To Heaven and Back Again: Dreams & Visions

Dreams & Visions Meeting

The Book of Acts is a continuation of the Book of Luke. If you read this as one account, it flows like this: Right before He ascended to Heaven before their eyes Jesus breathed on the disciples and said, “receive the Holy Spirit,” and told them to go to Jerusalem and wait for the Holy Spirit to come upon them with power. It was on the day of Pentecost when they were all gathered in a room together that the Holy Spirit came in, literally rattling the windows like a mighty wind. It looked like tongues of fire upon their heads as the Holy Spirit settled on them.

Peter said: “‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, said God, I will pour out of my Spirit on all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:’” (Acts 2:17, Joel 2:28 AKJV)

Peter is repeating what Joel said hundreds of years earlier. It is a list of what God typically brings into the life of a Christian as He begins pouring out His spirit.

Prophesy – Sons and daughters shall do this. Everyone who is a child of God through Jesus is a “son and daughter.” We are sons of the Most High (Romans 8:6).

“Earnestly pursue love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy.” (1 Corinthians 14:1)

It is clear that God wants us all to prophesy. Paul encourages every Christian to desire all gifts of the spirit but especially to prophesy. Some dreams and visions will actually be categorized as prophecies from God.

Visions – Young men are those who have grown in the ways of God but have not yet reached the maturity of elders. The word “men” is actually the word for “mankind,” or "womankind.” When we feed our spirits by reading the Word and pursue teachings on the Word it helps us grow into adolescents in the spirit. This may be when we are ready to receive our destiny vision from God. These can happen at any time:

I saw in the visions of my head upon my bed… (Daniel 4:13 KJV)

There is no certain time of day when a vision can happen. Just because it happens at night when you are sleeping, doesn’t necessarily make it a dream. The content is what matters. Visions are clear and etched upon our soul.

How do we know if we are still young or if we have grown into maturity with God? 1 Corinthians 3 tells us that if you are still envious, sowing discord, or jealousy, or if you are unchanged by your decision to take Jesus as Lord, you are a baby Christian. God may be waiting for you to grow in your walk before He brings you visions.

Dreams – According to the list Peter quoted from Joel, dreams are given to old men. This is not defined by physical age or the amount of years since you became a Christian; it is the maturity of your spirit. These are not typical dreams of guidance, but important dreams revealing the will of God. In the Old Testament we see an exception to this: Joseph had two dreams about his destiny at a very young age (Genesis 3).

Unlike visions, dreams are usually vague or metaphorical. You need maturity to not only understand them but to react appropriately to them. God doesn’t stop talking to you through other means once you mature, He just opens up new doors as He determines you are better able to handle them. Consequently, old men can have both dreams and visions. Both God and Satan have access to our dreams. You will need to discern who is speaking to you, much like you would for words of wisdom.

God’s children often receive dreams and visions in these ways but He is still sovereign. Just like definitions, though this is a “typical” list of what God is doing, it is by no means written in stone. There are many accounts of Jesus appearing in visions to those in remote places calling many into the Kingdom of God. The story of Gideon in Judges 7 shows that God sent dreams to the enemies of Israel so that His army would prevail by His might.

There are several different places a dream can come from:

God
Our own mind
Drugs (even medicine), alcohol, or food
The enemy

Some of these are easy to understand. Our own mind is when our subconscious is putting things in order. Things we put into our body may influence this process as they affect the body chemistry in our brain. The two most difficult to comprehend are the enemy and God. However, there are some clear signs when the enemy brings us a dream:

Uses curse words
If it is in black and white only
If there are lustful components
If it left us feeling there is no hope

By ruling out these characteristics, it is easier to determine if a dream is from God and the Holy Spirit.

Curse Words

According to God’s word:

Let no foul or polluting language, nor evil word nor unwholesome or worthless talk [ever] come out of your mouth… (Ephesians 4:29 AMPC)

God tells us not to use bad language. Would the Holy Spirit use that language to send us a message? If it is against the principles of His word, the dream isn’t from Him.

Black and White

Heaven is very vivid. God created a plethora of colorful things on this earth. God is diverse and He is vivid. You may have dream characteristics in black and white, but they should serve only to highlight the vividness of something colorful if it is a dream from God.

