Looking at the Verses (2/26/05-2/27/05)

When Andrew went to get his brother, he bore this message, “We have found the Messiah.” We have found the Anointed One. It requires no real study to recognize that in Jesus, we have the ultimate meaning of anointing. However, with all the excitement we find in this man’s anointing or that man’s anointing, the need to know the truth of this thing becomes clear. How often have we heard the claim that "the anointing was all over me!” I know I hear it all the time. The question I have, the question I bring to the Scriptures, to the Holy Spirit, is if this is a reality or just a fancy way of saying, “I was really excited.” In other words, what, if any Biblical basis can be found for this idea that we bear some sort of anointing that comes and goes?

That said, I have gone through the references to anointing in Scripture to see what picture emerges from that. The immediate answer is that rather a lot of pictures emerge. It is clear, for example that the idea of anointing preceded the establishment of Mosaic ritual, indeed appears to have preceded God’s directly speaking of it. It is clear, also, that throughout the historical record there was an anointing in a general sense, more a matter of proper hygiene than anything spiritual. This sense of anointing continues right along side the special anointing purposes of God. Hopefully, a careful look into all aspects of this matter will yield up a well-reasoned perspective as to what anointing does and doesn’t mean for the believer today.

General Anointing by Man (2/27/05)

Several examples can be found that show an association between washing oneself and anointing oneself. The word used here indicates a smearing over with oil. There is another term indicating a being poured. This smearing aspect is apparently a part of one’s toiletries, rather like putting on after shave or perfume. Thus, when Ruth is preparing to go meet Boaz, Naomi instructs her to wash and then smear on the oil, among other things (Ru 3:3-4). In a later example, we find David getting cleaned up after a period of mourning for the loss of his son. He, too, first washes, and then smears himself with oil before he goes into the Lord’s presence to worship (2Sa 12:20).

Now, in that example, given some of the other references to this habit, I find an interesting lesson. You see, it becomes clear that just as anointing was associated with cleaning, so its absence was associated with mourning. Consider this example. Joab seeks to influence David’s decision, so he hires a woman from Tekoa to come appear before David. He instructs her to come in the appearance of one mourning the dead. Because this is how she is to appear, she must not anoint herself with oil (2Sa 14:2). I see that same dichotomy between anointing and mourning declared in Amos. He notes that his fellows are not mourning over the ruin of Joseph, but rather anoint themselves with the best of oils (Am 6:6). This same connection, or lack thereof continues right up to the time of Jesus. Notice that as He instructs His disciples in the ways of real piety, among His instructions is this: When you fast, wash yourself, anoint yourself (Mt 6:17). In other words, don’t go about as if you were in mourning for the dead, for the death of your appetites.

Now come back to David. He has been in prayer, seeking God for a change of heart, that his son, though conceived in sin, might be spared the punishment that was David’s due. God does not relent, but the child is taken. No sooner is the death of that child confirmed, then David rises from his supplications. Yet, his actions at this point come as a shock to his servants, for he does not go about as one mourning the loss of his son. Instead, he washes, anoints himself, indeed, fully disassociates himself from any sense of mourning at all, and then goes into the house of the LORD to worship. As we will see further on, when looking at the boundaries placed on those anointed by the LORD, David was wise to do this. For when death comes as the purifying punishment of God, it is not for His anointed ones to mourn. To mourn under His anointing would be to court death! Indeed, if the oil smeared on by the hands of man cannot be associated with mourning, how much more shall the anointing from God be removed from all such associations!

As I said, I will be coming back to this thought somewhere further on in this study, but for now, it is mandatory that we, as Christians, recognize this basic truth. If there is for us any sort of anointing (and I can assure you of this much, there is some sort of anointing that is the claim of every Christian), then we dare not bear that anointing in sorrow! Whatever the trials of the day, whatever may be dying around us or in us, we have no cause for tears. Thy Maker is with thee yet, and His plans for you are not for harm, but for hope and a future! He has anointed you with oil, the oil of gladness, He has sealed for you an inheritance beyond all the wealth of Solomon, and will you stand sorrowful before such a glorious gift?

Do you see this? The oil of anointing is the oil of gladness, because it is emblematic of God’s presence blessing and protecting us! This, too, will be touched upon more at some point, for if the lack of His anointing oil is a curse upon the people, then surely the presence of His anointing oil is a blessing! And in blessing, there can only be gladness.

I suppose this is why, when Israel determined to return their brothers to Judah in hopes of averting God’s wrath, they not only made sure those they had taken captive were fed and clothed, they also anointed them with oil (2Ch 28:15). It was a declaration of gladness for these who had been captive, for they would rejoin their brothers in Jericho. It was a sign of God’s blessing upon them, for it had been made clear that God’s curse was upon Israel for having gone to war against their kin. That enmity was at an end by God’s command, and in that is reason enough for joy!

Now come to the day Jesus has come to visit Simon the Pharisee. The association of the anointing oil with both cleanliness and with gladness has not departed. The story is familiar. Mary comes, falls at Jesus’ feet in tears, and washes his feet with her tears and her hair (Lk 7:38). Then, she anoints them with perfume. Simon is aghast. He has already been stretching himself, so far as he is concerned, by allowing Jesus to join him at meal. After all, Jesus is no Pharisee, and Pharisees are not supposed to associate with those outside their elect group! Now comes this woman, and she of poor repute! How can He allow this to be done to His person? How is Simon supposed to tolerate this egregious breach of etiquette in his house?

Jesus’ response to Simon’s obvious agitation is telling. “You did not so much as anoint My head with oil when I came to visit you. You did not have your servants wash My feet” (Lk 7:46). This was as much as to say that Simon had not even afforded Him the courtesy due any guest in one’s house. Simon was negligent as a host because he felt himself superior to these whom he had allowed to his table. That was really how he viewed it, I suspect. It was enough honor for such as these that he would even deign to have them in his house, eating his food, never mind offering them the hand of friendship, never mind treating them as honored guests. They should feel honored to be allowed here!

Jesus is not impressed by that honor. He is far more honored by this woman who has gone above and beyond the duties of a host. Simon would not even have a servant wash His feet, but she has been willing to dirty herself with task. Simon would not offer the anointing of a friend, but she has poured out something far more expensive not upon His head, but upon His feet! John tells us that it was Mary, Lazarus’ sister who did this thing (Jn 11:2), and that it was something she repeated later (Jn 12:3). It was a most extravagant gift she poured out, extravagant not only in that the perfume was expensive, extravagant not only in that it was poured upon the least honored of limbs, rather than upon the honored head. It was extravagant in the total willingness she showed to suffer such humiliation that her Lord might be honored. Simon could not even deal with offering Him friendship for fear of the humiliation he might suffer amongst his fellow Pharisees. Mary knew no such constraint.

I will say this, as well. Though she wept, there was no sorrow in this event. The anointing and sorrow cannot be commingled. These were tears of joy: joy at the salvation that had come to her, joy at being able to serve the Servant, joy in knowing a certain hope. Where anointing oil is flowing, there can be no sorrow, no mourning. There can only be the joy and celebration of reunion with God.

General Anointing by God (2/28/05)

So far, two aspects of this anointing issue have been shown, the one being associated with cleanliness, the other with honoring of a guest. These two are closely coupled, in that the anointing which honors the guest follows upon washing that guest’s feet to clean away the grime of the road. How wonderful is it, then, to realize that God declares that He does these very things for us – indeed has already done it! What an awesome revelation of God’s purpose and plan this give us!

There is this from Ezekiel. “I washed the blood from you. I anointed you with oil” (Eze 16:9). It’s a full and complete washing He has done. That blood, what is it but the evidence of our guilt? It is the blood of murder committed, and that murder a crime not only against those we have harmed directly, but against God, as well, for we have done violence to that which bears His image. Yet this very one against Whom we have sinned, rather than come with the sword of vengeance, comes to wash the blood from us, to make us clean once more. Now, I must move ahead of myself a bit. You see, I don’t think that God has used the simple household oils in this anointing. He reserved a particular oil for His own use, as we will see shortly, and He is, after all, the One using it in this case. I think what Ezekiel is showing is that which Peter describes later; the creation of a new people, a nation of priests.

The priests of God require an anointing, and that anointing, as will be seen, mingled the oil with the blood of the sacrifice. But, why was the sacrifice needed? It was needed because of guilt. It was the blood of a guilt offering, an offering for sins committed. It was an act of confession, and in response our merciful God comes saying, “I have heard your confession. Now, come, let me take care of it. Let me wash away all that marks you as a criminal, and anoint you instead to serve Me all the days of your life.” That is the very work that was accomplished by God when Jesus came, when He died, and when He rose again to the throne.

It was played out for the disciples at that last meal they shared. Jesus knelt before His disciples to wash their feet. As He explained to reluctant Peter, they had already been made clean. They had been under His constant ministrations for three years now, had heard and accepted what He was teaching about the kingdom, and had responded to it with commitment and action. The great body of their guilt and shame was long since dealt with. What remained was the grime of the road. Oh! Here’s a lesson we simply have to comprehend!

We cannot walk upon the road without picking up the dust of the road! It’s just not possible. Yet, we wash in the morning. We bathe in the Word, we anoint ourselves in prayer and worship of our Lord. We do all that is needed to make ourselves clean of a morning. But, then we must go out into the world, and the world is a filthy place, the dust of sin is everywhere, and however carefully we may mark out our steps, that dust is going to get on our feet. As I am writing this, I have this image in mind of what the streets of these ancient cities were like. Not a pleasant place to walk, I must say; open sewers running down the road, households dumping trash and worse refuse from the windows into the streets, the droppings of animals as they carry their burdens through the city. So much garbage was in the road, that special sandals were fashioned to try and keep the feet above it all. Yet, as careful as one chose to be, one could not arrive at his destination without some sign of the road clinging to him. And we all know how small a portion of that debris is needed to make the whole house smell of our defiling!

What a lesson I am taking from this as I write! Here it is! It is well and good that we have prepared ourselves in the morning. It is well and good that we begin the day with a good cleansing. But, we have lost the importance of washing our feet when we arrive at our destination, or when we return home! What am I talking about? To one degree or another, we each one of us must depart the sanctuary of the home to go out into the world. Some of us may go only to deal with errands, making brief forays into that fallen land and then returning to safety. Others of us must spend a goodly portion of our day amidst the filth and grime of the streets, earning a living for ourselves and those in our charge. Whatever the degree of our exposure, the question is, what do we do when we get back home? Do we simply tramp in with all that garbage still clinging to our feet? Do we drag the grime of the world into the clean spiritual environments of our home? Oh! How have I missed this for so long? I know I do not do what I ought in this, and the example is right there at the door to the house for me to see!

See, the path to our door gets muddy, especially this time of year, and my lovely wife does not care to see the floors destroyed by muddy shoes, so there is a rug placed by the door. One does well to remove his shoes while still on that rug, before proceeding into the rest of the house. We have dealt with the physical dirt problem. What is needed is to deal likewise with the spiritual dirt problem. How much have I dragged into the house from my workday, and tracked through the sanctuary? How am I to prevent that? I am again put to mind of an image in this. I am thinking of those capsules of Scripture that Jewish families will nail to the door of their homes, that they might remember the Lord as they go in and as they go out. It seems so ritualistic, yet there is such wisdom in it, if we can hold it properly in mind. There is something to it that we have lost as a Christian people, and having lost it, we have lost a great strength.

What is the answer, here, Holy Spirit? There is something that needs doing, something that needs to be established in this household. Would You make it plain to me?

It is not for us to tack Scriptures to the door, nor to hang crucifixes that we might kiss them. These things, while they might remind us for a time of the God we serve, will rapidly degenerate into mere actions, habits of the flesh with no thought or prayer attached. It will become a reflex reaction in us and no more. That is the great danger in any rite or ceremony, that the repetition will make of it nothing more than reflex, and God will be left out of it entirely. I dare not go that route. Something greater is needed, a moment of foot washing. What can accomplish that, Who can accomplish that, but my Jesus? Yes, I must turn to Him even in that moment of entering my home, and seek forgiveness for that which I have picked up from the world in the course of the day.

Oh, the things that are coming to mind this morning! I see another picture in my mind, something from one of my earliest employments, when I had the unpleasant task of cleaning up a food processing plant. For hours each night, I would be walking through several inches of what amounted to dishwater, sewer water, as we sprayed down equipment. Who knows what was in the water? Bits of chicken, bread crumbs, whatever had been used in the making of these frozen meals. I recall that one of the only two questions asked of new hires at that place was, “do you have duck boots?” Answering ‘no’ to this would by no means disqualify one for work, but it would lead to regrets. I was among those who answered ‘no’ and believe me, the sneakers I wore that first night were never worn again! I also learned rather quickly that the duck boots should never be left either in the house or in the car, not in any enclosed space, for before very long the food remnants that clung to them would raise such a stink as would make that space uninhabitable!

This is the same thing that led to the custom of foot washing in those days! The only difference was that you couldn’t very well leave your feet outside, so something had to be done. That’s how it is with us spiritually. We can’t very well leave our flesh outside, so something has to be done. We must wash our feet in the waters of real repentance, a mini-baptism to put to death all those bacteria of sin that have seized on us during the course of a day. We must wash our spiritual feet in the waters of Jesus’ forgiveness, as we look honestly across the course of our day, and confess those many places where we have fallen short of His goal for us. We must receive once more the anointing oil of His mercy upon our feet, that as we walk into our house, it is His sweet scent that spreads from us, and not the stench of death and dying.

Lord, how have I missed this simple fact for so long? Even now, I seek out Your forgiveness for allowing my house to be defiled by the world each night. More than that, I seek Your forgiveness for walking through Your house with that same garbage. Holy One establish this understanding in me. You know how forgetful I can be. If I must have a reminder there at the door, Lord, to keep me aware of what is needed, then so be it, show me what must be done. But, let this be established, that no longer will I bear the junk of the day into Your house or mine. Wash me, Lord, and I shall be clean. Anoint me, and let me bear Your scent.

