QUESTION: But what about the anointing oil, Pastor? I see in the Bible that oil is used. It is also mentioned in the New Testament. What are your views?
Frank
RESPONSE: Thank you for your inquiry, Frank. I will not only share my opinion on the subject, but I will also discuss the facts surrounding oil and its diverse uses in many locations by various civilizations from historical times to the present. Over six different types of oils are mentioned in the Bible and employed by the cultures of the time. These types of oils are mentioned in the passages below (Psalms 45:8, Exodus 30:34-36, Leviticus 14:4, Exodus 12:22, Zechariah 1:8, Esther 2:12).
Oil was indispensable in the daily life of the ancient days. It was used for food (Numbers 11:8; 1Kings 17:12-16), fuel for lamps (Exodus 25:6; Mathew 25:3), cosmetics (Ecclesiastes 9:8; Ruth 3:3), medicine (James 5:14; Isaiah 1:6; Luke 10:34) and society rites like installing leaders like Kings, Priests and prophets (1Samuel 10:1; 16:13; Leviticus 16:32, Exodus 29:29; 1Chronicles 16:22, 1Kings 19:16) for Oil was regarded as a symbol of honour (Judges 9:9-10) and burial (Mathew 26:12; Mark 14:8).
The quantity of oil indicated prosperity in the ancient cultures mentioned in the Old Testament (Joel 2:24; Job 29:6). Because oil was a sign of joy and gladness (Psalm 45:7), anointing with oil was not used in times of grief, except on corpses (2Samuel 14:2). Oil was considered a gift from God in ancient communities due to its utility (Deuteronomy 11:14)
The Anointing Act
The act of sprinkling oil on an object for legal, symbolic, or cultic reasons is referred to as “anointing”. Priestly anointing is the cultic practice that initiates priests into office. The legal symbolic act of installing a leader into a royal office is known as royal anointing. This sort of anointing was also known as “Divine anointing” in a theocratic government. Oil was also utilized in initiation rituals such as slave manumission, marriage ceremonies, and the marketplace for specific purchases under legal anointing. Oil was also employed in covenant transactions. Because of this ritual function, oil was considered a sacred oil in both priestly and royal use. Then there’s the ‘Social life anointing’ of oil, which I mentioned earlier.
In the ancient world, anointing was a way of life. We haven’t changed much since then because oil is still a part of our daily lives. Oil is utilized at barbershops, health clubs, and hospitals, depending on the type of treatment provided. Churches anoint with oil, as do sports arenas, and all massage parlours have oil. The rationale for the anointing and the mystification constructed around a certain anointing is what distinguishes these diverse anointings in different areas.
Ritual versus Reality
When a Pastor or religious person anoints a sick person, the Bible says in James 5:14, “Is anyone among you sick?” Let him summon the church elders and have them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.” In contrast to the anointing provided by a doctor in the hospital with the same oil, this type of anointing is regarded as mystical and hence endowed with specific magical powers.
This attribution of special powers to oil physically anointed in religious circles by religious people is referred to as ritualism. Ritualism is the worship of symbols at the expense of scientific and theological truth. It is false and un-Christian to believe that one might be anointed with oil for materialistic prosperity. The practice of sprinkling oil on a newly purchased car or newly built house in the hopes of safeguarding it from physical accidents is occultic and not Christian. While oil has medicinal properties for physical ailments, it should be noted that it cannot protect us from demonic attacks or cast out devils.
No matter how many rites we do or how good we defend those rites to be, demons are only cast out by Jesus Christ, and he never does so through liquids such as Olive Oil (Mathew 8:29). Physical oil only addresses physical issues and cannot address spiritual issues. Natural oil has no supernatural powers, and as Christians, we should not over-mystify it.
We live in reality rather than symbols and rituals (Romans 2:25-29). _So let no one judge you in food or drink, or regarding a holiday, new moon, or Sabbath, which were only a shadow of what was to come, but the substance is Christ (Colossians 2:16-17). As a result, anointing oil is useful for bodily purposes but not for spiritual purposes. There is nothing spiritual or magical about the oil in church, from Israel, or even in the hands of God’s man. You can pray to God for healing, and you can anoint the ill as therapy, but not as a healing ritual (James 5:14). It is not Christian to do so. The reality is that there are no special magical powers in literal Oil.
God bless you,
I invoke TRUTH, WISDOM and FAITH (2Tim 2:7)
Priest M.I.T White (+256-775 822833)
iTiS Well of Worship Fellowship (John 4:24)
Questioning to Believe and Believing to Live
iTiS Well of Worship Fellowship (John 4:24) 