Intro
We are studying the gifts of the Spirit that Paul talks about in 1 Cor. 12. By examining Paul’s description there, we know that these are not natural abilities. These are supernatural impartations by the Holy Spirit to meet the need of the moment. They are manifestations of the Spirit who is in us. In 1 John 4:4 the apostle said, “…greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world” (KJV). Who is the He that is in you? It’s the mighty Holy Spirit who resides in every believer. In the gifts of the Spirit, He is manifesting Himself though a believer. You might say the gifts are glimpses of the Holy Spirit breaking forth to meet a need.
Last time we talked about the word of wisdom. It is essentially the guidance gift. By a word of wisdom God tells us what to do or say in the particular situation. Today our subject is the word of knowledge. Word of knowledge is the fact gift. By a word of knowledge God supernaturally tells us a fact, past or present. If it is a prediction of the future, then it is prophecy.
Paul writes in 1 Cor 12:7-8 “But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit.”i
I. What is a word of knowledge? How would you define it?
Knowledge is knowing information or facts. The key to understanding this gift is found in how that information is acquired. 1 Cor. 12:8 says that it is “through the same Spirit” which is referring to the Holy Spirit. It comes supernaturally by the Spirit.
Paul is not talking about natural knowledge that is acquired through the five senses. He is talking about knowledge that is conveyed supernaturally “by the Spirit.” Commentaries are usually written by scholars who have little or no experience operating in the gifts of the Spirit. They often equate word of knowledge to knowing or teaching the Bible. But a word of knowledge is not the same thing as a good sermon. Paul is not talking about a teaching gift. He is talking about something that comes supernaturally for the moment. He is not talking about information gained through much study. He is not talking about natural ability. He is not talking about knowledge that comes through the mental exercise of learning, observing, or reflecting. He is not even talking about the “ah ha” moments that we all have when we have sought to understand something and suddenly it clicks; we suddenly get it.ii Those experiences are valuable, but they are a function of the human mind. A word of knowledge comes to us “by the Spirit.” Also, understand that it is not just knowledge in general. It is a “word” of knowledge: a piece of knowledge that God gives for the occasion. It is a supernatural impartation of fact that we could not know at that moment through natural means.
I do think there are occasions when God gives a word of knowledge from His word. Luther’s revelation of justification by faith probably came as a word of knowledge. There was probably something more than him just figuring it out through much study, although studying may have laid the preparation for it. As I say these things, I want to acknowledge our dependence on the Holy Spirit to lead us into truth, even when a word of knowledge is not in operation. Broadly speaking, we must have the Holy Spirit open the word to our understanding. The natural mind alone cannot grasp the things of the Lord.iii But that is usually the Spirit teaching us, but not necessarily a word of knowledge. Sometimes, when we’re preaching, God may give a word of knowledge at some point in the message that lays bare the secret of someone’s heart. That can happen in a supernatural way and be a word of knowledge. But a good Bible teaching or sermon is not what Paul calls, in our text ,a word of knowledge.
So, a word of knowledge could be defined as “a revelation of a past or present fact, supernaturally given by the Holy Spirit, to meet the need of the moment.”
II. Let’s see this GIFT OPERATING IN SCRIPTURE.
Sometimes, this gift operates in conjunction with evangelism. When Jesus was talking to the woman at the well in John 4, He gave her a word of knowledge. He led into that by asking her to go call her husband. She quickly answered I don’t have a husband. Then Jesus told her something that the Holy Spirit had revealed to Him about this woman. He said, in essence, that’s right, you have had five husbands, and the man you’re living with right now is not your husband. That word of knowledge accomplished two things in evangelizing this woman.
(1) It got her attention. She knew that Jesus could not know those facts at that moment by natural means. Her response was: “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet” (vs 19). Suddenly, this conversation takes on special significance.
(2) The word of knowledge exposed her sin as a preparation for repentance. One weakness in today’s evangelism is that we often do it without these supernatural manifestations. We give them the four spiritual laws, which is not a bad thing to do. In fact, many people come to the Lord through that presentation of the word. But notice how this supernatural word of knowledge brought home the truth in a powerful, personal way. The primary way people come to the Lord is through the presentation of the gospel. Miracles, healings, words of knowledge attest to the validity of the message.iv They not only meet needs, they get people’s attention so that they hear the message. The word of knowledge is a powerful gift in conjunction with evangelism.
