This message is one of the Times Square
Church Pulpit Series.
It was recorded in the sanctuary of Times
Square Church in Manhattan, New York City.
You're welcome to make additional cassettes of this
message for free distribution to friends.
However, for all other forms of reproduction or
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Praise the Lord.
It's wonderful to be here and this is
one of God's great blessings that you begin
to ask yourself, Lord, who am I and
what is my Father's house that you have
chosen to show me such great favor?
Times Square Church has been a ministry we
have heard of ever since we were young.
Pastor Dave Wilkerson is somebody we have trusted
and believed God that maybe one day we'll
meet him in heaven.
And here we are today meeting him.
It's just one of these great mercies of
God because it's not so much as your
anointing, your years in ministry or who you
are or have been, but it's just God's
mercy.
Hallelujah.
And I really appreciate this church and the
leadership of this ministry.
Your fame has really gone abroad.
And in the city of Joss, we are
now in partnership with Times Square Church.
And whenever we come, hallelujah.
And whenever we come to the States for
my family and I, Times Square Church is
home for us.
And I give God the praise.
I bring you greetings from Nigeria, from the
city of Joss, where I come from.
And we are not moved by what the
enemy is doing.
We know God has a plan for our
nation.
And whether the devil likes it or not,
that plan will come to pass.
Hallelujah.
We're seeing a bounce, much more grace.
And we have seen the grace of God
move in a mighty way in our nation.
And our nation will rise again.
And Nigeria will take her rightful place in
the kingdom.
I'm not so much interested in the political
affairs, but in the kingdom.
Nigeria will rise again.
Hallelujah.
Tonight, I'll be sharing a word that the
Lord laid on my heart for this assembly.
And the title of my message is Anointed
for Burial.
Anointed for Burial.
Can we open our Bibles to the book
of Matthew, the 26th chapter, Matthew
26.
And I'll begin to read from verse six.
And when Jesus was in Bethany at the
house of Simon the leper, a woman came
to him having an alabaster flask of very
costly fragrant oil.
And she poured it on his head as
he sat at the table.
But when his disciples saw it, they were
indignant saying, Why this waste?
For this fragrant oil may have been sold
for much and given to the poor.
But when Jesus was aware of it, he
said to them, Why do you trouble the
woman?
For she has done a good work for
me.
For you have the poor with you always,
but me you do not have always.
For in pouring this fragrant oil on my
body, she did it for my burial.
Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel
is preached in the whole world, what this
woman has done will also be told as
a memorial to her.
Father, we thank you for the entrance of
your word brings light.
And today you have come to give light
to our circumstances and our situations.
Lord, I thank you for utterance.
And I thank you for grace that is
available for me to minister tonight and for
your people to receive your word.
Father, you're the one who worketh in us
both to will and to do of your
good pleasure.
Lord, I pray that tonight you will have
your good pleasure in this house, that your
name might be glorified.
Father, I thank you and I give you
all the praise in Jesus name.
Amen.
Now, this topic anointed for burial is something
that is new to me.
It's not something I have known before, but
it's a word that God laid on my
heart as we began to just wait and
seek the face of God concerning this meeting.
And I said to the Lord, Lord, what
would you have me tell them?
And he said, tell them about being anointed
for burial.
And that makes me understand that there is
an anointing for burial.
And if you're talking about burial, you have
to talk about death first.
So God is basically talking about one aspect
of the anointing that has been neglected in
the church.
Maybe not so neglected, but we have found
it easier to accept the other functions of
the anointing than this very one.
Now, the anoint to anoint basically just means
to pour oil upon.
That's the meaning of the word anoint.
It means to set apart, to consecrate, to
sanctify for ministry or to institute into a
particular office.
To anoint also means to commemorate an event
or to confirm a covenant.
And we have seen that in time past,
anointing was done on our patriarchs.
It was done on priests, on prophets, on
kings, as well as sacred objects.
We know that in the book of Psalm
105 from verse 9 to 15, Abraham, Isaac,
and Jacob were anointed by God.
And he said of them that he permitted
no man to do them wrong.
Yes, he rebuked kings for their sake saying,
do not touch my anointed ones.
So they were set apart.
They were separated.
They were consecrated for ministry.
