Does God Speak in a Dream?

**fennywest** Wed 13 Jun 2012, 10:32 pm

The Voice of God and dreams

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.

Dreams
God speaks in myriads of ways and in mysterious ways, but He wants His voice to be heard and obeyed. Because of His love He often repeats Himself- saying the same thing in various ways. Dream is one channel of His voice amongst many and we need to be open to this channel of communication from God amongst others.
14 For God may speak in one way, or in another, Yet man does not perceive it.
15 In a dream, in a vision of the night, When deep sleep falls upon men, While slumbering on their beds,
16 Then He opens the ears of men, And seals their instruction.
17 In order to turn man from his deed, And conceal pride from man,
18 He keeps back his soul from the Pit, And his life from perishing by the sword.Job33:14-18
Job33:14-18

19 If you are willing and obedient, You shall eat the good of the land;
Isa1:19

God speaks to us to instruct, direct correct and comfort us. He speaks to protect us from falling into pits. He speaks to enrich our lives and lead us in the way should go. He speak to reveal his love and plans and purposes to us.

Joseph dreamed and dreamed again

Despite opposition, Joseph dreamed and relayed his dream to members of his family. Although they did not like his dream, it did not put Joseph off. He dreamed again and was not afraid to tell them.

Now Joseph had a dream, and he told it to his brothers; and they hated him even more.Gen37:5
King Abimelech dreamed. In all these tree cases It was God who was speaking in a coded or symbolic language. The truth here also is that God can speak to anyone, even those who do not know Him. However they would need an interpreter unless the dream is not symbolic as was the case of Abimelech. Nebuchanezar dreamed which required interpretation and Daniel was summoned.
2 Now Abraham said of Sarah his wife, "She is my sister." And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah.
3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, "Indeed you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man's wife."

Genesis 20

6 And God said to him in a dream, "Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart. For I also withheld you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her.

Pharaoh dreamed and was disturbed Gen41

Jacob Dreamed
11 Then the Angel of God spoke to me in a dream, saying, 'Jacob.' And I said, 'Here I am.'24 But God had come to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said to him, "Be careful that you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad."
Gen31:11,24

Genesis 28
12 Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.
Genesis 31
10 "And it happened, at the time when the flocks conceived, that I lifted my eyes and saw in a dream, and behold, the rams which leaped upon the flocks were streaked, speckled, and gray-spotted.

God speaks to His sheep

If you are a child of God, God wants to speak to you because communication is the foundation of any relationship. If you are not hearing from God, you should be disturbed. And if you’re not disturbed or concerned or do not car r not, then there is something wrong.
However there are degrees of receptivity or sensitivity to the voice of God. As in all graces, we grow in our ability to hear from God. The more we desire to her from Him and the more we practice his presence the more we will hear from Him. Also, the more we are obedient to what we have heard the more He will speak to us. If follows that if we are disobedient then we dull or quench the Spirit.

2 But he who enters by the
door is the shepherd of the sheep.
3 To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
4 And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.
5 Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers."
John10

Interpreting dreams

Dreams usually need interpretation unless an angel is involved where God would be giving us a direct instruction. For instance when
Mind who you tell your dream
The facts that you have heard from God does not mean everyone will welcome your dream. In fact the contrary is true. Your dream will be opposed just like Joseph’s and Jesus’ and Nehemiah’s or Paul’s. However this should not deter you. If you know your dream is from God, hold on to it, pray it back to God when the storms and wind come storming in. The brothers of Joseph conspired against him. They threw him into the pit sold him into slavery and he ended up in Potiphar’s house as a servant. It was as if his dream bought and brought him trouble.

8 And his brothers said to him, "Shall you indeed reign over us? Or shall you indeed have dominion over us?" So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words. 9 Then he dreamed still another dream and told it to his brothers, and said, "Look, I have dreamed another dream. And this time, the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars bowed down to me."
10 So he told it to his father and his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, "What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall your mother and I and your brothers indeed come to bow down to the earth before you?" 19 Then they said to one another, "Look, this dreamer is coming!
20 Come therefore, let us now kill him and cast him into some pit; and we shall say, 'Some wild beast has devoured him.' We shall see what will become of his dreams!"

