SECRETS OF THE DREAM KEEPERS
Numbers 12:6
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR
1. a. "Doctor, I really need your help", I said. "Every night for the past two weeks I’m dreaming about some rats playing football."
b. "Here, take these pills tonight before you go to bed and you will be fine."
c. "But can I take them starting tomorrow?" "Why?" "Because tonight’s the ‘Rat Superbowl’ and I want to see who wins!”
2. I didn’t get much sleep last night, I kept dreaming I was frozen & then dropped off a cliff. I’m absolutely shattered this morning.
3. One night a man woke himself up with a loud "Hello!" to someone in his dream. The next day, he thought the nocturnal outburst was his alone to remember. But just before bed, his wife dryly, "If you see anyone you know tonight, just wave."
4. Some Intrusting Facts about Dreams
a. "Dreamt:" the only English word that ends in "mt"..
b. The average person has over 1,460 dreams a year.
c. Most dreams last only 5 to 20 minutes
d. Scientists say the higher your I.Q., the more you dream.
e. The colder the room you sleep in, the better the chances are that you’ll have a bad dream.
B. TEXT
“Listen to my words: “When there is a prophet among you, I, the Lord, reveal myself to them in visions, I speak to them in dreams” Num. 12:6.
"A dream comes when there are many cares” Eccl. 5:3.
C. THESIS
1. Visions and dreams are one of the ways God communicates with his people down through the centuries. Why can’t he just say it to us? Much that surrounds God’s workings is mysterious.
2. Maybe our subconscious can more readily receive than our conscious can "hear" the Spirit speaking. Paul said, "the natural man cannot receive the things of the spirit."
3. It may be that our mind works better in pictures. That might be why God revealed the Book of Revelation to John the revelator in pictures: he could remember them easier.
4. God said, "In the last days, says God, I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh. Your young men will see visions and your old men shall dream dreams...."
5. Visions and dreams are the language of the Holy Spirit. We are made in the image of God; God who "calls the things that be not as though they were." The vast detail and diversity of creation speaks of how mighty is the imagination of God.
6. Tonight we’re going to look at dreams in the Bible and the 5 Secrets of the dream Keepers.
I. THE NATURE OF DREAMS
A. DREAMS IN THE BIBLE
Dreams and visions are very frequent in the Bible:
1. DREAMS OF WARNING
a. Abimelech -- Genesis 20:3, 6; about Sarah
b. Laban -- Genesis 31:10-11, 24; “ Jacob
c. Magi -- Matthew 2:12; Don’t go back to Herod
d. Joseph -- Matthew 2:22-23; beware Archelaus
e. Pontius Pilate’s Wife -- Matthew 27:19
2. DREAMS OF FORETELLING FUTURE
a. Joseph -- Genesis 37:5-10 (2x); stars, wheat bow
b. Cupbearer & Baker -- Genesis 40:9-19
c. Pharaoh -- Genesis 41:1-7 (2x); 2 7 yr. periods
d. Midianite shown destruction by Gideon -- Judges 7:13;
e. Nebuchadnezzar -- Daniel 2:3 (statue);
f. Nebuchadnezzar -- Daniel 4:5 (tree cut down);
g. Dream of the four beasts -- Daniel 7:1-all.
3. DREAMS OF PROMISE
a. Solomon – 1 Kings 3:5;
b. Joseph -- Matthew 1:20; Take Mary as wife
c. Joseph -- Matthew 2:19-20; “ Jesus to Israel
d. Jacob – Gen. 28:12, ladder; 31:10 breeding
e. Abraham. Not all dreams are given while people are asleep; many people God waking visions. Abraham was told to go out side and “look at the stars and number them; so shall your descendents be!” He was called to believe what he saw physically. Probably many more examples of this exist.
B. THE DIFFICULTY OF STICKING TO DREAMS
1. Many of those who received dreams, had to wait for them to occur, sometimes for many years. Abraham, Joseph, David, Daniel, etc.
2. In order to ultimately receive the fulfillment of the dream, the person who had received it had to continue to trust that the dream would ultimately come true.
3. They had to be careful not to begin to act ungodly or to despair that their dream would never come. So they had to be, "Dream Keepers."
4. Of those who were successful, what were the secrets that helped them maintain their faith and fidelity? That is the subject of this message.
II. 5 SECRETS OF THE DREAM KEEPERS
A. KNOW THAT YOUR DREAM IS FROM GOD
1. In order not to be swayed from your journey toward fulfillment, it’s necessary to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that your dream is from the Lord.
2. “God says it, I believe it, and that settles it.” Once you know God has spoken, it’s as if it’s carved in stone. We keep the faith, hang tough, and await the fulfillment.
B. BE PREPARED FOR A LENGTHY FULFILLMENT PERIOD
1. God doesn’t always work at the speed we want. Sometimes He answers immediately, while He’s still speaking. Other times it may be many years.
