Continuing with the Seven Spirits of God we are going to look at each of the Spirits individually. Previously we spoke at length about the main Spirit called the Word which is represented by the main or middle branch of the Menorah. We learned of the Seven Spirits of God in Isaiah where the prophet prophesied about the coming Messiah and that He will have the Seven Spirits.
Isaiah 11
1 There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, And a Branch shall grow out of his roots.
2 The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him, The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.
So we already know that the way it is laid out describes the menorah and we learn in the book of Zechariah that the menorah is indeed a cymbal of the Seven Spirits of God. So let’s look at the second and third Spirit.
Wisdom (chokmah in Hebrew) and Understanding (biynah in Hebrew)
It is interesting that Jesus called “Wisdom” female and so did king Solomon.
Luke 7
34 The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’
35 But wisdom is justified by all her children.”
Proverbs 1
20 Wisdom calls aloud outside; She raises her voice in the open squares.
21 She cries out in the chief concourses, At the openings of the gates in the city She speaks her words:
22 “How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? For scorners delight in their scorning, And fools hate knowledge.
23 Turn at my rebuke; Surely I will pour out my spirit on you; I will make my words known to you.
The Spirit of Wisdom and Understanding seem to go together, but first Wisdom and then Understanding. Together they make the outer arm of the Menorah. One left and one right. They are both referred to as female by king Solomon and in Proverbs, we have a conversation from Wisdom and Understanding to us or let’s call it an admonition from Them. If we look a little closer we can understand them better and also God. Please as you read the passage below keep reminding yourself that this is the Spirit of God called Wisdom speaking to you.
Proverbs 8
1 Does not wisdom cry out, And understanding lift up her voice?
2 She takes her stand on the top of the high hill, Beside the way, where the paths meet.
3 She cries out by the gates, at the entry of the city, At the entrance of the doors:
4 “To you, O men, I call, And my voice is to the sons of men.
5 O you simple ones, understand prudence, And you fools, be of an understanding heart.
6 Listen, for I will speak of excellent things, And from the opening of my lips will come right things;
7 For my mouth will speak truth; Wickedness is an abomination to my lips.
8 All the words of my mouth are with righteousness; Nothing crooked or perverse is in them.
9 They are all plain to him who understands, And right to those who find knowledge.
10 Receive my instruction, and not silver, And knowledge rather than choice gold;
11 For wisdom is better than rubies, And all the things one may desire cannot be compared with her.
12 “I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, And find out knowledge and discretion.
13 The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverse mouth I hate.
14 Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom; I am understanding, I have strength.
15 By me kings reign, And rulers decree justice.
16 By me princes rule, and nobles, All the judges of the earth.
17 I love those who love me, And those who seek me diligently will find me.
18 Riches and honor are with me, Enduring riches and righteousness.
19 My fruit is better than gold, yes, than fine gold, And my revenue than choice silver.
20 I traverse the way of righteousness, In the midst of the paths of justice,
21 That I may cause those who love me to inherit wealth, That I may fill their treasuries.
22 “The LORD possessed me at the beginning of His way, Before His works of old.
23 I have been established from everlasting, From the beginning, before there was ever an earth.
24 When there were no depths I was brought forth, When there were no fountains abounding with water.
25 Before the mountains were settled, Before the hills, I was brought forth;
26 While as yet He had not made the earth or the fields, Or the primal dust of the world.
27 When He prepared the heavens, I was there, When He drew a circle on the face of the deep,
28 When He established the clouds above, When He strengthened the fountains of the deep,
29 When He assigned to the sea its limit, So that the waters would not transgress His command, When He marked out the foundations of the earth,
30 Then I was beside Him as a master craftsman; And I was daily His delight, Rejoicing always before Him,
31 Rejoicing in His inhabited world, And my delight was with the sons of men.
32 “Now therefore, listen to me, my children, For blessed are those who keep my ways.
