In the synagogue of Nazareth, our Lord Jesus Christ reveals that he is the Anointed of the Father. With the words, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21), he proclaims that the Messianic salvation is found in him. He had just quoted from the scroll of Isaiah, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me…” He speaks as the eschatological prophet. In doing so he points to himself as the one who is filled with the Spirit, and who has given himself fully to God’s service.

Being anointed and being filled with the Holy Spirit clearly go together. It is important to note that Jesus fulfills his charge in the power of the Spirit. Or, as Vriezen states, “it is precisely the ruach [wind, breath, spirit] that devotes us entirely in God’s service and that makes man capable of performing God’s work”. The presence of the Spirit will be manifested in all of his life and work.

We encounter an important illustration of this close connection between Christ’s work and the Spirit’s anointing at the occasion of Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan River. John proclaims that the kingdom of God has come near, and the emphasis in his preaching is on judgment. He calls on people to return and repent, for if this is not happening the devastating judgment of God will be sure to follow. “Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees” (Matt. 3:10). In order to enter the kingdom, man needs to be cleansed. The entrance lies in the baptism, which symbolizes guilt, repentance, and washing away of sin. Jesus accepts John’s preaching and joins himself to the sinners who want to be baptized by John. John tries to prevent him from this: it does not make sense to him that Jesus joins the queue of sinners! He would not need to have his sins washed away in order to enter the kingdom of God! And yet, here we find a unique way that typifies Christ’s work. He identifies himself with sinful people, and in doing so he actually fulfills the task that his Father has given him. Precisely at that moment he knows himself sent by God. As the Spirit is descending and the voice of the Father is being heard, Jesus stands prepared to fulfill all righteousness. His way is a way of obedience, a unique way, a way in which it is impossible to separate his person from his office. He goes this way as office bearer and as substitute: a way that implies rescue and salvation for others. He takes his place in the row of sinners and identifies with the suffering servant of the LORD as found in Isaiah 53. He becomes one with them for whom he has come. Jesus wants to go the way that is full of suffering and trial. But he goes this way as the Anointed.

Not only is he called, he is also equipped to fulfill his office. This comes to him from above: the Spirit will not depart from him. As the Spirit descends like a dove upon Jesus there is in fact a new creation. The Spirit fills him so that he can fully give himself to the work of re-creation. “From this moment the Spirit will be with him permanently — and not with interruptions as was the case with the Old Testament prophets. He will guide him in everything (Matt. 4:1), propel, inspire and enable him to do his work of salvation.” In that perspective we hear the words he speaks, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (Matt. 3:15). With this he gives an indication of what is entailed in his work as office bearer.

Already at his first appearance it becomes clear that the Spirit of God rests on him. We could say that this is a symbolic act by which it becomes clear that the Father is sending him. With a view to the way he now goes he is gifted by the Holy Spirit. Ridderbos says it strikingly, “The equipping with the Spirit is the beginning and the power of all of Christ’s activity, and it seals this activity as a messianic duty from start to finish.” The Spirit that rests on him will also determine the road he has to travel. His life’s entire journey is not the path he chose himself, but stands in full service to his Father.

Before we get into the individual offices of prophet, priest and king, we want to say a few more words about the anointing itself.

In the Old Testament an anointing takes place as preparation for a special task in God’s service. It is especially the king who is called “God’s anointed”. The LORD gives him his mandate and offers him his protection. This applies especially to David and his descendants. Samuel anointed him as king, “and the Spirit of the Lord rushed(rested) upon David from that day forward” (1 Sam. 16:13). Also in Israel’s songs, in the Psalms, the praises are sung that the LORD has chosen a king for himself. “I have exalted one chosen from the people. I have found David, my servant; with my holy oil I have anointed him” (Ps. 89:19, 20).  

Even though it is pre-eminently the king who is anointed, other official functions are also initiated by anointing. God commands to anoint Aaron and to sanctify him and his sons “that they may serve me as priests” (Ex. 40:13; see Ex. 29:7). As we have seen, the situation is somewhat more difficult with the prophets. This office has no fixed institution: they are enlisted by the LORD for a special calling. Only with the prophet Elisha do we read of an explicit anointing (1 Kings 19:16). Also in Psalm 105:15 mention is made of the patriarchs, where God says, “Touch not my anointed ones, do my prophets no harm!” Clearly they too were seen as anointed ones.

