“The eyes of your understanding being enlightened, for your knowing what is the hope of His calling.” Ephesians 1:18
Dear People Who Keep Company with God,
One of the most impactful prayers in my life is Paul’s for the church at Ephesus. He begins by asking “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of the glory, would give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 1:16). Those words have been a springboard for growth in my relationship with the Lord and His calling over my life. Wisdom and revelation are not for specially gifted people. We all can have the spirit of wisdom and revelation. The word wisdom in this verse is from the Greek word that was used to describe insight or wisdom supernaturally attained. In other words, this is not natural human wisdom. It is a special insight. The word revelation comes from a Greek word meaning ‘the unveiling,’ to make known something that is hidden. It is God’s supernatural disclosure of Himself, His voice, will and ways to people. The Holy Spirit is the key. No one can know the things of God except through the Spirit of God. He dives into the depths of God and brings out what God planned all along for your life (I Corinthians 2:9-11).
Wisdom and revelation from the Holy Spirit come in many ways. For years, He revealed himself to me in dreams, visions, and prophetic words. At the same time, the Holy Spirit was teaching and giving me insight so I could interpret and apply what He was showing me. These are exciting and adventuresome ways for God to reveal Himself and His ways. But I’ve learned not to overly focus on any particular way the Holy Spirit may bring enlightenment. Doing so places limitations on how He chooses to instruct us. Special insight and revelation come more often than not by the inward voice of the Holy Spirit. One day and for what seemed to be no apparent reason, I began to experience fewer dreams and visions, and prophetic words became the exception. After a while, I finally caught on to the fact that I was receiving wisdom and revelation through strong desires or impressions that He gave me. He curtailed the prophetic, dreams, and visions for a season so I would become aware of the hidden treasure in my heart.
One of the things that we can only know by revelation is “the hope of His calling,” which is Christ Himself in you (Colossians 1:27). Hope is powerful because it is the confident expectancy of God’s good future that He has for you. His hope never disappoints (Romans 5:5). The calling is the voice of God tugging on your heart to walk in who He created you to be and fulfill His purposes for your life. His calling is powerful, dynamic, and ongoing. It will continually provoke you to go forward, propelling you into the next thing God has for you. His call will cause you to grow, to seek, and reach outside of yourself. One of the mistakes I made when I first began to sense His calling was to chase after it, thinking it would give me identity and esteem with my peers. I didn’t understand who I was in Christ. I discovered that you pursue the call because of who you are in Him, not to be someone. As the Holy Spirit reveals to you your redeemed identity, you can be sure that He will show you more of the hope of His calling. God has a destiny for you. He has a purpose and a place He wants you to live out, and if you ask, He will give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation.
Many Blessings, BW