THE ANOINTING UPON JESUS

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THE ANOINTING UPON JESUS





Jesus Christ was anointed as can be seen from the gospel of Luke 4: 18 and 19 when He Himself said that the Spirit of the Lord is upon Him. What type of anointing functioned in His life and how did it operate in His life?





Our Lord Jesus Christ stood in all five offices. He was an apostle (Hebrews 3:1). He was a prophet (Mark 6:4; Acts 3: 22-26) Peter said that Jesus was a prophet whom Moses spoke about. He was an evangelist as we can see from Mark 1:4 that He went about preaching the kingdom of God. He was a pastor as John 10: 11 says that He is the good Shepherd. He was known as a teacher in John 3: 2 where Nicodemus said that “we know that You are a teacher sent from God.” The Lord Jesus Christ was anointed to stand in all the five offices.



Very few people stand in all five offices. Even the apostle Paul stood only in three. He was an apostle, a teacher, and an evangelist. Others may just stand in one particular office. Some have one and some have two. In fact, the more offices we stand in, the more careful we have to know which offices to give priority to. Kenneth E. Hagin stands in two offices – prophet and teacher. He was supposed to give priority to the prophetic office over the teaching office.



Notice Paul knows the priority. When you stand in more than one office, what are the priorities? Notice in the apostle Paul’s writing he knows the priority in his life.



Let us look at the book of I Timothy 2:7, For which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle – I am speaking the truth in Christ and not lying – a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth. Also in II Timothy 1:11 To which I was appointed a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles. Notice he was very consistent in his listing. Preacher speaks about the evangelist office, then as apostle and then the teaching office. Paul was very specific. This order of priority of the three offices in Paul’s life – evangelist, apostle and teacher - is not in the same order of the five offices as listed in Eph. 4:11 and 12, which are apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor and teacher. If Paul had followed the order in Eph. 4: 11-12, he would have called himself an apostle first, then evangelist and teacher.



How did Paul function in his offices? In spite of his listing in I Timothy and II Timothy, Paul primarily functioned in the evangelistic anointing first. When the other two offices’ anointing arises, he would give room for them. See there is a priority in his life. The main purpose given to him is to evangelize the Gentiles. Once he has found a group, who has accepted the Lord Jesus, then he functioned as an apostle to plant a church among these new believers and then he taught them as a teacher. Do you notice that this is the order he followed all through his life? He would always evangelize first; then he would seek to fulfill the ministry as an apostle and then he would teach. He followed this order in his ministry.



Let us look at the starting of Paul’s ministry in Acts 11. We are looking at the anointing of Jesus but we have to compare it with a human being like Paul. Acts 11:22 Then news of these things came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to go as far as Antioch. When he came and had seen the grace of God, he was glad, and encouraged them all that with purpose of heart they should continue with the Lord. For he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord. Then Barnabas departed for Tarsus to seek Saul. And when he had found him he brought him to Antioch. And it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a great many people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.



Notice that when Paul started his ministry, he only had one office. He was merely a teacher. He did not evangelize the people in Antioch. Somebody else did the job there in Antioch. He was called by Barnabas to help teach the church in Antioch. When Barnabas took Paul to Antioch, he only stood in one office and one anointing at that time and that was the office of a teacher. It is easier to function in one type of anointing than in many types of anointing. It is easier to function in one office than in many offices because of the priority one must make. Just like it is not easy for a man to wear many hats. It is easier to just wear one hat. If you have a lot of offices to function in you have to prioritize your time. How much time do you spend in each office and what are the principles involved in the prioritizing the time? There is a difference between standing in many offices and functioning in many types of anointing. You could stand in one office and function in many types of anointing. You could stand in three offices and function in those three types of anointing. You could stand in one office and function in one anointing. There are a lot of combinations involved.



Paul started as a teacher and functioned in that area for one and a half years or two. As time went on and he served faithfully as a teacher, in Acts 13, there was a promotion for him when they were all gathered together in prayer. The leadership of the church of Antioch in verse 1 and 2 Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. Saul was not among the prophets. He was among the teachers. It says there were some prophets and teachers who gathered. See Paul himself said in I Timothy chapter two and II Timothy chapter one that he stood only in three offices – that of a preacher, which is an evangelist, an apostle and a teacher. That means he was never a prophet. Let us not put something on him that he never said he was. Let us realize where he stands. He was not among the prophets. He was among the teachers in Acts 13. That tells you he still functioned in the one office. One office can have many types of anointing. Verse 2 As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, ”Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”



As they started Paul in his journeys traveled very far. Notice the moment they traveled, they went to the island and they confronted Elymas the sorcerer. In verse 13 Now when Paul and his party set sail from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylla; and John departing from them returned to Jerusalem. Then from there they went to synagogue after synagogue, place after place to preach the gospel. After that prayer meeting, Paul went full steam on his missionary journeys. Do not underestimate small prayer meetings. Do not underestimate any meeting that people gather because they love the Lord. Out of that prayer meeting with only a handful of people came forth the first missionary movement that the church saw. From that day onward from Acts 13: 2, I believe Paul moved into the other two offices. He was an evangelist and he was an apostle too. He was already a teacher. Notice also he started as a teacher but in the end in I Timothy chapter two and II Timothy chapter one, the office of teacher was relegated to the lowest priority in his ministry. His highest priority became evangelizing. He wrote to the church in Rome how that he desired to visit them and they will help his party on his way to places where the gospel had never been preached. In I Cor. he mentioned very clearly he wants to lay a foundation where nobody has laid. He wants to reach new people as an evangelist but with the additional ministry of an apostle, which is to establish churches in places he visited.



