A dream...by Shaaron Coleman
I’d like to share a dream I had the other night:
Five of us were in a car, traveling to the Gold Bar (a small town in the foothills of Washington’s Cascade mountain range) to find my friend Susan, who works in Government. When we got to Gold Bar we found that it was not a small town, but rather a huge city, complete with enormous glass skyscrapers! We didn’t know Susan’s address, so we were relying on God to help us find her.
The Symbolism
FIVE speaks to me of the FIVE-FOLD MINISTRY as defined in Ephesians 4:11-13:
“And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ; till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”
FIVE is also the number of GRACE. Four represents the world, man’s weakness and helplessness and vanity. But four plus one is significant of Divine Strength added to and made perfect in weakness.
GOLD speaks of DEITY, and the GLORY OF GOD. A “Gold Bar” would be a very weighty and valuable treasure! Revelation 21:18 tells us the New Jerusalem is “pure gold, like clear glass.” Therefore, “Gold Bar” in the dream signifies the great City of God, and the Kingdom of Heaven. A "bar" is also a measure, or standard...thus we "raising the bar" to the "gold" standard of the Kingdom of Heaven.
SUSAN means LILY. Jesus is the Lily of the Valley, the humble and beautiful one…the object of our affection! Song of Solomon 2 says that the Bride of Christ is "Like a lily among thorns."
Isaiah 9:7 promises us that “Of the increase of His GOVERNMENT and PEACE there will be no end.”
An Eternal Perspective: We’re All on a Journey – And Nobody Has Arrived Yet!
I believe that in this dream God was reminding me to keep an eternal perspective on temporal situations. It boils down to this: The entire Body of Christ is quite simply on a pilgrimage to find Jesus and be more like Him. He can’t be found on a map…we don’t even know His address. We must rely on the Holy Spirit to lead us! And what looks like a huge dip in the road to us may in reality be a pool to collect His blessing after the rains.
Psalm 84:5-7 says, “Happy are those who are strong in the Lord, who set their minds on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. When they walk through the Valley of Weeping, it will become a place of refreshing springs, where pools of blessing collect after the rains! They will continue to grow stronger, and each of them will appear before God in Jerusalem.”
Great Grace: Mercy Triumphs over Judgment
As I was pondering the great controversy currently swirling in the realm of Charismatic Christianity, I felt that God spoke this to me, “Mercy Triumphs over Judgment.” I couldn’t remember the context, so I had to look it up. It is found in James 2:8-13.
If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, "Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. For he who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not murder." If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker. Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!
In the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5), Jesus told us that under the New Covenant murder is defined as hatred of a brother, and adultery is defined as looking at someone other than our spouse with sexual lust! I place a high value on integrity, and I’d never try to excuse away sin. But under the strict standards of the Kingdom of Heaven, are any of us really worthy to cast the first stone?
The One Who is Worthy to Rule
The whole message of the Gospel is mercy…Jesus did not come into the world to condemn it but to save it. He’s the Lamb of God who laid down his life to redeem you and me…although we are quite clearly a bunch of bozos!
Jesus, the Lily of the Valley, is our model. God is not looking for people who can spot the speck in the eye of another…that is quite easy for anyone! He is looking for people who will risk themselves…their reputation…their very life…to bring Heaven to earth.
Todd Bentley is being dealt with by fathers and mothers who have taken a risk to invest in his life. These are the ones who have the authority to bring godly correction.
As for the rest of us, our job is much simpler. We must just keep loving Jesus and praying, “Thy Kingdom COME!”
Sharon Coleman is part of the core team of FFRC/Bellingham.
