When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
Luke 3:21-22
In the past, I have posted about the anointing of God upon our lives. We receive God’s anointing when we are chosen by God for a specific task. We’re then anointed to complete it.
What we see from Scripture is that the Spirit follows the anointing. At Jesus’ baptism, the Holy Spirit came upon Him in power. That was His anointing for ministry.
At the same time there was a voice from heaven (The Father) confirming this calling. My question is; how did He get to this point? The answer will help me in my walk with God.
And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
Luke 2:52
Wisdom is the application of what you’ve learned. Stature speaks of physical growth. The word favor is the grace of God. These are very important points for us to learn.
Have you ever thought about it in these terms before? Jesus had to grow in grace. But the key word is grew. That Greek word literally means to drive forward as if by beating.
Jesus was driven to grow in grace and wisdom. Of course He did have an advantage over us. He was perfect and He had a photographic memory. The Lord only had to hear the Scripture once and He remembered it.
The key is that when He heard Scripture He was driven to enter into the grace of it. This should be the same for us.
Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you. Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress.
1 Timothy 4:14-15
Paul tells Timothy, a young pastor, to be diligent and give himself totally the callings that were placed upon his life. Paul explains to Timothy the reason for this. It literally says, so that your driving forward may be a light to all.
We must drive ourselves to secure the anointing. To walk in our callings will take drive and determination. It will not just happen by accident. It’s a spiritual battle. But, through the power of God, we will be victorious.
Question: What does it mean to drive yourself forward in grace?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: anointed, anointing, anointing of God, battle, calling, Christ, driven, favor, grace, growing in grace, Holy Spirit, Jesus, position, positioned for the anointing, power, spiritual, victory, wisdom
This is the last post in a series I’m writing about the anointing. It seems that the church is under the impression that just because we have the Holy Spirit in us, we have the same anointing as Jesus. Hopefully, based upon my last few posts, you understand why that’s not the case. We need to seek God’s approval to walk in His power.
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.
2 Timothy 2:15
We’re now in a position to understand what Paul was telling Timothy in this verse. Do your best – be diligent – to present yourself to God as one anointed. When you’re approved before God there’s no need to be ashamed.
This is a big problem among God’s people in our generation. We’re full of boldness when we’re in praise and worship. But on the job or at school it’s a different story. We keep our faith inside, not wanting to “offend” anyone. That’s foolishness, since every other group will openly declare what they believe to be true.
It all comes down to power. I want to say to those I work with, “God loves you. He will change your life. He’ll heal you and bless you.” But I worry that if they let me pray with them, nothing will happen. Furthermore, I’m not healed and my life isn’t blessed. What if they ask me about that? I’d rather just keep quiet and avoid the embarrassment.
The church needs to be on its knees seeking the approval for ministry. Then, when the anointing is upon us, we will not worry about what the world or our friends think.
I believe that the next great revival will involve the church coming to an understanding of this truth. But we will have to attain to a certain level of intimacy before the Lord will manifest His anointing in us. This is probably going to be the hardest move for the church to enter into.
I don’t think it will come as a wave, but as individuals begin paying the price for God’s approval. Then, they must show up at the place and time of their anointing. It could be a big or small meeting. It will not matter as long as it’s God’s appointed place.
Do what it takes to secure your anointing. Follow the example of Christ. Seek intimacy with the Father. Then, as the Holy Spirit speaks to your heart, walk in obedience to His voice.
Question: What could happen if the whole church walked in the anointing of the Lord?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: anointed, anointing, ashamed, be diligent, boldness, Christ, church, embarressed, God's approval, Holy Ghost, Holy Spirit, intimacy with the Father, Jesus, next great revival, power, prayer, revival, revival and anointing, the Anointed One
I’ve been posting about David’s anointing as king and how it relates to us. It’s surprisingly similar to what we go through in the church today.
So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came upon David in power. Samuel then went to Ramah.
1 Samuel 16:13
It’s clear from this verse that the Holy Spirit and power follows the anointing. That’s what Christ was referring to when He said, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me BECAUSE He has anointed me.” (Luke 4:18)
I believe that this is a special move of the Holy Spirit to work signs and miracles. It’s not the same as the Holy Spirit simply being in us because of salvation. It’s the power of God, present to confirm His word.
