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1 Cor. 12:8-10 – “…The manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, ….”
The Word of Wisdom is supernatural revelation, by the Spirit of God, concerning the divine purpose in the mind and will of God. It is the God-given ability to receive, from the Holy Spirit, a revelation of what to do about a particular situation, once you know the facts.
All of the gifts of the Holy Spirit are supernatural. We cannot figure them out with our human mind and human reasoning. These gifts operate and function by the power of the Holy Spirit. They have been given to the body of Christ for encouragement, comfort and edification.
The word of wisdom is a word of wisdom, a fragment of God's wisdom. It's not human wisdom that comes from the human intellect. It’s wisdom that comes directly from God.
The word of wisdom is not a "gift" of wisdom. It is a gift of the word of wisdom.
The word of wisdom always speaks of the future.
Let’s look at some of the purposes of the gift of the word of wisdom and see how these gifts operated in the New Testament church.
God reveals His purpose and plan through the word of wisdom:
Acts 16:9-10 - And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. A man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” Now after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel to them.
The Lord spoke to the Apostle Paul in a night vision. He saw, by the Spirit, into the realm of the Spirit.
It’s time for the church of Jesus Christ to get out of the natural realm and begin to walk in the realm of the Spirit.
I’m sure that most of you reading this article are very familiar with the Macedonian call that is mentioned in the above Scripture. Macedonia was not on Paul’s list of places to go and preach, nor was it listed on his “things to do list.” Paul and his traveling team were headed in one direction, but the Lord intervened and stopped them dead in their tracks. Paul and his companions were trying to go to Bithynia, but the Spirit of God would not permit them to do so. Thank God for His mighty hand of direction and protection upon our lives. Thank God that He still speaks, reveals and supernaturally intervenes on behalf of His people. We might have a particular plan or strategy all sketched out in our little finite minds, but God’s plans and strategies are so much better and higher than ours. Our agendas mean absolutely nothing if they are not God’s agendas.
In Acts 16:10, we see how Paul and his team immediately responded to the vision that was given to the Apostle Paul. They didn’t allow human reasoning to kick in and cause them to walk in doubt or unbelief. They didn’t ask God 101 questions concerning the vision that was given to Paul. They just responded to the call! They chose to respond to the supernatural revelation that had been given to their appointed leader for that particular time. Oh, that God would cause all of us to respond immediately to the call.
The word of wisdom revealed God's purpose and plan to the Apostle Paul:
In Acts 9:15-16, the Lord told Ananias to go and minister to Paul, for he was a chosen vessel of God. He also said, "I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake” (speaking of the future).
The word of wisdom revealed God’s purpose and plan to Philip:
Acts 8:26-"Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, "Arise and go
toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.”
The angel of the Lord gave Philip specific instruction because He had a divine appointment awaiting him along the road that went down from Jerusalem to Gaza.
How many divine appointments have we missed, because we were not listening to the Holy Spirit? How many times have we been disobedient to the heavenly vision given to us by God? We could save ourselves a lot of frustration, hassle, trial and tribulation, if we would only learn to listen and obey the voice of our Lord.
The word of wisdom tells us the best thing to do in a given situation:
2 Kings 5:9-10 – Then Naaman went with his horses and chariot, and he stood at the door of Elisha’s house. And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored to you, and you shall be clean.”
Is this the way Naaman wanted things to happen? Of course not! He wanted Elisha to come to the door and personally lay hands on him and fix his problem. He didn’t want to speak to Elisha’s messenger! He wanted to speak to the prophet himself. He didn’t want to hear what the messenger had to say regarding him dipping in the Jordan River seven times. How ludicrous! Naaman’s reaction probably went something like this: “You’ve got to be kidding me! He wants me to go dip in the dirty Jordan River seven times? Give me a Pentecostal break! Don’t you have any idea who I am?” Have you ever had something similar to this happen to you?
Elisha had been given all the facts concerning Naaman’s leprous condition. God spoke to His prophet and told him exactly what to do. Why did God choose the Jordan River and why seven times? Scripture doesn’t give us an answer to this question, but one thing is certain, God was requiring faith and obedience from Naaman. He may not have understood why he had to go through this particular process in order to receive his healing, but because he finally chose to respond to the word of the Lord by faith and obedience, his health was completely restored.
The word of wisdom and the word of knowledge often operate together:
The word of knowledge gives us the facts, while the word of wisdom shows us what to do with those facts.
While John was on the Isle of Patmos, the Lord revealed the present condition of the seven churches to him. This was the word of knowledge in operation. The Lord also gave John the word of wisdom, which revealed His purposes and plans for those churches.
The word of wisdom is used to warn people of future judgment and peril:
In Genesis chapter six, we find the story of how the Lord gave specific instruction to Noah regarding the building of the ark. The Lord told Noah that He was going to destroy man whom He had created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping things and birds of the air, because He was sorry that He had ever made man (word of knowledge). The earth was filled with violence. After the word of knowledge was given, God then gave Him a word of wisdom which not only revealed God’s purpose and plan, but it also warned Noah of the coming judgment and peril. The word of wisdom saved the lives of Noah and his family.
The Word of Wisdom can be given by:
- Audible voice - Moses received the law.
- Visions – Acts 16:9 – Paul’s vision (Macedonian call).
- Dreams – Gen. 37:5 - The Lord spoke to Joseph through dreams concerning his own future.
- Prophecy – Prophets prophesy future happenings. In Acts 11:27-28, the prophet Agabus prophesied of a drought (famine) and in Acts 21:10-14, he prophesied to Paul of some of the things he would suffer.
The word of wisdom is a wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit. The Lord desires to bring forth both the word of knowledge and the word of wisdom to inform us, instruct us, and prepare us for future happenings. May the Lord give us greater understanding concerning His gifts.
Copyright 2001 by Donna Kazenske
