The Secret Sins That Destroy the Anointing - Kathryn Kuhlman

0:00 There is nothing more sacred than the anointing. Nothing more precious, nothing more fragile, nothing more powerful, nothing more costly. It is heaven's oil. It is God's fingerprint. It is the breath of the spirit resting on a human life. But there is something even more tragic. The anointing can be destroyed from the inside. Not by demons, not by persecution, not by criticism, not by opposition, not by lack of opportunity. It is destroyed by quiet sins, private sins, hidden habits, secret compromises, sins that no one sees except the spirit who is grieved by them. Tonight, I will show you the sins

0:45 that destroy anointing. Some of them look harmless. Some of them look small. Some of them look respectable, but they kill slowly, silently, surely. And if you do not confront them, they will confront you. Secret sin number one, pride masquerading as maturity. This is the first killer. Pride is not always loud. It is not always arrogant. It is not always obvious. Sometimes pride is calm. Sometimes pride is dignified. Sometimes pride looks spiritual. Pride says, "I already know that. I don't need correction. I'm beyond this level. I don't need accountability. That message is for others, not me." But pride does something deadly. It shuts the door to

1:32 the Holy Spirit. The spirit can work with weak people, with broken people, with uneducated people, with fearful people, but he cannot work with the proud. Pride makes you unteachable, unmovable, unreachable, and the anointing dies in an environment where heaven cannot shape the soul. Secret sin number two, the private offense you refuse to release. The Holy Spirit showed me this. Offense is poison stored in the heart. It looks harmless. It feels justified. It feels normal. But offense creates a shadow where the spirit refuses to dwell. Offense says, "I'm hurt, but I refuse to heal." Offense says, "I forgive, but I will not

2:19 forget." Offense says, "I'll move on, but I won't let go." Offense blocks miracles. Offense blocks revelation. Offense blocks anointing. I have watched people sit in my meetings for years and receive nothing. Not because God ignored them, but because bitterness choked their sensitivity. A bitter heart cannot carry divine oil. Secret sin number three. The small compromises you assume do not matter. Compromise rarely begins loudly. It begins with a small decision, a small excuse, a small allowance, a harmless conversation, a tiny

3:06 indulgence, a slight dishonesty, a simple lie, a small entertainment choice. Adjust this once, but listen, what you tolerate eventually becomes what you obey. Compromise kills slowly, but it kills surely. The anointing thrive in purity. It suffocates in mixture. When the spirit whispered to me, "Catherine, I want all of you." He meant all of your habits, all of your desires, all of your decisions, all of your environments, all of your standards. You cannot flirt with sin and walk with glory at the same time. Secret sin number four, the hidden addiction to

3:52 people's opinion. This one destroys more anointed lie than you can imagine. The need to be liked, the need to be approved, the need to please, the need to impress, the need to fit in, the need to be accepted. You cannot be spiritled and opinion controlled at the same time. When you crave applause, you lose sensitivity. When you crave validation, you lose conviction. When you crave recognition, you lose separation. I learned early the anointing has enemies and public approval is one of them. People's applause can suffocate God's whisper. Secret sin number five, the hidden sin of self-doubt and fear. Fear

4:38 is a sin. When it becomes disobedience, fear says, "I cannot. I'm not enough. I don't want to lose control. I don't want to step out. I don't want to look foolish. I'm afraid of failing. I'm afraid of people. But fear does something deadly. It makes you obey your emotions instead of the Holy Spirit. Fear kills anointing because fear kills obedience. God can use the weak, but he cannot use the unwilling. The spirit will not force you past your fear. He waits for your yes. Secret sin number six, the desire to be seen. This is one of the most subtle yet destructive sins in the church. The desire to be recognized, to be respected, to be

5:25 important, to be admired, to be celebrated. It looks harmless. It looks human. It looks natural, but it is deadly because the anointing does not rest on the one who desires attention. It rests on the one who desires the outer. Jesus said, "Your father who sees in secret shall reward you openly, not the other way around." But many today want the reward without the secret. They want the platform without the prayer life. They want visibility without brokenness. They want honor without humility. Hear this. The desire to be seen pushes away the one who sees all. If you want his anointing, you must want

6:13 his eyes more than public eyes. Secret sin number seven, the sin that looks like holiness, spiritual pride. Spiritual pride is more dangerous than immorality. A morally weak person can repent. A proud person does not think they need to. Spiritual pride says, "I pray more than others. I am deeper than others. I hear God better. I walk in more power. I know scripture more. I am more spiritual. Spiritual pride is the sin that killed the Pharisees. Men who were holy but not humble. Men who memorized scripture but did not know God. Men who fasted often yet grieve the spirit, the anointing dies. In the

7:00 presence of spiritual arrogance, the spirit cannot anoint the one who believes they already have enough. Secret sin number eight. The sin that destroyed Samson. Lust disguised as weakness. People call it weakness. God calls it sin. Lust in any form kills anointing faster than almost any sin. Why? Because lust demands attention. Lust demands secrecy. Lust demands feeding. Lust demands disobedience. Lust creates a double life. Lust divides the soul. Lust kills sensitivity. Lust prevents purity. Lust destroys authority. Samson was powerful. But his