That means as he stood in three offices, Paul had to be very sensitive to give appropriate attention to his office of teaching, office of an evangelist, and office of an apostle as the occasion demands. The list in I Timothy chapter two and II Timothy chapter one indicates the way he moves. Now it still is important to be sensitive to the order that God has given in Eph. 4:11-12 and I Cor. 12:28-30.

Kenneth E. Hagin stood only in two offices. Most of the time, he would just move in the teaching anointing. However, whenever the prophetic anointing came, he was supposed to move into that. He did not want to move into that because prophets receive a lot of criticism and he had to do things that a teacher may not need to do. Because of that, he realized that he moved into the permissive will of God and in his book “I believe in Visions,” he mentioned that he fell and was taken to the hospital. Jesus visited him and said that he had been in the permissive will for some years. Not because he sinned but because he did not prioritize the offices carefully that God called him to. It is important that when we stand in whatever office God has given to be faithful and if you are given more than one office you have to be very sensitive to the anointing. When the anointing comes for you to move into one particular office, move into that. If you are a bit slow, the pillar of cloud will move ahead of you and you will be without a covering and protection. We have to move when the pillar of cloud moves. You have to flow where God is leading. Be faithful to the offices that He has set upon your life.



Sometimes human beings out of their good intention do not understand these things and they would prefer that you stay in certain types of offices and anointing that God did not ask you to stay there. Most people would have prefer to move in the teaching anointing because when you move into the prophetic anointing, sometimes you may have to give prophecies that are painful to accept. The prophecies may be positively constructive but it can also be corrective. Because of that, Hagin’s teaching ministry was more accepted than his prophetic ministry.



Having established all these in the different offices we look at the Lord Jesus Christ and see how the Lord Jesus Christ stood in five offices. One reason why we do not see many people flow like Jesus flows is because very few people stood in five offices. No doubt, someone who stands in a few offices will demonstrate a more powerful ministry than those who stand in only one office. Jesus stood in five offices. He was faithful to God, heard God, and He functioned in the anointing of all five offices.



We got to clarify some facts in Jesus’ life. Firstly, the anointing upon His life was without measure. The anointing could be measured and you could apportion it.



Let me read from the book, “The Anointing of the Holy Spirit,” in chapter two page nine.



God told Moses that He would take the Spirit that was upon him and put the same anointing upon the seventy elders (Numbers 11:7). Here is an example of a man having a great anointing of the Holy Spirit, and a part of the power being taken from him by the Lord, to be divided and used to anoint seventy others (Numbers 11: 25). The anointing can be measured!



In fact, it was said of Jesus by John that He had the Spirit upon Him without measure (John 3: 34). The word ‘measure’ being used here implies that the anointing had been given in measures to people before but now is given without measure to our Lord Jesus Christ. [AHS]



Let us look at the book of Numbers. During the forty years period in the wilderness, Moses was under pressure as he led the people of God. The call of God upon his life was too heavy. In Numbers 11, the people started murmuring. Moses said to the Lord in Numbers 11: 11-15, And Moses said to the Lord, “Why have You afflicted Your servant? And why have I not found favor in Your sight, that You have laid the burden of all these people on me? Did I conceive all these people? Did I beget them, that you should say to me, “Carry them in your bosom, as a guardian carries a nursing child, to the land which You swore to their fathers? “Where am I to get meat to give to all these people? For they weep all over me saying, Give us meat, that we may eat. I am not able to bear all these people alone, because the burden is too heavy for me. If you treat me like this, please kill me here and now – if I have found favor in Your sight – and do not let me see my wretchedness.”



Moses was complaining that the burden of the people was too hard for him to bear. He asks the Lord to take him away. The Lord told Moses to appoint seventy people. The seventy people were numbered and on the day when the anointing was to come, one of them was absent. In verse 16, And the Lord said to Moses, “Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the leaders of the people and officers over them. Bring them to the tabernacle of meeting, that they may stand there with you. Then I will come down and talk with you there, I will take of the Spirit that is upon you and will put the same upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you may not bear it yourself alone. Verse 25 Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and placed the same upon the seventy elders.



