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Home , Anointing

God communicates today in the same the way that He always has

God speaks to us today in a similar manner to that which was used in both the Old and New Testaments. Believers are now sealed with the of promise until the redemption of the purchased possession. ■ Ephesians 1:13-14 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. The Apostle Paul urges us to be filled with the Spirit. ■ Ephesians 5:18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit. God speaks in various ways The truth is that God spoke; He was the prime mover in prophecy and of course still is today. ■ 2 Peter 1:21 …for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. God is still speaking guidance to His people in a variety of ways; an inspection of the scriptures reveals that exactly the same wording and methods are used in both the Old and New Testaments, as and when God chooses to communicate with His saints. This rings true to me, because our God is the same yesterday and forever, and He does not change. Scripture attests that our God does not change; ■ 13:8 is the same yesterday, today, and forever. ■ Malachi 3:6 For I am the LORD, I do not change ; therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob. Therefore, it seems entirely logical that what He did in the Old, by the way of communicating with His saints, He still does under the New Covenant and even today; the difference is, that now we are under the Gospel of grace and not under the Mosaic Law as were the Israelites. God spoke to the people via His chosen in the Old, and under the New He has spoken by His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. ■ Hebrews 1:1-2 GOD, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son , whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds. Let’s see some examples which show that the methods God uses to communicate with His servants in both Old and New Testaments are the same; however, there are far too many to include them all! Filled with the Spirit of God Bezalel was filled with the Spirit of God in order to produce all the requirements for the tabernacle, by making beautiful articles which he could not do with his own natural ability, for these were ornate objects which required the upmost skill and understanding. ■ Exodus 35:31 And He has filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom and understanding, in knowledge and all manner of workmanship.

Page 1 of 8 Zacharias, the and wife of Elisabeth, (she who was the cousin of our Lord’s mother Mary), on the birth of his son, John, (the Baptist) prophesied. Note that some of these examples although in the were still under the Old Covenant. ■ Luke 1:67-68 And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost , and prophesied, saying, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people, himself was filled with the Holy Spirit from the womb as prophesied by the angel Gabriel to his father Zacharias. ■ Luke 1:15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb . John the Baptist’s mother, Elisabeth, was also filled with the Holy Spirit (Holy Ghost) and prophesied to her cousin Mary. ■ Luke 1:41-42 And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost: and she spake out with a loud voice, and said, blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. Then in the book of Acts, under the New Covenant; ■ Acts 2:4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost , and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And even the Gentiles received this wonderful gift. ■ Acts 11:15 And as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost fell on them , as on us at the beginning. The Holy Spirit was also received by the ■ Deuteronomy 34:9 Now Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom , for Moses had laid his hands on him ; so the children of Israel heeded him, and did as the LORD had commanded Moses. ■ Acts 8:18 And when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money, The Still Small Voice This is how God often speaks to His children today, if they can patiently quiet themselves long enough to hear Him! And this is how Elijah also heard God. The Word of the Lord came to Elijah ■ 1 19:9 And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah? ■ 1 Kings 19:12-13And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his , and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah? The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah many times, he being one of the Major Prophets, but alas Israel did not want to hear!

Page 2 of 8 ■ Jeremiah 1:2 To whom the word of the LORD came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign. The word of the Lord came unto Ezekiel. ■ Ezekiel 1:3 The word of the LORD came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the LORD was there upon him. A very young heard God calling his name and at first thought it was Eli the priest. ■ 1 Samuel 3:9 Therefore Eli said to Samuel, go, lie down; and it shall be, if He calls you, that you must say, speak, LORD, for Your servant hears. So Samuel went and lay down in his place. The Apostle Paul, at that time called , on his commissioning from the Lord was given this from the devout Ananias who said, ■ Acts 22:14-15 The God of our fathers has chosen you that you should know His will, and see the Just One, and hear the voice of His mouth . For you will be His witness to all men of what you have seen and heard. God spoke to Moses face to face as a man speaks to his friend. ■ Exodus 33:11 So the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. And he would return to the camp, but his servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tabernacle. ■ Exodus 19:19And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice . The Spirit descending, resting and coming upon a person The prophecy from Isaiah was fulfilled when John the Baptist baptised Jesus. ■ Isaiah 11:2 The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him , The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD. ■ John 1:32-34 And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from like a dove, and it abode upon him. And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptiseth with the Holy Ghost. And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God. The Spirit that was upon Elijah came to rest upon even in a double portion. Elijah knew that he was to be taken up to the Lord that day, and he granted Elisha’s request, which was that the double portion of God’s Spirit that was upon Elijah would rest upon Elisha if he saw God take Elijah when he ascended into heaven a whirlwind. ■ 2 Kings 2:11 Then it happened, as they continued on and talked, that suddenly a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and separated the two of them; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. ■ 2 Kings 2:15 And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha . And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him. Here Samuel is speaking to King Saul whom he had anointed with holy as king over Israel.

