Praise God for Giving Dreams

Hi All,
I want to outline that God continues to use dreams nowadays as he has throughout history.The problem people have with dreams is partly due to the fact that all people whether they are christian or not have dreams whereas only the christian have visions.Also Christians have dreams that are not from God but just a regular dream.This generates some scepticism and the baby may get thrown out with the bathwater.I would also point out a safegaurd with dreams;which is that a dream cannot create christian doctrine.
I have made a quick list of people in the Bible that had a dream or interpreted a dream.Because of A dream from God Joseph took Mary to be his wife,The Magi avoided Herod because of a dream and Pharaoh planned 14yrs of Egypt's Food supply just name some consequences of Dreams.

Laban,Jacob,Pharaoh,Joseph,Solomon,Daniel,Joseph,The Magi.

Dreams are a legitimate,biblical way God ministers to the body.It is also wrong to criticize or mock people who have dreams from God.
I think it is time to take a dream from God seriously and God may warn,bless,protect or edify you and the body of Christ through this wonderful way God communicates with us,
Praise God for Dreams,
Yours Staff

I'm glad you added Laban, there.

God does speak to unbelievers in dreams.

Also, Pontius Pilate's wife.

Mat 27:19 When he was set down on the judgment seat, his wife sent unto him, saying, Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him.

Are you saying only Christians have visions? Sadhu Sundar Singh had a vision of Jesus Christ and many Muslims who have become followers of Christ have testified of visions from the Lord. Is this not the kind of vision you are talking about?

Looks like it could be a good discussion,

thanks, staff,
Pilgrim

Hi Pilgrim,
I was comparing how Christians react more favorably to visions from God rather than dreams from and possible reasons for this.It is possible for non Christians to have dreams from God and Visions from God but it is not the norm.
I considered Laban to be a believer even though he had idols but I could be wrong.
I was highlighting that we are really loosing out if we have a bad attitude to dreams from God.
Pilates wife is very interesting,if Pilate had listened to his wife......we would have been up a creek...
Yours Staff

Hi staff,

I understand your OP better now with your further explanation. I'm a little slow, sometimes. Yeah, Pilate's wife is interesting. I wonder where her dream came from?

Pilgrim

Jeremiah 23:25-28,32 I have heard what the prophets say, who prophesy falsehood in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed.

How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets who prophesy falsehood, and who are prophets of the deceit of their own heart? who think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbour: as their fathers have forgotten my name for Baal.

The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell the dream; and he that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? saith Jehovah.

Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith Jehovah, and that tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies and by their boasting; and I have not sent them, nor commanded them; and they profit not this people at all, saith Jehovah.

Ecclesiastes 5:7 For in the multitude of dreams are vanities; so with many words: but fear God.

Ecclesiastes 5:3 For a dream cometh through the multitude of business, and a fool's voice through a multitude of words.

Many, of old, pretended to know the mind of God by dreams, and were so full of them that they almost made God's people forget his name by their dreams (Jer_23:25, Jer_23:26); and many now perplex themselves with their frightful or odd dreams, or with other people's dreams, as if they foreboded this or the other disaster. Those that heed dreams shall have a multitude of them to fill their heads with; but in them all there are divers vanities, as there are in many words, and the more if we regard them. “They are but like the idle impertinent chat of children and fools, and therefore never heed them; forget them; instead of repeating them lay no stress upon them, draw no disquieting conclusions from them, but fear thou God; have an eye to his sovereign dominion, set him before thee, keep thyself in his love, and be afraid of offending him, and then thou wilt not disturb thyself with foolish dreams.” - M. Henry

Hi Staff!

Thanks for posting this. I am a dreamer! I have many many testimonies of God speaking to me through dreams. I will share only a few soon after being born again I was going through a trial and felt discouraged God encouraged me through a dream. In the dream was a man who was walking with me up to a fruit tree when we got to the tree I wanted some fruit but could only see two fruit on the tree I turned around and said there wasn't much fruit there and the man said to me if you look closer you will find it lo and behold the tree was filled with fruit and I started picking it delightfully. When I awoke I knew the dream was from God and I knew it mean't He was filling me with His Spirit in order to bear more fruit in particular long suffering.

Another dream I had was a woman carrying a bag with one of my husbands shirts and my husband was about to leave with her. That dream got my attention the next day I found out my spouse's affair.God used the dream to get my attention He had been trying to speak to me by impressing upon me that all isn't well but I was ignoring that feeling all week thinking that I was just being jealous so then he spoke to me through that dream and got my attention!

Another dream I had was carrying a bottle of oil which was nearly empty. I decided to go into the shop to buy some more oil but as I entered the shopkeeper told me off said I could not come in the store with that bottle and should leave it outside I left the store and as I walked away I saw my oil bottle suddenly filled to the top with oil. When I woke I knew God was speaking to me and showing me He replenishes my strength I do not need to look to men.

