Word of knowledge?

[Aquila]

Originally Posted by mfblume

I believe it is through the same principle noted here:

Deut 13:1 If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder,
2 And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them;
3 Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

I think that's a good principle to go by generally. But I've found that a vision or Word of Knowledge can be misunderstood by both the speaker and the receiver(s). For example, I often share the story of how I was talking to a woman about how I wasn't prepared for the sudden passing of my mom and she shared about the sudden passing of her grandmother and how it deeply effected her. She didn't get a chance to say goodbye and was left feeling a big void in her life. I then saw a vision of her petting animals and felt the impression to tell her that the Lord was with her through her grandmother's passing and still is. In our conversation I had assured her that God was with her, even when she was at the, "petting zoo". She looked at me all crazy and said that she hadn't been to any "petting zoos". I apologized and explained that I saw a vision of her petting animals through a wooden fence and felt the Lord impress upon me to tell her that He was with her. At this point, I was thinking that maybe the vision was symbolic, like Peter's pigs in a blanket vision. But after I explained, she was deeply moved, because her family had gathered after the funeral at her dad's farm. While feeling alone and spiritually numb, she went out to pet the animals to cry and be alone.

It wasn't a petting zoo... it was her dad's farm.

I'm a city boy. Born and raised in the inner city. I don't think of farms that often. However, I have taken my kids to petting zoos etc. where they were able to interact with animals commonly seen on farms. As you can see, my understanding of the vision was limited by my own personal understanding and experiences.

It's kind of like the interpretation of tongues. It is an "interpretation" not a translation. Thus, the words you feel led to ascribe to the utterance might not be exactly the words someone else with a greater vocabulary might be led to use as they interpret.

So, with Deuteronomy 13:1 in mind, I'd advise that one not write off a gifted prophet or seer if the vision or message doesn't seem to make sense initially. Sometimes the Spirit will enlighten you with insight to understand it later. Sometimes with a bit of explanation, it begins to make far more sense. In addition, prophecies aren't always fulfilled the way we assume they might. For example a prophetic word over a sick person might be, "I, the LORD, will lift you up my child, and in that day, saith the LORD, you shall see my glory." We might assume that by "lift you up" that the LORD is promising a healing. But realize after their passing that indeed, the LORD has lifted them up... to Himself in Heaven, and yes, the loved one is now beholding His glory.