OVER THE PAST three to four years, I have been actively thinking on and analysing many things that are done within our churches. Some of them I have witnessed personally, and others were shared with me. Today I just want to mention two of them.
Contrary to popular belief and practice, no Christian is more anointed than another. A special anointing, double anointing, a strong anointing and the like are not supported in scripture.
The Bible teaches that any person who receives the Holy Spirit also receives the anointing, and that’s all of the Holy Spirit and all of the anointing. The anointing and the person of the Holy Spirit cannot be separated. Since it is impossible to increase the amount of the Holy Spirit a believer possesses, it is equally impossible to get more of the anointing of God, so believers should stop praying for it.
Pastors, apostles, evangelists, bishops, etcetera, who tell people “there is a special anointing on your life”; “ask God for more of His anointing”, “the anointing on you is strong” or “come to church tonight for a double anointing service”, are practising something that isn’t supported in scripture.
Since the anointing is something given by God (John 2:27, Luke 4:18) and is received at the point an unbeliever receives the Holy Spirit, it is therefore impossible for a pastor, preacher or fellow believer to impart the anointing or more of it by the laying on of hands. Please do not confuse the anointing with anointing with oil; they are two very different things.
All Christians receive the same anointing, similar to how God has given to all believers the measure of faith (Romans 12:3). Notice it says ‘the’ measure of faith and not ‘a’ measure. Now, receiving the anointing and using the anointing are two different things.
What we confuse as being a greater anointing in others is just those individuals, through their growth and relationship in Christ, being able to manifest what the anointing enables them to do. So, for instance, a believer who is basically lukewarm has the same anointing as a believer who is active and on fire for God; the difference is how they use the anointing.
Secondly, within the charismatic church, the “prophetic” is quickly growing and widely practised. Over the years I have observed the emergence of many individuals being bestowed with the title of prophet. I am very concerned with the liberalness of the prophetic movement in Barbados, and some of the questionable and unbiblical prophetic activities that are practised within the church today.
Let me be very clear. I fully support prophesy, prophesying and the office of the prophet as they are all supported in scripture for modern day believers (Romans 12:6). I also believe there are genuine prophets and churches and believers who engage in the prophetic in a manner that is supported biblically.
Prophetic worship and prophetic dance are two things that are promoted and practised within the church that I am not settled on. What exactly are they? What scriptural evidence is there for it? In another article I hope to discuss this in greater detail.
I am no expert in all things Christian, but I am learning to ask more questions and share my thoughts as they relate to matters like these. If you have studied the above-mentioned and have information you think would offer clarity or show where I may be wrong or out of context; please send me an email.
I have participated in the things that I speak of above and though I was sincere in my actions or beliefs, I believe I was sincerely wrong. We as believers can get lost in our excitement and zeal and as a result, become blinded and reckless.
Over the past years, the Lord has been revealing to me my errors, misunderstandings and where I became sidetracked. Daily I am renewing my mind and my eyes are opening. I see much more clearly now and as a result, I ask more questions and am not as gullible as I was before. Let’s just say that I am maturing in my walk with the Lord.
I hope this article encourages the body of Christ to do some introspection. Hopefully it encourages discussion and Bible study. As my former pastor always said, “the church must get it right”.
• Corey Worrell, a former Commonwealth Youth Ambassador, is director of C2J Foundation Inc., a project-based NGO focusing on social development. Email: coreyworrell@gmail.com
