The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord. Without going into each gift, I wasn’t surprised that in furthering my research of these gifts it led me to the word, prudence (see below)—I noted “sagacity” in one of these related articles, as well.
Counsel functions as a sort of supernatural intuition. It enables a person to judge promptly and rightly, especially in difficult situations. It perfects the cardinal virtue of prudence. While prudence operates in accordance with reason as enlightened by faith, the “gift of counsel” operates under the guidance of the Holy Spirit to illuminate the will of God.
Four of these gifts (wisdom, understanding, knowledge, and counsel) direct the intellect, while the other three gifts (fortitude, piety, and fear of the Lord) direct the will toward God.
Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38).
Being Independent of God
If we choose to sin—to work independently of God—and remain unrepentant, then there must be consequences for it. God wants us to understand the magnitude of His mighty power that saved us and exalted Christ over all. He does this so that we will properly represent Him here on Earth.
As in any state of anarchy, there will almost always be an equal amount of lawlessness. Tolerance of violence will break down our nation (our world); so, for there to be order, God has instructed us to respect the proper authorities.
If we continue to operate under our own will in making these wrong choices, we will be dealt with accordingly (see Romans 6:23). After all, there’s only so much we can get away with, when we’re operating on our own.
The News Today
In much of the news today, we are a witness to loss of life, and an overwhelming amount of despair. People are hurting all around the world. Between the COVID crisis, riots, earthquakes, and other life-changing events, it’s hard to fathom a world “in order,” ever again.
With these world changing events happening, I can’t help but reflect on a message given to me just three years ago, “Without order, children, there will be chaos,” and how relevant this seems to be, now.
We must prepare for what is to come, being watchful and mindful of this spiritual warfare that surrounds us. God is a God of mercy, and He will restore His land, just as He has promised.
A State of Conversion
The New Testament tells us that God is a “rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6). Conversion is the act or process of being converted, and God is giving us each an opportunity for this conversion.
The Scripture says, “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began” (Acts 3:19-21).
Charles Spurgeon said it best, and in reciting the Psalmist, David, “‘Although my house be not so with God now, it may be yet’; therefore, will I still wait, for there be mighty instances of conversion.”
Re: Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit and David’s Dying Song
