The Anointing Within and the Anointing Upon?

1 John 2:18–27 ESV

18 Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour. 19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us. 20 But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. 21 I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. 22 Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. 23 No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. 24 Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. 25 And this is the promise that he made to us—eternal life. 26 I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. 27 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.

What is the Anointing Within?

Moving in the power of the anointing within has two aspects:

1. What God is doing within us

2. What God does through us

Often, we are afraid that we are not “spiritual” enough for God to use us. We feel that if we could just get “Holy Enough” we will then have a powerful ministry. This tension is the difference between the Anointing Upon and the Anointing Within.

Abiding in God and God dwelling within you

The Anointing within is all about spending time with Jesus. It is dwelling in His Presence. Having His Spirit pouring into your life and then His presence pours out of your life, ministering to others. This dynamic is the result of spending time in His Word. When we develop a deeper understanding of His purpose and attributes, we grow as a channel for Him to use.

John 4:13–14 (ESV)

13 Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

Jeremiah 31:33 (ESV)

33 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

John 15:4–5 (ESV)

4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

The Greek Word for Abide is μένω (menō[1]) and it has been translated as: Abide, Abode, Continue, Continuance, Dwell, Dwellers, Dwelling, Endure, Enduring, Remain.

To Abide in Christ is to dwell in His presence. It means that we continue to gaze at His continuance till we reflect His character.

To cultivate the Anointing Within requires a heart that longs to follow His Word.

John 14:15–17 (ESV)

Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit

15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

He gives us a new heart and a new spirt when we keep his ways

Ezekiel 36:25–28 (ESV)

25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. 26 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. 28 You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God.

The Anointing Within Breaks the Orphan Spirit

John 14:18–21 (ESV)

18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. 20 In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 21 Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.”

What is the Anointing Upon?

The Anointing Upon often brings the prophetic

Throughout the scriptures the bible says that the Spirit came upon them and something miraculous happens. In 1 Samuel chapter ten Samuel anoints Saul to be King of Israel. The Spirit rushes upon Him and he prophesies with the school of prophets.

1 Samuel 10:5–6 (ESV)

5 After that you shall come to Gibeath-elohim, where there is a garrison of the Philistines. And there, as soon as you come to the city, you will meet a group of prophets coming down from the high place with harp, tambourine, flute, and lyre before them, prophesying. 6 Then the Spirit of the Lord will rush upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man.

Side note: notice the connection of worship and musical instruments and the spirit of prophecy. The anointing upon is the prerequisite to the prophetic.

Community Revival can follow someone moving in the Anointing Upon

2 Chronicles 15:1–10 (ESV)

Asa’s Religious Reforms

15 The Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded, 2 and he went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: The Lord is with you while you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you. 3 For a long time Israel was without the true God, and without a teaching priest and without law, 4 but when in their distress they turned to the Lord, the God of Israel, and sought him, he was found by them. 5 In those times there was no peace to him who went out or to him who came in, for great disturbances afflicted all the inhabitants of the lands. 6 They were broken in pieces. Nation was crushed by nation and city by city, for God troubled them with every sort of distress. 7 But you, take courage! Do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded.”

8 As soon as Asa heard these words, the prophecy of Azariah the son of Oded, he took courage and put away the detestable idols from all the land of Judah and Benjamin and from the cities that he had taken in the hill country of Ephraim, and he repaired the altar of the Lord that was in front of the vestibule of the house of the Lord. 9 And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and those from Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who were residing with them, for great numbers had deserted to him from Israel when they saw that the Lord his God was with him. 10 They were gathered at Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year of the reign of Asa.

Notice what was produced by this Anointed prophecy

1. Courage was imparted

2. Detestable Idols were forsaken

3. Places of worship restored

4. Great numbers came together to seek God’s presence

The preaching of the Word of God brought the Anointing upon

Acts 10:44–48 (ESV)

44 While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word. 45 And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles. 46 For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter declared, 47 “Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” 48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to remain for some days.

Notice:

1. They heard the Word

2. The Holy Spirit fell upon them

3. The onlookers were amazed

4. They spoke in tongues

5. They were magnifying and praising God

God can use us even when we don’t have it all together

In Acts 3 Peter and John moving in the anointing, heal a cripple man. As the people are starring and amazed at what was done, Peter says some powerful things about moving in the anointing.

Acts 3:11–16 (ESV)

11 While he clung to Peter and John, all the people, utterly astounded, ran together to them in the portico called Solomon’s. 12 And when Peter saw it he addressed the people: “Men of Israel, why do you wonder at this, or why do you stare at us, as though by our own power or piety we have made him walk? 13 The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servant Jesus, whom you delivered over and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release him. 14 But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, 15 and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses. 16 And his name—by faith in his name—has made this man strong whom you see and know, and the faith that is through Jesus has given the man this perfect health in the presence of you all.

