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anointing8

THE ANOINTING MESSAGE
 

Chapter 8: Appointed and Anointed.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is not a man-made way to God but a unique revelation from God for our salvation. "I'm NOT ASHAMED of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes" (Romans 1:16). It's a message from God, with great authority. Thus it must be preached with boldness. It's not a suggestion, but an official declaration from the Throne of God offering amnesty, pardon and reinstatement (righteousness) in the Kingdom of God to all rebels (the human race). We have rejected God's authority over us and are under a sentence of death. It's outside our power to put things right. The King is just and must punish sin. But the King's Son offered to take the punishment for our rebellion upon himself and died in our place. Thus, the King could send ambassadors to the rebels with a 'Good News' message of forgiveness if they repent and accept His authority. When we share the Gospel we're bringing a message from the King. We are not sharing our own ideas.

Our message carries the King's authority. So, we must be authorised to go (i.e 'SENT'). "Whosoever CALLS on the Name of the Lord shall be SAVED. How then shall they CALL on Him in whom they have not BELIEVED? and how shall they BELIEVE in him of whom they have not HEARD? and how shall they HEAR without a PREACHER? and how shall they PREACH, except they be SENT?" (Romans 10:13-15).

When an ambassador speaks for his King, it is not his word but the King's, he speaks with the authority of the King. He makes it clear he is not giving rumours or his own ideas but that he comes in the NAME of the King. He declares himself as an authorized messenger from the King so that his word is received with the importance it deserves. If they don't believe your authority, how can they accept the gospel you proclaim as a message from God? We want them to accept it as God's word, so they must accept us as God's mouthpiece. So we must speak with boldness knowing we have been SENT with a message from God, as AUTHORISED AMBASSADORS OF GOD.

 

 We're not to be detached from our message but personally involved.

 

 (1) We are WITNESSES. A witness is someone who speaks from direct knowledge and experience. We are those who have received forgiveness from the King and now go to others to tell them: It's a true offer, I'm a witness, I heard this message and received it and the King accepted me and gave me a new life. Then He commissioned me to go and proclaim the gospel. So I come from God and stand before you now in His Name and offer you forgiveness and eternal life. I stake my life on this truth' (The word 'witness' in Greek is where we get 'martyr' from). Our testimony is part of the message. You have met God and His power. This gives authority to your words.

 

(2) We are AMBASSADORS. When we received our pardon the King authorised us to announce this message to others. Realize we stand in the Presence of God, between Heaven and the other person (1Timothy 4:1).  We can say: I have stood in the King's presence and heard His words. This isn't hearsay, I'm a witness of God's way of salvation and I am now God's ambassador to you. He has SENT me to you. God is speaking through me. I am bringing the Kingdom of God to you. As I speak God's power goes forth and it's present to save you. If you believe my words you can receive this power and be saved. God sent me to you to tell you He loves you and sent His Son to die for you. Boldness is an inner confidence that you are speaking God’s words as His ambassador, and God's Kingdom is behing you. It takes boldness to stand in this position.

 

 In order to preach the Gospel with boldness we must:

(1) KNOW WHAT THE GOSPEL IS. We preach Christ (the Anointed One and His anointing), that God's saving power is now present in Christ to be received by faith. This power has been made available through the death and resurrection of Jesus and outpouring of the Spirit.

 (2) KNOW THAT WE ARE AUTHORISED TO GO (that we are SENT by God)

 

 (3) KNOW THAT WE ARE ANOINTED TO PREACH. Whom God APPOINTS He ANOINTS. We must be authorised and anointed, called and equipped, sent and empowered. If we know these 3 things we will speak boldly as we ought. 'Pray...for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the GOSPEL, for which I'm an AMBASSADOR...that I may speak BOLDLY, as I ought to speak' (Ephesians 6:19-20). We go in the Name (authority) of Jesus and in the Spirit (power) of the Holy Spirit.

 

 We must be authorised, we must know that we are authorised and we must PROCLAIM our authorisation as part of our message.
"For we preach not ourselves, but (1) Christ Jesus the Lord; and (2) (we preach) ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake" (2Corinth 4:5).

The main part of our message is to PREACH CHRIST ('Jesus is anointed to save you') The 2nd part is that we are sent and anointed with His power. We are bringing God's Word, power, salvation healing and Kingdom to them. The bolder we are in our call and anointing, the more faith they will have to come to God through our message and the more power is released. They will let us take their hand and lead them to Christ in prayer. It takes boldness to preach the gospel, to speak in the Name of Jesus, to confront people with the Lord and bring them to a decision to accept or reject. It's a sharp sword that produces positive and negative reactions. But if they reject, they don't reject us but God, so we shake off the dust and go on.

 

 
JESUS' MINISTRY. Jesus declared his anointing and authorization when he preached the Gospel.