I had a season in my ministry when the Lord would often give me a word of knowledge, telling who was ready to receive the gospel. I would walk into a restaurant, not necessarily to evangelize, and as I looked across the room, one person would stand out. As I looked at the person, the Holy Spirit would say, “That person is ready to receive salvation.” The realization of that fact came intuitively, but I could also see something on the person’s countenance. I don’t know exactly how to describe it, but I could see that the person was already under conviction of sin. Anyway, I would walk up to the stranger, introduce myself, briefly share the gospel, and lead the person to the Lord. No one was disturbed by what I was doing. It was simple and effective. Without that word of knowledge, I could have gone from one table to another with no results. The word of knowledge told me who was ready for the message.v
In Acts 10:9, Peter was in prayer. He had a vision in which he saw wild beasts, creeping things, and fowls let down toward him in a sheet. A voice then said, "Rise, Peter; kill and eat." But Peter [being the good Jew that he was] said, "Not so, Lord! For I have never eaten anything common or unclean." The answer came back, "What God has cleansed you must not call common." This happened three times before the vision ended. God was preparing Peter to lead a gentile named Cornelius to the Lord. Cornelius received a vision of an angel who gave him a word of knowledge and a word of wisdom.vi The angel said to him, "Your prayers and your alms have come up for a memorial before God.” That is a word of knowledge. “Now send men to Joppa, and send for Simon whose surname is Peter.” [That’s a directive word, a word of wisdom]. “He is lodging with Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea.” What is that? That is a word of knowledge, the conveyance of facts Cornelius could not have known at that moment through natural means. So the next day, Cornelius sent men to Joppa just as he was told to do. They arrived at the gate where Peter was staying. At that moment, God gave Peter a word of knowledge. Acts 10:19: “While Peter thought about the vision, the Spirit said to him, ‘Behold, three men are seeking you.’ [word of knowledge] [followed in verse 20 by this word of wisdom] ‘Arise therefore, go down and go with them, doubting nothing; for I have sent them." So, Peter went down to the three men and said, "Yes, I am he whom you seek. For what reason have you come?"
I want you to notice something about a word of knowledge there. God gave enough information to Peter for him to obey and do what He needed to do. But God didn’t supernaturally tell him everything.vii Peter had to ask them, “For what reason have you come?" God did not show him that part. That’s the way a word of knowledge works. God tells you what you need to know, but he doesn’t tell you everything. Peter had to learn the rest through natural inquiry. They told Peter about the vision Cornelius had. Peter went with them to Caesarea where Cornelius was. God had told Cornelius that Peter would tell him what he needed to do.viii Cornelius gathered family and friends to hear what Peter would say. As Peter preached Jesus to the crowd, the Holy Spirit fell upon them, and they were filled with the Holy Spirit. All these people were saved and filled with the Holy Spirit through a series of events orchestrated by the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit is directing the evangelistic effort through words of knowledge and words of wisdom it is much more effective. We need the operation of the word of knowledge in our evangelistic efforts.
Sometimes, the word of knowledge operates in conjunction with miracles and healings. Remember the story in our last message about Paul’s conversion and the disciple, Ananias, who prayed for him in Acts 9? Ananias was afraid of Saul of Tarsus. He had heard of all the persecution that Saul had imposed on the Christians. Ananias wanted nothing to do with Saul of Tarsus. What changed his mind? What gave him the faith to go to Saul and pray for him?
God gave Ananias a word of knowledge about Saul. He told Ananias that Saul, who would become Paul, was a chosen vessel. Acts 9:11: “So the Lord said to him, ‘Arise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus, for behold, he is praying. 12 And in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, so that he might receive his sight.’" That word of knowledge to Ananias was a key factor in this story. With a bold faith, based on what God had told him, Ananias went to where Paul was. Notice the holy boldness in Ananias when he goes to Paul. Acts 9:17 “And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and laying his hands on him he said, ‘Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.’ 18 Immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once; and he arose and was baptized.” Faith for the healing was connected with the word of knowledge Ananias had received. When our youngest daughter, Katie, was healed, a word of knowledge that God gave Jeanie and me was the key to the whole thing. I’ll share that story at a later time.
