Lasting Everනියැදිය

WORDS, VISIONS, AND DREAMS

I (Cubbie) didn’t come from a church background where the prophetic was talked about much. But as I grew in my faith, I found myself in times of worship or waking from a dream having seen a vision or having heard God speak. It felt new to me then but God has been using the prophetic as a form of communication since the dawn of time to offer warnings, encouragement or hope, symbolism for the future, and to audibly speak or give direction (see Genesis 20, Genesis 28, Genesis 37, Matthew 1, 1 Kings 3 for a few examples). Throughout the Bible, God uses prophetic words, visions, or dreams to communicate to His people in pivotal or poignant moments to direct or encourage. In 1 Corinthians 14:1, Paul makes a compelling case for desiring the gift of prophecy and operating in it when he says, “Follow the way of love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy.”

As far as our modern dreams go, I think Acts 2:17 still calls us to pay attention to them as well when it says, “In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.”

We don’t have to over-spiritualize prophecy, visions, and dreams because there’s a simplicity to the way that God uses them for practical and pointed purposes—always for the building up of His people and the Church. We don’t need to complicate this because true gifts of the Spirit will never supersede Scripture. While it’s incredible to receive a prophetic word, we should never “need another word” because we have His Word to guide us every day.

In short, when it comes to the prophetic, move forward holding it all up to God and testing it under the authority of Scripture, and godly counsel.

Has a particular dream really pressed on your heart and mind after waking? Do you believe that you have heard or seen messages from the Lord? Pray through it. Proceed to test these visions, and if, appropriate, follow the Holy Spirit’s leading in them.