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Anointing |
Dear Brethren,
Sometimes when we think of anointing, we think only of the prayer
of faith for the sick in James 5:14-15, 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: And
the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he has committed sins, they shall
be forgiven him.
God established anointing in order for us to see His direct intervention
in our lives. When we are ill, it would be so easy to pray to God, with our head on our pillow and say, Oh God,
please heal me. But God tells us to bring a formal petition to Him through His ordained elders. From
the Biblical perspective, there is much more to be known about anointing. To anoint, means to make sacred
or to consecrate for office or religious service with the application of oil according to Gods instructions.
We see that Jesus Christ is the Anointed One.
Lets understand that Christ is not Jesus last name. Christ comes from the Greek, Christos, meaning, anointed
or Anointed One. The Messiah is anointed to rule over all the earth the Kingdom of God. To be the
Christ, or the Messiah, is to be the Anointed One, chosen of God. Make no mistake about it, Jesus Christ is
the only anointed Messiah. Jesus is the Messiah, the soon coming Christ of the millennium.
In the Old Testament we find the prophecy of Christ, the Anointed
One, The Spirit of the Lord God [the Father] is upon Me; because the Lord has anointed Me to preach good
tidings [Gospel] unto the meek; He hath sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison to them that are bound. (Isaiah 61:1) This anointing
consecrated Jesus to perform His two-fold coming His earthly ministry and His one-thousand year reign over
the entire earth.
Jesus quoted these words that Isaiah was inspired to write:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent
Me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at
liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
(Luke 4:18-19)
God anointed [consecrated] Jesus of Nazareth with
Holy Spirit and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for
God was with Him. (Acts 10:38)
Here is the incredible thing that we can so easily overlook in the
same way that Jesus was anointed to perform His duties, we too, are anointed with a special calling. Being
begotten (Fathered) by Gods Spirit makes us His Children with His Spirit, just as Jesus became the Son of God.
This is the earnest and the promise of eternal life through Jesus Christ. Paul wrote, He
who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, is God; Who has also sealed us, and
given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts. (2 Corinthians 1:21-22)
Brethren, through God's anointing we are established in Christ we
are members of the Body of Christ. God the Father has anointed us! He has sealed us as His
children. The Father has given us the pledge of His Spirit. John puts it this way in
1 John 2:20, You have an unction [the special endowment] from the Holy One, and ye
know all things. Anointing is something very special and important.
Anointing is the prescribed procedure for performing
a number of divine functions, including, but not limited to:
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Kings are anointed to their office (1 Samuel 15:1 Saul) |
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Prophets are consecrated and anointed (1 Kings 19:16) |
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The Pillar Stone was anointed by Jacob (Genesis 31:13) |
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The sons of Aaron and priests were anointed and consecrated (Exodus 28:41, 29:7)
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Holy Bread was anointed (Exodus 29:2) |
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The Altar and the sin offering bullock was anointed (Exodus 29:36, 40:10)
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The Tabernacle of the congregation and everything in it was anointed (Exodus 30:26, 40:9)
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The Ark of the Covenant was anointed (Exodus 30:26) |
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David was anointed more than once (1 Samuel 16:13, 2 Samuel 2:4,
Judah 5:3, Israel) |
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Jesus was anointed for burial (Mark 16:1) |
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The Two Witnesses are called Sons of oil. (Zechariah 4:14) |
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We find, surprisingly that Satan received his estate by being anointed.
(Ezekiel 28:14) |
The brethren of the Church of God are blessed to know and
participate in anointings by which God bestows spiritual gifts on them. Most religious organizations do
not practice anointing or recognize the blessings that this intimate and meaningful doctrine brings. In
today's sermon we will explore some of these aspects of anointing.
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Note: Realplayer will play mp3 files. |
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