33 Hear instruction and be wise, And do not disdain it.
34 Blessed is the man who listens to me, Watching daily at my gates, Waiting at the posts of my doors.
35 For whoever finds me finds life, And obtains favor from the LORD;
36 But he who sins against me wrongs his own soul; All those who hate me love death.”
Proverbs 9
1 Wisdom has built her house, She has hewn out her seven pillars;
2 She has slaughtered her meat, She has mixed her wine, She has also furnished her table.
3 She has sent out her maidens, She cries out from the highest places of the city,
4 “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” As for him who lacks understanding, she says to him,
5 “Come, eat of my bread And drink of the wine I have mixed.
6 Forsake foolishness and live, And go in the way of understanding.
10 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
11 For by me your days will be multiplied, And years of life will be added to you.
Wow, what an amazing passage of scripture. We learn so much of God from it. First of all, we realize that after the Word which is the first Spirit or main Branch come Wisdom. And She is the third Spirit called Understanding. Counsel the fourth Spirit is Hers and She has Might the fifth Spirit. She finds the sixth Spirit called Knowledge and she knows the Fear of the Lord Spirit which is the Seventh Spirit.
12 “I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, And find out knowledge and discretion.
13 The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverse mouth I hate.
14 Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom; I am understanding, I have might.
Just let that sink in for a while or maybe read it again. Do you see the order in it? So first you believe on the Son of God and then you receive the Spirit called the Word to indwell you. That Spirit will lead you to transform and die to self. You most certainly do not have the Spirit of Wisdom at your rebirth. No you have to now grow and seek Wisdom. It takes time. Why then do we today want to say to newborn believers that they don’t have to go through the process of receiving Wisdom and then Understanding and the rest? We can clearly see that we first need to get the Spirit of Wisdom then we can move on to the rest. But without Wisdom we most certainly do not have Understanding which only comes after Wisdom. And it is Wisdom that finds Knowledge. We will never find Knowledge without the Spirit of Wisdom. And without Wisdom we will not be Mighty because Wisdom has Might.
Oh dear friend please see the truth in this and the “times” that are needed. First we believe then we receive. Then we transform, then we receive again and again and again all at different times and seasons and all in its specific order. God is a God of order. That is how He works and He will not change for He is the same today tomorrow and forever, He changes not! It is the enemy that changes. We have learned in Daniel that the enemy changes the times and seasons. The enemy says all you have to do is believe. There is nothing following that and nothing of transforming and changing. The enemy keeps everybody (believers) babies with his doctrines of demons. We get salvation as a gift when we believe, we cannot earn it. But that’s not all, in fact that’s just the birth now we need to grow and experience the times and seasons. Don’t let the enemy lie to you through a lazy church system and mess up your times or seasons! Don’t be fooled!
Secondly what we learn from this passage is the truth about money and riches. Wisdom teaches us that Her riches is not silver and gold.
“Receive my instruction, and not silver, And knowledge rather than choice gold; For wisdom is better than rubies, And all the things one may desire cannot be compared with her. My fruit is better than gold, yes, than fine gold, And my revenue than choice silver.”
This is how Jesus put it.
Luke 16
10 He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much.
11 Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?
12 And if you have not been faithful in what is another man’s, who will give you what is your own?
13 “No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
You see the Spirit of God called Wisdom is true riches and we cannot serve both God and mammon(wealth).
Colossians 2
2 … and attaining to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ,
3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
Do you see that attaining all riches is attaining the Spirit of God or at least the three that are mentioned here in Colossians? Wisdom, Knowledge and Understanding. Wisdom says that She loves those that love Her and that if they diligently seek Her that they will find Her. Also She says that She will cause them to inherit wealth to fill their treasuries. Let’s just remember what true wealth is. There are so many things we can say about Wisdom and Understanding and how God anointed various people with Them throughout the bible. I suggest go look up the word “chokmah” wisdom and follow that word in the bible and you will receive many revelations from God.
