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Excerpt: 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.
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.
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).