7:47 anointing could not survive his appetite. The spirit left him long before he lost his strength. He lost the anointing when he lost purity. People want the strength of Samson without the sacrifice of Joseph. Impossible. There is no lasting anointing without purity. Secretin number nine. The sin that killed an anointing in one night. Let me tell you a story. There was a young man in ministry, gifted, passionate, called anointed. Crowds came, doors opened, the spirit moved, but he carried a secret sin. Envy. He envied another minister, envied their success, envied their gifts, envied their favor. He would smile publicly, but burn with resentment

8:34 privately. Envy is deadly because it hides behind admiration. Over time, his envy turned to comparison. Comparison to discouragement, discouragement to competition, competition to bitterness, bitterness to anger. One night during a powerful service, he stood to minister and nothing happened. No flow, no presence, no voice, no anointing. It was gone completely. The spirit whispered to me later, "I will not anoint a jealous heart. Envy destroys anointing because it destroys gratitude." Secret sin number 10, the most dangerous of all. Disobedience, you excuse. This one is

9:23 the deadliest. Not disobedience [snorts] from rebellion, but disobedience from excuses. I know what God said, but this situation is different. I know he told me to wait, but I feel ready. I know the spirit said no, but I don't see why. I know this is wrong, but God understands. The Holy Spirit speaks once, softly, clearly, gently. If you argue, he goes silent. And when silence comes, the anointing begins to drain. This is the sin that removed Saul from the throne. This is the sin that silenced Eli. This is the sin that destroyed countless callings. Delayed obedience is disobedience.

10:10 Partial obedience is disobedience. Excused obedience is disobedience. And disobedience is [snorts] the quickest way to kill anointing. The night I lost the anointing for a moment. Yes, it happened to me. There was a night early in my ministry when I was frustrated, exhausted, emotionally drained, someone had offended me deeply, someone very close, someone I trusted. I carried the offense quietly. I did not speak of it. I did not confront it. I simply held it like a wound under my coat. Then came the meeting, a large meeting, a packed auditorium. People hungry, expecting, waiting. I walked onto the platform with

10:57 my Bible in hand, but a fence in my heart. And as I stood there, I felt it. The absence, the quiet absence, the terrifying absence, not of noise, but of him. The Holy Spirit did not leave me, but he withheld his anointing. It felt like standing under a waterfall that suddenly stopped. I could preach words, but there was no weight. I could lift my voice, but there was no power. I could lay hands, but there was no flow. People stared confused silent. Expecting something that did not come. I finished the service in shame. Tears pressed behind my eyes, my hands trembling. I rushed into the back room, closed the door, and fell to my knees. I

11:45 wept. Deep, painful weeping. Holy Spirit, where were you? Why didn't you come? and he whispered, "I cannot flow through a heart you will not empty." Then he said something that pierced me. Catherine, your offense grieved me. I broke. For the next hour I cried and repented, repented for the hidden bitterness. Repented for the quiet anger, repented for the wound I refused to release. And then, as softly as a sunrise, he returned. His presence filled the room like warm gold. His nearness wrapped [snorts] around me. I whispered, "Please never leave me like that again." He answered, "Walk in purity, and you will never feel my

12:32 silence. I have never forgotten that night, the path back to restoration. There are many who have lost the anointing and do not know how to return. There are ministers who preach with empty power. Believers who pray with dry lips, worshippers who sing with no tears, intercessors with no travail, leaders with no fire, workers with no presence. They lost the anointing, not publicly but secretly, but restoration is always possible. The path is simple but painful. One, confess the private sin. Call it what it is. Not a weakness, not a struggle, not a flaw, not a season, a sin. Honesty begins healing.

13:20 Two, lay down pride. The anointing does not return to those who defend themselves. It returns to the broken. Three, forgive quickly. Bitterness must die for power to live. Four, cut the compromise. Do not negotiate with what God hates. Five, pursue purity more than ministry. Purity is the foundation of all lasting anointing. Six, return to intimacy. Go back where you left him. He is waiting there. The holy warning to this generation. The Holy Spirit is withdrawing from many rooms. Not because he is powerless, but because he is not

14:06 honored. The anointing is rare today. Because sin is casual. Purity is optional. Holiness is outdated. Compromise is celebrated. Obedience is negotiable. Emotions replace conviction. Crowds replace consecration. Platforms replace altars. The spirit is saying, "Return to holiness, not legalism, not self-righteousness, holiness. Holiness in thought. Holiness in desire. Holiness in secret places. Holiness when no one sees. Holiness [snorts] in private. Holiness in silence. The anointing has one environment. A clean heart. The cleansing call. If I could stand in front of every believer alive today. I

14:54 would fall to my knees and cry out. Do not lose the anointing for a moment of sin. No temptation is worth his presence. No relationship is worth his power. No compromise is worth his nearness. No habit is worth his voice. Purity is not punishment. It is protection. Holiness is not restriction. It is invitation. Anointing is not privilege. It is stewardship. And the spirit is calling you again to whisper, "Here I am, Lord. Cleanse me." If you pray that sincerely, he will cleanse, he will restore, he will refill, he will return. The anointing is not lost in

15:41 public. It is destroyed in