‘ANOINTING’ IN JOHANNINE INTERPRETATIVE THOUGHT AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR THE CHURCH IN AFRICA

Abstract

This work clarifies the meaning of χρῖσμα in Johannine interpretative thought to his readers in Ephesus and the Church at large amongst the various interpretations that find those passages suitable to defend their intentions without checking the root ideas and putting their thoughts into the original intentions of John. It has adopted Grammatical-historical method with emphasis on word studies in search of the meaning behind anointing or anoint. It has become clearer that there is the literal sense of the meaning of anointing. Also, anointing is seen as the Word of God and in broader Johannine thought as the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. Within various perspectives, the work argues that John’s reference to anointing denotes a personality, the Holy Spirit, a position which seems to have implications to the church in Africa.