Page 3 of 8 ■ 1 Samuel 10:1 Then Samuel took a vial of oil, and poured it upon his head, and kissed him, and said, is it not because the LORD hath anointed thee to be captain over his inheritance? ■ 1 Samuel 10:6 Then the Spirit of the LORD will come upon you , and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man. And a little later, ■ 1 Samuel 10:10-11 When they came there to the hill, there was a group of prophets to meet him; then the Spirit of God came upon him , and he prophesied among them . And it happened, when all who knew him formerly saw that he indeed prophesied among the prophets, that the people said to one another, what is this that has come upon the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets? The most well-known prophecy from Isaiah declares; ■ :1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; That prophecy from Isaiah was fulfilled by our Lord Jesus Christ in the New Testament. ■ Luke 4:18 The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed. Jesus then said; ■ Luke 4:21 this day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears. God speaks through visions ■ Genesis 15:1 After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision , saying, fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward. ■ 1 Samuel 3:15 So Samuel lay down until morning, and opened the doors of the house of the LORD. And Samuel was afraid to tell Eli the vision. God also spoke to the Samuel by vision here in Psalm 89. ■ 89:19-20 Then You spoke in a vision to Your holy one , (Samuel) and said: I have given help to one who is mighty; I have exalted one chosen from the people. I have found My servant ; with My holy oil I have anointed him. Nathan also was a prophet who received visions. ■ 2 Samuel 7:17 According to all these words and according to all this vision , so Nathan spoke to David. prophets were often called ‘seers’, because through God given visions the future was revealed, so that they ‘saw’ and prophesied of future events concerning God’s plan for mankind, which Isaiah did. ■ 2 Chronicles 32:32 Now the rest of the acts of , and his goodness, indeed they are written in the vision of Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, and in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. ■ Acts 16:9 And a vision appeared to Paul in the night ; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us.

Page 4 of 8 ■ Acts 9:10 And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias . And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord. ■ Acts 18:9 Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night by a vision , be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace: Peter also had a revelation concerning Gentile believers from the Lord in a vision. ■ Acts 11:5 I was in the city of Joppa praying: and in a trance I saw a vision , A certain vessel descend, as it had been a great sheet, let down from heaven by four corners; and it came even to me: And the Apostle John had many amazing revelations whilst ‘in the Spirit’ on the Lord’s Day. ■ Revelation 9:17 And thus I saw the horses in the vision : those who sat on them had breastplates of fiery red, hyacinth blue, and sulphur yellow; and the heads of the horses were like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths came fire, smoke, and brimstone. Setting apart for service God’s will is made known in the setting apart for service of His chosen servants by the application of the holy oil This is an Old Testament phenomenon only; in the New oil is used to anoint the sick, ■ James 5:14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the , and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the Holy Spirit is the One who sets God’s servants apart for service. ■ Acts 13:2 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. David is chosen to be set apart as King after God rejected King Saul. ■ 1 Samuel 16:1 Now the LORD said to Samuel, how long will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go; I am sending you to Jesse the Bethlehemite. For I have provided Myself a king among his sons. God told Samuel to hold a and invite Jesse, and anoint one of his sons, which God would point out to him. ■ 1 Samuel 16:3 Then invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do; you shall anoint for Me the one I name to you . Seven of Jesse’s sons passed before Samuel and none were God’s choice, and so David the youngest was sent for. ■ 1 Samuel 16:13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward . So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah. David functioned as prophet, priest and King. In his psalms are prophecies concerning our Lord Jesus Christ, but in Psalm 51, written after David had sinned concerning Bathsheba and her husband Uriah he wrote; ■ Psalms 51:11 Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Thankfully David was a man after God’s own heart and therefore did not suffer the same fate as King Saul! There is no doubt in my mind that David knew the presence of God in his life through

