What is the gift of the word of wisdom?

Having wisdom is an important part of every believer’s life, whether you are focusing on improving your own quality of life or your relationships with others.  King Solomon wrote the Book of Proverbs because of the importance of applying Godly wisdom to our lives as well as the everyday the situations around us.  King Solomon begins his book of Proverbs with the following words.

“The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:  for attaining wisdom and discipline….The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.” (Proverbs 1:1-2, 7 NIV)

 

Wisdom is being able to understand the Word of God and its practical application to our lives.  What then is the gift of the word of wisdom?  The Apostle Paul includes in his letter to the Corinthians.

“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.  There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.  There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.  Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.  To one there is given though the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit….  All of these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines. (I Corinthians 12:4-8, 10-11 NIV, italics added for emphasis)

Simply stated, the spiritual gift of the word of wisdom is when the Holy Spirit entrusts certain believers to understand the Word of God and practically apply it to others, for the overall purpose of glorifying the church.  One great example is Stephen, in the Book of Acts, who was entrusted with the gift of the word of wisdom and served God by ministering in the Jewish synagogues.  Due to the work of the Holy Spirit in Stephen’s ministry in the synagogues, the Jewish leaders who disputed with Stephen could not stand up to his wisdom or the Spirit by whom he spoke.  (Acts 6:8-10)

The Apostle Paul commonly emphasized the importance of using wisdom when reaching out to others, with the words. 

“Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.  Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” (Colossians 4:5-6 NIV, italics added for emphasis)

  

Overall, the spiritual gift of the word of wisdom is essential for our churches and religious organizations as we reach out to our communities.  Where will our churches end up if we do not keep the message of Christianity relevant the constantly changing world around us?  Wisdom does not imply that we water-down the gospel message.  Rather, believers entrusted with the gift of the word of wisdom help ensure that the message of Christianity remains relevant and perseveres throughout the generations.