James

Unction

Professor: Dr. R.J. Rushdoony

Subject: Unction

Genre: Sermon

Lesson: 16 of 16

Track: #34

Year:

Dictation Name: RR328R34

[Rushdoony] Let us worship God. Blessed is the man whom Thou choosest and causest to approach unto Thee that He may dwell in Thy courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Thy house; even of Thy holy temple. Let us pray.

Almighty God our heavenly Father we give thanks unto Thee that Thou hast made Thyself known unto us, that Thy revelation is as clear as the noonday sun and all glorious and holy. Teach us to trust in Thee, to wait on Thee, and to serve Thee with all our heart, mind, and being. We thank Thee that our times are in Thy hands and as we look backward over the years we rejoice when we think of Thine unexpected mercies, Thy providential care in strange and unusual places, and Thy sure mercies in Jesus Christ our Lord. And so we come our Father, to praise Thee, to rejoice in Thee, and to give ourselves by Thy Spirit, to Thy word. In Christ’s name; amen.

Our scripture is from James the fifth chapter verses 11:-20; our subject: Unction. James 5:11-20, our subject: Unction, u-n-c-t-i-o-n. “11 Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy. 12 But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation. 13 Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms. 14 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: 15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. 16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. 17 Elias [or Elijah] was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. 18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit. 19 Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; 20 Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.”

Our text is a very important one and very much a unit. Very early in his letter to the Christian synagogues James called attention to their persecution by the unconverted Jews and he summons believers to faith and patience in their difficulties. He reminds him of two men who have undergone great troubles; Job and Elijah. Job had been reduced from wealth to sickness and to poverty. Elijah like them, the Christians in the synagogues, was persecuted by his own people, the supposedly chosen people, for his unswerving faith. The members of the Christian synagogues were similarly hated and persecuted. They are to take these men and all the prophets as examples of suffering, affliction, and patience, those who endure are happy and blessed.

God’s goal is seen plainly and in time with Job. God’s compassion and mercy are clearly shown verse eleven tells us. In facing their own trials of patience they must guard their tongues; especially when we are under the stress of troubles and opposition it is easy to speak rashly. In appealing to God and to man for help in great adversity we can emphasize the extremity of our condition by using extravagant language and swearing by God; but this is to risk condemnation James tells us. If we are God’s people the simple word is enough as the people of the truth we need no more than our simple “yea” and “nay” to substantiate our word.

We do not need others to be heard of God, if we are in troubled we can pray and God will hear us. If we are blessed and thriving we can sing God’s praise. We are reminded of the power of God and therefore we are urged by James to pray. Elijah, a man with our own passionate and emotional nature, prayed to God for a judgment on Israel; and a drought for three years and six months ensued. Then he prayed for rain, and it rained. In verses 14-16 we have a very important statement closely tied to all of the letter and especially to the verses of our text. There are no satisfactory interpretations of verses in this text on the part of Protestants because they say that the Catholic doctrine of extreme unction is derived from these verses and they are determined to avoid it. Catholics, in turn, associate this with extreme unction, for them a sacrament. A sacrament is a means of grace instituted by Christ. Not all means of grace, for example prayer, confession, and so on, are sacraments. It was late in the eighth century when extreme unction became a sacrament; and it was after the Donatists controversy had been history.

To understand this text we must go back to the Old Testament rite of unction, of anointing with oil. This anointing was done to the first in the line of high priests, to kings, and on occasion a prophet as in the case of Elisha in I Kings 19:16. In all instances it is clear that the unction, or anointing, is ordained by God. Lepers, again, who were pronounced clean, clean and whole by the whole priest, were anointed by the eighth day. At the very least anointing marked a change of status. In the New Testament the believer is plainly said to be what the Old Testament implies, a royal priesthood. The fact that in Revelation 1:6 Christians are told that they have been made kings and priests unto God and His Father by Jesus Christ is especially important. Persecuted and martyred Christians are reminded of their high calling and status in Jesus Christ.

In extreme unction the anointing varied in various traditions. For the Roman Catholic ritual it was the five external senses that were anointed; eyes, ears, nostrils, lips, and hands. And when death was very near, on the forehead only. This was accompanied in its briefest form in extreme cases by the statement: “through this holy unction may the Lord pardon thee whatever sins and faults Thou hast committed.” Thus far certain things are clearly in view, first the origin of this unction is in the consecration into their office and calling of priests, prophets, and kings. Second: this unction marks all Christians. According to I John 2:20 “But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.” Meaning that we don’t know all things in detail, but in principle, we know the premise of everything. The meaning of all things, thus in essence, is known to the believer. Then third, this unction in related to Christ’s triple function, or offices, as priests, prophet, and king. Then fourth in Christ and under His ministry through us we share in theses three offices, strictly in terms of His word. Fifth we find in Mark 6:13 that the disciples cured a number of sick people by anointing them with oil; thus unction was clearly associated with healing some sick people.

In verse 15 the Authorized Version reads “and if ye have committed sins they shall be forgiven him.” It is conditional; it doesn’t assume that every one of them has committed some special sin. Him, the sick one, is in the Greek a form of the word kano {?}; to be sick, exhausted, under an unrelenting strain. This is not an ordinary ailment and it is associated with sin and the need for forgiveness. This is very clearly a part of the meaning of the word. So the sick one somehow is associated with sin and needs forgiveness. The early church for centuries faced a deeply entrenched paganism which did not disappear with conversion. There were temptations often taken to defect; ones families or relatives were trying to pull one back into the old ways and the old faith. Then often as death approached some who had strayed repented.

