THE BIBLICAL DISPENSATIONS
A. Definition.
We believe that the dispensations are stewardships
by which God administers His purpose on the
earth through man under varying responsibilities;
that the changes in the dispensational dealings
of God with man depend upon changed conditions
or situations in which man is successively
found with relation to God, and that these
changes are the result of the failures of
man and the judgments of God; that different
administrative responsibilities of this character
are manifest in the Biblical record; that
they span the entire history of mankind; that
each ends in the failure of man under the
respective test and in an ensuing judgment
from God; that three of these dispensations
or rules of life are the subject of extended
revelation in the Scripture, namely, the dispensation
of the Mosaic Law, the present Dispensation
of Grace (John 1:17), and the future dispensation
of the Millennial Kingdom on earth; that these
are distinct and are not to be intermingled
or confused, as they are chronologically successive;
and that so-called "covenant theology"
as found in "reformed theology"
is unscriptural.
B. Not Ways Of Salvation.
We believe that the dispensations are not
ways of salvation, nor different methods of
administering the so-called Covenant of Grace;
that they are not in themselves dependent
on covenant relationships; that they are ways
of life and responsibility to God which test
the submission of man to His revealed will
during a particular time; that, if man trusts
in his own efforts to gain the favor of God
or salvation under any ispensational test,
because of inherent sin, his failure to satisfy
fully the just requirements of God is inevitable
and his condemnation sure.
C. Salvation By The
Blood of Christ.
We believe that according to the "eternal
purpose" of God (Ephesians 3:11) salvation
in the divine reckoning is always "by
grace, through faith" (Ephesians 2:8-9);
that it rests upon the basis of the shed Blood
of Christ (Ephesians 1:7); that God has always
been gracious, regardless of the ruling dispensation;
and that man has not at all times been under
an administration or stewardship of grace
as is true in the present dispensation (1
Corinthians 9:17; Ephesians 3:2, 9; Colossians
1:25).
D. Salvation By Faith.
We believe that it has always been true that
"without faith it is impossible to please"
God (Hebrews 11:6); that the principle of
faith was prevalent in the lives of all the
Old Testament saints; that it was historically
impossible that they should have had as the
conscious object of their faith the incarnate,
crucified Son, the Lamb of God (John 1:29);
that it is evident that they did not comprehend
as we do that the sacrifices depicted the
person and work of Christ; that they did not
understand the redemptive significance of
Christ; that they did not understand the redemptive
significance of the prophecies or types concerning
the sufferings of Christ (1 Peter 1:10-12);
that their faith toward God was manifested
in other ways as is shown by the long record
in Hebrews 11:1-40; and that their faith thus
manifested was counted unto them for righteousness
(Cf. Romans 4:3 with Genesis 15:6; Romans
4:5-8; Hebrews 11:7).
Grace Baptist Church’s ARTICLES
OF FAITH 3.
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