Word of Knowledge

1 Corinthians 12:7-11

"But 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, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually."

God gave the church different tools to use to influence the world around us. Some say that the gifts mentioned above were only for the first believers, but I disagree. God has given us the Spirit, and through the Spirit we have access to all of the gifts. God gives gifts to those who are seeking him and is always willing to meet us where we are at and help us develop these further.

One of the gifts I have is healing, however I have also experienced many of the other gifts. Sometimes a word of knowledge can be used to help boost faith or encourage someone who is newer in the faith. That is a gift that has happened a few times to me. Here are a few true examples of this gift.

I was ministering in this church where I didn't know a ton of people. One of the young men (I would say early 20's) came up to me to thank me for the service. I asked if I could pray for him, keeping in mind that I know absolutely nothing about this guy. As I am praying, I got a vision of him working in a machine shop. He had little metal parts in his hands and was using his talents to be bold to speak to others around him. When I told him what I saw his jaw dropped. The first thing he told me was that he was praying for boldness and that he works on cars for a living. He has a dream of designing his own car and that is why the small parts (the model) were in his hands. Because of this vision, his faith was bold and he took that as a sign from God to continue his work.

Here is another example:

I was ministering in a completely different church and also didn't know a ton of people. One lady came up for prayer. She needed some healing and then the pastor's wife asked me to seek God for a word of knowledge. She needed some encouragement, wisdom and direction. As I was praying, God gave me a vision of this woman teaching others how to sow. She was using that sowing ability to open up doors to minister to others. After the service, I went and found her again. When I told her the vision, she almost laughed. She told me that she was a missionary in Africa for almost 20 years and that was exactly what she was doing there. She was teaching young people how to sow. I believe God revealed that to me to give her a sign of encouragement.

If you think about this gift logically, it doesn't make sense at all. But Jesus said in John chapter 10 that the sheep know His voice and will listen to Him. Although I didn't know those people, I know His voice. He revealed those things to me in order to build up others. When God does this, it is always to bring people back to Him, never to push them away. Sometimes the word of knowledge is extremely specific, and sometimes it is more vague. Either way, the sheep know His voice.

If this is a gift you would like to dig deeper in, I would encourage you to study the book of Acts in the Bible. God used this gift several times and it certainly strengthened the church. God is good and the author of all wisdom. Praise Him!