What of the work-day, though? Is there any reason why I must simply gather the stench of death to me as the day progresses? No way! Look what the Lord has done! He has made a feast for me in the very presence of my enemies (Ps 23:5)! Any moment of the day as I work I am able to turn to my God and Savior in prayer. In the midst of a meeting, I can pray to my God. Whatever the challenge I face as I do my engineering work, my God is with me. He has blessed me with a computer full of music, and headphones that I can put on for hours out of the day to continually feed myself on His Word, His Presence. Indeed, He has prepared a feast for me in the very presence of my enemies. Though I must eat at table with them, my God is with me, and He anoints my head with oil. I need not smell like that, even as I work in their midst. I can bear the scent of my Lord, can invade the filth with His cleanliness! Oh! I like that thought! Yes, that is my calling today, to invade the stench of death with the scent of life, to bear the sweet fragrance of my Savior even as I walk through the shadowed valley. “You have anointed my head with oil. I am filled to overflowing.” Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life. Oh, that I might have the wisdom to allow them to catch up with me, to surround me with His clean presence!

Yes, the feet will doubtless pick up the dust of the road. It is inevitable. But, how much have I left myself open to become utterly enveloped by that dust? How much have I neglected that which He has prepared for me?

You have given me all that is necessary for life and for holiness, Lord. Today, as I go off into that particular mission field that I call work, let me remember to lay hold of all that You have given, to not only refrain from touching the garbage around me, but to go that next step further, and bear Your scent, Your cleanliness, into the midst of it. No, I’ll not cast my pearl before swine, but may I, by Your power working in me, give evidence of a better way? Help me, Father God, to rise above myself, to cast down all pride and cynicism, and walk out the faith that You have given me. Let me be Your light in that darkness today, and by all means, Holy Spirit, remind me to wash my feet when I return home!

Tabernacle Anointing (3/1/05)

As the people anointed themselves, so also God would have His belongings and His servants anointed. These, however, must be anointed in a particular fashion, using an oil of particular composition. Indeed, that oil was to be spiced in a very specific fashion decreed by God, and that particular formulation was to be used for no other purpose (Ex 30:22-33). In fact, so strong was the edict against profaning the oil by putting it to common usage that the one who poured that oil on a mere layman was cut off from the nation. God doesn’t mess around! No, and not only did He determine what spices the oil would contain, and in what quantities, He also made the call as to who would prepare that oil for Him (Ex 37:29).

God’s involvement in this whole process, in the design and manufacture of the tabernacle and its equipment is so important that large portions of the books of Exodus and Numbers speak of it. One can go back Exodus 25 to find things getting started. There, we learn a bit of God’s plans for that meeting place, amongst which is the first notice that the oil for anointing His house would contain spices. Not until that passage in chapter 30, though, do we begin to learn what spices it was to contain. Then, he moves on to say that He would determine who was to make the oil, the tent, and all its tools in chapter 31, yet that person who is to have charge of the project is not named until chapter 37. In the meantime, in chapter 35, Moses has finally completed recording the message God gave him, and begins to deliver that message to the nation. In that delivery, he calls upon the people to bring what is needed for the work, and their response is most immediate in doing so. Finally, in the closing chapters of Exodus, we are told that all is prepared. The tent has been made, the furniture and utensils fabricated, and the oil mixed. The garments to be worn by the priests have been stitched and fit together.

Yet, it is not until we reach the seventh chapter of Numbers that we find Moses finally moving to the step of anointing the house and its servants (Nu 7:1). If the building of God’s house were important, dealing with those who were to serve in His house was even more so, and we will get to that in due time. But, before those servants could begin to serve, the house must be prepared. All that has gone before, all that detail given in Exodus has been but preparation for this point. The critical importance has been established. It has been made clear that this is no ordinary work, for it is done for no ordinary God.

What has been important in all this detailed accounting is not, I think, found in the details, so much as in the overall impact. God’s instructions were very specific, and they were not open to interpretation. He required absolute control over the work, and absolute obedience from the workmen. This was as true of the least contributor to the project as it was of Moses. God has not changed. We cannot claim to be working in His service if we are not listening to His direction. We cannot claim to be working in His service, and yet insist on calling the shots ourselves. It won’t work. It’s not service, and it’s not for Him. David understood it. “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain to build at all” (Ps 127). Let me take it one step further. We cannot anoint for Him what He has not made. We cannot anoint what has been made with an oil that is not His and call it His anointing! It’s all or nothing. Either our labors have been anointed such that we work in full obedience, or He is not with us, and we serve only ourselves. There is no middle way here.

Now, here’s an interesting thing. The first reference I come across to this matter of anointing occurs on the morning Jacob awoke after dreaming of the ladder to heaven. There, he erected a pillar, the stone upon which he had rested his head, to mark the place where he had known himself to be in the very house of God. There, he established himself as God’s man, although he words it a bit differently. “OK, God, if You do this for me, I’ll let You be my God” (Ge 28:12-22). How blessed are we that God is not put off by our arrogant ignorance! When He has called us, He is not dissuaded by our fallen, foolish state. He sees the end. So, He accepts Jacob’s foolish bargain, and keeps His part. It is, after all, a covenant agreement, and God is rather partial to honoring such agreements. Then, He called upon Jacob to uphold his part (Ge 31:13).

Notice the connection there. First, the house was anointed, then the one who was to serve in that house. It wouldn’t take much study of Jacob’s life to recognize that a great deal of sacrifice happened between those two events. God honored his request, gave him success in seeking out a wife for himself. Indeed, he got more than he bargained for! But, he also spent many long years laboring for his uncle to complete that transaction, and his uncle wasn’t particularly honest in the transaction. Yet, God was with Jacob throughout, through every trial and storm, and He brought Jacob out far richer than he went in, in spite of Laban’s every trick and deceit. The thing was, though the house was long since prepared, for all the earth is but the footstool of His throne, the servant needed preparing. God would change Jacob’s name, but He must also change Jacob’s character. He was not yet a fit vessel for the house of God. He required a fair amount of sacrifice to properly prepare.

This same preparation is seen again in the establishing of the tent of meeting. When all was made and prepared, it was the house which first received God’s anointing. This echoes that event with Jacob and the pillar. True, Jacob applied the oil then, of his own accord, yet Who had prompted the thought? Now, with Moses, the directing hand was more explicitly seen, but He was just as present there in Bethel while Jacob slept and dreamed. As we look at the anointing of the tabernacle, though, one most interesting factor stands out to me: The altar had to be anointed before offerings could be made on it! Again and again through the records of the Old Covenant, that same issue is covered.

It is perhaps this one thing that makes the difference between true piety and dead religion. God never, ever, frees His people to sacrifice what they want where they want when they want. He has prescribed every detail of that operation. He has specified the place where sacrifices are to be offered. He has specified what sacrifices are required, and in His mercy He even included a bit of means testing in that. He does not demand sacrifices that will so squeeze His children as to threaten their existence. We are not asked to starve ourselves to feed Him.

God specified where those sacrifices were to be offered. There was one acceptable place. Any sacrifice offered anywhere else was nothing but murder. It had no redeeming value, but could only add to the sins of a man. No. God chose the place, the means, and the materials.

He allowed man to participate in the assembling of that place! I don’t think we really grasp the wonder of that. Do you realize that it is only because of our involvement that the anointing is required in the first place? This is so utterly key to understanding! The anointing that God places upon the elements of His house, upon the servants in His house, is not about special powers. It’s about cleaning up what has been touched by the filth of our fallen nature! It is not different in any way from that anointing which follows upon the washing.

That’s what was going on here at the first service of the tabernacle! Everything in that place had been fashioned by human hands, right down to the oil that would be used to anoint those things. Because they had been fashioned by human hands, they carried upon them the corrupting influence of fallen humanity, even in the oil. It required God’s anointing, which is something far and away above the oil He chose to have mixed for Himself, to complete the cleansing of those man-made articles.

It is the same with us, as we seek to serve Him. Here is where I think we’ve gone a bit off course crying out for His anointing on this and that activity of ours. Perhaps it’s a misperception on my part, but it seems to me that generally we cry out for the anointing as those seeking power. Indeed, it often comes out that way, that we want to serve in ‘the power of Your anointing.’ His anointing, though, isn’t about power. It’s about purity. If we are crying out for His anointing, let us cry out for it more honestly. Let us cry out for His anointing as a confession of our own imperfections.

Lord, I’m offering You the best I have to give, yet I know that it’s still of me. I’m offering You my services, such as they are, yet I know that the best I have in myself still bears the foul stench of my sins. I need Your anointing, Holy One! I need Your anointing upon this that I offer to cleanse it of my sinful touch, to make of it an offering holy and acceptable to You. Would You, Lord, allow me the pleasure of seeing this poor offering so cleansed and accepted?

Perhaps there is an appearance of power in that, but if there is, it is the power of humility. It is the power of recognizing that we are nothing, except He should choose to work in and through us. The altar we build must be purified by His anointing before any sacrifice we give can have significance. The altar we build will display that purifying anointing by our obedience. There’s just no getting away from that! If we love Him, we will obey Him. If we have been purified by His anointing, washed in His blood, that obedience must follow. We know that obedience is better than sacrifice in His sight. I tell you that the obedience is more precious to Him because it reflects the anointing He has accomplished, it is more precious because it is the evidence of that anointing He has given which purifies the sacrifice that is offered.

How amazing, considering this, to think upon Daniel’s prophecy. With God’s voice, he speaks out, telling us that God has declared a seventy week period in which to ‘make an end of sin.’ God has declared a seventy week period in which to bring in eternal righteousness. By the end of that time, He declares, vision and prophecy will cease, being sealed up, and the anointing of the holy place will be complete (Dan 9:24). Think about it! Think what He is saying here! There is an end of sin, even as there is an entering of eternal righteousness. The two must go hand in hand, for righteousness cannot abide sin! What does this mean other than that the cleansing of His house has been completed? How is it completed, except that He has returned to take His rightful place? For when we see Him, we shall be made like Him (1Jn 3:2)!

When those seventy weeks are done, His house will be purified, His bride will be fully prepared to enter into the home He has prepared for her, into His holy house, for she will be purified as well. Prophecy and vision will be sealed up because they have been completed, fulfilled. The need for these gifts will have departed from man because man has joined his Creator in eternity. What need for prophecy when we dwell outside time? What need for vision when we are one with He who purposes all things?

Further, we know from the book of Hebrews that this work is long since underway, for Christ arose into heaven to cleanse the true Temple even as He had cleansed the shadows of earthly worship. That is such an astonishing thought, that the heavens require cleansing. But, then it must be remembered that it is from those heavenly places that the devil and his demons have fallen. They were once part of the worship in that temple, and they defiled it even as they have labored to defile the Church on earth. Seventy weeks. Is the time coming to a close? I will not pretend to know. One can postulate this and that theory of heavenly timetables, but I will stand on Jesus’ words. It is not given to us to know. It is given to us to prepare, to be ready whenever that seventy weeks might be completed. How are we to be ready? Keep your feet clean!

In the meantime, the instructions for God’s people remain constant and consistent: Give all that is needed. Support the work of the kingdom in whatever fashion you are called upon to so do. If in offerings, give generously, if in preparing the anointing oil, work diligently. Whatever the priests of God request, give it to them. Give it to them daily and without fail. These are the instructions Ezra delivered to the exiles who had returned to Jerusalem (Ezr 6:9). The instructions haven’t changed. It seems to me that the whole issue comes back to that question Jesus posed to those first two disciples. “What do you want?” What do you worship? God does not ask of you what you cannot manage. Again, I look at the sacrificial system, and I see His great wisdom. Here’s what you ought to offer, but if it is more than you can manage, there is this other that I will accept.

But, be righteous in your giving, in your sacrifice! Don’t give the beggar’s portion when you are doing well! Don’t come to Me with a pigeon you snared on the way here when I know perfectly well that you have many more fine bulls at home than you need for yourself! Offer Me your best! You will not be found wanting for what you have offered to My service! No, and don’t you dare go out with appearances of suffering for your service! You have given Me only the smallest portion of what I have given you! You have but returned to me a bit of what was Mine to begin with! Never mind that thought of, ‘give and it will be given to you.’ No! True, though it is, that whole motivation is just plain wrong! Give instead as it has already been given to you – freely and generously, already poured out in excess into your lives. From your abundance give! From what seems to you your lack, give, for in truth, it is already abundance. But, don’t think to give what hasn’t been called for. It will serve you nothing, and it will please Me not in the least! Give what I have anointed for giving, in that place I have called My own, that I have cleansed and anointed for My use. Then see what I shall do, what glorious things I will accomplish with these gifts you have given Me!

Priestly Anointing (3/2/05-3/5/05)

When the altar had been anointed, and the burden of sin properly atoned for, then and only then could the anointing of the priesthood take place. This is particularly interesting in that somebody had to perform that first anointing. For Aaron and his sons, Moses took on the task (Lev 8:6-12). He washed them, clothed them in the robes of office, made offerings for their sins, and then anointed them. But, who anointed Moses? And, were we to answer that, who anointed that one? I suspect that if one were to chase things back through the years, they would find themselves back at a table set in the wilderness, where Abraham shared a meal with a certain priest of the Most High God, come out to greet him. That one, of course, would be Melchizedek, the priest eternal, with neither birth nor death to mark the limit of his days. His was the priestly order first and last (Ge 14:18-20).