They were consecrated into an office for the
use of God.
And he said, do not touch my anointed
ones and do my prophets no harm.
We also find out in the book of
Exodus chapter 29, verse 1 and 7, that
priests were also anointed.
And God said to Moses in Exodus 29,
1 and 7, and this is what you
shall do to them to hallow them, to
set them apart.
He said, this is what you shall do
to hallow them for ministering to me as
priests.
There is an anointing to minister unto God
as priests.
And too often we are concerned about ministering
to the people, but we don't understand the
ministry to God is our first call.
Hallelujah.
Until you are able to effectively minister to
God, you cannot minister to the people.
That's the first call of every man of
God, every woman of God.
We are first called to minister to Him.
And out of that ministry will flow the
grace to minister to His people.
Hallelujah.
And so God says in the book of
Exodus 29, He says, this is what you
shall do to hallow them for ministering to
me as priests.
And verse 7 says, and you shall take
the anointing oil and pour it on his
head and anoint him.
And how many of you know we are
all priests and kings?
Amen.
There's an anointing upon us to minister to
the Lord.
And it has nothing to do with those
that are in the fivefold ministry.
So we don't wait and look up to
the pastors and the apostles and the prophets
and the evangelists and the teachers to minister
to God.
No, we are all called to minister to
Him.
And out of that ministry, we will be
able to minister to one another and to
the world.
Hallelujah.
Praise the Lord.
And then there's an anointing that comes upon
prophets.
We find that in the book of 1
Kings 19 and 16.
God said to Elijah that you shall anoint
Jehu, the son of Nimshi, as king over
Israel.
And Elisha, the son of Shaphat of Abel,
Mahola, you shall anoint as prophet in your
place.
Amen.
We also find that anointing is done on
sacred objects.
Objects that are sacred.
In the book of Exodus 30, 26 to
28, we are told that you shall anoint
the tabernacle of meeting and the ark of
testimony, the table and all its utensils, the
lampstands and its utensils, and the altar of
incense, the altar of burnt offering with all
its utensils, and the laver and its base.
In the book of Genesis 28, verse 18
and 19, we also find out that a
stone was anointed.
Hallelujah.
A stone was anointed by Jacob.
When Jacob was running away from his brother
Esau, when he was running from the threat
of death over his life, he had an
encounter with God.
And he saw a ladder and angels were
coming up and down.
And God spoke to him and reconfirmed the
covenant that he made with his fathers with
Jacob.
And Jacob woke up and said, surely the
Lord is in this place.
And I did not know it.
And the Bible said that Jacob rose early
in the morning.
He took the stone that he had put
at his head, set it as a pillar
and poured oil on top of it.
And he called the name of that place
Bethel.
But the name of that city had been
lost previously.
Now that tells me that Bethel, which is
the house of God, is nothing other than
stone with oil being poured on.
And you and I are living stones being
built up into a spiritual house with Jesus
Christ as the chief cornerstone.
That is the house of God.
Hallelujah.
So we can find instances all through the
Bible where the anointing oil is used to
consecrate, to sanctify, to usher you into an
office and a ministry.
We also find the anointing oil is used
for wounds.
You know, remember the story of the Good
Samaritan?
Who stopped on the way and helped that
man that was bitten by robbers.
He poured oil on his wounds and bound
it up and so on and so forth.
And we understand the ministry of the anointing
or the purpose of the anointing oil in
many ways.
But it is strange that we have never
thought of the anointing oil being used to
prepare us for burial.
The disciples of Jesus Christ never knew or
understood the meaning of that until this incident
in Matthew chapter 26.
They were sitting with Jesus Christ and a
woman, the Bible says she came with very
costly fragrant oil and she poured it on
his head as he sat on the table.
Of course, the disciples were angry.
And when I read this scripture, what comes
to my mind is, you see, we are
in a time and a season where God
is looking for people that will worship him
in spirit and truth and have no confidence
in the flesh.
Now, we are the circumcision of the Lord
who worship him in spirit and truth.
I have no confidence in the flesh.
And a lot of times when the spirit
of God or the things of the spirit
are manifested, the flesh is offended.
The two don't go together.
And that's why if you walk in the
flesh, then you will not understand the things
of the spirit.
