Thank God, we can and do hear from heaven through the manifestation of the gifts of the
Spirit. But we need to take very seriously God's messages to us that come through these gifts.
How desperately we need supernatural manifestations of the gifts of the Holy Spirit today, such
as the gift of the word of wisdom. As we learn to yield to God, His plans and purposes will be
revealed to us through the word of wisdom as His Spirit wills.
Chapter 14 The Discerning of Spirits
But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.
For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the
same Spirit;
To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;
To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; TO ANOTHER DISCERNING OF
SPIRITS; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:
But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he
will.
— 1 Corinthians 12:7-11
Our previous lessons have dealt with two of the three gifts that reveal something: the word of
wisdom and the word of knowledge. In this lesson we will cover the third revelation gift: the gift
of discerning of spirits.
The most important of the three revelation gifts, of course, is the word of wisdom. Listed in the
order of their importance, the revelation gifts include: first, the word of wisdom. Second, the
word of knowledge. And, third, the discerning of spirits.
Everything within the realm of knowledge, whether facts, events, purposes, motives, origins, or
destinies — human, divine, or satanic; natural or supernatural; or past, present, or future —
comes within the focal range of one or the other of these three revelation gifts.
The gifts can include in their comprehensive scope all that God knows. And there is nothing
that God knows that may not be made known to man as the Spirit wills through the agency of
one or more of these three revelation gifts.
The word of wisdom gives us the revelation of the plans and purposes in the mind of God. You
could understand why that would be the greatest of all of these gifts. Naturally, it would be
more important than anything else in all the world to have a revelation of the plans and
purposes in the mind of God.
The word of knowledge gives us the revelation of facts that are now or that have been.
The discerning of spirits gives supernatural insight into the spirit world. "To discern" means to
perceive by seeing or hearing. Therefore, discerning of spirits is the same as seeing or hearing
in the realm of spirits.
The discerning of spirits actually has a more limited range of operation than the other two
revelation