James 5: Signs of the End

James chapter 5 contains some rich information about the last of the last days; the times in which we are living.

1 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you! 2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in the last days. 4 Indeed the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. 5 You have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury; you have fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned, you have murdered the just; he does not resist you. James 5:1-6 (NKJV)

This passage is addressing people being rich in the last days (vs 3), but they’re not using their riches properly. These riches are causing misery rather than relieving it. One way they heaped up riches was by not paying their workers what they should. The workers cried out to God, the Lord of the Sabaoth, or the Lord of Hosts. God will judge fairly, and we all will reap what we sow. These rich, powerful people were even killing the just. We see these same themes of greed and lust for power today.

7 Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. 8 You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. 9 Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door! 10 My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience. 11 Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful. 12 But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath. But let your “Yes” be “Yes,” and your “No,” “No,” lest you fall into judgment. James 5:7-12 (NKJV)

James tells his audience to be patient until the coming of the Lord. As the farmer waits for his fruit, God is waiting for the reaping of the endtime harvest. The early rain started, spiritually speaking, on the day of Pentecost. Now we are in the latter rain of God pouring out His Spirit upon all flesh. In verse 8, James says to be patient and establish your hearts. How? By prayer, calling on the Lord. Follow biblical examples. Know the times you are in, and walk according to God’s Word. He uses the phrase “the Judge is standing at the door,” meaning that God sees, hears and knows what is going on. In His time, He will judge and make all wrong things right. James tells us to look at the examples of those who suffered for serving God. Prophets spoke the Word and suffered for it. We are to keep speaking God’s Word, and it will see us through whatever we face. It helps us to hold onto our faith. We are told to endure and he reminds us of Job, who endured suffering, but was rewarded when God turned things around for him. God will pay us back- double for our trouble! And James also reminds us to walk in honesty and integrity- letting our “yes” be “yes” and our “no” be “no.”

13 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. 14 Is anyone among you sick? 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 will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. 17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. 18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit. 19 Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, 20 let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins. James 5:13-20 (NKJV)

James gives sound advice that can be useful in these last days. When we are afflicted or troubled, he tells us to pray. When we are cheerful, he tells us to sing psalms and praises to God. And when we mingle our praise and prayer together, it becomes a two-edged sword against the enemy. When we are attacked by sickness, he instructs us to have the elders anoint us with oil and pray in Jesus’name. Oil represents the Holy Spirit and prayer is made in the name of Jesus to release the healing power of the Holy Spirit. Prayers made in faith will cause us to be healed and if necessary, forgiven. When we confess our faults and pray with passion and faith, it accomplishes much. As we pray, we will release the rains from heaven (vs 17-18)- that latter rain- for the endtime harvest of the souls of men. The latter rain outpouring is a sign that shows the rapture will soon take place. Verses 19 and 20 encourage us to reach out to those who have wandered from the truth and restore them back to the Lord. Time is short and we must reach everyone we can.

As we near the end of the church age and begin to wrap things up, we can see the signs are all around us pointing to the soon catching away of the church. James wove signals of the endtimes into this passage and refers to the coming of the Lord. As we live right, stay in prayer, endure, and work with Holy Spirit as He ushers in the last great move of God, we will experience the latter rain and we will be caught up to be forever with the Lord.