My Notes on the History of Dispensationalism – Part III

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The final part.

A NOTABLE TIME

JONATHAN EDWARDS

● Responsible for transmission and codification of dispensational thought.

● He wrote a book dealing with dispensational principle titled “A Complete Survey or History of All Dispensations”.

He died in 1716.

THE AGE OF AWAKENING

THE FIRST GREAT AWAKENING

● Edwards concluded that there are prophecies still to be fulfilled concerning Israel and these did not relate anyone else or his contemporaries.

● In the meantime they believed they had to destroy Satan’s influence on this his kingdom – the world.

● He believed the Ottoman Empire and the Papacy were Satan’s tools to establish a Satanic kingdom. He therefore opposed the papacy.

● He saw the Millennium as the church’s triumph, as peace and a sabbath rest.

His beliefs aligned with those of Martyr and Papias

Hal Lindsey and John Hagee’s beliefs go back to that of Martyr and Papias. There is some semblance of premillennial eschatology in their line of thinking.

However, dispensational understanding becomes clearer over time and there is a complete l recovery of Pauline truth which –

● Changed people’s views and understanding of history.

● But Edwards didn’t respect Paul as his apostle, neither his distintive ministry.

ISAAC WATTS

● He was a writer of hymns.

● He wrote book called “The Christian Dispensation”.

● He believed believers were separate from Israel.

After the civil war in 1790 there was renewed interest in biblical eschatology.

● Jonathan Edwards wrote a book: “A History of a Work of Redemption” which was published posthumously.

● He had great influence on American popular culture into the 1800s.

SAMUEL HUPKIN

● He was a disciple of Edwards

● He wrote a book “The Treatise on the Millennium”.

● He was oriented on getting out the gospel, not the kingdom, and not Israel.

● This was the time of the first great awakening, and history doesn’t mention the word dispensation.

THE SECOND GREAT AWAKENING

● This took place in the first half of the 19th century. (1800s).

● People thought they were close to the second advent of Christ.

● There were many revivals which took place in order to “get right with God”.

CHARLES G. FINNEY

● Believed if everyone started with prayer, they could bring about a revival that would trigger the 2nd coming.

● He is the father of modern day revivalism.

● And the gather of the invitation system (to walk up to the “altar”).

● He turned recovery into crowd manipulation techniques which are still pervasive in evangelical circles today.

● He replaced gospel with method.

● And invented new measures whereby revival could be triggered.

● He totally missed the truth by gravitating towards methods.

GENERAL INFO PERTAINING TO TODAY

Don’t evaluate the success of a ministry by its size, but rather by the rightness of its doctrine. 2 Timothy 2:2.

WILLIAM MILLER – 1840

● He had a huge crowd of followers by stirring people up by way of the whoop and holler system of Charles Finney.

● He was a date setter of the 2nd coming and it goes without saying he got it wrong 3 times.

● He was followed by Ellen G White founder of SDA (non) movement who also has dispensational charts in her books, but she missed Paul who is key.

● He tried to find the Body of Christ in Revelation and failed, giving dispensationalism a bad name.

The Common denominator throughout the ages:

BIBLE EVALUATION

People evaluate their Bibles by what is going on around them – world conditions, so they find the appropriate verse to suit this. They evaluate the Bible by human condition, whereas the Bible evaluates both the human condition and the world.

● With the industrial revolution bringing improvements in the world, people thought it had to be the kingdom. But the advent of several wars put paid to this idea.

● Amillennialism was brought into question as the world wasn’t getting better.

● Post millennialism and the social gospel movement are now the order of the day.

● In the late 1800s, people were yearning for better understanding.

JOHN NELSON DARBY BN. 1800, LONDON

● Known as “the founder of dispensationalism”. (Wrong, as dispensationalism was known to God before the Garden of Eden).

● Writer and teacher defending dispensational thought 1840.

● This came at a time after the American civil war when people were more willing to look at it.

● He wrote a newspaper article about the apostasy of the successive dispensations.

● But he didn’t have clarity of dispensational right division.

● In 1845 he broke with the Plymouth Brethren over a disagreement about prophecy as he believed Revelation was still future.

● He wrote a book titled “The Origins of Dispensationalism”.

● Part of his writings were the recovery of Pauline truth, and it took almost 20 centuries to pull it all back together again.

EW BULLINGER BN. 1837

CYRUS I SCOFIELD

● He wrote the Companion Bible.

● He also missed the premise of Paul despite his Bible acumen.

● He collaborated with Charles Welch.

● He believed only books after Acts 28 had any value.

● He had vast impact and influence.

● He wrote 300 hymns and 13 books.

● He wrote the Bible in Spanish.

● He had leaven of not clearly seeing Paul, as Paul was separated unto the Gentiles in Acts 9 (Acts 26:17).

CLARENCE LARKIN

● He wrote a book titled “The Greatest Book on Dispensationalism Truth in the World”.

● His charts showed progressive revelation.

● But he believed the Body of Christ began in Acts 2.

● Scofield wrote the Reference Study Bible (1909/1917 ed.)

● He took Darby’s 7 dispensations and put in his notes.

● He had the hreatest impact in evangelical and fundamental Christianity in the 20th century.

● Scofield saw Paul’s writings as being for the Body of Christ alone, but still stated the Body of Christ began in Acts 2.

TODAY

● What impact would a Mid-Acts Study Bible have if someone wrote one?

● Collecting information but not connecting the information as many also do, results in confusion, double mindedness and instability

● The reason why Paul wrote the book of Romans was to establish and make Saints stable. Paul is the stabiliser.

● Adam to Moses was the promise given as stated in Romans 5:13.

● Today, the baptistry is more sacred than the Cross in most assemblies.

JAMES BROOKS

● Father of Dispensationalism in the USA.

● Taught Scofield.

● Dallas Theological Seminary?

Gaeblin from Dallas Theological Seminary did much to teach dispensationalism through books and magazines.

WILLIAM BLACKSTONE 1930s

● Said there’s going to be a new state of Israel.

● Called those who pursued Paul as ultra dispensationalists.

● Charles Ryrie also said anything other than Acts 2 is ultra.

All men from Edwards did a lot to advance dispensational thinking. But not enough.

Dispensationalism clarifies the gospel of God which is in Paul’s writings.

What we teach puts an end to tithing, shuts down the baptistry and charismatic pentecostals, so there will be opposition to it.

These men attack us too.

J C O’HAIR D.1954

● He wrote a book: “Unsearchable Riches”.

● He made radio broadcasts as what he preached wouldn’t be accept in denominational churches.

● Did not preach the dispensational message to the religious structure as they wouldn’t accept it, having already rejected it. Rather went to individuals.

● Did not rightly divide the Hebrew epistles from Paul’s 13 epistles.

● Had a problem with where the book of John goes.

Dispensational truth is still being sorted out from error today.

People struggle with dispensationalism because of issues with water baptism and traditions.

Dispensationalism hasn’t reached its conclusion with O’Hair and Baker, it must – has to – still be ongoing.

We will probably be the last generation to redeem the time and to make all men see.

Take care not to sweve off into issues and doctrines that are not for us.

Sensationalism has no place in dispensational teaching.