Dreams and Visions: 

Are they from God?

  By Carolyn Ruth Chapman

Are you a dreamer? Are you a dream detective? Do you search your thoughts and analyze your dreams hoping that God has spoken to you? You have discovered one truth. Dreams and visions are a promise from God for the last days. " 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." Acts 2:17

The mad rush today to declare a dream from God has caused much confusion and deception in the church world. Most dreams are not from God. So how do we know what is from God and what is not from God?

The claims for dreams today must find their criteria for truth from the examples of the dreams in the New Testament. Mounties don’t study counterfeit money. Mounties don’t study how people counterfeit money. They study the real thing. So when examining dreams from God, let us examine the real thing.

The New Testament records 15 dreams in total that were from God. Today millions of people are claiming dreams from God but are they from God? When we examine New Testament dreams we see that they happened at significant times in history. God’s people received dreams at the time of Jesus’ birth. Seven dreams transpired at the birth of the church.

The chart below does not include all dreams in the New Testament. However, when you examine all the dreams from the New Testament that were given to God’s people; there are several obvious patterns and conclusions you can make. These observations provide for us a guide that we may know for a certainty what dreams are from God. Finish the chart.

Characteristics of Dreams from God

1. God gave a dream for a very needy purpose. The dream was given out of necessity. Paul’s vision on the road to Damascus awoke Paul to a reality of Jesus Christ. Paul was convinced that the truth was still founded in the old covenant. Peter’s vision of a sheet that had fallen from heaven convinced him that God was now providing salvation to the Gentiles. This was almost unthinkable before this time. Dreams at the time of Jesus’ birth guided and protected the wisemen, Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus. These were all dreams of necessity. God does not give us dreams to make us feel good or make us more spiritual or to make us famous. Dreams are not a sign of " true spirituality." However many so called "spiritual" people are more spirit conscious and not necessarily righteous and acceptable before God. Heathens have dreams.

2. There was no doubt in their mind that the dream was from the Lord. Why? There seemed to be always an angel of the Lord that identified himself. To Paul the Lord himself was in the dream. The person in the dream clearly made himself known. Peter knew it was the Lord in his dream. It was never God the Father that appeared in a dream nor was it a dead saint.

3. New Testament dreams glorified God and Jesus Christ. Paul was saved. Mary and Joseph was delivered from the evil arm of Herod.

4. Each dream came to the person for whom it was intended. James did not receive a dream that was intended for Mary and Joseph. Peter did not have a vision so that Paul would be saved.

5. Non of these believers were looking for a dream or expecting a dream. Non sought after a dream.

6. How clear were these dreams? Each dream from God was clear. None were jumbled up, nor in riddles, and they needed no interpretation. Man’s perceptions were not mixed into these visions. There was no need for interpretation. The message was clear.

7. Each dream required a response from those that had the dreams? The people who received a dream acted upon that dream in obedience to God. Mary and Joseph went to Egypt. The wisemen went home a different route. Paul believed.

The world and the church are encouraging people to focus attention on dreams. People are encouraged today to record all their dreams and they are encouraged to interpret their dreams.

What are the dangers of focusing attention on dreams?

1. Men’s eyes are taken away from the Word of God and focused on dreams.

2.You can be deceived if you search for dreams or visions. Dreams and visions from God although promised are not daily occurrences. When God speaks, there is no doubt.

3.You develop a wrong concept of dreams and forget the Biblical purposes of dreams.

What is the danger of recording dreams?

People are encouraged to enter an altered state of consciousness through meditation, focusing, visualization, shamanism and kundalini practices to obtain a vision.

We have learned that many today think they hear the voice of God in Altered States of Consciousness. Now in the prophetic movement the church is being encouraged to enter altered states of consciousness. Others may call it "carpet time," or prayer time. However, in these altered states of consciousness the church is receiving thousands of pseudo dreams. Many of these dreams are eschatological and falsely foretell what is going to happen in the last days. These people are in danger of the judgment of Revelation 22:18.

For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book.

1. Never manipulate the mind into a dream-like state. Dreams from God and are given only when God chooses to do so.
2. When God gives a dream you will know it is from Him. There will be no doubt.
3. A dream from God will follow Biblical patterns for dreams as discussed above. No dream from God will contradict what is in Scripture.
4. A dream from God will require an action of obedience because dreams are given for a very needy and immediate purpose.
5. Dreams are not for the purpose of teaching you new truth or giving new revelation about Christ or the future. Dreams are for guidance or protection.
6. For-telling dreams are rare and will never add to apocalyptic Revelation that is already given.
7. If the Lord has a message for you He does not give it to someone else.
8. Dreams are not to be pursued, analyzed, studied as a science, worshipped as divine inspiration. There is no need when they are clear.

1. Take a look at the dreamer
2. Examine the message- Does the dream follow the pattern of Biblical examples?
3. Examine the How? How is the dream achieved? Is it dropped from above or are earthly psychological or new age methods used to obtain the dream.

Your dream from God will follow after the pattern and characteristics of New Testament dream.

This article is taken from the series of lessons called "God Speaks, The Spirit Speaks Today."

Copywrite by Carolyn Chapman