The Anointing

OPEN WITH 4th of JULY VIDEO, “Celebrate Freedom”

Announce about the parents meeting after service and also reaffirm about the 4th of July blowout and about the mission selling fireworks at 3 locations: the Mission on Sparta Hwy, Peavine Road at Mountaineer Realty and Simonton’s Cheese House on 127 south.

So, this Wednesday is the 4th of July. It is that time of the year, annually, when we celebrate our nations Declaration of Independence and our coming out from under the tyranny and oppression of another nation!

I really had not put much thought into this being the Sunday before the 4th of July and wasn’t even going to mention anything dealing with the 4th and about our independence.

However, as I began to read up on a group of words and of a certain account in the Bible the other day, it became clear to me that the message Holy Spirit was directing me towards, was right in line with the subject of our independence and freedom!

Allow me to share with you a couple of Hebrew words that I am talking about this morning: mashach and shemen.

There you go, clear as crystal for you now, right?

I mean can’t you see the correlation between independence and freedom and these two words?

Well, let me share with you what these two words mean in Hebrew and then let’s see if you get it.

MASHACH - means to anoint, to consecrate

SHEMEN - means olive oil, or fat.

Now you’ve got it, right? I mean it is so elementary; Anoint and oil/fat!

That is a dead ringer for independence and freedom if there ever was one!

OK, so all sarcasm and humor aside, let’s get into the word of God and read some passages about these words and the relevance they have for us this morning.

As I was reading this past week I began to look at the subject of “anointing with oil” in the Bible and the very use of the word, “anointing” itself.

If you have spent any time at all in the word of God, you have probably come across the word “anoint” or “anointing”, right?

I think that most of us have some understanding or idea of what “anointing” refers to.

I remember a movie that I watched years ago, one of those stupid sappy comedies that we used to get into, and in the movie, the man is reading a poem to this lady that he likes, and it is a poem that is from one of his favorite authors, and the poem is entitled, “Pointy Birds”.

The main part of the poem goes, “The pointy birds are pointy, pointy. Anoint my head, anointy, nointy.”

I know that that is deep, right?

From the literal standpoint, the act of anointing meant. “To pour oil or ointment onto a person or object in a ritualistic fashion; for the purpose of healing, setting apart, or embalming.”

And although we are about to look at specific criteria that God gave for anointing within the Old Testament in the book of Exodus, I just wanted to mention that anointing existed before the Exodus period and before the Levitical Law existed.

In fact, the first recorded account of anointing with oil, or setting something aside as sacred (i.e. CONSECRATING), is found in the book of Genesis.

In Genesis, 28:18, we see Jacob, after just having his dream of the stairway that reached from the earth up to heaven.

The Bible says that early the next morning, after having the dream, Jacob awoke and took the “rock” that he had used as a pillow and stood it up and poured olive oil all over it and consecrated that place as a holy place and called it, Bethel, which literally means, “the house of God”!

The thing about this situation, besides it being the first recorded account of anointing with oil, is the fact that Jacob did so, as if it were common, or understood as proper to do so.

I mean, if I were out camping and God gives me a dream or vision of something great about the place that I am camping at, and then I awake and decide that that place is special, or sacred and that I should do something special to commemorate or set that place aside from all others, I would probably get out my smartphone and PGS tag the place and denote it with a description.

The reason for my action, would be that this is the normal response for many people and thus a logical thing to do.

However, if I woke up and then dumped my fresh brewing pot of coffee all over the tree beside me and said this place is sacred, with no real meaning to it, it would not make sense and would not be significant.

Point being, Jacob did what he did and it was natural to him and not mentioned as out of the ordinary or distant to his logic or ways.

People were already using oil to consecrate, or anoint objects at that time in the Bible’s history.

And Jacob’s statement about the importance of the place in the Genesis account shows us that his use of the oil was to set aside this place and retain its position as very important, as indicated via the oil anointing.

He could have stood the rock up, or even built a mound of stones and danced around them for awhile.

But, he anointed and set the place aside as holy to God!

There is something about the oil being applied that makes a difference, right?

Well then let’s move forward in the word of God and look at a specific place where we see God, Himself, making use of the anointing process with oil.