The man who moved most profoundly in word of knowledge in our times was William Branham. Before he prayed for a person’s healing, he would often give them words of knowledge to build their faith. He would tell them their condition. At times, he would tell them their name and address. Sometimes, he would tell them how the condition came about. It was very specific and accurate. He testified that the word of knowledge came to him in a vision. He would see the information spelled out before him in supernatural vision. By the time he finished with the words of knowledge, the person was ready to receive the healing. In his latter years, Branham got off course. But prior to that, the word of knowledge operated at a very high level in his ministry. There are a few videos of it on YouTube.ix The ways Branham received words of knowledge were unusual.
Both Ananias and Cornelius received words of knowledge through visions. Sometimes, a word of knowledge will come through a dream. Joseph interpreted the dreams of the baker and butler with a word of knowledge. On rare occasions, a word of knowledge will come by an audible voice. That happened to young Samuel (1 Sam. 3:11-14). Most of the time a word of knowledge comes as an impression of a fact in one’s spirit. In your heart, you simply know.
A word of knowledge may come in various degrees of detail and specifics. It is common for the Lord to let us know there is something wrong with a situation. At first, it may be very vague. That is usually a call to prayer. Often, as we pray, God gives more specifics. As we have seen, however, a word of knowledge does not tell us everything. It tells us what we need to know in order to deal with the situation at hand.
When we founded the church in Amarillo, we quickly outgrew our storefront. We began praying for a building that would accommodate our needs. As I prayed, I received a word of knowledge that told me the general area where we were to locate. Because I had that much information from the Lord, I began to drive around in that area of town and praying for the area and for a facility. I saw nothing available.
One Saturday night, I was driving in the area and praying. As I drove by a building, God gave me a more detailed word of knowledge. He said, “I have given you that building.” That seemed strange since it was occupied and there was no for sale sign. However, I knew I had heard the Lord, so I parked the car and walked up to the main doors of the facility. I laid my hands on the doors and said a prayer. In that prayer, I thanked the Lord for the facility. I claimed it and received it from the Lord, even though, in the natural, there was nothing to confirm what I had heard. The name-it-claim-it faith message works beautifully if it is based on what God says to you. If it is based on hopes and wishes, it doesn’t work so well. But I do want you to see the process I went through. The word of knowledge became more specific as I sought the Lord further. Faith is always a factor. If you’re faithful over the little that He gives you, He will give you more.x
Based on that word of knowledge, I called the owners of the building but did not get to talk with anyone. So, I just left a message for them to call me. The next day, Jeanie (my wife) was in the kitchen doing the dishes, and God gave her a word. It came in an unusual way. While she was washing the dishes, she went into a vision in which she received a call from the owner of the building. In the vision, she carried on a conversation with the owner. As the vision subsided, the phone rang. It was the owner, and they had the exact conversation she had just experienced during the vision. When I called the man back, he said the timing was amazing. He said the people in the building had just given notice that they were moving out. They had been having trouble making the payments. The amazing thing was that a large Baptist church had another building that was empty, and they just gave that group the building. So, the problem of people being in the facility was not actually a problem at all. It just looked that way on the surface. Before I move on in this story, I want to point out something. When God does something, He never has us violate innocent people to get it done. He blessed that group in the building with a payment-free building. They could not afford the building they were in, but God took care of them.
So, the owner wanted to sell the building to our church. He was willing to let us have it for $ 89,000, although it was worth much more than that. However, God told me He was GIVING us the building. So I told the owner it is perfect for our needs. In fact, God has told me that is to be our building. But we have a problem. God told me He is giving us the building. So are you supposed to give us the building? The owner said, “Look, this building is worth much more than $ 89,000, and we have already sold it for that in the past. It will easily sell for $ 89,000." Because I had a word from the Lord, I asked him to pray about it--because God told me He was giving it to us!” To make a long story short, the owner gave us the building. We did pay some back taxes to get the title free and clear. But God did exactly what He told me in the word of knowledge. I share that story so you can see how the process works. Of course, every situation is a little different. But a word of knowledge can powerfully boost our faith for what needs to happen.