Looking at Chokmah(Wisdom) what then would be the anti-spirit to this Spirit of God? It would be the Canaanite spirit that has all to do with success and riches and prosperity. The Canaanite spirit appears to have Wisdom because of the riches and wealth it produces but if you have studied the bible you will discern true Wisdom and realize that riches and prosperity and success that the trader or Canaanite spirit provides is an enemy and Not the Spirit of God. If you are a baby in spirit and faith you will easily be deceived. This then just once again proves the absolute importance of studying the bible and to grow in spirit and faith.
The Spirit of Understanding (biynah) is the Spirit of the Lord that sheds light. Knowing something and understanding something are two different things. For many years the Hebrews had the Torah and the Psalms and many prophecies. They had knowledge of the prophecies but not understanding. When the Messiah came in the form of a man named Jesus they could not recognize Him. Why? How is it that the people with the most knowledge of the law and prophecies could simply not see the Messiah in Jesus? They studied the law and prophets intensely all their lives and memorized it and made their children memorize it. Yet when the prophecies came true they did not see it. It is because they were not anointed with the Spirit of Understanding.
It is God that gives understanding by His Spirit of Understanding. Here is how Jesus said it.
Mark 4
11 And He said to them, “To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables,
12 so that ‘ Seeing they may see and not perceive, And hearing they may hear and not understand; Lest they should turn, And their sins be forgiven them.’ “
Some people who heard the parables understood because the Spirit gave them understanding but others did not. This is what Paul had to say on the topic.
2 Corinthians 3
14 But their minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ.
15 But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart.
16 Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.
17 Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
It is God who reveals or gives understanding of the hidden things through His Spirit of Understanding. But if we are fleshly like most of the Jews were we would not be able to receive that Spirit of Understanding. Unfortunately most of the church today are fleshy again just like the Jews were. Stuck in religion and not spiritual.
1 Corinthians 2
9 But as it is written: ” Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”
10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.
11 For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.
12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.
13 These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
14 But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
There is yet another way to look at the Spirit of Understanding and this becomes very clear in the New Testament in the Greek language. There are two words used for “word” in the New Testament. They are “logos” and “rhema” and those two words are the subject of much debate. So without expounding too much let’s look at these two words. You will remember that Jesus is the Spirit called the Word. That Word is “Logos”. Many people believe that “logos” speaks of the written word and “rhema” of the spoken word. It could be but that’s not entirely accurate. Logos is the written word but so is rhema. So what is the bottom line? It works like this. Jesus the Word is Logos, the written word. Now you can know the bible or you can know all the stories in the bible about Jesus called the Word. So you have knowledge of Him and the written word but you don’t know Him or understand Him. Only once the Spirit of Understanding anoints you do you know or understand Him. That we call rhema.
So rhema is logos revealed with understanding. Let’s just say that again. Logos is the written word. But rhema is when the Spirit gives understanding of the written word. To understand rhema we need to use a few examples. Anyone can speak a rhema word. If I would explain something to you concerning something like how to slice an orange and you receive understanding or clarity on how to slice an orange I have spoken a rhema word to you. You knew of the orange and its color and its shape but you did not know how to peel and then slice it. I have shed light on your orange problem. You knew the orange but now you understand the orange. That is rhema. And the Spirit of Understanding deals in rhema. You would not consider taking a bite out of the orange because the peel is still on it and maybe once befrore you tried it and realized it tasted horrible and you did not like it. But now you want to partake of the orange because you know how to peel and slice it. It is the same with the Gospel. You had knowledge of the gospel or the written word but now because the Spirit of God gave you understanding you will partake or have faith in it. This is how Paul says it.
Romans 10
16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “LORD, who has believed our report?”
17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word (rhema) of God.
You see it was not the logos or written word, it was the rhema or word with Understanding. Once we hear the rhema or enlightened word faith comes because it brings understanding. It is also this understanding of the written or logos word called rhema that brings power and authority.
Ephesians 6
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word (rhema) of God;
It is not just the logos or written word that is the sword but the rhema word or the word with understanding. It is not knowledge that brings authority but understanding. You may know many bible verses or logos but when you speak it to demons nothing will happen because there is no anointing of understanding.
Acts 19
13 Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.”
14 Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so.
15 And the evil spirit answered and said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?”
16 Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.