This move of God is not brought about by our own power

How often do we try to bring the move of God using our own power, strength, wealth or intellect? Revival does not come from great marketing. We need the Power of His Spirit. The power of the Anointing.

Zechariah 4:6–7 (ESV)

6 Then he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts. 7 Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain. And he shall bring forward the top stone amid shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’ ”

Zerubbabel understood that the work of God can only be accomplished by the Spirit of God moving through us.

As governor of Judah, Zerubbabel is ultimately responsible for rebuilding the temple, but he is forbidden to trust the resources of man to accomplish the task. So today God’s holy temple, the church, must be built and sustained, not by wealth, by members, by virtue, nor by sheer strength, but by My Spirit.[2]

Any attempt to do the work of God by our own power, limits us to our own power. We need God’s Grace, which is the empowerment of His spirit.

The word “might”: chayil (cha-yeel); Strong’s #2428: Strength, power, force, might (especially an army); valor, substance, wealth. Chayil occurs more than 230 times. Its basic meaning is force, especially military strength. It may refer to the power of accumulated goods, that is, “wealth,” as in Deut. 8:17. Occasionally chayil is translated “valor,” especially when describing a military man (Judg. 3:29). It is translated “army” in such references as Deut. 11:4 and 2 Chr. 14:8. In the present reference, God informs the rebuilder of the temple that the task would not be accomplished through the force of an army (chayil) nor through the muscular power or physical stamina of the workmen; rather, it would be accomplished by the empowering of the Spirit of God.[3]

The Anointing and Spiritual Gifts are a result of Grace

Just as salvation is not something we can earn, rather it is received by grace and faith, so spiritual giftings and anointing are not earned. Peter said it is not by our power or holiness. Fresh Anointing comes from faith in the name of Jesus and His Grace. The Anointing Upon is an outflow of God’s Grace on our lives. When we cooperate with Him, by grace we enter His presence. That is where we are empowered with His anointing.

Following are some thoughts on Grace in the Old Testament and the New Testament:

Grace (חֶסֶד, chesed; “grace, mercy, steadfast love, compassion”; חֵן, chen; “grace, graciousness, kindness”; χάρις, charis; “grace, favor, graciousness, goodwill”). Gracious or merciful behavior of a more powerful person toward another. Displayed by the Lord toward humankind and by people towards each other in the Old Testament. Used to describe God or Christ in their merciful character or actions toward humankind in the New Testament. Spiritual gifts are described as “graces.” A literary device used at the beginning or end of many New Testament letters.

Grace in the Old Testament

The Lord shows grace towards His people in the Old Testament. A common way of describing human graciousness toward another person is “to find favor in [their] eyes.”[4]

Grace in the New Testament

In addition to the Old Testament aspects of grace, the New Testament focuses upon:

• Grace in relation to salvation.

• Spiritual gifts being referred to as “graces.”

• The literary use of grace in beginning or ending of many New Testament letters.[5]

Grace Gifts

The term χάρισμα (charisma)—meaning “graces” or “gifts of grace”—is often connected with “spiritual gifts” (πνευματικῶν, pneumatikōn; 1 Cor 12:1; 14:1). The term χάρισμα (charisma) is found in connection with the listings of spiritual gifts in Rom 12:6, 1 Cor 12:4, and 1 Pet 4:10. Salvation is also referred to as the χάρισμα (charisma) of God in Rom 6:23.[6]

Moving in a Fresh Anointing is a gift of Grace. It is the charisma of the Spirit upon our lives as Spirit Filled Believers. How often do we shy away from ministering because we believe that we are not qualified? He has qualified us by filling us with the Spirit. In fact, it is our weakness that qualifies us because then only God receives the Glory.

Colossians 1:9–14 (ESV)

9 And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

2 Corinthians 3:4–6 (ESV)

4 Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. 5 Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, 6 who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

[1] Strong, J. (2020). Strong’s Talking Greek and Hebrew Dictionary. WORDsearch.

[2] Hayford, J. W. (Ed.). (1997). Spirit filled life study Bible (electronic ed., Zec 4:2). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson.

[3] Ibid

[4] Luter, A. B. (2016). Grace. In J. D. Barry, D. Bomar, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, D. Mangum, C. Sinclair Wolcott, … W. Widder (Eds.), The Lexham Bible Dictionary. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

[5] Ibid

[6] Ibid