The Anointing: Four Things It Changes in Your Life

Introduction

Beloved, Pastor Paul ETTORI's message starts from a verse that speaks about you: "But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you all have knowledge" (1 John 2:20). You have received the anointing. This isn't a reality reserved for a few ministries, it's a gift that belongs to every child of God.

Before getting into the subject, the preacher recalls a basic truth: two natures coexist within us. We all descend from the first Adam, taken from the dust. This Adamic nature, the flesh, contains good things but also very bad ones. Then comes the second birth: we receive God's DNA, the nature of Jesus, a divine nature. That's where the inner battle between our will and God's will in us is born. That's also where the anointing takes on its full meaning.

The outline of this message

1. Understanding what the anointing really is

2. The anointing reveals God's promises to you

3. The anointing teaches you as no teacher ever could

4. The anointing guides you, like the pillar of cloud in the wilderness

5. The anointing protects you and makes you a watchman

6. Get ready: revival is already here

1. Understanding what the anointing really is

The verb "to anoint" means to cover, to coat. In the Old Testament, three categories of people were anointed with fragrant oil: the priest, the king, and the prophet. It was for their mission, for their ministry.

But the anointing spoken of in 1 John 2:20 doesn't come from outside. It comes on the inside. It covers your heart. It is the active presence of the Lord in you. When you pray, when you read the Word, when you witness, you can sometimes feel it. Sometimes you don't feel it, but it's there. We don't live by feelings alone: the flesh passes away, God's presence remains. You can be in the middle of hardship, crying, seeing nothing in the fog, and God is still there. The anointing is there.

Don't confuse noise with the anointing either. Some think the anointing means someone tearing everything up on stage, running, jumping, shouting. There can be noise within the anointing, but you can also be under the anointing in silence. Praying isn't speaking to God without listening. It's a conversation. Jesus told the widow of Nain, "don't cry", without shouting at her, and his words entered her heart. She was comforted, made joyful. When Jesus taught, he had people sit down, sat down himself, and took the time to speak at the pace of his listeners.

A simple picture: if you wet your feet with water before walking into a room, your footprints dry up fast. But if you dip your feet in oil, you leave marks no one can erase. Beloved, God's presence in you is that oil. Whatever you do under the anointing (speaking, staying silent, acting, praying, reading the Word, leading someone to Jesus), it leaves traces. What you do under the anointing lasts, and lasts for eternity.

2. The anointing reveals God's promises to you

You need the Holy Spirit in you, a real and certain presence, because you need to understand God's promises and be reminded of them. With just one promise from God, you can go mile after mile. With one word from the Lord, your life can be changed forever. Something God told you when you were young can help you face every danger years later, because you'll remember that God promised this or that.

Jesus had announced this when speaking of the Holy Spirit: "he will remind you." The Holy Spirit never speaks of himself, he always speaks to you about Jesus. And the most important thing is Jesus. The one who is coming for you soon is Jesus. The one who gave his life for you is Jesus.

That's what Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 2:9-10: "Things which an eye didn't see, and an ear didn't hear, which didn't enter into the heart of man, these God has prepared for those who love him. But to us, God revealed them through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God."

Through the Spirit, you go all the way into the heart of God. You know God's thoughts toward you. And it's very important to know what God thinks of you: it encourages you, it gives you strength. Become a man of the Holy Spirit, a woman of the Holy Spirit, so that God keeps revealing and reminding you of his promises.

3. The anointing teaches you as no teacher ever could

The anointing is also the best of teachers. The preacher testifies: "The greatest teacher I've ever had is the Holy Spirit." He wrote the greatest of books, the Bible. No book will ever be written like that one. He never says one word too many, yet never a word is missing.

This comes straight from the Bible: "As his anointing teaches you all things, and is true, and is no lie, and even as it taught you, you will remain in him" (1 John 2:27). And in 1 Corinthians 2:13: "Which things also we speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches, but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual things."

You need to be taught, to learn. And the best school isn't first of all Bible school, even though it can serve you well. The best school is kneeling before the Lord, being educated and taught by the Holy Spirit. It's when you open the Bible and God reveals himself to you. You'll cry, rejoice, fall to your knees, run out to preach, climb the most impossible mountains.

The Holy Spirit also uses the things of life to teach you. A failure is a very great blessing. God speaks to us more through our failures than through our successes. Success flatters pride; in failure, we become smaller, we learn to ask for God's help, we learn we don't go it alone. Blessings, when they come alone, can very quickly go to our heads. It's more important to be kept under the Holy Spirit's pressure, going from victory to victory with him.

4. The anointing guides you, like the pillar of cloud in the wilderness

The anointing brings direction. You need it. The best of guides is the Holy Spirit. Jesus promised this in John 16:13: "However when he, the Spirit of truth, has come, he will guide you into all truth, for he will not speak from himself; but whatever he hears, he will speak. He will declare to you things that are coming."

The best of GPS systems is the Holy Spirit. When several paths open before you, he'll show you which one to take. A wide, open door may open before you, but once you walk through it, it's too late, you don't know what's on the other side. The other door is small and low, but you know where it leads. How much you need the best of guides! The anointing tells you: "no," "that way," "not that way."

Think of the example of the pillar of cloud that led Israel through the wilderness. It was a vertical cloud, a cloud that touched the ground. When it stirred, the people knew they were about to move on. The priests packed up the vessels, every family packed its bags, and everyone followed the pillar. When it stopped, they stayed, a month, six months, a year, it was God who decided. And if you let God decide your path, you will never be disappointed.

