The Gift of Knowledge

There is a kind of knowledge that is discursive---that is, it is reached by information + reasoning until we reach some conclusion.  But there is also another kind of Knowledge that comes through the Holy Spirit rather than from outside of us and rather than from our reasoning things out.  When Jesus met the woman at the well (Jn. 4), and said to her, "You have had five husbands, and the man you are now with is not your husband," that knowledge did not come from discursive knowledge, but through His communion with the Spirit of God within Him.  And since we know that Jesus "put down" His power as God to live as a human being on this earth, what was available to Him through the Spirit of God must also be available to us.

There will always be spiritual powers that mimic the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, so we can be deluded into thinking that spiritists, mediums, charletans, etc. have ESP or the gift of reading minds, or of seeing into another world, as in seances.  But the kind of knowledge given by the Holy Spirit is always for the building up and strengthening of those who love God and/or who are in need of His healing in their lives, as was the woman at the well.  The Gift of Knowledge is given to us for protection ---ie, warning us of a danger that may not be immediately obvious--or for healing, or for confidence in choosing a course of action. 

"By their fruits, you will know them."  If someone seems to "have" special knowledge of events to demonstrate their power, or to manipulate people, or to make money, there is immediate danger.  In Chapter 16 of the Acts of the Apostles, we read about a slave girl who had an "oracular spirit," who used to bring a large profit to her owners through her fortune-telling.  Paul commanded the evil spirit to come out of her, but the owners were understandably upset with Paul and Silas and had them publicly beaten with rods and then thrown into prison.

When we ourselves receive the Gift of Knowledge from the Holy Spirit, it is usually for the purpose of setting others free from some kind of bondage or evil.  Sometimes, too, we ourselves can be set free by a kind of knowledge of events that is given to us by the Spirit.  Paul tells us to "seek the greater gifts," but not to become "puffed up" or proud of what is given to us by the Spirit.  Parents, especially, need to be open to the Gift of Knowledge to know what is going on with their children.  When we find ourselves wondering, "How did I know that?" we might want to trust that God is giving us the Gift of Knowledge for some purpose and begin to pray for even more guidance from the Holy Spirit.