So little is known of that man. We meet him in Genesis, in this brief appearance wherein Abraham gives him the tithe of his spoils. David was clearly aware of him, for he writes of him as the model for the eternal priesthood into which Messiah will step in time (Ps 110:4). I wonder if he wasn’t thinking back on that meeting when he wrote of the Lord preparing a table for him in the presence of his enemies (Ps 23:5)? There is certainly something in that verse that echoes of Abraham’s experience that day. The only other mention we have of him comes in the book of Hebrews, where Jesus the Christ is identified has having filled the office David spoke of (Heb 5:6-10). He is the high priest after the order of Melchizedek, having an eternal office. He is high priest forever (Heb 6:20). The author of that book goes on the explain the import of this tie to Melchizedek, as he establishes the supremacy of Christ’s priesthood.

Yet, Hebrews doesn’t concern itself with finding the one who first anointed the priesthood. It is not, after all, germane to the subject being put forth in that book. And, indeed, we could find ourselves asking yet again, ‘who anointed Melchizedek?’ I think, though, that we must first answer for ourselves the question of who Melchizedek is. Who is this man who was, so far as the records show, neither born nor did he die? I have thought before that he must have been a heavenly visitor, God on earth, but not yet in the person of the Son. If we come to Melchizedek as the source of that priestly anointing which finds its completion in the Christ, the eternal High Priest, it would seem the more necessary that Melchizedek was more than a man, was God Himself on the earth, establishing His church.

Consider, also, that even in the Mosaic rituals, even with the Aaronic priesthood, that eternal aspect of service to the God of heaven is present. As Moses declares the instructions he has been given, he comes to the matter of anointing the tabernacle, of anointing its contents, and finally , of anointing Aaron and his sons. What strikes me is the closing message of that passage, “And their anointing shall qualify them for a perpetual priesthood throughout their generations” (Ex 40:15). The anointing upon the priest of God, then, is not only a lifelong anointing, it is more than that. It is an eternal anointing, and always has been.

Earlier in the course of this study of the Gospels, I looked at that office of high priest, and saw how corrupt the whole thing had become in the Jerusalem of the first century. What was to be a lifetime office was become a political appointment. Indeed, during Jesus’ time on earth, there were apparently a number of ‘retired’ high priests about. This did nobody any favors. In fact, the references we find to Annas show the problems. Annas did not hold the office at the time. He had been retired, deposed from the position by a change in the Roman political arena that left him somewhat out of favor. Yet, though he had not the title, he had the power. He had sufficient influence to see his son-in-law installed in his place, and his son-in-law remained answerable to him. In all fairness, large portions of the Sanhedrin were answerable to him. It might not have mattered overly much who from among that elite had been chosen to fill the office. It would have remained Annas who held the reins of power there. In some respect, as corrupt as the system was, Annas was upholding the ancient tradition against the Roman interlopers. He would continue in his office for life, whether they would have it so or not.

Returning, though, to the establishing of the Aaronic priesthood, there is a connection that must be noted. The anointing was not the beginning and the end of it. It was only a part. Looking at Exodus 28:41, one sees several actions taken to complete the initiation. There would be the anointing with oil. There would be consecration. Interestingly, there are actually two words here translated as consecrate. The first, uwmilee’taa¸ indicates a filling up, or a confirmation. The second, yaadaam, is used of the offering of the open hand of power. Then, of course, there is the matter of sanctification, holiness, separation, being set aside for God’s use alone. Oddly, that doubling up of the consecration gets lost in every translation but one. In Young’s Literal Translation, it is represented in the phrasing that Moses is to consecrate their hand.

Looking at the whole scope of that verse, what are we being shown? Is it indeed three or four separate and unique actions, or are these all aspects of one single action? In all fairness, I think it could be viewed either way. Taken separately, one can see the anointing as indicating that the washing away of sins, the cleansing, has been completed. It is the visible sign of an unseen work. This is followed upon by a filling up, a confirmation from God that these men are indeed for His service. I see the Holy Spirit in this, who fills us, and who confirms us as sons of God’s household. This is followed by the open hand of power. There are at least two ways to view this, I suppose, the first being that which the YLT brings out. The power of the priesthood must be consecrated, must be confirmed as coming from God, else the priesthood is nothing, and their power is made just another fallen thing. The second possibility, I suppose, would be to view that open hand as being God’s hand, extended to the priest, imbuing the priest with His power as His deputy on earth. Finally, there is the need to be made holy, set apart for God alone. One vested with His power, acting in His name, serving in His house, dare not be less than wholly committed!

Paul, we know, continued to labor at the mundane work of making tents even as he worked to establish the church. That’s not the point. Paul, after all, worked with the sole purpose of sustaining his needs, of giving no man cause for excess pride or unintended offense, such that nothing in what Paul did could give any possible cause for reproach. He would not allow his actions in any way to hinder the pure message of the Gospel. In other words, even as he went about his work, he remained wholly devoted to God’s purposes, consecrated and set apart.

Now, let me look at that passage as speaking of one, unified action. If this be the proper view, then we have in this verse the first connection of anointing with power. I noted before that, even in the isolated sense of anointing, that visible action, with its visible result in the shining oil upon the skin and hair, was evidence of that which went mostly unseen, the cleansing washing that had preceded the oil. Spiritually, that cleansing is, of course, the washing away of sin and guilt. It is the result of atonement. Like bathing, the results of this cleansing might not be particularly visible to the eyes of those around us. The oil, the clean scent of anointing, gives evidence to what has preceded it. Believe me, if you’ve ever smelt one who sought only to mask their unclean state with perfumes, you know the difference! The anointing without that preceding washing will be a stench in the nostrils of all who come near it.

Continue into the verse, though, looking to the consecration. Recall that there are two concepts being combined in this thought of consecration, a filling up, and an open hand of power offered. Combining these two, I see that consecration as being the filling up of the priest with the power that flows from the open hand of God. Can it be that we truly are intended to see that power flowing down from heaven in the anointing oil flowing over Aaron’s head? Perhaps it is. If that be so, though, it is all the more important to recognize that along with the flowing of power, that oil, that act of anointing must mark us off as men set aside for God’s use, and God’s use only. Most importantly, it must mark us so in our own thinking!

In fairness, this truth remains, whether we view these three matters as separate and distinct, or as all being wrapped up in that act of pouring out the oil. If we are truly cleansed by the Atonement of Christ, if we are truly soaked in the oil of the Holy Spirit, then surely we have also been filled with the power of God, even as the book of Acts has told us. Hear the parallels in this! “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses” (Ac 1:8). Anointed, given power, and put to His use. It is, indeed, a new priesthood. But, again, I say, we must be careful that having been entrusted with power from on high, we remain set apart for His use only. If we allow that power to be used for our own ends, will He long tolerate us in His household? I think not. It is a greater condemnation that would be ours for having done so. We would be as Simon the magician, whom the Peter cursed for seeking to obtain God’s gift simply to enhance his own profits.

There are other aspects of the priestly anointing that we do well to recognize. Most important to me, at this moment is that fact that the oil of anointing was mingled with the blood of the sacrifice when it was sprinkled on those who would serve God (Ex 29:21). We spoke of this briefly last night in home group, but there is so much in that thought. There is a reflection of God’s triune nature. If we would serve the Father we must be covered by the blood of His Son, and we must also bear the seal of His Holy Spirit. This, I believe comes back to what I saw in Aaron’s anointing before. He was first bathed, washed free of the stains of sin. This was done both in the offering of sacrifices which preceded his anointing, and in the actual act of washing which Moses performed for him. That physical washing, like our baptism, expressed what the sacrifice had done. The guilt was taken away by the sacrifice. The stain was cleansed by washing. The whole was sealed to Aaron by the oil. But the blood of the sacrifice must be there as well.

Just as the blood marked the lintel of the homes of the Jews on that first Passover, so the priest of God must also bear the mark of atoning blood. We must bear the mark of the blood of Jesus on our lives, or all our proclamations of spirit-filled anointing are worse than empty. They are lies of the devil. We are spirit-filled, I suppose, but it is not the Spirit of God. We work wonders, but so does antichrist. Wonders prove nothing. We do any number of things which we say are done for God, but if the blood has not sprinkled those works, then they are really done for ourselves. They are done to make us feel better, when what we really need is to be better. They are done to increase our own prestige, our own reputation, our own glory. It is only when the blood of Christ has been thoroughly mixed together with the oil of the Spirit that we can do godly works. Listen! Those works may not look very much different on the outside. If it’s just the good deed I want, there are any number of atheists I can turn to out there who can do works as well, if not better than most of my brethren in the church. It’s the motivation that makes all the difference. It’s the motivation that makes the doing of works that are truly good an impossibility except that God be with us in the doing. For, any work not done with the express purpose of making God’s glory manifest is not a good work, it is but a labor of the flesh. And, unless the Lord builds the house, unless the Lord prompts and motivates that work in us, the work is in vain.

It is true in our efforts to earn a living. It is true in our efforts to care for our family. It is true all the more of our efforts to serve God and His church. If our programs are not sprinkled with the blood and the oil, if they do not bear the stamp of Son and Spirit, then they accomplish nothing, however successful they may appear. The mega-church movement means nothing to a holy God. The numbers don’t glorify Him, they glorify the heads of that church! God seems to have a pretty strong preference for using the small things, the weak things, the foolish things of the earth to complete His purposes, for they will not, cannot steal His glory, cannot misguide the affections of those who witness what He has done.

Notice this matter in the priestly ordination as well. God had decreed particular garments for His servants to wear, robes of office. These, too, must bear the blood and the oil (Ex 29:29-30). These, too, must be consecrated, sanctified, for they were the manufacture of the hands of man, and therefore bore the stigma of man’s fallen nature. They must be cleansed before they can come into the presence of a holy God. The priests, the servants of the Most High, were instructed that they were not to enter the house of God except they be wearing these commanded garments.

In this, God is not unlike many another master or ruler. Look at the halls of power in this country. The staff are uniformed in specific fashion, marking them out distinctly as staff. One cannot simply show up at the White House claiming to be part of the work-force and expect entrance. One cannot come to work in jeans and a T-shirt and expect to be working in that place. One simply doesn’t appear before the President in such attire! How much moreso the King of kings? How much moreso the Supreme Authority? If He has declared a uniform to be worn by His servants, what servant will be so foolish as to leave that uniform home when he reports for duty?

There are other verses that speak of this matter of the priestly anointing, but here we have the things we need to understand. Now, we must turn our attention to the matter that Peter made clear to us. We are all priests of the Most High God. He has called us to be a nation of priests. Consider all that we have seen about that priestly anointing in light of this fact. True, none of us will ever serve as high priest, for there is One who fills that office for life, and He is eternal! However, we each one of us are in the priesthood of believers. Each one of us has been washed by the Word, anointed by the Spirit, consecrated by the blood of Christ, and set apart for the exclusive use of the Lord. Each one of us has been given garments suited to the servants of God, required of the servants of God. What a marvelous thing! He has required of us to put on our wedding garments as the robes of service. He has dressed us in white, in the purity of His Son’s own righteousness! This garment we must wear at all times, for we are a perpetual priesthood, serving in His household every moment!

David cried out that he would rather be a gate-keeper in the house of the Lord than know length of days without Him. I tell you, we are living it! We are called to live it! We are called to be those who serve in the house of God wherever we are and whatever we may be doing. What does that mean for us? Does it mean that as we go about our day at work we ought to be constantly proselytizing? Does it mean we should abandon our jobs, and go out street evangelizing, littering the streets with tracts and pamphlets? Not at all! What it does mean is that the way we behave when our fellow Christians are around ought to be the same way we behave when we’re amongst the heathens. What it means is that the way we pursue the most mundane facets of our daily existence ought to manifest the presence of God within us, ought to manifest our status as sons of God, as priests of God.

I am put in mind of that thing I saw years ago when I was studying Romans: Aaron’s crown, the mark of the priest. On his forehead hung a gold seal, upon which was written, “Holy unto the Lord”. He could not help but be recognized for what he was, because every where he went, it was written on his forehead! No man could look at him and mistake him for some average Joe. No man could neglect the fact that here before him stood a servant of the Most High God. We don’t walk about with such signs on us, nor do I think we are called to. We cannot wear a cross on a chain around our neck and expect that to mean anything to anybody other than ourselves. The world has so corrupted even that symbol! I tell you, you can look in advertisements for lingerie, pictures meant to inflame the lusts of man, and find those who bare their flesh in those pages with a cross carefully displayed in a fashion to draw your eyes to their cleavage. Choose any other symbol that you might put on, and the world will treat it equally poorly, will corrupt it and turn it to its own desired meaning. There is but one thing the world cannot corrupt, and that is the manifest expressing of God’s internal work. When a man of God walks godly in this fallen world, when he walks as one with his beliefs, when he truly sets himself to live the life of faith, that man will be as Aaron was. He will be seen as God’s man without his ever saying a word about it. There will be no man who can deny that simple truth about him.

God, that’s where I want to be. That’s where I struggle to be. You know. You have been calling me to be more and more aware of myself, of my choices, my actions, my words. You have been calling me to wash my feet as often as it takes, not just when I come back home, not just when I go to church, but constantly, for I am Your temple, I am always in Your house. Oh! To come to a place where that constant seeking of forgiveness weren’t necessary! Yet, I know it is not in me to be perfect. Not in this life. But, I will strive, Father! I will seek Your will, and seek to do it. I will, with all that is within me, to the utmost of my ability, submit myself to the leading of Your Spirit. Help me, Lord, to be one truly set apart for You alone. Help me, Lord, to stay clear of the motivations that move this world, and to remain truly, uniquely, and manifestly Your servant.

I asked, back at the start of this, who anointed the first priest. I find an answer to that in Leviticus, and I find that it is the same One who anoints every priest in God’s service. It is God Himself who anoints. You see, there in Leviticus 7:36 God declares that the priest’s portion from the offerings of the nation were consecrated to their use by the word of the LORD who anointed them. Let me think on that a moment. The sacrifices of the people were made unto God, as is right and proper. For the most part, what was offered in the sacrifice was consumed by the flames. Yet, a portion was reserved as a meal for those who made the sacrifice. It was a sacrificial meal, rejoining God and man. Yet, a portion of that was also reserved for the priest who stood as mediator between man and God.

