LEARNING CAPSULE: Dispensationalism

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.

Matthew 6:9-11 (NIV)

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CHAMPIONED IN THE 19th century by Irish minister John Nelson Darby dispensationalism splits the Bible into seven dispensations (some believe there are less or more dispensations than seven) or periods. Dispensationalism falls under premillennialism and is technically known as dispensational premillennialism, but is often shortened to dispensationalism. In the 21st century, dispensationalism is the most common form of Christian eschatology in America in large part due to the Scofield Reference Bible in addition to the Left Behind book series by Tim LaHaye and The Late Great Planet Earth by Hal Lindsey.

Dispensationalism believes Christ will literally and physically reign on earth but differs from historic premillennialism in its view on the timing of the rapture, the relationship between the church and Israel, and the interpretation of apocalyptic prophecies. Dispensationalists believe God has one plan for Israel and one plan for the church. Another distinction is the belief in a secret rapture while the Christian dead are raised from the dead and meet

Generally speaking, dispensationalists believe that history continues on a downward trajectory until Christ returns.

CHRISTIAN ESCHATOLOGY 101: Before digging into dispensationalism, we highly recommend reading our learning capsule on Christian Eschatology to get a general overview of four common eschatological views.

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	DISPENSATIONALISM
Reign of Christ	A literal, physical 1,000 year reign of Christ after the seven year tribulation
Role of Satan	Currently at work in the world, but will be bound for the duration of the millennial age
Rapture timing	Pre-tribulation or mid-tribulation
Church and Israel	Sharp distinction; Israel and the Church are different
Apocalyptic prophecies	Strict literal interpretation
Key passages	Daniel 9 (The seventy weeks are viewed as a timeline of world events, each of the weeks represents a seven year period of time)
Key representatives	John Nelson Darby, John Walvoord, Charles Ryrie, J. Dwight Pentecost, Norman Geisler, Tim LaHaye, Jerry Jenkins, Dave Hunt, Jack Van Impe, John Hagee, Hal Lindsey, D.L. Moody, C.I. Scofield

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READ

READ: Survey of Eschatological Views / Gregory Brown
A succinct introduction to four Christian eschatological views complete with key Biblical passages and some history. Skip to the bottom of the article to read about dispensationalism.

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LISTEN

LISTEN: Eschatology – Historical Premillennialism & Dispensational Premillennialism / The Babbling Pastors
A heavy focus on dispensationalism discussed with cheerfulness.

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WATCH

WATCH: What is Dispensational Premillennialism? / thirdmill
A brief introduction to dispensationalism and some of its differences with historic premillennialism.

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DIG DEEPER

READ: Jesus Wins / Dayton Hartman
In Jesus Wins, Pastor Dayton Hartman makes his position clear: speculative discussions about the end times rarely offer any value and should never become a point of division. He emphasizes that as long as believers adhere to the foundational doctrines expressed in the Apostles‘ and Nicene Creeds, their specific views on eschatology (the study of the end times) should not fracture the church’s unity.

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