The Gifts of Grace

Wisdom & Knowledge

In my opinion, every ‘born-again’ believer should recognise, understand and experience the nine Gifts of the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 12:1 says, "Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant (misinformed)." Ignorance comes through a lack of proper knowledge, and if we don't know about these gifts, how will we be able to desire and experience them in our lives. 1 Corinthians 12:31 states, "But earnestly desire and zealously cultivate the greatest and best gifts." (AMP) The greatest and best gifts are those that are required at that specific point in time.

In this passage the Greek word for ‘gifts’ is "charismata" which means gifts of grace. Therefore, all spiritual gifts are founded and grounded in God’s love. For this reason, anyone operating in such gifts will be conspicuous through the love they have for others. Furthermore, because these gifts of the Holy Spirit are given and ministered by the grace of God they cannot be earned. 1 Corinthians 12:8-11, “To one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healings by the same Spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things (gifts), distributing to each one individually as He wills.” Another translation says, “It is the one and only Holy Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.”

Notice, there are nine gifts that are divided into three distinct categories:

The three REVELATION gifts.

Word of Wisdom
Word of Knowledge
Discerning of spirits

The three POWER gifts.

Faith
Gifts of healings
Working of miracles

The three VOCAL gifts.

Prophecy
Divers kinds of tongues
Interpretation of tongues

Three REVEAL something; three DO something, and three SAY something. But all operate as He wills, and for the benefit of all! 1 Corinthians 12:7, "The manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all." The invisible person of the Spirit of God manifests Himself through the operation of these gifts - doing what Jesus would do. Through you and me, the Holy Spirit effectively demonstrates Christ’s personality, will and purpose. And what is His purpose? That these nine gifts meet the distinct and varied types of needs present in every individual. I heard a preacher once say, “If the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit are the cake, then the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit are the icing on the cake. Put these two together and you will have one mighty, sanctified soldier of Jesus Christ - because these gifts will give you some serious and heavy ammunition to have at your disposal.”

What I plan to do over the next few weeks is break down each one of these nine gifts under the captions mentioned so that we can see exactly how they operate. And also, learn how important and powerful they can become in our lives when we choose to allow the Holy Spirit to manifest them through us (at anytime). Note, I will not be going through them in the order detailed in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 as they are easier to grasp when studied in a specific sequence, and in some instances, paired together. Firstly, we will examine the Gift of the Word of Knowledge (past or present) and then the Gift of the Word of Wisdom (future) - both are “gifts” that REVEAL something.

1. The Gift of the Word of Knowledge

The Holy Spirit is omniscient - He knows everything. Therefore a Word of Knowledge is a tiny portion of God's Knowledge supernaturally imparted by the Holy Spirit through man. It is divine information transmitted by God for a specific time and purpose, dealing with past or present events. This knowledge is spoken out in words to people in order to help them.

Here are some biblical examples of this gift in operation:

The prophet Samuel imparts a Word of Knowledge to the soon to be King of Israel, Saul about his lost donkeys. 1 Samuel 9:20, “But as for your donkeys that were lost three days ago, do not be anxious about them, for they have been found.”
In John 1:47-49, Jesus revealed to Nathanael supernatural knowledge about what he was doing before he came to meet Jesus. “So how do you know me?" Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, "I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you." Then Nathanael declared, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel."
Similarly, Jesus gave a Word of Knowledge to the woman of at the well. John 4:16-19, “He told her, ‘Go, call your husband and come back.’ ‘I have no husband’, she replied. Jesus said to her, ‘You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true’ ‘Sir’, the woman said, ‘I can see that you are a prophet’."
The Apostle Peter spoke a Word of Knowledge to Ananias. Acts 5:1-3, “But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession, and kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles' feet. But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land?”

There are six reasons why the Holy Spirit uses a Word of Knowledge to and through us:

To warn people.
To inform people.
To expose hidden things.
To confirm things.
To build faith in Him.
To reveal Gods power in knowing secrets.

