The Lord has interesting ways to communicate to us. I had heard of the concept of a word of knowledge after getting plugged into a group with people who believe in the miraculous back in early 2023. The word of knowledge is a form of prophetic information that the Holy Spirit communicates to us about someone or something.

I believe the phrase “word of knowledge” is in reference to Paul’s writing on spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians:

For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit … 1 Corinthians 12:8

It’s not 100% clear to me that this is exactly what Paul had intended when he references this. Maybe he did, or maybe he meant something else. That is an exercise left up to the reader. For me, the exact phrasing is less important than the concept being represented. For me, words of knowledge fall under the category spiritual gifts pertaining to prophecy and beyond that I haven’t tried to refine it further.

A word of knowledge might come through a dream, a vision, or even a knowing.

And sometimes it comes through a pain in our body when the Lord wants to heal someone.

There is an interesting theological question here: would the Lord, who forgives our sins and heals our diseases (Psalm 103:3), intentionally allow or cause someone to be in pain? In particular, would he use pain as a method for communication?

It was not obvious to me at first glance, but I do think this is from the Lord. Experimentally, I have seen in my own life that I have felt pains in my body which other people were afflicted with and when I prayed for them they were healed. The logic would hold that as the healing was done in Jesus’ name, then therefore I am willing to believe that the word of knowledge was also given in Jesus’ name.

There is a deeper theological foundation: compassion. Consider the role of compassion in this story:

Soon afterward [Jesus] went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him. As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.” Then he came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. Luke 7:11-15

When we feel a pain in our body it is uncomfortable. And I believe that is the point. It’s easy to have compassion for someone when you feel their exact pain, and it becomes easier to pray for them. It also gives us a burden to pray for them sooner. Just as they will be healed when you pray, so too will your sympathetic pain disappear! And I believe that is also the point.

Jesus I pray you would give us your compassion that you have for others. Holy Spirit please communicate with to us around those need healing in your name. And Father make us bold to step out in faith! In Jesus’ name, amen.