There are so many I could share but for time. I know some don't put much emphasis on God speaking to believers through dreams and visions but He does. I have had visions and once even heard an audible voice His exact words were " true love is to lay down one's life for another". So God speaks to us in various ways He is soveriegn and chooses how to do so each time!

Be blessed !

Hi Savannah,
Isnt that just my point-their is the other side of visions,their is the other side of worship,the other side of preaching but we don't down grade the importance of that communication.
When Satan gets the hold of anything he corrupts it not just dreams.
If you quoted ecclesiastes to Joseph or Jacob or Solomon would they call their dreams vanity; no.
If we follow your logic we shouldnt preach,or worship,or relate visions or give words from God because they may be False.God is against all false hood not just false dreams.
Matthew Henry is clearly incorrect about Joseph or Laban or Joseph who heeded the dreams and all were blessed because of it.
Your response makes my point perfectly,We dont stop prophesying because of false prophesy,we dont stop preaching because of false doctrine;why should we stop relating dreams from God because of false prophets who dream falsely?Joseph didnt,Jacob didnt and Solomon didnt I stand corrected but didnt Solomon write ecclesiastes?
Yours Staff

Hi Lindi,
Your wrote wisely-
(There are so many I could share but for time. I know some don't put much emphasis on God speaking to believers through dreams and visions but He does. I have had visions and once even heard an audible voice His exact words were " true love is to lay down one's life for another". So God speaks to us in various ways He is soveriegn and chooses how to do so each time! )
It is clearly un-scriptural and unwise not to put emphasis on a dream from God or anything from God.Some leading figures in the bible have had dreams or interpreted dreams,so it is clear God can communicate through dreams.I would go as far as saying that some christians are just doing Satan a favour by basically bad mouthing this communication.Everybody knows that God doesnt like false dreams or any falsehood but that is no reason not to relate or interpret dreams that are from the throne room or heaven.
Dreams from God have nothing to do with whether you believe in the gifts of the spirit as being for today or not.
Thank you for your examples on how great our God is,
Yours Staff

I would say that it might NOT be only the Christians who have visions, given that there have been reports coming out of Muslim countries of late of Muslim people have visions of Jesus, leading to their conversions. If those reports are true.

I have had some dreams that i have no one to interpret for me. Any Josephs among us?

Hi Staff

You are right brother about dreams being bad mouthed mainly because of falsehood therefore the baby is thrown out with the bath water . I believe in this way of communication with my Heavenly Father. I am prayerful about it I have other dreams that are meaningless too but the key is discerning which dreams are from above. The Holy Spirit is the one who reveals and teaches all things most people reject dreams because they do not understand their symbols or their meaning. Some dreams are direct some are indirect and one has to pray for understanding. The most important thing with dreams or visions is that they should never usurp the word of God and should always be in line with scripture.

This may help Trekker . I am not an interpreter but I can discern when God is speaking to me through a dream. I find with most of the dreams there are symbols which I instantly recognise as representing something like in my earlier post I mentioned oil and fruit these symbolised the Holy Spirit in both the dreams. I find praying for the interpretation helps. I don't have to always sometimes I just know. I have dreams wereby I pray in that dream especially when being attacked I wake up knowing the Holy Spirit was interceding for me all the prayers are prayed in Jesus Mighty Name. I sing and worship in dreams. So I do find it hard to dismiss dreams as another way God communicates with His children. There is a link on this thread think it might be Staff who put it but it had great examples about God using dreams I was encouraged as I read through the examples and many were similar to my own experiences especially the car dream. Maybe you can share an example of a dream then we can prayerfully interpret it or you could email the dream if you wish.

Savannah I agree with those scriptures about false dreams. God has spoken to me directly before regarding a procephy given to me by a brother who had a dream and was prophesying to me that something was going to come to pass but my inner man could not receive this prophesy after praying God led me to Jeremiah 23 to show that this was not from Him instantly I was at peace and believed God and His word over a dream. I am sharing this so as to show that whatever we do as God's children His word should reign in us for He has written it in our hearts. He gave us the Holy Spirit to guide us and His Spirit will always be in agreement with The Father and the Son and the Word. We need to pray and ask for discernment when we are not sure about something. To completely rule out dreams as a way God communicates with His Children and reject it out rightly is not wise. There are false prophecys , teachings, gifts, and dreams but does it mean that God doesn't use these ways to speak to us today certainly not!

Love in Christ

QUOTE:
"Also Christians have dreams that are not from God "

I would like to expand on this concept a bit - not sure what staff had in mind, but will share how I understand it.

