Visions & DreamsVisions & Dreams

Acts 2:17• Ushering the establishment of the Church• The fulfillment of the prophecy of the

Prophet Joel• Old men dream dreams• Young men see visions

– They provide inspiration & zeal in the church– Future leaders

• Both dreamers and the visionaries must be:

1. Filled with The Spirit• I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh

– Rabbi Tanchum says, “When Moses laid his hands upon Joshua, the holy blessed God said, In the time of the old text, each individual prophet prophesied; but, in the times of the Messiah, all the Israelites shall be prophets.”

– All baptized disciple are filled with Spirit

• If the spirit within us withers, so too will all the world we build around us. - Theodore Roszak

Challenge: Keep the Zeal

2. Bearer of the Truth • Your sons and your daughters shall

prophesy– The word prophesy is not to be understood

here as implying the knowledge and discovery of future events; but signifies to teach and proclaim the great truths of God

– Now not just Israelites but also Gentiles– Insights?

Challenge: Keep on Preaching the Truth

3. Driven by Desire• Old men dream dreams

– DREAMS In the Ancient Near Eastern world dreams were real.

– They were not an extension of one’s conscious or unconscious mind.

– Dreams were the world of the divine and the demonic. Dreams had meaning, too.

– They often revealed the future. – They could show the dreamer the right decision to

make.

3. Driven by Desire– The dreams of common people were

important to them, but the dreams of kings and of holy men or women were important on a national or international scale.

– Dreams were important in the Old Testament, too. Israel was forbidden to use many of the divining practices of her neighbors, but over a dozen times God revealed something through a dream.

3. Driven by Desire• Young Men See Visions

– VISION An experience in the life of a person, whereby a special revelation from God was received.

– The revelation from God had two purposes. • First, a vision was given for immediate direction

– As with Abram in Genesis 12:1-3; Lot, Genesis 19:15; Balaam, Numbers 22:22-40; and Peter, Acts 12:7.

• Second, a vision was given to develop the kingdom of God

– By revealing the moral and spiritual deficiencies of the people of God in light of God’s requirements for maintaining a proper relationship with Him. The vision of prophets such as Isaiah, Amos, Hosea, Micah, Ezekiel, Daniel, and John are representative of this aspect of revelation.

Challenge: Keep on Dreaming