The Nine Gifts of the Spirit -- part 6

The Gift of the Word of Wisdom

Let’s continue our examination of the “revelation gifts” by looking at a second one, the gift of the word of wisdom. In last week’s blog we talked about the verses of Acts 9: 10-13. There we saw that Ananias hesitated to act at first, having heard of the evil Saul had done. But the Lord reassured him through the spiritual gift of the word of wisdom that this man Saul was a chosen vessel of God and would bear the Lord’s name to the Gentiles.

Actually, Ananias was hearing a word of wisdom through the gift of prophecy! The word of knowledge told the whereabouts of Saul and the purpose that needed to be accomplished. The word of wisdom revealed the future destiny for Saul. The gift of prophecy, coupled with the laying on of hands and the gifts of healing, changed Saul from a blind man who murdered Christians to a godly man who saved them and led them to the light of Jesus Christ. It is good to remember that all three spiritual revelation gifts are bestowed to unveil the purposes of God.

Another example of the word of knowledge and the word of wisdom working together is found in chapter four of the book of John. When Jesus went to the well, He met a Samaritan woman. In the course of their conversation, Jesus revealed her life circumstances. He told her that she had already lived with four husbands, and the one with her now was not her husband.

Jesus was using the gift of the word of knowledge to disclose this woman’s past. As she and the Lord continued to converse, He prophesied the following words found in chapter four of the book of John. 

John 4: 21-24 (NIV)

21 Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.  22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.

23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is Spirit and His worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.

Here we see that the words Jesus spoke were a revelation of the future called word of wisdom within the prophecy He told her.

Both the gifts of word of knowledge and word of wisdom are essential for effective counseling and ministering to people. The word of knowledge can reveal a past hurt or wound that needs healing. The word of wisdom can prepare someone for the future or put a future destiny into their heart that they will eventually see come to pass.

Once through the operation of these particular spiritual gifts I was told that I would become the principal of a Christian school long before I actually took the job. A word of wisdom revealed it to me. Through this experience, God was preparing my heart to accept the position by telling me ahead of time what He would someday bring to pass in my life.

Counterfeits to these Holy Spirit gifts of revelation are found in the works of mediums, fortune tellers, psychics, and mind readers. They are able to tell the past or present through the use of demons, familiar spirits, or guesswork.

In the book of Deuteronomy we find verses that strongly warn to not consult with these types or we will bring a curse upon our lives.

Deuteronomy 18: 10-13 (NIV)

10 Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, 11 or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead.

12 Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord, and because of these detestable practices the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you. 13 You must be blameless before the Lord your God.

Mothers of Nations, we must always be alert to the counterfeit of these gifts and be sensitive that the Holy Spirit is doing the revealing!

As we close today I would like you to think about a particular word of wisdom that has been given to you. How did that word of wisdom guide or impact your spiritual walk?

Dr. Sharon Predovich