This is the second in the teaching series 'The seven-fold Spirit of God.
The seven-fold Spirit of God is divided into two major sections;
The Spirit upon
The Spirit within
Today we are looking at the manifestation of the Spirit within
This is the spirit of God upon an individual for supernatural enablement
“And the Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him— The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and strength, The Spirit of knowledge and of the [reverential and obedient] fear of the Lord—”
Isaiah 11:2 AMP
God’s sevenfold Spirit is what equips the saints for effective and productive work of the ministry
the sevenfold spirit aspects are the descriptors of the Spirit, in that the Spirit is
1. Of the Lord
2. Of wisdom
3. . . . and understanding
4. Of counsel
5. . . . and might
6. Of knowledge
7. . . . and the fear of the Lord.
These are the seven distinct expressions of the Holy Spirit
The Spirit within starts with the manifestation of Wisdom and Understanding
The Spirit of Wisdom and Understanding
“Wisdom is the principal thing; Therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.”
Proverbs 4:7 NKJV
Wisdom and understanding are sisters, they go hand in hand
Solomon prayed for wisdom and understanding
“Give me an understanding heart so that I can govern your people well and know the difference between right and wrong. For who by himself is able to govern these great people of yours?”
I will give you what you asked for! I will give you a wise and understanding heart such as no one else has had or ever will have!”
1 Kings 3:9, 12 NLT
Wisdom and understanding are gifts of the Spirit
“To one is given through the [Holy] Spirit [the power to speak] the message of wisdom, and to another [the power to express] the word of knowledge and understanding according to the same Spirit;”
1 Corinthians 12:8 AMP
Let’s look at the two sides of the same coin one by one
Psalm 111:10
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow His precepts gain rich understanding. His praise endures forever!
The Origin of the Spirit of wisdom
“I pray that the Father of glory, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, would impart to you the riches of the Spirit of wisdom and the Spirit of revelation to know him through your deepening intimacy with him.”
Ephesians 1:17
Wisdom comes from deep intimacy with God
“If you want to grow in wisdom, spend time with the wise. Walk with the wicked and you’ll eventually become just like them.”
Proverbs 13:20 TPT
And who is the wise?
“Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.”
I Timothy 1:17 NKJV
No wonder His Spirit in us manifests as wisdom
Characteristics of the spirit of wisdom
“But the wisdom from above is always pure, filled with peace, considerate and teachable. It is filled with love and never displays prejudice or hypocrisy in any form and it always bears the beautiful harvest of righteousness! Good seeds of wisdom’s fruit will be planted with peaceful acts by those who cherish making peace.”
James (Jacob) 3:17-18 TPT
From the PAssage above, we see the fruits of wisdom as the following
Purity - It is first of all pure (undefiled);
Peaceful - then it is peace-loving,
Gentleness - courteous (considerate, gentle). [
Meekness - It is willing to] yield to reason,
Loving- full of compassion and good fruits;
Not cunny - it is wholehearted and straightforward,
Impartial - impartial and
Faithful and sincere - unfeigned (free from doubts, wavering, and insincerity).”
The Spirit of understanding
Understanding shows as the following
⁃ spiritual discernment
“But the natural [unbelieving] man does not accept the things [the teachings and revelations] of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness [absurd and illogical] to him; and he is incapable of understanding them, because they are spiritually discerned and appreciated, [and he is unqualified to judge spiritual matters].”
1 Corinthians 2:14 AMP
Mature comprehension, and
Logical interpretation
Proverbs 4:7 AMP
The manifestation of the Spirit of wisdom and understanding
Case study - The wise woman of Abel
Let’s visit the city of Abel, the city of wisdom and a mother in Israel
2 Samuel 20:1-2
“There happened to be a troublemaker there named Sheba son of Bicri, a man from the tribe of Benjamin. Sheba blew a ram’s horn and began to chant: “Down with the dynasty of David! We have no interest in the son of Jesse. Come on, you men of Israel, back to your homes!”
So all the men of Israel deserted David and followed Sheba son of Bicri. But the men of Judah stayed with their king and escorted him from the Jordan River to Jerusalem.
Verses 14-22
Meanwhile, Sheba travelled through all the tribes of Israel and eventually came to the town of Abel-beth-maacah. All the members of his own clan, the Bicrites, assembled for battle and followed him into the town.
When Joab’s forces arrived, they attacked Abel-beth-maacah. They built a siege ramp against the town’s fortifications and began battering down the wall.
But a wise woman in the town called out to Joab, “Listen to me, Joab. Come over here so I can talk to you.”
As he approached, the woman asked, “Are you Joab?” “I am,” he replied.
So she said, “Listen carefully to your servant.” “I’m listening,” he said. Then she continued, “There used to be a saying, ‘If you want to settle an argument, ask advice at the town of Abel.’ I am one who is peace-loving and faithful in Israel. But you are destroying an important town in Israel (mother in Israel). Why do you want to devour what belongs to the Lord?”
And Joab replied, “Believe me, I don’t want to devour or destroy your town! That’s not my purpose. All I want is a man named Sheba son of Bicri from the hill country of Ephraim, who has revolted against King David. If you hand over this one man to me, I will leave the town in peace.”
All right,” the woman replied, “we will throw his head over the wall to you.”
Then the woman went to all the people with her wise advice, and they cut off Sheba’s head and threw it out to Joab.
So Joab blew the ram’s horn and called his troops back from the attack. They all returned to their homes, and Joab returned to the king at Jerusalem.”