The expectation of the coming Anointed One was very much alive in the time of Jesus. The Anointed is the personification of the ultimate expectation of the people. It is therefore not surprising that we hear in the Gospels the echoes of the hope that was harbored by Jesus’ contemporaries. Did Simeon not receive a revelation through the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ (Luke 2:26)? Was Peter’s answer not inspired by the expectations surrounding the prophet Elijah? Similar expectations existed with John the Baptist’s contemporaries (John 1:20, 25). At Jesus’ trial, the high priest asks, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” And Pilate has clearly learned about the expectations concerning a king, for he asks Jesus, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answers this question in the affirmative. We read of the priests, motivated by an apparent messianic expectation, mocking him at Golgotha. “Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross that we may see and believe” (Mark 15:32).

All these expectations are based on the Old Testament and arise from the promises given to David, “and your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me” (2 Sam. 7:16). This expectation continued via the prophets (esp. Isaiah) until the time of Jesus.

Since Pentecost, and in full agreement with Peter, the church has confessed him as “...your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed” (Acts 4:27). The historical Jesus of Nazareth is firmly proclaimed as the Christ. By his resurrection and exaltation it has become clear that he is both Lord and Christ (Acts 3:20). Jesus is the Christ of whom all prophets proclaimed that he had to suffer. The apostles do not stop proclaiming that he is the Christ (see Acts 5:42). From Philip it is said that he preached Christ (Acts 8:5). In Acts 17:2 we read how Paul proclaimed that the Anointed, anticipated in the Scriptures, is no one else than Jesus. In Paul’s letters we meet the same thoughts. He proclaims the gospel of Christ (Rom.15:19; Php. 1:15-18). One of the most central ancient formulations of the confession can be found in 1 Cor. 15:3, “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures...” and John’s Gospel closes with these telling words, “...so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ...” (John 20:31).

Prophet-priest-king. We approach Christ’s work with a view to the meaning of the Name “Christ”. What topics are going to be addressed?

1. Jesus Christ as Prophet.⤒🔗

Even though Jesus is not unreservedly called a prophet, yet he is without any doubt the heir of the prophetic promises. Jesus Christ exceeds the historical categories of that time as he comes to fulfill the office of prophet. That is why Calvin says that Christ is “the fulfillment and the end of all revelation”.

In the letter to the Hebrews those two aspects are mentioned at the beginning: “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son...” (Heb. 1:1, 2). Jesus Christ is the perfect one, the one sent by God, to fulfill completely his Father’s will. He says, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me...” (John 4:34). With this he simultaneously breaks through the category of prophetism and shapes a new category sui generis [i.e., unique]: he is the Son!

2. Jesus Christ as Priest.←⤒🔗

In the letter to the Hebrews it is this office that receives the emphasis, tying in to the priesthood under the old covenant. The priestly service testifies of the service of atonement: the restoration of the communion with God. Christ Jesus fulfills this service. And yet he does not connect to the Levitical priesthood but he becomes a priest in the order of Melchizedek (Heb. 7:17). This again places Jesus in a unique position: his sacrifice is not related to any transitoriness, and as a result in does not end up in the realm of repetitiveness, no, he is priest in all eternity. “He entered once for all into the holy places…thus securing an eternal redemption” (Heb. 9:12). He is the definite Mediator between God and man, the high priest who intercedes for us (John 17).

Christ’s priesthood brings us to his way of obedience until death. His suffering and dying take a central position; he has come “not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). In the same way the New Testament church confesses, “Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures...” (1 Cor. 15:3).

Notions such as guilt, punishment, atonement and satisfaction play an important role in explaining the suffering and death of Christ. The New Testament witness ties in to the prophecy of the suffering servant of Isaiah 53. He sacrifices himself to atone for the iniquity of us all.

In the chapter on the atonement we will pay special attention to the judicial wording and to the cultus [system of worship].

3. Jesus Christ as King.←⤒🔗

The royal rule of God is a central theme in Jesus’ preaching. Besides, at the birth announcement the angel Gabriel already says that he is coming to fulfill the Davidic kingship. “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end” (Luke 1:32, 33).

At Pentecost, Peter also testifies that the conquering power of God has appeared in Jesus Christ. Christ is the Victor. He not only acts as priest to take away our sin and guilt, but he has also destroyed the power of sin, death and the devil. Therefore Peter can also say, “God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified” (Acts 2:36).

He rules as king over his enemies. It is a twofold rule. Christ is Lord of the world. He rules over all of creation. But in addition he is also the Lord of the church. He creates a royal people, i.e., the congregation, which he fills in a wonderful way with the gifts of his kingdom.