Daywalker
June 1st 2004, 01:45 PM
A History of Dispensational Thought...
Change. God demands it. Men fear it. The only thing constant in life, is change...
This is not meant to be an exhaustive history of dispensationalism by any means. Rather, I would like to give a brief history of dispensational THOUGHT. Not all of the men that I will mention are as educated or as informed on Bible teachings as we are today, but that is okay...God used them like he uses us, by his mercy. The point is that there is historical documentation that "Dispensationalism" is by no means a new concept to Christianity.
Changes in God's dealings with mankind has always been resisted for the sake of tradition, the status quo, or other such reasons.
Amos 3:1 Hear this word that the LORD hath spoken against you,
O children of Israel, against the whole family which
I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying,
3:2 You only have I known of all the families of the
earth: therefore I will punish you for all your
iniquities.
The only people that God dealt with as a group in the OT was Israel. Doubtlessly, there were saints in other locations and other bloodlines. However, the only people that God dealt with as a GROUP was Israel. Others were dealt with in how they reacted to Israel. As time went on, God expanded his dealings to reach other nations for his government, but not without the Jew as still being first in God's dealings.
Israel was the channel of blessings to the world:
Romans 9:1 I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience
also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost,
9:2 That I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in
my heart.
9:3 For I could wish that myself were accursed from
Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the
flesh:
9:4 Who are Israelites; to whom [pertaineth] the
adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the
giving of the law, and the service [of God], and the
promises;
Not just that Israel once had the adoption, but that they were still the channel..."to whom PERTAINETH the adoption". Not just that (during Acts) they had those elements in v. 4, but that it still could be said of them, PRESENTLY when Paul wrote Romans.
9:5 Whose [are] the fathers, and of whom as concerning
the flesh Christ [came], who is over all, God blessed
for ever. Amen.
There are those that are of the nations that are grafted into Israel during the Acts period. They are called "Gentiles" for they are "of the nations". I would argue that they are those of the direct seed of Abraham who were living as the nations, hence, they were called Gentiles. In fact, if you were to look up the ref. in Rom. 9:24-29 you will see Paul discuss Jews and Gentiles...if you look up the cross ref. in the OT, you will see that they are of Israel. Again, when a Jew lived as the Gentiles (and was perhaps, "cut off" as well) he could be called a Gentile for he WAS NOW "OF" THE NATIONS, although his seed can be traced back to Abraham. The only way to be recognized as the seed of Abraham was for someone of his bloodline to come to God by faith. When this happened, he was considered grafted in. God, during Acts, was showing the RELIGIOUS Jews that the Prodigal sons were now getting the blessings that they once had. This provoked the religious Jews to jealousy.
Rom. 11:16 For if the firstfruit [be] holy, the lump [is] also
[holy]: and if the root [be] holy, so [are] the
branches.
11:17 And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou,
being a wild olive tree, wert graffed in among them,
and with them partakest of the root and fatness of
the olive tree;
11:18 Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast,
thou bearest not the root, but the root thee.
11:19 Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off,
that I might be graffed in.
11:20 Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and
thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear:
11:21 For if God spared not the natural branches, [take
heed] lest he also spare not thee.
11:22 Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on
them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness,
if thou continue in [his] goodness: otherwise thou
also shalt be cut off.
11:23 And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief,
shall be graffed in: for God is able to graff them in
again.
Yet, today, there is no true Israel to be grafted into!
So, where is Israel now? That is where dispensationalism comes in...
Paul later writes such things AFTER Acts as...
Eph. 3:1 For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ
for you Gentiles,
3:2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of
God which is given me to you-ward:
3:3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the
mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words,
3:4 Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge
in the mystery of Christ)
3:5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons
of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles
and prophets by the Spirit;
3:6 That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the
same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by
the gospel:
3:7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift
of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual
working of his power.
3:8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is
this grace given, that I should preach among the
Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
It was the UNsearchable riches of Christ that there would be (after Acts) a group of Gentiles not related to the seed of Abraham nor grafted into Israel that would comprise a "body" with Christ (Eph. 1:22-23) and look forward to being an heir in God's government-something that was impossible earlier in history, and in fact, a statement that would have been FALSE even during Acts. Dispensationalists wish to go THROUGH these problems and arguements, not around them...
Paul dealt with the struggles of change in his day and God's people resisting it. He writes to Timothy to do the necessary...to DIVIDE his word (such would not be necessary to say, if there was only a progressive revelation and not a contrast):
KJV 2 Tim. 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman
that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the
word of truth.
YLT 2 Tim. 2:15 be diligent to present thyself approved to God -- a
workman irreproachable, rightly dividing the word of
the truth;
The Greek word for DIVIDE means just that. In some instances it is translated "cut straight" and even "dissect". Only poor translations with a bias against dispensationalism would choose to translate it as "rightly HANDLING the word of truth".