And the disciples of Jesus Christ were with
him at that time.
But there comes a woman outside of that
circle, a woman who is a worshipper in
her heart.
And I tell you that once you become
a worshipper of Jesus Christ, you will find
yourself into realms that you do not even
understand.
You'll find yourself doing things that you cannot
explain and other people cannot understand.
But Jesus can explain it.
Jesus understands the heart of worship that is
causing you to do the things that you're
doing.
And don't think that everybody will understand and
accept it.
So the disciples of Jesus Christ were like,
why are you wasting all this money?
This thing could have been sold and we
use the money for the poor.
They had the poor all that time.
What did they do with them?
As if they cared for the poor.
But you know, when you don't understand what's
going on, you just try to speak from
your flesh.
And you try to reason and, you know,
and the head cannot understand the things of
the spirit.
Hallelujah.
So this Jesus had to defend her and
he says, leave her alone.
You don't know what she is doing.
And she doesn't even know what she is
doing.
But she is anointing me and she is
preparing me for my burial.
There is an anointing that comes from your
burial, for your burial.
And before your burial, you have to go
to the cross and be crucified on the
cross and die there.
And then you will get to a place
of burial where all hope is gone, all
lust is gone.
And it seemed as if the enemy has
won.
Now look at what happened the moment Jesus
was anointed.
Let me tell you, there is an anointing
of burial that releases certain things in your
life.
Now if you look at this incident in
the book of Matthew, the moment she anointed
Jesus Christ for his burial, we are told
in verse 14 of the same chapter that
one of the twelve called Judas Iscariot went
to the chief priest and said, what are
you willing to give me if I deliver
him to you?
And they counted out to him 30 pieces
of silver.
So from that time, he sought opportunity to
betray him.
And some of you are complaining about the
Judas's in your life.
And you have forgotten that you are anointed.
And the anointing of God upon your life
must tear up Judas to begin to propel
you to your place of destiny, to the
place that God has prepared for you.
That anointing immediately released Judas to go and
fulfill his ministry.
And you will find out later when Jesus
stood face to face with Judas, he called
him friend.
Let me tell you, the Judas's in your
lives are not your enemies.
They're your friends.
I say they're your friends because they have
to fulfill their purpose in order to get
you into your purpose.
Hallelujah.
The anointing for burial releases the Judas's in
our lives to begin to work for us.
There's no need to start getting angry over
Judas, getting bitter over Judas, getting angry over
Judas.
Now, if there is no Judas in your
life, there's no anointing.
Judas is attracted to the anointing.
And if you've been anointed for burial, I'm
telling you, Judas must show up.
Hallelujah.
Praise the name of the Lord.
And right after that, we see that the
trial of Jesus Christ began.
And there was a time of agony in
the garden.
Then there was a time that Jesus came
face to face with Judas.
And then there was a time that all
the disciples of Jesus Christ forsook him and
fled.
Why?
All these things began to happen from the
time that Jesus Christ was anointed for his
burial.
And that released a process of events that
began to unfold.
And you're wondering, why am I being forsaken?
Where are all my friends?
You're wondering why you're going through an agony.
You're wondering why is it?
Let me tell you something.
The agony in the garden, when Jesus Christ
was praying and he sought for company, he
sought for his disciples to support him, to
pray along with him.
He couldn't find any one of them.
They were so sleepy, they slept off.
There comes a time when you have to
stand one-on-one with God.
Your pastor will not help you out.
Sister, this brother, that will not help you
out.
You better learn how to pray by yourself.
Even if it means crying, Oh God, help
me.
If that's the only thing you say, then
you better say it.
Because they that call upon his name shall
be saved.
All you need to do is call upon
his name.
And there must come a time in the
life of the anointed of the Lord that
you have to stand alone.
You have to.
Because the anointing that is upon your life
must lead you to the place of death.
What you don't know is that there are
two people that are after you.
The devil is after you, God is after
you.
And you need to make up your mind
who is going to get you.
Hallelujah.
Praise the name of the Lord.
Amen.
I've made up my mind God will get
me.
And he gets us when he is able
to take us on the way of the
cross.
That's when he gets us.
When we are able to die that he
might live in us.
