The Dispensation of the Grace of God is His Operative Principle for this Age

If one will accept the definition of the word dispensation it will be easier to make my point.

1) an exemption from a rule or usual requirement.
2) A system of order, government, or organization of a nation, community, etc,, especially as existing at a particular time:
3) The action of distributing or supplying something.

I wonder if anyone will accept this definition of dispensation? I doubt it. The question is, can it be illustrated from the scriptures, and I say yes.

Over a period of time I will, if I choose, make an iron clad case for the dispensation of grace that God reveals in the New Testament scriptures, that fits perfectly with the definition I have given above.

My first point is to show conclusively that God introduces the dispensation of grace as something that was a mystery until the apostles and Paul revealed it for the first time. Until this time it had been hidden in God. God even gave this dispensation a name. It is called the mystery of Christ.

The reason I have chosen by my free will to put this study in the Calvinist section is because Calvinism may be the supreme denier of sound doctrine and rightly dividing and is the most subtle and powerful of all the false religious systems that have been introduced to the world in the name of Christian religion. That is not to say that all Calvinists purposely attempt to deceive people but some if not most are themselves deceived and are opposers of the truth by virtue of embracing this system where reason and logic is more or less thrown to the wind. Besides, the passages that teach the dispensation of the grace of God are the same the Calvinists use to destroy context and to teach, not the words in the text, but the philosophy of the system

Let's begin with this passage that accentuates definitions 1) and 2) above.

This passage will begin with the words "For this cause." One needs to go back to chapter 1 and review what the cause is. The cause is very revealing. I am sure we can talk about the cause some later.

Eph 3:1 For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles,
2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:
3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words,
4 Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ)
5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;

Following is the mystery of Christ stated in a single verse..

6 That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:

Saved Jews and gentiles were in the same body in 60 AD when this epistle was written but they did not get there at the same time.

7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power.
8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world <165> (aion = age = time frame that is different rules from other ages) hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:

Note: I have highlighted words and phrases one should focus their attention on learning.

Paul was not saved until AD 37/38. He received the revelation of the mystery in Arabia after that and did not receive his apostolic commission from God until Acts 13 1-2, which was likely in AD 42. God had his apostles preaching to none but those of Israel in Jerusalem and Judaea for the first 7 years until their rejection of the resurrected Christ in Acts 7. It was shortly after this that God confirmed his new dispensation by exempting Israel from the practice of their ceremonial laws that would be a hindrance to gentiles being saved. This is Acts 10/11 and is in AD 40. This is forty years after Jesus came into the world. The number 40 is the number God uses for probation.

Ye, you, and your are pronouns that are consistently used distinctly for gentiles in the epistle to the Ephesians.

Who will believe the words of this epistle? Get this right and you will not be confused about who was chosen before the world began.

 

Two dispensations are mentioned in Ephesians. The first is the dispensation of the fullness of times. The word times is plural. This suggests that there have been "times" leading up to the last times which is the fullness of them all. One can reason that if it is the fullness of times that is coming up, and we are all well aware that what God has in mind for eternity after time is fulfilled is an endless eternity. God speaks of it as an endless day that he calls "the day of God. Check it out here;

Re 10:1 And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:
2 And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth,
3 And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.
4 And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.
5 And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven,
6 And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer:
7 But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.

God typically sends rainbows when his judgement is finished and a new age begins.

2Pe 3:12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
Re 16:14 For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.

Both the "day of the LORD" and the "day of God" judgements are given in the Revelation of Jesus Christ but they are different, 1000 years apart, the day of the LORD judgement taking place immediately before the 1000 year reign of Christ on the earth, and the day of God judgement taking place immediately after the 1000 year reign of Christ on the earth and ending time as we know it now, as being determined by day and night week, months, and years. Take a look at this statement from the revelator;

Immediately before the 1000 years;

Re 19:11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him [was] called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head [were] many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.
13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.
14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;
18 That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all [men, both] free and bond, both small and great.
19 And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army.
20 And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
21 And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.
Re 20:1 And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.
4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

WOW!!

Immediately after the 1000 years:

Re 20:7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.
10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

2 Pe 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,
12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein (in the day of God) the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
13 Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.

Double WOW!!!!

There are two days in focus here. One is a thousand year long day and the other is an endless day. There are judgements on both ends of the thousand year day, the fullness of times.

Re 21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

23 And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
24 And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.
25 And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.
26 And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.

I will try to focus more on Ephesians in my next post. It is important to see and understand that two operative principles of God's dealing with men were present in the first 40 years of this present age. One concerning the Jewish nation, with whom God had made covenant promises that were binding on his integrity and a different operative principle for the gentiles, with whom he had not made any promises. This is clearly seen in Ephesians. It needs to be discussed. It will require Bible believers to receive it.

 

A very important point is the one he makes here:

1 For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles,
2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:
3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words,
4 Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ)
5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;
6 That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:
7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power.
8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:
10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,
11 According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:
12 In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him.

The "you-ward" in verse 2 is gentile-ward.