In fact, although two men were missing from that gathering, they also had the Spirit come upon their lives because they were numbered among the seventy. We see that God did not send a fresh measure of anointing. Instead, He took part of the anointing upon Moses and divided it among the seventy elders. Remember that when God calls He gives the ability. The anointing is the ability of God that He gives to perform a task. He is a fair God. He does not call you to do something without giving you an anointing for it. When He calls, He gives an anointing. That anointing upon Moses was sufficient for him to fulfill the task. However, human nature is such that sometimes it is not easy to draw the anointing. That tells us something. The anointing does not just work automatically. You could have an anointing. Moses actually had an anointing to fulfill the task of managing the problems of the people under him but it was not working automatically because Moses experienced the human feeling of rejection, loneliness, pressure, and stress that an overburdened person would go through. Besides that, there were the constant murmuring, resistance, rebellion, willfulness, stubbornness, slandering, and accusation coming from the people. We need to consider all these things.



Moses had an anointing upon his life. It was there all the time although it was not automatically functioning. Let me tell you there is pressure of two million fellows there complaining. It is not easy to take that burden, humanly speaking. Having a leadership role may seem to be basking in the limelight but it is not as glamorous as people think it is. Yet God gives the grace. Sometimes, when the anointing is there we do not know how to tap it. You functioned in a manner that revealed your inability to flow with the anointing. What happens if a person dies without flowing fully in the anointing? That person’s anointing will go to somebody else. See God gives an anointing to get a job done. If the job is not done, the anointing will go to somebody else who is willing to get the job done. God is interested in results and not in decorations. Leadership is not just decoration. If someone gets into a leadership position and does not have the anointing, that person becomes a tyrant and an oppressor of God’s people. Holding a position without anointing is dangerous. On the other hand, there are some situations where a person could be called and anointed for leadership but he or she does not draw on the anointing given for assuming that leadership. They would also be crushed under the weight of the position since the anointing is not activated to accomplish God’s work.



Moses came to the point where he wanted to die. Elijah also said the same thing after Jezebel started chasing him. He ran for his life. Ironically, he could come against four hundred prophets of Baal but he could not deal with one woman. He told God to kill him. The moment he said that, God told Elijah to choose another guy because God was going to select somebody else to get his anointing. That was when God told him to go and choose Elisha. The next time you are in leadership position and you are thinking of complaining - watch out, you may lose some of your anointing to others. The next time God called and anointed you for something, do not complain of pressures coming from the people. Human pressure will always be there. We are spirit beings but we also have a human nature. God did not take away our soul. You have feelings too. However, if you allow them to dominate you and you ever say, “Lord, this is too much, Lord take me home,” that’s the time some of the anointing is going to be taken off you. When the anointing is taken off, you would have less responsibility too. Less responsibility comes with less reward. You do not fully meet what God wanted you originally to do. This is a possibility because God honors free choice in our life.



The point we want to show in this incident is how God could take the anointing of the Spirit and divide it in measures. Some may be frightened at this like John Wimber was at first. He thought that if he kept imparting his anointing to others, after sometime he would have no more anointing left. Imparting is different from God taking it off you. As you impart your anointing, it never runs out. After all, it is more a stream of supply that flows. You could impart the anointing to people and it will never run dry. It is a different matter altogether if God takes your anointing completely off you and distributes it to others. The point that we are seeing here is that there are different measures of the anointing; there are different degrees of the anointing. Two persons may stand in the office of a prophet but both receive different measures of anointing. It is the same office but there are different levels of anointing. As was given in the book there, “The Anointing of the Holy Spirit,” Elijah has the anointing but Elisha has a double portion of the anointing. Both men occupied the same office but they each had a different measure of the anointing. Some ministers are more anointed than others. That is a true because God gives different measures of anointing.



We need to learn how to increase the measure of the anointing. Before we look into that, let us look at the anointing on Jesus and see the statement made by John the Baptist of Jesus. John 1:32, John bore witness, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him. I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, “Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.” He says he sees the Spirit coming upon Him and remaining upon Him. That was supposed to be for John to know that he is going to be the One the giver of the Holy Spirit. The anointing can be measured. Notice in John 3:34 it tells us that Jesus had been given the Spirit without measure. He had the Spirit on His life and it was measureless. For He whom God has sent speaks the word of God, (now “He” is capitalized since it refers to Jesus) for God does not give the Spirit by measure. Now that statement applies only to Jesus’ situation. If John made that statement and it applies to everybody then it cancels out what II Kings 2 said where Elisha asked for double measure. God had given the Spirit in measure. Numbers 11 there was the measure taken from Moses and given to the people. The word “He” particularly refers to Jesus who received the Spirit upon His life without measure. He stood in apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, and teacher office in full measure. Some evangelists stand in a certain measure of anointing and other evangelists have a greater measure of the anointing. Even among the five-fold ministry, there are different measures. Jesus stood in all five-fold and had all the full measure of the entire five-fold. That is why Jesus was so powerful in His ministry. The anointing makes the difference. Since the anointing was on His life without measure, that verse is also in a sense prophetic of a time coming when God intends to give people a very high level or measureless anointing in the offices. The book of Acts 2 says in the last days God will pour His Spirit. God intends to release a measureless measure of the anointing upon this earth in the last days. God will pour His Spirit upon all flesh. It is the intention of God to release the measureless measure. If God calls you to be a prophet, you could tap into the measureless measure in that office. There is a possibility of moving into that area. God could call you to be a teacher and you could tap into that measureless measure of anointing in that office too.



