Sometimes it Takes a Dream

Mat 1:20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.

Was Joseph a man of faith? Of course he was, or he would not have been chosen to be the step father of Jesus. But why would he need a dream? Shouldn’t he just have believed Mary’s word? Maybe so, but sometimes that dream is just enough for us to have the truth confirmed.

The Scripture is replete with godly folks receiving instructions from the Lord or His angels by way of dreams.

Dreams were a way God used in speaking to people. We now have a complete revelation from God to man, the Bible. Heb 1:1, 2 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; See also I Timothy 3:16, 17.

But even today, the Word of God and the people of God are not allowed access into different parts of the world. There, it seems God is speaking to people in dreams. In the Arab world, where poor souls are steeped in the darkness of Islam, God is lovingly telling people that Jesus is the Messiah via nocturnal meditations. And they are responding in large numbers.

But, let's change gears a bit to talk about a different type of dream, another type of vision which God uses. A lot of folks seem to lack inspiration and vision. They don't dream big, they have no goal, no ambition to do great things. Therefore, they don't step out by faith and take a stab at doing something lofty.

I remember standing with Dr. David Cavin in the foyer of the new building of High Street Baptist Church of Springfield, MO. It is a beautiful edifice for the Lord's work with an auditorium seating capacity of several thousand. He said to me, "This is the dream of an old man come true."

I remember hearing from my mentor how he had always dreamed of having 1000 in church on a Sunday morning and how blessed and humbled he was when it finally happened after several decades of ministry.

Martin Luther King had a dream. That dream was not completely accomplished in his lifetime, but it mostly came to pass in time.

I have always had a dream also, it seems to have been derailed by events in my life, but I haven't given up on that dream for the Lord. Granted, He has blessed me abundantly beyond that dream in so many other ways, that I will not be in the least bit disappointed if it is never fulfilled. Yet, I continue to dream and work toward that vision.

Do you have a dream? Something so big that only God can accomplish for you with your complete cooperation?

It's one thing to receive an angelic visitation in the middle of the night, but it is even better to work from the completed Scriptures to accomplish something so great that everyone will know, it was a "God thing."