If you’ve been following these posts, you may remember I said how little the word “anointing” was used in the New Testament. If you check it out, except once by Paul, all the usage was Jews writing to Jews.
Paul wrote most of the New Testament to Gentiles. What would a Greek know about the Hebrew anointing? Paul wrote to people who had no knowledge of it. How did he describe it?
To understand it, let’s talk about the priesthood in Israel. To become a priest, you didn’t just walk up to the temple and say, “I’m a Levite and I want to be a priest.” ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!
To be anointed as priest, you had to attend and graduate a school of the law taught by a Rabbi. Then you had to prove that you’ve memorized the Pentateuch (The first five books of the Bible). You had to show your family records proving priestly lineage. Then you would strip and every inch of your body would be inspected by a board of priests who were looking for any defect that would disqualify you.
Only when you had passed every test would you be robed in priestly clothes and the oil of the anointing was poured on your head. Being in the right family was only the beginning. It wasn’t until you were tested and approved to be a priest that you could be anointed.
In reality, our spiritual anointing involves being approved by God. That’s the word Paul used throughout his writings to the Gentiles. They wouldn’t understand anoint, but approve they could grasp.
The Greek word that Paul used is translated as approve, commend, chosen, or election depending upon the context. But these words were used by Paul the same way anointing is used in the Old Testament.
What we miss sometimes, is that we can be saved, but not approved to walk in the power of God. We think that just because we have the Holy Spirit in us, we have the same authority as Christ. We have to be approved to walk in God’s authority.
That’s the true anointing of power.
Question: What does it take to be approved to walk in the authority of the Holy Spirit?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: anointed, anointed one, anointing, approval, approved, approved for the anointing, authority, chosen, Christ, church, commend, election, Holy Ghost, Holy Spirit, Jesus, move of the Holy Spirit, power, power follows anointing, tested and approved
In talking about the anointing that we have in Christ, there’s a subject that needs to be addressed. I’m getting to the point where I cringe when I hear another sermon or teaching about our position in Christ.
It’s not that I think they’re unscriptural. Far from it. I believe that I am “the righteousness of God” in Christ Jesus. I believe that I am holy, healed, prosperous, and anointed in Christ.
The problem I see is that if all we concentrate on is our position in Christ, we miss out on seeing the manifestation. I want to live out all the things that Christ paid for me to possess.
One of these is our anointing. We are all called to an anointing in Christ. I want to see it manifest in us. That takes more than just sitting back and confessing it by faith.
For a few posts we have been looking at David’s anointing as king.
Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, “The LORD has not chosen these.”
1 Samuel 16:10
Here we can see the problem in some of our teaching on the anointing. We are all called to an anointing. The problem is that all of us are called, but few are chosen. When you talk about walking in the anointing, it involves being chosen by God.
The anointing is not just about calling. The progression is called, chosen, and anointed. The simple truth is that you can be called from now until Jesus returns and never see the anointing manifest.
That is, if you never do what it takes to be chosen.
Look at what had to happen in David’s case.
So he asked Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?” “There is still the youngest,” Jesse answered, “but he is tending the sheep.” Samuel said, “Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives.”
So he sent and had him brought in. He was ruddy, with a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the LORD said, “Rise and anoint him; he is the one.”
1 Samuel 16:11-12
“I told you, that your whole family needed to be here.”
These words strike anger and resistance into the hearts of God’s people.
“Who are you to tell me that I need to be at these special meetings?”
When your church has a guest speaker and you see that as an opportunity to take the day off – do you know what you’re missing?
“I have something important that needs to be done.”
There are times and places that God may want to meet with you. Your prayer time, Bible study, a church meeting, or some other “holy appointment” could be a potential encounter with the anointing of the Lord.
God may have a pinpoint anointing for you. But you have to be at the right place, at the right time, where God has expected to meet with you. Don’t miss that appointment.