The Gift of the Word of Knowledge is the one gift I believe will manifest most in our daily lives. With God having absolute and perfect knowledge (and information) on all matters, both spiritual and natural, and with us having levels of knowledge that are mostly imperfect and limited, means that we need to receive Words of Knowledge from the Lord on a regular basis. Without this gift of grace you will be unable to navigate safely toward your destiny in God. And as such, I believe the Holy Spirit will manifest this specific gift with even greater frequency when you’ve learnt how to receive it from Him - any time He decides to release it! I’m sure the Holy Spirit manifests the Word of Knowledge a lot more than you realise. However, you fail to pick it up when it does come your way because you never expect the Holy Spirit to do this for you in the first place. If you haven’t given Him the green light on this gift, He simply won’t bother!

The Gift of the Word of Knowledge is merely the Holy Spirit transmitting specific information to you concerning something that you have no ability or means to know about (with your limited and imperfect level of knowledge). It is supernatural knowledge or insight given directly to you by the Holy Spirit, and not by your own mind or your own intelligence. And these words of knowledge that you receive direct from the Holy Spirit can literally cover an infinite number of things in your daily life. They can cover anything from something very trivial such as where you’ve misplaced your car keys, to giving you life-saving insight on how to solve an impending crisis or emergency.

Here are some specific examples of where you can receive a direct Word of Knowledge from the Holy Spirit:

Specific knowledge that enables you to solve a problem in your home or at your place of employment.
Knowledge of where you may have misplaced something.
Insight as to how you can effectively witness to an unsaved person.
Insight on how to solve a dispute between two people.
Information that allows you to warn or inform a person, which involves themselves or others.
Insight as to how you can counsel someone who has just had a tragedy in their lives.
Specific knowledge that God wants to heal someone of an illness, or deliver them from sin or a compulsive habit.
Knowledge concerning something that is hidden and needs to be exposed.

As you can see from these examples, there is literally nothing that the Holy Spirit cannot give you a word of knowledge about (or equip you to help someone else who may have a specific need). With your own knowledge levels being so limited, so imperfect and so incomplete, you need words of knowledge from the Lord on a regular basis so that you can fulfil His plans and purposes. But most of all, you need words of knowledge in order for you to help others! So how exactly does the Holy Spirit transmit an actual Word of Knowledge to us? I believe the number one way that He will communicate a Word of Knowledge to us is through an “inner knowing.”  That is, having supernatural “knowledge” imparted directly into your spirit. The Bible says that the Holy Spirit will bear "witness" with our human spirits. This ‘inner witness’ is what we call the “inner knowing.” All of a sudden, you receive a ‘without-any-doubt’ type “knowing” concerning something the Holy Spirit is trying to transmit to you. It comes through in the form of a thought or an impression on your mind, or even in the form of a picture in your mind's eye. I have found from personal experience that the Holy Spirit loves to communicate “knowledge” through a spontaneous impartation of specific information into my spirit which illuminates my mind. This “knowledge” (illumination) is used to provide information on what the Holy Spirit is trying to get me to say or do.

The only problem with this process is that we have to learn how to discern the difference between information being transmitted from the Holy Spirit and information that’s coming in from our own imaginations or intellect. Remember, your own natural imagination has the power and the ability to conjure up its own pictures in your mind's eye. But don’t be concerned, over time the Holy Spirit will teach you how to do discern the difference between the two, and this is something you can learn through a process of trial and error.

Think of the ramifications and the possibilities with just this one special gift alone - that the Holy Spirit Himself can transmit His own divine knowledge to you on something that you cannot see, solve or figure out on your own. This is why this particular gift is so important and so needed in this day and age, as most people are facing some kind of roadblock or obstacle in their daily lives.  Therefore, we all need the super-natural knowledge of God flowing through us so that He can meet the needs of mankind. That is why the Bible states that "without knowledge" the people perish and go into captivity. Sometimes only the supernatural knowledge of God can usher them out of harm's way - since human knowledge and is so imperfect and so limited.

2. The Gift of the Word of Wisdom

The Gift of the Word of Wisdom can often work in conjunction with the Gift of the Word of Knowledge - but it concerns the future. Sometimes all you need is a direct word of knowledge from the Lord to solve a problem or meet a need. However, there will be other times that a word of knowledge will not be enough. Some people may need to hear what to do about that specific problem (future). This is when you will need the gift of the word of wisdom to operate.

