1 John 2:20-21 ESV 20 But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. 21 I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth.

1 John 2:24-26 ESV 24 Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. 25 And this is the promise that he made to us—eternal life.

26 I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. 27 But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him.

Dear Fellowship of the Burning Heart:

You have an anointing. May I suggest, then show, that this anointing is the Holy Spirit, who was promised by Christ when he talked with his disciples in the closing chapters of John’s gospel. This is not a special anointing that only the privileged receive, it is not an anointing in addition to the reception of the Spirit at the moment of conversion, but it is the anointing that they received when the Spirit brought new birth at the beginning of their spiritual life with Christ. Some commentators suggest that John talks about anointing because the false teachers (of the pre-Gnostic sect) probably taught that they needed a special ritual anointing to receive all of the truth or all that they needed to progress. The Bible does present instances where the anointing of the Holy Spirit is received. Here is what John says about this promise of the Spirit.

John 14:16-17 ESV And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

John 14:26 ESV But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

John 15:26 ESV “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with me from the beginning.

John 16:13 ESV When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.

We see that the Holy Spirit, the Helper or Comforter, is the Spirit of truth who will teach us, help us remember, and guide us into all the truth. Jesus sent his Spirit because he did not want to leave us as orphans. He wanted us to have the help we need to live for him. Now, if we are not careful, we will arrive at the notion that we don’t need human teachers, we don’t need to study, we will just acquire all that we need to know from the Spirit. However, we know, as we put all the information from the New Testament together, that the Spirit uses human teachers, enlightens our understanding of the Holy Scriptures, and helps us to recognize and accept the truth. Without the Spirit’s help we would easily be deceived.

The challenge is to allow the gospel which we have heard and received remain in us. The gospel is not just a message; it is a message which embodies a set of core values, an approach to live, a certain understanding of the truth. We not only accept the gospel, we live it. When we allow the gospel to abide in us, we will enjoy the presence of the Son and the Father as well.

You are not alone. You have what you need to live with God, to live for God, to enjoy what he has promised – eternal life. Hold fast to what you know is true, hold fast to what you have received, hold fast to the relationship you have with God through Christ. Your anointing will not let you down.