Does Joel 2:28 predict that people during the present time will have gifts of prophecy and visions?

Joel 2:28: (KJV) “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.”

A key indication that Joel 2:28 primarily refers to a future time period and not the present day is that the prophecy describes a time when God’s holy spirit (His power and influence) will be given to all mankind (“I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh”). Many in the world today do not know God, or they have an incorrect understanding of Him and His character and are not led by His holy spirit. However, in the fulness of God’s plan, mankind will be re-educated and brought back into harmony with God (as described in Isaiah 65 and Zephaniah 3:9, among other places). 

A further indication that Joel 2:28 primarily refers to a future time period is indicated by the preceding verses of the chapter. They describe the churn and trouble associated with the transition period between the ending of the current age of God’s plan for mankind and the beginning of the next. This period of time, referred to as “a time of trouble” in Daniel 12:1, will be indicative of the imperfect establishments and institutions of man being dismantled so that the new perfect and just systems of God’s kingdom may replace them. After describing this time of trouble for the majority of the chapter, verse 28 states that the verse takes place “afterward.” Thus, the outpouring of the holy spirit to all mankind referred to in Joel 2:28 must happen after “the time of trouble” during the period of mankind’s reharmonization with God, again pinning this outpouring as a future event.

After the holy spirit was poured out to the apostles after Jesus’ death, there was a brief period when God’s holy spirit granted certain members of the early Christian churches with special gifts, such as speaking in tongues and seeing visions. Some of the people gathered around the apostles at this time questioned these gifts (Acts 2:6-13), leading the Apostle Peter to quote Joel 2:28 in Acts 2:16-17. Peter’s quoting of the verse reminded the gathered people that these types of gifts could be expected when given by God. Having served their purpose in helping to establish the early Christian churches, the gifts faded and were replaced by the need for faith (1 Corinthians 13:11-13). The outpouring of the holy spirit to all people will, as indicated in Joel 2, happen during the next age in God’s plan.