"Now this is what you shall do to them to consecrate them, that they may serve me as priests. Take one bull of the herd and two rams without blemish, and unleavened bread, unleavened cakes mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers smeared with oil. You shall make them of fine wheat flour. You shall put them in one basket and bring them in the basket, and bring the bull and the two rams. You shall bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the tent of meeting and wash them with water. Then you shall take the garments, and put on Aaron the coat and the robe of the ephod, and the ephod, and the breastpiece, and gird him with the skillfully woven band of the ephod. And you shall set the turban on his head and put the holy crown on the turban. You shall take the anointing oil and pour it on his head and anoint him. Then you shall bring his sons and put coats on them, and you shall gird Aaron and his sons with sashes and bind caps on them. And the priesthood shall be theirs by a statute forever. Thus you shall ordain Aaron and his sons.
Exodus 29:1-9
We come in these verses to the consecration of the priests for the service of the sanctuary. Three distinct matters are mentioned, which together provide a fruitful lesson for all who would serve the Lord. First of all we are told of the sacrifice by which the priests were hallowed (1-3), then the washing with water (4), and finally the anointing with oil (7). The 'typical' significance of this is very telling. First of all, a man who is going to serve the Lord aright must first be rightly related to the sacrifice of the Cross. Until a man is rightly related to Jesus Christ - and this is possible only through the sacrifice of the Cross - he can have no real message to preach, he has nothing to say. This is the foundation of the Christian religion. In the second place, that man must be washed 'with water', that is, until he himself is cleansed by the word that has been committed to him, he had better not minister in holy things. A man whose life does not match his doctrines is a living lie. Thirdly, for his effectual service, he needs above all the unction of the Holy Spirit of God, signified here by the anointing with oil. Power for service is the fruit and effect of the divine anointing. This is something distinct from the Spirit-Baptism by which we are incorporated into Christ in regeneration. There is but one baptism, but there are many fillings and anointings, nor must we presume to turn our hands to the service of the Lord without His enduement. To preach without this holy unction is to have a ministry that is barren of real fruit for God.