2. Someone’s said, “We need to live as if Jesus’ coming today, but plan as if he weren’t coming for 1,000 years."
3. As is often quoted, "Hope deferred makes the heart sick” Prov. 13:12. At the same time, God has to prepare the way in order to move us into a position.
4. Someone must be moved out before we can be moved in. All this takes time. Esther had to wait until the King’s wife had displeased him, been deposed, and for the year-long pageant to be completed.
5. She couldn’t get too impatient. God does things in His way and in His time. We must learn patience.
C. USUALLY WE MUST GROW INTO THE POSITION
1. Imagine yourself a building (in Christ). How tall are you? A one-story structure?
A 10 story structure?
A 50-story skyscraper?
2. Do you want to be a one-story Christian with a shallow foundation -- with a convenient, comfortable, predictable Christianity? Nothing great is ever accomplished without great character!
3. Many great painters and musicians credited their sufferings as the genius behind their masterpieces.
4. Emerson said, "Oh! Do not pray for easy lives, Pray to be stronger men. Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers; Pray for powers equal to your tasks!"
5. Hebrews 10:35-36, says, "So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.”
6. Joseph wasn’t ready to be the Prime Minister of Egypt when he was first given his dreams. He had to grow in character and stature until he grew large enough to “fill the shoes” he was going to have to wear.
7. If we want to be great in God’s kingdom, we must begin preparing now and live as if we were filling the position today. Many promises have conditions. Obedience and growth are certainly requirements of receiving future upgrades of position.
D. THE DREAM BREAKERS WILL COME
1. Events will take place that:
a. seem to confirm our dreams will never happen;
b. we must have been mistaken, and that
c. instead of getting closer to our dreams, some diabolical power is actually taking us in the wrong direction!
2. Like John Bunyan in "Pilgrims Progress," we could probably invent cool terminology for the different things that break our dreams, like "The Dungeon of Discouragement," etc. But I won’t get that specific.
3. Take DAVID for example. Samuel the prophet had anointed him to be the next King. God helped him defeat Goliath. He was given the King’s daughter as his wife. He was made a high-ranking officer of the army. Then everything started going south. The King started trying to kill him. He became a fugitive and a marked man with a bounty on his head. The Army pursued him day and night everywhere he went. His wife was taken from him and married to another man. He was captured by the Philistines and only them eluded them by acting insane. The man who was his only source of income decided not to pay him. David married a new wife and started a family, but while he was gone on a trip, his family (and those of his men) were captured in a raid and their whole town burned to the ground. David went from bad to worse to worse. David almost despaired, but in prayer was strengthened by God. He recovered his family and within a short time became King of Judah, and later of all Israel.
4. With JOSEPH, it was a similar story. GOOD: He was his father’s favorite son, gifted, with a special position. BAD: His brothers betrayed him and sold him into slavery. Then he was betrayed by Potiphar’s wife. After Joseph correctly interpreted the dreams of the cup bearer and Baker, he probably thought, "This is the break I’ve been waiting for! I finally have a connection with the throne room!" This might have been the time where his dreams were broken. He was forgotten in prison by the Pharaoh’s cup bearer. Years more he lapsed. At least 13 years elapsed in total. But finally, God’s will came to pass; but it was tough going!
5. I’ve heard people talk about where they went to college and then heard one guy say, "I went to Wilderness U.” He wasn’t educated in a classroom, but in the school of hard knocks.
E. THEN COMES THE FULFILLMENT
1. As they say, "Its darkest just before the dawn." That usually seems to be the way that God does it.
2. “He sent a man before them, even Joseph, who was sold for a servant: Whose feet they hurt with fetters: he was laid in iron: Until the time that his word came: the Word of the Lord tried him. The king sent and loosed him; even the ruler of the people, and let him go free. He made him lord of his house, and ruler of all his substance: To bind his princes at his pleasure; and teach his senators wisdom.” Psalm 105:17-22.
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION
1. WHEN GOD’S VISION BECOMES PERSONAL
a. A Christian was at a missionary convention. He prayed earnestly, "O Lord, send laborers into Your harvest field."
b. Then as the Spirit carried him along he prayed, "O Lord, send someone from our state into Your harvest field."
c. He felt like that wasn’t as specific as the Lord wanted him to pray, so he prayed again, "O Lord, send someone from our church into Your harvest field!"
d. Then he paused and seemed to go through an inner struggle. At last he prayed, "I have a daughter, just one daughter; if it would be pleasing to You, send her into Your harvest field!"
2. BELIEVE THE DREAM
a. Staunch old Adm. Farragut of the American Navy (died 1870) said to another officer of the Navy, "DuPont, do you know why you didn’t get into Charleston with your ironclads?" DuPont answered, "It was because the channel was so crooked."
b. "No, DuPont, it was not that." "Well, the rebel fire was perfectly horrible." "Yes, but it wasn’t that."
c. "What was it, then?" "It was because you didn’t believe you could get in."
B. THE CALL
1. We have to stake our lives on our dreams & visions.
2. Have you had any dreams or visions that seem to have run aground? Let’s pray about them.
3. First time salvations? Anyone need healing?