In this century missionaries working in a pagan context have found that, facing death, often defectors from the faith would summon the pastor with deep repentance. One man who had sinned in many ways, and deliberately so in order to accentuate his break with Christ, confessed most humbly to his sin and to Christ’s refusal to let him go. This was a problem in the early church and over the centuries to the present day. The persecuted members of the early church did at times defect. Some when seriously ill made their peace with God by confessing to the elders and to the pastor. With unction, the anointing of oil, they were restored to their status as kings, priests, and prophets in Christ. Can any other explanation do more than confuse the issue? Whereas if we see unction in this context it explains everything and conforms with history.

In verse 16 James urges all of them “confess your faults one to another and pray one for another that ye may be healed. The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” And then the example of Elijah is cited. All believers have this status as priests, kings, and prophets if they will but exercise it in total faithfulness to Christ’s word and in humility. The tongue instead of being used for criticism can and must be used for prayer. Polycarp wrote that the elders in particular had to be merciful and work to bring back all who had gone astray. James 2:12 declares “for he shall have judgment without mercy that hath no mercy, and mercy rejoiceth against judgment.” The goal with regard to those who have strayed must be restoration.

The unction described by James refers to the priesthood of all believers and their calling to be prophets and kings in Christ. By this act the repentant sinner was visibly reminded of his restoration. The anointing described by James was apparently reserved for the sick or dying and repentant former members of Christ’s synagogues. It was a beautiful ceremony of restoration and an act of the Christian synagogue through the persons of its elders. Faithful members had no need for it, but for the straying it was a visible reminder of the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.

A few centuries later, that is after James, the problem recurred when the Donatists refused to allow restoration of any who had apostatized during persecution. All those in the great and final persecution, under threat of death or in the process of torture, renounced Christ were told by the Donatist groups that they could not rejoin the church. Well this was Phariseeism and in time the Pharisees prevailed and Phariseeism destroyed the Donatists. By overly stressing the need for a perfect faithfulness they had destroyed their own faith, they had become Pharisees and as a result in time they perished. But the origin of this rite had as its purpose the restoration of those who had strayed and were now sick or possibly dying. It was a very important service, it restored them visibly into their calling in Christ to be priests, prophets, and kings. Let us pray.

Our Father we give thanks unto Thee for this Thy word. We thank Thee that with Thee there is mercy and grace, that Thy word is truth and Thy word declares that even at the uttermost there is a way back into Thy mercy and grace. Teach us to be faithful and to be merciful, to be joyful and when the need requires it, repentant, that we might ever be in communion with Thee through Jesus Christ our Lord, in His name we pray, amen.

Are there any questions now about our lesson?

As you can see this is a very important text and still continues to have a place on the mission field and here in this country at times when people, having strayed, come back to the faith.

The usual interpretation within protestant circles is either one of bafflement or with the charismatics and the instances that this requires us to heal the sick with unction. And it isn’t a mandate for that because what it tells us that if they be sick, to pray that they be healed, but basically it is a call to recognize that those who are repentant can return to the Lord.

Yes?

[Audience member] Uh, verse 20 is sometimes used by…

[Rushdoony] What’s that?

[Audience member] Verse 20 is sometimes by arminians as an example of freewill and the individuals participation in salvation and even secondhand, saving someone from his sins.

[Rushdoony] Oh yes. The assumption of course is that you can leave the faith and then come back to it. In other words you can be saved, and lost, and saved again, is that what you’re referring to? Yes. No, it doesn’t deal with that but it does deal with the attitude of the person who has strayed, he has separated from Christ in his personal life, he is restored into communion with the people of Christ and it doesn’t deal with the fact, was he lost and is he now saved? But rather, he strayed and now he returns, and he is publicly received through this act in which the elders participated with the pastor. So it was in a sense a semi-public act because while he was sick in his home the elders or the pastor, or both, came to him.

Yes?

[Audience member] In verse 16 on confessing your faults, what is the Christian view of the responsibility confession and public confession, or confession to an individual? The Catholics are very strong the confession must be to the

[Rushdoony] Or were strong,

[Audience member] Yeah, well yes.

[Rushdoony] Yes. Confession is a very important part of our faith. Liturgical groups do have a general confession as a part of the service, which is good I think. Many Protestants have stressed private confession or confession to the pastor and/or elders. So the form of confession is varied and now in our particular time, when perhaps its more needed than ever, it’s less in evidence because people feel pretty much satisfied with themselves. And I’ve heard more than once “well, I’ll take my chances, I think I’ve been a pretty good man.”

Now confession is basic and therefore the Lord’s prayer includes that “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us” and what it means, forgive us and we at the same time forgive others. It doesn’t make the one conditional upon the other. Confession is a way of recognizing that we are always in need of grace, that in this life we always fall short, but God is gracious, and it isn’t a kind of weeping and wailing endlessly but rather a recognition that we stand in God’s grace.

One of the harms done in this sphere in Protestant circles has been to over-stress sin so that a man, now long dead, whom I once knew, was a member of an evangelical church where the preaching strongly stressed sin. So that he’d go from the services every Sunday and his daughter would say it would sigh at the dinner table and say “we are indeed wretched and miserable sinners.” That was the only reaction he had week in and week out; well there was something wrong with that preacher because he should have stressed instead the grace and mercy of God to sinners, and the joy of redemption.

Now that is the problem with the overstressing of sin, and that overemphasis on sin has happened in many communions. It probably is behind the reaction today against confession and confession should be a thing of joy really. You confess knowing God is someone who forgives. You don’t treat the fact of sin lightly, but you know God’s grace is greater.

Any other questions or comments? Well if not let us conclude with prayer.

Our Father we give thanks unto Thee for this Thy word, Thy word is truth, Thy word is a lamp and a light upon our way and so we thank Thee that by Thy grace and mercy we walk in the light. And now go in peace God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy ghost bless you and keep you, guide and protect you, this day and always, amen.