REVISITING THE
DOCTRINE OF DISPENSATIONALISM
Part I: A Biblical
Apologetic For Historic Dispensationalism
I.
Introduction
A.
The Protestant
Reformers and the Roman Catholic Church hold to "amillennialism,"
claiming (1) there is no literal
post-Armageddon thousand-year reign of Christ as Revelation 19:17-20:6 literally teaches, but that His
Kingdom is the era between His first and second advents when the Church
produces a golden era climaxed by Christ's return. (John F. Walvoord, The
Blessed Hope and the Tribulation, 1976, p. 11-15) Amillennialism also asserts (2) the Church
replaces Israel in God's plan so that Israel will NOT have a literal
worldwide Messianic Kingdom, a view that often leads to negative attitudes and
actions toward the nation Israel.
B.
Opposite
this view, our Church holds to "historic dispensationalism," teaching
the Church does NOT replace Israel in God's plan, but
that there is a literal future, worldwide, thousand-year reign of Christ
over Israel. We thus believe that the
Church is NOT to try to set up
a worldwide Christian golden era by ministering in social renewal, but
to look for the pretribulation rapture of the Church and thus disciple people
for Christ's return.
C.
We thus
need to discern what Scripture teaches on the issue of dispensationalism
to hold to the correct view:
II.
A Biblical Apologetic For Historic Dispensationalism
A.
The KJV
uses the word "dispensation" four times: 1 Cor. 9:17; Eph. 1:10; 3:2
and Col. 1:25 (Strong's Ex. Con. of the Bib., p. 168). Ephesians 1:10 mentions the future
dispensation of "the fulness of times" where the other passages refer
to the Church. Since the Church began in
Acts 2, there must be a dispensation before it, so Scripture logically
presents at least three
dispensations (C. C. Ryrie, Dispensationalism Today, 1970, p. 50).
B.
The
degrees to which theologians have held to a consistently literal interpretation of Scripture has determined
whether they have held to dispensationalism or to other theological positions
(as follows):
1.
Augustine
(4th - 5th cent. A. D.) used the literal, historical and grammatical method to
interpret non-prophetic Scriptures, but he used the nonliteral,
figurative method for prophecy,
Ibid., Walvoord, p. 12.
2.
The
Roman Catholic Church and Protestant Reformers followed Augustine's method of
interpretation, and this led to viewing the Church as replacing Israel in God's
plan, the amillennial view, Ibid., p. 12-13.
3.
However,
in the last quarter of the nineteenth century, conservative Christians in the
prophetic conference movement (Ibid., p. 13), in adopting the consistently literal approach to ALL
of Scripture, including prophecy, inevitably arrived at the "historic dispensational"
view of the Bible, Ibid., Ryrie, p. 86-109.
C.
Notably,
Jesus exampled that we interpret
all Scripture literally,
what leads to to historic dispensatonalism:
1.
Christ interpreted
all of Scripture by use of the literal, grammatical, historical method
(as follows):
a.
In
Matthew 5:18 KJV, He said not "one jot or one tittle" will
pass from the Law until all is fulfilled.
b.
A
"jot" is "the smallest
Hebrew letter, yodh," and a
"tittle" a "small extension or protrusion" on a Hebrew letter
that distinguishes it from a similar one, Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978,
ftn. to Matthew 5:18.
c.
Now, the
identity of such a letter logically affects the literal meaning of the word of which it is a part.
d.
Since
Jesus in Matthew 5:18 focused on the literal meaning of Scripture's words, including Scripture's prophecies that yet remained
to be fulfilled, He practiced the consistently literal method of interpreting ALL of Scripture,
including Bible prophecy, which method
leads to historic dispensationalism!
2.
In
Revelation 3:14-22, Christ's prophetic message for our era clearly
supports historic dispensationalism: at Rev. 3:14, Christ calls Himself "the Amen," alluding
in part to 2 Cor. 1:20 where the godly say "the Amen" at the teaching
of Christ's literal fulfillment of the Abrahamic Covenant, the historic dispensational
viewpoint of Scripture. (J. Dwight Pentecost, Things To Come, 1972, p.
59-94; Ibid., Ryrie, p. 86-109)
3.
Significantly,
the newly formed belief of "progressive dispensationalism" asserts that
the Church currently partly fulfills the Davidic Covenant
as it presumes Christ Who is enthroned in heaven now partly fulfills the
Davidic Covenant there, requiring the Church to get involved in Marxist social
redemption! This belief is formed
by blurring the lines between Israel and the Church and thus not staying
strictly literal in handling prophecy.
However, in Revelation 3:21, Christ CONTRASTED His earthly Davidic throne with His Father's
heavenly throne where He now
rules (Hebrews 1:3), treating His earthly Davidic reign in an EXCLUSIVELY literal way OPPOSITE
what progressive
dispensationalism does! Christ thus calls us in our era to stay to the strictly literal handling of
all Scripture, holding to historic
dispensationalism!
Lesson and
Application: Jesus taught the consistently, strictly literal method of
interpreting all Scripture and He upheld historic dispensationalism. May we then handle all Scripture this way and
hold to historic dispensationalism that leads us to making disciples, not to
being involved in worldwide social redemption.