Introduction:

According to John, every believer has the anointing, and it is the anointing that breaks the yoke as it abides in them. It is high time to walk in that anointing and let it operate in our lives. We should be claiming territories like the Old Testament prophets who called down fire and confronted prelates. Our testimonies ought to reflect the teaching we have received by it and our reliance on it. All things pertaining to life and godliness emanate from the anointing which lives in us.

In the New Testament, the definition for the word "anointing" incorporates the use of anointing oil as well as an equipping tool for the saints.

Unfortunately, not everyone is conversant about their personal anointing. Everyone seems to know what "anointed" preaching entails. They also know when preaching lacks the element of power generated by the anointing. What congregations have not been taught is the endowment placed in them. Imagine a gathering where those attending expressed themselves through Spirit-infused anointing. Every word spoken would drip with freshness from on high. Miracles would have to happen; revelation would be common place. The tyranny of the compromised church could not exist. The flow of unity would overwhelm any conflict and there would be a blessing underlying homes and hearts, all of which would last longer than the trip to the exit doors.

Under the anointing, real ministry would take place, for Jesus ministered through the anointing and so must we.

Jesus' identical anointing abides in us. Just as Jesus worked under His Spirit- anointing in order to affect the lives of those in the various categories of need — so can we. Reviewing every category mentioned above reveals the huge scope of personal need found in the human condition. Envision the propensity of a great outpouring of appreciation coming from those being released from the grip of the enemy because of your anointing.

Jesus welcomed the anointing that Isaiah prophesied hundreds of years before.

Jesus was anointed for this specific work of boundless opportunity. If one will analyze these passages, there are no parameters the Spirit-anointing must observe. Freedom of expression begins with the anointing. Once someone utilizes this gift, there is no turning back because of what is released in them. A believer receives elevated power which changes his or her life and the way they perceive their role in Him.

The early church knew this.

The disciples put their anointing to task and were amazed at what could be accomplished through it.

Yes, anointed ones, using the "oil of anointing" to heal, raises the level of demand put upon it. However, the Spirit-anointing can stand the pressure. Notice the number of those affected by their actions. How many were healed? (All of them.)

Notice now this passage in second Corinthians.

Community and fellowship engendered by the Spirit-anointing is not the same as that brought about by church suppers. Your anointing draws upon the anointing in others and there grows a rich congruity of thought and fervor in that environ. Those who are conscious of and are operative in the anointing wish to be around those of like faith and order — this is the church in real terms.

The apostles continued in His anointing, and it became their modus operandi as they emulated His work as their own. There is no greater example of the power of the anointing than the apostle Stephen during his final message to the Jews. He was irresistible. The anointing made him so. Peter also found his message on the day of Pentecost to be under the same anointing. Barriers are broken and resistance is shattered by the anointing.

Even in the Old Testament, the evidence of this truth is manifest. When Isaiah prophesied about Cyrus, he was not even born yet. Cyrus would experience great achievements because of God's gifted anointing.

All through the Old Testament are evidences of the separating power of the anointing. Here, the oil of anointing caused sanctification to take place, either in objects used for holy purposes or in the person of those occupying holy office.

Aaron and his sons were anointed with oil in order to be priests. Hebrew terminology for anointing expresses the separating power of the anointing.

The anointing still separates and consecrates! Note the definition in Hebrew.

Objects were anointed to show their spiritual place. For instance, Jacob put anointing oil on a pillar in the place his name was changed to Israel (Genesis 35:7).

Persons received special anointing for special positions: Saul, David, Solomon. When Samuel consecrated Saul with anointing oil, he was changed to another man. Saul even prophesied when in the presence of the prophets. (The anointing in your life is stirred by the anointing in other people. It is efficacious to associate with those of the anointing.)

Saul, being one of God's anointed is what caused David to honor him. Even when Saul was in spiritual decline, David refused to depose him. The anointing is a defining factor in one's life.

David understood the spiritual investment God makes on those of the anointing, for he was anointed himself.

Note how David honored Saul because of the anointing.

Our reverence of the anointing causes us to do the same within the ranks of Christendom. It is the Lord who honors and protects His anointed ones.

Ah, world, it is time to recognize the harm your minions have done to the saints. You have broken the commandment of the Lord with your overreach. You stand guilty before the tribunal of heaven for your persecutions of God's anointed and His prophets.

But the Lord oversees His anointing.

So important is the anointing that Zechariah discovered the constant presence of anointed ones before the Lord day and night.

One last thought:

Can the anointing on one's life be transferred to someone else? Well, the mantle of Elijah fell on Elisha and could be considered a "transfer." God told Elijah to anoint Elisha to take his place. (At Cane Ridge, Ky, after visiting the building which housed an early revival in the U.S., a man came up to me and sought to transfer the anointing upon his life to me. He passed away shortly afterwards. Since I never had considered such a "transfer," I hesitatingly received it. I do think the mantle of one person can be bestowed on another. There is evidence of handing the baton to another. Of this I am sure, my anointing speaks to other's anointing, and it always occasions a blessing.)

Until Next Month,

Dr. Cosby R. Oliver, PhD.