I have had dreams that have troubled me. They were the sort where I yielded to temptation and sinned. In time I came to recognize that these dreams were a reflection of what is hidden in the recesses of my heart. "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh." Once I became aware of this reality, I had to bring this to the LORD for forgiveness and ask Him to cleanse me from the evil that lurks there.

My experience for whatever it is worth.

ginnyrose

Amen Ginnyrose that is a very powerful testimony. Out of the abundance of heart the mouth speaks forth! I believe that as we grow and mature during our waking hours we may be able control our thoughts and actions and take captive every thought that is disobedient to Christ and cast it down making it obedient to Christ. However when we go to sleep we have no control then we dream. How beautiful to hear your words so encouraging Praise be to God

Job 33 14 For God speaks in one way, and in two, though man does not perceive it.
15 In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on men, while they slumber on their beds,
16 then he opens the ears of men and terrifies them with warnings,
17 that he may turn man aside from his deed and conceal pride from a man;
18 he keeps back his soul from the pit, his life from perishing by the sword.

Here God reveals to us the things which we fail to hear or push aside during the day or our disobedience then when we sleep he terrifies in our dreams to get our attention. Don't you just love the Word!

Bless you Ginnyrose

QUOTE:
"Here God reveals to us the things which we fail to hear or push aside during the day or our disobedience then when we sleep he terrifies in our dreams to get our attention. Don't you just love the Word!"

lindi, you said it better then I did!

God bless.

Dreams are a legitimate,biblical way God ministers to the body.It is also wrong to criticize or mock people who have dreams from God.
I think it is time to take a dream from God seriously and God may warn,bless,protect or edify you and the body of Christ through this wonderful way God communicates with us,
Praise God for Dreams,

I believe God can still speak to people in Dreams. But in new Covenant when a believer has a regenerated Spirit (Born again) he receives the Holy Spirit. The Spirit reveals to him the Mind of God. Lets see what Paul is saying to Corinthians,

1 Corinthians 2-10:-
For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. 11 For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, 13 which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, [e]combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.

Thus the Holy Spirit reveals to believers the mind of God. God does not need to speak to a true believer in dreams anymore if the believer is mature enough to hear the Spirit. But many Christians today are not still babies who still drink Milk and cannot take solid meat. So God has to still speak to them in dreams.

So if someone comes and tells what God spoke to him in dreams and another person tells me what Spirit revealed to him in Spirit, I would rather trust what the spirit revealed than what other person has dreamed about.

Numbers 12:6:-
If there is a prophet among you,
I, the LORD, shall make Myself known to him in a vision.
I shall speak with him in a dream.
“Not so, with My servant Moses,
He is faithful in all My household;
With him I speak mouth to mouth,
Even openly, and not in dark sayings,
And he beholds the form of the LORD.

So what God reveals to people in Heart (through Holy Spirit) is much higher standard than what a person sees in Vision or dream.

Hi Sree

"Thus the Holy Spirit reveals to believers the mind of God. God does not need to speak to a true believer in dreams anymore if the believer is mature enough to hear the Spirit. But many Christians today are not still babies who still drink Milk and cannot take solid meat. So God has to still speak to them in dreams. "

Sree to question a believers maturity based on one method God chooses to speak to that person is unwise. God is sovereign He chooses how He wills to speak to His Children. What we are supporting in this thread is an often neglected area in the body of believers. We are not saying our dreams take precedence over the Holy Spirit's leading and speaking to us in our hearts we are merely highlighting that God will sometimes speak to the believer irregardless of their maturity through a dream.

I consider sister Ginnyrose to be a mature believer not a babe in Christ yet look at her example of how God has used a dream to reveal to her areas in need of sanctification. Again Bearmaster has pointed out that many Muslims are coming to the faith through dreams and visions and these would be new believers. So whatever stage of our growth God has much grace to appreciate each of His children individually and will speak to them whatever way He deems fit.

A question I would lovingly ask was Peter an immature believer when he had the vision whilst on the rooftop. Was Paul an immature believer when he dreamt the man from Macedonia calling him to come to them?

Please don't get me wrong here we are not promoting being led by our dreams we are just simply saying God can sometimes use dreams to guide
us too. Primarily we hear directly from God through His Written Word and He ministers to us by His Spirit and we are led by His Spirit to will and to do.

Love in Christ

I consider sister Ginnyrose to be a mature believer not a babe in Christ yet look at her example of how God has used a dream to reveal to her areas in need of sanctification.

To consider someone as a mature believer or babe in Christ is in the eyes of God. God looks into our heart and he knows our true spiritual condition and also our measure of faith.

According to me there are times when people have to be shown in dream because they are unwilling to hear the voice in that area. Even a mature believer can turn deaf in one particular area of life. A babe in Jesus is deaf almost in all areas. But having a vision in Dream cannot be used as a way to Judge a person's spiritual maturity. I apologize if I sounded like that in my previous post. I stand corrected. It was not my intention at all. I did not know that my previous post can be interpreted that way, thanks for pointing it out.