That's when he gets us.
When we are able to come to a
place like Jesus and said, Lord, if it
is possible, let this cup pass away from
me.
Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you
will.
From the moment that Jesus Christ submitted himself
in the garden of Gethsemane to the will
and the purpose of God for his life,
above his own will and his purpose, Jesus
Christ died right there.
And we all need to come to a
place where we desire something so much, but
we say, Lord, if it is your will,
let this be done.
However, not my will, but your will be
done.
That's what the anointing does.
It does many other things.
And we want to think of the anointing
of God as a manifestation of his power,
as the anointing to heal, as the anointing
to deliver, as the anointing to preach a
powerful sermon.
Oh, yes, that is well, good and fine.
But what about the anointing that will lead
you to the cross?
What about the anointing that will release Judas
to begin to walk on your behalf?
What about the anointing that will cost you
to be sold for money?
People will prefer money than friendships.
Ask your friend to make a choice between
you and one big contract and see what
will happen.
Hallelujah.
Amen.
All the disciples forsook him and fled.
This anointing for burial must get you to
the place where you stand alone.
You will stand alone in the garden and
agonize.
You will stand alone in the time of
your trial and crucifixion.
And let me tell you, it's all part
of the package.
Hallelujah.
I remember the time that we had to
stand alone as a ministry.
We started church in 1995 in Jaws.
And we had a rented building.
Now you must know that Jaws is actually
the middle belt of Nigeria.
It's a bit to the north, more north
than south.
And in Jaws, they are not used to
female ministers.
So when we started church, it was like
an abomination.
And because of the stronghold of religion in
the city, the people laughed at us, they
mocked us, they were against us, the religious
body and hierarchy.
And of course, the enemy was out there
to make sure that this work does not
go on.
And so we had a rented property and
our landlady, who is also a Christian and
an elder in another ministry, offered to sell
it to us, but we didn't have money
to buy it.
So we just said, oh, well, why don't
we just, you know, bid for time until
we get the money?
And she says, no, you either have to
buy the property now or you leave.
So we said, okay, we don't have the
money to buy the property.
So she said, you have to leave.
And anyway, we said, okay, the procedure is
that you give us six months notice before
we leave.
And she didn't want to give us six
months notice.
She wanted us to live right there and
then.
So while we were in the building, she
sold off the property to another person and
the person now came and he just wanted
possession of his property.
And all that time, we'd been looking and
looking and looking for a place to move
church to.
And there was no way coming.
It just was not possible.
And so, because we would not move out,
because she did not give us the proper
procedure to our leaving the property and we're
still there, she finally took us to court.
And while the case was in court, our
lawyer was just saying, well, let her follow
the normal procedure and we will leave.
But all that time, we were just looking,
looking, looking for another place.
And then my lawyer had to travel out
of town.
And if you live in Nigeria, those of
you who are Nigerians, you know what I'm
talking about.
So while he was out of town, they
went to the court, bribed the court officials
and got them to come and evict us.
And I remember the day of the eviction.
You know, the Lord took everybody away from
me.
All the other pastors, the administrator, the church
workers, my dear husband, nobody was around.
It was just good old Esther and 10
other people that were coming at me.
And they came and they broke the door
of the church open.
They went into the church.
They started piling our chairs.
We had these plastic chairs.
They piled the chairs and threw them out.
They took the rock from the altar, threw
it out.
They took our pulpit, threw it out.
And I didn't believe, I didn't believe I
was seeing what was happening.
I said, Lord, this is your house.
God did not even answer me.
And I felt so furious and I felt
so angry.
And I'm like, these people are playing with
God.
And if they are not careful, I will
call on the judgment of God upon them.
I made all my tantrums and heaven was
silent.
And then I finally came out.
And when I came out, I not saw
the people there.
And I saw a friend of mine, whom
I knew from another ministry.
And he was actually taking pictures to record
the event.
So I said to him, what are you
doing?
And he said, oh, you know, somebody just
asked me to take pictures.
I didn't even know it was your place.
I said, what do you mean?
You don't know it's my place.
You've been here before.
How can I be thrown out and you're
recording it?
And you're supposed to be my friend.
You know, and then the lawyer to our
landlady is also a pastor from another ministry.
