It says in Luke 8:1-3 that after Jesus was anointed with precious oil on His feet by the sinful woman in the Pharisee’s house, He went through the towns and villages with His twelve disciples, preaching and proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God. Certain women are mentioned here whom he had healed and freed from evil spirits and diseases.

 

One of them who experienced the power of deliverance was Mary Magdalene and the second woman was Joanna, the wife of Chuza, who was the manager of Herod’s household, as well as Susanna and other women who supported Jesus’ ministry with their possessions.

 

1 After this, Jesus travelled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, 2 and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; 3 Joanna the wife of Chuza, the manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means.

 

The kind of dynamic in which Jesus moved in this situation in the towns and villages was the apostolic power of God, because all twelve disciples accompanied Him at this time.

 

 

Since we read about the anointing of His feet before this intervention of the Son of God in the form of preaching and proclamation in the towns and villages, for us it serves as an indication of a special approach of the power of God. For we know that based on the truth of the Word of God, it is the anointing that breaks the yoke of the adversary (cf. Isaiah 10:27).

 

27 In that day their burden will be lifted from your shoulders, their yoke from your neck; the yoke will be broken because you have grown so fat [Note: because of the anointing].

 

This anointing includes a ‘fatness’ that promotes growth or an expansion and contributes to the growing of prosperity. In connection with this, it is noteworthy that Luke 8:3 refers to the support of women. Based on Psalm 23:5b and Psalm 133:2a, it is the ‘oil’ that first touches the head that activates new thinking in the walk of God’s abundance and allows us to give and act in new ways in the Kingdom of God.

 

… 5b You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

 

2a It is like precious oil poured on the head, …

 

Day by day and in every moment of our entrusted lives, it is our thoughts that influence our growth and success, which means that through our thoughts we can define the flow of blessings. By framing and expressing faith, our thoughts define the amount of blessing that flows from us or to us.

 

 

Jesus was surrounded by His twelve disciples, which revealed Him to be the center of apostolic power. In this context, He did not focus exclusively on the size of the audience (Note: He ministered in towns and villages.), but rather on communicating the revelatory truth of the Kingdom of God. The focus for us in this time is on the dominion of God in the believer through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. In this context, the apostolic power sent out in the form of Jesus with His twelve disciples was accompanied by a special presence or glory of God shown through the women according to the principle of Proverbs 12:4a, who expressed their appreciation towards Jesus by devotionally and confidently investing their wealth in His ministry.

 

4a A wife of noble character is her husband’s crown [Note: glory]; ...

 

These women understood investing into the ‘light shadow of God’ or bringing their values to the table of the Lord. They must have been aware that by expressing their gratitude they were going through the gates of God to place their gift in the light of God. Expressed in a prophetic context, the women brought their gifts under the shadow of the wings of the Almighty, in whom is no darkness (cf. Psalm 96:8; Psalm 100:4; Psalm 91:1 i.c.w. 1 John 1:5).

 

8 Ascribe to the Lord the glory due to his name; bring an offering and come into his courts.

 

4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.

 

1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty [Note: Shaddai].

 

5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.

 

This means that the women moved according to the position of the light, that is, the Son of God. Thus, they followed the ‘shadow of God’s light’ to reflect it in their surroundings with the expression of their gratitude. This was the so-called ‘shadow of life’, which resembles the shadow of the moving wings of the eagle in the throne room of God (cf. John 8:12 i.c.w. Revelation 4:7).

 

12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’

 

7 The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle.

 

As the only being before the throne of God, it is the creature of the eagle that is described with a flying movement, which in this context represents the livingness of God.

 

 

It is possibly for this reason that we focus only on the living shadow with all that we are and have, thereby helping to establish or manifest the supernatural realm of God’s living presence in our environment. Consequently, it is important for us to stay in the forward movement of the LORD and cling to Him so that no fear (Note: insecure feeling, worry), even in a phase of challenge, can spread and take hold in our hearts, as David describes in Psalm 23:4.

 

4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

 

The presence of God in the form of the living shadow includes the reverent presence of the LORD in the form of the ‘leading bull’ under whose yoke we are yoked to learn from Him because His yoke is easy, and His burden is light (cf. Matthew 11:29-30).

 

‘… 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.’

 

Walking under His anointed ‘yoke’ in the form of the ‘shadow of light’ allows us to learn to walk through the challenge with great confidence to reach the predestined goal of God, guided by the Holy Spirit.

 

It is the realm of the Lord in the form of the ‘Alpha and Omega’ that accompanies us with the breath of His Spirit. This is what the ‘You’ in Psalm 23:4 reveals, which is the Hebrew word ‘אַתָּה – 'attâh’.

 

Based on the principle ‘it is more blessed to give than to receive’ (cf. Acts 20:35), it becomes clear that we are encouraged to invest in the anointing of God’s presence and thereby unite ourselves with it. This has a positive effect on our own lives and promotes the inflow and outflow of blessing.

 

35 In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” ’

 

 

By learning the truth of God’s Word, we are also encouraged to recognize the particular anointing and align with it at the right moments through our investment to step into God’s predestined expansion (cf. Matthew 10:41 i.c.w. Luke 6:38).

 

41 Whoever welcomes a prophet as a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and whoever welcomes a righteous person as a righteous person will receive a righteous person’s reward.

 

‘… 38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.’

 

Therefore, we should learn from the integrity and example as well as the dedication of the noble women mentioned and actively participate in their work as well as in the apostolic power of God as revealed today through various ministries and their messages in His kingdom (cf. Acts 17:4.12).

 

4 Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few prominent women. …

12 As a result, many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men.

 

Sharing our entrusted possessions or our various forms of wealth by consciously investing it in the Kingdom is an expression of recognizing the presence of God. On the other hand, there is an unhelpful trend that many Christians are getting used to the idea that others should give them everything ‘for free’ and without any commitment, because only this would express their trust in God’s provision or their genuine love for their fellow man. How acceptable is such an attitude in relation to the presence of God?

 

We cannot recognize that Jesus instructed these noble women, representative of us as the ecclesia, to keep their wealth to themselves and only allow themselves to be served. In this biblical month of ‘Tammuz’ combined with self-reflection, let us ask ourselves who do we want to serve and, if so, in what quality?

 

Amen and Amen.

 

In His Wisdom,

 

Daniel Glimm