2 Samuel 20:1-2, 14-22 NLT
From this story, we see the usefulness of the spirit of wisdom and understanding
For overcoming opponents
“for I will give you [skilful] words and wisdom which none of your opponents will be able to resist or refute.”
Luke 21:15 AMP
The woman spoke to Joab, who wanted to destroy her city and he could not refute her statement. Rather she chose her words carefully, wrapped him with these and Joab the general could not resist
For good judgment
“And He will delight in the fear of the Lord, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make decisions by what His ears hear, But with righteousness and justice He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the downtrodden of the earth, And He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.”
Isaiah 11:3-4 AMP
The woman of Abel was a woman of sound judgement. She quickly sized up the situation surrounding her city and encouraged the citizens of the town to make a quick decision of handing over the bad egg amongst them.
For creativity
Bezaliel and oholiab
“Now the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have called by name Bezalel, son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. I have filled him with the Spirit of God in wisdom and skill, in understanding and intelligence, in knowledge, and in all kinds of craftsmanship, to make artistic designs for work in gold, in silver, and in bronze, and in the cutting of stones for settings, and in the carving of wood, to work in all kinds of craftsmanship. And behold, I Myself have appointed with him Oholiab, son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; to all who are wise-hearted I have given the skill and ability to make everything that I have commanded you:”
Exodus 31:1-6 AMP
For the woman of Abel, wisdom gave her creativity. She chose her words carefully and creatively which she to convince Joab from destroying her town and her town people to get rid of Sheba the rebel
For direction
If the iron be blunt, and one do not whet the edge, then must he put to more strength: but wisdom is profitable to direct.
Eccl 10:10
Wisdom helped the woman to know what to do in a very dicey situation
To avert evil
“Stick with wisdom and she will stick to you, protecting you throughout your days. She will rescue all those who passionately listen to her voice.”
Proverbs 4:6 TPT
The Spirit of wisdom in her helped her to avert evil over her town
Rebellious Sheba represents sin in the lives of believers but the wisdom of God can be used to cast it out. The wise woman and the citizens of the city of wisdom (Abel) cut off the head of Sheba so it would not ruin their lives
It was from Abel the reputed centre of wisdom that a woman who spoke of herself as one of “the peaceable and faithful in Israel” and as “a mother in Israel” went out to tell the people out of her wisdom, and aroused them to destroy the rebel Sheba.
Understanding is needed for outstanding results
The city of Abel had become proverbial for its wisdom. The Jewish Targum with Deuteronomy 20:10 in mind reads, “Remember now that which is written in the book of the Law to ask a city concerning peace at the first? Hast thou done so, to ask of Abel if they will make peace?” (2 Samuel 20:18).
This woman showed commanding courage to act on behalf of her people and champion their cause before a stronger army in an age when no woman was reckoned with especially in relation to war
Her influence with the people and her skilful diplomacy mark her out as a lady of consequence and outstanding result. Through her bravery and By her stern action this unknown heroine delivered up one guilty life and saved, thereby, thousands of innocent lives, and also secured peace in the kingdom of David. History, sacred and secular, is replete with records of women who, by their wit and courage in a time of crisis, brought deliverance and hope to their nation.
This woman’s understanding of the scriptures and her place in God’s plan gave her an edge over an army general. Joab would not forget her in a hurry so also all the people of Abel
The Holy Spirit imparts the spirit of wisdom and understanding to us through the scriptures
“and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.”
II Timothy 3:15 NKJV
“Surely I have taught you statutes and judgments, just as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should act according to them in the land which you go to possess.
Therefore be careful to observe them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes, and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’”
Deuteronomy 4:5-6 NKJV
Why
Because the Spirit of God which is also the spirit of wisdom and understanding is the inspiration behind the scriptures
“God has transmitted his very substance into every Scripture, for it is God-breathed. It will empower you by its instruction and correction, giving you the strength to take the right direction and lead you deeper into the path of godliness. Then you will be God’s servant, fully mature and perfectly prepared to fulfil any assignment, God”
2 Timothy 3:16-17 TPT
The Holy Spirit illuminates our hearts to understand the things of God better
“Someone living on an entirely human level rejects the revelations of God’s Spirit, for they make no sense to him. He can’t understand the revelations of the Spirit because they are only discovered by the illumination of the Spirit.”
1 Corinthians 2:14 TPT
Prayer
⁃ Lord, baptise me with the spirit of wisdom and understanding
⁃ May I increase in your words which is able to make me wise unto salvation
⁃ Help me to sharpen daily your word in me in order to deal with every intrusion of the enemy in my life
⁃ Lord Jesus, you are the wisdom of God, in your name I remove the head of that sin that easily besets me. I cut off every Sheba in me and I live in the newness of life by the spirit of wisdom and understanding
Confessions of the endowment of the Spirit of Wisdom and Understanding
I receive the baptism of the spirit of wisdom and understanding for creativity, direction, good judgment and outstanding results in the second half of this year in Jesus name
Lord Jesus, you are the wisdom of God, in your name I remove the head of that sin that beset me. I cut off every Sheba in my life and I live in the newness of life by the spirit of wisdom and understanding
As Jesus is so I am in this world, therefore I confess according to Isaiah 11:3-5 that I will delight in obeying the Lord. I will not judge by appearance nor make a decision based on hearsay. I will give justice to the poor and make fair decisions for the exploited. The earth will shake at the force of my word, and one breath from my mouth will destroy the wicked. I will wear righteousness like a belt and truth like an undergarment in Jesus name. Amen
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