Do not miss the point Paul is making. The grace of God is associated and connected to gentiles as defined as a dispensation. This will follow definition #3 in my OP. What does it say? Look;

3) The action of distributing or supplying something.

What is being supplied and distributed, and to whom?

The answer is "grace" is supplied to gentiles. This will be the principle for this entire age for gentiles. God is being kind, merciful, and gracious to gentiles with whom he has made no promises of salvation and, until Jesus Christ died on Calvary's hill, never had a blood sacrifice acceptable to God until God accepted the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and opened the door of faith to us and now receives us when we come to him in repentance and faith in Jesus Christ and the New Testament promise that God will receive us in his name. He confirms that by giving us the gift of son-ship when we believe.

But here is the reason and logic I will leave you with to ponder. If grace had already been poured out during the years from the cross in AD 30 to the year AD 40 when God opened the door of faith to gentiles through Peter in Acts 10, how can it be true that Paul was given the dispensation of the grace of God particularly to the gentiles since he was not saved until AD 37/38?

One must ask questions of a text to learn the answers.

 

Taking into account the #3 option of of my definition of dispensation I supplied in my op, which is: "3) The action of distributing or supplying something," as it applies to gentiles, is "grace,' one can now better determine what God had in mind by supplying grace to the gentiles. One can define grace more clearly as the Spirit of God that is being supplied and distributed to the gentiles from heaven in a one time act of God which he calls the "baptism of the Holy Ghost" in Acts 11 as Peter later describes the events in Acts 10 with the gentile Cornelius and his family to the Jewish apostles and brethren in Jerusalem. Baptism of course means immersion and abundance and the idea is that God supplied his Spirit to gentiles in such abundance that all gentiles may drink of him. The terminology that God uses in his metaphors are purposely used to make us think of water that comes from above and is life giving in the physical realm.

One must understand that Paul in Ephesians is dealing with two people groups in that letter to define "the cause" of God and his ministry to the gentiles through the apostle he has equipped with special revelation of his working in this age and who he has appointed as the apostle to the gentiles. Those two people groups are Jews and gentiles.

Paul wrote this letter to the Ephesians, a gentile church, in AD 60, while imprisoned at Rome. This was 30 years after the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and it was 20 years after God sent Peter to the home of Cornelius with the glad tidings that now "whosoever believeth in him shall be saved." One should read these verses with discernment and consider the time line and the context and realize that this event records a great transition of God's purposes of salvation from his people Israel, who was first to receive it, to the whole world.

Acts 10:34 Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: 35 But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh
righteousness, is accepted with him. 36 The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of all) 37 That word, I say, ye
know, which was published throughout all Judaea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached; 38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with
the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him. 39 And we are witnesses of all
things which he did both in the land of the Jews, and in Jerusalem; whom they slew and hanged on a tree: 40 Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly;

41 Not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead. 42 And he commanded us
to preach unto the people (the people of Israel in context), and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead. 43 To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.

Note: It is important to know that the prophets in V 43 are one and the same with the eye witnesses of his ministry including his death and resurrection. They are the apostles and prophets who he chose and were the only ones commissioned to preach this gospel until after these transitions were made over time.

44 While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. 45 And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished,
as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. 46 For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify
God. Then answered Peter, 47 Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we? 48 And he
commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days.

The gospel of Jesus Christ must be grounded in an eye witness account. That is why we today who are preaching this glorious gospel puts so much emphasis on having an every word Bible and why we read and study it and believe it.

It is not difficult for the initial readers of this letter, the Ephesian church and other churches, to grasp the time lines that are necessary to fully understand this letter because they were living during these events as they played out. We, on the other hand must study the historical record, the gospels and the Acts, and learn from them. We should understand that the epistles were written to explain the history. The historical record shows us that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came to Israel for the purpose of saving them. It has always been the purpose of God to save the gentile nations through the Jewish nations and knowing that will help us understand why God dealt with the Jews and Samaritans in the 10 years after the events of the cross before he began saving the gentiles.

Joh 4:22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.

The people of Israel had OT promises from God that he will save them through his Messiah, the Christ. He promised that he would live in their bodies in the person of the Spirit and would be their life. They were direct promises to them but there was no direct promises to gentiles. God's promise to the families of the earth was a promise to Abraham and his family that he would bless them with salvation. Therefore, salvation is given to Israel is by promise and the gentiles are made "partakers" of his promise. This is what the letters of Paul to the gentiles teach us.

Lu 24:44 And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.

14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words:
15 For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is [but] the third hour of the day.
16 But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;
17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
18 And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:

Ac 3:25 Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed. 26 Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities.

What we are beginning to learn here is that Israel initially received the Spirit of God from above in what God describes as a baptism of his people, abundance, by PROMISE. He is keeping his OT promise to them. For the gentiles, he poured out the Spirit to us as a matter of his grace. This is clearly seen in Paul's explanation of the cause, the mystery of Christ, in the letter to the Ephesians. The word Spirit of God defines the term grace as it related to the dispensation of grace applied to gentiles.

I will say more about it later.

