 |  |
removed from that of the "one new man" that was created to form the "Body" of
Ephesians.* In Romans the Jew is still first, and the apostle has to fight hard for the
recognition of the fact that believing Gentiles could be heirs of the promise made to
Abraham.
We now put forward the following statement, and append references so that the
interested reader may find proofs and fuller details.
Acts 28: is the dispensational boundary. The covenant with Abraham is
fundamental to the calling during the Acts. This covenant with Abraham is
incipient in the seven epistles of Paul written during the Acts, and is definitely
expounded as fundamental in Galatians and Romans. Recognizing this essential
difference, we believe and teach that, while the gospel of justification by faith
remains unaltered to-day, the dispensational teaching which deals, not with
forgiveness and life, but with sphere of blessing and destiny, has entirely changed.
To go back, therefore, to the epistles of the Acts for any teaching as to the
Mystery, its hope, its sphere or its constitution, can only result in confusion. In
other words we must distinguish between "Doctrine", which deals with sin and
salvation, and "Dispensation", which deals with sphere and destiny.
The reader who desires fuller explanation and more detail should consult the
following articles in The Berean Expositor:
Abraham and the Acts . . . . .
Vol.
1: 15, 27 (1: 14, 20).
Abrahamic Covenant and To-day . . . . .
Vol.
20: 18.
Doctrine and Dispensation . . . . .
Vol.
20: 48.
Dispensation of the Mystery . . . . .
Vol.
13: 8.
Mystery and Acts 28: . . . . .
Vol.
18: 72-76.
[NOTE: * - The words "Thou standest by faith" prevent us from
applying this figure of Rom. 11: to the nations.]