This topic, too, is related to my discussion with Mattrose.
As a married Christian man, if you continue to have dreams about another woman, is that a sin that you need to repent of?
As a married Christian woman, if you continue to have dreams about another man, is that a sin that you need to repent of?
If you have a dream in which you acted sensually or immorally, is that a sin that you need to repent of?
Dwight
Dreams
Re: Dreams
Survey Questions:
I answered "No" because one has no control of dreams.
Even in waking hours a person may see an attractive person of the other sex, and actually feel attracted to the person. This feeling of attraction is not a sin. Feelings come and go, and are not within our control, though we can get control of them gradually through practice. For example, I get angry far less than I did when I was a young man.
Where sin comes in, is not that we have dreams or feelings, but it is where we act on those dreams or feelings.
NoAs a married Christian man, if you continue to have dreams about another woman, is that a sin that you need to repent of?
Not ApplicableAs a married Christian woman, if you continue to have dreams about another man, is that a sin that you need to repent of?
NoIf you have a dream in which you acted sensually or immorally, is that a sin that you need to repent of?
I answered "No" because one has no control of dreams.
Even in waking hours a person may see an attractive person of the other sex, and actually feel attracted to the person. This feeling of attraction is not a sin. Feelings come and go, and are not within our control, though we can get control of them gradually through practice. For example, I get angry far less than I did when I was a young man.
Where sin comes in, is not that we have dreams or feelings, but it is where we act on those dreams or feelings.
Paidion
Man judges a person by his past deeds, and administers penalties for his wrongdoing. God judges a person by his present character, and disciplines him that he may become righteous.
Avatar shows me at 75 years old. I am now 83.
Man judges a person by his past deeds, and administers penalties for his wrongdoing. God judges a person by his present character, and disciplines him that he may become righteous.
Avatar shows me at 75 years old. I am now 83.
Re: Dreams
I am of the opinion that dreams are, for the most part, simply the brain's recycling center and/or garbage dump. I don't think that people, generally, have control over the content of their dreams. Insofar as dreams are involuntary, they aren't sinful. I agree with John Wesley that there is a distinction well worth making between willful sins and infirmities.
One could, I think, have a much better chance of avoiding sexually explicit dreams by refraining from viewing sexually explicit material (pornography). I have never personally struggled with pornography, but I'd imagine that if I did, it would be a difficult (impossible?) process to unsee such images... and that could find way into one's dreams.
I do believe some dreams come from God.
And I believe it would be theoretically possible for a dream to have its source in Satan.
In fact, that was basically the conclusion most people were coming to in my thread (and its a conclusion I would tend to agree with). My dreams (at least the ones since entering into a committed relationship with my wife) were likely an (unsuccessful) attempt by Satan to tempt me toward breaking that commitment. He uses the basically unavoidable proximity of this previous love-interest at a strategic (from his point of view) time of the year to try to trip me up. It makes a lot of sense from Satan's perspective. I see her a lot during that week (camp). And since I'm the co-director of the camp (with my wife), we are absolutely exhausted by the end of the week (when the dreams usually begin and continue for a couple weeks each year). So Satan targets me at a time where she's more in my mind and where I'm physically exhausted.
Even still... it doesn't work. By the grace/presence of God I have not given way to these temptations for the decade of time in which they've occurred.
One could, I think, have a much better chance of avoiding sexually explicit dreams by refraining from viewing sexually explicit material (pornography). I have never personally struggled with pornography, but I'd imagine that if I did, it would be a difficult (impossible?) process to unsee such images... and that could find way into one's dreams.
I do believe some dreams come from God.
And I believe it would be theoretically possible for a dream to have its source in Satan.
In fact, that was basically the conclusion most people were coming to in my thread (and its a conclusion I would tend to agree with). My dreams (at least the ones since entering into a committed relationship with my wife) were likely an (unsuccessful) attempt by Satan to tempt me toward breaking that commitment. He uses the basically unavoidable proximity of this previous love-interest at a strategic (from his point of view) time of the year to try to trip me up. It makes a lot of sense from Satan's perspective. I see her a lot during that week (camp). And since I'm the co-director of the camp (with my wife), we are absolutely exhausted by the end of the week (when the dreams usually begin and continue for a couple weeks each year). So Satan targets me at a time where she's more in my mind and where I'm physically exhausted.
Even still... it doesn't work. By the grace/presence of God I have not given way to these temptations for the decade of time in which they've occurred.