 

Ho!
In this post I am going to prove with the historical and prophetic words of Jesus Christ after his official rejection by the Jewish rulers but before his death and resurrection that he foretold the exact order of events as they played out in the historical account of the Acts of the apostles. The first prophetical parable from Jesus I will mention was during the last week before his crucifixion. It was on the third day before the Passover and was during his last visit to the Jewish temple. We today would call this day Tuesday. Their "house" (family) was left desolate because of their unbelief and only a small remnant of Jews would be chosen.

Stop: Jesus Christ came to establish his kingdom with a nation full of Jewish citizens who would be born again into the family of God and his kingdom will be inaugurated with a marriage supper. John did not say in John 3:3 and Jn 3:7 that a man must be born again to enter into the church, but a man must be born again to enter the kingdom. The church had not been revealed at the time Jesus spoke those words. The Jewish rulers stood in the way of the whole nation and they would not enter in and would not allow others to enter in, says Jesus Christ who knows all things. He said those words at the beginning of his ministry and these following at the end.

Mt 22:14 For many are called, but few are chosen.
Mt 23:37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.

Here is the first of the two prophetic parables I want you to see that chronicles the ministry of Jesus and this age, beginning to end;

Matt 21:46 But when they sought to lay hands on him, they feared the multitude, because they took him for a prophet.
Matt 22:1 And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said,
2 The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son,
3 And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.
4 Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage.
5 But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise:
6 And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them.
7 But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.

The armies he sent burned up their city and destroyed the temple in 70 AD and dispersed his citizens out of their country.

8 Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy.
9 Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.
10 So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.
11 And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:
12 And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.
13 Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
14 For many are called, but few are chosen.

It is not hard to decipher the meaning of this parable if one can believe that Jesus is a prophet. Here is the other:

Here is the setup for the following second prophetic parable;

Lu 14:7 And he put forth a parable to those which were bidden, when he marked how they chose out the chief rooms; saying unto them,
8 When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him;
9 And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room.
10 But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee.
11 For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
12 Then said he also to him that bade him, When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbours; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompence be made thee.
13 But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind:
14 And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just.
15 And when one of them that sat at meat with him heard these things, he said unto him, Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God.

The response:

Lu 14:16 Then said he unto him, A certain man made a great supper, and bade many:
17 And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready.
18 And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused.
19 And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused.
20 And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.
21 So that servant came, and shewed his lord these things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind.
22 And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room.
23 And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.
24 For I say unto you, That none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper.

Remember, a house is a family. "My" house is a particular house. It is entered by a new birth.

A few men, not many, are still coming. I wonder if anyone can see the prophesies play out post resurrection?

 

Since I have quotes from our Lord Jesus as he spoke about the marriage that God had prepared in his parables to which certain people in the gospel accounts had been bidden and would not come, I will make a short post here of a marvelous truth. One will notice as he reads the parables of Jesus is that he focuses on the end of things. One must remember that Jesus himself came to bring something to an end. That something was the dispensation of law as it pertained to Israel to whom it was given as God's operative principle of his divine dealing with them as his people and nation for the previous 1400 years.

Consider these three verses-
Ga 4:4 But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
Notice it was the "fulness" of "the time" when God sent him to redeem them. This is the reason he bade them come, It was because all things were prepared for their redemption. (but they would not come).

Ro 10:4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.
That is, it is the end to which the law was intended to bring his people Israel, to whom it was given. They had learned how unforgiving the law is and they were condemned by it because they could not keep it..

Heb 1:2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;(aions = ages)
After reading the other two verses, would anyone want to guess what the writer means that God spoke to his Hebrew brethren in person in the "last days?" He bid them to come because all things were prepared, he said, and it is time for his marriage to the nation as one man. (But they would not come).Jesus spent 3.5 years bidding them to come. (and they would not come). See my note 1 at the end of this post:

Remember, it was God the Father who had sent his Son and who had prepared the supper and bid the guests, who were also to be the bride. "Supper" is at the end of the day after all the work is done. (But, you guessed it, they would not come).

Now we know that God's plans are in the foundational covenant he made with Abraham. God made many promises to his people in this covenant that he calls in Hebrews, "immutable." I will quote a passage to consider as given to the Hebrews.

Heb 6:9 But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak.
10 For God[is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.
11 And we desire that every one of you (this statement I have underlined is key to understanding) do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end:
12 That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
13 For when God made promise to Abraham (the Abrahamic Covenant beginning in Ge 12), because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself,
14 Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.
15 And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.
16 For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife.
17 Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath:
18 That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: (the oath made the covenant legally binding upon God and he must bring it to pass as it was given)

19 Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;
20 Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.

At the time of this writing it was not brought to pass or there would be no need to admonish them to hope.

Remembering that God's response to those who were bidden to come to the marriage that he had prepared and who would not come was to send servants out to bid those in the hedges and highways, the poor, the blind, and the halt to come that his house may be filled, those who had not been previously bidden. I will take a minute in Galatians 3 to show a truth, relevant to this post.

