James 5:16 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.
Pride is the enemy of genuine fellowship and healing. Pride refuses to confess any weakness or easily besetting sin. A proud person keeps their sin to themselves, lest their public image of spiritual maturity be shattered. This passage in James reveals one of the means of growth in grace and fellowship within the body of Christ. To confess my sin to another saint is extremely humiliating, but it is at the same time a means of healing. Confess to one another. Pray for one another. This manifestation of humility is necessary for personal accountability and growth in grace.
Every saint in the body of Christ needs the personal application and ongoing experience of James 5:16 if they intend to grow in The Lord. Individualism is the enemy of fellowship. Pride is the enemy of humility. Both grieve The Spirit of God. Yes, John tells us to confess our sin to Christ (1 John 1:9). But James tells us to confess our sin to one another. Both the vertical and horizontal aspects of our faith are important and necessary. This does not mean that we randomly go around the church broadcasting our sins to everyone. That would be unwise and damaging. But, we should all seek to have those confidantes in the body that we can share our sins and weaknesses with and bring them before The Lord in prayer. Reader, do you have such people in your life?