In , we read of God giving Moses some specific instructions about the making of and the use of “His”, Holy Anointing oil.

Exodus 30:22–33 NLT

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Collect choice spices—12½ pounds of pure myrrh, 6¼ pounds of fragrant cinnamon, 6¼ pounds of fragrant calamus, and 12½ pounds of cassia—as measured by the weight of the sanctuary shekel. Also get one gallon of olive oil. Like a skilled incense maker, blend these ingredients to make a holy anointing oil. Use this sacred oil to anoint the Tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant, the table and all its utensils, the lampstand and all its accessories, the incense altar, the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the washbasin with its stand. Consecrate them to make them absolutely holy. After this, whatever touches them will also become holy. “Anoint Aaron and his sons also, consecrating them to serve me as priests. And say to the people of Israel, ‘This holy anointing oil is reserved for me from generation to generation. It must never be used to anoint anyone else, and you must never make any blend like it for yourselves. It is holy, and you must treat it as holy. Anyone who makes a blend like it or anoints someone other than a priest will be cut off from the community.’ ”

READ THE PASSAGE

Now, right away, I want to mention that in every detail that has to do with the worship of God and all of the ordinances that He gave to Moses and the children of Israel, were very specific. You don’t see the Lord saying to them, “Just build me a structure to hang out in and put some amenities in it for worship and pour some olive oil in a cup for anointing!

No, God was extremely detailed about every facet of His tabernacle and the worship that was to take place from it!

And of course, as I have mentioned many, many times before and will reiterate again today, every detail about the tabernacle and the worship of God and all of the feasts and Holy days that the Israelites were to observe, all pointed to something and someone greater who was coming!

All of the law that was given for men from God, was never meant to remove sin, nor could it. The law served only as a guard dog that reminded men of their sins and prompted them to react accordingly to it, via the tabernacle and the priests through the shedding of the animals blood for atonement.

It is like Paul said about the law and his sin, “So the trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin. I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. So I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it. And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t.  I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it. I love God’s law with all my heart. 23 But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind.”

You see, the law could only remind us of our sins, but was unable to do anything more about it.

18 And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t. 19 I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. 20 But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.

That is why it was necessary for all of the detailed implementations of the tabernacle and the priests and the sacrifices and all of the vessels that were used in service to God!

Our God, the one true God, is a details oriented God. Look at all of the other false religions and false gods that have existed. You make a statue and worship it. That’t it!

Now go and read throughout the book of Exodus and Leviticus and look at the exact precision of Yahweh about all of the things that were involved in serving and worshipping Him and the great lengths that He went to, to buy us back and establish His presence with us again!

And in all of this detail that was given, there was a road map that was there, but they couldn’t see it, at the time, that was pointing to the greatest miracle in all of universe!

When you look at the tabernacle and the temple area and of how God designed the layout, you begin to see something relevant. As you move from the outer parts of the court and head towards the Holy place, value begins to change.

The further away you are from the Holy place the amenities were fashioned from, or covered in bronze and lesser quality tapestry and silver. However, as you moved into the Holy place and most definitely, going into the Holy of Holies, everything was made of and covered in pure gold and the best woven and died linens.

The closer that you got to the presence of God, the more pure and valuable the area around became!

And the oil that God had them make for His worship and service, was no different. God had them make a special, holy anointing oil and He was very clear about it use.

“‘This holy anointing oil is reserved for me from generation to generation. It must never be used to anoint anyone else, and you must never make any blend like it for yourselves. It is holy, and you must treat it as holy.”

So, the question that arises, is, “why”? Why so particular about this anointing oil? Such that it was not to treated as or used as common, or else there was punishment for doing so!

Well, if you look at what it was used for, you begin to see some clarity.

God said that the tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant, the utensils, the lampstand, the altar, the washbasin and its stand, they were all to be anointed with this oil and marked as consecrated; that is, set aside solely for the use and worship of God alone.

God even said, that whatever touches them will also become holy.

Which is why the common people, were not allowed to come in and handle the implementations of worship; only the priests were to do so. This was so that nothing would become as common which was associated with worship to Him.

