Dispensationalism: Principles and Purpose

“It is getting gloriously dark.”  Those words were uttered by one of my favourite preachers, Adrian Rogers.  One day, maybe soon, I’ll get to meet Pastor Rogers.  Yet, we won’t be talking about how dark it is.  When God’s prophetic program brings to fulfilment the events of Revelation 21, we will both rejoice that in the New Jerusalem: The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it.  The Lamb is its light.  And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honour into it.  Its gates shall not be shut at all by day (there shall be no night there).  (Revelation 21:23-25).

Spend any amount of time online reviewing the content of Christian ministries and laypeople and you will find an intense amount of disdain for Dispensational theology.  The one accusation that is constantly thrown at Dispensationalists is that we grow excited when tragedy strikes the world because it means our “escape” is growing ever closer.  In effect, they twist the words of Pastor Rogers to mean that we celebrate catastrophe.  But is this a fair and accurate assessment of Dispensational theology?  This article will outline the principles of Dispensational theology as we seek to understand why some Christians are so opposed to this method of interpretation.   

FIRST PRINCIPLE OF DISPENSATIONALISM - INTERPRETATION

Although it has plenty of critics, Dispensational theology is simply a system of theology employing a literal, grammatical and historical approach to the Word of God.  Or, more accurately, Dispensationalism is the product of a consistent, literal approach to Scripture.  Renald Showers, who was a world-renowned professor and theologian, wrote: “Dispensational Theology could be defined very simply as follows: Dispensational Theology is a system of theology which attempts to develop the Bible’s philosophy of history on the basis of the sovereign rule of God. It represents the whole of Scripture and history as being covered by several dispensations of God’s rule.”  Therefore, Dispensationalism merely represents a system of theology based on how we believe God has worked in the affairs of mankind throughout the ages and when compared to other interpretative approaches, Dispensationalists take the text more literally.  

The word which is translated “dispensation” in the New Testament is “oikonomia” which is a combination of two words — “oikos,” which means “house,” and “nomos,” which means “to dispense, manage or hold sway.”  Therefore, the word literally means “house administration” or as Pastor Andy Woods often says, “house rules”.  Well, who gets to set the rules in a household?  The owner!  The Bible is very clear that the earth is the LORD’S but for good measure, let me quote Psalm 24:1: The earth is the LORD’S, and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein.  Therefore, a dispensation is a particular way of God administering His rule over the world as He progressively works out His purpose for world history. 

Many who oppose this teaching claim that Dispensationalism “chops up the Bible”, therefore accusing us of dividing up the salvific plan of God leading to the destruction of biblical unity.  Anybody in frontline ministry who has been challenged on their Dispensational theology would have heard this claim, almost verbatim.  The accusation is that we have allowed Dispensational theology to disjoint and disrupt the clear revelation of God’s plan through the ages by introducing an artificial division called “dispensations”.  Again, the accusation is unfounded.  During each of the dispensations as mankind is tested, fails, and suffers judgment, the unifying and principal factor is that God is glorified as He demonstrates grace despite mankind’s repeated failure. 

In saying that, although grace will still remain a principal factor in God’s dealings with mortal mankind in the Millennial Kingdom, grace will not function as the ruling factor. Man’s responsibility (being those in mortal bodies) during the seventh dispensation will be to obey God on the basis of conscience, human government and the theocratic rule of Christ.  Outward rebellion will be dealt with swiftly and harshly (Isaiah 11:3-4), and those nations which will refuse to go up to Jerusalem to worship the King and to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles will be punished (Zechariah 14:16-19).

SECOND PRINCIPLE OF DISPENSATIONALISM - DOXOLOGY

Many view the Bible through a soteriological lens, completely overlooking the fact that we are drawn to a greater focus - the glory of God.  As Charles Ryrie stated in relation to each dispensation: “the distinguishing features are introduced by God; the similar features are retained by God; and the overall combined purpose of the whole program is the glory of God.”    

While salvation of mankind is of extreme importance, it is accomplished within the broader purpose of the glorification of God, which is demonstrated through the various administrations of dispensational arrangements of history.  Quoting Charles Ryrie again: “A third aspect of the sine qua non of dispensationalism . . . concerns the underlying purpose of God in the world. The covenant theologian in practice makes this purpose salvation, and the dispensationalist says the purpose is broader than that, namely, the glory of God. To the dispensationalist the soteriological or saving program of God is not the only program but one means God is using in the total program of glorifying Himself. Scripture is not man-centered as though salvation were the main theme, but it is God-centered because His glory is the center.”

THIRD PRINCIPLE OF DISPENSATIONALISM – THE ISRAEL / CHURCH DISTINCTION

Following on from the second principle, Dispensationalism sees God’s purposes with Israel and the church as distinct plans in history designed to bring Him glory as each purpose is fulfilled.  In other words, we don’t spell “Israel” c-h-u-r-c-h.  If one does not distinguish between passages in which God is distinctly dealing with either Israel or the church then the results will be an improper merging of the two programs.

As respected theologian Thomas Ice once wrote: “God’s plan for history includes a purpose for the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—that is Israel. This plan for Israel includes promises that they will have the land of Israel, will have a seed, and will be a worldwide blessing to the nations. Many of the promises to national Israel are yet future, therefore, God is not finished with Israel.”

IN CONCLUSION

As I have briefly pointed out, the different dispensations are different ways of God administering His rule over the world.  But it is extremely important to clarify that they do not represent different ways of salvation (as some critics of Dispensationalism accuse us of promoting). Throughout history God employs several dispensations but only one way of salvation – by grace alone, through faith alone.  As John Walvoord notes: “In every dispensation salvation is by grace through faith, made possible by the death of Christ. On the one hand the dispensations have diversity of requirements for human conduct, but on the other hand salvation is always by God’s grace.”  This view has been reinforced by Pastor Andy Woods who, during an interview, said: “Salvation has always been by faith alone, in Christ alone. It’s in the Old Testament. They didn’t know the name ‘Christ,’ but they were looking forward to a coming Messiah, whereas we know the name Jesus, and we’re looking backward by faith to a coming Messiah. That never changes. But the outworking of God’s purposes changed about seven times. That’s what’s meant by dispensation, or house rules. If that concept is not acknowledged, it leads to mass confusion, as you try to study and interpret the whole Bible.”

In closing, John Walvoord was once asked his view on the greatest theological challenge the church would face.  His answer, in part, was to say: “the hermeneutical problem of not interpreting the Bible literally, especially the prophetic areas. The church today is engulfed in the idea that one cannot interpret prophecy literally.”  Every day it appears that the critics of Dispensational theology grow in number and disdain for those of us who uphold the three principles of Dispensationalism.  In response to constant criticism, our beloved sister in Christ, Jan Markell once wrote: “How convenient of the enemy to blur the sound theology behind true Dispensationalist teaching and get people wondering if all prophecy is history, the Church is Israel, and we are deluded if we think our ‘purpose’ is to believe sound prophecy teaching when that is but a diversion.”  You see, instead of being a hindrance to a correct understanding of God’s Word, as is regularly claimed by our critics, we believe that Dispensational theology is the correct approach and understanding of Scripture.