What Is the Meaning of Faith?

“Is 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.”

James 5.14

In March of this year (2011), two children, one almost two years old and one 14, died of what is believed to have been pneumonia. Their parents refused medical treatment for their children and relied solely upon prayer and the laying on of hands. Probably, the verse from James inspired their behavior. Were their actions wrong? Does the Bible exclude medical intervention in the case of illness?

The word “anointing” in James 5.14 is an interesting word. The Greek word, aleiphō, means to anoint or to pour. Most of the occurrences of the word in the NT have to do with the anointing of Jesus feet by Mary. Twice, the word is used in conjunction with the sick (Matt. 6.13; Jam. 5.14). One time, in Matt.16.1, women had come to the grave of Jesus to anoint his body. The word is not used in any of these situations to suggest the pouring of oil had a spiritual significance. The word is descriptive only of the act of pouring.

What about its use in regard to anointing the sick? Are we to infer from the two instances where the sick were anointed the pouring of oil involves some kind of ritual power? Perhaps, but, perhaps not. When Isaiah described the sinfulness of Israel, he said, “Where will you be stricken again, as you continue in your rebellion? The whole head is sick and the whole heart is faint. From the sole of the foot even to the head there is nothing sound in it, only bruises, welts and raw wounds, not pressed out or bandaged, nor softened with oil.” Pressed out means no medicinal plaster had been applied; no bandages were on the wounds; no oil had been used to soften and help cure the sores. The body was scabby and putrefying. Israel was sick and needed medication.

Now, the question is not whether the Bible allows for medical care or not. Without question, Scripture authorizes medical treatment. In 2 Kings 20, we can read the story of the fatal disease of Hezekiah and his plea for help. In response, Isaiah received a word from the Lord and gave the following order. “‘Take a cake of figs.’ And they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered.” No praying or laying on of hands, just the application of a “home remedy” was all Hezekiah needed. In similar fashion, Paul recommended to Timothy to “use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.” (1 Tim. 5.23) We must remember as well what the Good Samaritan did for the unfortunate traveler who had been beaten and robbed by thieves. He “came to him and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them.” In Scripture, both wine and oil were considered to be medicines.

Anyone who relies solely on prayer, laying on of hands and anointing with oil for healing has missed the true intent of Scripture. The Bible nowhere requires a believer to forgo medical care. Such teaching is a perversion at worst, and a misunderstanding at best of what the Bible teaches about faith and healing. John 5.1-9 shows clearly faith was not always a factor when Jesus healed someone. Jesus healed the lame man at the Pool of Bethesda even as the man protested.

Why must healing be the focus of our understanding of biblical faith? Does not faith involve more than being delivered from disease? James was clear about the meaning of true faith. True, biblical faith is transformational. When a person trusts the Lord, he is transformed in the depth of his being. He is changed from a disobedient doubter to an obedient follower of Jesus. Faith changes our values and our behavior. James argued throughout his letter true faith requires a different kind of behavior than false or superficial faith.

He declared one cannot trust God and ignore the plight of the less fortunate. He argued if one sees a brother or sister in need of clothing or daily food, yet does nothing for them, the faith that kind of person claims to have is dead. True faith demands the believer act, or work, on behalf of the needy. False faith results only in religious ritualism; true faith manifests itself in ethical behavior. As the old hymn declares, we must “trust and obey, for there's no other way. To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.”

Does healing require faith? No necessarily. Does faith require good works? Absolutely!