Dispensationalism

Dispensationalism A Report on Modern Premillenialism Karl S. Wagner FORWARD: This report is prepared with the historicists in mind. In view of trends among the brethren to examine the bible prophecies for the present truth certain questions come to mind. These can only be answered by the individual; therefore, are not meant to be accusatory. The question is,” Do I say I'm a Historicist, while acting like a Futurist?" This is the question that must be answered by each Bible student of prophecy. There are many ideas concerning prophecy among evangelicals. This report will show what I believe to be the most prevailing teaching among mainline Christians.

THE DOWNFALL OF PREMILLENNIALISM The Millerites, emanating out of the "Burned-over district" of western New York, created a stir in 19th century American religion. The climax of this movement was the premillenial return of Jesus Christ; which was expected to occur on October 22, 1844. When our Lord failed to return, the millerites became the laughing stock of American Evangelicalism. Though other church bodies spawned off this movement, the chief group to arise became organized as the Seventh-day Adventist Church. After this great disappointment, most evangelicals considered premillenialism dead. How surprised they must have been to see it spring up again just a few decades later.... and with such vigor! In 1875, amid the ripples of post-Millerite historicism, a new kind of premillenialism gained acceptance called Dispenationalism. In order for it to succeed where their predecessors had apparently failed, these new premillenialist urged to establish two related truths. They were, 1) Have nothing essentially in common with the discredited Millerites, and 2) Be just as evangelical and orthodox as the rest of the Protestant mainline churches.

FROM THE PAST TO THE FUTURE The dispensationalist accepted and used the Futurist theory for interpreting biblical prophecy. They differed from their futurist brothers in one main respect that was their absolute insistence on keeping Israel and the church separate. All futurists however, hold at least three main points in common. They are: 1) No "last day" prophecy will be fulfilled until just before Jesus' return. 2) Rejection of the historicists "year-day theory" for dating prophetic events. 3) The papacy was not the biblical Anti-Christ. Dispensationlism denied that the prophecies were intended for the church Dispensationalism

1

age as a whole and applied mainly to Israel. Dispensationalists were futurist first and would add dispensational concepts later. The futurist theory came from Ribera, who as early as 1590 A.D. proposed it. This Spanish -Jesuit reacted to the early Protestant claims that the office of the papacy was the biblical anti-Christ. This system of interpretation was not founded on a search for truth; but simply devised by a man who was trying to protecting his pope. The fact that this system found its way to England and was accepted in Protestant circles is nothing short of astounding. It appears that the Jesuit won the battle, by infecting Protestantism with this false teaching.

THE DISPENSATIONAL TWIST In Great Britain, in and around 1830, there was a group of loosely organized believers dissatisfied with the spiritual condition manifested by the prevailing churches. They were known as the Plymouth Brethren, and met informally to worship, pray, and partake of the Lord's Supper as well as to study the Bible. Among them came a man who could be regarded as their most gifted teacher, John Nelson Darby (1800-1882). He reasoned that there were different periods or 'dispensations" during the course of history, in which God dealt with mankind in a specific way. This led to their insistence in reading the Bible prophecies literally. That is, when it reads "Israel", it means Israel and therefor has no reference to the church or to the "church age". A later follower of Darby, C I Scofield; defined a dispensation as, "a period of time during which a man is tested in respect of obedience to some specific revelation of the will of God." Also, 'these periods are marked off in scripture by some change in God's method of dealing with mankind in respect to two questions, that of sin and that of man's responsibility. Each dispensation may be regarded as a new test of the natural man, and each period ends in judgment...’ marking mans utter failure in each dispensation. The ideas of dispensations are not new to the church. Dispensationalists assert however that their concept of it was a veiled truth only brought to light during these last days and are only shown in scripture in subtle ways.. Even the bible writers were not completely aware of it. This whole system rests on the idea that God is operating on two different plans for His creation. One plan is for an earthly people (Israel), and another plan for a heavenly people, (the church). Thus, "rightly dividing the word" has more to do with keeping your dispensations right. We may talk about eras or dispensations, but the idea of dispensationalism is much more. It clearly indicates God's unwillingness or inability in dealing with his people. But dispensationalism didn't stop here; it added a few more doctrines to prophesy relating to the Second Coming.

