The Spirit Of Knowledge

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge.

Proverbs 1:7

You settle into your seat on the airplane and notice the person next to you is reading a novel by an author you like. Casual conversation ensues, and you are amazed at your seatmate’s knowledge of the author and his books. Is he a professor of literature? No. A book critic? No. Where does a “layman” get that kind of knowledge?

The same question might have been asked of Stephen, one of the early church’s first deacons. This man rose to his feet before the Jewish Sanhedrin and delivered one of the most powerful historical-theological sermons in the entire Bible. Where did Stephen get such knowledge? Remember—this wasn’t just knowledge of the facts of the Old Testament. It was the ability to show how Jesus of Nazareth was the fulfillment of those facts—the Jewish Messiah—only weeks after His resurrection. The answer is in Acts 6:5: Stephen was full of the Holy Spirit. Stephen had knowledge, but the Spirit transformed that knowledge into the power to convict and change lives.

Ask the Lord to anoint your knowledge of Scripture so it is always available to minister to those in need of truth.

[The] words “unction” and “anointing” are just a very graphic way of describing the influence and the effect of the Holy Spirit upon the believer.

DAVID MARTYN LLOYD-JONES