Many things are symbols of the Holy Spirit.
Water is a symbol as we mentioned in the preceding article, (Jn 7:38,39). Fire likewise is a symbol, as apparent from the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:3); and also wind (Acts 2:2) is a symbol.
In baptism the Holy Spirit appeared in the form of tongues of fire and they were filled with the Holy Spirit. So fire was a symbol of the Spirit, as also oil.
Oil in the Holy Ointment is the means by which the Holy Spirit descends on the person anointed with.
That Ointment depended on oil, especially olive oil mixed with the best fragrant oils; for the Lord commanded Moses to make from them a holy anointing oil and to use it for consecrating the altars, the holy places, and the holy vessels. The Lord said to Moses. “With it you shall anoint the tabernacle of meeting and the ark of the Testimony, the table and all its utensils, the lamp stand and its utensils, and the altar of incense; the altar of burnt offering … the laver and its base. You shall consecrate them, that they may be most holy; whatever touches them must be holy.” (Ex 30:24-39).
By that ointment the priest anointed people, and the Spirit of the Lord made it holy. It is not mere oil but holy oil through which the Holy Spirit works. And the Lord repeated the same command, and Moses did according to all that the Lord had commanded (Ex 40: 9-16).
The first place consecrated with oil was Bethel, i.e. God’s house.
That happened when our father Jacob saw a ladder set up on the earth and its top reached to heaven. He said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!” Then Jacob rose early in the morning, took the stone that he had put at his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it. And he called the name of that place Bethel (Gen. 28 : 16-19).
Our father Jacob repeated the same action when the Lord appeared to him in Padan Aram and blessed him; “So Jacob set up a pillar in the place where He talked with him, a pillar of stone; and he poured a drink offering on it, and he poured oil on it. And Jacob called the name of the place… Bethel.”
(Gen. 35:9-15).
That consecration meant devotion to God solely.
The house becomes God’s house; the holy utensils become God’s and not used for any other purpose. The oil becomes holy to the Lord, “whoever compounds any like it, or whoever puts any of it on an outsider, shall be cut off from his people.” (Ex 30 : 33).
Even the priests were anointed with that holy ointment.
By that anointing they became holy to the Lord, devoted to His ministry, because they were anointed by the Holy Spirit, as the Lord said about Himself : “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me.” (Isa 61:1).
The Lord commanded Moses His profit to anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may minister to Him as priests (Ex 30 : 30). The Lord also commanded him to bring Aaron and his sons to the door of the tabernacle of meeting and wash them with water, put the holy garments on Aaron, anoint and consecrate him; to bring his sons and clothe them with tunics…” their anointing shall surely be an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations.”
(Ex 40 : 12-15).
Although Gob chose Aaron and his son as priests, they has to be anointed so that they might begin their priestly ministry.
Their election represents the divine call, where as the anointing represents the descending of the Holy Spirit on them before starting their ministry, because they work by the Holy Spirit.
This anointing of Aaron is mentioned in (Ps 133 : 1-2). “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down on the beard, the beard of Aaron, running down on the edge of his garments. And Moses did as the Lord commanded him
(Lev 8 : 10-12).
It is the power of the Holy Spirit that works in the oil and sanctifies places and people.
Kings were likewise anointed with this ointment.
The first anointed king was Saul, who Samuel the Prophet anointed according to the Lord’s command (1 Sam 9: 16). As soon as Saul was anointed, the Spirit of the Lord came upon him and he prophesied. So the people were astonished, and said,” Is Saul also among the prophets?” (1 Sam 10:10-11).
Through that anointing, the Spirit of the Lord came upon the anointed person.
As the Spirit of the Lord came upon Saul when he was anointed, so also David the Prophet when anointed by Samuel “the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward.” (1 Sam 16:13).
The same happened when Elijah the Prophet anointed Hazael as king over Syria, and Jehu the son of Nimshi as king over Israel, according to the Lord’s command (1 kgs 19:15,16).
The Kings were anointed in order to carry out the Lord’s purposes. That is why it was necessary that the Spirit of God come upon them to lead them. Those who refused the Spirit’s leadership, like king Saul, were rejected by the Lord and His Spirit departem from them (1 Sam. 16 : 14).
Prophets, as well, were anointed with the holy ointment.
