ACC ~ Acts 10 v38

PROOF FROM THE GOOD THAT HE DID. CHRYSOSTOM: First he discourses of Jesus’ being Lord and in exceeding elevated terms, seeing he had to deal with a soul more than commonly elevated and that took all in with ardor. Then he proves how he was Lord of all, from the things that he achieved “throughout all Judea.” For, he says, you know “the word that was proclaimed throughout all Judea,” and, what is the wonderful part of it, “beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John preached: how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. First he speaks of his success, and then again [Peter] says concerning him,”Jesus of Nazareth.” Why, what a stumbling block, this birthplace! “How God anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power.” Then again the proof—how does that appear?—from the good that he did. “Who went about doing good, and healing all who were oppressed of the devil,” and the greatness of the power shown when he overcomes the devil; and the cause, “Because God was with him.” HOMILIES ON THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES 23.

ANOINTED WITH THE SPIRIT AND WITH POWER. BEDE: Another text says, “Inasmuch as God anointed him.” John preached Jesus inasmuch as God anointed him with the Holy Spirit at the time when he said, “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit”; and again, “I saw the Spirit descending as a dove upon him.” Jesus was anointed “not with oil but with the gift of grace, which is signified by the visible oil with which the church anoints those who are baptized. Yet, Christ was not anointed with the Holy Spirit at the time when it descended as a dove upon him at his baptism, for at that time he condescended to prefigure his body, that is, his church, in which the baptized principally receive the Holy Spirit. Rather, he must be understood to have been anointed with a mystical and invisible anointing when the Word of God was made flesh, that is, when human nature, without any preceding merits from good works, was joined to God the Word in the womb of the Virgin, so as to become one person with him. Because of this we confess that he was born of the Holy Spirit and of the Virgin Mary.” COMMENTARY ON THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES 10.38A.

THE HOLY SPIRIT SHARES IN HIS KINGSHIP. GREGORY OF NYSSA: But the Son, having all things which are the Father’s, is himself proclaimed a king by holy Scripture. Now the divine Scripture says that the Holy Spirit is the unction of the Only Begotten, interpreting the dignity of the Spirit by a transference of the terms commonly used in this world. For as, in ancient days, in those who were advanced to kingship, the token of this dignity was the unction that was applied to them, and when this took place there was thenceforth a change from private and humble estate to the superiority of rule, and he who was deemed worthy of this grace received after his anointing another name, being called, instead of an ordinary man, the Anointed of the Lord. For this reason, that the dignity of the Holy Spirit might be more clearly shown to humankind, he was called by the Scripture “the sign of the kingdom” and “Unction,” whereby we are taught that the Holy Spirit shares in the glory and kingdom of the only begotten Son of God. For as in Israel it was not permitted to enter upon the kingdom without the unction being previously given, so the word, by a transference of the terms in use among ourselves, indicates the equality of power, showing that not even the kingdom of the Son is received without the dignity of the Holy Spirit. And for this reason he is properly called Christ, since this name gives the proof of his inseparable and indivisible conjunction with the Holy Spirit. If, then, the only-begotten God is the Anointed, and the Holy Spirit is his Unction, and the appellation of Anointed points to the kingly authority, and the anointing is the token of his kingship, then the Holy Spirit shares also in his dignity. If, therefore, they say that the attribute of Godhead signifies dignity and the Holy Spirit is shown to share in this last quality, it follows that he who partakes in the dignity will also partake in the name that represents it. ON THE HOLY TRINITY.

BAPTIZED IN THE NAME OF THE TRINITY. BASIL THE GREAT: Do not be misled because the apostle frequently omits the names of the Father and the Holy Spirit when he speaks of baptism. Do not imagine because of this that the invocation of their names has been omitted. St. Paul says, “As many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ” and … “all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death.” To address Christ in this way is a complete profession of faith, because it clearly reveals that God anoints the Son (the anointed One) with the unction of the Spirit. We can learn this from Peter’s words in Acts, “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit,”or from Isaiah, “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me,” or from the Psalms, “Therefore God, your God has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your fellows.” But the Scripture also speaks of baptism in the context of the Spirit alone, for example, “For by one Spirit we are all baptized into one body.” There are other passages that agree with this: “You shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit,”and “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” No one would claim that on the basis of these passages the invocation of the Spirit’s name alone makes baptism complete and perfect. ON THE SPIRIT 12.28.

SANCTIFIED BY THE SPIRIT. PSEUDO-BASIL: He is Christ [Anointed] because of the Spirit and the anointing that is in the Spirit. Therefore, the anointing of the Lord is not of something foreign to the divinity, nor is the name Christ nor those called Christian after him. For, in truth, someone would lament if the name of our salvation both had its source in a creature and were derived from a creature and if we had our adoption through a slave. A creature does not make a creature holy, but all creation is made holy by the sole holy one who says concerning himself, “I sanctify myself.”But through the Spirit he sanctifies. … The Spirit, of course, is not a creature but the mark of the sanctity of God and the fountain of holiness for all. In the holiness of the Spirit were we called, as the apostle teaches. This renews us and shows us once again to be the images of God, and through the bath of rebirth and renewal of the Holy Spirit we are made adopted sons [children] of God. AGAINST EUNOMIUS 5.

Acts