Now there are key principles to learn how to tap into the anointing of the Holy Spirit. We are establishing the principle that the anointing can be measured. Jesus had it on His life without measure. The book, “The Anointing of the Holy Spirit,” tells you how the anointing can be increased measure upon measure. Before we move into learning how to tap into the anointing, we have to know when the anointing comes upon us, how to yield to the outflow of the anointing to receive the inflow of the anointing as we were teaching in the past three lessons. Jesus had to flow by the same laws of the inflow and outflow. Jesus had to know the tangibility of the anointing upon His life. He had to declare the anointing upon His life.



Let us look at some examples of Jesus’ life. In the gospel of Mark 5:27 When she heard about Jesus she came behind Him in the crows and touched His garment. For she said, “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.” Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction. Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that the power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My clothes?” Jesus knew that there was a flow of anointing through His life. He knew there was this presence upon Him. Then we see chapter 6:4-6 But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.” Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. He marveled because of the unbelief. Then He went about the villages in a circuit teaching.



The very next chapter we see that although the anointing was upon Jesus’ life was measureless, it was not operative at all. He had to come down to the point of laying hands. Why was that so? The people were not receptive to the anointing in His life. He could not flow through to them. Three areas are mentioned as a possibility of stopping the flow of the anointing - His own country; in His own hometown and in His own house. The non-receptivity of the people in these three areas indicates that familiarity in the wrong sense hindered them from receiving Jesus as a prophet. They did not receive Jesus as a Messiah. Due to their lack of belief, they thought that Jesus the carpenter was trying to masquerade as a prophet. They said, “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son.” Jesus had more to offer them. Jesus knew that the anointing was operating for them. He did not purposely force Himself into it. However, He refused to flow into that anointing in the midst of an unbelieving crowd.



In gospel of Luke 4 after He declared in verse 18 and 19 that the anointing was on Him, He rolled the scroll, sat down and all the eyes were on Him. In verse 21, He said, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” Do you know they did not receive Him as the Messiah or the prophet of God? But they said in verse 22, “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?” They received Him indeed but they received Him just as an ordinary person. The Bible tells us, and notice what He said in verse 23. It has reference to Him choosing not to flow. He said to them, “You will surely say this proverb to Me, ‘Physician, heal yourself!’ Whatever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in Your country.” He was saying that some of them were going to say to Him to do that all the mighty works He did in Capernaum. The people’s words were said more in the sense of mockery and sarcasm, rather than in faith and belief. The people of Nazareth tried to put pressure on Him to perform. Jesus said in verse 24 Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country. Please do not go around and claim that as a biblical promise. He was talking about a purely human phenomenon that can be overcome. Even Kathryn Kuhlman did not have full reception in her hometown. The people would still look down on her. When her ministry went international, she still got the same old critics in her own hometown. Some in her hometown accepted her and wanted to build a memorial landmark in her hometown but there was opposition too to that project. This may be due to some natural human tendencies to put down others out of envy and jealousy.



We see that the anointing was there but He knew that there would not be any flow at all in that place. But subsequently in Luke 6:6 Now it happened on another Sabbath, also, that He entered the synagogue and taught. And a man was there whose right hand was withered. And the Scribes and Pharisees watched Him closely, whether He would heal on the Sabbath, that they might find an accusation against Him. (Now these people did not believe Him.) But He knew their thoughts, and said to the man who had the withered hand, “Arise and stand here,” And he arose and stood. Then Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one thing: Is it lawful on the Sabbath to go good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy?” And when He had looked around at them all, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand,” And he did so, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.



Now an interesting thing about this incident is that it was contrary to what happened in Jesus’ hometown. On this Sabbath, people, namely the scribes and Pharisees, were also going against Him. However, in the midst of their unbelief and accusations, Jesus demonstrated the anointing. Does it not look opposite to what happened in Nazareth, His hometown? In this other place, these guys were staring at Him like vultures waiting to devour Him anytime. They were looking for fault. Let me tell you if you are going to find fault you can find it in anybody and everybody. A major portion of criticism is fault finding. I mean if you do not like someone you just keep quiet. Some people will always find fault with others. “I do not like this.” “I do not like that.” They will find things that they do not like. “I do not like the shirt you wear.” “I do not like your hair style.” You could always find practically a reason not to like somebody. Let your conscience be your judge and do not feel oppressed by other people’s unfair criticisms. You may not be the one at fault. That critical guy may be having a spirit of slander and gossip on his or her tongue.



Now here is the contradictory situation. In Mark 6 and Luke 4, the people of Jesus’ own hometown rejected Him and He could not do any mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. In Luke 6, the scribes and Pharisees were watching him like a hawk. Verse 7, So the scribes and Pharisees watched Him closely, whether He would heal on the Sabbath, that they might find an accusation against Him. Despite their unbelief and vulture-like stares, Jesus performed a miracle in front of them.