Basically, everything that had to do with His presence and the worship to Him and for Him, was anointed, set aside as Holy.

Which then leads to the next use of the Holy anointing oil. It was used, initially to anoint and consecrate the priests of the tabernacle for God’s service and no one else.

However, throughout the Old Testament, we see that the holy oil was eventually used for two more sets of servants for Yahweh, the kings and the prophets.

So, God’s holy anointing oil was used to consecrate everything that was part of His presence and His worship and specifically those whom He chose for His service.

So, what does any of this have to do with the price of tea in China and especially in dealing with the subjects of freedom and independence?

Well, God was very particular about His anointed and He placed great value upon them.

The Hebrew word for anoint, as we saw earlier, is , mashach.

There is another Hebrew word very close in origin to this one, that means, “anointed one” and it is the word, mâshı̂yach, or as we say in English, “MESSIAH”.

The Greek form of this word is the word, khris-tos'.

Now the Bible, in the Old Testament, foretold of an “anointed” one that God would send and that He was going to be very special.

,

Psalm 2:2 NLT

The kings of the earth prepare for battle; the rulers plot together against the Lord and against his anointed one.

,

Daniel 9:25 NLT

Now listen and understand! Seven sets of seven plus sixty-two sets of seven will pass from the time the command is given to rebuild Jerusalem until a ruler—the Anointed One—comes. Jerusalem will be rebuilt with streets and strong defenses, despite the perilous times.

Daniel 9:25–26 NLT

Now listen and understand! Seven sets of seven plus sixty-two sets of seven will pass from the time the command is given to rebuild Jerusalem until a ruler—the Anointed One—comes. Jerusalem will be rebuilt with streets and strong defenses, despite the perilous times. “After this period of sixty-two sets of seven, the Anointed One will be killed, appearing to have accomplished nothing, and a ruler will arise whose armies will destroy the city and the Temple. The end will come with a flood, and war and its miseries are decreed from that time to the very end.

This “anointed” one which was prophesied of and that they were looking for, would come with a spiritual anointing.

,

Isaiah 61:1 NLT

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, for the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed.

And therein lies the link of independence and freedom for humanity with the word “anointed”.

The coming MESSIAH would release the captives and set the spiritual prisoners free!

Yeshua mâshı̂yach, Iisoús (ee-ay-sooce') Christós, Jesus the Christ, Yahweh saves by His anointed one.

Jesus was the fulfillment of the Old Testament, as the anointed one of God who came to set the captive free. He openly said so of Himself in ,

Luke 4:18 NLT

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free,

The anointing of Jesus with Holy Spirit was seen at His water baptism, where the skies opened and the Spirit of God descended upon Him like a dove.

And then shortly thereafter, we see the Spirit lead Jesus into the wilderness to fast for 40 days and upon returning, Jesus is filled with the power of Holy Spirit!

You know, as we just mentioned, God only used His Holy Anointing Oil to consecrate the priests, the prophets and the kings, right?

Well, when Jesus was anointed by God’s Holy Spirit, He became a spiritual anointed King in the lineage of His ancestor David, as says of Him,

Luke 1:31–33 NLT

You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”

Luke 1:31 NLT

You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus.

Jesus was anointed as a spiritual prophet of God, just as Moses had prophesied about Him as we see mentioned in ,

Acts 3:22 NLT

Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from among your own people. Listen carefully to everything he tells you.’

And finally, Jesus was anointed to be our high priest, as tells us,

Hebrews 5:4–5 NLT

And no one can become a high priest simply because he wants such an honor. He must be called by God for this work, just as Aaron was. That is why Christ did not honor himself by assuming he could become High Priest. No, he was chosen by God, who said to him, “You are my Son. Today I have become your Father.”

Hebrews 5:8 NLT

Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered.

You see, every role that God set aside for the use of His anointing oil was fulfilled in Jesus.

Now, what does this mean for you and I?

Well, because of the sacrifice that Jesus made at the cross and His shed blood for atonement and His resurrection from the tomb, there was a transfer of this anointing to all who would believe and trust and FOLLOW Him.

says,

2 Corinthians 1:21 NLT

It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. He has commissioned us,

2 Corinthians 1:21–22 ESV

And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.