Two operative principles of divine dealing are in view in Galatians as it pertained to the physical seed of Abraham, who were under covenant relations with God through the Abrahamic covenant, law and promise. The Abrahamic Covenant stated the promises of salvation to his family, and through them, to the whole world. Because of their stiff neck and hard heart God gave the Mosaic covenant of law to convince them and persuade them of God's view about sin and to prepare them for the promised Messiah, giving them types, figures, and similitudes in their ceremonial laws. This was an addendum to the Abrahamic covenant and was intended to be temporary. It would be taken away when the promise came, the seed of Abraham, Jesus Christ, through whom God would bless his family first, and then all the world.

This post is already long but understand that the third operative principle of divine dealing is applied to gentiles, who had no direct promises of salvation, and so this principle was grace. God made gentiles partakers of the Jewish promise of redemption on the principle of faith in what Jesus did on the cross. There is much I could say but I am out of room here. Notice in this quote what is the common denominator between promise and grace. Both are by faith in Christ.

21 Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.
22 But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.
23 But before faith came, we (Jews) were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.
24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.
26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
29 And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Faith has come and it is the vehicle by which all men may have the promise of blessing given in the covenant with Abraham. This is the message. We may all attend the marriage supper, if we believe in Christ. More on that later.

NOTE #1
1 Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth?
2 For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband.
3 So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man.
4 Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.
They were married to the law by virtue of a Hebrew birth. They will be married to Christ by a spiritual birth and the Abrahamic covenant was where the promise was made. This is why Abraham is the Father of faith.

 

There are two or three very interesting questions that a logical and reasonable and intelligent person would desire answers for if they believed the prophesy of a marriage supper that is associated with the kingdom that Jesus Christ came to establish on this earth. The first question is obviously, did the marriage supper ever occur? The obvious answer for that is, NO! The next question is, Why? The answer is because those who were bidden to the marriage would not come and bidding new guests in a large enough number that they will fill the house will take time. It is still going on today. The third question is, Will the marriage supper take place and when? The answer is , yes, the marriage supper will take place and the kingdom of Christ will be inaugurated. Those who come are not only bidden but they will also be the bride. Consider that it is at the end of the age and the bride is prepared with a wedding garment given by the bridegroom and comes with him to the earth when he takes his place of King of kings and Lord of lords. There are imposters and play actors along the way who the Lord must deal with very harshly. Here:

Mt 22:8 Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy.
9 Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.
10 So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.
11 And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:
12 And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.
13 Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
14 For many are called (to the marriage), but few are chosen.


Re 19:1 And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God:
2 For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand.
3 And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever and ever.
4 And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia.
5 And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great.
6 And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.
7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.
8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.
9 And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.
10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

Read the following context in Re 19. The marriage can now take place because those from the highways and hedges that came when bidden filled his house.

Now Jesus had other prophetic parables in this vein that I have not mentioned that sheds much light of the events of this age. I do not want this thread to be about the marriage supper exclusively but it is important to understanding the dispensational qualities of this age.

Consider this passage in Romans 11 where Paul explains to the gentiles. beginning in Ro 11:13, that because of the unbelief of Israel God had visited the gentiles to replace them and there would be a time in the future when the fullness of the gentiles would be finished and he would once again turn his attention to those he had made a covenant (the Abraham covenant) and save them and give them some land to occupy forever on this earth. Read about it here;

Ro 11:1313 For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office:
14 If by any means I may provoke to emulation them which are my flesh, and might save some of them.
15 For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead?
16 For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches.
17 And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert graffed in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree;
18 Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee.
19 Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off, that I might be graffed in.
20 Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear:
21 For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.
22 Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in [his] goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.
23 And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be graffed in: for God is able to graff them in again.
24 For if thou wert cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and wert graffed contrary to nature into a good olive tree: how much more shall these, which be the natural [branches], be graffed into their own olive tree?
25 For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. (those who were bidden from the hedges and highways, the maimed, the poor. etc.)
26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.
28 As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sakes.
29 For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.
30 For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
31 Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.
32 For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.

I will be moving on to something else in my next post.

 

As glorious and wonderful to speak on the subject of the marriage supper of the Lamb as it bears upon the subject that I have chosen for this thread, the dispensation of the grace of God as his operative principle of divine dealing with Jews and gentiles in this present age, I must introduce another subject that likewise impacts the principle. I only quoted from maybe three of the parables of the perfect prophet, Jesus Christ, as I dealt with his laying out the progression of his ministry and how it would be perceived. I could have written the entire 130 posts and still have not not covered it all.

I have shown so far how his coming was to bring things to an end, like the dispensation of the Mosaic law as the operative principle of divine dealing with the Jews before he came. I went over some of those things in this thread already so I will not retrace my steps. In this post I will introduce the "beginning " of something that is noted by his appearance and introduction to Israel by John the Baptist and God the Father at the River Jordan. It is important that one acknowledges that God has been dealing with his people, the nation of Israel, for some 1400 years under his law when Jesus came. During those years he had given many promises to them and about them, the fulfillment of which would require a change in the relationship of God and Israel. Whereas Israel had been the servants of God during those days, the fulfillment of the promises would require they become the children of God.

