You're More Powerful Than You Know


One of the more powerful promises concerning prayer in the Bible is found in the letter James penned to the church. In it we find the words, "The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective." James 5:16.
What an incredible declaration! Yet, how do we reconcile this truth with a passage like, "There is no one righteous, not even one," Romans 3:10? If no one is righteous then what good is the declaration that a righteous person's prayer is powerful and effective? It's a fair question. When I was a young believer people would try to encourage me with the truth from James, but in the end I simply found it discouraging. I sure didn't view myself as righteous. This led me to the wonder if my prayers were weak and ineffective. I was misunderstanding the truth that the righteous person in the passage was in fact me. No, not on my own. As we've seen, none of us are righteous on our own. 
That's why Father sent Jesus. "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." II Corinthians 5:21.
Did you catch it? Jesus became sin so that we could become righteous. By His grace we are cleansed and changed through the price He paid. Understanding this truth helps us to understand the truth that we are the righteous person in the passage. Therefore, our prayers are powerful and effective.
James then illustrates this further by offering the example of Elijah's answered prayer. He prayed for no rain and it didn't rain...for 3 1/2 years. He then prayed for rain to return and it did. Who was this Elijah? Oh, sure he was a prophet, but that's not offered as the answer for why his prayers were powerful and effective. Rather we find, "Elijah was a human being, even as we are." James 5:17.
So, there you have it. In order for your prayer to be powerful and effective you need two things.
  1. Be a believer in Christ.
  2. Be a human being.
Are you a believer in Christ? Are you a human? Then go ahead, pray something.

Following the Son,
James A Williams

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