It was all within the body of Christ.
And I felt so betrayed and I felt
so alone.
And I stood there and I was alone
amongst about 10 people.
And they were throwing our things out.
And you know, the lawyer was just feeling
good.
He was just thinking about his money, what
he will be paid for this accomplishment.
And I stood there and I said, Lord,
how can you let that happen?
How can you let that happen?
I just looked at them.
And in my heart, I said, look at
all these Judas.
And they will go to church and lift
up hands.
What hands are they lifting to worship God?
Anyway, we got thrown out.
And then we began to look for another
place.
And that same year, you will not believe
it.
The Lord provided a place for us.
It was a place that had already been
kept.
It was even fenced and sealed.
The gate has been fixed.
It was pure, just about 25 plots of
land.
Nobody, you know, He just kept it away
from people until we got that land.
And when we got that land, all we
did was a change of ownership.
And we got the papers right and everything.
And we began to build.
And from nowhere, from the time we began
to build, God began to release the money
into our hands.
And money we had never handled before as
a ministry began to come in.
And within a year, we completed the office
auditorium and the church auditorium.
And when people come and see, they say,
when did you start?
How did you accomplish this?
And I had to go back and look
for those people that threw me out to
tell them, thank you.
Hallelujah.
I had to say, thank you.
You see, what I forgot was that there's
an anointing on my life that will release
Judas to begin to walk against me.
But what the enemy means for evil, God
is able to turn it around for your
good.
Hallelujah.
Amen.
You know, let me tell...
I told you, I said, there are two
people that are after you.
God is after you.
The devil is after you.
The devil to accomplish his purpose.
Amen.
That's the truth.
But you see, I had to go on
the way of the cross too.
Because when all that was going on, I
felt very angry.
I felt very bitter.
But later on, I had to understand that
there's an anointing on my life.
And that anointing is preparing me for a
place of burial.
And before I get to that place, I
must get to the place of death.
Therefore, I couldn't get angry with them anymore.
I mean, I had to find it in
my heart to just love them, forgive them,
and just go on with the work.
Praise the name of the Lord.
Hallelujah.
Now, the trial and the accusation and the
stripping and the mocking and the spitting on
the face, as well as Peter's denial, and
finally, the crucifixion and death on the cross
of Jesus Christ was all part of the
package.
And all this started from a woman coming
to anoint him and to prepare him for
burial.
Each time the anointing of God comes upon
our lives, or it comes upon our heads,
it is for a purpose.
It is to lead us to a place
of my will must die and his will
must stay.
Hallelujah.
And until we get to that place, it
is called the place of death, then his
power cannot be manifested in and through us.
That's why we must get to that place
where it is called the place of death.
Now, you will find out that after the
burial of Jesus Christ, it was really difficult,
the burial of Jesus Christ.
That was even worse than the other things
that had happened.
It was worse than the stripping, than the
slapping, than the mocking, than the false accusation.
And you know, the anointing of God on
your life will teach you when to say
something and when to keep quiet.
Because there were times that Jesus would say
something and there were other times that they
would ask him questions and he would keep
quiet.
Hallelujah.
Praise the name of the Lord.
So Jesus Christ came to that place where
he had to be crucified naked before the
whole world, accused, falsely accused by the people
he came to save.
And then he was buried.
And think about all these days where he
was buried.
That's a time when nothing is happening.
Nothing is happening and it seemed as though
the enemy has won.
It seemed as though that everything you've ever
put your faith and your trust in was
a lie.
That's the time that you need to prove
yourself and yet you must do or say
nothing.
You must remain buried.
It doesn't matter what the world says.
It doesn't matter if your disciples that you
spent the last three and a half years
of your life pumping yourself into them.
It doesn't matter if they all go fishing.
It doesn't matter if they all forget all
the things you ever told them.
You told them that this was about to
happen.
You prepared them for it and yet when
it happened they just felt, well, he's gone.
Let me go back to my business.
And they went back to the things they'd
been used to.
That's the time that is most difficult for
us.
You need an anointing to stay buried.
You need that grace and that spirit and
that power of God to refuse to do
anything.
You need that power of God to remain
misunderstood, to let your followers go.
You must stay there, quiet, your mouth shut
because remember you are dead.
