Gateway People

Genesis 28:10-17 Now Jacob went out from Beersheba and went toward Haran. So he came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. And he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep. Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.  Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.” And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!”

The truth is that I am fascinated by gates. I love double gates! While in Egypt September of 2009, I had friends take pictures of me standing by them. The older the better. I like how I feel when I go through them. I have access or a right. I know the code or I am known. I have one in my house to go from my front driveway to the back garage. I love pushing the button commanding it to open or to close it. It’s one of the little things in life that bring a smile to my face. My church is also Gateway church. The name also came from this very same scripture in Genesis. They seem to follow me or I follow them.

I had a strange dream a few weeks ago; very different from Jacob’s to say the least.

I had arrived with a group of people to a place of rest. Like an oasis in the middle of the dessert. It was located in the middle of people’s journey as a temptation to stop and relax for a while. A “transitional place” before you continue on. But I happened to come in through the back of this place and saw dead bodies with missing heads hanging on a motorized hanging clothes line. The people walking in had no idea what they would walk into but were so happy to be there. Smiles everywhere, place was packed and the line to get in was long. We immediately began to try and find a way to leave this place and we did. In the dream I knew that only those that were with me were the ones able to escape because there was no way anyone would believe even if we told them. They didn’t see what we saw.

What I have now realized, as I’ve asked the Lord for a revelation of this dream is that the people are all asked to stop and “rest” into a way of thinking that would eventually lead to their death. We need to see, have new revelation, a new way of thinking. A new transformed mind to escape “the way that seems right to a man, but it leads to death” Proverbs 16:25

If I hadn’t come through the back, and had not seen what the outcome would be, I too would have died along with those that were with me.

A gate is a place of transition and access. Just like our driveway to the backyard.
The Word says in Matthew 7:13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.

In my dream, there were more that were entering this place than the ones that were escaping it, just as His word says.

Romans 12:2 "And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God."

The good news is that a renewed mind sees the way God sees. We all need the Lord to show us the back way, the new revelation to expand our capacity to see life from His perspective or we perish. 

In Psalms 32:8 "I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye."I believe this promise in His Word explains how He will guide us.  He will guide us by showing us what He sees. 

Hosea 4:6 "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge."

Ephesians 1:17 "I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation so that you may know Him better." (NIV)

The mind is the gatekeeper of the kingdom of God. It is the place of access, transition, and power.

Matthew 16:23 "But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.”

The gates of hell are also in our minds any time we agree with the enemy too. We empower him and become a gate to release his power to kill, steal, and destroy.

We have to separate our thoughts to learn to distinguish good from evil in our minds. To reject whatever this world throws at us and agree with what’s already in heaven. To not look at the enemy long enough to be impressed by him or agree with him and react in fear but to stay focused and respond in faith to God’s Word and agree with Him. To wake up from our sleep or our places of “rest” or complacency, because everyone is going that way.

We all need an awakening from Jesus. To realize like Jacob that we are the “houses of God”, the Gates of heaven.

O Lord, I pray for us to learn to be Gateway people that agree with heaven all the time, to let our minds be the gates of heaven where angels ascend and descend freely on assignments from God. To reject agreeing with the enemy allowing him access and come into agreement with the Father for the release of blessings fulfilling our destiny of being the houses of God here on earth. The gates of heaven!
In Jesus’ name, Amen!