KEY TEXT
Leviticus 14:1-18 (RSV) V1- The LORD said to Moses,
V2- “This shall be the law of the leper for the day of his cleansing. He shall be brought to the priest;
V3- and the priest shall go out of the camp……
V6- He shall take the living bird with the cedar wood, and the hyssop, and dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water;
V7- and he shall sprinkle it seven times upon him who is to be cleansed leprosy….
V8- …and after that he shall come into the camp…..
V10- And on the eighth day he shall take two male lambs without blemish. And one ewe lamb a year old without blemish, and a cereal offering of three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil and one log of oil.
V11- And the priest who cleanses him shall set the man who is to be cleansed and these things before the LORD, at the door of the tent of meeting.
V12- And the priest shall take one of the male lambs, and offer it for a guilt offering……
V13- And he shall kill the lamb in the place where they kill the sin offering and burnt offering……..
V14-The priest shall take some of the blood of the guilt offering, and the priest shall put it on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the great toe of his right foot.
V15- Then the priest shall take some of the LOG OF OIL, and pour it into the palm of his own hand,
V16- and dip his right finger in the oil that is in his left hand and sprinkle some oil with his finger seven times before the LORD.
V17- And some of the oil that remains in his hand the priest shall put on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the great toe of his right foot, upon the blood of the guilt offering;
V18 – and the rest of the oil that is on the priest’s hand he shall put on the head of him who is to be cleansed.
I was reading a book on Leadership and I was struck by a statement made by the author. He said- The best use of power is to give power away – help others to succeed.
As I look at God, I know He is All Powerful but I also know He never keeps the power to Himself. Like a good leader mentioned in the Leadership book who wants his followers to succeed, God also wants us, His disciples, to succeed. God never commissions us to any task or ministry without empowering us first. In fact, God gives His power away to us with the purpose of helping us succeed in the ministry Christ left behind. That power is called The Anointing of God and it is given away by God to us to help us succeed in our Christian walk and work.
This morning, I want to talk about the power of God, called the Anointing. More specifically I want share about THE THREE ANOINTINGS OF GOD which all of us as believers need in order to succeed in this Christian walk and work.
Scripture reveals three anointings of the Holy Spirit. Knowledge of them will help bring our potential as Christians into focus.
(I) THE LEPER’S ANOINTING
First is the LEPER’S ANOINTING.
Leviticus 14, our Key text, teaches that the leper remained outside the camp and that the priest was to go out to him and apply the blood of the sacrifice, bring him into the camp, apply the blood again, and then apply oil, “making “atonement for him before the Lord.”
Every born-again believer has experienced the Leper’s Anointing, which deals with SALVATION.
Leprosy in this case is a TYPE OF SIN, incurable in the natural world but curable by God. Sin is the same; man can do nothing to remove it and its effects.
In the ceremonial cleansing of the Old Testament, THE BLOOD OF THE SACRIFICIAL ANIMALS was applied. In the New Testament, we find that the only cure for sin, then and today, is the BLOOD OF JESUS CHRIST. The animal sacrifices of Leviticus merely looked forward to the perfect sacrifice of the Lamb of God. They were a shadow; Jesus was the substance.
In John 1:29, John the Baptist sees Jesus approaching and declares, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” To those who came to know Him, Jesus was the Lamb of God. Jesus was the only sacrifice that would atone for the sin of the world.
In the ceremonial cleansing of Leviticus, the blood was applied, then the oil. The application of the sacrificial blood is symbolic of the BLOOD OF CHRIST, while the application of the oil is symbolic of the TOUCH AND INFLUENCE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT UPON A LIFE.
Application: Just as the blood of Jesus Christ flows out to all who call upon His name, so the leper’s anointing crosses all national and denominational barriers. For when anyone experiences the grace of Jesus Christ, it is the Holy Spirit who convicts him of sin and assures him of God’s forgiveness.
Thus it is that at salvation you experience the first anointing – the Leper’s Anointing – which reveals the power of the blood through the oil of anointing that pours over you.
Question: Have you received the Leper’s Anointing? Are you cleansed by the blood of Christ for all your sins? Do you have the touch and the influence of the Holy Spirit upon your life? Simply put, have you received the Salvation of Jesus Christ?
