Weapons for the Believer 5.4
– The Gifts of the Holy Spirit – Word of Wisdom
According to Paul, there are
weapons of warfare.
2
Corinthians 10:3-4 (ESV)
For
though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For
the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to
destroy strongholds.
We are considering ten
weapons that the Believer has at their disposal. We looked at the first four in
previous posts. If you haven’t read them I encourage you to do so.
The next weapons are
referred to as The Gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Word of Wisdom, Word of
Knowledge, Faith, Gifts of Healing, Working of Miracles, Prophecy, Discerning
of Spirits,
Different Kinds of Tongues,
and Interpretation of Tongues.
When our faith intersects
with the Spirit’s power, there is nothing that cannot be accomplished in those
moments. I do not believe these are given permanently as some teach. I do not
believe that some “posses” these gifts, but instead are given in the moment
when needed. Consequently any or all of these may manifest in each Believer as
the Spirit chooses.
There are nine gifts list by
Paul in 1 Corinthians 12. Traditionally these have been divided into three
groups: The Power Gifts, The Revelation Gifts, and The Speaking Gifts.
The Power Gifts: Faith
(or special faith, as some have described it)
Gifts of
Healing (the only plural gift)
Working
of Miracles
The Revelation Gifts: Word
of Wisdom
Word of
Knowledge
Discerning
of Spirits
The Speaking Gifts: Prophecy
Tongues
Interpretation
of Tongues
Today we will look at the fourth
of these in more detail: Word of Wisdom. This to me is one of the most valuable
of all of the Gifts, primarily because wisdom in critical moments in your life
can make eternal differences in outcome. It is true that ANY of the Gifts can
have that affect, that’s the reason it is the Spirit that directs their use,
and not me! Regardless of how we may rank the Gifts, each have a valuable
impact by providing what is needed in the moment. That is consistent with the
character and nature of God. He is I AM. He is always in the moment with us.
Word of Wisdom is where the
Holy Spirit reveals something to our conscious mind that we did not know
through natural means. Paul described it earlier in 1 Corinthians as he
explained how he came to know much of what he shared in his epistles, and the
other disciples.
1
Corinthians 2:6-10 (ESV) Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it
is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to
pass away. But we impart a secret and
hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory.
None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not
have crucified the Lord of glory. But, as it is written,
“What
no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has
prepared for those who love him”
— these things God has revealed to us
through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths
of God.
The above quoted verse 9 is
one of the most misquoted verses in all of scripture. It is used on graduation
cards and others with intention of being an encouragement regarding the future.
To me, that verse by itself is extremely disconcerting. “What no eye has seen,
nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those
who love him” (Isaiah 64:4) is a quote from the Old Testament. At the time it
was originally written it was true because they did not have the Holy Spirit
INSIDE them. The Holy Spirit would come ON people on occasion, but did not come
to abide IN them until after Jesus ascended to Heaven and was seated at the
right hand of Father.
Now Believers have the Holy
Spirit on the INSIDE. We have His Gifts that manifest in our life to empower us
to be witnesses of the love of God through Jesus. That is why Paul continued
after quoting Isaiah with the revelation that “these things God has revealed to
us through the Spirit.” Now that is Good News!! We are no longer in the dark, hoping,
wandering aimlessly through life with no idea of what God wants for us, and
from us. He communicates His desires to us by the Spirit.
The Word of Wisdom is part
of this process. Paul adds, “For the Spirit searches everything, even the
depths of God.” He not only tells us the truth about us and our world in which
we live, but He also communicates His heart to us, and the deep things for
which our spirits yearn. Embrace this work of the Holy Spirit and learn about
your Lord things that you “have not even imagined.”
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