You must stay there even if it means
the enemy has won, even if it means
they were right after all, even if it
means, oh, they're going to celebrate my downfall.
Let them.
You don't have anything to prove because you're
dead.
You've already been to the cross and you
are buried unless a corn of wheat falls
to the ground and dies.
It abides alone.
But if it will die, it will bring
forth much fruit that will abide forever.
So the Lord will keep us there.
He will keep us buried after the death
until the third day.
And when that third day comes, and when
that third day comes, and when that third
day comes, there is no power on earth
that can stop you from rising up.
There is no demon on hell that can
stop what God has already ordained from the
foundation of time.
God himself will release angels from heaven to
come and roll away the stone that is
the time for angelic ministration because human hands
cannot do what God is about to do.
And so he will release his angels from
heaven and he will give the commandment, roll
the stone away.
If you will walk along this path, then
you will rise again.
I say, if you will walk along this
path, then you will rise again.
And when resurrection time comes, then the power
of God, the same power that came upon
you, the same power that anointed you to
go through this way is the same power
that will raise you up from the dead.
And that's why Jesus can finally stand and
say, all power and authority has been given
to me.
Hallelujah!
We want to exhibit the power and the
authority of God, but we don't want to
go the way of the cross.
We don't want to die.
We don't want to be betrayed.
We don't want to suffer anything.
We don't want to be reproached.
We don't want to be mocked.
We don't want to be falsely accused.
We just want to manifest his power.
It doesn't work that way.
If you want to walk in his power
and his authority, then you must be ready
to go the way of the cross, to
die and be buried and let him raise
you up.
Not you raise yourself up.
He will raise you up.
Hallelujah!
Jesus could not make this declaration until he
had gone through this path.
And the beginning of the path that Jesus
went through was released by the anointing that
came upon him which he now explained to
the woman and explained to the disciples that
she's preparing me for my burial.
That's the purpose of that anointing.
We've forgotten about the anointing for burial.
Jesus said, All authority has been given to
me in heaven and on earth.
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations
baptizing them in the name of the Father
and of the Son and of the Holy
Spirit, teaching them to observe all things I've
commanded and know I am with you always
even to the end of life.
Amen.
Hallelujah!
Oh, thank you, Jesus.
Thank you, Jesus.
Let me tell you, it's not the devil
that has put you on that path.
It is God himself who told you that
when you become a Christian, everything will work
out.
There'll be no problems.
Happy-go-lucky.
That's a false gospel.
That's from the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The moment you become a Christian, you are
a target for the devil.
The moment you become a Christian, you're also
a target for God.
He wants to bring you to himself.
He wants to form himself in you.
He wants to bring you to the fullness
of the measure of the statue of Jesus
Christ.
And we must attain that height.
Hallelujah!
If you go back to Luke chapter 3,
the temptation of Jesus Christ, or I'll start
from the baptism of Jesus Christ, and I'll
probably end with the scriptures.
Luke chapter 3 from verse 21.
Hallelujah!
When all the people were baptized, it came
to pass that Jesus also was baptized.
And while he prayed, the heaven was opened
and the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form
like a dove upon him.
And a voice came from heaven which said,
you are my beloved son.
In you, I am well pleased.
And I asked myself, what did Jesus do
at that time that the father was pleased
with him?
That was before the beginning of the ministry
of Jesus Christ.
When Jesus Christ was baptized, what he exhibited
was his death, burial, and resurrection.
And through that baptism, Jesus Christ exhibited the
fact that he was ready to go through
it all.
Because as at that time, Jesus did not
open any blind eyes.
Jesus did not make the lame walk.
Jesus did not feed the thousands with just
five loaves and two fishes.
He didn't do any of those things.
Yet the father made a declaration.
This is my beloved son in whom I
am well pleased.
Why was he pleased with Jesus Christ at
that time?
Because Jesus Christ waited for his time.
He did not go ahead of the father.
He waited until the father was ready to
release him into his ministry.
And so the father can say, this is
my beloved son in whom I am well
pleased.
How many of you would wait for 30
years to begin the ministry that God has
called you to do?
We're so anxious to prove a point.
We're so anxious to exhibit, oh, we have
an anointing.
