An Alphabetical Analysis
Volume 5 - Dispensational Truth - Page 219 of 328
INDEX
Recently some notes written in a good spirit have been passed on to us,
and as some readers may be desirous of having the points raised dealt with,
we will endeavour to do so here, praying that the cause of truth will be
furthered thereby.  We will refer to the writer who has criticized our
position as `B'.  He writes:
`The chief point of difference with Mr. Welch seems to be in his
discovery that in Acts 28 we have the founding of a new "dispensation",
though the word is not used there, nor is there, to my mind, any clear
indication of this most important fact'.
It is often said that Luther discovered the great doctrine of
justification by faith, but what is nearer the truth is what Luther brought
forward gave that doctrine prominence.  The need of the time called forth,
under God, the man, and the Reformation followed.
We have certainly made Acts 28 the keynote of our ministry, seeing in
it a dispensational boundary that influences the whole course of the
outworking of the revealed purpose of the ages, and bringing into the light
that position which had hitherto been hid in God.
While others have seen that Acts 28 is a dispensational frontier none
seem to have had the grace to cross that frontier and see what good land
might be found beyond.  When our eyes were opened to its significance our
response was `Let us cross over and see what the Lord has prepared for those
who trust Him' and when we returned with our bunch of `The Grapes of Eshcol'
our treatment was in much the same spirit as the treatment of Caleb and
Joshua was at the hands of Israel.
The following extracts from the writings of B. W. Newton and others
are commended to the conscience of the reader.
B. W. Newton gives a clear and uncompromising testimony to the failure
of the Preterite system of Prophecy, in which so much that is really future
is interpreted of the past, and with this, we are in complete agreement, but
his conviction now to be cited, that there is a threefold division of time in
Israel's history, pointed so clearly to the present dispensation of the
Mystery, that one is still left amazed and distressed that eyes so touched by
the spirit of grace should not have seen the open door, and have entered into
all the blessings that are revealed in the great Epistle of the Mystery,
Ephesians.  We quote from his writings:
Three periods in Israel's History
I observed also, that the history of Israel during the time of their
punishment and subjection to the Gentiles is distributed into three
distinct divisions: the first extending from Nebuchadnezzar to their
dispersion by Romans, the second being the present Period of their
dispersion, the third, the yet future period of their national re -
establishment in unbelief; so, the prophetic visions of Daniel are to
be divided into three parts, corresponding to these three periods.  But
I observed this likewise, that when the first of these periods
terminated, historic detail terminated.  As soon as the dispersion of
Israel was effected, and they ceased to have a recognized national
existence in their land, there is a pause in the historic detail of
Daniel -- no person, no place, no date is mentioned during the present
period of dispersion.  But when the third period of their unbelieving