Page 5 of 8 the anointing of the Holy Spirit, even as we do today, because it takes divine inspiration in order to write and sing all those beautiful prophetic psalms as David did. David knew how to touch the heart of God and men through his instrumental skills and singing, which brought the presence of God and caused the evil spirit that was upon King Saul to depart. ■ 1 Samuel 16:23 And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him. It is a fact that God inhabits our praises; therefore satan flees! ■ Psalms 22:3 But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel. God speaks by angelic visitation Talking of angels, the writer to the Hebrews says; ■ Hebrews 1:14 Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation ? Apart from bringing messages from God, angels were dispatched on other assignments to help the saints – as when an angel shut the mouth of lions in Daniel 6:22, and when Elijah was woken by an angel twice and told to rise and eat 1 Kings 19:5 & 7. In the first five books of the there are 28 occurrences of angelic interventions! The angel of the Lord was very busy on God’s behalf, for in the whole of the Old Testament there are 93 occasions and in the New Testament 99! Here are two examples of the angel of the Lord speaking to Hagar. ■ Genesis 16:7 Now the Angel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur. ■ Genesis 16:9 The Angel of the LORD said to her, return to your mistress, and submit yourself under her hand. The most notable angelic encounter must be that of Balaam’s donkey. The donkey saw the angel with the drawn standing in the way, whilst her master a ‘prophet’ of the worst sort did not! Consequently God caused the donkey to speak to Balaam with a man’s voice (2 Peter 2:16) showing the absolute deficiency of the ‘prophet’ who needed a dumb animal to tell him that he was heading entirely in the wrong direction and against the will of God! Balaam prophesied for financial gain! ■ Numbers 22:28 Then the LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, what have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times? ■ 2 Peter 2:15-17 They have forsaken the right way and gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness ; but he was rebuked for his iniquity: a dumb donkey speaking with a man’s voice restrained the madness of the prophet. These are wells without water, clouds carried by a tempest, for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever. As an aside, there are plenty today who will pray and prophesy for a price! In the Old Testament the angel who spoke to the prophet Zechariah proclaimed the word of the Lord. ■ Zechariah 4:6 Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, this is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts. The angel Gabriel brought God’s message in both the Old and New Testaments

Page 6 of 8 ■ Daniel 9:21-22 Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation. And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding. ■ Luke 1:26-27 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. Even the Gentiles had angelic visits. ■ Acts 10:3 He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius… Paul gave encouragement to those on board the ship caught in an unceasing storm, because of a visit from an angel. ■ Acts 27:23-24 For there stood by me this night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve, saying, do not be afraid, Paul; you must be brought before Caesar; and indeed God has granted you all those who sail with you. By Dreams The Old Testament is a rich ground for God given dreams, I counted over 70; the first one recorded is; ■ Genesis 20:3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night , and said to him, indeed you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man’s wife. Daniel not only had visions and dreams himself, but was able to reveal the dream of Nebuchadnezzar through supplication and prayer to God, and also give the interpretation. ■ Daniel 2:36 This is the dream. Now we will tell the interpretation of it before the king. In the New Testament, godly dreams are comparatively few, yet under the Old Covenant an angel of the Lord spoke to Joseph three times in dreams and the fourth dream is attributed to God. ■ Matthew 1:20 But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. ■ Matthew 2:13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him. ■ Matthew 2:19 Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt ■ Matthew 2:22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And being warned by God in a dream , he turned aside into the region of Galilee. These God-given dreams secured the safety of the young Jesus by directing Joseph away from those who would try to kill the young child. Throughout all ages God has spoken to His people by dreams, visions, and angelic visitations and through His prophets via the Holy Spirit and this is how He speaks and reveals His glorious Gospel

Page 7 of 8 and will today. I personally can attest to God’s will being made known to me through dreams and the still small voice . Although the mystery of the glorious Gospel was not revealed in Old Testament times, but concealed in prophecy, it was revealed by our Lord Jesus Christ and the New Testament Apostles and prophets by the Holy Spirit. ■ Ephesians 3:5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; Now that we have both Testaments in written form, and in our own language we have a complete guide to the knowledge of God’s will; therefore, we are not in the dark, but have the light of life freely available. However, God wants intimate fellowship with all His children, which is available through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. ■ 1 John 2:27 But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him. The power of the indwelling Spirit makes us God’s ambassadors. ■ 2 Corinthians 5:20 Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. Jesus told His disciples before His Ascension. ■ Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you : and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. Today, it is futile to get into arguments of exactly how the Holy Spirit goes about His ministry. What is important is that we personally know the witness of that indwelling presence for ourselves, only then we can be certain that at some time God will make known His will to us by whatever method He chooses. And we trust that we will not be appraised of His angel’s presence and will by the voice of a donkey as was the mad prophet Balaam! We who are New Testament saints can be assured that God has anointed us and given us the Holy Spirit in our hearts, and His promise is never to leave us nor forsake us. ■ 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee. ■ Hebrews 13:5b For He Himself has said, “ I will never leave you nor forsake you .” Oh Lord give us hearing ears, eyes to see, and a heart open to do Your will, for You will be our guide even unto death.

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