Clearly, in our day the sacrificial system is done away with, and there remains but One who stands as Mediator for us. Yet, we are all of us priests of the Most High. How, then, does this apply? I think of it thusly. The reason we seek an atonement for our sins against God is because He is great and glorious. Were we merely seeking to appease angry spirits we could find much more effective recipients for our offerings. If it is death we would appease, why do we seek out the enemy of death? No, it’s not fear of harm that motivates us, it’s love of Him to Whom we make our offerings. It is not so much to appease the anger of One who is greater, as it is to make His greatness more evident. I maintain that if our sacrifices, such as they are in our day and age, are not made with the sole goal of magnifying the glory of God, then those sacrifices do nothing but drain our resources. The Atonement has already been made. There is nothing further for us to do as regards God’s wrath against sin.

The great sacrifice that God seeks of us is obedience to His will. As we obey His will, we make His glory known. As we walk out the life He has made in us, we declare His magnificence, we magnify His glory. Now, come back to that matter of the priest’s portion. A portion of the glory that is His is apportioned to us by His command on the day that He anoints us! I dare not say that He shares His glory with us, for I know that God will not share His glory with any man. Yet, in the same way that the righteousness of Christ is imputed to us because of His atonement, and the faith that is implanted in our hearts, so, too, is the glory of God imputed to us as His anointing to the priestly office is poured out on us!

Duties of the Anointed Priest (3/5/05)

That said, even though we bear upon us the robe of Christ’s own righteousness, even though we partake of God’s own glory, yet this anointing that is ours is not a surety against sin. Not in this lifetime, not in this flesh. There are plenty of folks around who will insist that we are made able to walk in perfect righteousness in this life by what God has done. There have been plenty who maintained such a position throughout the Christian era. Yet, I would ask of all these claimants: who is that one who has done so? Can you produce one man apart from Christ who has walked in perfect obedience? Will you really set aside Scripture to maintain your position? God declares that none is found righteous. Will you have it otherwise? God declares that the one who claims he is without sin is a liar. Will you exacerbate your guilt by insisting yourself sinless in spite of His declaration?

I tell you, if it were possible for a man to walk in purity, there would be no Christ. Had there been any glimmer of a chance that somewhere, sometime, in the sorry history of mankind even one man might have managed to walk in full accord with God’s law, He would have had no need to send His Son to death, and having no need to do so, He surely would not have done so! No, the very fact of the Christ insists that God’s assessment of mankind stands. Indeed, as Moses was establishing the priesthood by God’s direction, the problem was already evident. Even as he described the consecration of the priest, of the temple, of the people; even as he described how all was sanctified and set apart for God’s private use he was already laying out the requirements for atonement. He laid these out not just for the people, indeed, not even first and foremost for the people. No, the first of those for whom the work of atonement was spelled out was for the priests, themselves, more especially the high priest (Lev 4:3-12). For, before he could serve to bear the atoning sacrifices of the people to God he must first atone for his own sins.

Let me state this plainly. The anointing is no surety against sin. That’s the sum of it. Even that anointing of the Holy Spirit upon our lives is no surety against sin. We continue to bear the baggage of the flesh until such time as Messiah returns, until we see that blessed day in which we see Him as He truly is. Then, and only then, we will be made like Him. Until then, we are sealed for perfection, yet remain imperfect. Until then, we will know a constant need for atonement, even as the sons of God did under the Old Covenant. What has changed is not our need. What has changed is the Answer to our need. Until Christ’s atonement, the best that could be done was to offer the lives of animals, a temporary answer to cover but a portion of our sinful lives. But, the atoning work of Christ was worth far and away more than animal sacrifices could ever produce! In Him, we have the sins of a lifetime covered, the penalty paid for all that we have or shall do against the command of our Father in heaven. He has done it, and it is finished!

That is the reality in which we live. It is not an excuse to continue in sin. It is our blessed hope when, in spite of our every effort, we find that there remains offense. It is our blessed hope when we see ourselves and know that we have once again sinned against a holy God. I hear of hopelessness in the church today, and I say there is no place for it. I hear of the attack of the enemy upon the people of God, and I can only say that it’s obvious that it must be so. The world hasn’t changed. God hasn’t changed. There remains enmity between the works of the evil one and the purity of heaven. Yet, my God remains in control. He has own the victory, though battles continue. The end is certain. My end is certain. In all truth, my present is certain. “In the world you have tribulation” (Jn 16:33). Notice Jesus’ prelude to that statement: “I have spoken to you that in Me you may have peace!” In spite of what’s happening around me, in spite of what’s happening within me, I may have peace because He IS!

When I have sinned, He is the answer. He has already made the offering, and as priest of God, I partake thereof. All must be touched by the blood of the sacrifice (Lev 4:6), all must be covered by the blood of His sacrifice, that He might pass over the sins of His people in His wrath against unrighteousness.

Now consider this. The instructions in Leviticus 4 don’t stop with the priest. They move on to the sins of the nation. When the whole tribe sins… There remains an answer, and that answer is the anointed priest. Interestingly, the sacrifice for the sins of the nation was precisely the same sacrifice required for his own personal sins (Lev 4:16-21). It remains so today. There is but one Sacrifice, and Him perfect and complete, lacking nothing for the work of atoning for the sins of all who will call upon Him! Yet, in this case, the whole of the people are not called to come in repentance, nor is it likely that we should ever see the whole of a nation in repentance. God, in His infinite wisdom, did not leave it at that.

Like the Constitution that governs American life (at least in theory), God made provisions. He does not require the whole of the nation to come before Him. He requires the elders, and more importantly, He requires His anointed priests. It is the anointed priest who must offer the sacrifice of atonement on behalf of the nation. It is the elders of the nation that must present themselves before a holy God in hopes that He might be merciful. It remains the atoning work of Christ which is the sole sacrifice for those sins.

The priest who offers the sacrifice must be anointed and ordained by God (Lev 16:32). There is but One. The priests He appointed over Israel died. To a man, they died, and must be replaced. Yet, there is One. He was anointed from before Creation to stand as eternal High Priest over the whole people of God. He was ordained by God to come and offer the one sacrifice that would once for all put an end to the burden of guilt under which His people were bowed down in labors. He was anointed, and ordained to make the offering of His own perfect, sinless, life, to lay it down for His brothers and sisters, and to take it up again in glory!

Behold! “I will raise up a faithful priest for Myself, One who does what is in My heart and soul!” God will do it! It has always been His plan that He would do it. “I will cause his house to endure, and he will walk before My anointed always” (1Sa 2:35). Were it not for that last bit, I would think God spoke of His own Messiah in this, that it was Christ Jesus that He thought upon as His faithful priest. Yet, Messiah cannot very well walk before Himself. Beloved, it must refer to another. Is God declaring that there shall be one priest who stands out from all the rest? If so, then this is surely a prophecy as yet unfulfilled. Yet, I think He speaks of an even grander vision. I think each one of us who has truly laid hold of the hope that is in Him, each one of us who has joined this nation of priests is being spoken of in that message. Each one of us knows that it is God who has raised us up. It was nothing in ourselves that brought us to Him, but only He drawing us. It is nothing in us that brings good from us, it is He who empowers us to do what is in His heart and soul, He who is at work in us both to will and to work! Oh, blessed hope! And He will cause our house to endure, for our house is His house, which Jesus has gone ahead to prepare for us! He will, by His own purpose and power, cause us to walk always before His Anointed, before His beloved Son! That is the Promise of heaven! That is the end, purpose, and plan of our lives!

Boundaries of the Anointed Priest (3/6/05)

There is one boundary given the priest that requires our utmost attention. When God’s justice was being served, the priest was not allowed to show sorrow. This remained true however close to home that justice was coming. Aaron learned the lesson first hand as his sons were killed for their disservice. Aaron and his family were warned that not one of the usual signs of sorrow was to be shown for these two; no tearing of the clothes, no baring of the head, none of it. More that, they were to remain inside the tabernacle, not even participate in the public mourning. To disobey was to take upon themselves the penalty of death as well. Why was this? Because the Lord’s anointing oil was upon them (Lev 10:6-7).

This was no one-time thing. As Moses laid out the case law for Israel, he made it clear that the same applied for other punishments due the priestly family. If his daughter went astray, began selling her favors, she must be burned like any other in the land. Again, there is the prohibition. The one anointed for service must make no sign of sorrow at this, nor participate in any way in the mourning or burial. He is not even to leave the tabernacle because God’s anointing is upon him (Lev 21:9-12).

Let me draw out a more general case from this. It is easy to rejoice in the Lord when the blessings and bounty are flowing. It is easy to bless the Lord when He is punishing those who are clearly our enemies. But, when the punishment starts to come close to home, what happens? When the enemy of God is in our family, and God determines to act, are the blessings still on our lips? This is the terrible (to us) truth that Jesus taught. He who loves father, mother, son, or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me (Mt 10:37). That’s the reality of life in God. If we are not willing that He should demand purity of our own flesh and blood, then we are not really committed to Him, not really in His service. We are merely lapping up the benefits while they last.

If the anointing of God is truly upon us, if we are truly of His royal priesthood, we must never be offended by God’s holiness. If we are truly anointed, I would maintain we cannot be offended by His holiness. If it offensive to us when He asserts His prerogative, if we love the sinful flesh of our relations more than His perfection, we can only bring upon ourselves the same vengeance that pursues the cleansing of that sinful flesh. If we are of His kingdom, then it must seem good to us that He maintains the purity of His kingdom. Israel had that lesson in spades! Over and over they were instructed regarding the importance purging all impurity from their land. This was the sole reason for the brutality of punishment incurred for acts of immorality. This was the sole reason for burning the harlot, for killing the sacrilegious, and for utterly driving out and destroying the idolatrous from the land Israel was to occupy by God’s claim.

Do we really think that God has softened in our age, that we are under some less stringent law because He has discovered mercy? NO! God does not change. That is fundamental to our faith! He was as merciful then as He is now. He is as wrathful against sin now as He was then. He is as determined that His servants will serve Him and nobody else now as He was then. He is as jealous of the reputation of those who bear His anointing now as He was then.

Let me make it more general still. As the sons of God, we are anointed as priests, a holy nation amongst the kingdoms of the earth, more importantly, a royal priesthood. As the anointed priests of God, we know we are the very Temple of God. Now, if all this is true, then we dare not bear any sign of mourning about us, no matter who it is that falls under His wrath for sin. Even if that judgment falls upon us, for we are yet men of flesh and blood, and we are as prone to sin as any other; even then, there must be no sorrow or mourning in our hearts, for it is God purifying His nation. For, His anointing is ever upon us, and how can we dwell in sorrow under His anointing? How can we serve Him in tears, when those tears display displeasure with Him and His ways? How can we expect to serve so as to please, when we are offended by the orders of Him whom we serve? It cannot be!

No! We who have been called, anointed as a holy, royal priesthood unto God must not leave the Temple. How does that translate to our day and age, when we bear the Temple in our flesh? Are we instructed not to leave our bodies? But, that is nonsensical. No, for us, it is a matter of the Presence. It’s a question of offending the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. It’s a question of walking, thinking, talking in a fashion that is at one with our profession of faith. It’s a question of making our faith professional! What do I mean by that? I mean simply that it is the amateur who simply plays at something. If we are simply playing at this religion thing, all holiness on Sunday, and wholly sinful on Monday, then this message maybe isn’t for us. If that is our lot, then we are already amongst the number that must be purged from His nation. Sorry. That’s the way it is. There is no place in heaven for an amateur faith. There is no place in the royal priesthood for part-time employment, for weekend warriors. It’s a full-time, professional faith. It’s something that must be lived every moment, for the Temple is ever in us, the anointing is ever upon us, and whatever judgment may fall upon sinful man, and whomever that judgment may fall upon, we as a holy priesthood must not sorrow at the acts of holiness.

Here is one other, quite interesting aspect of the office of the high priest. When Israel was established, God declared a certain number of cities of refuge, places to which those who had accidentally committed murder could flee. Here, they were safe from the vengeance of friends and family of the one who had died. There, however, they must remain for their own safety, until the death of the current high priest, who had been anointed with the holy oil (Nu 35:25).

Take this into the New Covenant. We know, of course, that we have now an eternal High Priest in the Risen Lord, Jesus the Christ, God’s Anointed. We know, as well, that there is one heavenly city towards which we are traveling, the New Jerusalem, whose Sun is the Son of God, whose Temple is the God of all Creation. Do we yet recognize, though, that we have all committed murder? It was unintentional, to be sure – a slip of the tongue, a careless word spoken perhaps in jest. Yet, the verdict is clear. Have you never been angry with a brother? Have you ever called your brother a fool (Mt 5:22)? Guilty as charged, sir! Indeed, the tongue seems such a small fire, as James declares (Jas 3:5-6), yet it betrays the whole body to the court of heaven. It ‘sets on fire the course of our life, and is itself set on fire by hell’. No, we don’t speak with the intent of killing our brothers, yet that is the effect we have.

We must flee to the city of refuge! Every last one of us has need to flee to that city. Every last one of us must also recognize that those who have offended against us have likewise fled to this same city, and we dare not lay a hand upon them for their offense. Vengeance is not ours, but belongs to God, and His justice must prevail. We and they alike have fled to the city, and we are safe from the vengeance of those we have wounded just so long as we remain in the heavenly city, just so long as we remain in the place God has provided, just so long as we remain in the Temple of His holy Presence. How long shall we remain there? Well, the instructions were to remain until the current high priest has died. Oh, blessed Lord! Our Eternal High Priest shall never die, nor shall we depart His holy city! We, who have fled to the city of refuge shall indeed dwell there for an eternity, an eternity of peace both with those against whom we have offended, and with those who have offended against us. Do you see now why we must forgive as He forgives? We will all of us be refugees together in that holy city, even as we are sons in His house. How miserable shall we be if we have not forgiven those whom we cannot touch?