(II) THE PRIESTLY ANOINTING
As a believer, cleansed through the precious blood of Christ, born again and sealed by the Spirit, you can and should move to the second anointing: the PRIESTLY ANOINTING.
Many believers have no knowledge of this level of the Holy Spirit’s activity in their lives and they certainly have no idea how to receive it.
This second step is very important to believers since every member of the Body of Christ should have a ministry. And this is the anointing for MINISTRY UNTO THE LORD, including leading souls to Him, but not service to Him in battles against the devil and diseases but MINISTRY TO HIM AS PRIESTS.
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9 NIV).
We are all priests of God, although not necessarily ordained to stand behind a pulpit or to conduct evangelistic and healing services.
If we, therefore, are priests and ministers to God, we must have the power of the Spirit to do so. And that means we are to be BAPTISED IN THE HOLY SPIRIT, which is the Priestly Anointing of the Holy Spirit upon us. Without it, we will accomplish very little.
The Priestly Anointing is evidenced through UNITY IN THE BODY OF CHRIST as life in the Kingdom of God.
When the genuine Priestly Anointing has been experienced, there will be unity and harmony.
Psalm 133:- Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down on the beard, the beard of Aaron, running down on the edge of his garments.
There is no such thing as a PRIVATE PRIESTLY ANOINTING. It comes in ONENESS, IN UNITY as the church functions as one body.
E.g. The Day of Pentecost – On the day of Pentecost in the Book of Acts, one hundred and twenty people (Acts 1:15) were together- in one accord – in the Upper Room and the Holy Spirit came upon them with fire and power. They went out from that room and ministered to the Lord, bearing witness to the crowds gathered there. Three thousand were saved! What an anointing! God was clearly present.
This Priestly Anointing is NOT A ONE-TIME ANOINTING, which the Leper’s Anointing is. Under the old covenant, the priests were anointed with oil every day. The same with you under the new covenant. You need a DAILY ANOINTING.
The Priestly Anointing brings the PRESENCE, THE COMMUNION, THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
Revelation knowledge comes, for in the Leper’s Anointing, we are introduced to God in an extraordinary and wonderful way and we see our total need for Jesus Christ. But we really don’t understand much more.
It is so sad that may Christians stay at the Leper’s Anointing level by choice. They don’t seek more. They simply don’t surrender. Their ears are dull; they don’t hear God’s voice.
And the Bible tells us in John 10:27 – “My sheep hear My Voice.” If you are truly one of His sheep and have received the Priestly Anointing, you will know HIS PRESENCE AND HEAR THE GENTLE VOICE OF GOD REGULARLY. It is not a one-time experience; it must be renewed.
God sometimes will reveal incredible truths to you; at other times, He will just let you sense how much He loves you. Perhaps He will correct or instruct you on a matter; perhaps He will cause a particular passage of Scripture to stand out while you are reading His Word.
Even though you may seldom or never hear an audible voice, He has many avenues through which to speak to you. God’s regular communication does NOT depend on how LOUDLY He speaks but upon how well you listen. “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” (Matthew 11:15). You must take time each day to be quiet before the Lord so His still, small voice can be heard. As such, you should have the BIBLE at your side. God will take you to passages and He will teach you. And when you are troubled over a passage, ask Him about it and He will teach you. The Holy Spirit is a Teacher and He is only Teacher you need to teach you (1 John 2:27).
The Leper’s Anointing (salvation) is a one-time experience and cannot be lost unless you willfully walk away from it. God will never let you go unless you let Him go. This requires a decision that you would rather perish than be saved.
The Priestly Anointing (the Presence), on the other hand, can be lost, for if sin comes into your heart it lifts. That is why it must be renewed daily; it will bring you into the Presence of God- so near and so real that the tears will course down your cheeks.
The Priestly Anointing causes your countenance to shine. You will recall that when Moses saw the glory and presence of God at Mount Sinai he descended with his face shining like a light. People could not even look at his face. When you, too have an encounter with the presence of God, it will be obvious. It may even show on your face and certainly will show in your conduct. Like I shared 2 weeks ago, when the presence comes, the first evidence will be the manifestation of the fruit of the Spirit. The fruit will be evident in everyday contacts with those around you. And when the fruit is genuinely there, the Lord will anoint you with His Spirit, which is power.
Your countenance will announce to those around you, “I am different. I have been in the presence of God Almighty.”