A word of wisdom gives you, and in turn the person being ministered to, the ability to be able to properly apply the divine knowledge you have already received concerning a particular situation. Clearly, there is a difference between knowledge, understanding and wisdom. For instance, if someone gives you a car manual that shows you how to rebuild a car engine, that manual will give you all of the information you will need to learn how to do it. But all of that knowledge will not do you any good unless you first understand it enough to apply it. If you can understand what you are reading enough to apply it, then the next and final step will be to have the wisdom to be able to achieve your goal.  All of that knowledge from the car manual, and all of that understanding of that knowledge, will do you no good if you do not have the wisdom to be able to apply that knowledge to a ‘real life’ working situation. This is why we all need words of wisdom from the Holy Spirit in our daily lives. We need wisdom so we will know how to handle the more complex types of problems or issues that can occur at a moment's notice in our daily lives (and in the lives of others).

Note, a Word of Wisdom is directive, and by that I mean that it gives direction. Ecclesiastes 10:10, "Wisdom is profitable to direct." Wisdom points or directs to knowledge and it uses that knowledge accurately and effectively for the benefit of all. Knowledge is therefore information and wisdom is the effective use of that information.

A Word of Wisdom is a tiny fragment of Gods immeasurable wisdom given at a specific time, for a specific situation. By using this gift, the Holy Spirit supernaturally effects people, situations and things - bringing about His plans and purposes.

Here are some specific examples where we could receive words of wisdom direct from the Holy Spirit:

God has revealed to you (by a word of knowledge) that a friend has been cheating on his wife. You now need God's wisdom on exactly how to handle this crisis. And also, your friend needs wisdom to know exactly what must be done to save his marriage.
God wants to heal someone but requires them to do something first. They need the wisdom to apply themselves correctly in order to receive their healing.
Your finances have spiralled out of control and you will now need God's guidance and wisdom on how to keep yourself afloat.
You have just been named in an unjust lawsuit and you will need God's wisdom on how to properly handle it.

As you can see, there are a number of possibilities where you may need God's wisdom to get you safely though the problem or dilemma confronting you. Again, since our own human intelligence is so imperfect, and its ability to apply real wisdom to handle or solve life's tough problems is so limited, we all need the Wisdom of God flowing through our lives on a regular basis. It’s the only way to overcome many of life's challenges and reach out to those in distress.

There are three types of wisdom:

The wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 2:6-7)
The wisdom of the world (1 Corinthians 2:6)
The wisdom of man (Ecclesiastes 1:16-18)

Remember, the gift of the Word of Wisdom is the application of knowledge that God gives you (1 Corinthians 2:6-7). This type of wisdom is a gift which cannot be gained through study or experience and should by no means try to replace them. The amazing gift of the Word of Wisdom is seeing life from God's perspective. And as you exercises this gift, you will begin to develop a fear of the Lord. This is the "beginning of wisdom" according to Proverbs 1:7.

The gift of the Word of Wisdom is also the revealing of prophetic future; it is speaking hidden truths of what is not known. It is a supernatural perspective to ascertain the divine means for accomplishing God's will in a given situation, and is a divinely given power to appropriate spiritual intuition in problem solving. And as mentioned before, this gift involves having a sense of divine direction, being led by the Holy Spirit to act appropriately in a given set of circumstances, and rightly applying knowledge.

The gift of Wisdom is the wisdom of God. It is the supernatural impartation of facts; it is not natural. You can't earn it. It is received directly from God by His grace (Ephesians 1:17). Finally, the gift of the Word of wisdom works interactively with the other two revelation gifts: knowledge and discernment.

Here are some examples from the Bible:

Paul before the council (Acts 23:6). Then Paul, knowing that some of them were Sadducees and the others Pharisees, called out in the Sanhedrin, "My brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee. I stand on trial because of my hope in the resurrection of the dead."
Jesus' answer to the question regarding taxes (Matthew 22:15-22). Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words. They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. "Teacher," they said, "we know you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren't swayed by men, because you pay no attention to who they are. Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?" But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, "You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? Show me the coin used for paying the tax." They brought him a denarius, and he asked them, "Whose portrait is this? And whose inscription?" "Caesar's," they replied. Then he said to them, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's." When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.
The temptation of Jesus (Luke 4:1-14). Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry. And the devil said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” But Jesus answered him, saying, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’” Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him[d] all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.” And Jesus answered and said to him, “Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’” ...Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.

Chris Demetriou, 21/02/2010