It's Time To Recognize The Anointing

Luke 4:18-19

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, 19 to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

Contained in this passage of scripture are two very powerful spiritual truths.  First we can see that Jesus knew exactly what He had come to earth to accomplish, He knew what it was that He was supposed to do.  And second, we can see that Jesus was aware that He had been empowered with a supernatural power through the infilling of the Holy Spirit called the “anointing.”

I believe that it is the will of God that every believer would be consciously aware of this anointing and that every one of us could say: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me.”  The concept that the Spirit of Christ dwells within each of us is not simply an idea, an expression, or a figure of speech, it is a tangible reality. The power of God is manifested and resting upon the life of every believer who desires it and is surrendered to God’s will.

We can see from the story of Samson in the book of Judges that when the anointing would come upon Samson, he was very aware of it.  He had a conscious understanding, an awareness that a supernatural power was upon him.  Samson knew when this power was on him and he knew when it wasn't.  When the anointing, this power, was upon him he was unstoppable he operated in a supernatural realm.  But without it, he was limited by the weaknesses of his flesh just like any other man.

Samson’s anointing was just a shadow, a type of the anointing that was going to come upon Jesus Christ and His covenant children through the power of the Holy Ghost.  It is my purpose today to help believers everywhere realize that this anointing was not just for Samson, it wasn’t just upon Jesus, nor is it just for pastors, prophets, apostles, evangelists and teachers, it's for every blood bought, Spirit filled child of God.  I believe it is the desire of our Lord that every believer could say with the same authority as Jesus did, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because He hath anointed me."

The anointing is the divine enablement and supernatural ability to carry on the ministry of Jesus.

Acts 10:38

“How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power who went about doing good and healing all that were oppressed of the devil for God was with Him.”

Jesus was our example.  The Word tells us that the same power that raised Jesus from the grave lives in us.  We can claim with authority, that if we have been baptized in the Holy Ghost, then we are anointed with power to go about doing good and healing all who are oppressed of the devil for God is with us!  The Spirit of the Lord is upon us and we are anointed!

Jesus is no longer physically among us, but His Spirit is, the Holy Ghost is, the power is, and the anointing is!  Now we are His body, we are His hands and feet, we are His voice, and we are anointed to carry on His work.  We are anointed to preach the gospel, to cast out devils, to heal the sick, to deliver those in darkness, and to set the captives free.

The anointing is Heavens power, it's like Holy Ghost electricity and just like natural electricity you can't see it with your natural eyes, but when it touches you, you will know it.  The anointing is the burden-removing, yoke destroying power of God.

Isaiah 10:27

“And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.”

There is a lot of needless things we bare as believers because we do not seek the anointing.  The sad truth is that a large majority of the body of Christ have never discovered the power that is available to them through the anointing.  Too many believers are living weak, inferior, anemic spiritual lives because they refuse to tap into the power of the Holy Ghost. 

Because of this they are always looking for someone else to bless them, someone else to encourage them, or someone else lift them up when the power is right at the tip of their tongue.  All they need to do is surrender their life to God and ask for more of His presence in their life.

Too many of God’s people live their lives as a professional patient: always in need, always struggling, always hurting, and always suffering.  God wants to give them the power and the anointing of the Holy Ghost and transform them from a patient into a doctor.  To bring them to a place where they are functioning by the anointing, to a place where they are operating in the anointing and are able to inject others with the power of God that will save them and heal them and deliver them.

Acts 3:1-8

Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour. 2 And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple; 3 who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms. 4 And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, look on us. 5 And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them. 6 Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have, give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. 7 And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. 8 And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.

Peter and John looked at this poor crippled beggar sitting at the temple gate asking alms from any who would pass by.  Here was a poor unfortunate soul who lived dependent upon the generosity and the surplus of others.  He was a taker, always reaching out, always in need.  Everyday someone would pick him up and carry him to his spot outside the beautiful gate of the temple where he would sit and beg for alms.

What I love about this story is that is shows the character of Peter and John after they had been filled with the Holy Ghost.  Remember what they had said to Jesus when Jesus asked them to feed the crowd, “Send them away so they can find something to eat.”  In other words, “they’re not our problem.  Look how the Holy Ghost has changed their perspective:  They saw a future for this man beyond what he could see.  He couldn't see anything different in his future other than to sit and to beg every day for the rest of his life.  When Peter and John saw him, they were moved with the compassion of Jesus.  Compassion and pity are two different things.  Pity may look and feel sorry, pity may even demonstrate itself in tears, but compassion is demonstrated in action and changes the situation.

Peter and John saw this poor man and they saw a future for him, and they were moved with compassion.  When they told him to look upon them, it was because they were anointed with the Holy Ghost and they understood that they had the capacity to change this man’s situation.

I wish more believers understood how much power is available to us through the anointing of the Holy Ghost.  We are walking around with the same Spirit, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead, living on the inside of us.  The supernatural miracle working power of God is in us.  One of the devils greatest fears is that we will recognize who we are and what we have and what we can do.

Peter and John knew this supernatural power was in them.  And they also knew that they had the ability to transfer and to release that power to others.  Silver and gold have I none but such as I have I give to thee.  There's the key: Such as I have.  In other words, “I know what I have.”  Just like Samson was aware of his anointing, just like Jesus was aware of His, Peter and John were consciously aware that they had in their possession a power greater than themselves.

Such as I have…give I thee.  I present to you, I offer to you, I release, I transfer, I give to you.  And Peter took him by the right hand and lifted him up.  Peter was pulling him into his destiny.  Pulling him out of his past, pulling him out of all his guilt and shame, pulling him out of his emptiness and helplessness, pulling him out of his brokenness and pulling him up into wholeness, up into joy, and up into fullness of life.

Was it God’s will to heal this man and make him whole?  We know it was.  Why didn't it happen prior to this day?  Because no one had passed his way with the knowledge that they possessed the power to change this man’s situation.

I'm telling you, it is the will of God to heal the sick, to deliver the bound, and to set the captives free.  It is Gods will, Jesus paid the price, the power of God is available, but nothing is going to happen until we realize that we are the carriers and the conduits of the power of God and it’s time we start laying our hands on the sick, lifting them up in Jesus’ name, and casting out devils.

There are people just like this crippled beggar all around us, and even though God wants them well and whole they will die lost, sick and afflicted if we don't recognize that, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon us and He has anointed us.”