Dispensations and Ages: With a Chart Demonstrating the Change of Dispensations in the Way
Stanley Bruce Anstey
Table of Contents
Dispensations
All Christians need to have a basic understanding of dispensational truth. Without it we will be hopelessly adrift in the sea of bad doctrine that is prevalent in the Christian profession. The ramifications of not seeing the distinction between God’s dealings with Israel and God’s dealings with the Church in view of the coming millennial kingdom of Christ, lead to all sorts of error—ranging from a faulty eschatology (future events) to faulty ecclesiology (Church doctrine and practice). It will also affect our objectives in practical living and service.
What Is a Dispensation?
The word “dispensation” means “the administration of a house,” “the management of a household,” “a house-law,” or “an economy.” In the sense that it is used in Scripture, it is a publicly ordered dealing of God with men in the administration of His ways in His house during various ages.
Three Main Dispensations
There are three main dispensations in the ways of God (See the Concise Bible Dictionary — pp. 216-217). Some may see more than three dispensations, but all agree that these are the main ones, and are those wherein the controversy of dispensational teaching lies. It is, therefore, of paramount importance to understand God’s ways in connection with them.
The First Dispensation
Since God’s house on earth was not established in any real sense until He formally took up relations with Israel on the ground of redemption and built the tabernacle wherein He could meet with them (Exodus 25-40), we begin with the Dispensation of the Law. (Prior to that, men walked with God as individuals, but there was no publicly ordered system of God’s dealing with men collectively in relation to His house.)
The Dispensation of the Law was an ordered dealing of God with men (the nation of Israel) whereby the legal obligations and requirements of the Law were to be fulfilled by the people in order for them to walk in fellowship with God. This administration passed through three phases:
About 400 years under the Judges (from Israel’s entrance into the land of Canaan to the end of the Judges — Acts 13:19-20).
About 500 years of kingship (from Saul to the Babylonian captivity).
About 600 years of prophetic testimony during the Times of the Gentiles (from the captivity to John the Baptist (Luke 16:16).
The Second Dispensation
The second dispensation is the present Dispensation of the Mystery. This is an administration for the governing of a heavenly people, saved and sealed with the Holy Spirit—the Church. The Apostle Paul was commissioned to “enlighten all as to what is the administration [dispensation] of the Mystery” (Eph. 3:9 — W. Kelly Translation footnote; “Bible Treasury,” vol. 13, p. 379). Hence, he was to teach those things unfolded in the Mystery that were “hidden throughout the ages”—which is the truth of Christ and the Church (Eph. 5:32). The ministry of grace commenced with the ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ (John 1:17), but when His earthly people rejected Him, God opened the present dispensation of the Mystery in the heavenly calling of the Church with the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4; 11:15). Believers today are being called out of the Jews and Gentiles to be part of a new heavenly thing—the Church of God, the body and bride of Christ (Acts 15:14; 26:17). The burden of true Christian ministry is to “further God's dispensation” by helping the saints understand their heavenly calling in Christ and to live their lives in accord with the administration of His house (1 Tim. 1:4). The Church is not a dispensation but is governed by a dispensation or house-law of God in relation to the truth disclosed in the Mystery.
The Third Dispensation
The third dispensation is yet to come—"the dispensation of the fulness of times” (Eph. 1:10). This will be a special ordering of God with men during the public reign of Christ in the Millennium. The restored remnant of Israel and the Gentile nations will enjoy an earthly portion of blessing under the administration of Christ and the Church, who will reign over the universe from the heavens (Psa. 103:19; Rev. 21:10).
Summary of The Three Main Dispensations
The great thing to see in these dispensations (or administrations) of God’s house is that there is a vast difference in the Dispensation of the Mystery from the other two dispensations on either side of it. The Dispensation of the Law and the Dispensation of the Fulness of Times are administrations having to do with earthly people, whereas the Dispensation of the Mystery, sandwiched between the other two, is an administration involving heavenly people. Perhaps we could call it, “the Oreo Cookie Image.” The two outer dispensations (like the two chocolate biscuits of the cookie) are administrations in connection with the earth, but the middle dispensation (like the white icing in the center of the cookie) pertains to heavenly people. The more we study these dispensations, the more we will see how different they are.
The Dispensation of the Mystery is an interposed heavenly calling having to do with the Church. Presently, God’s dealings with the nation of Israel have been suspended, and He is calling out those who compose the Church by the gospel of His grace. Thereafter, He will resume His dealings with Israel and will bring a remnant of all 12 tribes into blessing, with the Gentile nations being blessed under them in Christ’s Millennial kingdom reign. Hence, there has been a change in the dispensational ways of God from the Law to grace, administered in the Mystery, and then there will be another change from the administration of the Mystery to the Kingdom in manifestation.