These Jewish brothers had knowledge of Jesus or logos but they did not have rhema. They had no anointing or understanding that brings faith and authority and they got an embarrassing hiding. So many people today in like manner are using the logos as the sword and not the rhema. Friend memorizing a few verses to quote at an opportune time will not do! You need rhema, understanding, light that the Spirit of God called the Spirit of Understanding brings. This comes by study and faith and exercise of faith. By being spiritual and not fleshly. God cannot anoint you with this Spirit if you are fleshly because the things of the Spirit is discerned by the spirit. If you are fleshly it will seem foolish to you.
Matthew 4
4 ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word (rhema) that proceeds from the mouth of God.’
Jesus said that we live by rhema. Do you see how important it is to receive rhema. Do you see how important it is to receive of the Spirit called Understanding? And do you see that to receive of the Spirit of Understanding you have to go through the different times and seasons. One of the worst doctrines I have ever heard is the doctrine that says “it is finished” and we don’t have to do anything anymore. This doctrine takes you as a newborn babe and thrusts you in the firing line of the most terrible demons and you will fail. You will not overcome them until you have gone through your times and seasons. There is a time for everything including a time of dying to self first before you can receive.
Matthew 16
15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
16 Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
This is a very good example of rhema. Jesus says that Peter is blessed because the Father revealed to him that Jesus is the Messiah. God gave Peter understanding by His Spirit called the Spirit of Understanding.
I believe a strong candidate for the anti-spirit of the Spirit of Understanding would be the Jebusite spirit that treads down. He makes people low and of no understanding. That spirit puts people in a rut and they will probably never seek anything higher or more clarity. He lies to people and darkens everything for them. He deals in addictions and many dark things and places that keep people low. Understanding, for me at least, lifts me up and gives me confidence in my faith and authority to fight the battle and to finish the race.
The Spirit of Counsel (etsah) and of Might (geburah)
The Spirit of Counsel is a guide and gives us direction and advice. We seek the Spirit of Counsel in decisions and when we need to know what to do next.
Isaiah 8
19 And when they say to you, “Seek those who are mediums and wizards, who whisper and mutter,” should not a people seek their God?
You know today there are so many other things that we consult to know what to do next. Psychics or doctors or learned people or so-called life coaches or advisors but we never seem to ask the great Counsellor.
Isaiah 9
6 For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
No doubt the above verse speaks of Jesus who has the Seven Spirits of God.
Psalm 33
10 The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect.
11 The counsel of the LORD stands forever, The plans of His heart to all generations.
So many times a thing seems right to us but in fact it is not and even though it seems like the right course of action it was not Gods plan or counsel for you.
Proverbs 16
25 There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.
Psalm 73
24 You will guide me with Your counsel, And afterward receive me to glory.
The choice is this; you could listen to the nations, people and yourself. Or you can listen to the Spirit of God. If you follow people or yourself that way is death. But if you follow the Counsel of the Lord you will be led to glory.
Proverbs 19
20 Listen to counsel and receive instruction, That you may be wise in your latter days.
21 There are many plans in a man’s heart, Nevertheless the LORD’s counsel — that will stand.
See this is where the Spirit of Wisdom comes in because a person with Wisdom listens to the Spirit of Counsel, whereas a fool will not take counsel. Previously we saw that we either follow the Lord in Spirit or we follow Satan in flesh. This is how it is put in the prophet.
Isaiah 30
1 “Woe to the rebellious children,” says the LORD, “Who take counsel, but not of Me, And who devise plans, but not of My Spirit, That they may add sin to sin;
2 Who walk to go down to Egypt, And have not asked My advice, To strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, And to trust in the shadow of Egypt!
Egypt symbolizes flesh and the pharaoh the king of the flesh is Satan. But the Lord promises a time when we will no longer follow the Satan spirit of Pharaoh in Egypt(flesh)
Isaiah 19
3 The spirit of Egypt will fail in its midst; I will destroy their counsel, And they will consult the idols and the charmers, The mediums and the sorcerers.
