Anointing With Oil

The Life of Faith, Part 12, A Study in James – Anointing With Oil 

Within this instruction on how to pray for the sick, we are told to anoint with oil when we pray for healing. James was not the first or only one to anoint with oil and lay hands on the sick for healing. Jesus commissioned and sent out the twelve disciples in groups of two. He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cure diseases, preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.

Mark 6:12-13 NIV84 They went out and preached that people should repent. They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.

Nothing is said in their commission about anointing with oil. However, they went out and preached repentance, drove out demons, and anointed the sick with oil and healed them.

Mark 16:18 NKJV They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.

Jesus and the disciples demonstrated a pattern for laying hands on the sick and anointing with oil. Although we do not read of Jesus anointing with oil, He laid hands on many people and healed them.

James 5:14-15 NIV Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.

James is giving a basic guide for ministry to the sick and divine healing. Whatever the cause for the sickness may be, James shows us what to do. 

The sick should call for the spiritual elders to pray.  They are to pray over the sick and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. The prayer offered in faith will bring healing to the sick. 

James said pray over the sick and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. The word “to anoint” comes from one Hebrew and two different Greek words. To help us understand anointing, we are going to look at the different forms and uses in the Bible.

In the Hebrew, the word for anoint is maw·shakh  [מָשַׁח]. Masah means: to smear on, spread on, or pour on anointing. 

• In Genesis 31:13, Jacob anointed the pillar at Bethel and made a vow to God.
• In Exodus 29:7, God told Moses to take the anointing oil and pour it on Aaron’s head, and anoint him.
• The anointing set aside Aaron, his garments, and priesthood unto the Lord.
• In Exodus 29:29, Aaron’s anointed garments were to be handed down to his sons and they were to be anointed in them.
• In 1 Samuel 9:16, Samuel anointed Saul to be king over Israel.
• Throughout the Old Testament, a horn or flask of oil was poured on the head of kings and priests to anoint them for service.

As a result, kings and priests were referred to as God’s anointed. The anointing with oil preceeded and accompanied the anointing of the Holy Spirit and commission for ministry.

Two Greek words mean anoint.

The first Greek word for “to anoint” in the New Testament, epi chrío [ἐπιχρίω], refers to a rub-on anointing.

Epi means upon, and chrío means cover a surface by rubbing a substance over it, “to rub,” “to smear,” “to anoint.”  In John 9:6, Jesus made mud and rubbed and anointed the man’s eyes. John 9:11, the man said, “Jesus anointed my eyes.” Epi chrio was used in reference to this man’s healing.

Chrio refers to the anointing that consecrated Jesus for the Messianic office. Jesus was anointed for ministry as the Holy Spirit came upon Him and remained, (Acts 10:38; Luke 4:18). Chrio gives us the word Christos, the Anointed One, 571 times in the New Testament. He was anointed with the oil of gladness more than His companions, ( Hebrews 1:9).

Chrisma is the anointing of the Holy Spirit that abides in us, (1 John 2:20, 27; John 14:16; 16:13).

The second Greek word for anoint is aleipho [ἀλείφω], is used nine times in the New Testament. 

This is a general term for an anointing of any kind.

• James 5:14 and Mark 6:13 refer to an anointing with oil for healing.
• Matthew 6:17, says to anoint your head and wash your face when you fast so you do not appear to be fasting.
• In Luke 7:38; John 11:2, 12:3, Mary anointed Jesus feet with fragrant oil.
• In Mark 16:1, the women came to the tomb of Jesus to anoint His body.

There are varied ideas about the efficacy and the reason for anointing.

Some think that Jesus was making medicine of the clay from saliva and dust of the ground to heal the blind man, (John 9:6). Oil and wine (Luke 10:34) were standard medicines during the Bible times, one for soothing and the other for antiseptic. As a result, some believe anointing with oil is an application of medicine that is accompanied with prayer for God’s healing. Other people believe that the anointing with oil is a ceremonial action and medical ointment. Although there is nothing wrong with applying ointment for medical aid, the emphasis here is on divine intervention for healing.

What is the purpose for anointing with oil?

When God instituted the holy anointing with oil in the Old Testament, it contained an efficacious value. It was marked by qualities and power to produce an intended effect or result.

First, let’s consider the holy anointing with oil.

Exodus 29:7 NASB95 Then you shall take the anointing oil and pour it on his head and anoint him.

Exodus 30:22-25 NLT Then the Lord said to Moses, “Collect choice spices—12 ½  pounds of pure myrrh, 6 ¼ pounds each of cinnamon and of sweet cane, 12 ½ pounds of cassia, and one gallon of olive oil. Blend these ingredients into a holy anointing oil.

The holy anointing oil was both effective and efficacious. 

It possessed power or properties to achieve a desired purpose. God separated and made holy this blend of oil and fragrance to achieve a desired purpose. This blend of spices and oil was prohibited by God from common use. It was never intended for skin care, medicine, or private personal use. It was holy anointing oil for service to minister and sanctify for service to God. God told Moses that whoever made any perfume or anointing oil like it would be cut off from his people.

God determined the times and places this oil was to be used.

