The Prayer of Faith

 

                                The Prayer of Faith

James 5:13–20

Max Lucado once wrote, “Our prayers may be awkward. Our attempts may be feeble. But since the power of prayer is in the one who hears it and not in the one who says it, our prayers do make a difference.”

That statement points us toward one of the most important truths about prayer. Effective prayer does not depend upon our eloquence, our ability to find exactly the right words, or some special spiritual quality possessed only by a few Christians. Prayer has power because of the God to whom we pray.

The Bible has much to say about prayer, and the concept of prayer runs throughout Scripture. God’s people pray in times of suffering and in times of joy. They pray when they need direction, healing, forgiveness, or help for someone else. Prayer is not intended merely for emergencies; it is part of the normal life of a believer who lives in dependence upon God.

Near the end of his letter, James turns his attention to what we might call the prayer of faith. His words in James 5:13–20 move from suffering, to praise, to prayer for the sick, to the restoration of those who have wandered from the truth. Through it all, one truth remains constant: God’s people are to turn to Him in faith.

When You Are Suffering, Pray

James begins very simply: “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray.” He does not limit his instruction to one particular kind of suffering. Suffering can come physically, emotionally, spiritually, financially, or through circumstances we never anticipated. Whatever its source, James directs the suffering believer toward God.

Unfortunately, prayer is sometimes treated as our last resort rather than our first response. We exhaust our own resources, run through every possible solution, worry ourselves sick, and then finally decide that perhaps we should pray. James turns that order around. When we suffer, our first instinct should increasingly become, “I need to take this to God.”

First Peter 3:12 reminds us, “For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer.” God is not indifferent to His people. When we come to Him in suffering, we are not sending words into an empty heaven. We are praying to a God who sees, knows, hears, and cares. The prayer of faith does not mean that we understand everything God is doing. It means that we trust Him even when we do not understand.

When You Are Cheerful, Praise Him

James immediately moves from suffering to joy: “Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise.” This is an important balance. We often remember God when something goes wrong, but James reminds us that God should also be acknowledged when things are going well.

Praise is an expression of gratitude to God for who He is and for what He has done. The believer’s relationship with God should not consist entirely of requests. There should also be thanksgiving, worship, and praise. When God answers prayer, provides for us, carries us through difficulty, or simply gives us a season of peace, our response should be gratitude. Prayer and praise belong together. We turn to God when we hurt, and we turn to God when we rejoice.

There Is Nothing Wrong With Asking Others to Pray

James next addresses sickness and tells the sick believer to call for the elders of the church so they can pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. There is an important principle here that Christians sometimes overlook: asking other believers to pray for us is thoroughly biblical.

There can be a temptation to think we should handle everything ourselves. Perhaps we do not want others to know we are struggling, or perhaps we feel that asking for prayer demonstrates weak faith. James teaches the opposite. There are times when God’s people should come alongside one another and pray together. Galatians 6:2 tells us, “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” The Christian life was never intended to be lived in isolation.

James specifically mentions the elders of the church. Elders were recognized leaders among God’s people, men whose spiritual maturity and experience equipped them to minister to others. His instruction does not mean that only elders can pray for someone who is sick. Rather, it emphasizes the responsibility of mature spiritual leaders to stand with those who are suffering and seek God on their behalf. Sometimes faith means praying alone, and sometimes faith means having enough humility to say, “I need you to pray with me.”

The Prayer of Faith Has Power

James makes an extraordinary statement: “And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up.” The power, however, does not reside in a particular formula. It is not a matter of saying precisely the right words or producing enough emotional intensity. The power belongs to God.

James says that the Lord will raise him up. Throughout Scripture, God is the One who lifts people from places where they cannot lift themselves. Psalm 145:14 says, “The LORD upholds all who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down.” God is able to lift the discouraged, give hope to the hopeless, forgive sin, change lives, restore people, strengthen the weak, and work in circumstances that appear impossible to us. We must be willing to receive what God desires to give and trust Him with what the answer ultimately looks like.

This is where faith becomes essential. A prayer of faith is not an attempt to force God to do what we want. It is a prayer offered because we believe that God is able, that God hears us, that His Word is true, and that His will is ultimately best. Romans 10:17 tells us, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” When our prayers are shaped by the Word of God, we continually remind ourselves of His character, His promises, and His faithfulness. As we speak God’s truth in prayer, we also hear that truth again ourselves, strengthening our confidence in the One to whom we are praying.

You Do Not Have to Be Someone Special

James could have chosen almost any great figure from the Old Testament as an illustration of prayer, but he chose Elijah. Elijah had seen God perform extraordinary miracles, and his ministry was marked by demonstrations of God’s power that most of us can scarcely imagine. Yet James deliberately tells us something very ordinary about him: “Elijah was a man with a nature like ours.”

That may be one of the most encouraging statements in this entire passage. Elijah was not effective in prayer because he belonged to some different category of humanity. He was a man. He had weaknesses. He experienced discouragement. He had emotions. He struggled. Yet he prayed fervently, and God answered.

James tells us that Elijah prayed that it would not rain, and it did not rain for three years and six months. Then Elijah prayed again, heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit. James’ point is not merely that Elijah was a great prophet. His point is that the same God who heard Elijah hears the prayers of His people today. There is nothing magical about the person who offers the prayer of faith. The power is not in us; the power is in God.

That means every believer can pray in faith. You do not have to be a pastor, a theologian, or someone who has been a Christian for fifty years. You do not have to know impressive religious language. You come to God through faith and trust Him to hear you.

Pray for Those Who Have Wandered

James closes this section—and his letter—with another important application of prayer and spiritual concern. He writes of someone who wanders from the truth and of another believer who helps bring that person back. The prayer of faith should never be entirely self-centered. We pray about our suffering, we ask others to pray when we are sick, but we should also be deeply concerned about those who have wandered away from God.

When someone begins drifting spiritually, our response should not be gossip, condemnation, or indifference. We should pray for them. We should desire their restoration, and when God gives us opportunity, we should lovingly seek to bring them back to the truth. Prayer is not merely about asking God to improve our circumstances; prayer connects our hearts to what matters to God, including people who are lost, hurting, wandering, or spiritually endangered.

Do You Pray in Faith?

James leaves us with a question worth asking ourselves: when we pray, are we truly offering a prayer of faith? There is a difference between simply throwing words toward heaven and approaching God because we genuinely believe He hears us. Faith does not mean that God must answer every prayer exactly the way we prescribe. It means that we come believing that God is God, that He is able to act, that He cares for His people, and that His wisdom is greater than ours.

Earlier in his letter, James wrote, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith…” From the beginning of James to the end, faith matters. Faith is not merely something we claim to possess. It affects the way we live, the way we endure trials, the way we treat others, and the way we pray.

When we are suffering, we should pray. When we are cheerful, we should praise God. When we need help, we should ask others to pray with us. When someone has wandered, we should pray for that person and seek restoration. And when we pray, we should remember where the power lies. It is not in the eloquence of the person speaking; it is in the God who hears. The prayer of faith has power because the God in whom we place our faith has power.

©2026 Steven Miller Ministries