Gen37:8,9,10,19,20

Dreams Language

Dreams are usually symbolic and so there is dream language that you need to learn to be able to interpret your dreams. For what is the use of a dream if you cannot interpret what God is saying?
God wants our dreams interpreted. It can be by us if we have learnt and understand our dream language or by others who are close to him or are gifted with interpreting dreams like Joseph and Daniel.

5 Then the butler and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were confined in the prison, had a dream, both of them, each man's dream in one night and each man's dream with its own interpretation.

9 Then the chief butler told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, "Behold, in my dream a vine was before me,
10 and in the vine were three branches; it was as though it budded, its blossoms shot forth, and its clusters brought forth ripe grapes.
11 Then Pharaoh's cup was in my hand; and I took the grapes and pressed them into Pharaoh's cup, and placed the cup in Pharaoh's hand."
12 And Joseph said to him, "This is the interpretation of it: The three branches are three days.
13 Now within three days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your place, and you will put Pharaoh's cup in his hand according to the former manner, when you were his butler.
14 But remember me when it is well with you, and please show kindness to me; make mention of me to Pharaoh, and get me out of this house.
15 For indeed I was stolen away from the land of the Hebrews; and also I have done nothing here that they should put me into the dungeon."
16 When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said to Joseph, "I also was in my dream, and there were three white baskets on my head.
17 In the uppermost basket were all kinds of baked goods for Pharaoh, and the birds ate them out of the basket on my head."
18 So Joseph answered and said, "This is the interpretation of it: The three baskets are three days.
19 Within three days Pharaoh will lift off your head from you and hang you on a tree; and the birds will eat your flesh from you."
20 Now it came to pass on the third day, which was Pharaoh's birthday, that he made a feast for all his servants; and he lifted up the head of the chief butler and of the chief baker among his servants.
21 Then he restored the chief butler to his butlership again, and he placed the cup in Pharaoh's hand.
22 But he hanged the chief baker, as Joseph had interpreted to them.Gen40:5,9-20

God will used symbols that can be found in the bible or symbols that are relevant to your culture or environment which you can easily identify and so be able to decode. If God speaks to you a lot in dreams you will have a dream language of your own that you need to learn to be able to decode or interpret your dreams. Like any language it takes time to learn the alphabets and then being able to put words together.

Genesis 41: Pharaoh's Dreams
1 Then it came to pass, at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh had a dream; and behold, he stood by the river.
2 Suddenly there came up out of the river seven cows, fine looking and fat; and they fed in the meadow.
3 Then behold, seven other cows came up after them out of the river, ugly and gaunt, and stood by the other cows on the bank of the river.
4 And the ugly and gaunt cows ate up the seven fine looking and fat cows. So Pharaoh awoke.
5 He slept and dreamed a second time; and suddenly seven heads of grain came up on one stalk, plump and good.
6 Then behold, seven thin heads, blighted by the east wind, sprang up after them.
7 And the seven thin heads devoured the seven plump and full heads. So Pharaoh awoke, and indeed, it was a dream.
8 Now it came to pass in the morning that his spirit was troubled, and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt and all its wise men. And Pharaoh told them his dreams, but there was no one who could interpret them for Pharaoh.

Dreams that are not coded
Not all dreams are symbolic or coded as in the case below when an angel is in involved.
This is a direct message to Joseph and does not require interpretation.

20 But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.
21 And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins."Matt1:20-21
12 Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.
13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him."Matt2:12-13

Sources of dreams: God, the Devil or his cohorts or You
It is important to be aware that there are many sources of dreams and therefore not all dreams are from God. It can come from you. For instance, if you desire a particular thing very much, don’t be surprised if you dream about it to confirms what you want to do and if you’re are gullible you would celebrate that you have heard from God and fall into the ditch that he has dug for you.. This does not necessary mean it is from God. Obsession may have triggered the dream. However, this is not to say God cannot address something you are concerned about. This is why we need to pray to God concerning the interpretation of our dreams.