Lust

God invented sex for a purpose. The act of procreation is not sin. It is lust that is sin. Your dream may have sex in it and still be from God. In Genesis when Satan tempts Eve to eat fruit from a forbidden tree, the serpent says that she will “know” good and evil. The Hebrew word yada` is used for “know” and it is the same word used for sexual intimacy. In God’s eyes, sex represents a deep knowing of a person or thing. But if the physical actions focus on lust, then it is not a dream from God.

Without Hope

God sent His Son so we would always have hope; not in ourselves, but in Him. God will always provide a way to be redeemed and to be free. If a dream leaves you feeling hopeless, abandoned, and like you are worthless, this is not from God. In fact you are so precious to Him that He sent His Son to pay the price for you to be with Him forever!

Why God May Send Dreams

For God may speak in one way, or in another, Yet man does not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, When deep sleep falls upon men, While slumbering on their beds,… (Job 33:14-15 KJV)

Elihu was the one friend of Job’s who God said spoke rightly. He was counseling Job and telling him to look at the dreams God had brought him. Elihu continues to explain some of the reasons why dreams come from God:

Then He opens the ears of men, and seals their instruction. In order to turn man from his deed, and conceal pride from man, He keeps back his soul from the Pit, and his life from perishing by the sword. (Job 33:16-18 NKJV)

This is not a complete list of all that God does in dreams, but it is what Job needed to consider concerning dreams he had received.

To confirm and instruct us, or "seal" instructions
Turn us from a wrong path
To conceal Pride - The Hebrew word also means to cover
To save us from Hell - (He keeps back his soul from the Pit)
To keep us from dying or "perishing by the sword"

These are some of the reasons God speaks to us. The Holy Spirit is our Counselor, Guide, and Comforter. If a dream condemns us without pointing us back to God, then it is from Satan, the accuser of the brethren.

Here is an example of a dream from God along with an interpretations:

I was being held hostage in a camp of some sort. I broke out and found a group of people traveling north. With my husband, (Tony) and my five year old daughter (Ashley) who was much younger then she is now, I joined the group in their wagons, which were from the turn of the last century.

Held hostage: in the hands of the enemy.
Husband: Jesus
Daughter: Ministry
Old Wagons: Ministry operating in an outdated way

This represents a time when I started working for God and became free of the enemy but was still operating in the “old wineskin” or old ways they are set in.

The going was hard and an enemy was taking shots at us. We quickly came to a train that could get us to where we needed to be and it provided us with some protection. While this was my country, I felt like I was a foreigner.

Shots - Accusations
Train - Vehicles are ministries or businesses. a train is a type of vehicle which travels along a set course.
Your Country - The Kingdom of God

Because we were operating in the old ways, the enemy was still able to harass, and make accusations against me and my ministry.

The train was packed with passengers. Most were unkempt and underfed. Some were even in jail-like enclosures. Those running the train seemed like a disguised enemy.

This reveals what type of ministry I first came into in my life. On the surface it seems acceptable, but there was a flaw which allowed the enemy access. Many people give and give, standing in faith, but in spite of their efforts became poorer and poorer. The declarations made without the leading and guiding of the Holy Spirit allow the enemy to impose charges of “Abuse of Authority” to hinder them. If you use the name of the King without Him telling you that this is what He wants you to do, there are consequences.

Tony joined me and Ashley. He had placed an entire set of encyclopedias on the top of the dressers in our compartment. “Oh, no, when were those written?” I asked.

“Originally in 1876,” replied my husband, “but this edition was from a few years ago. It even has an entry on Pokémon.”

“We will have to be careful not to let them get in the wrong hands,” I said as one of the guards appeared.

Books - representing the wisdom from God.
Pokémon - the word means “pocket demon.”Husband - representing Jesus

Jesus brought wisdom about the enemy to our ministry.

The guard saw the huge pile of 50 books and his eyes lit up. “Didn’t you come in that loaded down wagon train?” He asked, “How did you have room for all those books?” I was actually wondering the same thing.

“They were in the undercarriage,” Tony replied.

“Ahh,” the guard is practically drooling as he looked at them,” The head-man will want to speak to you about these.”