I titled this particular portion ‘boundaries of the anointed priest.’ I tell you that holy city, that city of refuge is the boundary that matters. We dwell already in that heavenly place insomuch as we remain in His anointed service. We are safe from all harm insomuch as we remain in His anointed service, inside the tent of meeting, bearing upon us the oil of His anointing. We are safe from harm so long as we remain pleased by all that God does among the sons of man. The boundary that matters, then, is the boundary set by our High Priest, the boundary of Christ Jesus, establishing the borders of the city of our refuge. Truly, it is critical to our survival that we remain in the center of His will, in that place where He is, where He has prepared a home and a future for us!

Royal Anointing by Man (3/7/05)

As so often happens, over time men took the example God had laid out and turned it to their own purposes. God had appointed His chosen men and women to judge Israel, anointing each in turn. But, Israel was not satisfied to have God as ultimate King. They wanted to look like the nations around them. So, as they began choosing men to serve as their leaders, they took to anointing those men as God anointed His. Predictably, the outcome of this was poor.

In Judges 9 the story is recorded of one Jotham, last surviving son of Jerubbaal. It seems his brother Abimelech slew the remainder of the family in hopes of establishing himself in one of those anointed leadership positions. Jotham prophesied over these people who accepted his murderous brother as their leader. He spoke in parables, of a time when the trees sought to anoint a king over themselves. They began, perhaps, with good intentions, going to the noblest of trees, but those trees, being noble, rejected the position. In the end, they turned to a mere bramble to serve, and the bramble, being vile, accepted. They had but to come into his shade to show their intentions to be true (Jdg 9:8-15).

Now, the parable was spoken to indicate the poorness of their choosing, having set an evil man over their destiny, and thereby sealed his destiny upon themselves. I would say it is also indication of what occurs whenever we take what God has established and turn it to our own ways. Vast portions of the history of Christianity can be seen displaying this very thing. God declares war against evil, but evil men pick up that thought to justify their wars for the most vile of reasons. Witness the Crusades. They sounded good. Go purge the Holy Land of this heathen crowd that had overrun it. But, it was more an excuse than a purpose. The majority went not to serve God but to serve wealth and power. God was just a good cover story. Witness the atrocities committed in the name of purifying God’s church, not just the Inquisition, nor alone the persecutions rained down upon the Reformers, but also the same persecutions played out by those Reformers against others with different perspectives on what Christianity was all about. Can manslaughter really be justified on the basis of the Gospel? It wouldn’t seem so. But, when the worldly ways of man are allowed to co-opt the perfect purposes of heaven, this is the predictable outcome. Brambles have been invited to rule over all that is noble. Evil is invited to put its stamp on good.

Royal Anointing by God (3/7/05-3/11/05)

Thanks be to God that He does not long tolerate such corruption, though! His anointing was established as the foundation of the priesthood, and Himself established as King over His people. When His people corrupted that order, insisted on looking worldly, He acquiesced. Though He knew that earthly kings could never be wholly devoted to their wellbeing as He was, yet He would allow His people their desire. They would have pursued it anyway, making a bigger mess than was necessary. Far better if He at least maintained His presence in the process!

So, He took that contortion of the anointing that Israel had been establishing, and bent it back to a proper shape and purpose. They had anointed poorly, chosen poorly those who led them astray. He would anoint wisely, delegating His authority to those He chose. Truth be told, it is hard sometimes to see the wisdom of His choices as we look over the kings who reigned in Israel and Judah. They were not always, perhaps not even usually, the best of men. Yet, every one of them bore power by God’s consent. Each one of them worked to God’s purposes, whatever earthly appearances may have seemed. Even Ahab, serving the Baals to please his wife, in the end served to glorify God, albeit against his will.

So important was this new use of God’s anointing that it is the most mentioned form of anointing by far. Now, to some degree, the apparent importance is because of the men who recorded the history. Kings were important to the nation of Israel, so they got coverage. Kings reflected the spirit of the nation in their rule as much as they influenced it, so they figured prominently in the activities of the prophets as well. Kings, more importantly, figured strongly in God’s plan and purpose. We see the monarchy come to Israel as against God’s perfect will, yet they were most assuredly part of His great purpose. Just as Messiah as Redeemer and Savior was in His purpose from before the beginning, so also was Messiah as King of kings and Lord of lords. God was not taken by surprise by changing conditions in Israel. He did not constantly find reason to modify His plans to adjust to the situation on the ground. No. The situation on the ground, as free-willed as its players might be, must necessarily adjust to His perfect purpose.

The kings of Israel and of Judah, though they were established for all the wrong reasons, would serve God’s purpose. They would establish a line of prophecy, an historical parable, that would point right back to Him, the One True King. As the priests and the temple, with all their rights and ceremonies served only as shadows of the real that was to come, so also the royal house of Israel. These kings were kings only by grant of a higher Authority. In time, He will be established in the full reality of His rule, even as He has been established in the full reality of His High Priesthood.

The examples are too numerous to go through them exhaustively, but some verses considered in detail will serve to represent the whole. A great deal of what we can learn of God’s anointing for leadership is gathered from the records of Samuel, who anointed the first two kings of Israel. In his records, we find him anointing first Saul, and then David. The first exemplified the leadership that was desired by the people, a strong man, an example of manliness. The second stood as the example of what God desired, a righteous man, an example of godliness. Both of these men were king for the same reason, though. Fundamentally, they served as king over God’s people because God appointed them to the task. Though I will concentrate more on David here, the story was much the same for Saul. God sent His spokesman with His oil to anoint His choice to rule His people. Indeed, the word spoken to David on that occasion are very telling. “The LORD has anointed you to rule over His inheritance” (1Sa 10:1).

There are two key matters to recognize in that simple statement. First and foremost, Samuel may have poured the oil and spoken the words, but it was the I AM who anointed. Like so many rites and ceremonies, the power of reality is not in the visible elements, but in what they represent. The power of baptism is not in the water. The power of communion is not in the bread and the wine. The power is in the God these things represent, and the faith in God that brings us to the elements. Baptism without repentant faith is just a bath. Communion without saving faith is just a snack. Anointing without God is just after-shave. What we see is nothing in the end. Faith is the evidence of things unseen (Heb 11:1). Anointing is the outward expression of that unseen work that God is performing.

The second thing we need to see in that verse is the purpose of God in anointing His rulers. They are anointed to rule, of course, but to rule over what? Over His inheritance. Not theirs. Not ours. His. The anointing is a delegation of His power. That we must always understand. Further, that delegating of power is never given to serve the ends of man, but always to serve Him whose delegates we are. That is one of the lessons to be learned from Saul’s example. So long as he served God’s purposes with the trust he was given, he was secure in God. When he began to use that anointing for his own benefit rather than for the power to obey, the thing was at an end. God would not have it.

Those who lead in God’s kingdom lead for His benefit and His benefit alone. If they do not so lead His people, if they do not so guard His inheritance, they will not lead for long. We are in an age plagued by leaders that don’t care for God, don’t care for His people, haven’t the least bit of interest in whether or not He even has an inheritance on the earth. I’m not even considering political leadership in this case, although the same can be said by and large of that sphere. Even in the more immediate governance of His Church, the same thing is visible. Men play with the anointing, declare whatever promotes their own pride and position to be ‘the anointing.’ I tell you plainly, that which is self-serving, that which brings increase to pride, that which seeks to make a name for itself is not the anointing of God. It is a perversion and a deception. The anointing of God, once again, is given to rule over, protect, and increase His inheritance. We are His inheritance as He is ours. Woe to that leader who does not think it so!

Now, clearly God uses men to deliver apply the visible oil to those who have received His invisible anointing. It was so with both David and Saul, upon whom Samuel poured the oil. It was so of later kings, upon whom the oil was poured by others appointed by God to that purpose. Does this, perhaps make these servants anointed anointers? After all, as I look at the anointing of the king I see that there is a threefold aspect to the anointing of God. First, it requires purity. The normal act of anointing, as we have seen before, was an action following upon bathing. It was a sealing of that cleanliness that had already been accomplished. Second, as we are seeing here with the king’s anointing, there is the aspect of power. We will see more of that. God’s anointing was for power, to give the king ability to deliver His people, to preserve His inheritance. Thirdly, the anointing is given for purpose. It is not power to do as we please, but power to do as pleases God. Let me say this. The power of anointing cannot come until the purity has been established, and will stay only so long as the purpose is pursued.

Let me also say this: if you seek the anointing without the prerequisite cleansing of repentance, you will succeed only in raising a stench. If you have ever been around somebody who used perfumes not to seal his cleanness but to mask his lack of hygiene, you know this is true. The spiritual aspect is the same. If the anointing is but a masking of what hasn’t been cleaned out of us, the smell is not right, not pleasing. We have to wash first, have to undergo the painful process of repentance that we may be clean when the oil is poured upon us. Then and only then are we fit to take hold of the power that is in His anointing. Then and only then are we prepared to wield that power for His purpose rather than our gain.

This is what is displayed in David and Saul. Saul had the anointing, but he neglected the washing. The anointing became a stench under his use, because he knew not real repentance. He knew sorrow over being caught out, but not godly sorrow. It was a worldly sorrow leading only to his death, because he didn’t really repent. Because he didn’t really repent, he bent and twisted the power of his anointing to serve his own purposes. He was not pleased when God sent a hero to lift Israel over its enemies. He was jealous, because this one was more popular than he. The anointing wasn’t bringing him fame, so he became dissatisfied with the anointing, and the God of the anointing.

David, on the other hand, kept Israel’s interests, God’s interests, at heart. He understood why he was set in place over Israel. Here the things God said of him, for they apply, in their way, to all who will serve faithfully under His anointing. Note, in 1Samuel 9:16 that God once more makes the statement that it is He who appoints. “I will send you one whom you are to anoint.” It is His choice. We are blessed to be allowed our part in the matter. Now, note the reason. Immediately, God makes it clear that the anointing has not come for entertainment value, but for purpose. “He will deliver My people, because I care for them. I have heard them.” Notice this: The anointed leader may have the right of rule over the people, but the people remain God’s people. Again I say, woe to the leader that loses sight of this simple fact!

God speaks to his anointed ones with assurance, though. He will strengthen His king (1Sa 2:10), exalt the one He anoints. Yet, notice this: it is not the anointed king that will win the battles for God’s people. It remains God. The LORD will shatter the opposition, judge the nations. He goes forth to save His people and His anointed (Hab 3:13)! He strikes and destroys the house of evil. What I sense from this is that the anointed leader, like the oil by which he is anointed, is but a visible symbol of the invisible activity of God. The visible oil is poured out upon the one He selects as a visible sign of His invisible choice. That one, from that point forward, serves as the visible sign of God’s invisible providence. The warriors may go forth under the leadership of the king, but it is the LORD who fights the battles, and wins the battles! The kingdom may be ever so glorious, and the king be of ever so great renown, but it is God who has done it, and He must get the glory in the end.

Throughout the Psalms, David reflects on this great truth, that in all that he has accomplished, he has done nothing, and the LORD has done all. He is the tower of deliverance to His king. He loves His anointed (2Sa 22:51). He has made David strong, anointing him with fresh oil (Ps 92:10). He has caused David’s fame to grow, shone the light of glory upon him whom He anointed (Ps 132:17). The LORD is their strength. The LORD is the saving defense of His anointed (Ps 28:8). He saves His anointed, answering from heaven with the strength of His own right arm (Ps 20:6). David was very clear on this. He had seen it so many times in his own life. When his own foolishness had gotten him in a bind, it was God who pulled him out, put him back on the right track, and sent him forward to a victory already accomplished and waiting! And through it all, God reminds His people, “I anointed David with My holy oil” (Ps 89:20). Don’t be fooled into thinking it was just Samuel’s opinion. I did it, and I am with him still.

There is an interesting statement that David makes as he laments Saul’s death. He speaks of the shield being defiled, Saul’s shield not being anointed with oil (2Sa 1:21). What can this mean? Was it indeed the practice in Israel to anoint one’s shield before battle? Had Saul forgotten this action? I don’t think this was it. Nothing in the account would have led David to make such a statement. So, what is the meaning of this comment? I think maybe it is an understanding on David’s part that if God’s anointing remained upon Saul, then it was not possible that Saul had been killed. Therefore, if Saul had been killed, it could only mean that the anointing was no longer upon him. With that in mind, what defiled the shield? Was it Saul’s death? Was it that the shield had failed of its defensive duty? No. I think the that what defiled the shield was the departure of the Lord’s anointing.

There is another verse from one of David’s psalms that might also provide insight. There, he cries out to God to look upon the shield of the nation (Ps 84:9), and in a parallel couplet seeks that God might look upon His anointed. Here, he is clearly equating the anointed king with the defense of the people, which is also clearly a part of God’s purpose for anointing kings. They are to protect His inheritance. With this in mind, if I go back to the lament over Saul, things look a little different. The shield of the mighty was defiled. Are we then looking at Saul as the shield of mighty Israel? Israel was mighty for the sole reason that God was their God. Saul was the shield of Israel solely because God had anointed him so. He was defiled because he failed to walk in obedience to God. He took upon himself the oil, but he was unclean, and rather than bring power and purpose to his leadership, it was just a masking stench. The shield was not anointed. The anointing had left Saul. God’s hand was no longer upon him. While this was perhaps good news for David and those with him, it was bad news for Israel, and David not only understood this, but chose to look at the situation from the perspective not of his own personal good, but that of the nation’s good. He showed even in mourning that he would handle the power that God’s anointing had brought to him for the benefit of God’s inheritance, for the benefit of the nation, and not for his own gain. This was indeed a man after God’s own heart!