25 "I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy lies in My name, saying, 'I have dreamed, I have dreamed!'26 How long will this be in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies? Indeed they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart,
27 who try to make My people forget My name by their dreams which everyone tells his neighbor, as their fathers forgot My name for Baal.
28 " The prophet who has a dream, let him tell a dream; And he who has My word, let him speak My word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat?" says the LORD.
29 " Is not My word like a fire?" says the LORD, " And like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?

Jer23:25-29
9 Therefore do not listen to your prophets, your diviners, your dreamers, your soothsayers, or your sorcerers, who speak to you, saying, "You shall not serve the king of Babylon."Jer27:
10 For they prophesy a lie to you, to remove you far from your land; and I will drive you out, and you will perish.

8 For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are in your midst deceive you, nor listen to your dreams which you cause to be dreamed.
9 For they prophesy falsely to you in My name; I have not sent them, says the LORD.
Jer29:8-9
When a dream is repeated in different ways
When God repeats a dream in different ways, He is reinforcing, underlining what He is saying which He wants you to find out. Pharaoh had different dreams but it was to lead to one conclusion: Prepare for a time of plenty and then drought.
25 Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, "The dreams of Pharaoh are one; God has shown Pharaoh what He is about to do:

It shall even be as when a hungry man dreams, And look --- he eats; But he awakes, and his soul is still empty; Or as when a thirsty man dreams, And look --- he drinks; But he awakes, and indeed he is faint, And his soul still craves: So the multitude of all the nations shall be, Who fight against Mount Zion." Isa29:8
Dreams that are not coded
Not all dreams are symbolic or coded as in the case below when an angel is in involved.
This is a direct message to Joseph and does not require interpretation.

20 But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.
21 And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins."Matt1:20-21
12 Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.
13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him."Matt2:12-13

Judging a Dream

14 But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
15 But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one.

It is important to judge a dream or the voice of God that comes in any way.

Scriptural Scale

Firstly, we need to find out if the dream is from God. God will not violate the Scriptures. Therefore any dream we have has to be judged in line with the word of God. The word of God has to be the plumb line, the yardstick, the litmus test, the barometer or scale or quality control test. If the dream tells you to do what is contrary to the word of God, then certainly it is not from God. This underscores the importance of studying and knowing your scriptures well so that you know and understand, not just the letter of the word, but also the spirit of the Word. For instance, a dream in which you were told to divorce your wife and marry another younger woman. This is clearly against the scriptures and could not have come from God.
39 You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.John5:39

The word of God cannot be broken. It is settled in heaven. Heaven and earth will pass away but the word of God abides forever. It is not like acts of parliament that are amended from time to time when circumstances change or when they are judged to be inadequate or even erroneous.
8 The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever."
Isa40:8
34 My covenant I will not break, Nor alter the word that has gone out of My lips.
Ps89:34
19 " God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Num23:19
18 that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us. Heb6:18

Search diligently, pore, analyse, investigate and see whether the revelation you have tallies and ties and is in tandem with the word.

Test all spirits

There is a spirit behind every revelation you receive. Hat spirit will either be your the spirit of man (yours or others) the Spirit of God, the spirit of the world or the spirit of the devil.
21 Test all things; hold fast what is good.
1Thess5:21
63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.John6:63

1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
2 By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God,
3 and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.
1John 5:1-4

14 I have written to you, fathers, Because you have known Him who is from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, And you have overcome the wicked one. 1John2:14

Secondly will you action glorify God?
Thirdly, do you have peace from that revelation or is there a check in your spirit. If you do not have peace, this is another indication that it is not from God.

