Ephesians 1: 15-17
Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints, Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
We are focusing on the prayer request of Paul for these believers. The subject of his prayer is for the knowledge of Christ in the Ephesian believers and to all the faithful in Christ Jesus(reference Vs. 1). He ask for them to have the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the the knowledge of Him. I want to bring attention to one thing before we move on to help to see how I understand the text; the word spirit. It isn't Spirit but spirit, in the KJV Bible the upper case Spirit is referring to The Holy Spirit and lower case spirit is referring to either the human spirit, a spirit that isn't The Holy Spirit or ,like in our case today, the word is used in the same way we would say "In the spirit of adventure." He isn't necessarily praying for a spiritual being to bring wisdom and revelation but that they would have the spirit of wisdom and revelation. The Greek word used is pneuma and it is define as a breath or blast of air. the way I think of it as that overwhelming sense of discovery or adventure and can be applied to any area of our life but Paul is asking for that same sense but in the knowledge of Christ. I have a tendency to obsess over things and a few years ago I got into photography. I got a great deal on a camera and a large wildlife lens and a few other lenses and gadgets. I would wake up thinking about taking pictures, read about it, watch videos about it and didn't leave home without my camera because I was afraid I would miss that perfect opportunity to capture some rare bird or elusive animal that I wanted to shoot. I had a spirit or sense of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of photography. That is the same obsessive behavior we should have when it comes to the knowledge of Christ, to wake up thinking about Him, to read about Him, to watch sermons and teachings of Him, to go to bed with Him on our mind, to have that insatiable appetite for the things of God.
Now revelation is the discovery of knowledge but wisdom is the application of knowledge. Knowledge requires two things, first and most obvious, discovery or attainment of knowledge. Secondly knowledge requires wisdom or the ability to apply knowledge. Knowledge without the ability to apply it in a useful way is rendered useless. There are plenty of people with tons of knowledge and not an ounce of wisdom, there lack of wisdom renders there knowledge useless. Sadly in today's standards there is more of a premium on knowledge than wisdom. In our case concerning the text today, we first need that spirit of revelation to discovery the knowledge in the Word of God but then we need the spirit of wisdom to be able to apply the knowledge that we find in the proper way. Paul isn't just throwing out knowledge for the sake of these Christians to just have the knowledge but he is sharing knowledge where they can apply that knowledge in their Christian walk. Knowledge should always be given with the intent of application. If what I know never affects what I do then I have become a total fool. Let's attempt to make a illustration. I went to work with a electrical contractor when I was eighteen years old. I had a small knowledge of electricity when I started, I knew it was dangerous and it powered homes and machinery but that was about it. Because I didn't have a good knowledge of it I feared things that were perfectly safe and was careless with things that were very dangerous. The longer I worked, the more I learned and what I learned about electricity affected how I applied that knowledge I had discovered. I learned that you check to make the sure the power is off before starting work, I learned that you lock the disconnect where someone else doesn't turn the power on. Where wisdom plays its role is in the application of that knowledge. So, because I didn't enjoy getting shocked, I applied that knowledge, unlike some other colleagues, who having the same knowledge decided not to apply it and ended up getting shocked. You see to know something isn't enough but to apply it is the intended purpose of the knowledge(wisdom). Now in our case of the knowledge of Christ, If you don't know much about your position in Christ then you are going to fear things you shouldn't and be careless in ares of your life that are very dangerous. You may fear losing your salvation, which is something we need not to fret over if we have ever been truly saved or you may become careless with so called "little sins." What you know about your position in Christ is intended to affect how you operate as a Christian. If you understand that you are in Christ and part of the body of Christ and that God has placed all principalities and powers under his feet, then you don't have to go around trying to defeat spirits or temptations or strongholds that Christ has already defeated. If you know that no one can pluck you from the fathers hand then you don't have to try and get resaved every time you sin. If you know the dangers of sin and the price that was paid to forgive you, you won't be running around claiming that your sins are paid for therefore you can live and do as you please. God gave us His Word to make us knowledgeable about our walk with him, the intent of that knowledge is to be applied and therefore save us and aid us. We need the churches to get back to the scripture, It informs us and equips us with the ability to apply the knowledge we find in it. If we grow in knowledge we will attain the wisdom needed to apply it. I'll close with the first portion of Proverbs and encourage you to make Proverbs a daily reading habit. There are 31 chapters in Proverbs and 31 days in a long month. Read one proverb every day and it has in it the ability to make one wise.
Proverbs 1:1-7
:1 The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel; :2 To know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding; :3 To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity; :4 To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion. :5 A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels: :6 To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings. :7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
According to the riches of His Grace!!