Whereas you once were self-conscious, with little or no God-consciousness – and manifesting only yourself – you will lose self-consciousness, gain God-consciousness and manifest the fruit of God.
E.g. Adam provides a good illustration. When he lost God-consciousness and was stripped of the presence and glory that had clothed him, he was filled with his own self-consciousness. Then he said, “I was afraid.” At that point he began to hide from God, his Friend, the Creator of heaven and earth.
FEAR is the first result of self-consciousness and BOLDNESS is the first result of God-consciousness. When we become God-conscious, we are no longer forced to trust in ourselves and our own strength, but God’s presence resides within, bringing power and authority to our lives. We no longer must fight our battles in our own strength but we can boldly call upon God Almighty through the authority of the Spirit.
The presence of God will indwell your spirit, while the anointing of the Spirit will cover and saturate you. You must have both to adequately show forth Jesus to the world – to be His witness. It takes the presence to change you, while it takes the anointing to communicate the presence out of you.
The presence of God (the Priestly Anointing) is the vehicle that brings the power. Power follows the presence, not the other around. The presence and the fruit come together. The anointing and the power do too.
And that brings us to highest level of Anointing.
(III) THE KINGLY ANOINTING
Once you have experienced the Leper’s Anointing and gone on to the Priestly Anointing, do not stop there. They are important and wonderful but more is possible.
Nothing can compare with the KINGLY ANOINTING, the most powerful of them all. This lifts a person to a place of high authority in God, giving him AUTHORITY OVER DEVILS, THE POWER TO ROUT DEMONS WITH ONE WORD. Only this will give you the power to send the enemies of God flying as the apostle Paul did.
The Kingly Anointing, is the most difficult to receive. Whereas the Leper’s Anointing comes by ACCEPTING JESUS and the Priestly Anointing comes by FELLOWSHIP WITH JESUS, the Kingly Anointing comes by OBEYING JESUS.
It is when you hear the RHEMA WORD of the Lord just for that moment – which says, “Thus saith the Lord”- that you receive the Kingly anointing.
There is the LOGOS or written Word – the Bible. But that does not give you the anointing, although the Logos is terribly important.
But it is the Rhema, the quickened word of the Lord that will give you the cutting edge when you wield it against the demonic realm.
E.g. -I remember cowering in fear during 2012 at Jan’s apartment in France. I was praying and seeking God most of them and suddenly God quickened Psalms 91:1,9, 13 14-15 (KJV) to me: – He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty…….Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; THERE SHALL BE NO EVIL BEFALL THEE, NEITHER SHALL ANY PLAGUE COME NIGH THY DWELLING…THOU SHALT TREAD UPON THE LION AND ADDER; THE YOUNG LION AND THE DRAGON SHALT THOU TRAMPLE UNDER FEET…… Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honor him.” At that time, I was being attacked by the “lion, adder, the young lions and the dragons” himself. All these “wild beasts” bespeak of the demonic forces behind my persecutors, slanderers and dissemblers at that time but God revealed to me that the chief instigating demonic forces behind all those evil people was the DRAGON – SATAN HIMSELF. And the prophetic word to me – YOU SHALL TREAD ON THEM! I began to rise in boldness and I could feel this Kingly Anointing upon me to wage war against this demonic realm. And today, allow me to testify that many of these “wild beasts” had been treaded and trampled upon by that Kingly anointing.