Question: How could this be a source of the lack of power and effect of the church in America?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: anointed, anointing, anointing dilemma, called, chosen, Christ, church, confession, divine appointment, faith, holy appointment, Jesus, manifestation, position, position in Christ, position versus manifestation, resistance, the Anointed One
In my last post I started talking about the Old Testament custom of anointing with oil. Specifically, I was looking at David’s anointing as the King of Israel in I Samuel, chapter 16. When Samuel approached David’s family, they thought they were merely being called to a public sacrifice.
In reality, they were called to an anointing of power for kingship. At some point Jesse must have said to David, “It’s not important that you be there.”
That was probably fine with David. As a teenager, he didn’t want to attend a boring church service anyway. He’d rather watch the sheep.
Please understand this point. The whole reason for the meeting was so David could receive the anointing as king. Yet, both he and his father thought it wasn’t important for David to attend.
This should be a sobering thought. Your invitation to the anointing of power will come wrapped in an envelope that looks like junk mail. You didn’t know that God had planned to give you an anointing to heal the sick this Sunday at church.
All you knew was that an invitation somewhere else was more important to you. After all, “I’ve attended faithfully for a while. I deserve to miss a week.”
The calling to the anointing will seem very unimportant in comparison to what we want to do.
When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, “Surely the LORD’s anointed stands here before the LORD.”
But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”
1 Samuel 16:6-7
As a pastor, I want to find the ones in my church who are called to lead ministries. But I have to be careful. The first to arrive is not always the one God wants. Maybe God’s choice is still in bed.
Don’t miss receiving the manifestation of God’s anointing upon your life. Be faithful to show up where you’re supposed to be. Don’t let the excuses and distractions of the world disqualify you for service in the Kingdom of God.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not condemning you for missing church. There are many legitimate reasons we can’t make it. God is big enough to work in us during those times.
I’m talking about not meeting with God’s people in order to please the desires of our flesh. That’s where you run the risk of missing God’s anointing in your life. Don’t miss out on the good things that God has prepared for you.
Question: What’s the difference between missing public worship for the right and wrong reasons?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: anoint, anointed, anointed one, anointing, anointing to heal, boring church service, called, called to lead, David, don't miss the anointing, junk mail, king David, manifestation, ministry, missing church
I’m posting for a while on how to walk in our anointing. In my last post we saw that the power of the Holy Spirit follows the anointing. Today, I want to start getting into some details that we may have missed along the way. If I can find the key to the anointing, then the rest will fall into place.
It’s interesting to note that anointing is only mentioned 13 times in the New Testament. Of those, it’s only referred to as a spiritual anointing for us 6 times. There’s a reason for so little mention in the N.T. It comes from an ancient practice in the Old Testament. If we can understand that usage, then we’ll have a good foundation for understanding the anointing in us.
Anointing was a ceremony of pouring oil on something or somebody. It was used for a lot of things. Personally, I don’t care about how to anoint cooking pots. What relates to us is the usage with prophets, priests, and kings. I want to know how anointing brings power.
The LORD said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king.”
But Samuel said, “How can I go? Saul will hear about it and kill me.”
The LORD said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.’ Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what to do. You are to anoint for me the one I indicate.”
1 Samuel 16:1-3
God told Samuel to go and anoint a new king over Israel. He gave Samuel a Word – Go to Bethlehem. He told Samuel that He would show him what to do when he got there.
Once in Bethlehem, Samuel went to the house of Jesse as instructed.
Samuel replied, “Yes, in peace; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves and come to the sacrifice with me.” Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
1 Samuel 16:5
According to the Word of the Lord he was given, Samuel invited – called them – to come the sacrifice. In actuality, he was calling them to come to the anointing of the new king of Israel.
It should be clear from this passage that anointing involves calling. The two go hand in hand. To reject your calling is to reject the anointing God has for you.
God has called you to do a great work for Him. The anointing is what enables you to walk in the power to fulfill that calling. Anointing is not a license to do whatever you want with God’s power. It equips you to fulfill God’s plan in your life.
Question: What is God calling you to do at this point in your life?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: anoint, anointing, anointing and calling, calling, God's plan, Holy Spirit, king, power, power of God, power of the Holy Spirit, priest, prophet, spiritual
I believe that God is about to pour out a revival upon His church. Right now, we’re in the preparation stage. Our concern should be, with positioning ourselves to receive it.
Jesus is our example in ministry. If we see how He positioned Himself, then we can follow His lead.
