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   The context of James 5 shows that when he talks about praying for those   
   who are sick and God then healing them, it is speaking about healing   
   from sickness which came about as a result of God's disciplinary   
   measures against sin. Everything in the context bears that out.   
      
   One of several indicators of this is that James refers to the effective   
   prayers of Elijah. The purpose of this isn't just to point out that God   
   answers prayer of the righteous, but to associate such prayer with the   
   repentance of the one being prayed for.   
      
   In 1 Kings 18, God sent drought. The decisive turning point does not   
   occur when Elijah first prays, but when the people abandon divided   
   loyalty. The fire from heaven exposes false worship, the people confess   
   that the LORD alone is God, and the prophets of Baal are removed. Only   
   after repentance and covenant realignment does Elijah pray for rain, and   
   only then does God send the healing rain that ends the drought (1 Kings   
   18:39–45).   
      
   James draws directly on that sequence. He does not cite Elijah as a   
   generic example of effective prayer detached from moral context. He   
   presents Elijah as a righteous man whose prayer operated within God’s   
   redemptive purpose of turning hearts back. James explicitly links   
   prayer, confession, and healing: “confess your sins to one another and   
   pray for one another, that you may be healed” (James 5:16, ESV). The   
   healing he describes does not float free from repentance; it flows from it.   
      
   When James says Elijah prayed and the rain stopped, and then prayed   
   again and the sky gave rain (James 5:17–18, ESV), the Old Testament   
   context supplies the missing theological weight. The return of rain   
   followed repentance, not merely persistence. God withheld blessing to   
   expose sin, confronted the people through His prophet, restored true   
   worship, and then healed the land.   
      
   --   
   Have you heard the good news Christ died for our sins (†), and God   
   raised Him from the dead?   
      
   That Christ died for our sins shows we're sinners who deserve the death   
   penalty. That God raised Him from the dead shows Christ's death   
   satisfied God's righteous demands against our sin (Romans 3:25; 1 John   
   2:1-2). This means God can now remain just, while forgiving you of your   
   sins, and saving you from eternal damnation.   
      
   On the basis of Christ's death and resurrection for our sins, call on   
   the name of the Lord to save you: "For 'everyone who calls on the name   
   of the Lord will be saved'" (Romans 10:13, ESV).   
      
   https://christrose.news/salvation   
      
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   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)