God doesn’t crush me to get oil out of me, He is the oil. He was crushed so I can live on His oil.
What does the Bible say about oil and anointing?
Oil is used symbolically for:
-Consecration (Ex. 30:30)
-The Holy Spirit (1 Sam. 16:13)
-Healing (James 5:14)
-Gladness (Ps. 45:7)
The Bible never connects oil with personal suffering.
The anointing comes from God’s Spirit, not hardship.
“The anointing that you received from Him abides in you.”
— 1 John 2:27
Your anointing comes from the Spirit, not from adversity.
The Bible does speak about crushing, but not in the sense of producing ministry, character, or anointing.
Here are the main uses:
(A) Christ was crushed—for atonement
“He was crushed for our iniquities.”
— Isaiah 53:5
This refers to Jesus, not believers.
It is about atonement, not character formation.
(B) The brokenhearted are healed
“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.”
— Psalm 147:3
Crushing is something that happens in a broken world.
God heals—He is not the one intentionally crushing.
(C) Clay being crushed in judgment
Sometimes “crushing” is used for judgment (e.g., Jeremiah 19).
But that’s about nations being destroyed, not believers being developed.
So where DOES the “Crushing” come from?
The metaphor appears in late 1800s Holiness preaching
During the Holiness Movement (Finney, Keswick, etc.), preachers used metaphors like:
grapes being crushed → “God refining us”
gold in fire → “God purifying us”
These were illustrations, not doctrines.
People liked the imagery, and it spread.
But still no “oil = anointing = crushing.”
It becomes an unofficial doctrine in early Pentecostalism (1900s–1950s)
During revivals (Azusa Street, Welsh Revival), Pentecostal preachers emphasized:
-anointing
-power
-spiritual giftedness
Some used olives and pressing as metaphors for:
-trials preceding ministry
-God preparing someone through hardship
Still not doctrinal—just popular preaching imagery.
But people started treating it like doctrine.
The modern form comes from Charismatic televangelism (1970s–1990s)
This is where the “crushing doctrine” becomes mainstream.
Preachers such as:
-Kathryn Kuhlman
-Benny Hinn
-Myles Munroe (later era)
-Various Word of Faith / Charismatic leaders
often taught:
“The anointing costs you something.”
“Oil only comes from crushing.”
“God crushes you to produce anointing.”
This was the first time in history this was said as a doctrinal-sounding principle.
But it still had no biblical verse supporting it.
It was a preaching trope that became a theology by repetition.
The 2000s–present: Popular in revival culture and worship music
Worship movements used emotional imagery including:
-pressing
-crushing
-new wine
This popularized the language even more.
People began assuming it was biblical.