16 In that day Egypt will be like women, and will be afraid and fear because of the waving of the hand of the LORD of hosts, which He waves over it.
17 And the land of Judah(spiritual ones) will be a terror to Egypt; everyone who makes mention of it will be afraid in himself, because of the counsel of the LORD of hosts which He has determined against it.
Another aspect we have to look at when we look at the Spirit of Counsel is that it is power or anointing that comes on a person to counsel other believers. The Spirit called the Word that indwells us leads us to transform but the Spirit of Counsel is an anointing to Counsel others. It is a Spirit for power and workings like when a prophet is anointed to counsel the believers or nation. Not everyone would have this Spirit of God and nor would they need it. This Spirit is directly linked to your calling or role that you have in the Body of Christ. If it is required in your ministry to counsel then if you are anointed you will receive of this Spirit of God. Do you see how the different times or seasons are vital? The last thing we want is for a baby in the spirit to be giving counsel to people. It would be disastrous. Sadly this is exactly what is happening in many churches today. Like the blind leading the blind.
Matthew 15
14 Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch.”
A good example of this would be Moses. God put of His Spirit on Him and that most certainly included the Spirit of Counsel for direction. After Moses fled out of Egypt (flesh) he lived in the wilderness for forty years. Moses most certainly went through different times and seasons before he could receive the portion of God’s Spirit that he did. He received a very large portion. So much so that when Moses complained to God that he could not carry the burden of all the people alone, God took some of the Spirit that was on Moses and put it on seventy elders of the nation.
Numbers 11
16 So the LORD said to Moses: “Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them; bring them to the tabernacle of meeting, that they may stand there with you.
17 Then I will come down and talk with you there. I will take of the Spirit that is upon you and will put upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you may not bear it yourself alone.
A very strong candidate as anti-spirit or replacement spirit for the Spirit of Counsel could be the Hivite or religious spirit. The religious spirit always counsels many things and do’s and don’ts but that is done in flesh through tradition rather than the leading of the Spirit of God called the Spirit of Counsel.
When we look at the Spirit of Might we find not too many examples in the old testament of people that were anointed with the Spirit of Might (geburah). But although it doesn’t clearly express it we know that God anointed many men and woman at various times with this Spirit. People like Samson and Gideon and David and the like. Also the prophets of old and certainly Moses as the Lord worked many powerful and mighty acts by Moses.
Micah 3
6 ” Therefore you shall have night without vision, And you shall have darkness without divination; The sun shall go down on the prophets, And the day shall be dark for them.
7 So the seers shall be ashamed, And the diviners abashed; Indeed they shall all cover their lips; For there is no answer from God.”
8 But truly I am full of power by the Spirit of the LORD, And of justice and might, To declare to Jacob his transgression And to Israel his sin.
Here the prophet says that all the so-called prophets of the time were false prophets and was not anointed and did not have of the Spirit of Might. He says that they will have darkness but that he was truly filled with the Spirit of the Lord for Might so that he was able to declare the sins of the nation.
The Spirit of Might becomes more prominent in the New Testament and we can more clearly see the anointing or outpouring of the Spirit of Might in the New Testament. The Greek word for might or power is “dunamis”. Remember that after Jesus was crucified He appeared to the 10 disciples and breathed on them to give them the indwelling Spirit called the Word. He instructs them to wait in the city to receive power (dunamis) from on high.
Acts 1
8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
So just like Jesus said when the Spirit fell on them there were winds and tongues of fire and they spoke languages. So they received power (dunamis) to do mighty things. They healed people raised people from the dead and many other mighty works. This was all done because of the anointing of the Spirit of Might. Peter had such an anointing of the Spirit of Might that when his shadow would fall on someone that person would be healed. Paul also had this anointing that when he prayed over clothes or cloth and people touched it later they would be healed. Jesus knew this Spirit or anointing would come to them because He said that the works He did they would do also and even greater works. Jesus knew that it was done by the Spirit of the Father in Him. That was the Spirit of Might.
John 14
10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works.
11 Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves.
12 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.