The Kingly Anointing that comes upon you will give you the boldness and fierceness to confront the evil demonic and to have dominion over it. It may on the church level or ministry level but it can also be on the personal level. During one weekend of my Sabbatical leave, Pastor Toh Nee took our whole family over to Johor Bahru for an overnight stay. The following day, just before we drove back to Singapore, Joy wanted to eat in this famous Fish Head Curry restaurant [which was located outside the mall]. Due to over shopping, we were running late for this restaurant which closed at 4 pm. In order to save time, Pastor Toh Nee alighted us first at the mall while he went to find a parking space. The distance of the restaurant from the mall was quite far and we had to walk and crossed blocks of shop houses first. While walking on the pavement outside the shop houses, a young Indian man passed by Jan and he touched her thigh and hand. I was just behind Jan while Joy was walking in the interior part of the shop houses pavement. Jan stopped to tell me that the Indian guy molested her. We both turned to look at him, who was now a distance away. Instead of feeling abashed, he stopped too and looked at us with a smirk on his face. Worse, he challenged us. When Joy joined us, that Indian man still stared at us at a distance arrogantly. Then out of the blue, he charged at us. OMG! As a mother, with two injured feet, I didn’t know what to do. The first instinct was to protect my two girls. Thus I beckoned two of them to run to the next block of the shop houses, hoping our running would deter him. It did not. We had to cross a small road in order to go to the next block of shop houses and the very first store that I saw in this new block was a Chinese pawn shop. As I climbed the step to this new block, I noticed there was a big broom at the corner and an Indian road sweeper was cleaning up the floor there. I stopped at that Chinese store and asked the owner for the telephone number of the police station. That molester caught up with us and unafraid he confronted us. I pushed my daughters behind me and suddenly my side eye caught the big broom. I didn’t know what made me pick it up to wield the broom against him. And with a boldness that I knew was from the Lord, I confronted him one to one and with a voice that I knew came from this Kingdom Anointing – I shouted, “Don’t touch my daughters. Go away.” I had no microphone at that time but my voice was so shrill as if I was preaching to a 1000 people in the hall. Crowd began to gather round us to see this commotion. The molester was shocked, turned around and ran away. We continued to walk to the fish restaurant but it was closed. We turned back to walk back to the mall and this time, that Indian molester turned around and stalked us again. But I had already returned the broom to the road sweeper and so my eyes were scouting for a new weapon and I saw an umbrella outside a convenience store. I asked the price of the umbrella but he turned out to be a customer. Then the Indian owner came out and I asked if he was selling umbrella and he pointed to the top of my head and I saw new umbrellas there. I bought one and walked towards that molester who by now was waiting for us at the end of the road. Then we called up Ptr Toh Nee who happened to be around the corner and when the molester saw Ptr Toh Nee, he disappeared into the small lane. The Kingly Anointing gives you the boldness to confront evil and send the devil away with his tail in between his two legs. I felt like David who dared to kill the lions and bears who tried to attack his sheep with his bare hands because he had just been anointed by Prophet Samuel.
Question: Are you being attacked and oppressed by the demonic realm? Do you have a “lion, adder, the young lion or the dragon” attacking you? Get a rhema from the Lord and with that double-edge sword, command and confront the evil spirt and he shall flee from you. Are you sick always? Ask God for that Kingly anointing to heal you? Are you oppressed by the demonic realm, engage in spiritual warfare prayer under this Kingly Anointing as it will help you to conquer that attack like a king and gain dominion over it.
(IV) BIBLICAL EXAMPLES OF THESE THREE ANOINTINGS IN OPERATION
DAVID
David had three anointings, the first taking place when Samuel, the judge and prophet went to see Jesse and his sons in Bethlehem (1 Sam 16). You will recall that Samuel said in effect, “Show me your boys, Jesse.” After looking at seven of them, he said, “The Lord has not chosen any of these; have you any more?” So Jesse sent for the youngest, who was tending sheep. When David arrived, the Lord said to Samuel, “Anoint him, for this is the one.”
That was the first anointing. The second anointing came many years later, when David was anointed in Hebron as king over Judah (2 Sam 2:4). Seven and a half years later, he was anointed king over Israel (2 Sam 5:3).
David’s first anointing, although directed by God, did not take him beyond SLAVE STATUS with King Saul. His duties included playing the harp to keep the torment of demons from Saul. The second one was followed by the UGLY CONFLICT with house of Saul after the King’s death.
Only after the third did David receive DOMINION AND AUTHORITY over all of Israel. Then he left his headquarters at Hebron, took Mount Zion, and established rule over all Zion.
The point for believer is just this: WE WILL NEVER REACH THE LEVEL OF DOMINION AND AUTHORITY THAT GOD INTENDS FOR US UNTIL WE RECEIVE THE THIRD ANOINTING – THE KINGLY ANOINTING.
THE APOSTLES
The apostles experienced three anointings. The first came when Jesus breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit” (John 20:22). The second came when the Holy Spirit fell upon them on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2).
But an even greater anointing came as the power of the early church mounted dramatically. Chapter 4 of Acts is often mistaken as simply a repetition of the day of Pentecost but it is not. It marks an INCREASE IN THE MIRACULOUS POWER OF THE APOSTLES’ WITNESS TO THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST.
