PENTECOST
THE ANOINTING
T
by Tim Oldfield
HE ANOINTING is a powerful and real experience available to believers today! Isaiah unveils much on the subject:
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings 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; to pro- claim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteous- ness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified (Isaiah 61:1-3).
When Isaiah gives this prophetic word, he looks forward more than a hun- dred years and sees Judah and Jerusalem in ruins. The Babylonians, by 586 BC, will wreck the city. For 40 years Jerusalem will be inhabited by foxes. The Temple and its treasures will be looted. Total chaos and destruction will occur. However, a remnant will return home after the decree of Cyrus (c. 536 BC), but they will have no resources. In the midst of that broken confusion, God will send anointing. The same is true today!
The Purpose of the Anointing
Anointing is associated with oil. In Bible times the oil was poured over the head, saturating the hair and the gar- ments. The oil was used for bathing and symbolized cleansing and purity (Ecclesi- astes 9:8). In Luke 10:30-35 we see it was used for healing and medicinal purposes, as it was applied to a man’s wounds. The oil was used to anoint kings, priests and prophets, appointing them and setting them in office (1 Samuel 16:13). In addi-
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tion, the oil is representative of the Holy Spirit, who gives an “unction” (1 John 2:20). He smears us with His fragrance! The anointing separates us for a purpose or an office. When the anointing comes, we are no longer alone in whatever we are doing.
Prophetically, Isaiah reveals the ulti- mate purpose for the Lord’s anointing. He gives anointing to preach and pro- claim divine truth, announcing the year of the Lord’s favor—the “jubilee” (see Leviticus 25), a time of restoration and freedom! It is to minister to the “meek” (Isaiah 61:1)—those who are depressed, needy, and poor. By the anointing, we respond to the pain of our world with the good news of God’s mighty grace. We are anointed to minister to the crushed and wounded people of our day. We are to “bind up the brokenhearted,” apply- ing love and care. We are anointed to proclaim liberty—a new beginning to the captives and the bruised.
At the beginning of His public min- istry, Jesus applied Isaiah 61:1-3 to Him- self, declaring, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel . . . heal the broken- hearted . . . preach deliverance . . . set at liberty . . . preach the acceptable year of the Lord” (Luke 4:18-19).
The People of the Anointing
David wrote, “I am like a green olive tree in the house of God: I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever” (Psalm 52:8). We are like olive trees, fresh and alive, in the Lord’s house! God desires to extract out of His people the precious olive oil—the anointing that will minister to the hurting.
The natural extracting of the oil car- ries a revealing process for anyone who desires to position themselves to be anointed and used. This process involved a harvester with a long pole used to
“The anointing separates us for a purpose or an office. When the anointing comes, we are no longer alone in whatever we are doing.”
shake the tree limbs in order to get the fruit out. Then the olives were taken and pressed or broken by rolling a huge stone over them. The pulp would be collected and pressed again to extract the precious yellow oil.
The flow of the anointing in our lives
involves shaking to get things in order (see Ezekiel 37). A person who will flow in God’s unction must have a life that is in order with His divine structure. The anointing also requires breaking, preparing us to “share in the nourishing sap of the olive root” (Romans 11:17 NIV). Breaking speaks of submission.
In Luke 20:17-18 we read: “Jesus looked directly at them and asked, ‘Then
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