I had a dream of the Lord last night.  He called me to Him and held me in His arms for a while.  I could even smell His hair in my dream.  He said to me that the lion will soon lay down with the lamb.  Could you explain that?

Sincerely,
Sheepish

Dear Sheepish,

The days of dreams and visions have passed.  In the past, God spoke to various people through dreams, visions, and prophecy, but today He speaks to us through His Son, Jesus Christ (Heb 1:1-2).  Now that we have the complete and perfect Bible – there is no need for God to give people individual dreams or visions.  It is through the Word of God that we learn how to live faithfully (Rom 10:17).

We are sure that your dream means something, but it doesn’t mean anything supernatural or prophetic.  What you had was not a vision.  Prophets have visions, and there are no more prophets since we have the perfect and complete Word of God (1 Cor 13:8-10).  The human mind is a complex and wondrous thing (Ps 139:14).  It is perfectly normal for our minds to make mental connections as we pray, study, sleep, etc.  Those mental images aren’t visions; they are just your own thoughts as your mind meditates upon what you have said, read, or heard.

     Recently, I've been doing what I feel is the right thing to do and come clean about an issue.  Granted, my honesty has cost me my job, ended my relationship with my girlfriend, and caused me to move back home with my parents.  I'm at peace with the situation because I feel like coming clean was the right thing to do, and I have faith, knowing that God will be glorified through this, and I know God will take care of me.  I've reached a point where I've concluded that I've turned my entire life over to God for His will and purposes with no concern for my wants.  With this being said, how do I know if I’m being led by God in an action or not?  I find myself frequently overthinking and have a hard time determining if what I’m doing is God’s will for me or not.  I’m willing to continue correspondence if needed, so feel free to ask me a question back for clarity.  Thank you, and God bless.

Sincerely,
Cleaning Up My Act

Dear Cleaning Up My Act,

It sounds like your heart is in the right place, and we commend you for making so many sacrifices to have a pure conscience.  Turning to God and turning away from sin can sometimes cost us a lot – there is a reason Jesus referred to serving Him as “taking up your cross” (Matt 16:24).  Good for you for taking the path less traveled.

So how can you know day to day what decisions are best?  Paul told Timothy that he was approved by God when he rightly handled the Word of Truth (2 Tim 2:15).  Many people wholeheartedly believe that they are pleasing to God but will be condemned on the Day of Judgment (Matt 7:22-23).  Feelings can be deceptive, but God’s Word is unchanging, unbiased, and able to rightly divide our lives and character (Heb 4:12).  If you want to know whether or not you are pleasing God, compare your life to the Scriptures.  “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God (Rom 10:17).”

Secondly, when you are faced with decisions that aren’t right or wrong (i.e. where to move, what job to take, large financial decisions, etc.), God tells us to pray for wisdom (Jas 1:5).  Before we make any major decision, we should pray that the Lord’s will be done before our own (Jas 4:15).  This way, you can have confidence that while you are trying to make wise decisions, the Lord will bless you in even the non-biblical issues.

     I need clarity... if you have a calling in your life and haven’t answered it, is it the same as making a vow and not keeping it?  I’m confused; is God asking you to make a vow when you are called, and is there a penalty for not doing so?

Sincerely,
Not Picking Up

Dear Not Picking Up,

The confusion you are having is probably because it sounds like you think that God directly speaks to people and “calls” them to do different things… that isn’t the case.

The way that God gives us instruction about life is through the Bible (Rom 10:17, Rom 1:16, 2 Pet 3:21).  The days of prophecy and God speaking directly to people have passed away, and now, He speaks to us through the words of His Son (Heb 1:1-2).  If God commands us to do something in the Bible, we must do it (Jhn 15:14).  If we make a promise to do something, we must do it (Matt 5:37).  But if you have a feeling that you should do something or you are trusting in what you perceive is God’s voice calling you to act a certain way – there is no obligation to act because it isn’t God.

     My wife and I are having a debate.  I think it's a debate on the definition of sin.  My wife asserts that because Jesus was a sinless human, He was therefore an appropriate sacrifice for mankind, and the only thing that allowed Him to not sin was that He was God.  I, on the other hand, state that anything God does is, by default, not sin (or anti-sin).  Therefore, anything He does is not sin.  It sounds the same, but my wife says He had the option to sin but chose not to while I say whatever He did would be anti-sin no matter what He chose to do.  Any thoughts?

Sincerely,
Right By Default?

Dear Right By Default,

Your wife is right; Jesus had the option to sin, but He chose not to.  Heb 4:15 says that Jesus was tempted in all ways like we are, yet without sin.  If Jesus was incapable of sinning, He couldn’t be tempted to do it.  You can’t be tempted to turn into a fish because that would be impossible, but you can be tempted to eat too much, be lazy, lose your temper, etc.
Jesus was actually tempted to sin, but He simply chose not to.  A great example of this is when the devil tempted Jesus in the wilderness in Mat 4:1-11.  The devil tried to get Jesus to sin (which tells you that the devil believed it was possible), but Jesus answered each temptation with Scripture and firm conviction.

     Does God get sad if you don't pray some nights and just go to sleep because you’re tired?

Sincerely,
Sleepy

Dear Sleepy,

That is a tricky question because the Bible never tells us exactly when we must pray.  For example, the Bible never says, “You must pray at bedtime.”  We have examples of people praying at all sorts of different times.  The principle is that we should have a habit of praying (1 Thess 5:17).  Dan 6:10 talks about Daniel having the custom of praying to God three times a day.  It isn’t about one prayer missed or made; it is about building a lifestyle of prayer.