More to come later...
Change. God demands it. Men fear it. The only thing constant in life, is change...
This is not meant to be an exhaustive history of dispensationalism by any means. Rather, I would like to give a brief history of dispensational THOUGHT. Not all of the men that I will mention are as educated or as informed on Bible teachings as we are today, but that is okay...God used them like he uses us, by his mercy. The point is that there is historical documentation that "Dispensationalism" is by no means a new concept to Christianity.
Changes in God's dealings with mankind has always been resisted for the sake of tradition, the status quo, or other such reasons.
Amos 3:1 Hear this word that the LORD hath spoken against you,
O children of Israel, against the whole family which
I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying,
3:2 You only have I known of all the families of the
earth: therefore I will punish you for all your
iniquities.
The only people that God dealt with as a group in the OT was Israel. Doubtlessly, there were saints in other locations and other bloodlines. However, the only people that God dealt with as a GROUP was Israel. Others were dealt with in how they reacted to Israel. As time went on, God expanded his dealings to reach other nations for his government, but not without the Jew as still being first in God's dealings.
Israel was the channel of blessings to the world:
Romans 9:1 I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience
also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost,
9:2 That I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in
my heart.
9:3 For I could wish that myself were accursed from
Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the
flesh:
9:4 Who are Israelites; to whom [pertaineth] the
adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the
giving of the law, and the service [of God], and the
promises;
Not just that Israel once had the adoption, but that they were still the channel..."to whom PERTAINETH the adoption". Not just that (during Acts) they had those elements in v. 4, but that it still could be said of them, PRESENTLY when Paul wrote Romans.
9:5 Whose [are] the fathers, and of whom as concerning
the flesh Christ [came], who is over all, God blessed
for ever. Amen.
There are those that are of the nations that are grafted into Israel during the Acts period. They are called "Gentiles" for they are "of the nations". I would argue that they are those of the direct seed of Abraham who were living as the nations, hence, they were called Gentiles. In fact, if you were to look up the ref. in Rom. 9:24-29 you will see Paul discuss Jews and Gentiles...if you look up the cross ref. in the OT, you will see that they are of Israel. Again, when a Jew lived as the Gentiles (and was perhaps, "cut off" as well) he could be called a Gentile for he WAS NOW "OF" THE NATIONS, although his seed can be traced back to Abraham. The only way to be recognized as the seed of Abraham was for someone of his bloodline to come to God by faith. When this happened, he was considered grafted in. God, during Acts, was showing the RELIGIOUS Jews that the Prodigal sons were now getting the blessings that they once had. This provoked the religious Jews to jealousy.
Rom. 11:16 For if the firstfruit [be] holy, the lump [is] also
[holy]: and if the root [be] holy, so [are] the
branches.
11:17 And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou,
being a wild olive tree, wert graffed in among them,
and with them partakest of the root and fatness of
the olive tree;
11:18 Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast,
thou bearest not the root, but the root thee.
11:19 Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off,
that I might be graffed in.
11:20 Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and
thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear:
11:21 For if God spared not the natural branches, [take
heed] lest he also spare not thee.
11:22 Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on
them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness,
if thou continue in [his] goodness: otherwise thou
also shalt be cut off.
11:23 And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief,
shall be graffed in: for God is able to graff them in
again.
Yet, today, there is no true Israel to be grafted into!
So, where is Israel now? That is where dispensationalism comes in...
Paul later writes such things AFTER Acts as...
Eph. 3:1 For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ
for you Gentiles,
3:2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of
God which is given me to you-ward:
3:3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the
mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words,
3:4 Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge
in the mystery of Christ)
3:5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons
of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles
and prophets by the Spirit;
3:6 That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the
same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by
the gospel:
3:7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift
of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual
working of his power.
3:8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is
this grace given, that I should preach among the
Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
It was the UNsearchable riches of Christ that there would be (after Acts) a group of Gentiles not related to the seed of Abraham nor grafted into Israel that would comprise a "body" with Christ (Eph. 1:22-23) and look forward to being an heir in God's government-something that was impossible earlier in history, and in fact, a statement that would have been FALSE even during Acts. Dispensationalists wish to go THROUGH these problems and arguements, not around them...
Paul dealt with the struggles of change in his day and God's people resisting it. He writes to Timothy to do the necessary...to DIVIDE his word (such would not be necessary to say, if there was only a progressive revelation and not a contrast):
KJV 2 Tim. 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman
that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the
word of truth.
YLT 2 Tim. 2:15 be diligent to present thyself approved to God -- a
workman irreproachable, rightly dividing the word of
the truth;
The Greek word for DIVIDE means just that. In some instances it is translated "cut straight" and even "dissect". Only poor translations with a bias against dispensationalism would choose to translate it as "rightly HANDLING the word of truth".
More to come later...