From the sermon preached on August 2, 2026
What does anointing oil actually mean, and why does it matter for your faith in God today? In scripture, oil is never magic; it is a visible sign that points to Jesus, the Anointed One, and to the Holy Spirit marking a person for a new season. This post unpacks that meaning through the message “The Way of Oil,” the eighth week of Generation Church’s summer series, Prepare the Way.
Pastor Rich Romero opened the message on a Sunday the church calls Anointing Sunday, a twice yearly gathering where families are prayed over together instead of separating into age groups. He said plainly that anointing oil holds no power of its own. The oil is simply a symbol, one among many God has used throughout scripture (bread, water, stones, wine, fire) to point people toward a deeper spiritual reality: faith in God expressed through a physical act.
Faith in God, Pastor Rich said, is the whole point of anointing oil; the oil itself changes nothing apart from the trust behind it.
What Does The Holy Spirit and Anointing Really Mean?
Pastor Rich began with a simple but weighty truth: Christ is not Jesus’s last name. The word “Christ” means the Anointed One, and in Hebrew, that same idea is carried in the word Messiah, the one sent by God to save. Throughout the Old Testament, kings, priests, and prophets were anointed with oil poured over their heads, a physical act tied to the Holy Spirit and anointing that marked them for a specific assignment. Pastor Rich made a point worth sitting with: the oil never created the calling. It simply revealed what God had already spoken. When God told David he would be king, the anointing came afterward, only confirming what had already been declared.
That distinction matters for anyone waiting to feel qualified before they move forward. The Holy Spirit and anointing in scripture were never about earning a future; they were about recognizing one already given. Pastor Rich reminded the room that Jesus fulfills every anointing, so today’s oil is not the source of a person’s purpose. It is a reminder that they belong to God, that they are chosen, and that the Holy Spirit and anointing rest on ordinary people carrying real responsibility.
One honest step to take today: before you ask God for a new assignment, pause and ask what He may have already spoken over your life that you have not yet believed.
Where Do You Find the Power of Prayer in Anointing?
The second observation Pastor Rich unpacked was that oil is an act of faith, and it is tied directly to the power of prayer. He read James 5:14, which instructs the sick to call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord, not in the name of a pastor or a tradition, but in the name of Jesus. The power of prayer here is not found in ritual or repetition; it is found in the honesty of the person praying and the one being prayed for.
Pastor Rich connected this to Generation Church’s yearly rhythm of 21 days of prayer and fasting, a season the church begins every January and August. He described the first day as a posture of repentance, confessing what has offended or grieved God and asking for clean hands and a pure heart. The power of prayer, he said, accompanies faith the same way it did for Moses lifting his staff, Israel marching around Jericho, or Naaman washing in the Jordan River. Hebrews 11:6 was central here: without faith, it is impossible to please God, no matter how much religion or good behavior a person offers instead.
Do you feel like your prayers have become routine rather than real? Try naming one honest, specific request out loud tonight instead of a general one.
What Does It Look Like Living a Spirit-Filled Life?
The final observation was the most personal: living a spirit-filled life means being marked and set apart, not for show, but for purpose. Pastor Rich pointed to 2 Corinthians 1:21, which says God makes believers stand firm in Christ, anoints them, sets a seal of ownership on them, and places His Spirit in their hearts as a guarantee of what is to come. That guarantee, he said, is not tied to circumstances looking resolved.
He was direct about the tension many families carry into a new season: a marriage in a hard place, a child who feels wayward, a mountain that has not moved yet. Living a spirit-filled life does not mean those things vanish; it means the anointing gives strength to keep moving through them rather than waiting for them to disappear first. Pastor Rich tied this to 1 Peter 2:9, which calls believers a chosen people, a royal priesthood, and God’s own possession, set apart to declare his goodness rather than to earn it.
He was careful to note that oil will not be needed in heaven, because perfect union with God removes the need for a symbol. The anointing, then, is for right now, for the actual mess of this earth and this season.
One honest step today: name the specific mountain you are facing and ask God for the strength to walk through it, not around it, this week.
What Does James 5 Teach About Anointing Oil and Faith?
James 5 grounds the entire message in a single, practical instruction: when someone is sick or struggling, the elders of the church are called to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. James 5:14 frames prayer offered in faith, not tradition, as the posture that brings healing and restoration. The table below contrasts two common misunderstandings about anointing oil with what scripture actually teaches.
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A Common Misunderstanding |
What Scripture Actually Teaches |
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The oil itself carries spiritual power |
The oil is a symbol that points to Jesus, the Anointed One |
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Anointing creates a calling or purpose |
Anointing confirms a purpose God had already spoken |
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Faith is proven by feeling ready first |
Faith is proven by acting before circumstances change |
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The anointing is for a future, better season |
The anointing is given for the current, unfinished journey |
Where Can Your Family Find This Kind of Community?
The struggle Pastor Rich named, feeling forgotten between seasons, unsure whether God still has a plan for a marriage, a job change, or a child heading back to school, is not unique to any one neighborhood. It is a weight carried by parents in Coconut Grove packing lunches before a new school year and by young professionals in Brickell wondering if their career change is actually a calling. Whether your family calls Coral Gables home or you are driving in from South Kendall or greater Miami, Generation Church exists as a place to bring that weight and pray it through together, not alone. You do not have to have it figured out to walk through the doors; you only have to be willing to come as you are.
A New Season Is Already Here
Pastor Rich’s charge was simple: anointing oil does not accomplish anything on its own; Jesus does. Anointing, prayer, and being marked and set apart are only meaningful when they flow from a life already surrendered to Him, a life built on faith in God rather than circumstance. As Generation Church enters its 21 days of prayer and fasting this August, the invitation is the same one extended every week: come as you are, and let faith arise.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does it mean to be chosen by God?
Being chosen by God means He has set a person apart for His purposes, not because they earned it, but because He declared it over them first. Pastor Rich taught that this identity, described in 1 Peter 2:9 as being part of a royal priesthood, is a gift meant to be lived out rather than a status to prove.
What is the anointing of the Holy Spirit?
The anointing of the Holy Spirit is the marking of God’s presence and empowerment on a person’s life, symbolized in scripture through oil. It confirms a calling or assignment God has already given rather than creating that calling from scratch.
What does it mean to be set apart by God?
Being set apart by God means living distinctly from the patterns of the world while still being fully present in daily life, whether at work, at home, or at school. Pastor Rich described this as being marked in every room a person walks into, not removed from those rooms.
Why does Generation Church anoint with oil twice a year?
Generation Church holds Anointing Sunday twice a year, once in January and once in August, to mark the start of new seasons with prayer over the whole family. The practice is tied to the church’s 21 days of prayer and fasting that follows each Anointing Sunday.
What is the connection between faith and physical acts in scripture?
Scripture repeatedly ties faith to a physical act, such as Moses lifting his staff, Israel marching around Jericho, or Naaman washing in the Jordan River. Pastor Rich taught that anointing with oil follows this same pattern, an outward action that declares an inward trust in God.