Sometimes, a word of knowledge serves to confront sin and protect God’s people. In 2 Kings 6, the king of Syria was out to destroy Israel. However, every time the king would strategically place his army to defeat Israel, Elisha would receive a word of knowledge and tell it to the king of Israel, thus negating all of Syria’s strategies. It was so bad the king of Syria thought one of his own inner circle was betraying him. That’s when he was told that Elisha was somehow hearing what was said in their secret meetings.
On an earlier occasion, Elisha operated in a word of knowledge after Naaman was healed. You remember the story when Elisha told Naaman to dip in the Jordan River seven times so he would be healed of his leprosy? When Naaman did that, he was healed. In his gratitude, he came back to Elisha and wanted to give the prophet lavish gifts. This Elisha refused. Elisha’s servant, Gehazi, heard all this. In his greed, he ran after Naaman and told Naaman a story to get him to give him some riches. He said that two prophets from Ephraim had arrived and would he give them a talent of silver and two changes of garments? In response, Namaan gave him two talents of silver and two changes of garments. Gehazi took the plunder and hid it for himself. Then he went and stood before Elisha. Elisha asked him, “Where did you go, Gehazi?” Gehazi lied and said that he didn’t go anywhere. Then Elisha said to Gehazi, (2Kings 5:26) "Did not my heart go with you when the man turned back from his chariot to meet you? [As a word of knowledge, Elisha saw the event in the spirit]. ”Is it time to receive money and to receive clothing, olive groves and vineyards, sheep and oxen, male and female servants? 27 Therefore the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and your descendants forever." And he went out from his presence leprous, as white as snow.” God supernaturally showed Elisha what was going on. God protected the early church with words of knowledge, and He does that today. Many times, God has shown me to be cautious about something, and it turned out to be a protection for the church. We should be leading our churches with the supernatural insight of the Holy Spirit, as well as practical wisdom.
In Acts 5, Ananias and his wife, Sapphira, sold some property. Many disciples were selling property and giving the money for the advancement of the gospel at that time. Ananias and Sapphira wanted to look good, but they also wanted to keep some of the money. So, they kept part of the money but said they were giving it all. God gave Peter a word of knowledge that exposed their lie. First came Ananias with the lie, and when Peter confronted him, he dropped dead on the spot. Later, Sapphira came in with the same lie, and she dropped dead. Without the word of knowledge, those two would have deceived the whole church. They may have moved into places of authorityxi and undermined God’s plan. God protected the early church through the word of knowledge.
The word of knowledge can have very practical benefits.xii Jesus told Peter where the money was for them to pay their taxes. In Matt. 17:27, Jesus told Peter to go to the sea, cast in a hook, look in the mouth of the first fish you pull in, and the money is there. A word of knowledge was a source of provision.xiii
When our oldest daughter, Karol, started Bible College in California, we did not have a vehicle that could make it out there with her stuff. A couple in our church loaned us their van, and we took her to San Dimas, California. On the way back, we were traveling through some desolate territory, and the van broke down in Newkirk, New Mexico. Newkirk is a gas station and a few houses. Nothing else was there. It was in the middle of nowhere on a Saturday evening. We couldn’t get the van started and couldn’t figure out what was wrong. We inquired at the gas station, and the one person working there said he knew nothing about auto mechanics. He did say there was one mechanic in town who was probably at his house. At my request, he called the man and asked him to come. When the guy got there, he was drunk as a skunk. He crawled under the van to look at the motor from that vantage point. But he was so drunk he couldn’t get himself out. So, I got him by the feet and dragged him out from under the car. He offered to tear the engine down for several hundred dollars. I said, “Thanks, but no thanks.” That would not be our solution.
With the hood up, Jeanie and I stared at the engine, asking God what to do. Suddenly, Jeanie said, “God is telling me the problem is that thing,” pointing at one of the visible parts. Neither one of us knew what it was, but I thought it was probably an alternator. We called my father, who was a competent mechanic. However, he was 150 miles away. We explained our dilemma and told him we thought we needed an alternator. Since he was not there, he could not diagnose the problem with the limited information we could give him. But he agreed to buy an alternator and bring it to us. When he arrived, he installed the alternator, and the van worked fine. We would have been stuck there several more days if God had not given Jeanie that word of knowledge. It was nothing spectacular, but it was what we needed to solve our problem. The gifts of the Spirit can be very practical in their application.
