False Shepherds
Dreams are one of the many ways God talks with His children. When we are awake, there are many distractions. When we are asleep, mental barriers are gone. It’s heaven’s chance to speak to us. God sends dreams to guide, encourage, and warn us. A warning dream uncovers evil that’s currently happening or evil that’s on its way. An example of this is a warning dream about false shepherds I recently experienced.
My Warning Dream
The dream featured a large house. Its interior lights were off. As I walked through the front door, I walked into a large room. In the room stood one man who seemed to be unaware of my presence. He was void of spiritual light and motionless. He stood near a sliding glass door. The only light in the house was the sunlight streaming through this door. The man fixated on the area of the floor close to his feet.
Curious to know what he was staring at, I glanced at the floor. To my shock, I saw a helpless baby close to death. My heart sank at the sight of it. I was stunned to see the man not helping it. Instead, he was watching it die. Immediately, I swooped the baby into my arms, holding it close.
In the lowlight of the room, I saw what I believed to be a couch nearby. As I sat down on the couch next to me, I discovered another helpless baby. It was better than the one I picked up from the floor but still in bad condition. So, I picked up this baby as well. Then I discovered a cozy baby blanket. I placed the blanket on my lap, gently wrapping it around both babies. Somehow, I knew putting them together increased their chances of survival.
As I held them on my lap, I bent over the swaddled babies adding the warmth of my body to theirs. I watched as they gradually warmed up. Finally, they opened their beautiful eyes and smiled at me. My thoughts now turned to the man. I looked up and saw him standing in the exact location I found him. He was uncaring, detached, and absent of any spiritual light. I woke up.
Dream Interpretation
Most dreams need interpretation. This one was no different. So, I asked the Holy Spirit: What did this dream mean? Who does it concern? He downloaded this interpretation into my spirit. I believe the following explanation lines up with the truth found in the Bible.
The dark, cold house represents churches void of the Holy Spirit. The man represents false shepherds pastoring these churches. These shepherds have no compassion for their flock and don’t care about their spiritual growth. The babies represent the two categories of believers at various stages of spiritual decline: believers who aren’t spiritually growing and believers spiritually dying.
My actions represent the divine intervention of Jesus. The baby blanket represents the comfort of the Holy Spirit. The placement of the two babies together in the blanket means fellowship with other believers producing a better spiritual survival rate. The babies’ condition began horribly and ended beautifully under the care of their faithful Shepherd Jesus and their comforter, the Holy Spirit.
Traits of False Shepherds
Today, there are false shepherds pastoring churches worldwide. They fleece the flock for their financial gain. They don’t care for the sick and aren’t concerned about their spiritual growth. Instead, they entertain the sheep with the same attractions of music and performances found in the world. They use worldly business methods rather than depending on Heavenly Father and promote self-advancement as their top priority. In other words, they are ‘wolves in sheep’s clothing’ as Acts 20:29 says, “Imposters who have no loyalty to the flock will come among you like savage wolves.”
Leaving False Shepherds and Dead Churches
Life is a series of letting go. Leaving a false shepherd or a dead church isn’t unloving. It’s the wise thing to do. If you believe your pastor is a false shepherd or the church you attend is absent of the Holy Spirit, pray asking Jesus to lead you to a true pastor and a Holy Spirit-filled life-giving church. Don’t allow fear to keep you from moving forward. It’s choices like these when a brave life begins. Ask Jesus for the courage to say what you need to say and do what you need to do.
To sum up my dream, this is a ‘heads up’ message. Jesus, the Good Shepherd, profoundly cares about His flock’s spiritual survival. Is yours or a friend’s at risk?
“In the last days, times will be hard. You see, the world will be filled with narcissistic, money-grubbing, pretentious, arrogant, and abusive people. They will rebel against their parents and will be ungrateful, unholy, uncaring, coldhearted, accusing, without restraint, savage, and haters of anything good. Expect them to be treacherous, reckless, swollen with self-importance, and given to loving pleasure more than they love God. Even though they may look or act like godly people, they’re not. They deny His power. I tell you: Stay away from the likes of these.”
2 Timothy 3:1-5 (VOICE)