That is where we have to differentiate between a miracle and a sign and wonder. The Bible does not use all these words emptily. A sign and wonder can be a miracle but it can be more than that. A sign and wonder is an anointing that God gives to cut through unbelief. However, a normal miracle and an anointing to do the miraculous may not work under certain circumstances. In other words, if God gives you a certain anointing to perform a sign, you could have everybody staring down at you in unbelief and you could still do it because the anointing was given to cut through that thick unbelief that is present. Sometimes the anointing is just in the miraculous realm and you got to meet the conditions involved. Sometimes, the anointing is a sign and wonder that can be used in what I call a demonstrative manner. You could use it as a challenge. However, you better be sure that the anointing is going to flow. Otherwise, you could be run out of town. If that miracle does not happen, you could possibly be crucified.



William Branham was ministering in Africa in the midst of many followers of false religions. He pulled out a man with a withered hand. Now that is a sign but it is also a miracle. A sign works in the midst of unbelief. Sometimes God gives signs. Signs are to challenge and to cut through unbelief so that you will believe. It is not just a normal anointing. Signs are at a different level of anointing. He named all the religions present and he told the people, “If your god is real, come and restore this man.” There was silence in the stadium. Then he says, “To show you that Jesus Christ is the true and only living God, in the Name of Jesus, be healed.” The withered hand healed instantaneously and he became a normal man. After that, you do not need a sermon. He gave an invitation and everybody ran up. That is a sign.



Do you notice God gave Moses three signs? Why did God give him a sign? Moses said they will not believe. Because of the unbelief, God said, “Alright I give you three signs.” One of the signs was putting his hand into his bosom, taking it out, and turning into a leprous hand. He puts his hand back again, takes it out and it became a normal hand. Moses also took water, poured it on the ground, and it turned into blood. He took a stick, threw it down and it became a snake. A sign is to confront unbelief and to create faith in God and those whom He has sent. These are days where we need to reach out to God for signs. Now signs do not just come easily. A sign has a purpose.



You hardly hear about William Branham today although he was very powerful in his days. Why? In the 1960s, he turned into wrong teaching and error. As a result, people did not only reject his ministry but they also rejected the purpose of God’s calling on his life. A portion of his ministry was genuine but some portions of his ministry were also bad. People did not differentiate the two. You could have served God for fifty years but if you missed God for the last five years, people are not going to acknowledge your ministerial labor for the first fifty years. They will say that you have been a false prophet all along.



Now here is the thing to watch it. A sign has a place and a time. It is different from anointing upon all the time. If God gives you an anointing upon, you could flow in it all the time when there is demand made for that ministry. However, a sign may be used for some time and then passed away. You do not find Moses always going around performing the three signs God gave him – the sign of the hand becoming leprous, the sign of the water turning into blood, and the sign of the stick turning into a snake. Now as they crossed the Red Sea and the people started questioning his leadership, Moses did not quickly start his magic show again - putting his hand in and taking it out leprous; turning water into blood and changing the stick into a snake. No, a sign does not come just like that. He never uses it anymore; he used it once in his lifetime. You cannot call up a sign anytime. However, some signs are persistent to a ministry.



William Branham has a particular sign of working with the angel. He ministers to people by holding their hand with his left hand because certain signs operate in his left hand. Some signs are quite consistent but they only come as the Spirit wills. A sign can operate in the midst of unbelief but when it functions in a normal anointing, it goes by the normal laws. There is no exception. The only exception to what we are teaching on flowing in the anointing is the category of sign. If God gives you a sign to take to the head of state, you better make sure it is truly from the Lord. Otherwise, you will start a prison ministry. However, if you demonstrate the sign, then you could bring the whole nation to the Lord. Signs are powerful. Let us not ignore the fact. Jesus Christ moved in both categories. There are times when this unbelief is present. God may use you like He used William Branham. He called up a man who had withered hand and he used that man as a challenge. He challenged the people. That is the purpose of signs. Signs are used to challenge unbelief. However, you do not find that at all in Mark 6. In unbelief, He did not do anything. Instead, He just prayed for a few simple cases. He did not operate any sign.



There is another case that we want to consider in the gospel of Mark 8:11 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven. It does not mean that if you operate in signs that when people challenge you, you do what they want. You do not do things in the ministry because somebody tells you to. You better settle that in your life and in your heart. You do not do anything because somebody tells you to. Whether it is from somebody in high status or in low status; whether it is because you are under high pressure or low pressure; whether it a popular thing to do or not a popular thing to do - in the ministry God has called you to, you do not do anything because somebody asked you to do it. You do it because you know God has asked you to do it. I had that settled in my early days when God called me. I settled in my heart that I would not do anything if somebody pressurizes me. However, if you prayed and you sensed God is saying something to me and you allowed me to check it out with God, that is different. I fear no man and I fear no devil. In fact, I despise pressure being put on me. I despise people trying to corner me and telling me to do something. When people do that, they are not depending on the Lord. God does not put you into this kind of situation. What you will not do to Jesus do not do to the leaders in your fellowship or in your church.




