Christian anointing is sign of spiritual blessing, healing, and consecration. The spiritual anointing of the Lord is manifested outwardly in unique ways for each person as the Holy Spirit empowers and guides us. The Scriptural word from which Messiah is derived literally translates as “The Anointed One.”
Jesus accepted his Messianic mission in his home church at the Nazareth synagogue after reading from the prophet Isaiah:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord (Luke 4:18-19 KJV).
The anointing of the Lord in our lives is cast in today’s Bible readings within the rich history of anointings throughout human existence since time immemorial. The sacramental anointings continuing in the rituals of today’s church celebrate the ongoing action of the Holy Spirit to persist in carrying out the mission of Jesus in every generation.