In this message we shall consider some symbols of the Spirit. Second Corinthians 1:21 and 22 say, "Now he who firmly attaches us with you unto the anointed one and hath anointed us, is God; who hath also sealed us, and given the foretaste of the Spirit in our hearts" (Gk.). In these verses we see the Spirit as the anointing, as the seal, and as the earnest or the foretaste. Romans 8:23 speaks of the firstfruit of the Spirit. If we would know the riches of the all-inclusive Spirit, we must know how to interpret these symbols. We need to allegorize the figures used in the New Testament to portray this rich Spirit.
Second Corinthians 1:21 says, "Now he who firmly attaches us with you unto the anointed one, and hath anointed us, is God." The "us" refers to the Apostles, and the "you" denotes the believers. God has attached the Apostles and the believers unto the anointed One, who is Christ. All the ointment has been poured upon this unique anointed One, and from Him the ointment runs down to all His members. If we were not attached to this anointed One, we would not have any ointment. But the ointment has been poured upon the anointed One, and since we are attached to this anointed One, the ointment runs down to reach us.
It is difficult to explain anything related to life. Life is mysterious and difficult to understand, but easy to experience. We all have a wonderful physical life. Without this physical life, I could not stand here and speak to you in such a living way. But who understands our physical life? Not even the medical doctors understand it. Although we do not understand it, we experience it every day. Even ignorant babies experience it from the moment they are born.
Christ has been anointed by God (Heb. 1:9). Hence, He is the anointed One. Since we believe in Him and partake of Him, we participate in His anointing, sharing the same ointment. Thus, we are firmly attached to Him, the anointed One, enjoying His anointing. When you call, "O Lord Jesus," do you not sense the anointing within you? This indicates that you are firmly attached to the anointed One. There is something within you anointing you all the time, flowing and even running throughout your inner being. This is the moving of the ointment that is upon the Head running down to reach you as one of His members. It runs down to water you, to saturate you. Thus, you can no longer be a dry member; rather, you are one always under the anointing.
This anointing adds to us the very essence of God, the divine element. This is similar to the process of painting a table. As you paint the table, the element of the paint is added to the table. Likewise, as the ointment runs through us, it brings the divine element into us. In the Lord's recovery we have the assurance that day by day something is running through us, doing an inward "painting" work. The more this ointment moves, the more it paints us with the divine element. Hallelujah, the divine element is being added to us in the Lord's recovery! This is not a matter of teaching. Something is running over us and through us, and the divine element is being accumulated within us. The more we enjoy the flowing of the inner life and the more we enjoy the Lord together in the meetings, the more we have God within us. Although we may still feel that we are weak, we nevertheless have God within, for the anointing is constantly adding the divine element into our being.
This is a strong sign that the Lord's recovery is different from religion. You may stay in religion for years without receiving anything of the divine element into you. However, simply by being in the Lord's recovery for several months, you will be able to testify that God has been painted into you. It is not simply a matter of acquiring the knowledge of God, but it is a matter of having the element of God added into your being by the anointing. Oh, the all-inclusive Spirit, the compound ointment, is anointing us all day long! We have a divine paint, the compound ointment, the all-inclusive Christ, the all-inclusive Spirit, who is painting us day and night. We all have had some amount of the divine element added into our being.