We are powerful men and women of God.
But Jesus Christ waited.
He was totally submitted to the will of
the father.
And after the declaration that the father was
pleased with him, look at what happened.
In Luke chapter 4 verse 1, it says,
Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit...
No, I'm sorry, not that.
I wanted to read about the temptation.
Praise the name of the Lord.
I'll get to that later on, but that's
not where it is.
Yes, it is.
Then Jesus, in Luke chapter 4 from verse
1, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned
from the Jordan and was led by the
Spirit into where?
The wilderness.
It was not the devil that took him
to the wilderness.
It was the anointing of God that came
upon him that led him to the wilderness.
The anointing is attracted to wilderness.
And Jesus had to go to the wilderness
to be tried and tested and proven in
the lust of the eye, the lust of
the flesh, the pride of life until He
overcame.
And when He overcame, the same Spirit that
led Him into the wilderness now said, Then
He returned in the power of His might.
If you are not led into the wilderness,
there's no returning.
You have to have your wilderness time.
If you want to walk in the power
of His might.
So why do we fight the wilderness experience?
Why do we think that something strange is
happening to us?
Why do we think that we're out of
favor with God or we are not called
by God just because we're going through the
wilderness?
There's an anointing on your life and that
anointing must take you to the wilderness.
And if you go through scriptures, you will
find that it has not changed.
Every time that the anointing of God will
come upon a person, he must be led
through a trial.
It happened to David.
David was anointed thrice before his brethren in
Judah and then before all Israel.
And after each, there comes a challenge.
The moment that anointing gets upon him, the
moment David was anointed, he was sent before
Saul and that was where he was going
to begin to learn the art of dodging
javelins.
Some of you are wondering, why do I
have the kind of boss that I have?
Why do I have the kind of husband
that I have?
David has to go to the house of
Saul so that the soul in him can
be removed.
Hallelujah!
Jacob had to go to the house of
Laban so that he will hate, deceive so
much that if you leave him for the
next 100 years, he will have nothing to
do with deception because he makes a master
deceiver.
But he wouldn't have learned that lesson if
he didn't go to the house of Laban.
Why do you think that's like some strange
things happening to you just because of the
trials you're going through?
Hallelujah!
Oh, praise Jesus!
Jesus returned in the power of the might
and in verse 18 of Luke chapter 4,
he said, The spirit of the Lord is
upon me because he has anointed me to
preach the gospel to the poor.
Listen to me.
The anointing of God that is on your
life is for the poor.
He says, He has sent me to heal
the brokenhearted.
The anointing of God on your life is
for the brokenhearted.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to
the captives.
The anointing of God on your life is
to proclaim liberty to the captives.
So it's actually for the captives.
He said, And recovery of sight to the
blind.
So therefore, the anointing of God on your
life is actually meant for the blind.
To set at liberty those that are oppressed
for the oppressed and to proclaim the acceptable
year of the Lord.
When I read this, what came to me
is the anointing of God on my life
is for the poor, the brokenhearted, the captives,
the blind, the oppressed, and to proclaim the
acceptable year of the Lord.
And you know what?
I just looked at it and I said,
Where am I in this anointing?
I'm not represented there.
And we think that the anointing is for
us to just show how anointed we are
and how much power we have and how
we can preach the scriptures from Genesis to
Revelation.
The anointing of God on your life must
remove you from self.
Totally.
Self must not be seen in the anointing.
The anointing is sent for the oppressed, for
the captives, for the brokenhearted, for the blind,
for the poor, to proclaim the acceptable year
of the Lord.
You get to that place when you pay
the price.
And the price is you agree to die.
You agree to be buried and let his
resurrection power manifest through you.
Father, we thank you for the purpose of
the anointing.
Tonight, we see your anointing in a different
light.
And for as many of us are struggling
and asking so many questions and wondering whether
we are on the right path.
Lord, I pray that you will speak to
our hearts today.
I pray that they have received light and
direction and instruction.
Father, help us to see the friend we
have in Judas.
You said offenses will surely come, but woe
unto that man by whom these offenses come.
We refuse to walk in anger and in
bitterness, but we choose the way of the
cross.
And we agree to follow where the Spirit
of God is leading us.