Here is a quote of Jesus to his disciples on crucifixion eve.

Joh 15:15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.

So the progression. Servants, friends, sons.

1Jo 3:1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.

John wrote that. He was there on crucifixion eve when Jesus prayed and his letter of 1st John was written sixty years later after Jesus was resurrected.

Now it is very important for God to record the events of the birth of Jesus Christ so we can know about them and believe he is the Son of God and man. However, he did not focus on the early years of Jesus. It seems he told us of three major things in his life as a youth, His birth, his flight into Egypt, and his dealing with the rulers when he was 12 years old. God seemed anxious to proceed to his ministry of redemption, and that is where Mark begins his ministry. Notice what he says. It is very important. Ponder the words;

Mr 1:1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God;
2 As it is written in the prophets, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.
3 The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
4 John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.
5 And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins.
6 And John was clothed with camel’s hair, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins; and he did eat locusts and wild honey;
7 And preached, saying, There cometh one mightier than I after me, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose.
8 I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost. (this happened in Acts 2 BTW)
9 And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan.
10 And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him:
11 And there came a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
12 And immediately the Spirit driveth him into the wilderness.
13 And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him

Note this paragraph break:

14 Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,
15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

Notice the two statements I have underlined. One must conclude that the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ at his revelation to Israel was an end of a principle of an age.

His first statement in Mark's gospel account was not an admonishment to keep the law of God, but to believe the OT promises that they had been privy to for hundreds of years and was now ready to be fulfilled in him.

Now, if I called on smart and intelligent men who had intelligence, reason, and logic and who could parse a verb at the drop of a hat, I would expect them to conclude some things that I have concluded from those words. Namely, the gospel that Mark is speaking of is not the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ that we preach today in this age. If one reads the last couple of chapters of all the gospel writers, they would discover that not a single person believed that Jesus Christ had risen from the dead. Unbelief in the resurrection was especially true of those who were his closet men and had ministered with him for 3 1/2 years. The testimony of all them was that they had no knowledge of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ while they ministered with him, because that was not the gospel that Mark was talking about in his opening to his letter. Everyone of those men believed the gospel that Jesus Christ began to preach to Israel after his showing.

So, if the gospel is not the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, what was it. The gospel means "good news, glad tidings." What was the good news and the glad tiding that Jesus preached? What does the text say it is? It does give the answer if one will receive it. It is the good news that God is ready to establish his kingdom on the earth through his Son Jesus Christ, who alone has the power to provide the perfect righteousness that God requires for fellowship with them. He can take their sins away.

Here is the gospel Jesus preached to Israel

"preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,
15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel."

The introduction of Jesus Christ to Israel is the beginning of the "dispensation of promise." Obviously he could not introduce the dispensation to gentiles because he had made no such promises to them. He would later introduce a principle of divine dealing with them that they had not known in the past, "grace." He would accept them in Jesus Christ on the lone basis that he is kind, good, merciful, gracious. This dispensation of promise lasted until 70 AD, when God reckoned the nation dead and buried them in the graveyard of the nations of the earth because they would not receive his promise of the savior and the King, both one and the same, Jesus Christ. God was far from ruling over them at this point but they fell under the rulership of the different ungodly nations into which they were dispersed. God would deal with them now under the same principle as he deals with gentiles, grace. They would be as gentiles in the mind of God. Their familial and national promises given in the Abrahamic covenant requires they be a converted people, every one, and that they dwell in their own land. Their promises are earthly. Their Old Testament prophesies are full of promises of the Messiah ruling as King over them and the earth, every one of them being saved and sealed in their righteousness. This is the promises of of God and it was the gospel he preached to Israel from the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ at his baptism.

Consider what Jesus says is the reason he came to Israel;

Lu 24:44 And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.

 

Continued from above;

Read this parable of Jesus as they went into Jerusalem for the feast of unleavened bread when he would be crucified as the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world.

Lu 19:10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
11 And as they heard these things, he added and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear.
12 He said therefore, A certain nobleman (Jesus) went into a far country (heaven) to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return.
13 And he called his ten servants (remember, there were 11 apostles after Judas fell), and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.
14 But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us.
15 And it came to pass, that when he was returned, having received the kingdom, then he commanded these servants to be called unto him, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading.
16 Then came the first, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds.
17 And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities.
18 And the second came, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds.
19 And he said likewise to him, Be thou also over five cities.
20 And another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin:
21 For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up that thou layedst not down, and reapest that thou didst not sow.
22 And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow:
23 Wherefore then gavest not thou my money into the bank, that at my coming I might have required mine own with usury?
24 And he said unto them that stood by, Take from him the pound, and give it to him that hath ten pounds.
25 (And they said unto him, Lord, he hath ten pounds)
26 For I say unto you, That unto every one which hath shall be given; and from him that hath not, even that he hath shall be taken away from him.
27 But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me.


Everyone who enters the kingdom of Jesus Christ when he receives it from the Father and returns must be born again. No one will be allowed to enter the kingdom unless it is so. That is the rule of the kingdom.

