1. Patience and Prayer James 5:7-20 p. 1120-1121

2. James as a Pastor  Pastoral care v 7 – 11: Encouraged Patience. v 12 -20: Command to pray and to care for one another.

3. Purpose  Applied pastoral care and encourages care.  Three areas:  To Know - Faith grows through patience and prayer.  To Understand - God’s character in life’s situations.  To Express - True faith by trusting God and caring for one another.

4. 1. Pastoral care – Patience is encouraged v.7 -11: Patience means to trust God all times !  Reiterates James 1:2-5: joy in the midst of suffering.  Spiritual maturity  v 7: Be faithful.  v 8. Eschatological hope.  v 9. Stop grumbling or you will be judged.

5. 1. Pastoral care – Patience is encouraged v.10: Patience – looking back at Israel’s history.  Suffering : Spiritual formation leads to maturity.  v 11: Job’s example.  Tested.  Experienced intimacy with God.  Became a testimony in Christian history.

6. 1. Pastoral care – Patience is encouraged “Job’s friends spoke about God, but Job, he spoke to God.” (Paul Stevens, Professor Emeritus Regent College )

7. 1. Pastoral care – Patience is encouraged “My ears had heard of you, but now my eyes have seen you.” Job. 42:5.

8. 1. Pastoral care – Patience is encouraged  William Cowper – suffered from severe depression, despair and mental illness.  Attempted suicide.  God watched over him.  Became a hymn writer and a poet.

9. 1. Pastoral care – Patience is encouraged “ God moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform; He plants His footsteps in the sea, And rides upon the storm.” William Cowper

10. 1. Pastoral care – Patience is encouraged  God and John Newton (wrote: Amazing grace) cared.  John Newton represents the Church.  Trials = spiritual growth and maturity.  Trust God more!

11. 1a. God’s character. V.7-11 v.10:.  God as Judge.  God as being patient.  God as loving and faithful.  God as knowing all things.  God as personal and gracious.  God as caring, merciful and compassionate.  God as our helper.

12. 2. Pastoral care – Command to Pray and care for one another. v. 12 -20: Prayer and care means practicing genuine faith!  v. 17: Elijah the man of prayer.  Church called to be praying community.  God answers prayers: Fervent prayer + faith.  pray at all times.

13. 2. Pastoral care – Command to Pray and care for one another. v.14 – 15. Church called to pray for the sick.  Use of oil – Mk. 6: 12 -13.  Healing – by the wounds of Christ (Isa.53:4-5;1 Pet. 2:24)  Missionary C.T Studd’s experience.

14. Missionary C.T Studd’s experience “ The elder brought in the lamp oil, dipped his finger, anointed my forehead, and knelt down and prayed. How did God did it I don’t know, nor do I care; but this I knew next morning, that whereas I was sick, nigh unto death, now I was healed. We can trust God too little, but we cannot trust God too much” (Grubb, Norman P. (Norman Percy), C.T Studd, Cricketer and Pioneer, London : Lutterworth Press, 1933, 148-149).

15. 2. Pastoral care – Command to Pray and care for one another. v.14 – 15. Church called to pray for the sick.  It’s the Lord Jesus who heals (not the oil).  Prayer of faith is shared responsibility.  Healing stimulates hope, increases faith and love.  Miracles? All things are possible with God.

16. 2. Pastoral care – Command to Pray and care for one another. v.19- 20. care for the unfaithful and rebellious.  Called to bring back the Prodigal sons and daughters.  They lost their first love – Parable of the good soil and seeds.

17. 2. Pastoral care – Command to Pray and care for one another. Only one life, ‘twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last”. ( C.T. Studd)

18. 2a. God’s character. v.12-20 v.10:  God as the One who forgives sins.  God as the healer.  God as our Father.  God as different from humans.

19. Living it……  God demonstrated His love through Jesus.  Church is God’s provision to provide pastoral care.  As Disciples of Christ we are called to care.

20. Application  Congregation must seek help.  Church is always helpful (God’s divine provision)

21. Application v.10:  Discipleship means:  Trusting God more.  be available and show that you care.  be humble and seek God’s wisdom.  Seek godly counsel & apply the spiritual gifts.  Holy Spirit of God is with us (Church).  Love and Serve Jesus wholeheartedly.

22. Jesus cares for you, can you trust Him? Can you care for His Church?