Though we rightly anticipate that the Holy Spirit will give us wisdom from above when we are quiet and alone with God, we should also seek the wisdom that comes in a community of believers.
To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit. What should be done then, my friends? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up.
Though we rightly anticipate that the Holy Spirit will give us wisdom from above when we are quiet and alone with God, we should also seek the wisdom that comes in a community of believers. The Spirit of God lives in each of us individually and among us as the body of Christ. Thus, God may give you wisdom from above, not just for yourself, but also for your Christian community. And God may give many gifts of wisdom to you through your Spirit-filled brothers and sisters in Christ. Wisdom from above comes in many ways from the God who “gives to all generously and ungrudgingly” (James 1:5).
There is no doubt that wisdom from above can come when we are alone and quiet before God. But that’s not the only context in which the Holy Spirit guides and speaks to us. In fact, the New Testament emphasizes the presence and work of the Spirit when Christians are in community together. For example, at Pentecost, the Spirit was poured out, not upon separate individuals, but upon the gathered followers of Jesus (Acts 2:1-4). Later, when the early Christians faced a challenging crisis, they found God’s guidance as they convened for extensive conversation. Through their communal discernment, they were able to come to a unanimous decision and could say with confidence that what they decided “seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us” (Acts 15:28).
In 1 Corinthians 12-14, Paul provides in-depth teaching on how the Holy Spirit empowers and guides a Christian community. “To each,” Paul writes, “is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (1 Corinthians 12:7). Notice that the gifts of the Spirit are meant in this case not primarily for the individual who receives them, but for the common good, for the community of believers. The first specific gift mentioned by Paul is “the utterance of wisdom” (1 Corinthians 12:8; the Greek literally reads, “a word of wisdom”). When Christians are gathered together, the Spirit gives wisdom from above through someone who delivers this wisdom orally.
Later, in 1 Corinthians 14:26, we find this exhortation: “What should be done then, my friends? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up.” Though Paul doesn’t mention wisdom explicitly in this verse, it is surely one of those gifts that the Spirit gives for the “building up” of the community. It would be rather like “a lesson” or “a revelation” or “an interpretation.” Notice that each person has the potential to contribute gifts because the Spirit dwells in each one. Once again, the benefit of the community is the point of the Spirit’s gifting. Even as Paul emphasized the “common good” in 12:8, in 14:26 he notes that gifts are given for “building up” the body of Christ.
So, while God does at times give wisdom from above to individuals, divine wisdom often comes to and through communities of believers. That makes perfect sense, of course, since the Holy Spirit dwells, not only in individual Christians but also in the body of Christ together (1 Corinthians 3:16).
Corporate discernment of spiritual wisdom usually happens through conversation and prayer. But the wisdom from above can also come to groups, as to individuals, in times of quiet. Waiting upon the Lord silently is something we can do, not just when we are by ourselves, but also when we are gathered with others.
So, though we rightly anticipate that the Holy Spirit will give us wisdom from above when we are alone with God, we should also seek the wisdom that comes in a community of believers. The Spirit of God lives in each of us individually and among us as the body of Christ. Thus, God may give you wisdom from above, not just for yourself, but also for your Christian community. And God may give many gifts of wisdom to you through your Spirit-filled brothers and sisters in Christ. Wisdom from above comes in various ways from the God who “gives to all generously and ungrudgingly” (James 1:5).
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