Monday, 5 May 2025

On the Road to Pentecost: These Seven Gifts

“For who has known or understood the mind (the counsels and purposes) of the Lord so as to guide and instruct Him and give Him knowledge? But we have the mind of Christ (the Messiah) and do hold the thoughts (feelings and purposes) of His heart.” – 1 Corinthians 2:16 (AMPC)

A few days ago, you would have read that there are special gifts designed to raise our divine consciousness in the transforming virtues of faith, hope and love, all in an effort to create us anew, but today we shall dive a little deeper. These gifts are instrumental in the creation of the mind of Christ in us that Paul speaks of in the above verse.

However, to produce the mind of Christ in us, we must be willing to allow the indwelling Holy Spirit to do so. As you know God will never violate our free will. God wants us to choose and preferably, to choose Him, for when we do, we are elevated spiritually and our journey to transformation is fortified.

This transformation is wrought internally by the movements of the Holy Spirit within us through seven gifts, revealed in Isaiah 11:2,

“And 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 reverential and obedient fear of the Lord.”

1. Wisdom

 

2. Understanding

 

3. Counsel

 

4. Might

 

5. Knowledge

 

6. Reverential Fear of the Lord [Fear of the Lord]

 

7. Obedient Fear of the Lord [Piety]

These seven gifts are divided in two parts; wisdom, understanding and knowledge, are considered contemplative gifts of the Holy Spirit, while counsel, might, reverential fear of the Lord and obedient fear of the Lord are the active gifts.

The contemplative Gifts are mutually related, and God uses these particular gifts to bring us unto Himself so that we may be His entirely – body, soul, and spirit.

The active Gifts are designed to bring the contemplative experience into all of our activities and even the smallest details of our lives. But we must give over ourselves to God in complete surrender, allowing God to decide whatever He wants us to do – where our free will becomes His divine will, where we “hold the thoughts (feelings and purposes) of His heart”.

As we consent to the Presence and will of God in our lives, these seven gifts that the Holy Spirit imparts, are realized and we are able then to enjoy authentic fellowship with the Lord. Surrendering completely to God is the only way to have an unlimited capacity to respond to the Holy Spirit.

As you continue on the road to Pentecost, meditate on these seven gifts from God’s supreme Gift, the Holy Spirit whose activity within you brings you to a deeper reality of the Lord, your Messiah. And may you choose to consent to His transforming power to align your thinking to the mind of Christ.

Amen †

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shelley Johnson “On the Road to Pentecost: These Seven Gifts” © 2013 revisited May 4, 2025

 

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