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has ANOINTED me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has SENT me....to preach the acceptable year of the Lord... and he began to say to them, 'This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears." (Luke 4:18-21).  Jesus told how he was baptised and the Spirit came upon him like a dove (His anointing) and God spoke out of heaven(His authorization or appointing)

 

 Peter's sermon in Acts 10 confirms this:
"I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: But every nation... is accepted with Him (it's the acceptable(Jubilee) year for all nations). (God has told me to declare to you, v33: ) the word ('LOGOS' = message) which God sent to...Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ. He is Lord of all (Jews and gentiles-so now the same message is to you) that (spoken) WORD ('RHEMA'), I say, you know, which was PUBLISHED (lit: which CAME TO PASS, HAPPENED or FULFILLED ITSELF. This means the spoken words of the gospel contain and make the saving power of God present to the hearers, so that the word fulfils itself in those who believe and receive it) through all Judaea... after the baptism which John preached. That spoken-word that we and Jesus preached was: Jesus of Nazareth : How God ANOINTED him with the Holy Spirit and with power: who went about doing good (being a rich and generous benefactor of that anointing), and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for GOD WAS WITH HIM (authorised Him)" (Acts 10:34-38).

JESUS APPOINTED and ANOINTED HIS DISCIPLES.
"When he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them...and said to his disciples, 'The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He will SEND forth labourers into his harvest" (Matthew 9:36-38)

"when he had CALLED his 12 disciples, He gave them AUTHORITY (and power) against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and disease. These 12 Jesus SENT forth, saying, 'GO, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give." (Matthew 10:1,5-8; Mark 6:7, Luke 9:1-6).

 

 Near the end of his ministry Jesus withdrew this authorisation, until he would die and rise again for our salvation when the full Gospel would be preached through the church. "Peter said, 'Thou art the CHRIST, the Son of the living God.' Jesus answered 'Blessed are you,...for flesh and blood has not revealed it to you, but my Father in heaven and I say to you 'That you are Peter,and upon this ROCK (the confession or proclamation that Jesus is the Christ) I will build my church...Then he charged his disciples that they should TELL NO MAN THAT HE WAS JESUS THE CHRIST." (Matthew 16:16-20)

 

 THE CHURCH WAS AUTHORIZED when Jesus ascended and ANOINTED on the Day of Pentecost. Jesus said, "All AUTHORITY is given to me in heaven and in earth. GO YE therefore, and disciple all nations, baptizing them... Teaching them to observe all things I have commanded you: and, lo, I am WITH you always, even unto the end of the age." (Matthew 28:18-20). Here we see the authority is not just given to the 1st disciples but is handed on to each new generation of disciples until the end of the age.
 

"GO YE into all the world, and PREACH the gospel to every creature. He that believes and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believes not shall be condemned (that’s authority!) These signs shall follow them that believe; IN MY NAME ... they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working WITH & confirming the word with signs following" (Mark 16:15-20)

"Christ must suffer and rise from the dead the 3rd day: and repentance and remission of sins should be preached IN HIS NAME among all nations...and you are WITNESSES of these things and, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but wait in Jerusalem, until you be endued with POWER FROM ON HIGH" (Luke 24:46-49)

"Peace be unto you: as my Father hath SENT me, even so SEND I you (authorization) and then he breathed on them and said, 'Receive ye the Holy Spirit (power)" (John 20:21).

"You shall receive POWER, when the Holy Spirit is come upon you: and ye shall be my WITNESSES...to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8). This happened at Pentecost. Every believer is appointed to be a witness of the Gospel and the anointing (Baptism and power) of the Spirit is available for him to be effective.

 

 2Corinthians 5:15-6:2: "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new and all things are of God, Who has (IN THE NEW BIRTH):

- (1) RECONCILED us to Himself by Jesus Christ (peace with God) and

- (2) given to us THE MINISTRY OF RECONCILIATION (which is) that (i.e this is what we preach):

(1) God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them (Christ and His work in His death and resurrection)

and (2) (God) has COMMITTED TO US the WORD of reconciliation. Now then we are AMBASSADORS for Christ, as though God did beseech you through us: we plead to you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. For He has made him (Jesus) to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. We then, as workers together with Him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain.... behold, NOW is the accepted time; behold, NOW is the day of salvation."

We are conscious that we're sent by God and that He's speaking through us. This gives us the boldness to challenge them to respond now. We are authorized to open the door of the Kingdom to them by the gospel and to invite them to enter in and be saved. (John 10:9)

This passage shows that part of the message is our own authorization and anointing.

 

Jesus boldly declared He was sent from and empowered by the Father as part of the Gospel. It was the disciples preaching in the NAME OF JESUS that brought persecution (Acts 4:17-20) The sermons in Acts usually contain the phrase: we are witnesses of these things meaning they spoke with personal, direct authority. Paul often gave his testimony and related his authorization from God as part of his message.

 

This takes boldness but is important if they are to receive the word as from God (which it is) rather than as the word of men (1Thessalonians 2:13).