Do you see what God has done for you and I? In the Old Testament, the things of the tabernacle that were closest to God’s presence, were the most pure, right?

And the things that were for His worship were anointed with His Holy Oil, right?

Well, when you come to salvation through your belief and profession of faith in Jesus the Christ, God instantly removes the dirt and filth of a sinful spirit and refills you with His spirit. It is there that we become the living temples of almighty God and since His Spirit lives within us, then inside, we have become pure and holy and His anointing is within us and sealed upon us!

We now reign as royal sons and daughters (like kings and queens in authority here on earth) in His kingdom, we are anointed and part of the royal priesthood and we have been filled with the anointing to prophesy in His name!

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

If you have taken that step of saving faith and you know that Jesus is the Lord of your life, then you have received the anointing of God, through His Holy Spirit being in you and sealed upon you.

, tell us,

1 John 2:20 ESV

But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge.

1 John 2:27 NLT

But you have received the Holy Spirit, and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true—it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ.

1 John 2:27 ESV

But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him.

1 John 2:20 NLT

But you are not like that, for the Holy One has given you his Spirit, and all of you know the truth.

And says,

Hebrews 1:9 NLT

You love justice and hate evil. Therefore, O God, your God has anointed you, pouring out the oil of joy on you more than on anyone else.”

Do you have that anointing upon you today? Do you have the oil of joy running through your spirit and because of that you can say, “The anointing of Jesus the Christ, has set me free. He has redeemed me and given me spiritual FREEDOM!”

There are many of us who are going through the motions and put on a good game face, but we do not truly have that joy within us, that comes from the anointing!

And let me say this, while we are parked here on the subject this morning of the anointing and it setting us free. There is a verse that has forever been used in churches, especially in the Pentecostal/Charismatic churches that speaks about being loosed from our bonds.

That verse is . Now I am going to read it to you from the KJV first and show you something and then reread it to you.

“And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.”

We always use this verse and say, “the anointing breaks the yoke” and although it is true, that spiritually, the anointing of Holy Spirit breaks the yoke of sin and sets us free, that is not the way this verse should read.

This verse was written before Holy Spirit was poured out and it is in fact written from the Lord to the people who would understand exactly what He was saying, because they dealt with this all of the time.

The word that the KJV translated as “anointing” is the Hebrew word, “shemen”, that I gave you at the beginning. This word means, as I said earlier, oil, fat.

This is what that verse would mean to the people back then and how it applies to us today:

When an ox or oxen are yoked, they are under the weight and control of that large wooden stock on their necks. They are oppressed and controlled by it. However, if that ox keeps eating and growing (getting fatter) eventually that yoke will burst, or just no longer fit on the ox’s neck. The fatness destroyed the yoke and set him free.

God was saying to the people then and it spiritually applies to us today, if we will feed on His word and stay in His presence, I mean continually FEED on that word day and night and meditate upon it, we will grow spiritually FAT and thus the enemy’s yoke or oppression over us will be broke. This is that same verse as read from the ESV, “And in that day his burden will depart from your shoulder, and his yoke from your neck; and the yoke will be broken because of the fat.”

So, we need to be some spiritually FAT people, AMEN?!

Finally, let me say this, as I started to mention earlier, there are many people who are living through the motions of the Christian faith, but they are weary and broken inside and the oil of joy is depleted.

says this to us,

James 5:13–15 NLT

Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises. Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven.

In this passage, the word used for “sick” is the Greek word, astheneō, and it although it does mean sick, its first definition is weak, to be weak!

Now, when you look at the part of that passage that says, “Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven”, the word there for sick is, kamnō, and it means, to be sick, but also, to become discouraged, weary in the soul.

Well, what happens to a person when they are discouraged and weary in the soul and spiritually broken?

They are more likely to lapse in their faith and and when that happens, sin can enter.

This is why James says that the prayer offered in faith will heal (which literally means in this passage to deliver) that person.

And because of this, the person is restored in their faith and the anointing is refreshed and they will walk away from their sins and thus forgiven.