Turn back, then, to the time of David’s own anointing. God had told Samuel that He would indicate who it was Samuel was to anoint. That it was a son of Jesse was made plain, but which one was not (1Sa 16:3). As Jesse introduced his eldest, Samuel was duly impressed. He cut an impressive figure, and Samuel thought that surely this was the one God sought. But God had had enough of impressive figures. That was Saul’s model, that was the foundation of His choice of Saul, and it was done to teach the nation a lesson. Now, he will make that lesson plain. God is not impressed with appearance, stature, anything of the pride of life. He is interested in the heart (1Sa 16:6-7).

That is a lesson that the Church needs always to be reminded of. Every member needs that reminder, for we are naturally drawn, like Samuel, to judge on what we can see, hear, touch. We are impressed by those who can put on a good show of spirituality. We forget that we have no clue how much of that show is real. We don’t know the heart, and really never can. We know only what that one we are looking upon is willing to reveal of his true self. Yes, we have the benefit that God will reveal the hidden things, but too often we already have our opinions made up before the invisible is made manifest, and we write it off.

The Church as a body is likewise prone to this mistake. We are impressed by large churches, large attendance sheets, large numbers echoing the sinner’s prayers. We forget that God was forever thinning out the large numbers to get to the seemingly insignificant remnant, the few among the many who were real, whose heart was truly in it. How many of those attending the mega-churches are real, sold out Christians? I doubt not that it’s a minority. We are forever reading of how small a portion of any local church’s membership get involved in what the church is doing. Ten percent, maybe twenty percent are actively working in the church. What is the rest of the body doing? Are they just there for appearance’ sake? Are they coming to church once a week to keep somebody else happy, or at least quiet? Are they there for entertainment? If they’re not there to become part of what the body is doing, then they are a useless appendage. They give us the look of impressive numbers, but the numbers are empty. How many of those lip-syncing to the sinner’s prayer mean anything by it? How many will be back in a week? It’s a remnant. God’s always worked with a remnant, and it seems doubtful that He’d change now!

We need to get over our fascination with quantity, and begin getting fascinated with the things that fascinate God. Quality, the heart, is what fascinates Him, attracts Him, reflects Him. In our weakness He is shown strong. That is the key to Christian life. Lean not on your own abilities, but in all your ways acknowledge the Lord. We know the verses. We understand the verses. Yet, like Samuel, we are forever looking at what the eyes show to be impressive. Like Samuel, we must be listening for God’s voice to correct, to point us at the thing that has His attention, and if our eyes leave us wondering why He’s interested, we must seek to find out. For His judgments are righteous and true. If He is interested, there is a reason. If He is anointing, there is a greatness about to break forth, and it will break forth not because of the man or woman before us, but because God is there. That man or woman is not wholly uninvolved. God is not where the heart is not His. It is that greatest of paradoxes in Christian faith: we must be pure of heart for Him to be present, yet if He is not present, we have no hope of being pure of heart! He must precede Himself, if such were possible.

At the close of this account of David’s selection there is a most wonderful thing that is said, which rather fits in with what I have been saying. Samuel anointed him at God’s behest, “and the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon David from that day forward” (1Sa 16:12-13). Now, I would have to say that the Spirit of the LORD had long since been upon David. The Spirit of the LORD was upon him as he tended sheep in the fields, singing praises to God, and doing mighty deeds to protect what were, after all, not his sheep, and never would be his sheep. He had repeatedly shown himself willing to throw himself in harm’s way to protect what was another’s property. This is exactly what God wanted in a king: one who recognized that the nation of Israel was not his own possession but God’s, yet was willing to lay down his very life to shield the nation. David would demonstrate this over and over again, and that before ever he got to the throne. Yes, the Spirit was upon David before he was anointed by the oil. The purification had been ongoing for some time. Now, though, the purification was being followed upon by power, and that purified power was being given a purpose. “Guard My sheep.”

Know this, also. When the enemy hears of the anointing God has brought, he comes on the attack. Nor does he tarry in doing so. David had barely been installed on the throne of Israel when the Philistines came out to fight (2Sa 5:17). Now, there’s an interesting thing to be noticed here. David had been God’s anointed for quite some time. Long before Saul was dead, God had marked him for the succession, and he knew it. He also knew that having that mark did not mean he was instantly entitled to the office. He must await God’s time. It might seem from this that the enemy had left David quite to himself until he came into office. In fact, that was my own first impression. But, the truth is that the forces of hell had been plaguing David from the moment the oil was poured out on him, but to no avail. Now the anointed man was stepping into his office, into God’s purpose, and the enemy knew a greater fear. He must throw everything he could against this one before he has begun to work fully in the power of God. Perhaps there is still a chance to stop what God is doing.

But, David had shown his understanding of God through all the previous challenges. You would think the destroyer might have caught on by then. Over and over he had presented David with opportunities to take matters into his own hands, to force his way into position. He was forever putting Saul in places where David could easily have killed him, yet David would do nothing against Saul, against the Lord’s anointed (1Sa 24:6). David knew that God’s favor had passed from Saul, but the anointing, the authority for office remained. When God was ready, He would remove this man from power. Until then, David would await God’s pleasure. God is an orderly God, whether we would have Him so or not. If we will not do His will His way, then our doing His will will serve us ill.

We touched on this in home group last night. The instructions are clear and consistent. In the language of the Old Covenant, it could be found in God’s declaration that sacrifices offered in any other way than that which He had prescribed was murder. In the New Covenant, it is found in the instructions for sharing in the Lord’s Supper. If we come to it without the necessary purification and repentance, we are drinking death to ourselves, not life. It is most certainly the same with God’s anointing. If we seek to operate in the anointing, but refuse to pursue the order God has required, not only do we do Him no service, we do ourselves great harm.

If we would serve in God’s anointing, we must observe the prerequisites. We must be possessed of a heart truly repentant. We must be free of mourning for what God is doing. Though it hurts, though it strikes ever so close to home, yet we must rejoice to see God’s purpose going forth, rejoice for the certain hope that is within us. We must be possessed of the atoning blood. God has sacrificed His Son for our sins, that we might be anointed with the Blood that atones forever. He has poured out His Holy Spirit upon us. There is the oil and the blood, the admixture of anointing for the priesthood. Notice, though, that the blood is absent in the kingly anointing, or at least not as prominent. But, they have this in common: the anointing for office is not an immediate propelling into that office. It must come as God wills.

Having come, though, it comes with promise: God gives deliverance to His anointed king, loves His anointed forever (Ps 18:50). I have no doubt that if we looked more closely at the ordination of the king, we would find that the sacrifices of atonement were indeed offered before the anointing and the office could be taken up. It seems to me that the two are ever and always connected: blood and oil. God had instructed man on how to mix the spices and the oil, that the particular mixture He had commanded was reserved for His use alone. Yet, God did not leave things to chance. The final ingredient, the blood of the atoning sacrifice, was in reality as much a necessary ingredient of that anointing oil as everything else.

The anointing brings with it responsibility. The anointing comes to mark us out as God’s men, as His servants or officers. As those working for God, we are required to pursue His instructions. As His ambassadors, we are required to represent Him truly. This is what destroyed Saul. He was anointed by the LORD to rule over Israel, but he fell into thinking that Israel was his. He didn’t obey the Lord, and this was his downfall (1Sa 15:17-19). Even so, he bore the authority of the anointing.

Isn’t that something! So much greater is the anointing than the one anointed that even when that one has utterly abandoned the plan and the purpose of God, the anointing he bears continues to have authority! There was a time when Samuel was accused of wrong by the people of Israel. He called his accusers to him in the presence of King Saul. “I stand before the LORD, and before His anointed,” he declared (1Sa 12:3-5). They would be witness to the true testimony. In this, he put himself at the mercy of God and His earthly representative the king. If he had defrauded any man, let God and king require it of him. If, however, he was innocent, then these same two would require it of that one who insisted on falsely testifying against him. The office holds the power of God, however poorly the holder of that office may bear it!

There is a respect due to the ruling offices of king and priest that goes beyond the men who fill those offices. Both offices represent the rule of God, and because of that alone they ought to hold our respect and reverence. Whether we disagree with the current president or not, the office of the President must be honored. He is God’s man, whether he would have it so or not. He must be guarded as God’s representative, whether we agree with him or not. Indeed, as David faced down the temptations of the devil, having found Saul accessible in the midst of his own camp, he chided the army for not properly protecting Saul. When he did so, he did not speak of them not guarding the king, he spoke of them not guarding the Lord’s anointed (2Sa 26:16). It was not the man, it was the office. This is why he would not touch Saul’s life. The man was in his hands to kill, but as the Lord’s anointed, he was not to be touched (2Sa 26:23). Indeed, those who spoke against the king, however poorly he might fill the office, spoke against God, for he was in that office by God’s decree (Ps 89:51).

Oh! But, there’s a lesson we need to take to heart again! When we reproach the leadership, we are telling God he was foolish to put those leaders in place. We are claiming a greater wisdom than God’s! This is another matter that has not changed with the coming of the New Covenant. Those to whom God delegates His authority remain His representatives, His servants, and if we insist on shaming them, then we seek to shame Him for having put them in place.

Now, let me tell you, a brief survey of the kings of Israel makes it clear that God’s choices are not always comprehensible to us. He puts some shocking men on the throne. Yet, however vile their rule, it must be remembered that they still rule by His decision. However much they may harm God’s people, they are in place by His decision, and the office must remain respected, respected to the point that we will not lift a hand against them. How can this be? Is it not true that evil triumphs when good men remain silent? Yes, if it is the silence of prayer that we mean. We do not fight against those on the throne, but against the principalities and powers that corrupt them. Our weapons are not carnal. We are not permitted the path of violent rebellion. Our weapons are far more powerful than that! Our weapons are prayers that reach to the very throne room of heaven! We have a direct line to that man’s Boss!

I can’t think about this without wondering how this applies to the scandal that has been destroying the clergy of the Catholic church for these last several years. Is it right, in this instance, that Christians are bringing not only their brothers, but their leaders to court? Odd as it may seem, I think the answer is no. It is another case of the world informing the Church on how to do business, and we have allowed the world to turn us on our heads. No. The worst offender amongst those priests remains a man under God’s anointing. Even Ahab, that most awful of kings, was a man under God’s anointing, a delegate of the Holy One. As such, he was not to be touched by man. Elijah never rose up against that one. A man of God could not, for he would be rising up against another man of God, and that should never be. Like David, Elijah knew that if God wanted this one out of office, He would have to do it. God did.

He sent Elijah to anoint three men for duty (1Ki 19:15-18). He was to anoint Hazael to rule over Aram. Notice that even here God is declaring Himself sovereign over all the nations! Elijah was to anoint Jehu as king over Israel. Finally, he was to anoint Elisha as his own successor. Prophet, priest, and king: all require the anointing of God before the office can be assumed. These three were anointed for a purpose, but not one that would be pleasing to the majority of those in Israel. They were anointed to be ‘a cleansing scourge’ in Israel. Of all who were there, but 7000 would remain, for but 7000 had remained true to God.

Now, as this episode unfolds, we learn that Jehu killed the king of Israel so as to take his place. This was not in his instructions. Indeed, it would turn out that Jehu was as bad, if not worse, than Ahab. My point is this: It was not Jehu’s job to clear the throne. It is never the anointed man’s job to force the office. It is never the purpose of one of God’s servants to remove another from power. Our proper weapon is prayer. Our proper course is to recognize that it is God who put the man in place, and it will be God who removes the man from his place. It is true of kings. It is true of the priesthood. God will cleanse His church and His palace. It may seem to us that we have been anointed for that purpose, but if it seems so, I must believe we have misunderstood the plan. God’s purpose declares, ‘Do not touch My anointed ones’ (1Ch 16:22). Cry out for the defilement that has occurred, cry out for God to come and clear His own name, but don’t dare to take matters into your own hands. How is His name glorified when His children are at war one with another? How is He glorified when His representatives are dragged through the mud in public sight?

I know that we rejoice to see the poison cleared from the Temple. I understand that. But, what is the greater perception? What is seen by those who need most desperately to see the Truth? They see nothing more than proof that all this business about God is a sham and a deception. They see nothing more than one more reason not to believe. They see something worse than hypocrisy. They see purported holiness being used as cover for crimes such as even criminals revile. We do well to think on that before we rejoice too loudly.

Prophetic Anointing (3/12/05)

Two verses, echoes of each other, sum up the anointing of the prophets. It is actually rather surprising that more is not found on the topic, but there it is. It seems God assumes His people can recognize that much, that the prophet speaking for God must bear His anointing. So, the outward ceremony is not applied to them, at least so far as I can see. Their call to service is far more direct and immediate. So, all that is said of the matter is the simple command of God, “Don’t touch My anointed ones. Do My prophets no harm” (1Ch 16:22, Ps 105:15).

Why is it that God reserves this warning for the prophet alone? Why is it not applied to all those whom He has marked out? Perhaps it is for the simple reason that the prophets, not bearing any outward marking, were more subject to the abuses of their fellow man than were the king or the priest. The priest, after all, bore clear evidence of being God’s man, and to strike him was to risk the assault of God upon oneself. That was pretty strong protection then, though it may not be so today. The king had not only God’s backing, but also the military at his disposal. Moreso than any other, he had the power to enforce that command for himself. A wise king would also see that the command was enforced for those others whom God had anointed, both priest and prophet. The prophet alone had no clear evidence of God’s anointing other than his life, and no clear protection against the hand of man.

The prophet, also, is unique amongst the anointed servants of God in that the office he holds is most prone to imposters. False priests exist, it is true. But, they are dealt with rather swiftly by God, and their falsity is readily evident to the true believer. False kings? Unheard of! There may be usurpers, but by God’s own declaration the time of man upon the throne is by His determination. False prophets, though, abound in all ages. They stand right alongside the true prophets, denouncing truth on the strength of their fevered imaginations. There is no outward symbol by which to discern which is which, no special outfit required of the office, no official organizations to which the real prophet must be subscribed and submitted.