We learn from this that God has purposed to not only have a people on earth blessed with Christ in that coming day of kingdom glory, but also a people in heaven
CHART 1
Ages
Ages are sometimes confused with dispensations, but they are different. An age is an epoch or period of time that has run, or is running, or will run, its course on earth. Such periods are called “the ages of time” (2 Tim. 1:9; Titus 1:2). A dispensation, as we have already noted, is a public ordering of God in the administration of His ways pertaining to certain moral and spiritual requirements of those in His house. These administrations may change during an age, but they are not an age. Some have homogenized ages and dispensations and made them into the same thing. For instance, Unger’s Bible Dictionary says, “A dispensation is an era of time during which man is tested.” C. I. Scofield's scheme of “Seven Dispensations” is another example of this mixture. However, Scripture distinguishes these two things, as we have noted.
The Lord Spoke of Two Ages
The Lord spoke of two ages in particular in His ministry:
“This age” and “the age to come” (Matt. 12:32). “This age” is the Mosaic age, which began at Sinai and was in progress at the time of the Lord’s first coming. When He was rejected and cast out of this world, “this age” became “the present evil age,” in that the “princes of this age” committed the greatest sin of crucifying the Lord of glory (Gal. 1:4; 1 Cor. 2:6, 8).
Some have thought that the present calling of God by the gospel has put the Mosaic age in abeyance, and it will not begin again until some future day. But this is not true; the Mosaic age is still running its course on earth today. The coming of the Holy Spirit and the introduction of Christianity did not bring it to an end. Nor did it begin a new age; the age that was in progress when the Lord was here is still in progress now. However, while the Mosaic age is not suspended, God’s connection with Israel as a nation is in abeyance. Those who believe the gospel are called out of the Jews and the Gentiles to be part of the Church; they are delivered “out of this present evil age,” and are no longer part of it, as far as their position is concerned (Gal. 1:4). The Church, therefore, has no connection with the earth and the periods of time. Hence, to speak of this present period as “the Church age” is not doctrinally accurate.
The Church is on earth at this present time as a sojourner on its way to its heavenly home; its calling, character, and destiny are all heavenly (2 Cor. 5:1; Eph. 1:3; 2:6; 6:12; Phil. 3:20; Col. 1:5; Heb. 3:1; 11:16; 12:22; 13:14; 1 Peter 1:4). Since the Church is still on earth and passing through “this age” which is marked by evil, the exhortations of the Apostle are to keep ourselves separate from its character and ways. We are to “live soberly, righteously, and godly, is this present age” (Titus 2:12). Believers are to reject the wisdom of this age, because “God has made foolish the wisdom of this world” (1 Cor. 1:20). Also, Christians who are “rich in the present age” materially are warned to not “trust in uncertain riches” (1 Tim. 6:17). They are to distribute their possessions, and thereby lay “up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come” (1 Tim. 6:18-19). Sad to report, some Christians today are turning from their steadfastness, and are loving “this present age,” and are settling down in the world as a result. Demas is an example (2 Tim. 4:10).
We know from the prophetic Scriptures that this present age has at least 7 more years remaining to it, which will run their course after the Church is called to heaven. These years will be fulfilled in the seventieth week of Daniel (Dan. 9:27). This age is presently under the control of Satan who is its god and prince (2 Cor. 4:4; Eph. 2:2), and it is going on to judgment. It will close at the Appearing of Christ in what is called, “the completion of the age” (Matt. 13:39-40, 49; 24:3; 28:20). At that time, the Lord will bring in “the age to come,” which is the Millennium (Matt. 12:32; Mark 10:30; Eph. 1:21; Heb. 2:5; 6:5). When the Millennium has run its course of 1000 years, the Eternal State will be ushered in. Scripture calls this, “The ages of ages” (Gal. 1:5; Eph. 2:7; 3:21; 1 Tim. 1:17; 1 Peter 5:11; Rev. 5:13; 22:5). Properly speaking, it is not really an age, because ages have to do with time, and there is no time in eternity.
Summary of an Age
In summary, an “age” is a period of time, and a “dispensation” is a moral and spiritual ordering of God during a period of time in relation to some specific revelation of truth He has given to His house. In accord with this, J. N. Darby spoke of being “in” an age, but “under” a dispensation (Collected Writings, vol. 10, p. 12).
CHART 2