When my wife conceived, I wanted a boy. It was a dream in which God showed me it is a Girl and God gave me a girl so that I will relay on his wisdom to bring her up for Jesus. I was so confident on my abilities to raise up a boy!!!

A person might be really mature but in some areas they might still be stubborn and unwilling to hear and obey the voice. The areas of Sanctification that Ginnyrose has shared is a very good example where a believer can ignore the voice of Spirit.

A question I would lovingly ask was Peter an immature believer when he had the vision whilst on the rooftop. Was Paul an immature believer when he dreamt the man from Macedonia calling him to come to them?

I actually thought about the Vision of Peter before I made my original post. My version is this, Peter had so much Jewish tradition of not visiting a gentile's house in his heart that he had to be shown in a dream, not to call anything unclean which God as made clean. But after the dream it was the Holy Spirit that directly told him to follow the messengers. May be there was a similar thing with Paul too.

In short if a New Covenant believer has completely surrendered himself to Jesus, then God can reveal things directly though the Spirit. There is no need of Dream.

Hi Sree,
When it comes to dreams I find their is always a but...
I believe God gives dreams but....is the usual

Your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions. ... And prophesied have your sons and your daughters

Old men speaks of maturity or at the very least some old men are mature in Christ.
God speaks to us in the way he chooses,he is the great communicator.
It is the Holy Spirit that gives dreams.1 Cor is totally correct in what it says but that doesnt make it at odds with God speaking through dreams,
Could you back up your claims of Mature Christians not having dreams and immature Christians having dreams with Scripture?
Also even if it were correct which it isnt in my opinion their is nothing wrong with being immature every Christian goes through that phase,
Dreams from GOD are scriptural and anyone who doesnt except them are not helping themselves or the body,
Yours Staff

Hi Ephah,
Whether Savannahs post was to deter or to beware I dont know but it wasnt to encourage.Which is what I want to.I want to encourage believers to take God Given dreams seriously and not to be ashamed of Christ in this regard.
What God gives let no man try and take away.
The arguement that just because people followed false dreams we should not observe genuine ones just in case is not logical,Its like saying "I will not follow Christ because Satan is real"!or I will not observe real dreams because false ones exist;same difference

Yours Staff

God given dreams should not be seen as God's "baby-talk" to His children.

God gives dreams to warn, expose and guide.

How can anyone lable this type of communication from God as "communication to the immature"?

Where in scripture does it state that dreams and visions are for the immature?

Pilgrim

______________________________________________________________
QUOTE:
"The areas of Sanctification that Ginnyrose has shared is a very good example where a believer can ignore the voice of Spirit."
______________________________________________________________
Well...I am not sure I was totally aware of the sin lurking in the corners of my brain, but the Holy Spirit used a dream to reveal it to me. All I can say is "Thank-you! Lord!"

As I study the WORD it teaches me that one cannot confine God to a box. Putting Him there will limit Him. We are in the box and He is on the outside looking in and managing its contents - like me, like you, and everyone else including Barack Obama!

Let me clarify what I am not trying to say.

1. I am not saying if a person has dreams from God then he is immature. He can even be mature but has ignored the voice of spirit in that area. If you see revelation, Jesus is asking the Churches that are held in his hand "let those who have ears listen to the voice of spirit." So it means irrespective of a position of a person in Christ he can turn deaf to Spirit and Jesus had to convict them by speaking through John.

2. I am not trying to restrict God in a box. Since I accept that God can speak to us in dreams, I am not trying to put any constraint. Holy Spirit living inside a person is possible only in New Covenant, and hence the Revelation that we get from him living inside us is completely new that was not possible before. I believe this is a preferred way, I accept that I cannot prove it by scripture but can only use circumstances like Peter's dream and Paul's revelation from Holy Spirit.

3. I am not saying dreams have to be looked down. All I am saying is revelation that a believer gets from Holy Spirit is much Higher Standard than dreams as it is a new Covenant standard. It is like saying PHD in Science is much higher standard than masters in Science. That does not mean Masters is a crap!

If anyone of you have a question in science and you get two different answers, one from a PHD scholar and another from a guy who did masters then which will you consider?

During the NIGHT Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. ~Acts 16:9

Here is an example of a dream/vision, it's New Covenant and I don't think anyone would call Paul a 'baby' in Christ during the time frame that it happened. At this time he had already been through Arabia where the Lord renewed his mind.

I've heard folks say that you can't teach from the book of Acts as being doctrine but I believe this is in error because then 2 Timothy 3:16 would read "SOME Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."

Thanks for all of the testimonies!