Eph 753 2/24/88

DOCTRINE OF DISPENSATIONAL THEOLOGY

A. Dispensational theology is not dead. Evangelical Christianity, covenant theology, Calvinism, hypercalvinism, fundamentalism, and the holy rollers, who erroneously call themselves charismatics (any believer who uses his spiritual gift is charismatic, for the Greek word CHARISMOS refers to our spiritual gifts), have all failed to define the Christian way of life in terms of the mystery doctrine of the Church Age.

B. Because of this, legalism is the order of the day. The legalism which has come out of the Reformation is different from the Roman Catholic legalism; both are equally ineffective in defining the Christian way of life.

C. None of the denominations have properly defined the Christian way of life. Therefore, they are ineffective in post-salvation Christian experience. The only answer to the question, “After salvation - what?” is found in the protocol plan of God for the Church Age.

D. This protocol plan must be defined in terms of the fact that the uniqueness of the two Christocentric dispensations are related and do establish a precedence.

E. The dispensation of the Hypostatic Union is recorded in the Gospels, and the dispensation of the Church is divided into two parts: the pre-canon period is recorded in Acts, and the post-canon period is recorded in the New Testament epistles.

F. The royal family of God and the new spiritual species cannot be ignored, but has been, resulting in terrible legalism in the Christian way of life today.

G. Something new, something fresh, something unique has been provided in the Church Age.

1. Never before in history have all three persons of the holy Trinity indwelt every believer.

2. Never before in history has there been a portfolio of invisible assets for every believer.

3. Never before in history has so much divine power been made available to every Christian: the omnipotence of God the Father in our portfolio of invisible assets, the omnipotence of God the Son in the preservation and perpetuation of human history, and the omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit related to life inside the divine dynasphere.

4. The baptism of the Spirit never occurred before the Church Age and will never again occur after the royal family of God is completed and resurrected at the Rapture.

5. Never before in history has God the Father as grantor deposited in escrow greater blessings for every believer, both for time and for the eternal state.

6. Never before has the ordinary believer had equal privilege and equal opportunity for the execution of the protocol plan of God.

H. So the dramatic answer to the question, after salvation - what, can only be understood by dispensational theology and by no other system of theology.

1. All other systems of Protestant theology that came from the Reformation have failed miserably to answer what constitutes the Christian way of life.

2. Therefore, while many of the denominations are straight on the Hypostatic Union, virgin birth, and even some aspects of soteriology, they cannot and do not understand the important principle of what constitutes Christianity.

I. Such a vacuum sucks in every form of legalism, which we see everywhere today. __________________________________________________________________________

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