The Anointing

Luke 4:18-19 - 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 proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.

The thought we are not to compare ourselves came to the forefront of my mind again: I think I knew what I had heard, yet it seemed all so much clearer. Or maybe it was the way it was spoken. It seemed I had never been told as though this thing was for me. I'd read the scriptures and yet somehow missed something. I knew the facts, but one little fact became so powerfully evident this past Sunday morning. How did I miss this? Or had I? One huge fact boosted my confidence. This one fact has kept me thinking. Thank you, Pastor Rory!

What in the world am I talking about?? This goes right along with my thoughts on the mysteries of God imparted through our knowledge of Christ. Nothing happens without first knowing Christ and being in relationship with Him. Nothing. We are in a time of "rediscovering" on Sunday mornings. Rediscovering those things that may have become commonplace in our lives. We've taken them for granted, perhaps. Or we've forgotten, maybe misunderstood. I'm looking forward to the weeks ahead.

Let me share. It always starts at the very beginning, with creation and who was there to create!

In the beginning was the Word (Jesus), and the Word (Jesus) was with God and the Word WAS God. He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, for He shall bear their iniquities. The Spirit of the LORD (God) shall rest upon Him (Jesus), the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord. And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved. And I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh. If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. Therefore, ...repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 

Abide in Me (Jesus), and I (will) in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. (And when you do) the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, (and) He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. (And) you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. (And) the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you...but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him. 

Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God. If I depart, I will send (the Holy Spirit) to you.  ...When He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. 

(John 1:1, Isaiah 53:11, Isaiah 11:2, Joel 2:32,28, Romans 10:9, Acts 2:38, John 15:4,5,7, Romans 8:11, 1John 2:20,27, 2Corinthians 1:21, John 16:7,13)

Maybe this was a lot of scripture but it shows a progression...Jesus' hand in creation, His knowledge which comes from the Father, the Spirit that would come upon Him to anoint Him...and the truth of this fact that when we come into relationship with God He gives us an anointing through the power of the Holy Spirit. The same anointing that was given to Jesus when He began His ministry. And if we are in Him, we have that very same Spirit in us. But it has to start with believing in Him, then repenting of our sins, being baptized, not as an infant but as an adult, as one who absolutely knows what this relationship with Jesus means. 

We're talking about God's anointing here! His Spirit is now alive in me because I have received Him. And I have the very same anointing. There is no one greater than another in Christ. There might be various degrees and we might go about our "ministry" differently than another, according to how God has made us, but we all have that same anointing. 

Something happened years ago that caused me to believe that I did not have what it takes to be anointed of God. No one ever said I had this same anointing. Or maybe it just didn't click. Maybe I just missed the point. And the thought we are not to compare ourselves came to the forefront again yesterday.

I knew these things, but Sunday I really knew it. I'm almost embarrassed to say this! How could I have not gotten it? It's like reading the Bible and although you've read a scripture many times, something new pops out. An anointing is the authority and power of God's Spirit. Although I had read these scriptures and thought I understood them, the way Pastor Rory had given his message opened my eyes even more. I'm not the only one, either! 

The purpose of this anointing according to Pastor is to: keep us in the truth of God; identify us as believers; inspire and empower us to do good; cause healing to happen in our lives, including reconciliation; give us victory over sin and death caused by satan. 

John 16:13 - However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.