Where the Spirit of Might was poured out miracles followed and powerful works. Let’s look at a few examples.
Acts 4
33 And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all.
Acts 6
8 And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and signs among the people.
1 Corinthians 2
3 I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling.
4 And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,
5 that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
The anti-spirit for the Spirit of Might is probably the Amorite spirit that lifts people up and deals with a lot of success and things happening. Giving a feeling of power and might to those who partake of it. But it is all a lie and it is just an exalted soul and nothing close to an anointing in spirit from God. People who are in this spirit will probably be very haughty and prideful.
The Spirit of Knowledge(da’ath in Hebrew) and the Spirit of fear of the Lord(yir’ah in Hebrew)
Like we said previously, knowledge is not understanding. But without knowledge there could probably not be a lot of understanding. So the Spirit of Knowledge is very important. Let us remember Paul. He was a great scholar of the law and traditions of his fathers the Jews. More so than many other scholars at that time. He would probably have become the next high priest. So he had all this knowledge of law and prophets that one would think he would recognize the Messiah straight away. But he didn’t.
Galatians 1
14 And I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries in my own nation, being more exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers.
He only realized the truth of the matter after Jesus spoke with him on the way to Damascus. In Damascus they tried to kill him and he was lowered in a basket from the wall. He went and spend three years in the wilderness in Arabia to be taught by the Spirit of God. That Spirit was the Spirit of Understanding because Paul had the knowledge of the written word but he had no understanding of it until God showed him.
Galatians 1
15 But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace,
16 to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood,
17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went to Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.
18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and remained with him fifteen days.
19 But I saw none of the other apostles except James, the Lord’s brother.
We learn in the word that it was the priests and Levites’ job to teach knowledge. They had an anointing from the Spirit of Knowledge to do so.
Malachi 2
5 ” My covenant was with him, one of life and peace, And I gave them to him that he might fear Me; So he feared Me And was reverent before My name.
6 The law of truth was in his mouth, And injustice was not found on his lips. He walked with Me in peace and equity, And turned many away from iniquity.
7 ” For the lips of a priest should keep knowledge, And people should seek the law from his mouth; For he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts.
Often in the Old Testament the people were rebuked because they did not have knowledge. The people who were anointed to bring the knowledge failed them. The priest became wicked and lazy and led people astray and made them dumb and without knowledge of the Lord.
Hosea 4
1 Hear the word of the LORD, You children of Israel, For the LORD brings a charge against the inhabitants of the land: ” There is no truth or mercy Or knowledge of God in the land.
6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.
Isaiah 5
13 Therefore my people have gone into captivity, Because they have no knowledge; Their honorable men are famished, And their multitude dried up with thirst.
It is clear that without knowledge we will not stand and we will be destroyed. That means we still have to study the bible to gain knowledge. But we are looking at the Spirit of God called the Spirit of Knowledge. That means an anointing to gain or teach knowledge. The Spirit will equip or anoint people to bring knowledge and then God will bring the understanding. But the teaching must still happen and the studying must still happen. It is a privilege to study the word of God to get knowledge because without knowledge we will fall. God honors our study and grants us knowledge by His Spirit of Knowledge.
Romans 15
13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
14 Now I myself am confident concerning you, my brethren, that you also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another.
Philippians 3
7 But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ.
8 Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ
A good candidate for the anti-spirit of the Spirit of Knowledge could be the Girgashite spirit flesh spirit. You’ll remember these are the clay dweller spirits. Flesh was made from clay so these are the flesh spirits. The flesh loves knowledge and just love to know. The problem is knowledge puffs up flesh even if it is godly knowledge. Paul warns us of this. The Jews had a lot of knowledge in the flesh but they were absolutely fleshly and not spiritual. They were puffed up with all their knowledge. So in this instance the Girgashite and the Amorite spirits are both present and work together against the Spirit of Knowledge.
1 Corinthians 8
1 … We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies.