This holy anointing oil was for ordination and dedication. In addition to the cleansing with blood, the anointing with this holy anointing oil sanctified to make holy. The application of the anointing oil followed a certain pattern that God employed. To dedicate and sanctify, there was always an initial application of the blood from the sacrifice and then the anointing oil. The blood cleansed and the oil separated and empowered. So much power was represented in this process that anyone who touched those things became holy. The efficacious value was so great that anything that touched what had been consecrated should be holy.

What did Moses anoint with this oil?

What was the affect of the anointing?

In Leviticus 8:10-12, Moses anointed everything in the Tabernacle and poured anointing oil on Aaron’s head. In Leviticus 8:26, a cake of bread was anointed with the oil. After the sacrifice, Moses sprinkled Aaron, his sons and their garments with the anointing oil and blood, (Leviticus 8:30). Everything the oil touched was set apart for God. Everything that was to be cleansed was anointed. 

In Leviticus 14, the priest took blood from the trespass offering and put some on the right ear, right thumb, and big toe of his right foot. After the blood was applied, he sprinkled the oil seven times on those areas, then he poured the remainder of the oil on his head.

God was establishing a pattern for anointing with oil.

Before anointing with oil, the efficacious blood of the sacrifice must be applied. The Bible refers to an anointing that transcends and surpasses the external or rubbed upon anointing. The Greek word χρίω [chrio] is a “sacred anointing.” This word is only used in relation to a sacred anointing.

From the word “chrio” comes the word “Christos” which gives us Christ the Anointed One.

Jesus Christ is referred to as the Anointed One of God several times, (Luke 4:18; Acts 4:27; Acts 10:30; Hebrews 1:9). He is the Christ, God’s uniquely Anointed One.

In 2 Corinthians 1, this anointing is applied to the believer.

2 Corinthians 1:21-22 NKJV 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. 

We have an anointing from God. This anointing is not something that is poured on the head or rubbed on the skin. This anointing is connected to Christ and the function of the Holy Spirit. In the Old Testament, the anointing oil consecrated people and things as holy to the Lord. That holy anointing oil was poured on people and things. 

Now believers have an anointing from the Holy One. This anointing “establishes and separates us unto God.”

What is happening in us follows the pattern of what was done in the Old Testament.

God separated and anointed Moses in His presence. After Moses was set apart for God, he applied the anointing oil upon Aaron and others after the blood of the atonement had been sprinkled. After that, the Priests were anointed and became the anointed of God. These who were anointed applied the anointing oil on others. Any other individual in the Old Testament who was anointed was separated by God after a similar pattern.

After the blood of Christ was offered as atonement, the anointing of the Holy Spirit was given.

In the New Testament, Jesus said after He returned to the Father, He would pray the Father to send the Holy Spirit upon believers.

Now, James told elders in the church to anoint with oil and pray in faith for healing, (James 5:14-15).

James 5:14-15 NKJV Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.

They are operating from or under the anointing of the Holy Spirit. The oil of the anointing represents the outpouring and presence of the Holy Spirit upon and within. The spiritual elders of the church anoint with oil and the work is accomplished by the anointing of the Spirit.

The anointing from God is much more than the physical oil that was poured on the head or rubbed into the skin. The anointing of God’s Spirit precedes the anointing with oil. The blood covering precedes the anointing of God. God’s power and Spirit accompanies the anointing with oil.

When the anointing of the Holy Spirit accompanies the anointing with oil, miracles and healings occur.

Every anointing with oil does not contain efficacy to achieve this work. Many occults, religions, and cults practice anointing, libations, and oblations. What the Bible is referring to is not that. The anointing with oil is God’s sign of the function of the Holy Spirit’s anointing within the church. The Holy Spirit’s anointing enables, equips and gives the ability to work the works of power.

In the New Testament, the Holy Spirit rested on Jesus Christ without limit.

Jesus the Christ held a dual position. He was the atonement or the blood of the covering. He functioned as the Priest who baptizes in the Holy Spirit. From a position of power, Jesus distributed an anointing for His disciples and the church to work in the power of the Holy Spirit. The atonement by blood preceded the anointing of the Spirit.

Jesus, (the atonement) said He would pray the Father and the Father would send the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is given at the Father’s discretion upon those who have been cleansed by the blood of the Son.The anointing of God produces a special unction, or power. God’s anointing is given to accomplish a special task. This is a specific anointing.

This anointing of the Holy Spirit is purely divine.

To be efficacious and powerful, the physical anointing with oil must operate from the anointing of Holy Spirit power. When the woman with the issue of blood touched Jesus, He said that virtue had gone out of His body. The anointing that was upon Christ (the Anointed One) came upon her. The word “virtue” is also translated “power or unction.” When she touched Jesus, power ushered from Him into the woman who was sick. No oil was poured upon the woman, but the anointing power of the Holy Spirit, which was in Christ, came upon her. The power of the Holy Spirit produced the healing. Some translations say that power came out of Him when they touched His clothes. That virtue or power is related to the Holy Spirit’s anointing. 

When we anoint with oil, we depend on God doing something supernatural. The anointing with oil does not produce power. The power is the result of the Holy Spirit’s activity. The anointing with oil is associated with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit of God. The anointing with oil is best understood when it points to the person and work of the Holy Spirit.

James 5:14–15 NKJV Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 

The specific and faithful action of anointing with oil is in anticipation and expectation of the faithful action of God the Holy Spirit to complete the work. The anointing with oil and praying the prayer of faith demonstrates dependence on Holy Spirit to bring the healing.