The kingdom of God over the earth really was at hand. All things were ready. One must allow themselves to be taught why it was delayed and what transpired in the meantime that is such a blessing to us today.

I have more to say about this. We are talking dispensations here and there are things one must see and believe.

I would like to remind the reader what definition I am using for "dispensation" in this thread.

Dispensation:
1) an exemption from a rule or usual requirement.
2) A system of order, government, or organization of a nation, community, etc,, especially as existing at a particular time:
3) The action of distributing or supplying something.

 

With my definition in mind I would like now to supply some passages that should persuade those readers of the logic of these acts of God, all three of the definitions I have provided. These will deal with the Jews because Jesus came to the Jews first, and only, in his earthly ministry. The promised kingdom was at hand because the King was in the midst of Israel. But they would not have him to reign over them.

Here are some things we learn from reading the gospel accounts, four of them, that gives us an understanding of what God's plans were by the showing of his promised son to Israel through the ministry of John the Baptist. We know, because we have read it in Mark chapter 1 that the beginning of his gospel, of Jesus Christ, was not about salvation first but about the kingdom. He says that in Mark 1 and it is true whether anyone believes it or not.

Now, let me just say that the gospel of Jesus Christ was two-fold. First it was called the gospel of the kingdom of God." Secondly, it was that the kingdom would be established through his person and work and they must have faith in him, not blind faith, but faith in the words about himself and the promised kingdom that had been written about through the centuries by their prophets. He would verify them all by his person and work while he was here on the earth and by the testimony of the scriptures and by John the Baptist. The response to these things by Israel would determine whether or not they would enter into the kingdom. The gospel of Jesus Christ was not about his kingdom, but about the kingdom of God. The fact that the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ began at the river Jordan with his baptism by John was not the same thing as the kingdom of God beginning at that time. It was "at hand" at that time. That was the good news, glad tidings.

Mr 1:14 Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,
15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel (that the kingdom of God is at hand).

One can see that the gospel that Jesus Christ came to preach was after his baptism. He was seen of Israel and they heard him. He preached it first in Judah and then he preached it in Galilee after John was arrested by Herod. He said "the time is fulfilled." In the parable I have already quoted, he said all things are now ready, come to the marriage (which is the inauguration of the kingdom). Of course we know they would not come. We can see that 1) repentance of their (national) sins, and 2) believing the gospel of the kingdom of God is at hand, ready to be established are the two things which are required of this people.

Before I continue with this line of thought I would like to demonstrate through the words of all four gospel writers that they neither understood nor believed the gospel of salvation, which one must believe today to be saved, was not the same gospel that was preached through them leading up to his crucifixion and resurrection. Whether these words by the reader is believed or rejected is on the reader, but they are true. What I will quote to you are words at the very end of the 3 1/2 ministry of Jesus Christ. Take a look.

Matthew
Mt 16:21 From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.
22 Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.
23 But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.

Mark
Mark 9:9 And as they came down from the mountain, he charged them that they should tell no man what things they had seen, till the Son of man were risen from the dead.
10 And they kept that saying with themselves, questioning one with another what the rising from the dead should mean.

31 For he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day.
32 But they understood not that saying, and were afraid to ask him.

Luke
31 Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished.
32 For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on:
33 And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again.
34 And they (the twelve) understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.

John
Joh 20:6 Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie,
7 And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself.
8 Then went in also that other disciple, which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed.
9 For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead.

What did Peter believe relative to verse 8? He believed what Jesus said about rising from the dead.

1 The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.
2 Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him.

Does anyone think Mark Magdalene came anticipating an empty tomb? Was she expecting to find a resurrected Jesus? Her words of verse 2 does not indicate at all that she believed that.

It is reasonable and logical to understand that the gospel of the kingdom that Jesus preached to Israel along with his 12 disciples and 70 elders was not the Christian gospel that is preached today throughout the whole world. It is reasonable and logical to understand the disciples preached with him for 3.5 years and they did understand the gospel of the kingdom which both they and Jesus preached. However, in light of the kingdom being at hand they could not understand that Jesus, who would bring in the kingdom, being the Messiah of Israel, suddenly began telling them that he was going to die in Jerusalem soon and rise again from the dead. This was a new message to them. It perplexed them. It discouraged them.

I am going somewhere with this. One must get this foundational truth about Israel before he can understand the reason of God for the delay of the earthly kingdom (which formerly was at hand) with it's marriage supper and the subsequent introduction and inclusion of the gentiles into a mystery form of the kingdom which comes much later after the institution of the New Testament. Mystery because it is not written as prophesy in the OT Jewish scriptures, More later. We need to get this gospel of the kingdom right and we can do that by "believing the words."

 

Dispensations in the scriptures are "pivot points of God" in his prosecution of his will to accomplish the renewal of his relationship with men on the whole earth that was lost in the fall of Adam, and through him, all of his offspring. Someone has called this "the unfolding drama of redemption." Not all the pivot points of God are classified as dispensations but those that affect all on mankind are notable dispensations. An example of a change of course is in my previous post that was some additional revelation to a few men with whom Jesus had a personal relationship, his chosen disciples, some of whom wrote the gospels. Here is what he said:

Matthew
Mt 16:21 From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.