Jesus Christ was always cornered. He had the ability to do signs if God so will. There are times when thunder roared from heaven and a voice spoke. He did not ask for it but it came. Here they put Him in a fix by asking Him to show them a sign and they would believe. That is a ridiculous request. Even if He did, they would not have believed. Jesus said no sign would be given except the sign of Jonah. The sign of Jonah pointed to and prophesied His own death and resurrection. He determined never to do anything under pressure from men.

That is an important thing as you learn to move into the anointing of God. If you go to a home group to preach, if you go to a place and do anything you do not do it because you are under pressure to perform. You only do what the Spirit of God tells you to do. Obey the Holy Spirit and do exactly what He tells you to. Do not try to please men but please God with all your heart, mind, and strength. That is what each one of us is training to do - to please God. We are here to please God. If God tells you something, that is final.

We want to point to a particular thing in His ministry to a blind man in Mark 8. In verse 22 Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him. He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town. And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he sees anything. And he looked up and said, “I see men like trees, walking.” Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up. And he was restored and saw everyone clearly. Then He sent him away to his house, saying, “Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town.”

I find this incident to be extremely interesting. For the first time you see how one touch from Jesus is not enough. Obviously, He operated by the anointing here. You know what He did. He spat on his eyes. You better make sure it is an anointing. The man looked up and said, “I see men walking like trees.” The interesting is this is Jesus Himself. I mean if this is another preacher or one of His disciples we can understand. But this is the Lord Jesus Christ and He ministered the anointing and this man was partially healed. The Bible says in Isa. 10:27 the anointing breaks the yoke. It did not mention that the yoke would be partially broken or partially healed. You know what Jesus did? He put His hands on this man again and ministered the anointing. See Jesus here is flowing by the anointing. He is ministering the anointing of God on human lives. He could sense like what we have shown yesterday how the anointing can flow. As the anointing flowed, it must be the Holy Spirit and the anointing of God that caused Him to spit and take that saliva and put it on the man’s eyes. He flowed in a certain way in the anointing of God.

Then why is it that the anointing does not give a perfect complete healing? It is because the anointing may need time to operate on a person. I know there are people who say, “If the Lord tells you to pray for people you just pray.” You can do it but there are times when it takes a longer period. Why? Different principles operate when you channel the anointing. Here, Jesus was channeling the anointing again to this man. Let us face it we are not moving even at Jesus’ level now. Here as we are still trying to reach Jesus’ level and seeking to do what He do, a lot more is required from both the minister and the person being ministered to. Like for example when you are ministering to somebody, you may have to stand and let the anointing flow through you. Sometimes the anointing just flow easily; sometimes it is fast as lightning and sometimes it is like a slow current. Sometimes it bounces off a little bit. You flow along with the anointing of God as it flows in your life.

There are two causes for the flow of the anointing - the minister’s side and the recipient’s side for the anointing to flow. The level of differential of the positive and the negative points of a battery determines the amount of current flowing through. In the same way, there is the flow of anointing from the minister to a recipient. The amount of anointing flowing depends on the level of anointing upon me and the level of hunger in that person. In Jesus’ life, there is no question of the level of anointing. His is hundred percent anointed all the time. He is always flowing at peak performance. We cannot question His side. We only can question the recipient’s side. There are more issues involved on the minister’s side, for example his yieldedness to the Lord.

Then we need to consider the amount of measure flowing at that time. As you notice, you look at the fluctuation in the anointing. The anointing can fluctuate within a person’s ministry and it can fluctuate within the same meeting. It can fluctuate from meeting to meeting and it can fluctuate from within one meeting, depending on the level that is flowing. Sometimes when it is flowing very fast you got to move very fast. I sensed sometimes that people minister the anointing there is a heavy flow coming forth. When there is an anointing that is heavy and strong, you got to be quick. You do not delay. Sometimes when the anointing is there, you have to be quick. You notice sometimes when I call pastors to minister together with me to the congregation, I would mention that the anointing is ready. Suppose they start dragging their feet, putting their Bibles down, adjusting their dress or shirt, combing their hair and then coming out to position themselves in front of the people. By the time they finished all these the level of the anointing begins to fall. You got to start all over again. All these are facts to note about the flowing of the anointing of God. You have to be sensitive to the level to the anointing that is flowing. You minister and you flow along according to the level of the anointing.


Demonstration of the Anointing


What follows is an account of some actual demonstration of the anointing conducted in another church by another pastor. This verbatim report is added here to show some new dimensions of the anointing of the Holy Spirit. In this particular service, the anointing was used to unmask the dark powers causing problems to individuals. (Ed.)



Pastor said, “In the end times, God will unleash more of the Holy Spirit to accomplish His plans and purposes. Not everyone will be caught in the rapture. Only those who obey God and do God’s will. God wants to release the anointing through the Body of Christ, but now it is in the initial stage. God expects accountability. All gifts belong to God and God will manifest through us to accomplish His job and purposes. God gets all the glory, not any church or organization. God is a jealous God. He is the God who performs the miracles, not you and me.”



