Launch Your Ministry Chapter 8 of 27
<-Chapter 7 Chapter 9-> Return to FulltextThe Internal and External Anointing
Condensed Version (Completed)
The first relationship is known as the Internal Anointing, because it comes from deep down inside of you, where the Holy Spirit dwells.
The Internal Anointing is like a deep underground stream that you can drill down to and tap into. Then you can pump the water until it gushes out.
The second is known as the External Anointing. This is the one that brings the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, the supernatural and the signs and wonders.
It produces the goose bump feelings that we get and is like a downpour of gushing rain. The Scriptures often speak of God pouring down His blessing, and we sometimes think of the anointing of God as coming down on us.
So the Holy Spirit can rise up from deep inside you, and the Holy Spirit can come down upon you.
Each of these different relationships of the Holy Spirit in us gives rise to a different wing. We must have both of them together to be fully effective for the Lord.
Here are the nine things that come through. Under the external we have the nine Gifts of the Spirit which are:
1. Tongues
2. Interpretation of Tongues
3. Prophecy
4. Word of Wisdom
5. Word of Knowledge
6. Discerning of Spirits
7. Faith
8. Miracles
9. Healings
There are also nine Fruits of the Spirit under the internal, which are:
1. Love
2. Joy
3. Peace
4. Patience
5. Kindness
6. Goodness
7. Assurance
8. Gentleness
9. Self-Control
On both sides there are two that God has given mostly for us and that we use within ourselves. The others are used mostly to pour out to others, but we can use those two for ourselves.
Ours to Use
The gift of tongues is mostly for us to use for ourselves. It is used for prayer and to build ourselves up spiritually.
The gift of faith also enables us to come to a place of believing God for the impossible. That then leaves seven which are used mainly for others.
When you come to the Fruit of the Spirit, you will see that love should always be poured out to others.
Joy should be contagious and should be spread around, but peace is something that affects your own heart. It is what the Bible calls the peace of God that passes understanding.
Patience certainly has to do with how we handle people, and kindness is always something we show to others. Goodness means giving out or being generous, and that also involves people.
What is the fruit of faith? It is the ability to believe, not only in you, but also to believe in others. It is not exactly the same as the gift of faith which gives a supernatural ability.
Then there is gentleness, which again concerns how we handle people. Self-control on the other hand is something that helps you to get a hold of yourself.
So here again we see two that are used mainly for ourselves, but the other seven are used for others.
Here are the two wings – the nine feathers, with seven main ways or different manifestations of the anointing.
These come under two main headings: the Internal Anointing and the External Anointing. We need both of them in order to minister effectively.
Getting Others to Receive From You
How do you get people to be open to receive from you?
Jesus was God in human flesh, and according to the Bible He had the anointing without any limitation or restriction.
But when He came to His hometown as a normal man, the Bible says that He couldn't do many miracles there. He could not perform any signs and wonders and He couldn't even really minister to the people.
If people do not have confidence in you and are not prepared to receive from you, then it does not matter how much power you have to give them. It will not touch them.
You need to have some kind of influence that will open the hearts of the people. They need to be ready to receive from you, and then from God in you.
That is what the Internal Anointing and the Fruit of the Spirit is about.
Using Love
You need to approach people using the power of love. Love is like a light that shines in the darkness. It opens people's hearts wide, and they will not judge you for your lack of education or ability.
You need the supernatural love that comes from the Internal Anointing. And when you love people that way they open their hearts wide.
You also need to come with joy. We live in a negative world, so you need to lift people up and spread joy. You need a sense of humor and should help people to laugh. It will open their hearts wide.
You need to also be patient and kind with them. You need to be generous, because if you give to someone they feel obligated to give back to you.
If you give someone a gift, they will be more ready to open their hearts to receive. You need to believe in people and you should be very gentle in how you handle them.
None of these things come naturally no matter how hard you try. Only with God's anointing and His Spirit flowing out from deep inside you, can you do these things unselfishly as a blessing to others, to show them that God is in you.
Releasing the Anointing
You get the two sides together by following after love and earnestly desiring spiritual gifts. Then all you do is go out and release it.
And you do this in two simple ways: through the words that you speak and the actions that you carry out. You tell them about God, but you also show them what God's love looks like and draw them to Him.
You need all of this to do the work of the ministry. But how do you get a knowledge of the Scriptures and the power of the Holy Spirit?
You could study the Bible alone. But you need someone else to take you beyond that. And for this God has given the Teaching Ministry to the Church.
You could pray alone and wait on God for the power of the Holy Spirit, but God also uses others to pass on the power that they have received.
We will look shortly at how you can be trained to get ready and start doing the work of the ministry.
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