273. Anointed to receive power.

"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has Anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour."* ( Isaiah 61:1-2/ Luke 4:18-19) In the old testament, the word *Anointed* (Hebrew: *māsah*) refers to the pouring of sacred oil on a person in a ceremony of dedication, symbolising divine empowerment to accomplish the task or hold office. In the new testament, the word *Anointed* ( Greek: *Chriō*) literally refers to pouring out of the Holy Spirit to accomplish the task or hold office. (Therefore, the Anointed One, was called *māsîah* - pronounced *Mashiach* in Hebrew - or *Christos* in Greek and his task was to take away the sin of the world and to bear our curses and diseases.) It was the symbolic Anointing of David with oil, to be the next king of Israel, that caused the Spirit of the LORD to come upon him in power. *"Fill your horn with oil and be on your way ... So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed David ... and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came upon him in power.'* ( 1 Samuel 16:1-13) But it was the literal Anointing of Jesus with the substance of the Spirit (not symbolically with oil), to be the Messiah, that caused the person of the Holy Spirit to come upon him in power. *'Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert where for forty days he was tempted by the devil ... When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him ... Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit ...'* ( Luke 4:1,14) *'And the power of the Lord was present for him to heal the sick.'* ( 5:17) That is why Scripture says: *'God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and* ( not *'or'* meaning they are not one and the same, since there was an interval of 40 days between these two experiences) *power ... and he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.'* ( Acts 10:38) Many think that they are Anointed with power just because they are Anointed with the Holy Spirit! The anointing in the Holy Spirit is for us to successfully live our day to day Christian lives and to be victorious when we find ourselves in a "wilderness" being tested by the devil with trials and temptations ! Hence, the promise of the Spirit is for all whom the Lord will call. That is why Peter said, *"Repent and be baptized ... and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off - FOR ALL whom the Lord our God will call."* ( Acts 3:38-39) Every believer can be filled with the Holy Spirit because its the free gift of God! *"If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much be more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"* ( Luke 11:13) But the Anointing with the power, will not be experienced by all but only by those who have been tested and found to be trustworthy! God is not *prodigal* ( reckless) with his power but entrusts it to only those who have proven themselves to be faithful, no matter whatever they face! *'Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.'* ( 1 Corinthians 4:2) But remember, the Anointing in the Holy Spirit that we have received still remains in us and is at work within us. *'As for you, the Anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his Anointing is teaches you about all things and as that Anointing is real, not counterfeit - just as it has taught you, remain in him.'* ( 1 John 2:27) We desire to have the power of God upon our lives but we do so without first learning to fully obey the Holy Spirit whose presence is *'WITH US'* and is *'IN US'* - ( John 14:17). But if we learn to obey the Holy Spirit, then the day will come when the Holy Spirit will come *'UPON US'* in power. *"You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you ..."* ( Acts 1:8) We cannot ignore the Holy Spirit and expect the power of God to manifest in our lives because he is the source of this power. And it is also impossible for us to receive this power through our human endeavour for it takes the anointing in the Holy Spirit to first prepare us to minister in the power of the Spirit. The reason I am sharing these insights is because Lord is preparing his people for the end time revival that is *at the threshold* (very close) and the return of Christ ! Amen.