LifeShape Prayer & Discipleship Module 4 – The Future - Block 2: Dreams & Visions

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Dr. Paul Yonggi Cho, pastor of Yoido Full Gospel Church in Seoul, Korea, which by the way holds the distinction of being the largest Church in the history of Christendom thus far at one time boasting an active membership near 1,000,000 people, says that “dreams and visions are the language of the Spirit.”

In his seventies, Dr. Cho set new goals for his church, which included a decade committed to the establishment of 5,000 satellite churches and 500 houses of prayer. Dr. Cho is an example of what God can do with the future through those who believe in dreams and visions they see which other cannot yet see.

Joseph, the son of Jacob, was also a man of dreams and visions.

Genesis 37:5 Now Joseph had a dream, and he told it to his brothers; and they hated him even more.

At this point in Joseph’s life, he was 17 years old and near last in a long line of brothers. Joseph had no claim to the inheritance or the covenant of his father. Yet Joseph dreamed a dream that encouraged him to believe that one day he would lead his whole family. At the time, this seemed impossible, yet the Holy Spirit bore witness to Joseph in a dream.

When Joseph was 17 years old he spoke about his dream, later in his life, Joseph’s dream spoke about him.

The scriptures tell us God knows the end from the beginning. His way of communicating with us concerning the future is often done through dreams and visions. The prophet Joel spoke of a time when God would interact with His children by pouring His Spirit out upon all flesh.

Key Scripture: Joel 2:28

“And it shall come to pass afterward
That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your old men shall dream dreams,
Your young men shall see visions.

This began to be fulfilled at Pentecost, just seven weeks after the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. When bystanders questioned what they were hearing, the Apostle Peter responded:

Acts 2:16-18

¹⁶ But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:

¹⁷ ‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,
That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your young men shall see visions,
Your old men shall dream dreams.
¹⁸ And on My menservants and on My maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days;
And they shall prophesy.

LUKE WRITES THAT PETER ACTUALLY REVERSES THE ORDER OF “YOUNG MEN” SEEING VISIONS AND “OLD MEN” DREAMING DREAMS IN COMPARISON TO THE JOEL PASSAGE.

THIS MIGHT BE INDICATIVE OF SOMETHING, AS IN ACTS, PRIMACY IS GIVEN TO VISIONS RATHER THAN DREAMS.

(ONE SCREEN PLEASE)

VISIONS IN ACTS:

-      ACTS 9 – SAUL CONVERTED

-      ACTS 10 – CORNELIUS

-      ACTS 10 – PETER

-      ACTS 16 – PAUL

-      ACTS 18 – PAUL

-      ACTS 23 – PAUL

-      ACTS 27 – PAUL

The Holy Spirit’s interaction with us often produces dreams and visions to aid us in our understanding and our approach to what God wants in our future. Even Job, in his pain filled dilemma of life, was encouraged by a friend to hear that God opens our ears and seals our instruction while we sleep at night, having dreams and visions (Job 33:14-15).

Every dream is not given by God as Solomon revealed when he said that some dreams come because we have been so busy minded. However, many dreams are given to us by God so that we can:

·       Know how to pray

·       Know what to do

·       Understand what will happen in the future

Not every dream comes to us at nighttime nor do visions always open spiritual portals into future events. Some do, however, many can merely be spiritual impressions which speak to our heart, strengthen our faith, and lead us forward.

When we receive some strong spiritual impression, a dream in the night, or a vision we feel is connected to our future, we must always do our due diligence to make sure it bears witness to the word of God before using it as a cause for pursuit. The Holy Spirit will never violate the word, the will, or the way of God. Make sure your dreams and your visions line up with God’s Word, His purpose, and His ways before you act.

SIMEON, FOR EXAMPLE, HAS REVELATION ABOUT THE MESSIAH, AND COMES INTO THE TEMPLE, AND SPEAKS OVER JESUS A PASSAGE FROM ISAIAH.

THIS PROPHETIC WORD DIDN’T JUST COME OUT OF NOWHERE. HE WAS FAMILIAR WITH THE SCRIPTURES.

+ VISIONS, DREAMS, REVELATION CAN BE PRIMARILY FOR YOUR BENEFIT

         FOR EXAMPLE – PAUL SPEAKING OF HIS BEING CAUGHT UP TO THE THIRD HEAVEN – THE CHURCH AND BELIEVERS WOULD PROBABLY ONLY INDIRECTLY BENEFIT FROM IT, AS HE WAS UNABLE AND NOT PERMITTED TO TALK ABOUT IT.