THE VOID In studying the seventy weeks of Daniel, the dispensationalist applied it to Israel only and not to the church. Remember that the church has no part in prophecy. The conclusion was that Christ should have returned at the end of the last week to set-up His millennial kingdom. Finding no week of years in history that would fulfill this idea, they resolved that Christ simply postponed His return and unexpectedly turned his attention to the Gentiles. As a result, God suspended His prophetic timetable and set about building up a new people ... a heavenly people--the church. We are now in a large parenthesis, a dark void of timelessness that was not intended to be a part of God's plan. The 'gap" or "postponement" theory is explained clearly by C H Mackintosh; a man whose popularization's of Darby's theology "sold well" in the United States. He writes: Dispensationalism

2

'The Messiah, instead of being received, is cut off. In place of ascending the throne of David, He goes to the cross. ... God signified His sense of this act by suspending for a time His dispensational dealing with Israel. This course of time is interrupted. There is a great gap. Four hundred and eighty-three years are fulfilled; seven yet remain-a cancelled week, and all the time since the death of Messiah has been an unnoticed interval - a break or parenthesis, during which Christ has been hidden in the heavens, and the Holy Ghost has been working on earth in forming the body of Christ, the church, the heavenly bride." As you can see, the postponement theory is a direct result of dispensationalism. Any student who has accepted futurist theories of interpretation should be aware that he is also accepting the system of dispensationalism. Mackintosh also writes, 'The Christian must never lose sight of the fact that he belongs to heaven.' The church is never to be figured into the last-days (prophecy). Mackintosh would have us believe that because Christ failed to establish his kingdom here on earth and ascend the throne of David, he went to the cross instead. This would make Calvary an after-thought. This is what he implies in his previously quoted statement.

TIIE SECRET GETAWAY The seventieth week, if not completed in the past, must be fulfilled some time in the future. This is the time God will finish His dealings with Israel. If God turns His attention to Israel, what then of the 'heavenly people", the church that is still here on earth? In the true creative style of Darby, dispensationalists came up with their most controversial and distinctive doctrine yet. The Secret Pretribulational Rapture of the Church. Up to the early 1830's, it seems that futurist premillennialists had seen the rapture as one and the same event as the second coming of Christ ... at the end of the tribulation. But the dispensationalist, unwilling to connect even this one grand event, were unwilling to share it with Israel thus separated the Second Advent into two separate comings. One coming in secret, for a heavenly people and one coming with judgment for an earthly people, (Israel). One coming for His saints and another coming with His saints. And to really keep these two events separate, they incorporated the last week of Daniel between them. This would be a period of tribulation lasting seven years. The saints would be raptured out of the world before the anti-Christ came. In a secret coming. At the end of the seven years, Christ would make a glorious return to pass judgment on Israel. The saints would be far removed from the troubles coming upon the earth, reigning with Christ. The pretribulation rapture was a neat solution to a thorny problem, and "historians are still trying to determine just were and how Darby got it." This teaching clearly demonstrates God's dual dealings ... one with His church, and the other concerning Israel, again emphasizing separation and distinction.

AT ANY MOMENT

Since the church is without prophecy, (maybe without a mission), and that prophecy concerns itself primarily with God finishing His dealing with Israel, one is forced to conclude that there is no event that needs to be fulfilled in order for the church to be raptured. That means the church can be Dispensationalism

3

raptured at any moment. From pulpits across the nation these words ring out!. .."At any moment the Lord may come for His church!" Are these the only words the church can lay claim to? Is this her only message to a dying world? If this is how the world is to finish up the sin problem? I'm sorry. However, this "Jew" has more to say concerning the church's mission.

DISPENSATIONS STRAIGHT YET?

Darby and others, Scofield among them, declares that there are seven eras or "dispensations". But in order to qualify as a dispensationalist, you only need to accept three eras. They are, 1) The time of Israel ... under the law, 2) The church age ... under grace, 3) The millennial kingdom...the time of Christ's reign. Accept these and you would be rightly dividing the word of truth.

FOR THE SAKE OF UNITY.

During the 1920's, a debate was going on that had been fueled earlier by the humanists. Advocates of the conservative Princeton theology and premillinnialists joined to do battle against the theological liberalism in the American churches. Theological liberation is just another name for atheism, or at best, pantheism ... "the God in You" concept. Dispensationalism, being orthodox, joined with these mainstream churches, willing to put aside differences for the sake of a united front in battling this new theology. It was by this means that dispensationalism made major headway into the mainline churches. Ideas picked up and transmitted through committee and conference meetings and carried back to various churches and their congragations. Not the whole doctrine, just bits and pieces being woven into their own systems. During the last twenty-five years or so, much more has come into mainline churches due to the increased interests in eschatology and in a large part due to Hal Lindsey's 1973 book, "The Late Great Planet Earth".

CONCLUSION

So what do you believe? Should we just accept what we are taught with no regard of where or how it came to us? I think most of us know the answer already. We must study for ourselves. It is true, the end-time events won't be understood in full but only by those at the end. Are we those people? "Many shall run to fro and knowledge shall be increased.' I see the pieces coming together, do you? It's going home time and we need to be sure that our eyes are on Christ and not on some pet theology. Christ is our theology and it is He who will teach us the truth. Let's be sure that we are in His presence to learn what we need to know for the trying days just ahead.

Orig. written 1994 Scanned, eidited: February 5, 2001

Dispensationalism

4