About Dream Interpretation From a Christian Perspective

The Bible records many dreams. Jacob was shown angels climbing up and down a ladder to heaven; Joseph had many dreams from God and of course interpreted Pharaoh's dream as well as those of the Pharaoh's attendants. Communication through dreams was one way that God communicated with man in the Old Testament.
In considering the modern-day Christian perspective on dream interpretation, their beliefs must be completely outlined. It is necessary for you to see if any changes have occurred in the 400 years between the Old and New Testament.

History

In ancient Biblical times, the Bible records dreams that people received to guide them in what God wanted them to do or to give them a look at the future. The people who received the dreams were the Jews, who are considered God's "Chosen People." They ultimately rejected God, and God then turned to Gentiles.
This illustration does not mean that Gentiles were afterthoughts. The New Testament sheds light on God's complete plan, which always did include Gentiles. In the years past there was no complete Bible, so God had to use extraordinary methods to speak to man.

Misconceptions

In looking at Old Testament dreams, it is often thought that the recipients of dreams were able to figure them out for themselves. But as Joseph makes clear when speaking to Pharaoh, God not only gives the dream but gives the insight for its interpretation.

Significance

The significance of the recording of the dreams in the Bible is that the reader of the Bible has a chance to see how God intervened in lives and how obedience or disobedience to his message affected people.

Theories/Speculation

There are different opinions held by Christians as to whether or not God still speaks to man in dreams. People who believe that He does point to New Testament interaction such as that of John in the Book of Revelation. However, people who do not feel that God uses dreams any longer point to the fact that the incidences were not dreams; rather, they were a direct conversation while John was awake.

Considerations

The majority of Christians are of the opinion that God no longer uses dreams to communicate with man. Their reasoning is that He has completely revealed His will in the Bible. They feel that by Bible reading, meditation and prayer, they can find His will. While God was the "Dream-Giver" in the Old Testament, today Jesus Christ is the member of the Trinity who people often look to for answers--even though God, Jesus Christ and The Holy Spirit are one and the same.

Warning

The majority of Christians look at dream interpretation as potentially dangerous. It would be difficult to ascertain whether the dream would be from God or a "run-of-the-mill" dream, and whether following what a person thought was a dream from God may be mental illness or misguidance. Jails are full of people who thought they were on a "mission from God" when they committed a crime.
Perhaps this constitutes the greatest argument against whether or not God would use dreams for communication--that if they are misinterpreted, they could cause harm.