The Lord commanded Elijah the Prophet to anoint Elisha the son of Shaphat as prophet in his place ( 1 kgs 19:16). And since the prophets spoke the word of God, so His Spirit who speaks in the prophets was to come upon them.
In the Apostolic era, the Holy Spirit was given by the laying on of hands, then, when the number of the faithful increased, that was done by the Holy anointing
(1 Jn 2:20,27). That was the beginning of making the holy chrism with which the baptized is anointed, so the Holy Spirit comes upon the baptized who then becomes a temple of the Spirit and a dwelling place (1 Cor 3:16; 6:19; 2Cor 1:21).
The significance of the oil is clear in the Parable of the Ten Virgins.
Since oil is a symbol of the work of the Holy Spirit in people, its lack means that the Spirit does not work in them. That was the problem of the five foolish virgins: that they took no oil in their vessels with their lamps (Mt 25:3), in other words, they had no communion with the Holy Spirit. This made their lamps go out.
Enlightment is the work of the Holy Spirit.
This reminds us of the importance of the lamps in God’s house in the past. They were burnt and lit with oil, as the Lord commanded Moses, saying, “you shall command the children of Israel that they bring you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to cause the lamp to burn continually.” ( Ex 27:20; 35:8) .
Candles also burn with oil, which has a deeper spiritual significance than electricity. When we light a candle or a lamp burning with oil in front of a saint’s iron, this reminds us that this saint was a light to the world in his / her generation and always. The oil in the candle or the lamp refers to the Lord’s Spirit working in the saint.
The same applies to the candle in front of the gospel.
It means that the gospel enlightens our minds and hearts by the Holy Spirit, and lights the was before us, because the Spirit inspired the apostle when writing down the gospel (2 Tim, 3 :16) reminding them of all that which the lord said to them ( Jn 14:26).
The relationship between oil and healing :
We read about the twelve apostles that they preached, cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them (Mk 6 : 12-13).
And about the Sacrament of the Ointment of the Sick, the apostle says:
“Is anyone among you sick? let him call for the elders (Priests) of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.” ( Jas 5 : 14,15). It is the Holy Spirit that heals and works in the oil for healing as for the forgiveness of sins.
There are many examples in this respect in the Old Testament, as in (Isa 1:6), and in the N O , as in the story of the Good Samaritan (Lk 10:34).
Let us move to another point: the source of oil, that is, the olive tree.
The church is compared to an olive tree, because a person receives the Holy Spirit through the church as we obtain oil from the olive tree. And St. Paul the Apostle compares the church of the Old Testament to a cultivated olive tree, and the church of the New Testament to a wild olive tree grafted into it, thus became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree (Rom 11:17,24).
Also Zechariah the Prophet spoke about the two olive trees, the two anointed ones who stand beside the Lord of the whole earth (Zech 4:11-14). They are anointed, being born of the Holy Spirit; and also they give oil to the people.
The believers are the branches of the olive tree.
They are fed on the fatness of the olive tree, but they will be cut off if they do not walk in goodness (Rom 11:21,22). And the Psalmist says, “Your children like olive plants all around your table.” (Ps 128:3).
A believer is like an olive plant carrying the oil, which symbolizes the Holy Spirit.
The Psalmist says, “But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God.”
(Ps 52:8) So, if I am an olive plant I will deserve to have God as my Father, because I carry His Holy Spirit within me, that is, the oil of the olive tree.
What about the green leaf of the olive which the dove brought to Noah’s ark?
The Olive leaf is a symbol of peace, which is a fruit of the Spirit
(Gal 5:22).
Was that green leaf an indication that the flood waters returned back, or an indication of peace between God and people, represented in the rainbow
(Gen 9:13-15).
A concluding point is the relationship of the Lord Christ with the Olive Mount.
It was His favourable place, as St. John the Evangelist says, “Everyone went to his own house, but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.” (Jn. 8:1) And as He drew near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the multitudes received Him with rejoicing and praises as a king over Jerusalem (Lk 19: 37,38) . Again, after giving the disciples the Eucharist Sacrament, they sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives (Mk 14:26). His ascension also was from the Mount called Olivet (Act 1).
I wonder, was Christ on the Mount of Olives meditating on the green olives in His Father’s house, with the olive oil in them symbolizing the work of the Spirit in them, and on the Holy Ointment they received and the peace they contained from that oil ! .