Marcos 6:12

And they went out and preached that men should repent. And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them.

Men should repent ... The mission of the apostles was not merely one of healing but of preaching repentance. As Dorris said, "Repentance is a thing for a man to do, not something he gets; it is a command, not a promise."[15] in the stress laid upon repentance, their preaching was akin to that of John the Baptist and of the Saviour himself (Mark 1:15). Cranfield properly noted that the mission of the Twelve "was merely an extension of the teaching ministry, included because Mark knew that it occurred and that it had a relevance for later Christian missions."[16]

And anointed with oil ... There was a difference in the healing done by the apostles, in that they anointed with oil, an action nowhere mentioned in connection with the miracles of our Lord.

Bickersteth suggested that the oil was significant of God's mercy, of spiritual comfort and joy, "the oil of gladness."[17] However, there is no way this action of the apostles can be made to support the so-called sacrament of extreme unction. The people in view here got well at once! Extreme unction, always administered by its advocates when the patient is in the act of death, has no resemblance to what occurred here.

[15] C. E. W. Dorris, op. cit., p. 148.

[16] C. E. B. Cranfield, op. cit., p. 203.

[17] E. Bickersteth, op. cit., p. 245.