Seek Counsel
When you are in doubt about a relation, seek counsel. We need each other. Te hands need the feet and vice versa. Know that one knows everything. God can use anyone to speak to us. After all, He spoke to a prophet with a donkey.
14 Where there is no counsel, the people fall; But in the multitude of counselors there is safety.Prov11:14, 1Thess4:1-3,

Know also that Satan knows the word and can quote it out of context. Scriptures can be used erroneously to back our pet dreams. I once heard a man who was using the scripture to back his drinking habit. He said Jesus said, ‘Love your enemies.’ I know alcohol is my enemy and I am loving it. Yes, this man was trying to be humorous yet he was being deceived to hang on to a habit that could destroy him. He also said the alcohol helps to calm him down when he is stressed.
We saw it when Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness. He used the word of God.
’ 5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple,
6 and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: ' He shall give His angels charge over you,' and, ' In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.'Matt4:5:6
.
Study to show yourself approved
15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.2Tim2:15

11 Then the Angel of God spoke to me in a dream, saying, 'Jacob.' And I said, 'Here I am.'
24 But God had come to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said to him, "Be careful that you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad."
Genesis 37
5 Now Joseph had a dream, and he told it to his brothers; and they hated him even more.

6 So he said to them, "Please hear this dream which I have dreamed:

8 And his brothers said to him, "Shall you indeed reign over us? Or shall you indeed have dominion over us?" So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words.

9 Then he dreamed still another dream and told it to his brothers, and said, "Look, I have dreamed another dream. And this time, the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars bowed down to me."

10 So he told it to his father and his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, "What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall your mother and I and your brothers indeed come to bow down to the earth before you?"

19 Then they said to one another, "Look, this dreamer is coming!

Someone dreamed: ‘We normally leave our rubbish outside for collection and in my dream I went out and found that my rubbish was not there. I looked around and every other neighbours rubbish were there -near their house. I became very disturbed and went from place to place looking for my rubbish to no avail before I woke up. I wondered what the dream was all about and prayed for an interpretation.
‘Later, God gave me the interpretation: ‘‘I have taken all your rubbish away from you and you’re frantically looking for it!’’
Then she gave the glory to God. That rubbish was symbolic of different encumbrances in her life and God was coming alongside to easy her burden. It could mean a disease, a destabilising disturbance or some other burden. Does it mean she would no longer have burdens? No. But whenever they come she can go back to this dream, may be pray it back to God and God will give her wisdom to go through the situation calmly until the victory comes.

Therefore when we dream, if we dream, we need to note particularly, dreams that are repeated to decipher what God is saying. Journalizing our dreams could be useful to enable us identify the links or commonality in the dreams as to discern what God is saying to us.

Another important key to unlocking for interpreting dreams is whether or not you are an active participant or just an observer. When you are taking an active part it is very likely that the dream is about you. When you are an observer it is likely that you are being intimated about what is happening around you.

As already indicated, we grow in hearing from God and there are times when we will misinterpret dreams and fall into ditches. This is not to say that we should no longer trust dreams or open ourselves to the word of God. A child needs to learn to crawl before it can walk or run, and when the child is learning to walk it will fall from time to time. Similarly all truths are parallel. As you try to interpret your dreams, you will make mistakes, however if you are prayerful and desirous to do the will of God, God will confirm that dream in other ways if it is from Him or negate it if it is not from Him. this is why we need to seek confirmation of our dreams.

If you seek God, you will find Him. And if you want to glorify Him He will give you the wisdom that will make you stand out of the crowd.Jer29:13

17 As for these four young men, God gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom; and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.
20 And in all matters of wisdom and understanding about which the king examined them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers who were in all his realm.Dan1:17,20

Don’t put God in a dream box

The fact that God often speaks to you in a dream does not mean that He has to speak to you in a dream always. God has to be God and let God be God. Do not therefore insist that He speaks to you in a dream because He has done so in the past.

When we make it mandatory to hear from God in a particular channel- dreams or other means- we open ourselves to deception. The enemy can capitalise on our naivety or gullibility and interpose his voice to give us want we want to hear and trip us up. God decides how He wants to speak to us, we don’t dictate to Him. He is sovereign and will remain so and will not panda to our desire to be spoken to in a particular way.

Dream and Spirituality

That God speaks to you in dreams does not mean you have arrived. You need to be open to the other ways he speaks to His children, particularly His word.