“There is an anointing to set you free and see to your needs. This anointing will zero in on the root cause. It will summon the dark powers behind your problem and they have to manifest themselves.”




First Case


Pastor walked down the aisle and points to an Indian woman to go up to the mike. He then asks her, “What do you want from the Holy Spirit. Think carefully – you have only one request.” She said, “I find it difficult to walk with God. I find myself going further and further from the Lord.”



Pastor shouts, “Damo.” The woman started manifesting and a demon began growling through her throat.



Pastor asks the demon in her, “Is your name Damo?”



“Yes.”



“Are you responsible for her spiritual condition?”



“Yes.”



“Tell us how you did it.”



“I make sure she will forget God. I make her lazy and tired so that she does not have to spend time with God. I make her happy with her life and give her a lot of work to do.”



“How did you enter her?”



“I entered her through her stronghold spirits and through her mind. Her ancestors did a lot of wrong things.”



“Like worship you?”



“Yes. People who do not believe in strongholds are stupid. They get the enemy to come into their lives easily. They open doors to us to create havoc in their lives.”



“Alright, all your legal rights stripped. Go to your assigned place in hell.”



Pastor continues, “Some demons are subtle and are not unruly or violent. You will be surprised that some demons are like gentlemen but they are evil. In the spirit realm, some even dress up in coats and ties. Not all demonic manifestations are violent.”



Now pastor asks the woman, “How do you feel now?”



“I feel light and my mind is very free now. I have no more thoughts of going far from God. Something has left me like a shadow. I feel liberated. I sense God now, and I will spend more time with Him.”



Second Case


Pastor calls out an Indian man to the mike and asked, “What blessing do you want from the Holy Spirit?”



The man replied, “I feel something is disturbing me and making me feel that I won’t make it to heaven.”



Pastor summoned the evil spirit out, “Razi, come out.” The man now is writhing in pain and groaning.



Pastor asked the demon, “Where were you before this?”



“I was in an elephant’s body. I am known as Rajagabeli and I reside in a mountain in India.”



“How did you come here?”



“Fiery angels brought me here. I could not fight them.”



“What did you do to this man?”



“I troubled him by providing him opportunities to yield to temptations. I made him feel that he will not make it to heaven. I planned to bring him to hell.”



“Why are you crying now?”



“I am frightened because of the judgment of God.”



“Did you receive the document from the Lord Jesus Christ?”



“Yes, I did receive that document. It says that I have been judged and my time on earth is up.”



“How did you get into this man?”



“Through his ancestors’ worship of idols. It is not easy for such people to get out of this trap. We tie a large coil around his family. A large anointing can only break it. Many Christians think that after their baptism, they have no more strongholds. This is not true. This is worldly wisdom and understanding. We create circumstances to drag them down. Can I go now?



“All your legal rights stripped. Go to the place in hell assigned to you.” The demon left with a loud scream and the man fell to the floor.



Pastor continues, “If God gives you a breakthrough, He gives you a definite breakthrough. A lot of people do not understand deliverance. They impart from their soul. God’s way is the way of the anointing. “



The man gets up and testifies at the mike, “I felt something coiling around my body has left. The thought that I won’t make it to heaven has also left.”



Third Case


Pastor calls up a Chinese woman to the mike, saying, “What do you want from the Holy Spirit?”



She says, “I have pride in my heart and mind and I want deliverance from this pride.”



Pastor says, “Behind negative and wrong thoughts and feelings are dark forces.”



Pastor called out loudly, “Lin Lai.” The demon in the woman starts groaning and moaning and it appears tormented. “Are you behind the pride in her heart and mind?” The demon refused to answer and kept silent. Pastor then consigned the demon to hell, and it left with a low moan. He continues, “Demons have a right to remain silent, but the Judge has the right to pronounce judgment. The kingdom of God is a kingdom of law, order and rules.



After the woman got up from the floor, she went to the mike and testified, “I find my heart and mind have lowly thoughts. Something took control of me. The “thing” was angry and was forcefully removed.”



Pastor added, “God’s workings change lives and character.”




Fourth Case


Pastor calls out Sam to go to the mike. “What blessing do you want from the Holy Spirit?” He said, “I want healing for my low blood pressure.”



Pastor called out loudly, “Zalia.” The demon started manifesting in Sam. “Where were you before this?”



“I was in a temple in India, guarding the gate. I am a beast but I can’t reveal more.”



Pastor exercised a word of knowledge and said, “You are a wolf spirit. You make sounds of lies. Because of your attitude, you are sent to a place of wrath. Go.” The demon screamed and left.



Pastor continues, “Sometimes, you encounter different attitudes of demons. You have to heed the rules and laws of the spirit world. You cannot do as you like. Even a cop has to conduct himself in line with the laws of the country. If a cop misbehaves, he is charged and discharged. Similarly in the spirit world, you can be charged and discharged if you are lawless.”