Acts 4:31- And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.
The elders of Israel had threatened the apostles and said, “Preach in Christ’s name and you’ll be in jail.” The apostles stood their ground and God sent a heavier anointing that produced a supernatural manifestation with the power to reach the world. The place shook, they spoke with boldness and multitudes were added.
And then comes Acts 5:12-14, which tells us that “through the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were done among the people…and believers were increasingly added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women.”
As for Peter, the anointing was so strong on him that people were healed when he passed by and his shadow fell on them (Acts 5:5).
Yes, the third anointing brought greater power in the lives of the apostles and the addition of many more souls to the kingdom. That is exactly what we need today so the world can be saved.
Question: Do you think God has used you the way He has?”
(V) PRICE FOR THE ANOINTING
Psalms 89:20-29 –I have found my servant David; with My holy oil I have anointed him, with whom My hand shall be established; Also My arm shall strengthen him. The enemy shall not outwit him, nor the sons of wickedness afflict him. I will beat down his foes before his face, And plague those who hate him. But My faithfulness and My mercy shall be with him, And In My name his horn shall be exalted. Also I will set his hand over the sea, and his right hand over the rivers. He shall cry to Me, “You are my Father, My God, and the rock of my salvation. Also I will make him My firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth. My mercy I will keep for him forever, and My covenant shall stand firm with him. His seed also I will make to endure forever, and his throne as the days of heaven.
The Kingly Anointing which carries these promises like strength, protection, victory over the enemy, faithfulness, authority, power, unending covenant are the promises that are yours and mine through the King of Kings, the Lord Jesus. But they carry several prices:
- DEATH TO SELF
This comes only in prayer. “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me”(Luke 9:23).
Kathryn Khulman said years ago, “I died a long time ago.” What she meant was, “I die a thousand deaths” meaning that she had made a decision a long time earlier but she had to make it again every day.
The anointing comes quite simply by making the decision before God, saying it, meaning it and totally abandoning yourself to Him. He knows whether you are telling the truth or not and you’d better be aware of that.
Have you died to self?
- TIME WITH GOD
The anointing of God, the power of God comes upon us by spending time with Him. It is not a one day experience but a lifetime- one in which you become completely sold out.
Are you spending time with God? Are you “making yourselves at home with Jesus and letting His words be at home in you?” (John 15:7 –message)
- RESPECT FOR THE ANOINTING
Warning against disrespect for the obvious anointing of the Spirit came early in the history of God’s dealing with Israel. Numbers 12 recorded Miriam and Aaron speaking against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman Moses had married. God’s displeasure was strong and had it not been for Mose’s intervention with God, Miriam would have remained “as one dead.” Aaron apologized and pleaded and Moses cried to God to spare Miriam.
Aaron and Miriam walked away from their callings and tried to be a Moses, despising the powerful anointing upon him. Never try to be a Moses if you are not. And it is beneficial to notice that the cloud lifted before the leprosy hit. People who walk away from their anointing will realize sooner or later that the presence is gone. Yes, God will forgive them when there is repentance but there is still a price to pay.
Have you been speaking evil against any Anointed servants of God?
- PATIENCE
Psalm 32:9- Do not be like the horse or like the mule, which have no understanding, which must be harnessed with bit and bridle.
Do not be like a horse. What does horse do? He runs ahead and is impatient.
The horse will run out of the anointing and into the flesh.
- COMPLIANCE
Do not be like a mule. What does the mule do? He is so stubborn he won’t move. One runs too fast and the other won’t run at all. There are many mules in the church. The mule dies in the flesh. They don’t want anything from God, no presence, no anointing. They are stubborn.
Society is in shambles together. Millions are charging in the opposite direction from God. Our young people are suffering. But many are hungry for God and to line up with Him and serve Him. I pray that Etab will be in the latter group – wanting to go forward in the power of the Holy Spirit, in His precious three anointings that are for all of God’s people.
Ecclesiastes 9:8- “Your head lack no oil.”
Psalms 92:10- My horn you have exalted like a wild ox; I have been anointed with fresh oil.”
The Holy Spirit is eager to pour these three anointings upon us today because He wants to empower us to be successful in the walk and the work Christ has left behind for us to do. Get the Leper’s Anointing, the Priestly Anointing and above all the Kingly Anointing.
