Music, An Anointed Ministry
By Carroll McGruder
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me” (Luke 4:18)
Jesus, full of and controlled by the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan River and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness where He was tempted by the devil for forty days. (See Luke 4:2.) Luke gives us an insight, through the example of Christ, into spiritual anointing. The third chapter of Luke records the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River. This event was a spiritual high point in the young life of the Savior. He did not, however, camp out at the riverbank and try to relive this one experience every Wednesday night and every Sunday morning.
Jesus accepted baptism as a specified part of relationship to His Father. As our example, He moved ahead into the wilderness of temptation. Jesus was “led” by the Holy Spirit to meet the devil face to face. Anointed people cannot escape the real-to-life, everyday trials of our natural existence. Even when we are walking in the Spirit, we still must face Satan’s darts.
Trials do not make us unanointed. In fact, overcoming trials is what equips us for successful service in God. Even in the time of temptations, Jesus maintained an anointing that was evident even to the devil (See Luke 4:1-13.) When this test ended, “Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit” (Luke 4:14).
The anointing elevates the anointed one to a position of power. A singer or musician is not anointed for his own glory. The anointing can lift a person into a realm where the power of God can be manifest through him.
Sometimes singers mistakenly think that God anoints them so they can be blessed by the Holy Ghost. Some even think the anointing is upon them to create a moment to move the service to another level. Not so. Worship does that of itself even without musical accompaniment. Luke reveals how there are specific and direct purposes in the anointing of God. (See Luke 4:18-19)
The people in Jesus’ hometown of Nazareth took exception to His anointed words when He said, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears” (Luke 4:21). Once the boundaries were laid out by Jesus nothing could stop the anointing of God from fulfilling its purpose, even though the devil rebuffed Him in three temptations and His own community rejected Him. Luke said, “They were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power” (Luke 4:32).
The third dimension of anointing is demonstration. The anointed singers/musicians who seek not their own glory, but rather give all the glory to God, will move into a realm of power where the Holy Ghost is willing to demonstrate Himself with signs following.
My wife, Priscilla, and I have witnessed many healings, outpourings of the Holy Ghost, and other anointed demonstrations when all the attention is focused on God and not man. Music and singing usher us into the presence of God when we give all honor and praise unto God. Jesus will demonstrate Himself wonderfully through our talents if the music is anointed ministry when it is evident that the Spirit of the Lord is upon us and that He is anointing us to minister the Word through the medium of music.
“Music, An Anointed Ministry”. By Carroll McGruder.