This can mean only one thing. Before that time he had not shown that fact to his disciples. This was at the end of his ministry to Israel. He had been preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God. He had presented himself as the promised Messiah and King that was the Son of God. They had all preached that this kingdom was "at hand." Jesus himself had said "all things are now ready, come," Jesus Christ came, he said, to fulfill all things that were written in the Law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the Psalms concerning him. The only requirement on the part of his people Israel was that they receive him with the evidence of repentance and faith in him, being baptized in water by John the Baptist.

We can read the 4 gospels today and know that God's chosen means to redeem the earth is through this people Israel. He made an everlasting covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that must be fulfilled. It has 12 unconditional promises of God to these patriarchs of Israel in it and not all have been fulfilled yet. This was one family through whom all `the other families of the earth will be blessed. When this family of Abraham began to grow in number they became a nation and settled in the land God gave them. After that he gave them a system of government. Consider my number 2 definition of dispensations;

2) A system of order, government, or organization of a nation, community, etc,, especially as existing at a particular time:

Moses was the prophet of God. A prophet is one who speaks the words of God to the people. He gave the law of God in 613 laws, They were divided into three parts, the moral (10 commandments), the civil, and the ceremonial. the structure of the government was Moses, 12 patriarchs over the 12 tribes and 70 elders to assist in judging this family. This is the eternal model, it seems, of God's government, even in eternity. It is certainly the structure Jesus chose as he presented himself to Israel as he preached the gospel of the kingdom.

Mt 10:1 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.
2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother;
3 Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus;
4 Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.
5 These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not:
6 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
7 And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Read on in the context and one can see these were given kingdom powers.

Lu 10:1 After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.
2 Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.
3 Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves.
4 Carry neither purse, nor scrip, nor shoes: and salute no man by the way.
5 And into whatsoever house ye enter, first say, Peace [be] to this house.
6 And if the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it: if not, it shall turn to you again.
7 And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give: for the labourer is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house.
8 And into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you:
9 And heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.
10 But into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you not, go your ways out into the streets of the same, and say,
11 Even the very dust of your city, which cleaveth on us, we do wipe off against you: notwithstanding be ye sure of this, that the kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.
12 But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city.

These 70 also were given kingdom powers.

Finally, this model is an eternal model.

Mt 19:27 Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore?
28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
29 And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.
30 But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.

The generation to which Jesus came rejected him from being king, calling out that they would not have this man to reign over them. This fact delayed the kingdom to be established through them at that time and gave the occasion to a pivot point in God's dealing with his kingdom message and expanded it into a two-fold kingdom, one heavenly and one earthly and gave occasion for gentiles to enter in through faith in the resurrected Jesus whom the Jews killed and buried and by the grace of God who received us. The failure of that generation to know their savior in no way negates the Abrahamic covenant promises and they will be fully realized in time. It gave the occasion of the dispensation of the grace of God and that generation of Jews were cursed.

Lu 10:13 Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.
14 But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you.
15 And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven, shalt be thrust down to hell.
16 He that heareth you heareth me; and he that despiseth you despiseth me; and he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me.

Lu 7:30 But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him.

Lu 11:29 And when the people were gathered thick together, he began to say, This is an evil generation: they seek a sign; and there shall no sign be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet.
30 For as Jonas was a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man be to this generation.
31 The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation, and condemn them: for she came from the utmost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.
32 The men of Nineveh shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.
33 No man, when he hath lighted a candle, putteth it in a secret place, neither under a bushel, but on a candlestick, that they which come in may see the light.
34 The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness.
35 Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness.
36 If thy whole body therefore be full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light.

 

It is time now to highlight some words of the scriptures for those honest people who are willing to adjust their thinking to what is actually said in the scriptures. I have been saying that all scripture must be understood in the dispensational format that I have been proving in this thread, if my definition of dispensation is accepted as true. Obviously the coming of God into the earth as a man, and in his form, in the very end of the fourth millennia of history and the beginning of the fifth is radically different than anything that has ever happened previously. So, for the rational mind, it is a change in how God is prosecuting his purposes of redemption for mankind through his people Israel, according to his promises to them in the Abrahamic Covenant. The operative principle of divine dealing with that people, the law of Moses, was a preparation for his coming and his redemption. So, he came to offer himself as King and to declare that his kingdom is "at hand." He would take away the former method of God in dealing with his people, the Law, and replace it with a new method. Whereas the Law was an outward form and depended upon the individual to know it and practice it with self effort, God, through Jesus Christ, would give a new and everlasting covenant that promises his power to keep God's law perfectly, as did Jesus, (who BTW submitted himself completely to God the Father who lived in him) would be inward and the power would be from the indwelling Christ. This is why the kingdom message was before the salvation message. Jesus is the authority of God to whom men must willingly bow, He presented himself first as the King who came to be their savior so he can be the savior who is their King.


