compare the present anointing services to the above! I have seen an evangelist literally soak both hands in oil up to his wrists, and call all visiting pastors up to get his "anointing". Oil in the Old Testament was usually associated with the Holy Spirit, and being called out for His service.
I have also heard a preacher, when calling people for prayer, boast that he had a B.A. degree, and a D.D.H.G.. He said that meant he was "Born Again" and had a "Double Dose of the Holy Ghost".
PROSPERITY DOCTRINE-DOES GOD WANT US ALL RICH?
Those of us who have been Christians for six months or more all know who the "faith and prosperity" teachers are! They teach a doctrine that gets new converts excited, to say the least! I also tried my best to "confess my way into riches". I "confessed all the prosperity verses. I tried all the formulas. However, I never got rich!
I firmly believe that in giving, to the Lords work, or wherever He directs, must come from the heart first! Paul taught this when he said "For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man bath, and not according to that he bath not." (2 Cor. 8:12). So it does not matter what we give, as long as it is from a heart condition. Faith teachers, again pull many verses out of context to try and get ungrounded Christians to give to their projects! I could write an entire thesis just on the gimmicks I have seen used or offered. It actually saddens and grieves my heart to think about some of the ridiculous offers I get through the mail by my "personal" computer preacher who "loves me, and was told by the Lord in their living room a few moments ago I need a miracle, etc., etc., etc. It's absolutely saddening, to say the least, how these ministries will get themselves in preposterous financial difficulty, and have to hire professional fund raisers to try every gimmick under the sun (but not the Son) to bring in those dollars! However, there is no need to go into the methods, because if the reader has been a Christian six months or more, he is on the mailing lists also!
The prosperity message is propagated about the same by all those teaching it except with a personal "slant" identified their individual plans such as "blessing pacts", "Seed Faith offerings", etc. They all state that you give to the Lord expecting to receive back 30, 60, 100 fold in return! I firmly believe that if your heart is right, you cannot outgive the Lord! He will take care of all your needs, (but not your greeds).
The first and formost Scripture verse quoted to teach that God wants everyone rich is 1 John 1:2. "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and
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