Seeing Spiritual Experience and Church Life through the Principle of the Dream

 

Seeing Spiritual Experience and Church Life through the Principle of the Dream

Luke 1:37 For nothing is impossible for God.

Luke 18:27 Jesus said to him, “What is impossible for man is possible for God.”

Psalm 126:1 We were like dreamers when the Lord brought the captives back to Zion.

Jeremiah 32:27 “I am the Lord, God of all flesh; is anything too hard for me?”

Genesis 28:11 When he came to a place, because the sun had set, he spent the night there. He took a stone from that place and put it under his head, and lay down there and slept.

Genesis 28:12 And he dreamed of a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reaching into heaven, and the angels of God going up on it and coming down.

John 1:51 And he said to him, “Very truly I tell you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God going up and coming down on the Son of Man.”

I. Overview of the Principle of the Dream

Item	Content	Scripture Reference
The principle of the dream	In a dream, things that are impossible come upon us	Luke 1:37; 18:27; Job 42:2-3; Psalm 126:1; Jer. 32:27
The nature of God	With God nothing is impossible; what is impossible with men is possible with God	Luke 1:37; Luke 18:27
The human condition	Before God’s works, we can only say, “Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know,” and we are like those who dream	Job 42:3; Psalm 126:1
God’s sovereignty	God’s purpose cannot be thwarted; nothing is too difficult for Him	Job 42:2; Jer. 32:27
When the dream comes	Mostly in times of suffering, when we are cut off from human things and can only trust in divine things	Gen. 28:10-12
The center of the dream	Christ is the ladder, the One who brings heaven to earth and joins earth to heaven	Gen. 28:12; John 1:51

II. Integrated Comparison Table

Aspect	Spiritual Vision, Experience, and Life	Knowing, Entering into, and Practicing the Church Life
Nature of the dream	Every spiritual vision is a dream, and every spiritual experience is a dream.	Entering into the church life is a dream, and knowing the practice of the church is also a dream.
Where the “impossible” lies	By ourselves we cannot see God’s revelation, nor experience God or gain His life. All of this is God’s doing and is impossible for man.	By human organization, talent, or effort, the church life cannot be produced. The church life is God’s work, something impossible with man but possible with God.
Starting point	The first dream is salvation, in which God brings the impossible upon us.	Entering the church life is a further dream after salvation, also arising from God’s leading.
Background of its coming	Mostly in suffering. We are cut off from human things and can only turn to trust in God (Jacob fleeing and sleeping with a stone for a pillow).	The reality of the church life often comes when we lose our natural, religious, and traditional supports and are brought in through the dealing of the cross.
Human response	As in Job 42:3, “too wonderful for me, which I did not know”; as in Psalm 126:1, like those who dream.	Our knowledge and practice of the church is likewise one of amazement and awe: it was not devised by man but revealed and accomplished by God.
Center	Christ is the ladder; the center of every dream is Him.	The center of the church life is also Christ; the church is the Body of Christ, His fullness (Eph. 1:23).
Joining of heaven and earth	In Christ, heaven is opened to us (John 1:51). Personal experience is the communication of heaven and earth.	The church is the house of God (corresponding to Gen. 28:17, “This is the house of God”), the place where heaven and earth communicate.
Three stages	Vision (seeing) → Experience (tasting) → Life (becoming ours).	Knowing (seeing) → Entering (receiving and being brought in) → Practicing (living it out and doing it).
Required attitude	Trusting in God, not relying on ourselves, and not being disobedient to the heavenly vision (Acts 26:19).	In the church life, likewise relying on God and obeying the vision, not using natural methods.
Result	Growth in life; God’s nature is constituted into us.	The building up of the church; the Body of Christ is expressed.

III. Corresponding Relationships

Spiritual Life (Individual)	→	Church Life (Corporate)
Vision (seeing)	→	Knowing (having a view of the revelation concerning the church)
Experience (entering into God’s work)	→	Entering (being brought into the church life)
Life (becoming ours)	→	Practicing (the church life lived out on earth)

Overall relationship:

Personal spiritual experience is the foundation of the church life, and the church life is the enlargement and expression of personal experience. Both have God as their cause (the impossible comes upon us), Christ as their content (the ladder), and trust as their path (being cut off from human things in suffering).

 

*Please refer to the 2026 Autumn Training for Elders and Responsible Brothers, General Topic: The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Part Six: The Dream of Bethel

Jacob Setting Up the Stone as a Pillar vs. Pouring Oil on the Pillar (Consolidated Table)

 

Jacob Setting Up the Stone as a Pillar vs. Pouring Oil on the Pillar (Consolidated Table)

Genesis 28:16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it!”

Genesis 28:17 Then he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God and the gate of heaven!”

Genesis 28:18 Early in the morning Jacob got up and set up the stone he had used as a pillow, and poured oil on it.

Genesis 28:19 So he called that place Bethel; 