The requirement of entrance as subject and citizen into this kingdom is to become in the image of the King, who is the Son of God, by being born again. Everyone who enters this kingdom must be previously born again, because that is the only ones who may enter. It is the rule of the kingdom. The King will not inaugurate his kingdom until all his subjects are born again. This makes perfect sense when one comes to the realization that the power to keep God's laws perfectly, as he requires, is from the King who resides inside in the person of his own Spirit. The kingdom of his fleshly birth was intended to be the example for this new form of the kingdom and to make his ways known to the other nations and kingdoms of the world as they did in the OT when they were established as a nation and given the Laws of God under Moses. All the world learned all we knew about God, until Jesus Christ came.

So, the kingdom that was at hand by the coming of the Messiah, and all that that word entails, was a real and a literal, and a promised kingdom, to be established after the OT pattern I showed before. God knew that there must be a government with laws to teach sinful men about authority and submission. In the beginning of this age, after the flood, God established the divisions of humanity into nations through the three sons of Noah. This was God's idea. He gave each of the sons a continent and their offspring of these families became nations. He actually tells us why he did it this way if one can receive it.

Acts 17:22 Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars’ hill, and said, Ye]men of Athens (the philosophers of the world), I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious.
23 For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.
24 God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;
25 Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;
26 And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;
27 That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:
28 For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.
29 Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man’s device.
30 And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: (all the men of all the nations)
31 Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.

Joh 1:10 He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.

11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not.

His own in context is Israel in general and Judah in particular. We know that because we have read the record. He could have not have come through any other family and be accepted as the promised Messiah by John the Baptist, Israel, or God. We know from that same record that his own received him not. I have quoted parables by Jesus outlining his time here on earth and the perception of the people of Israel. They were bidden to the marriage supper at the end of the age, and they would not come.

John writes this gospel account in about 90 AD. He has a historical eye witness understanding of what happened. Here is what happened;

12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power (authority) to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:

The rulers and elders of Israel would not come, along with those who aligned with them, but as many, a few, a remnant, received him, and what happened is recorded in the next verse;

13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Can we get a historical handle on the scriptures? They were not born again immediately, if the reader will accept my definition of being born again as the Son of God entering into the body of the believer in the person of his Spirit, but all these who came received his Spirit after his resurrection from the dead.

One should understand how precise the scriptures are and when they have past tense verbs, we should note that and take ourselves back to the historical context.

Well, the Lord led me in a different way in this post and I did not get to my verse list. Perhaps I can do that in my next post.

Joh 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Joh 3:7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

Joh 3:5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

1Jo 5:11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.
13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

1Jo 5:20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.

 

The end of the Law of Moses as the operative principle of God's Devine dealing with Israel after some 1400 years. There is an end to one dispensation and the beginning of another one for the Hebrews.

He 10:5 Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:
6 In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.

7 Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.
8 Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law;
9 Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He (God the Father) taketh away the first, that he may establish the second.
10 By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
11 And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:
12 But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;
13 From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.
14 For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.
15 Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before,
16 This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days (the days of annual sacrifices of animals), saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;
17 And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.
18 Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.

Check this out in this context.

Ga 3:11 But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.
12 And the law is not of faith: but, The man that doeth them shall live in them.

Verse 11 is an incredible statement. The operative principle of God's government over them in those days could not justify them, it could only condemn them. Yet there were many who obeyed the law who were justified men. Faith in what God said to them was the principle of their justification and keeping the law in obedience from the heart was the evidence. God can see the heart. I say WOW here.

So what was the purpose of the law? We are told here;

21 Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.
22 But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise (the Spirit of Christ in context = life= righteousness = the gift of God, all synonyms) by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.
23 But before faith came, we (Jews) were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.
24 Wherefore the law was our (Jews) schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ (because the law cursed them - 10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse), that we might be justified by faith.
25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.
26 For ye (gentiles) are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.

The new birth is by the principle of faith in Jesus Christ. Justification took place in the OT, by believing what God said, but not the new birth. The new birth requires faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ at the cross and his resurrection from the dead.

One must understand the transitions and believe the words. This next record of the change of dispensations for Israel will slap you right up side the head. Read it here;



2Co 3:3 Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.
4 And such trust have we through Christ to God-ward:
5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;

6 ¶ Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
7 But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away:
8 How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather glorious?
9 For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory.
10 For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that excelleth.
11 For if that which is done away was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious.

12 ¶ Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech:
13 And not as Moses, which]put a vail over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished:
14 But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ.
15 But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart.
16 Nevertheless when it (the heart) shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away.
17 Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

That which is done away V 11
That which is abolished V 13
Done away in Christ V 15

This is speaking of the Law. Obviously he does not mean it is eliminated and gone, because it is written on the hearts of the believers in Christ now, and not on stone. What he means is the written law is no longer the operative principle of Divine dealing because Christ lives in us. What the law demanded Christ provides. The new birth ensures forgiveness of sins and imputed righteousness and the inward power to live for God..

There was a dispensational change for Israel after Jesus rose from the dead.