“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 favor.”
Luke 4:18-19
Christ’s ability to walk in the power of God was brought about in three major events. These were His baptism, temptation, and His announcement of ministry. This verse shows us His entrance into the public ministry.
After reading this portion of Scripture, the Lord announced that it was being fulfilled in their presence. I believe that this holds the key to positioning ourselves. It’s all about the anointing.
We’ve heard a lot of teaching on the anointing over the years. Unfortunately, some of it has been a little off base. Where was it wrong?
First, let’s look at where we were right. The anointing removes burdens and destroys yokes. That’s a true statement based upon Isaiah 10:27. Furthermore, that was Jesus’ whole ministry in a nutshell.
Another part is that the word Christ encompasses the Anointed One and His anointing. Since that’s true, it is also the case that as Christians, we are little anointed ones. That’s the meaning of the name.
The final truth that we must embrace is that we all have an anointing from God. Scripture is clear on that point.
With all of this truth, then where are we off? My question is this; with this entire teaching being proclaimed, why are burdens NOT being removed and yokes NOT being destroyed in much of the church?
I’ve also heard it taught that the Holy Spirit is our anointing. That’s where we’ve misunderstood the Scripture. Look at the above verse carefully.
Jesus clearly said, “The Spirit…is on me BECAUSE he has anointed me.” What we’ve missed is that the Spirit follows the anointing.
This is a different work than salvation. Yes, the Holy Spirit lives in me when I receive Christ as Lord. But the anointing for the power of the Holy Spirit is a different thing. That’s why there are so many believers in the body of Christ that live powerless in this generation.
We need to understand exactly what the anointing is and how to receive it. Then, like Christ, we can walk in the power of the Holy Spirit that this anointing opens up.
I’m going to take the next few posts to try and explain how this works in our Christian walk. If you haven’t subscribed to this blog yet, you should do it now so that you won’t miss any of this vital message to the church.
Question: Are you content with the level of power evidenced in the church today?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: anoint, anointed, anointing, Christ, Christian, destroy yokes, Holy Spirit, Jesus, ministry, misunderstood the anointing, power, power of God, powerless, remove burdens, revival, the Anointed One
In my last post I talked about how we are called to live a life of excellence. Did you know that your eternal rewards are based upon how well you live up to this?
The Bible does speak over and over again about the different levels of rewards based upon the work we perform throughout our lives.
But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.
Luke 12:48
The fact is that we are responsible for what we’ve received. A young Christian is not responsible for the truths that have not yet been made real to him. Someone who’s been walking with the Lord for years, and ignoring His call, will receive less in the kingdom.
It’s clear from Scripture that we’re going to be responsible for the grace that we’ve been given. With a greater anointing and calling comes greater responsibility.
I’ve found that many believers, ministers especially, want the miracles and the big churches without the character it takes to walk uprightly before God in that kind of work. The Lord wants us to grow from the inside out. An increase in power, without a corresponding increase in character, will destroy our spiritual walk.
As a matter of fact, it’s probably too late for you now. You’ve read too much. If you’ve been reading my blogs regularly, then God is going to require excellence from you and your ministry. Now that you know He’s a God of excellence, and that He requires excellence in His followers, you must begin to walk in it. Read on!
Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Matthew 7:13-14
The Lord talked to His disciples about the narrow road. We like to interpret this verse as if it’s merely talking about the road of salvation. Salvation is indeed the first step toward excellence. When we chose Christ, we chose a better path than that of the world.
I believe, however, that this Scripture has a broader meaning in application to the body of Christ. Very few find the walk of excellence to which we have been called. “The few;” that sounds like the definition of excellence to me – “that which goes beyond the expected or the normal.”
The Lord expects us to find the narrow gate of excellence. If it were easy, everyone would be doing it.
Question: Have you made the decision to live a life of excellence before God?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: anointing, beyond, Bible, calling, Christ, eternal reward, excellence, excellence and rewards, expected, Jesus, life of excellence, narrow, narrow gate, narrow road, normal, responsible, rewards, Scripture, walk of excellence, wide road, work
We live in an age of hero worship. It seems that people are more inclined to follow those with the most glitz and showmanship. It has, unfortunately, carried over into the body of Christ.
