In the Bible, there are several stages in how God reveals himself to man. Adam was forbidden to eat from the tree in the garden of Eden, and after they did, they received the promise of the Savior. God called Abraham and promised all peoples would be blessed through his descendant. God revealed the law to the people of Israel during Moses’ time. Jesus brought God’s salvation to all who believe in Him. One day, Jesus will come back and we will be happy in God’s presence on the new earth for all eternity. In every stage, people get to understand a little bit more of who God is and how He works. And when Jesus came, they understood a lot more! The glory that Jesus brought, far exceeds anything experienced before (see 2 Corinthians 3).
Responsibility
These phases are referred to as “dispensations” by some. That is based on Paul’s discussion of “the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me” (Ephesians 3:2) in an antiquated version (the King James Version). Some interpret Paul’s words here to refer to the dispensation as a temporal period, which began with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. That is a mistake, though. Words like “the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me” are seen in more recent translations. It doesn’t allude to a particular era; rather, it speaks of an obligation the Lord has placed on Paul.
Dispensationalists correctly point out that the Bible is divided into various eras, and that individuals in earlier times did not fully comprehend concepts that people in later times, particularly following the advent of our Lord Jesus Christ, did. They also recognize, quite well, that God does not always give the same instructions to everyone. For instance, we do not slaughter lambs in church as a form of sacrifice to the Lord, nor do we have a tree from which we are forbidden to eat.
Fulfillment in Christ
However, this is occasionally overemphasized to the point of error, which results in:
- thinking that the New Testament is mostly about grace and the Old Testament is primarily about law. However, just as we are saved by grace, so too were believers in the Old Testament (see Romans 4). Furthermore, we are bound by Christ’s law, not the absence of it (1 Corinthians 9:21).
- thinking that a good deal of the Bible is not relevant to us. They thus exaggerate Israel’s significance. Many prophecies, according to dispensationalists, are for Israel and therefore do not apply to the church; others are about what will happen after Christ returns and do not directly apply to us; still others hold that portions of the gospels—such as Matthew 5 and the Sermon on the Mount—do not apply to us because the Holy Spirit has not yet arrived. However, we ought to have faith that the entire Bible—which is “profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16)—is God’s Word for us.
- thinking that the experiences of Old Testament believers with God were restricted. Even while it is true that they were not present for God’s complete revelation in Jesus Christ, we should nevertheless be convinced by reading the Psalms of the Old Testament Christians about the depths of their experience and faith in God.
It is critical to comprehend God’s role in history and how He orchestrated events so that all would come to pass in Christ. Dispensationalism’s structure, however, causes more harm than good when it comes to developing that knowledge.