There is only one evidence given by which to discern the prophet who is truly speaking God’s words: His prophecies pan out. Well, that makes it pretty hard to get established, doesn’t it? That makes it pretty hard for us to take these present day prophets at face value. The prophets of old were men known at the least to their most immediate audience. They didn’t come out of the blue, declaring God’s word, without some foundation being there for their hearers to accept them. That initial credence was built on familiarity, but not familiarity alone. There had to be character, a lifestyle evidence that here was a man devoted to God, though he held no official office.

Character must lay at the root of the prophet, and that character, in the midst of a fallen society, was already evidence that here was a man in whom God was doing something. Then, it seems to me, every prophet of God that we have record of in Scripture proceeded to prophecy of near term events spoken to those who were familiar with the prophet. This helped to establish that it was not just good character that defined the man, but an ear open to God’s speaking. These small tests would establish him in his anointed office, provide proof that he was indeed a mouthpiece of God. Notice that the real prophets always begin by offering their credentials, reminding their hearers of their established record, before they proceed to the present message. Yes, and moreso than the priest or the king, the prophet is charged with delivering the hard message, the things we don’t really want to hear. Is it any wonder, then, that God finds it necessary to make painfully clear to the people that the prophet is His anointed every bit as much as priest or king? Is it any wonder that the people need to be admonished not to take out their displeasure on the messenger?

Now, many take this admonition in a much broader application, applying it equally to every man who makes claim to being in God’s service. Today, almost anybody that wishes to do so declares himself a prophet, and by and large nobody questions them on that claim. We wouldn’t want to be touching God’s anointed, after all! Indeed, we will allow any voice in the pulpit, and allow that voice to claim whatever it likes, so long as they couch it in sufficiently religious wording. We’ll ‘amen’ just about anything you like, won’t even give it a thought! After all, we wouldn’t dare to touch God’s anointed! I tell you, we have allowed this one verse to become our excuse for lacking discernment! Since when did God say not to remove the false prophets from amongst us? Since when did God say to suffer the priests of Baal in His sanctuary, so long as they claimed to be His priests, too? Since when did the God of Truth advise us to tolerate servants of the liar in our midst? He didn’t! How can we, then, apply the admonition against harming His prophets until we have learned to identify His prophets from amongst the inevitable crowd of imposters?

His prophets stood up and pointed out the imposters in their own day, but by and large, the leaders and the led preferred the false message. When all are crying ‘peace’, who will gladly hear the one voice crying out ‘danger’? No, we all like sheep turn astray after the promise of green fields and plentiful waters, never minding the wolf who calls us to that place. Touch not God’s wolf? I tell you that we, in allowing this to become our call, have already done harm to His prophets, done violence to His anointing. We are all, after all, priests in His service by His own claim. We are all living in His service, anointed as His servants in this present day. If we do not fulfill our assigned purpose, if we neglect our responsibilities, and accept the lie into our midst, we have defiled our own anointed state, we have done ourselves harm, and we must needs come to Him in repentance, lest worse things yet befall our unhappy state.

Ultimate Anointing – Prophet, Priest, and King (3/13/05)

We have seen that the anointing of God comes upon the three major offices of His governance – upon prophet, priest, and king – albeit in different ways. Of course, there is One in particular upon Whom that anointing has fallen, the Anointed One, Jesus Christ, in whom the three offices are made one. In announcing this One, David once more provides a connection between the anointing of God and joy. Indeed, he declares that God anointed Messiah to rule, anointing Him with the oil of joy (Ps 45:7). He also notes that all the kings of the earth come out to conspire against this Anointed One (Ps 2:2). Here, I see echoes of the royal anointing that David himself had. Recall that no sooner had he taken up his office then the Philistines were out in force to trouble him. Expect the same when Jesus takes up His office in full!

Indeed, even in His first coming, when He took up the office of High Priest and of Prophet, the opposition was terrifying to behold. Sworn enemies joined together to defeat this One whom God had chosen. Herod and Pilate, who had little use for each other, became friends over the events of His crucifixion. Romans and Jews joined together to act against God’s holy Servant, God’s Anointed (Ac 4:27). Even within the ranks of the Jews, factions that had little use for one another joined together to bring down this King of kings. Still, it was evident to all that Jesus was anointed by God (Ac 10:38). It was evident in His actions, which were always good. He healed the oppressed, cured the diseased, comforted and brought hope, while walking in obedience to all that was required of Him by God and man, so long as man’s requirements did not include disobedience to God. How was this possible, except the anointing of God was upon Him? Indeed, Jesus was anointed both with the Holy Spirit and with the power of God.

And so, we are returned to where we started. God anointed Him to rule over His companions with the oil of joy, the Spirit and the power, and He did so with good reason. Unique amongst man, of this Jesus it could be said that He had earned that privilege, for truly He had loved righteousness and hated lawlessness (Heb 1:9).

Because of Jesus’ unique, ultimate anointing, we are blessed to know the anointing of God, the anointing of the Holy Spirit and of power, as well. I am just realizing this about the whole matter: before Jesus’ death, there was the anointing of the Spirit, the oil of gladness. But, the oil of gladness had not yet been made that which could anoint God’s nation of priests. The oil must first be mixed with the blood of the sacrifice for sin. There is that orderly work of God displayed yet again! First the repentance, then the cleansing, these we find in John’s baptism, and in Jesus’ baptism. They must be accomplished first, before the anointing can be applied. Then comes the oil, mixed with the blood. Then comes the Spirit and the Christ. Then comes the gladness and the righteousness. So many ways we can view this! Finally, because Spirit and Son are present in the house God has built, the Father abides as well. Such a labor to make us a holy habitation for our God! Such an honor to be made so, to stand not just as pillars in His house, which were honor enough, but as His house itself!

Father God, how can I not be joyful in the light of that? Oh! That the heaviness that has been mine of late might lift today in recognition of what You have made of me! You have made me Your own holy habitation. You have washed this sinner clean and anointed me with that same glad oil of the Spirit! You have sprinkled me with the atoning blood of Your own Son, accepted me into service in Your household. Oh! That I might walk worthy of what You have done. Oh! That I might give evidence of Your work in me! Lord, this house You have made goes again today to the house made by hands in which I join with others like myself, other works of Your hands. Though I am Your house, I know that this place is special to You as well. Let it therefore be special to me, too. Let me be found, this house, a pillar in Your house. Let me be found not only wearing the oil, but cleansed in preparation for it. Let me exude the joy that You so bountifully pour out upon me. Let me serve with gladness of heart, for You are my God, You alone are my King. You are my reason, my very life. Reign in me today, my Liege. Use me for Your purpose.

Specific Anointing (3/14/05)

There are also examples in Scripture of those who were anointed for very specific purposes. These are purposes above and beyond those that belong to the major offices of God’s governance. Interestingly enough, the anointing for specific purpose also falls upon those who are not in the kingdom of God. Cyrus is probably the best known example of this. Although he was a heathen king, he was still declared the Lord’s anointed, and given the task of subduing nations (Isa 45:1). You will not find any evidence in Scripture to suggest that Cyrus ever became a convert to godly religion. Yet, he served God’s purpose, yet he blessed God’s people. This could well serve as the strongest of evidence that God is sovereign over all, and that no authority is given to man except by Him. It matters not how that authority appears to have come. It matters not how many votes were cast. It was God’s determination that put that one on the throne, and it will be God’s determination that removes him from it. Truly, there is cause to pray! There is cause to pray that He will choose to set over us leaders after His own heart, and there is cause to pray that those who are in power will hear the voice of the God who put them there.

Then, there is the example of Satan, that most potent of enemies. Hear what God says of him. He was the anointed cherub! He was appointed to be the one who covers, put in that office by God Himself (Eze 28:14)! This is utterly amazing to me! I don’t believe I had ever seen this particular aspect of the devil’s fall before. He, who has become the accuser of the brethren was intended to be our covering! Is it any wonder he knows so well how to attack us, how best to take us down! As our covering, he was made aware of our every failing, but he was supposed to stand to our defense and correction. Instead, he chose the path of arrogance and pride. Instead, he chose to use that information to make himself look better. Oh, for a time, he remained blameless in his ways, but there came that day when God found unrighteousness in him (Eze 28:15). Do you know, I think that day was the day he first bore witness against one of God’s elect. His witness was doubtless true, yet in giving it, he showed that he had abandoned his office. Thus, in testifying against man he testified against himself first and foremost.

In response to Satan’s failure, God declared His own solution, declared the most unique anointing to office that He ever would. He spoke forth the call to office for His Anointed One, who would stand simultaneously as Prophet, Priest, and King for His people. Here, in this One, He would establish for Himself an authority who would declare His word faithfully, for He is the Living Word! Here, He established one who would fulfill the priestly duty of atoning for the sins of God’s people. Satan had failed to even cover those sins. Jesus, the perfection of love, would not only cover, but also atone for those sins, and forgive them utterly. Here, in this One, was the King truly after God’s own heart, who would reign by God’s command, to serve God’s purpose. Truly, the Spirit of the Lord is upon the Christ, anointed to bring the good news that the broken heart has been bound up, and liberty brought to those held captive by that one who should have been their protection. Truly, He brings freedom to those downtrodden by the guilt of their sins. Truly, He proclaims the year of the Lord’s favor upon man (Isa 61:1, Lk 4:18-19).

And we who have encountered this Anointed One, we too take on a specific anointing. It is the same anointing that was upon the nation of Israel from the start. It was because of the Lord’s anointing that the misery of their exile was so great. Hear the cry of Jeremiah over their failures. “We, the Lord’s anointed, are captured in their pits. We, who told the nations we would live in His shadow” (Lam 4:20). It was precisely because they had failed to live in accord with their own word that they were exiled by God’s word. They were sworn to a purpose: to live as a people commanded by God, yet they refused His command, refused Him the singleness of worship, and went off seeking to look like the nations around them.

As I said, we bear that same anointing. We are called to stand in the world as those who are set aside for God, led by God, commanded by God, and fully available to God. We don’t particularly need anybody to tell us that we’ve failed in that. We fail daily. How many opportunities pass us by, opportunities to tell a lost soul of the very real wonder of our Lord and Savior? How often do we declare to anybody that our trust is in the name of the Lord? How many needs do we leave unanswered every day, when we are blessed to bear in the temple of our hearts the Answer to all? How many have we left in their blindness when we serve the One who brings sight to the blind?

I tell you, we dare not let this continue! We have told the nations that we would live by His command. When will we start to do so? How long do we think God will sit idly by while we, who are sworn to Him, we whom He has bought at such great cost, ignore our Commander and go on about our daily lives like nothing has changed? Everything has changed! We bear the anointing of God! What are we doing with it? How is it effecting our daily lives? Oh! If we will not live as we proclaim, under the shadow of His wing, we will surely dwell in the pits of captivity! God will not be mocked!

Healing Anointing (3/15/05)

Yet another aspect of the anointing is the call upon us to anoint the sick with oil for their healing. This may well be one of the most misunderstood and misapplied usages of anointing. It is also worth noting that this is an application of anointing that appears to be specific to the New Testament. We find it in the gospels, where Mark tells us how the disciples were casting out demons, and anointing the sick with oil (Mk 6:13). He notes that many of the sick were being healed. From John’s account, we can see that they were following the example they found in Jesus when they did this. Jesus, healing the blind man, anointed that man’s eyes, amongst His other actions (Jn 9:11). Interesting that among those actions was a command to go and wash.

Now, I see a problem here. Today, there are those who insist that for God to heal, the oil must be applied. They insist on the physical presence of oil. Indeed, there are even those who will attempt to recreate the holy anointing oil (that very oil that God said to use only as He directed for the anointing of His holy things and His priests) for use in this healing and deliverance work. But, the power is not in the oil! The power is in God! The power is not in the oil, it’s in the prayers of the saints, and it’s in those prayers because they are prayers of faith. And they are prayers of faith because God has put that faith in us to pray believing. If it is anything else in our estimate, then I think we have traded faith for ritual, I think we have exchanged the God of all power for mere magic tricks and witchery.

We’ve got to get it through our heads that the Christian life is not a matter of uttering the proper incantations. There is no magic power in tacking ‘in the name of Jesus’ onto our every prayer. The power of prayer is in the purpose of God. If the prayer is prayed in accord with God’s purpose, He is pleased to answer. If the prayer is a prayer of selfishness, then no amount of Christianese is going to entice God to honor it anyway, though it goes against His own plan and purpose to do so. We are a people with physical senses, and we are attracted to that which stirs our senses. God has therefore given us visible signs of His invisible work. The oil is one more of those signs. It is no more necessary to the work than the act of baptism is to salvation. It’s not about formulas and rites. It’s about what God is doing!

Baptism is a required act for the believer, but it is required solely as the visible evidence of what God has already done. Communion is a required act for the believer, but it is required solely as a visible, visceral reminder to ourselves of what God has already done. If we come to either of these things for any other reason, if we come to baptism thinking that the act of submersion will somehow save us, or come to the communion table thinking that eating and drinking will somehow bring us forgiveness, we are deluded and the acts are empty and void.

James calls upon the sick to call upon the church for prayer, specifically to call the elders (Jas 5:14). He instructs the sick to have those elders anoint them with oil in the Lord’s name. What am I to make of that, if my estimation of things is correct? Am I allowing my own opinion to color my perception of Scripture, or am I allowing Scripture to inform my opinion? Well, I will say this. God invariably shows Himself opposed to witchcraft, for witchcraft makes a mockery of what is His inherent power. He will not share His glory with any man, nor with any thing. Given that, I find it very hard to think that James is really instructing us to put faith in either the elders or in the oil. James knows better than that, and we should, too.