+VISIONS, DREAMS AND REVELATION CAN BE FOR BOTH YOUR PERSONAL AND OTHERS BENEFIT

         EXAMPLE – THE LORD’S ENCOURAGEMENT TO PAUL IN CORINTH TO KEEP ON PREACHING DESPITE ONGOING RESISTANCE AND POTENTIAL HARM FROM PERSECUTION.

+VISIONS, DREAMS AND REVELATION ARE OFTEN GIVEN IN THE CONTEXT OF EVANGELISM – FULFILLING THE COMMAND TO PREACH THE GOSPEL AND MAKE DISCIPLES OF ALL NATIONS.

         EXAMPLE – ACTS 16 – AFTER PAUL SHARED HIS VISION OF GOING TO MACEDONIA, HE AND HIS TEAM TOGETHER CONCLUDED THAT GOD HAD CALLED THEM TO PREACH THE GOSPEL THERE.

+SOMETIMES GOD HAS TO MAKE THINGS CLEAR – EVEN WHEN THEY COME BY DREAMS AND VISIONS, PROPHETIC SPEECH OR OTHERWISE:

Phil. 3.15 Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. 16 Only let us hold true to what we have attained.

+SOMETIMES WE CAN HAVE RECEIVED REVELATION AND NOT EVEN BE AWARE OF IT:

PETER HAD TO BE TOLD HE HAD RECEIVED REVELATION FROM THE FATHER!

Matthew 16:16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.

2 QUICK EXAMPLES OF VISIONS AND THEIR EFFECTS AND LESSONS:

ACTS 9:  A VISION DOESN’T MAKE YOU OR GIVE YOU EVERYTHING

SAUL ON THE ROAD TO DAMASCUS – SEES JESUS

         -LEFT HIM CONVERTED & CALLED

         - LEFT HIM BLIND AND IN NEED

         - HE STILL NEEDED DISCIPLING AND DISCIPLES:

                

ANANIAS BROUGHT PAUL:

-      UNDERSTANDING

-      CONTEXTUALIZATION

-      SCRIPTURE

-      HEALING

-      BAPTISM

-      INFILLING OF THE SPIRIT

-      LAYING ON OF HANDS

BARNABUS – ABOUT 12-14 YEARS LATER GOES AND GETS PAUL AND HELPS HIS MINISTRY IN THE LOCAL CHURCH AT ANTIOCH – WHICH BECAME PAUL’S SENDING CHURCH FOR HIS MINISTRY.

EXAMPLE 2

ACTS 16 – PAUL’S SECOND MISSIONARY JOURNEY

ACTS 16:

-      PAUL AND SILAS WITH TIMOTHY, EVENTUALLY LUKE

-      GO THROUGH Phrygia and Galatia (basically modern Turkey)

-      Saw believers in Derbe, Lystra, Iconium and probably Pisidian Antioch

-      They were stopped by the Spirit from speaking in Asia

Minor

Verse 7 – Forbidden by the Spirit of Jesus to preach at Bithynia (yet Bithynia was evangelized later – 1 Peter 1:1, Peter writes to believers there, and around 111 A.D., Pliny the Younger, the then governor of Pontus/Bithynia writes to Emperor Trajan about how to handle the persecution of Christians.

Verse 8 – through Mysia and down to Troas by the sea

Verse 9 – Paul receives a vision from the Lord – sees a man from Macedonia saying “come over and help us.”

***NOTE:  A VISION DOESN’T MEAN THERE WON’T BE ANY MORE WORK TO DO!!!

***THEY HAD TO GET ON A BOAT, STOP OVERNIGHT ON THE ISLAND OF SAMOTHRACE, THEN ANOTHER DAY AT SEA. WHEN THEY GOT OFF, THEY HAD TO WALK ABOUT 10 MILES TO GET TO PHILIPPI.

THEN THEY HAD TO FIND PROSPECTIVE PEOPLE TO HEAR THE GOSPEL.

THE FIRST FOLKS THEY PREACHED TO ON A SABBATH WERE NOT MACEDONIAN MEN AT ALL – THEY WERE WOMEN, JEWS AND GENTILE PROSELYTES TO THE JEWISH FAITH THAT WERE MEETING DOWN BY A RIVER!

Important Points

1.   God is a Spirit and He interacts with us on a spiritual plane.

2.   God knows the future and often desires to make us aware of it.

3.   Dreams and visions are the language of the Spirit.

4.   The Holy Spirit will never violate the Word of God.

5.   Ask God to speak to you about the future and what you should pray and do to accomplish His will.