Don’t build a camp around dreams. Be flexible in God’s hands. Know that dreams are at the basic level of hearing from God. It is an indication that He wants you to come closer in your relationship with Him, seek His face regarding he dream you have had so He can give you the interpretation. If you don’t seek His face you are likely to misinterpret the dream and get your hands burnt or fall into a ditch.

29 "The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.
Deut29:29

Jesus often spoke in parables but when He was with the disciples, He expounded them. Hence symbolic language that dreams are shrouded or dressed in are designed to draw you into God; into a deeper relationship with Him not to make you pompous or bloated with pride. It is meant to humble you. God does not just want to inform you through dream but to transform you.

Before you can discern or decipher a counterfeit, you need to to be well-versed with the original. This is why we need to study to show ourselves approved, workmen that are not put to shame, skilfully handling the word of truth. Bank workers during their training are thoroughly taught what makes the original, original. They know the original inside out so that when the fake is presented they are in no doubt.

A sheep can smell the shepherd from a long distance and can detect when a stranger is around and would run away. Even more so when they hear a stranger’s voice they know immediately and scamper for safety.
Babies know the smell of their parents and warm up to them or can be irritated and repelled by the strange smell of a stranger.

Similarly we need to be so immersed in the word and the spirit of the word that when a different spirit arises, even from a dream, we are in no doubt about it.

Five dos and don’ts regarding revelation:

Don’ts
1. Do not let substitute hearing from God for yourself, with what others have said they heard from God. In other words, develop a personal intimate relationship with God yourself. God has no grand-children. Discipline yourself and find out what He is saying to you regarding issues in your life. It amounts to idolatry. God is a jealous God and will not share His glory with anyone. Ex20:5, 1Ki.13

2. Do not put those who have given you the word of God or a prophetic word on a pedestal. Respect and thank them but do not celebrate them. Jesus should always be lifted up. In Revelation John was about to worship the angel who brought the message but the angel forbade him from doing so and counselled him to worship God instead. Rev19:10.

3. Avoid gullibility or naivety. Don’t allow yourself to be taken for a ride. Test every spirit and hold on that which is true. 1John4:1-6, Prov14:15.

4. Do not from manipulating the word of God to say what you want to hear. Let your motives be put. Don’t put out a fleece. When you know in advance what the outcome will be. Don’t embellish the truth or try to help God. Sarah did and the result was Ishmael- a thorn in their flesh and a child of the flesh. Uzzah did and He was struck dead.Ps.25:4, Jami:5

5. Do not quench the Spirit. We all get it wrong from time to time. Repent when you do and keep exercising faith in hearing from God. Do not throw the baby away with the bathwater because you make a mistake once and abandon hearing from God or dismissing anyone who says they heard from God. Imagine a child who stops trying to walk because he fell or a mother who refuses to put her child on the floor again to learn to walk because he fell once.
We walk by faith and not by sight (2Cor5:7) the Just shall live by faith. Rom.1:17, 1Thess.5:19-21

Dos
1. Passionately crave for the gifts of the spirit 1Cor14:1 Know that God does not just want to speak to you, He wants to peak through you.

2. Believe not just God but also His prophets and you will prosper. 2Chro20:20
Don’t say because one prophet got it wrong, all prophets are liars.

3. Pray the promises of God back to Him especially in a crisis, when your faith is challenged r when the enemy sows doubt in your mind. This gives you boldness, recharges your faith and strengthens your spiritual muscles.Dan9:1-19, Isa43:26, 2Chro20:1-15, Ex34:9

4. Wages a good warfare with the prophetic word God has given you- the rhema: what God has said to you in particular.
18 This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare,
1Tim1:18
5. Seek conformation of what you have heard.fpr by the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established? "One witness shall not rise against a man concerning any iniquity or any sin that he commits; by the mouth of two or three witnesses the matter shall be established.
Deiut19:15, Matt18:16

©Fenny West2012
https://christian-talk.forumotion.com/t5576-fresh-and-flourishing#10883
http://inspiration4generations.wordpress.com/2011/12/24/journey-of-jesus/