What Is Dispensationalism?

CONTENDING FOR THE FAITH

In this regular feature Dave and Tom respond to questions from listeners and readers of The Berean Call.Here’s this week’s question:Dear Dave and TA, I am a relatively new Christian, and I want to learn as much as I am capable of.I listen to your program and I find it very informative.I also listen to other Christian programs and I’ve learned that there is a lot to learn about Christianity.I find some of the terms very confusing.The one I am having difficulty understanding right now is “Dispensationalism.” What does it mean? And how important is it with regard to my understanding of the Bible?

Tom:

Well, Dave, a question of this nature I defer immediately to you.

Dave:

Well, Tom, there are many views on Dispensationalism, some of them are hyper dispensational.But the idea was, and there is much truth in it, there was an age of innocence, a dispensation of innocence.It says the times of this ignorance God winked at.So then came the time of conscience.Now I don’t make a strict division here, because I believe you always had a conscience.I believe that the law—there was a time under the law,and so forth, the law was their schoolmaster to bring us to Christ.

Tom:

So that would be a dispensation of the law.

Dave:

Yeah, the law, right.

Tom:

And a dispensation of grace.

Dave:

Right, in other words, they pertained to ways in which God was dealing with people, with mankind at that time.My opinion is that pretty much He dealt with them the same in all ages.Abraham rejoiced to see my day, and he saw it was glad, and his faith was counted as righteousness.So you could say, Well, Abraham couldn’t be justified by faith because that hadn’t yet come along.There is some merit in these ideas, but in my opinion it can be overdone.

Tom:

Dave, would you consider yourself a dispensationalist?I know you have been accused of that, and if so, what value, in terms of understanding the Bible would there be.

Dave:

Well, my dispensationalist friends are going to be unhappy with me.Let’s understand this word “dispensation.”Dispensation—you can use it without even thinking of God. Well, I’m going to give them a little dispensation of a little grace now.I think most people understand dispensation, they don’t understand the theological terminology—it is a Biblical word.I wouldn’t call myself—well, you see, that’s difficult.Dispensationalist—do I believe there’s a great tribulation coming?Well, it will be another dispensation, God’s way of dealing with mankind.Do I believe in the millennium reign? Yes, I do.So I guess you could call me a dispensationalist.On the other hand, I believe that in the Millennium or the Great Tribulation, God’s dealings with man in His conscience and the remedy, there is only one remedy—Jesus Christ!So, it’s always been the same remedy, the Lamb foretold this, but, as I said, I think it can be overdone.So I would say—are there dispensations in the Bible?Yes, but I think they overlap a whole lot more, and there is a thread of grace, a thread of redemption that runs all the way through the Bible.

Tom:

Dave< I’ve heard people when they talk about dispensations with regard to the value, they would say, Well, what we want you to know is that God,—there’s history involved that had a beginning, you know, middle and an end, it’s going to come to an end.We call the study of the last days “eschatology,” and so on.So, people who said well, you’re a dispensationalist, you believe there was a time for the Jews and a time for the Gentiles, and then God is going to revert back to the Jews.Does Dispensationalism help clarify some of these things in the Bible?

Dave:

Well, I wouldn’t say there was a time for the Jews and then a time for the Gentiles.It depends on what you mean by a time for.God always dealt with all mankind Jew or Gentile, by grace, they are sinners, and sin has to be forgiven.That there was a time when Israel, they were number one, they ruled the world.They rebelled, and they have been set aside.There is a time, and I believe we have entered that time, when Israel is going to rule the world again, but through Jesus Christ.So, was there a time for Jews, a time for the Gentiles?Yes, but on the other hand, Ephesians chapter 2 makes it very clear.We have been made one through Christ, and Abraham looked forward to Christ, so I think there’s some commonalties here, Tom, that can be lost in making too definitive a difference between these dispensations.

Tom:

Well, what I was thinking about, Dave, is you know, we’ve talked time and time again about our concern of those who believe in a Replacement Theology.And of course, their accusation is oh, you guys are dispensationalists, we believe in the time that God has ceased working with the Jews and through the Jews and now Israel, spiritual Israel.It is the Church.So, Biblical dispensational view, I think, would certainly knock that out of the water—Replacement Theology, I’m talking about.

Dave:

Tom, you can really get messed if you carry this to an extreme because there are those who say we shouldn’t break bread, we shouldn’t baptize, that was for a past time, and so forth.So, there are some extreme views in this, and we have to get back to the Bible and see what it really says.