At night, that pillar became fire, better than street lighting. Israel's camp was lit for free, whoever went out at night could find their way easily, wild animals were kept at a distance. God truly wants to guide you. God will always be your guide.

5. The anointing protects you and makes you a watchman

The anointing is also your protection, since it is the presence of God. With God, you are already the majority. "For by you, I advance through a troop. By my God, I leap over a wall" (Psalm 18:29). You can be alone facing a hostile crowd: under God's anointing, you are the strongest. It is the divine presence.

The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. You can also know the strategies of your enemies, the traps, the snares, and not fall into them, because the Lord warns you.

That's why the anointing makes us people of intercession. The whole church should be made up of intercessors. The intercessor is the one on the heights, on the keep, on the tallest tower of the fortress. It's a watchman. The watchman sees far and warns of danger. He doesn't move from his post, he doesn't go fight. But he sees far.

Look at 2 Kings 6:8-12. The king of Syria was at war with Israel. In the councils he held, he decided where he would camp. But the man of God, Elisha, sent word to the king of Israel: "Beware that you don't pass such a place, for the Syrians are coming down there." Once, twice, ten times, many times. The man of God, under the anointing, told the king of Israel where the enemy was coming from, by which way. A watchman is precious. Someone who warns you.

The pure anointing is the Holy Spirit. And this book, the Bible, was written by the Holy Spirit, and it's he who explains it to you. The book of Proverbs is full of warnings: watch out, watch out, listen, don't go that way, go this way. You need wisdom. You need to be warned. And the anointing makes you someone whose eyes are open, someone who discerns the real enemies, because you can also get the wrong enemy.

6. Get ready: revival is already here

In conclusion, the anointing is truly useful. Jesus said it: "It is to your advantage that I go away" (John 16:7). This isn't a loss, it's a gain for you. Before, Jesus was with his disciples. Now, the Holy Spirit is in you. God's house isn't first of all a building, however magnificent. God's house is you, my brother, you, my sister. And wherever you go, the Holy Spirit goes with you.

The Holy Spirit is, today on earth, the greatest, the strongest, the humblest, because he doesn't speak of himself. His ministry is the greatest there is. And he wants to be at work in your life. Revival is already here. But you have to step into it.

The preacher gives the image of the caterpillar. The caterpillar crawls. It can climb a little way up a few stems, but it stays on the ground. Unless it dies to itself. "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves, pray, seek my face... I will heal their land" (2 Chronicles 7:14). When the caterpillar dies to itself, it enters a cocoon. Then one day, the cocoon breaks open, and a butterfly comes out. It doesn't matter that it looks crumpled coming out of the cocoon: it flies, it's free, it's made for the sky.

Be transformed by the renewing of your mind (Romans 12:2). The Greek word for "transformed" is metamorphousthe (μεταμορφοῦσθε): a new form, a new DNA. Those who are prepared will be able to know what God wants to do. So redouble your prayer, redouble your thirst for God, seek his face. Revival is already here.

Key takeaways

• The anointing is the active presence of the Holy Spirit in you, it covers your heart, not your body.
• What you do under the anointing leaves traces, and what you do under the anointing lasts for eternity.
• The Holy Spirit is your best teacher, he teaches you through the Word and through life's failures.
• The anointing is your spiritual GPS, like the pillar of cloud in the wilderness, it decides when to stop and when to move.
• The anointing makes you a watchman, it warns you of danger and helps you discern the real enemies.

Personal application

1. What promise from God, received in the past, do you need the Holy Spirit to remind you of today?
2. In what area of your life are you "making noise" when God is inviting you into silence under the anointing?
3. What decision are you making without letting the Holy Spirit tell you "that way" or "not that way"?
4. Is there a recent failure God would like to use as a "very great blessing" to teach you?
5. Are you ready to be a watchman for your church, your family, your loved ones, someone who sees far and gives warning?

Verses cited

• 1 John 2:20 · You have an anointing from the Holy One
• 1 John 2:27 · His anointing teaches you all things
• 1 Corinthians 2:9-10 · God revealed them to us through the Spirit
• 1 Corinthians 2:13 · A spiritual language for spiritual things
• John 16:7 · It is to your advantage that I go away
• John 16:13 · He will guide you into all truth
• Exodus 13:21-22 · The pillar of cloud and fire
• 2 Kings 6:8-12 · Elisha warns the king of Israel
• Psalm 18:29 · By my God I leap over a wall
• Romans 12:2 · Be transformed by the renewing of your mind
• 2 Chronicles 7:14 · If my people humble themselves, pray, and seek my face

Frequently asked questions

What is the anointing according to the Bible?

The anointing means being covered with oil. In the Old Testament, the priest, the king, and the prophet were anointed for their mission. For the New Testament believer, the anointing is the active presence of the Holy Spirit within us. It no longer covers our body but our heart.

How can I recognize that I am under the anointing?

The anointing is not first of all a feeling. It can be silent. You recognize it by the traces it leaves: what you do lasts, God's promises come back to you, you are taught, guided, protected. Sometimes you don't feel it, but it is there, like oil that marks everything it touches.

Are noise and the anointing the same thing?

No. There can be noise within the anointing, but you can also be under the anointing in silence. Praying isn't speaking to God without listening to him. It's a conversation. Jesus spoke to the widow of Nain without shouting, and his word reached her heart. Silence under the anointing is sometimes more powerful than noise.