¹⁴Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; ¹⁵and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.

A passage like this deserves much more space than we have here. The meaning is clear, but is it true? Of course, we believe it to be true because we believe it is God’s inspired Word. But do we act like we believe it? Or do we think it is limited to first-century believers or those of a certain theological persuasion about spiritual gifts and the Holy Spirit’s miraculous working? Should we subtly gloss over this as “mysterious” teaching or fully embrace it?

The passage does not offer any qualifiers that would limit this practice to a particular time and place. Neither does it constrain it to only certain gifted people. The call is to “anyone among you [who is] sick.” Nor is there mention of miraculous healing gifts, about which Paul teaches in 1 Corinthians 12. Nor does James reserve this teaching for those who are seriously ill.

Since James is very clear-cut in the rest of this letter, we see no reason to treat this passage differently. James means what he says; after all, he wrote two verses earlier, “your yes is to be yes, and your no, no” (James 5:12). The emphasis is on the sick person to exercise faith and initiate calling the elders to anoint him and pray for him. James does not require the elders to seek out everyone in the church and pray over them. It is not the elders’ faith that is in view, but the sick person’s faith.

What does the anointing with oil mean? It is commonly understood that oil was used as a salve to help wounds heal. Luke, the physician (Col. 4:14), noted that the Good Samaritan used oil in treating the beaten-up man (Luke 10:34, see also Mark 6:13). So, the elders are summoned by the sick person to pray while dispensing available medical treatment, doing all, while trusting the Lord. The previous verse calls anyone who is suffering to pray, and here we see this applied even when pursuing human healing methods.

Should we actually use “anointing oil” when praying for the sick? Of course, we have advanced medical treatments today, and elders should encourage use of any human means that would be helpful, which God can use to bring healing. Some see the oil as a visual symbol of the Holy Spirit and pour a small amount of oil on the sick person’s head (see Aaron in Exodus 30:30–31). Whatever one’s interpretation of this verse, when a person is sick, he or she, in faith, should call the elders to pray for healing.

Lord, I trust You when the circumstances do not turn out as I desire.