However, we, in sickness, tend to be weakened in our faith and our resolve even as we are weakened in body. More than might usually be the case, we need those physical reassurances of God’s invisible labors on our behalf. Why call the elders? Well, first and foremost faith is strengthened by fellowship with those of like belief. That is a large portion of the purpose for the Church. Amongst our brethren in the Church, who are the ones most likely to come to us in like faith, rather than come to offer prayers of doubt? If we have been following the Scriptural order in selecting our elders, then surely they ought to be ones we can count on to pray God’s heart on our behalf!

Why, then, the oil? I suggest that if we are going to use the oil for this purpose we recall what it is the oil has meant. It is a seal upon the cleansing process first and foremost. It is a visible declaration that the cleansing has been accomplished. It is a stamp upon the sick one that he has been washed by the blood of Christ, cleansed of any iniquity that might lay at the root of that illness. It is an end to the mourning and sadness that accompany illness, a restoration to the joy of the Lord. Can we add to it the reminder of God’s power? After all, the anointing for office carried not only that purifying aspect, but also power for purpose. I don’t know. I don’t believe that applies here. The sick are not being anointed for office, but for healing. If there is an anointing of purposeful power, it is upon those elders that were called in to pray believing. They have presumably been anointed for their office already. This is not the holy anointing oil that we are talking about as part of the healing process. It is the more ordinary oil of the olive.

I have heard it taught (though I cannot vouch for the accuracy of that teaching) that anointing the sick with oil was actually pretty much standard practice for the culture, and not an act that was particular to Christianity. I find that quite believable. I also find it quite informative in the light of James’ instructions. It actually brings his teaching more in line with that of his brother’s. The instruction then becomes something like, seek out the normal channels of medicine and healing by all means, but always accompanied by prayer. I hear echoes of the commandment to love your neighbor in that. Remember John’s exposition on this. If you see your neighbor starving and all you do is pray that he would be filled without offering him the food in your own keeping, you have done nothing good. If you see him shivering with cold and rather than giving him a coat you simply pray that he would be warmer, you have offended man and God alike. Is it any different with illness?

There are plenty of believers out there who are absolutely aghast that their fellows would seek out a physician. Why, God is our healer! How dare you offend Him by turning to man? I would turn their attention back to those instructions on love. I would have to ask them why they think that God is no longer willing or able to work through the hands of man. I would suggest they look to the many instances in which God has used the worst unbelievers to accomplish what He wanted accomplished. It seems to me that as often as not, He has done so because He couldn’t convince His own people to do what needed doing! No, there is no shame in seeking the help of modern medicine. There is only shame in leaving God out of it, or alternatively of refusing God the right to use whom He would.

I would furthermore strongly advise that if you think there is any power in the oil, you avoid it like the plague! We know that to come to communion improperly is to eat and drink death to ourselves. Can it be any different with this? If we are seeking out ‘men of power’ to heal us, if we are determined in our minds that prayer can do nothing unless that oil has been rubbed on us, then I must question whether we can expect anything good to come of our efforts. I have seen too many examples of people who sought out men, rather than God. I have seen too many examples of people who will bypass the prayer offered in faith for the prayer that follows ritual without faith. How many have sought after their healing for years never to find it because they never really looked to the God who Is?

I tell you, turn to the Lord your God! Buy from Him! Get your wardrobe from Him! Buy your salve from Him. Anoint your eyes with His anointed oil that you might truly see (Rev 3:18)! Why are we so caught up with keeping this flesh? Why are we so insistent that we ought to be going through life without the least discomfort? Anoint your eyes with Christ that you might truly see! Know that He disciplines those He loves. And we know that no discipline is pleasant at the time, yet it is for our strengthening and our health! Would you be healthy? Be zealous in your repentance (Rev 3:19)! That’s the key to it all. We can know all the physical healing we care to and in the end the body will still rot in a grave. We can be raised from the dead to walk the earth again, and in the end we will still return to it, for we remain in a fallen body. I tell you, this perishable flesh must put on the imperishable (1Co 15:53)! Only then will death be destroyed, and only when death has been destroyed will the flesh have been changed. There is a resurrection to come, and it is not in spirit only, but both spirit and flesh will be renewed, remade as befits a holy heaven. What matters the health of this flesh if we have forsaken the health of our soul? Look with eyes made clear by Jesus, and see to the things that matter. Seek first the kingdom, and the rest shall follow.

Burial Anointing (3/16/05)

The attempts made to anoint Jesus’ body for burial make clear that such was not an unusual thing to be doing. It was apparently the normative practice of the day to do so. The first we hear of this is when Jesus Himself speaks of the practice in conjunction with Mary’s extravagant anointing of Him at the family house in Bethany. “She has anointed My body for burial ahead of time” (Mk 14:8). Then, from Mark’s Gospel, we find that the ladies amongst His followers went out to buy spices that they might anoint Him in earnest after His death (Mk 16:1).

Now, I’m not going to delve too deeply into why this was the practice in Israel, or whether they might have borrowed that custom from some other culture in the region. I’m more interested in this: what significance does it have for the Christian living today?

One thing that strikes me is that this seems to connect in some way with the purifying aspect of anointing. After all, the immediate purpose for anointing the body was to clean away the stench of death at least for a time, to allow the body to decompose without making the region totally uninhabitable. There is that aspect of cleaning away the evidential remains of the cause of death, and then sealing the cleanness to the body. I wonder if it isn’t also still an act of preparation. This was, after all, a people that believed in the resurrection. Did they expect the body to come through to the new life somehow? If so, to clean and anoint the body as preparation for this new life to which it would come makes good sense.

Here, I think, may be the application for us. It is worth noticing that for us, the anointing of the Holy Spirit is something that follows after baptism. Baptism, I would remind us is both a washing and a participation in the death of Jesus, as well as His resurrection. In baptism, we are marking the work He has already accomplished, we are recognizing the worth of His atoning sacrifice and preparing ourselves to be sprinkled with the blood and the oil. No sooner do we emerge from the waters, our own symbolic resurrection, then the blood of Christ is sprinkled on us, the record books cleared of our name, our name transferred from the book of accounts to the Book of Life. The oil of the Spirit, as the Scriptural record would seem to show, may be longer in coming.

Ah, but it is the death we celebrate in the waters of baptism that His oil seals. This is, then, yet another aspect of the anointing that we do well to comprehend for ourselves. It has been the preparation for us, the mark of purification. It has been emblematic of the power of God imbued into our labors on His behalf. It has been the seal of purpose in us, marking us out as His servants and putting His mark upon our orders. Here, though, we are shown that the anointing is also a confirmation of our death, a washing away of the marks of the cause of our death in preparation for the resurrected life into which we are reborn.

Consider that! He has washed away our sins by the water of the Word. He has paid the incalculable debt for our sins by the blood of the Christ. Now comes the burial anointing, spices and oil in the Holy Spirit, removing the final burdens of our sins, the weight of guilt that we continue to bear, the sense that though forgiven we are yet made too imperfect by our sins to be in His service. No! The anointing that completes the burial of our old flesh declares loudly to us that we are indeed in His service. All that was, the old man, is left behind us! All is made new, and here is the Father’s greatest assurance to us that this is so. He has marked us out as His own priests! He has declared an end to what was, and Himself prepared us for what is to come!

Oh, Father! I’ve never really seen it in this light before! I thank You, for You well know how often I battle that feeling of being unfit for Your service. And all along, here You’ve been trying to tell me that it’s not me who serves anyway! How can I be unfit when it’s You who is at work in me? Will I yet learn to walk in the reality of that simple understanding? Yes, I will, for it is Your will! Oh! What a liberating thing this is! You have sealed away the body of death, buried it so that it can decompose without raising a stench in Your own nostrils. Indeed, the flesh is dying daily, yet by Your power, by the Spirit in me, my spirit is growing stronger even as the flesh fails! Yes, and it is the spirit that serves You, and the spirit has been marked “Holy Unto the Lord!”

Christian Anointing (3/16/05)

Now, lest any of us doubt our anointing, God makes very clear that those who are in Christ, who have believed on Him, have an anointing from God to the last man, woman or child. There is One, Paul declares, who establishes us together in Christ, who anoints us, and that is God. In anointing us, He has sealed us, giving the Spirit as a pledge (2Co 1:21-22). Do you know, that giving of the Spirit is the anointing, is the seal? Jesus has washed us, given us the robes of righteousness, the robes of office. Remember that the priests had robes they were required to wear for their anointing? He has washed us, has provided the sacrifice for our sins, that other necessary precursor to service. Now has come the Holy Spirit, the anointing oil, marking us for office, and delivering to us our purpose!

How it all comes together in this! The Holy Spirit, our Advocate, our Teacher, our seal of promise, comes as the anointing for office. Because He is here, abiding in us, we all know (1Jn 2:20). What do we know, John? We know truth. We know our purpose. We know that which God has ordained for us to do, and we know how it is He would have us to do it. The Anointing abides in you and I. There is that cryptic remark of John’s that seems to disturb so many, indeed leads many who are not careful to walk away from the paths of truth: “You need no teacher, for the Anointing teaches you everything” (1Jn 2:27). What are you saying, John? If we take that at face value, why are we even listening to you? Are you not a teacher yourself? Indeed! And, the Anointing that abides in you is true, and teaches you truly. Because He abides, you are positioned to learn from the teachers amongst you. Apart from Him, you could in no wise discern truth from lie, but He abides, and He is true, not a lie. He will surely bring to your notice those teachings that concur with what He has taught you, and these will serve to reinforce your understanding. He will just as surely bring to your notice those things that are at odds with the Truth, that you may set them aside untouched. Just as He teaches you, abide in Him!

When John tells us we need no teacher, we need to be careful to hear his heart and to hear Truth. In no way can this be taken as meaning we ought to depart from under godly instruction. In no way can this be taken as suggesting that we ought each one of us to simply listen to our own thoughts and opinions and leave off hearing any other’s. That goes against the whole counsel of Scripture! What we might take from this is that, even were we to find ourselves devoid of all counsel, even if we are in a place where we must stand alone in our faith, yet there is One with us, abiding in us, who will instruct us. He will speak truth to us. He will tell us what we are to say, show us what we are to do. It is the Anointing of God that gives us this comfort, that informs us that whether we are few or we are many we are as prepared as can be for the purpose He has for us. It is the blessing of God that we rarely find ourselves so utterly alone. Yet, we must depend on Him utterly, whether we are one or many, whether we work in isolation or in teams. We never walk alone, and we will not be found wanting in the time of service to God!

Anointing Removed – The Importance of Anointing (3/17/05)

With all that the anointing means for us, the threat of its loss ought to strike fear into us. When Moses laid out the blessing of obedience and the curse for disobedience, part of that curse was that the olive trees would fail of their fruit. There would be nothing with which to make the anointing oil (Dt 28:40). Micah reminded the nation of that issue when they had drawn the curse close to themselves (Mic 6:15). What remains unsaid in both places, because the implication is plain enough, is that without the oil for anointing there can be no anointing. It was not just the oil that was lost to the curse, but all that the oil symbolized.

Just as the anointing was symbolic of a purity already established, so its absence was symbolic of purity long since lost. Recall, also, that the presence of anointing oil was the absence of mourning. Likewise, the absence of anointing oil is the presence of mourning. Who can but mourn to know the wrath of God upon them, especially among God’s own people? The reversal of fortunes continues. Where the anointing had brought power, its absence brought with it powerlessness in the face of overwhelming enemies. Where the anointing had filled life with purpose, its absence leaves us aimless, makes life pointless.

Look around! We live in an age of aimless, pointless existence. One of the most popular books in Christian circles reminds us that we are supposed to be a people of purpose, invites us to take up our purpose once again. What that should tell us is that we have lost the anointing even as we shout about it in our excitement. We have mistaken our excited, tingling flesh for the real anointing of God, and in doing so, we have come dangerously close to losing all. If we need somebody to tell us we have a purpose in existence then we need somebody to tell us about God. If we need somebody to explain God to us, how can we claim to be His sons and daughters? In what way do we resemble One we don’t know well enough to understand that to serve Him is to have purpose?

The big issue is that we have let the culture inform our churches. We have fallen to looking to the ways of man to teach us how to serve God. Oh! How the mighty have fallen! We are terribly concerned about how Greek influence corrupted the Jewish flavor of Christianity, as if that really mattered! Yet, we completely miss that fact that we are corrupting Christianity in far worse ways today.

If there was ever a danger of Greek corruption in the Church, it was in Corinth. That was the place where Paul, God’s apostle to the Gentiles, met the problem head on. The problem, you see, was not with Greek methods of learning, it was with the influence of their religious habits. The Greeks, quite frankly, had excellence in the ways of education. The only thing that lacked was knowledge of the true God. Paul, with the wisdom of God, did not condemn the educational system of the Greeks, he informed it with the Truth that educational system sought. No, he reserved his condemnation for the Christians who took the habits of various Greek religions and sought to bring them into the Church of Christ. This no Christian should tolerate. How we have been turned on our heads! Now, we condemn the educational systems not only of the Greeks, but of our own society. Yet, we do nothing to help education. We don’t show the educators the Truth so that they can teach it. Instead, we try to take their methods and apply them to ourselves.

We no longer seek to change the ways of the rich and the enslaved, to show them their equality in the sight of a holy God. Instead, we look to men of business and commerce to teach us how to run our churches. We have, by and large, forsaken what profits the soul in favor of what profits the bank account, and if we continue on that path we can be absolutely assured that the anointing will depart in disgust.

Oh, we most certainly need to regain our sense of purpose. We need to set aside all our programs, all our projects, all our self-improvement schemes, and turn to God. Seek ye first the kingdom. Seek out what it is God wants done, and how He wants it done, and do it! That is the simple formula by which the Church is called to live.

God, let me be one who lives in that way. Let me come to a place where I can truly say I have stopped asking the world to teach me, and have begun letting You teach me, and thereby teach the world through me. I want to be one of those who turns the world upside down by the power of the Gospel. This can only come as You bring it into being in me. Let it be so, Lord! Let it be so!