When it comes to the teachings we accept, how do we decide who to listen to? We need to be asking the right questions. This was something that was clearly portrayed in the ministry of Christ.
The following is taken from the Scriptural passage found in the Gospel of Luke 4:16-40. You will want to read that first to understand what I share in this post.
In that section of Scripture, Jesus preaches at two different synagogues. One was in His hometown of Nazareth, and the other in Capernaum. In both cases He preached the same message. Knowing that it was the Lord, I am assuming that both messages had the same level of anointing.
In spite of these similarities, only one of the towns, Capernaum, received a blessing out of the visit. It is clear to see from the narrative, that the reason was the questions that they asked themselves as Jesus was ministering.
This is important to us because we are guilty of the same type of attitudes that these people had. I believe that we have missed out on countless blessings because our attitudes got in the way. What makes the difference?
Verse 22 shows the question the people of Nazareth were asking. It demonstrates what they were focusing on.
They spoke well of Him. They were amazed at the words from His lips.
“Isn’t this Joseph’s son?”
They were concentrating on who was speaking – was He all that they were expecting?
Capernaum was a different case altogether. Verse 32 and 36 make it clear that they were amazed at His teaching. They recognized that His Word had power and authority. Who He was and what He looked like didn’t figure into their acceptance of the Word.
As a result, revival fell in Capernaum that day. Demons were cast out and all the sick that lived in that area were healed (Verse 33-40).
We need to learn this lesson. Sometimes the biggest show has the least anointing. On the other hand – there are times God wants to perform great miracles through His “unknown servants”.
We need to be asking, “What is the anointing, authority, and power upon this Word.” How big a following someone has shouldn’t figure into it. It’s all about the spirit behind the message, not the person God is using.
If we keep this in mind, then we’ll find the blessing of God in some of the most unlikely places. We will also open ourselves up to the miraculous.
Question: Have you ever received a blessing from God’s unknown servants?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: anointing, asking the right questions, authority, blessing, blessing of God, body of Christ, Christ, expectations, hero, hero worship, Jesus, message, ministry, power, preaching, questions, revival, showman, showmanship, teaching, unknown servants, word, word of God
I have been posting about the difference between the Christian culture and the culture of the world. In my last post, we saw that there are two anointings in the world – the anointing of the Holy Spirit and the antichrist anointing.
The apostle John talked about these anointings in his first letter. In that same context he also said the following…
See that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this is what he promised us — even eternal life.
I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray.
1 John 2:24-26
It is important that we remain in Christ – the Anointed One. If we do, then we will also remain in His anointing. The problem with many of us is that we try to jump back and forth.
Today we want the blessings of Christ. The next day we try and chase after what the world is offering. Sometimes we appear to be a little split in our loyalty.
We need to make a choice. What is it that I want from life? Do I want God’s best, or the world’s best?
After all, there are those who would try to lead us astray. It literally means that they are trying to cause us to roam. When that happens, we lose direction and focus.
It’s sad, but in many cases there are believers who are teaching us how to live with our feet in both worlds. While it’s true that we have to live within the present world system, we don’t have to embrace its philosophy of life. The priorities of the world should not be our priorities.
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 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
The truth is that the Lord wants to place His priorities in us. If we will listen to the Holy Spirit at work in us, we will walk in this anointing. If not, then we become a counterfeit.
A counterfeit is something that looks real, but it’s not. Usually, only something valuable is counterfeited. The counterfeit anointing is referring to those who appear to love God, yet really want what the world is offering.
Their priorities are in direct conflict with God’s, while appearing to serve, praise, and honor Him. Don’t be a Christian in appearance only. Remember, it’s what’s going on inside that counts.
Drink in the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Let Him change your priorities from the inside out. Don’t fall victim to the counterfeit anointing that is so prevalent in the world today.
Question: Why is the world’s anointing so appealing?
© Nick Zaccardi 2012
Tags: anointed one, anointing, antichrist, Christian, counter-culture, counterfeit, counterfeit anointing, counterfeit Christian, God's best, Holy Spirit, loyalty, remain in Christ, world, world system, world's best
When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
The Spirit and the Word 