Item	Setting up the stone he had used as a pillow as a pillar (Gen. 28:18a)	Pouring oil on top of the pillar (Gen. 28:18b)
Sequence	First: awakening from the dream and standing up the pillow	Then: oil poured on the pillar that has been set up
What it signifies	The Christ whom we experience, who has been wrought into us and in whom we rest	The Spirit as the consummation of the Triune God coming upon man
Transformation of the stone	From a personal “pillow” (my rest, my enjoyment) to a “pillar” of God’s house (for God’s building)	The anointed pillar signifies a transformed person who is one with the Triune God
Position in the building	Material and support of God’s house	Anointing and transformation, making the material the expression of God
Aspect of the divine revelation	Christ: the base and material of our experience	The Spirit: the ultimate consummation of Christ, reaching man in actuality
Main Scriptures	1 Kings 7:17, 21 (the two pillars Jachin and Boaz before the porch); Gal. 2:9 (the pillars James, Cephas, and John); Rev. 3:12 (the overcomer as a pillar in God’s temple)	Exo. 30:23-30 (the holy anointing oil anointing the tabernacle, its vessels, and the priests, sanctifying them); Luke 4:18 (the Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, for He has anointed Me)
The human side	Standing up one’s personal enjoyment for Christ and the church	Experiencing the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, even being fully baptized
Baptism in the Holy Spirit	Need not be talked about so much; simply set up the pillow as a pillar	Once the pillar is set up, the oil is poured down; this is the real baptism in the Holy Spirit
Confirmation in experience	From “Lord Jesus, I love You” to “Lord Jesus, I love Your church”	The more we speak of the church, the more excited we become, almost beyond self-control; the church life is like a dessert, richer than the main meal
Correspondence in John	John 1:42:  Simon is called Cephas (a stone)	John 1:33: the One who baptizes in the Holy Spirit; John 1:51: heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man (Jacob’s dream)
Result	Becoming a pillar in God’s temple, never to go out from it	Expressing the Triune God: inscribed with the name of God, the name of the New Jerusalem, and Christ’s new name

Key Points of the Consolidation

1.      The flow: Christ as our rest (the pillow) → man standing up for the building (the pillar) → the Spirit poured out (the oil) → transformation and oneness with the Triune God → the expression of God (God’s house, God’s name).

2.      The key is “standing up”: The baptism in the Holy Spirit is not a matter of how much we talk about it, but of whether we set up the pillow, which is for ourselves, as a pillar for God’s building. When it is set up, the oil is poured down.

3.      Christ and the church: Loving Christ is a personal enjoyment (the pillow); loving the church is for the building (the pillar). It is here that the pouring out of the Spirit is most real in experience.

4.      Both aspects are indispensable: God’s building requires both “Christ as the material” and “the Spirit as the anointing”; the former is the objective base, the latter the subjective consummation.

5.      From the individual to the corporate: Jacob’s personal experience is enlarged into the house of God and ultimately points to the New Jerusalem (Rev. 3:12).

 

*Please refer to the 2026 Autumn Training for Elders and Responsible Brothers, General Topic: The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Part Six: The Dream of Bethel

The Issue of Our Turning to Our Spirit (Integrated Table)

The Issue of Our Turning to Our Spirit (Integrated Table)

Genesis 28:12 He dreamed of a ladder set up on the earth, and its top reached into heaven, and the angels of God were on it, going up and coming down.

Genesis 28:17 Then he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God and the gate of heaven.”

Hebrews 4:16 Therefore let us approach the throne of grace with confidence, that we may be mercy and receive grace and be our timely help.

Ephesians 2:22 In him you are also being built up, becoming the dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

2 Timothy 4:22 The Lord be with your Spirit; grace be with you. 

Aspect	Issue / Result	Scriptural Basis	Key Points
① Foundation	Our regenerated spirit is God’s dwelling place today and the base on which Christ, the heavenly ladder, is set up on the earth	Eph. 2:22; 2 Tim. 4:22; Gen. 28:12	The Lord is with our spirit, and God dwells in our spirit. The ladder is “set up on the earth,” and this earth is our spirit
② The immediate experience of turning	We experience Christ as the ladder, bringing God to us and bringing us to God	Gen. 28:12; John 1:51	Christ is the heavenly ladder joining heaven and earth, linking our spirit to heaven and bringing heaven into our spirit
③ The place we enter	We enter the Holy of Holies and meet God at the throne of grace	Heb. 4:16 (cf. Heb. 10:19-22)	The moment we turn to our spirit, we enter the Holy of Holies. The Holy of Holies is not far away; it is in our spirit
④ The gate of entry	We enter the gate of heaven	Gen. 28:16-17	Our spirit is Bethel: the house of God and the gate of heaven. After Jacob awoke he said, “Surely Jehovah is in this place,” and today, when we turn to our spirit, we likewise recognize that God is right here
⑤ The reality we touch	We touch the throne of grace in heaven, receive mercy, find grace, and obtain timely help	Heb. 4:16	Every time we turn to our spirit, we touch the throne through Christ as the heavenly ladder and receive God’s supply
⑥ Four realities where the ladder is	An open heaven (heaven open to us, with no barrier between us and God)	Gen. 28:12; John 1:51	“You will see heaven opened.” Heaven and earth are unobstructed
	A transformed man  (a natural man transformed)	Gen. 28:13-15 (cf. Gen. 32:28, Jacob renamed Israel)	God’s presence, promise, and keeping transform the natural Jacob into Israel
	The anointing oil  (the anointing of Christ)	Gen. 28:18 (the stone set up as a pillar, oil poured on top)	This man has the anointing oil upon him, a type of the anointing of the Holy Spirit and the mingling with Christ
	The house of God  (the building)	Gen. 28:17, 19; Eph. 2:22	The house of God is built with this transformed, anointed man
⑦ The ultimate result	First Bethel, which is the church, the Body of Christ, and finally the consummation in the New Jerusalem	Gen. 28:17; Eph. 2:21-22; Rev. 21:2-3, 10-11	Bethel is the initial appearing of God’s house, the church is its reality today, and the New Jerusalem is its eternal consummation, which is the ultimate completion of the ladder

One-Sentence Summary

Turn to the spirit → Christ as the ladder → enter the Holy of Holies / the gate of heaven → touch the throne of grace → an open heaven, a transformed man, the anointing oil, and the house of God → Bethel (the church) → the New Jerusalem.

 

*Please refer to the 2026 Autumn Training for Elders and Responsible Brothers, General Topic: The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Part Six: The Dream of Bethel