2 And if anyone thinks that he knows anything, he knows nothing yet as he ought to know.
Bringing it back all the way to the garden again you will remember that the tree of life is the Spirit of God called the Word. We are to partake of that freely and be spiritual. The flesh tree was called the tree of knowledge of good and evil. It was that knowledge that enticed the flesh of Eve. She ate and became fleshly. The only problem was she soon realized that the flesh could not be puffed up because she was naked and had no righteousness and neither could she have any because it was flesh and flesh cannot please God. Also because they became fleshly they died in spirit and lost the ability to partake of the Spirit of Knowledge.
Looking at the Spirit of the Fear of the Lord we realize that fear of the Lord and faith go hand in hand. It works like this. If we believe in God and know that He is a consuming fire that hates sin we will not transgress. We will not transgress because we fear the consequences or the wages of that transgression. The anti-spirit to the Spirit of God called the Fear of God is the Hittite spirit. If you remember that is the spirit of fear or terror. It will make you fearsome of a great many things, all accept the living God. You will fear men more than God. It will prevent you from acting on your faith and standing your ground for your faith. Jesus said:
Matthew 10
28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
There are many scriptures that teach us that we ought to fear the Lord but the Lord actually promises us that He will put His fear in our hearts. That speaks of an outpouring of His Spirit called the Fear of the Lord.
Jeremiah 32
37 Behold, I will gather them out of all countries where I have driven them in My anger, in My fury, and in great wrath; I will bring them back to this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely.
38 They shall be My people, and I will be their God;
39 then I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me forever, for the good of them and their children after them.
40 And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from doing them good; but I will put My fear in their hearts so that they will not depart from Me.
The flesh usually tries to take opportunity where ever it can and with the fear of the Lord it is no different. Instead of allowing the Spirit to anoint us to Fear the Lord the flesh will also try to implement some form of fear of the Lord but it is manmade religious rules and precepts. This is how the Lord says it in the prophet.
Isaiah 29
13 Therefore the Lord said: ” Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths And honor Me with their lips, But have removed their hearts far from Me, And their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men,
A scary doctrine in the modern church system is that we should not fear God but rather respect Him or hold Him in High regard like a daddy. It is said that we should not fear Him like in the Old Testament but call Him our big daddy in the heavens. That doctrine is a perfect example of babies in the Spirit. It was thought out by fleshly people who could not receive the Spirit of Fear of God. Our God is an awesome God. Whenever God showed Himself or made Himself heard people fell down dead. Men shook for fear of God.
Hebrews 10
31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
It comes down to this. There are three reasons for not fearing God. Firstly you don’t believe in God. Secondly you are fleshly and not spiritual because the Spirit will lead you to fear God. Third, you have been lied to by your church and you are a baby in the Spirit. Here are some scriptures that teach us to fear God in the New testament.
1 Peter 2
17 Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.
Revelation 14
7 saying with a loud voice, “Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water.”
Acts 13
16 Then Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand said, “Men of Israel, and you who fear God, listen:
26 “Men and brethren, sons of the family of Abraham, and those among you who fear God, to you the word of this salvation has been sent.
Acts 9
31 Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied.
God is our Father but He is not our daddy. No, we are to fear him and honor Him like our Father God not a daddy in the sky.
Malachi 1
6 ” A son honors his father, And a servant his master. If then I am the Father, Where is My honor? And if I am a Master, Where is My reverence? Says the LORD of hosts…
In closing, I would like to show you one final thing. We have now studied in detail the Seven Spirits of God and the anti-spirits. What we now need to see is how the Spirit of God works. See God is a river or a fountain and we are leaky containers. We cannot hold God. We don’t get filled up once with God and then we are full for all time. No we constantly get filled with God, every day and if we don’t get filled with God we will run empty.
Jeremiah 2
12 Be astonished, O heavens, at this, And be horribly afraid; Be very desolate,” says the LORD.
13 ” For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, And hewn themselves cisterns — broken cisterns that can hold no water.
God fills us daily when we spend time with Him in prayer and study. We cannot get filled once a week at church, we have to go to the Fountain of Living Water daily and drink.
Amen
Till next time
God bless
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