Undercarriage - symbolizing a hidden mystery for the ministry
The number 50 - As in Jubilee year according to the Bible all slaves were freed every 50 years

There are hidden mysteries in the Bible that God reveals in His timing. The Courts of Heaven is one of these mysteries that is the key to obtaining all that Jesus did on the cross to set us free.

The guard led me to a well dressed man in an elaborate office. “I hear you have quite the stockpile of treasure. What do you want for it?”

“it's not for sale.” My tone was firm, there would be no negotiation. “They are for my daughter’s college fees.”

“Your daughter?” He scoffed, “You actually want to educate a girl? Whatever for?”

I held my head high, “So that she will be able to care for herself and have no need of anyone to support her.”

He looked annoyed and changed the topic, “Let’s get you some more comfortable quarters.”

My daughter - representing Agape Christian Fellowship
College - the Courts of Heaven Academy

If we charge for the things related to God, which is against what He tells us to do (Matthew 10). Then we are giving the enemy access to us where we work. God has told us to create a free Academy for His people so that they can be free of the attacks of the enemy. The enemy’s attacks may cease only for a while as he looks for other ways we may be vulnerable. This is why continued learning is necessary.

The scene faded. On the train I saw some fancy cars, lavishly set tables and ornate private rooms. It was a stark contrast to the dingy, cramped, section of the train we had just vacated. My husband Tony, began giving me pages from the encyclopedia to share with others.

Through the revelation of the Courts we have become free of the enemies hindrances. The Lord gave us revelation one step at a time last year, which is what the Courts of Heaven Academy is based upon.

Suddenly I was walking on the outer edge of the train along the promenade with Tony and the well dressed gentleman who I realized was the Headman. He proudly displayed a gun for us. Firing once, a bullet flew out of the barrel. He fired again and a second bullet inexplicably was discharged from the handle. “Very innovative,” I thought.

I knew he had received the information about how to create this gun with the additional fire power from me. I also knew I needed to be more careful about what I said so something worse couldn’t happen.

Shots - Accusations from the enemy

We received charges against our team for agreeing with what the accusations of the enemy instead of speaking positively after a court visit. Even if they are true, negative words can be used as extra ammo by the enemy.

The Head man took us to a secluded area on the deck at the front train. He had a box with drawers on all four sides. When he was busy giving instructions to his men, I opened the drawers. Each drawer had dozens of tiny compartments with ornate objects inside. Some looked very expensive, others looked like ancient family heirlooms that had seen better days but were surely treasures to those who owned them.

I was appalled. How could these people be taking so much from those who had so little! Apparently every little thing they owned was to be “payment” for their passage on this train.

Headman - Satan
Deck on the front of the train: bringing into the open what is driving the ministry

This reveals how the enemy has crept into the church. Charging for the teaching of God. is allowing the enemy a place in people’s lives in order to hold them captive. Jesus told us how to handle things of God in Matthew 10: He said to give freely any messages, gifts and prayers from God. Then, after people receive, they can acknowledge God by giving an offering back.

The next scene was a little three-story townhouse in a large city. One of the guards was escorting Ashley to our house. His interest in her was clear, but she didn’t return his affection.

Ashley - Agape Christian Fellowship
Guard - The enemy

The enemy is looking for a place in Agape Christian Fellowship, but we are to deny him a place. Our ministry operates fully on under the principles of Matthew 10.

After that we were in what looked like the capital city of the country. Ashley was fully grown. She was leading the charge in the national courts to free people from the “train” system.

Agape has opened the Courts of Heaven Academy: A free course that teaches Christians how to take their rightful place before the throne and use all that Jesus did for us. This allows us to remove attacks of the enemy.

This was my dream and the meaning of it. It showed where I had been and what would come in the future. It is very balanced. God always sends encouragement, even with correction. If you would like to learn more about how to interpret dreams and visions, join us for our weekly online meeting, where I interpret dreams of those attending while teaching about the symbols in our dreams. Register on the "events" page at Agape-cf.org for this free meeting.

Below is the Tea & Coffee portion that followed the meeting on Dreams and Visions where the Holy Spirit helped me interpret dreams for people.