Dreams and Interpretation 2

The human spirit can pick up signals beyond the five senses. 

Have you ever had a dream that felt so real when you woke up that you just knew it must mean something serious?

Pilate’s wife had such an experience. She sent word to her husband, saying, “Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him” (Matthew 27:19).

Her dreams were not a mental overflow; they were real, and she acted upon them by sending word to her husband. 

Pharaoh’s officials also had dreams the same night that perplexed them and stole their joy. They woke up feeling sad.

You see, humans have spirits and live in bodies.  The human spirit is capable of picking up signals beyond the natural senses.

In the account of Job, it is written that “God openeth the ears of men (their spiritual ears, not physical ones) and sealeth their instruction” (Job 33:16).  

Well, in a previous article, I explained that God reveals, warns, and directs people through dreams, and I gave several examples (see the full article here).

In Scripture, some dreams are plain and straightforward, while others come in symbols and dark speeches. For instance, God warned Abimelech in a dream in Genesis 20:3.

When he woke up, he gathered his servants, explained the dream to them, and knew exactly what was required of him: return Sarah.

He didn’t need any interpretation at all. Similarly, when Jacob saw the angels of God ascending and descending in his dream, he built an altar and made a vow (Genesis 28:10–19).

He didn’t need any interpretation for that either. What about Joseph, Mary’s husband?

The angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and instructed him to take Mary as his wife; he didn’t need anyone to interpret what he saw.

Later, the angel warned him in another dream to take the child Jesus and His mother and flee to Egypt; he didn’t look for an interpreter either.

Similarly, when Herod died, the Lord spoke to Joseph in a dream. Joseph never had the privilege of seeing an angel in person, as Mary did, but in four separate instances when he was at a crossroads, God gave him direction through dreams.

Each time, he understood clearly what to do and obeyed (Matthew 1:20; 2:12–13, 19). Notice that all these examples concerned their personal safety or that of their families. Even Joseph, the governor of Egypt, understood his dreams (Genesis 42:9).

I have had some experiences in this area of dreams, too. The most recent happened several months back, more than a year ago, I suppose.

The Lord opened my eyes in the night. I saw a fellow brother struggling with a decision. Let me be clear: I wasn’t praying to see this brother in my dream.

In fact, I wasn’t really thinking about him, and well, I wasn’t praying for him at that time before the dream.

We reconnect occasionally, but we’re both busy. When I woke up, I prayed briefly for him, but felt more impressed to speak with him.

I left him a message asking him to reply so we could find a time that worked for both of us to chat. I knew the Lord might want me to reach out to him, so I did.

I explained what I saw, and he confirmed that it was exactly what he was going through. Notice, I wasn’t bringing him any new information.

There are times when God brings a revelation to prepare us for what is to come, not because we don’t know what is going on with us.

For instance, when Agabus spoke by the Holy Ghost to Paul that the Jews would bind him in Jerusalem, he wasn’t actually bringing any new information to Paul.

The Holy Spirit had already witnessed everywhere that bonds and afflictions awaited him.

Not only that, the Lord had shown Paul how much he would suffer for His sake, and Paul said, “I am not only willing to be bound but also to die in Jerusalem” (see the full account in Acts 20:23–24; 21:10–14).

That said, the Lord was simply showing me what was going on with him at that point. So, I encouraged him and told him to consider his decision carefully and take it to the Lord in prayer.

I made it clear: I had no specific instructions to give him. He is a child of God. He should handle the matter scripturally. I am writing this so that we can learn.

Please, kindly refrain from calling or writing to ask if I have a dream for you. And don’t post your dream, expecting me to interpret it. God is alive. Praise the Lord!

But for some, dreams aren’t straightforward and clear. They are so symbolic that you may wonder what the dream means; just like Peter wondered what the vision he had seen meant.

He only saw a giant sheet coming down to him in his trance, with all sorts of unclean animals, and a voice saying, “Peter, slay and eat,” three times. The sheet was then taken up to heaven after he objected (Acts 10:9–17).

I’ve heard some Christians say that Pharaoh and Nebuchadnezzar had such symbolic dreams because they were unbelievers.

Not always. Peter’s was not a dream but a vision, and yet he struggled for a moment to make sense of it, until the Holy Ghost spoke.

Well, thank God for the Holy Spirit. It’s beautiful to be a child of God. Glory to God!

So, for Pharaoh, his imprisoned servants, and Nebuchadnezzar, their dreams came in symbols and dark speeches. They understood nothing and needed an interpreter.

Therefore, they sought interpreters. Joseph and Daniel were supernaturally used by God to interpret those dreams (Genesis 41:24; Daniel 2:25).

Notice my use of the word ‘supernaturally.’ They did not speculate or guess; they understood the meaning supernaturally.

Did they have the “gift of interpretation of dreams”? No. That is what religion has often called it. I will show you, in future write-ups, which gifts actually operated in their lives.

But for now, we still have some ground to cover concerning the other two sources of dreams.