In 1 Samuel 9, a young Benjamite, named Saul, was looking for his father’s donkeys and could not find them. He came to ask Samuel’s help. By a word of knowledge, Samuel told him not to worry about the donkeys because they had been found. God had also given Samuel another word of knowledge: that this young man Saul was to be the new leader of Israel. So Samuel also shared that fact with Saul. Samuel was a seer who operated in the word of knowledge and prophecy.
When we were pastoring in Amarillo, our church was in the inner city. Those who had been in the building prior to us were robbed many times. We were only robbed twice. I’ll tell you one of those stories. I came to the church office one weekday. When I got there, I found that the building had been broken into and our musical instruments and sound equipment stolen. It was worth quite a bit of money. I called the police, and they came out. While the policeman was dusting for fingerprints, I went back to my office to pray. As I was praying—let me point out that a word of knowledge often comes when we’re praying. That’s because we’re usually listening better at that time. But while I was praying, God gave me a word of knowledge. He told me that the equipment was in a certain motel west on the boulevard. It was not a place that you would guess in your wildest dreams. The revelation came as a flash. I asked the Lord what I should do about it. Then I went to the policeman and told him that I had reason to believe the stolen property was a such-and-such motel. He asked how I knew, and I was a bit vague because I thought he might write me off as a quack if I said, “God told me.” Besides, if I was wrong that would be bad too. He didn’t want to do it, but when I said I was going anyhow, he agreed to go and just make sure all was peaceable.
When we arrived, I asked for the manager and told him that we have reason to believe there is stolen property on the premises; did he know anything about that? He said there was no stolen property there. When I pushed the issue, he got a bit angry and said, “Look, there was only one empty room last night. We have started cleaning the others, and nothing is there. I’ll show you that room, and then you can go. We walked to the room; he unlocked it and opened the door. All the stolen equipment was in the room. He had no explanation of how it got there. But we recovered everything. It was all possible because of a word of knowledge.
The word of knowledge is for today. If you lose something, ask God where it is. If you’re feeling uneasy about something, pray about it. God may be trying to show you specifics. A word of knowledge is often a call to prayer and intercession. God gave Abraham a word of knowledge about Sodom and the judgment that was in motion. Abraham did the right thing about that word. He began to pray. He asked God to spare Sodom if there were just 50 righteous people, 45, 40, 30, 20, 10.xiv If God gives me a word of knowledge, there is something that I am supposed to do with that information. It may be a confrontation; it may be an inspiration of faith; it may be to simply intercede. Open your heart to what God might want to tell you. Is your heart attuned to the Lord for a word of knowledge or some other word of revelation?
ENDNOTES:
i All Scripture quotes are from the New King James Version unless indicated otherwise.
ii Ah ha moments come in the natural course of learning. For example, one studies elementary algebra and at some point the realization comes, if A + B = C then C – A must equal B. The concept now makes sense. However, this is part of the natural workings of the mind and has not come to us supernaturally “by the Spirit.”
iii 1 Cor. 2:14. In general, we must have the Holy Spirit illuminate the word to our understanding; however, in 1 Cor. 12:8, Paul is talking about unique, specific events in which the Holy Spirit gives facts in the moment that supernaturally meet the needs of the occasion.
iv Mark 16:20; Matt. 10:7-8.
v In John 4, Jesus was led to evangelize a specific person (woman at the well). Jesus was often directed by the Holy Spirit to a specific person for ministry (Luke 19:5; John 5:3-5; Acts 8:26-29). This is far more effective than modern target marketing.
vi Word of knowledge and word of wisdom often work together.
vii 1 Cor. 13:9 “For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.”
viii Acts 10:6. God has assigned the preaching of the gospel to believers, not angels.
ix For a summary of Branham’s life, see God’s Generals by Roberts Liardon (Tulsa, OK: Albury Publishing, 1996) pp. 309-345. For a video of his ministry seehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WF7kXCyQe04 and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61udzNdFXTs.
x This principle is stated by Jesus in Matt. 25:23 and Luke 19:17.
xi Barnabas gave the proceeds from selling his property in Cyprus (Acts 4:34-37). He became a major leader in the early church.
xii You will never see this gift operating for trivial purposes. You will never see this gift used to entertain or satisfy human curiosity. That is often the case when it is counterfeited by the occult.
xiii Newkirk, NM
xiv Genesis 18.