Sam goes to the mike and testifies, “I feel something has broken and left me.”



Fifth Case


Pastor calls up Steven, an elderly Chinese man to the mike. “What do you want from the Holy Spirit?”



“I need deliverance from doubts that keep creeping up in my mind. I even have doubts despite seeing the miracles in the sanctuary.”



Pastor then summoned the evil spirit causing this problem, “Addi.” The demon manifests but refuses to answer. Pastor then consigned the demon to hell and Steven was set free from incessant doubting.



Pastor continues, “These spirits of doubt make you skeptical. However, they would have a foothold in your mind when you know the truth but you are reluctant or not ready to yield to the truth. These spirits see your uncertainty of mind and they come in to furnish you dark reasoning as to why you should not yield yourself to these truths. The Bible says that the serpent was most subtle. The first attribute pointed out by God regarding the devil is his subtlety. When the evil spirit takes over a person’s spirit, there is one problem. It is easy to cast out that evil spirit by a simple deliverance prayer. But when it overtakes the soul and its intellectual, emotional and volitional faculties, then the problem becomes complex and the person’s character changes. It has become a very serious case. When you yield to the devil’s suggestions, he enters your soul. Temptations come and you yield to them, and the evil spirits overtake your soul. The devil forces the temptations on you, not God. God can deliver any problem but if the person does not want God, He will not come in and help. If you want God to set you free, you must pray. If you do not, God will not. “



“You want the truth, but what is truth? To some, truth is what is acceptable to their mind, to their theology and to their sentiments. That is not the truth. Knowing the truth is the key to your breakthrough. Jesus is the Truth. The Holy Spirit is the Truth. You cannot perceive God’s truth without God’s grace. Man cannot perceive truth without God. Man’s intellect and reasoning cannot perceive truth since it is filled with strongholds and sins. The devil has taken the opportunity to entrench his thoughts and ideas in our minds and reasoning. In that condition, you cannot perceive truth. If you keep entertaining doubts, you will suffer insanity. You do not discern what Satan has in plan for you. Truth comes from God. Jesus said, “I am the Truth.” The Holy Spirit will lead you to the truth. He will teach you the truth. In the spirit world, darkness can shield you from the truth. You do not know the dangers of ignorance of the truth. I lean on the Holy Spirit and God showed that behind my personal doubting is the enemy. God gave grace to crush the enemy and give me personal breakthrough in my thought life and my faith life.”



“Some people’s problems are complicated because they have a long line of ancestral curses behind them. That is why some cannot have breakthroughs even after praying for so long. God is powerful but He exercises power according to laws. Some demons have powerful grips over individuals because they hold documents over them. Their ancestors have sold their families to the devil in return for demonic power during their lifetime. These demons then hold the title deeds to the souls of their descendants. Such documents are high documents. That is why the demonic control over some people is so strong. It has spilled over to their soul – intellect, emotion, and will. That is why some people are hardcore criminals. Some people are in multiple bondages of the devil. However, it can be done, if the individual plead for grace from God. There is a law in heaven that anyone who asks for grace will not be denied – they will be granted grace. Now you know what grace is. Grace is able to deliver you from terrible bondages and problems inherited from your ancestors.”



“However, the individual must ask for grace from God to be delivered. If he does not, God will not. Why did God not deliver Judas? It is because he willed to betray the Lord Jesus Christ. God gave a timeframe to Judas to change his ways but he did not. Satan then asked God for Judas, and God told Satan that he could have Judas. The individual who asks grace to be delivered from his or her individual problems must be humble and upright. The Holy Spirit will do the rest.”



“However, after you have asked for grace, you must wait for the blessings in faith. God gives certain blessings at certain times. You have to wait for God’s timing. There is a time factor for deliverance. In heaven, there are many legal cases brought by Satan against us. Jesus has to defend us. All legal suits in heaven are settled according to righteousness and justice so that nobody can accuse God of unrighteousness. Only when the matter is settled in heaven, can it be settled down here on earth.”



“When the enemy attacks your mind, reject his thoughts immediately. If you entertain the devil’s thoughts, you can be entrenched in them and you will be led to eternal doom. There was once a law case in heaven involving one of our church members. The Holy Spirit revealed this case to me to let me know what is happening among the people here. Satan told the Judge, “I want this man because he thinks dirty thoughts.” God answered, “I know this man – he hates these thoughts.” Then Satan replied, “If that is so, then why did he not reject them? God had to reply, “You can have him.” However, I pleaded with God for him and God granted my petition and spared him, for my sake. When a pastor walks closely with God and pleases Him greatly, God will have regard for him. When he prays for a troubled member of his flock, God will hear him and spare the member because of His regard for him. You must know God’s ways in order to please Him. However, if the pastor is unrighteous and lawless, God will not have any regard for him. Even his prayers are an abomination to Him, how much more if he prays for anyone of his congregation. That is why, under such lawless pastors, their congregations are suffering and do not have breakthroughs. You should know your pastors and those who labor over you.