Just as the Spirit led Jesus into the
wilderness, we accept the wildernesses of our lives.
And we ask that you help us to
learn the lessons that are meant for us
to learn.
That we may move on to the place
of death, burial, so that we can experience
your resurrection power.
We thank you, oh God, for your word.
We give you praise and glory.
In Jesus' name we pray.
Father, we thank you for your children that
are here before you.
Father, I just sense so much anger in
the hearts of some.
Bitterness and strife and the turning away from
you, Lord, because of the things they're going
through.
Because of the hurts, the pain, the disappointments,
because of the wounds.
But Lord, I thank you because tonight there
is a ban in Gilead.
And I ask that this ban will flow
over the hearts and the situations of your
people.
Lord, that they will be healed in, oh
God.
That they will find it in their hearts
to forgive and to release and to move
on.
That they will see you in the circumstances
they're going through.
Lord, let them understand that they are the
anointed of the Lord.
I ask that your Holy Spirit will fall
upon them afresh.
And that your Holy Spirit will have a
free reign in their lives.
That the Spirit of God will lead them
to where you want them to be.
Father, take away every arm of flesh in
us.
Take away self in them.
Take away that that stands between them and
you, oh God.
Bring them to a place of total submission.
That they can lift up their voices to
say, not my will but your will be
done.
Father, I pray for the grace to submit
to the dealings of the Holy Spirit, oh
God.
Upon each and every one of them tonight
in the name of Jesus.
Lord, you say we will have an unction
from the Holy One.
And we know all things.
Grant them understanding, Lord.
Open their eyes to see.
Open their hearts to perceive and understand what
you are doing in their lives.
And to submit to it, oh God.
Anoint them afresh, oh God.
That they may be used for your glory.
That you will raise up a great mighty
army for your kingdom.
Amongst these people that out of the experiences
of their lives.
They will stand and minister as oracles of
the Most High God.
You say that all things work together for
good.
Lord, let them know that what they're going
through will work together for good.
For those who love you and those who
are called according to your purpose.
Let that be true in their lives, oh
God.
Let that be true in their lives.
Let that be true in their circumstances and
situations.
Lord, I pray you will help them to
begin to see Judas as friend.
That they will let themselves to hang on
the cross.
Naked and not ashamed.
That we have nothing to cover.
Nothing to be ashamed of.
Nothing to impress the world of.
Bring them to that place, Father.
I pray by your spirit.
For you're the one that works it enough
both to will and to do of your
good pleasure.
Help them learn the lessons of the wilderness.
That they will return in the power of
your might.
And that their fame will go abroad.
I thank you for the grace to forgive.
And to release.
I thank you for the grace to rise
above self.
I thank you for the grace to rise
above strife.
Thank you for calling them.
Anoint them afresh, my Father.
Anoint them afresh.
Anoint us afresh.
The same anointing is able to make us
overcome the devil in the wilderness.
I thank you, Father.
Let there be a new day in their
lives.
Let there be a new walk in their
lives.
Let it be a walk of the spirit.
Not of the flesh.
Give them the grace to put the flesh
under.
Give them the grace to die to self.
To their wills, to their ambitions, to their
plans.
To their own purpose.
That your will, your plan for their lives,
your purpose for their lives, may be established.
Father, I pray that this word will not
judge them on the last day.
Because they will yield to the dealings of
the Holy Spirit.
You said your spirit will not strife with
man.
Lord, tonight, let them cease from striving.
Let them cease from striving.
And let them yield.
Father, we thank you.
I pray a blessing of your strength and
your grace upon them.
That they will walk on this fury path.
I see the path lined up with fire.
And some of you will step on that
path and it will hurt your feet.
It's a lonely path.
It is a path that God has set
for you.
No bird, no eye of the bird has
seen that path.
That path is lined with fire.
But that's where you're going.
I want you to know that God is
with you in the midst of the fire.
He's the fourth night in the fire.
You are not alone.
He's there with you.
And because of that, you can walk that
path.
And make it to the end.
Lord, these ones will make it to the
end.
None will fall by the wayside.
But they will make it to the end.
To the praise and glory of your name.
In Jesus' name we pray.
Amen.
This is the conclusion of the message.