Biblical Eldership Church Leadership

James’ Instruction to the Sick

Its effectiveness in prayer is increased by the fact that we have been made aware of it.7

Accompanying the elders’ prayer for healing, James calls for the anointing with oil.8 James doesn’t explain the significance of the oil, so it is difficult to be certain about its exact meaning. We can assume that if the use of oil had a new or obscure meaning, James would have had to explain himself to his readers. Hence, in a letter directed to a Jewish audience regarding special prayer by the church officials for the sick, it is likely that the anointing with oil was meant to aid the prayer for the sick by tangibly dedicating the sick person to the Lord’s special attention and care. Throughout the Old Testament, one of the primary ideas underly ing the use of oil was to set people or things apart for a special pur pose, particularly for God’s use. The first example of this in the Bible occurs when Jacob pours oil over a rock pillar he had set up to dedi cate the special place where God first spoke to him: “So Jacob rose early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on its top. And he called the name of that place Bethel” (Gen. 28:18,19a). Oil was used to conse crate (“set apart” or “dedicate”) the priests, their garments, the taber nacle, and all that was in it to God’s service (Ex. 29:21; 30230; 4029). Kings also were set apart by an anointing with oil (1 Sam. 1021; 16:13; 1 Kings 1239; 2 Kings 926). The use of oil for setting apart a sick person for special attention fits well with our passage in James. The sick person has summoned the elders for prayer. The elders, as the official representatives of the church, meet around the person’s bed to pray for healing. The anoint ing with oil in the name of the Lord aids their prayers by visually and physically dedicating the sick person to the Lord’s care and healing. The oil, applied in the name of the Lord, helps the sick person remem ber that he or she is the special object of prayer and the Lord’s care.

Medicinal vs. Symbolic Use of Oil

Some commentators think James indicates that oil is to be used for medicinal purposes only (Luke 10:34; Isa. 126). They

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