Anointed and Clever: Why Noise Is Not the Anointing

Sermon outline

God's wisdom is His Word, it is available to every believer, and a person who walks in it is anointed and intelligent, led by the Spirit, unmoved by fear and unable to be fooled.

1. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge

   Reverential fear of God, not the idea that a Christian can do as he likes and be forgiven, sets the boundaries of a believer's life: when the choice is left or right, he chooses the right way because he wants to please God. Believers operate from a spirit of love, power and a sound mind, and faith works by love, so unforgiveness and bitterness must go. Fools are not only outside the church; whoever despises wisdom and godly instruction is called a fool.

   “Say, I refuse to be foolish. I'm wise.”

   • Proverbs 1:1-7
   • 2 Timothy 1:7
   • Galatians 5:6
   • Proverbs 4:23

2. Don't consent when sinners entice you: one with God is a majority

   Solomon warns his son not to walk with those greedy for gain. Righteous people sometimes have to stand alone against a larger crowd, but a majority is not always right. A wise person is not greedy for gain; he seeks more of God, and gain and blessing follow until they overtake him.

   Illustration: The blessings of the Lord follow you all your life, then catch up, then overtake you, until you are the one trying to keep up with them.

   “One man with God is a majority.”

   • Proverbs 1:8-19
   • John 10:10

3. Wisdom calls: be led, then governed, by the Spirit

   Wisdom cries out in the streets and those who refuse her eat the fruit of their own way, but whoever listens is safe. That is why you come to church: to receive instruction, and while he preaches God may give you business ideas, concepts and direction. Move up from being guided and led to being governed by the Holy Spirit, and check every leading against the Word, which is your safety net.

   Illustration: Church is a service for your car: the Holy Spirit changes your sludged oil filter so you leave shining. Philip did exactly what the Spirit said and joined himself to the Ethiopian's chariot.

   “Good ideas never work in the kingdom of God. The only thing that works in the kingdom of God is God's ideas.”

   • Proverbs 1:20-33
   • Acts 8:29
   • Romans 8:14

4. Spirituality does not mean the absence of intelligence

   Being anointed is no excuse for reckless decisions. Shaking under the power is fine, but God also gave you a mind to choose between good and evil, so choose a spouse, a business deal and a church wisely. Do not blindly follow anyone who tells you to do something extreme; control and manipulation are not of God.

   Illustration: Don't marry a good-for-nothing who sleeps all day just because he drives a smart car, and don't assume a dream about a pretty girl means God chose her for you: it may be last night's pizza.

   “Spirituality does not mean the absence of intelligence.”

5. Emotionalism is not power: the true anointing

   Clapping, dancing and shouting are good, and he does them himself, but noise is not the presence of God. He calls a row of people forward and they fall under the power without a word or a touch, and he leaves them lying there until the end of the service as a demonstration. Other powers can produce signs, so do not base your faith on men and institutions but on Jesus Christ, the chief cornerstone.

   Illustration: When the soldiers came to arrest Jesus and He said 'I am He', they fell to the ground. Moses' rod became a snake and swallowed the magicians' rods. He once sat in a loud meeting where the preacher kept saying the anointing was there, and he told the Lord it was only emotionalism.

   “Emotionalism is not power.”

   • John 18:6
   • Exodus 7:10-12
   • Proverbs 18:24

6. 1. God's wisdom is more valuable than gold

   Wisdom comes out of God's mouth, so God's Word equals wisdom, and every time you open your Bible you are interacting with it. His commandments make you wiser than your enemies, friends and business competitors, and a prudent man foresees evil and hides himself. Wisdom is a force that leads you down good paths, and nobody can trick you or take undue advantage of you while you walk in it.

   Illustration: God gives dreams, visions and concepts so that when you apply them people ask where you learnt this.

   “Every time you interact with your Bible and the word of God, you are interacting with wisdom.”

   • Proverbs 2:1-9
   • Psalm 119:98
   • Proverbs 27:12

7. 2. God wants you to have wisdom

   Discretion preserves you from the man who speaks perverse things, because your ears, eyes and mouth are gateways to your spirit. Give and serve from your heart and in faith, not under pressure. Refuse fear-based living about petrol prices and interest rates: trust God for promotion instead of downscaling, and dare to step out like Peter, because no one can impoverish a person of faith.

   Illustration: Coasting down a hill in neutral to save petrol is fear-based living; the God who gave you the car will give you the money to fuel it.

   “Fear is meditating on the lies of the devil. Faith is meditating on the word of God.”

   • Proverbs 1:20-23
   • Proverbs 2:11-12
   • Philippians 4:19
   • Matthew 14:29

8. 3. Wisdom brings success

   Happy is the man who finds wisdom: she is better than silver and gold, with long life in one hand and riches and honour in the other. Meditate on and speak the Word all day; wisdom says do not speak what you see, speak what you want to see. Do not despise small beginnings, and in business follow the Spirit's check even when a deal looks good.

   Illustration: Don't look at your one-bedroom flat or small car and call it your portion; it is a temporary station. Con artists are the smoothest talkers, so ask whether the man offering to make you rich is rich himself.

   “Wisdom says do not speak what you see, speak what you want to see.”

   • Proverbs 3:13-16
   • Matthew 4:4
   • Proverbs 10:22
   • Psalm 68:19
   • Romans 4:17
   • Galatians 3:29
   • Mark 11:23-24
   • Job 8:7