dispensationalism
Sign in to saveAlso known as Dispensationalist theology
Dispensationalism is a Christian theological framework for interpreting the Christian Bible which maintains that history is divided into multiple ages called dispensations in which God interacts with his chosen people in different ways. It is often distinguished from covenant theology, the traditional Reformed view of reading the Bible. These are two competing frameworks of biblical theology that attempt to explain overall continuity in the Bible. The coining of the term "dispensationalism" has been attributed to Philip Mauro, a critic of the system's teachings, in his 1928 book The Gospel of
~38 min read
Encyclopedic overview
29 sectionsContents
- Overview
- Typical divisions
- Variants
- Theology
- Purpose of God in the world
- Biblical literalism
- Progressive revelation
- Distinction between Israel and the Church
- The Law
- Eschatology
- History
- Proto-dispensationalism
- Formalization by Darby
- Expansion and growth
- Scofield and his influence
- ''The Fundamentals''
- Influence of Dallas Theological Seminary
- Pop prophecy
- Emergence of the Christian Right
- The megachurch movement
- Peak and decline
- Criticism
- Soteriology
- Eschatology
- Political influence
- See also
- References
- Further reading
- External links
Dispensationalism is a Christian theological framework for interpreting the Christian Bible which maintains that history is divided into multiple ages called dispensations in which God interacts with his chosen people in different ways. It is often distinguished from covenant theology, the traditional Reformed view of reading the Bible. These are two competing frameworks of biblical theology that attempt to explain overall continuity in the Bible. The coining of the term "dispensationalism" has been attributed to Philip Mauro, a critic of the system's teachings, in his 1928 book The Gospel of the Kingdom.
Dispensationalists use a literal interpretation of the Bible and believe that divine revelation unfolds throughout its narrative. They believe that there is a distinction between Israel and the Church, and that Christians are not bound by Mosaic law. They maintain beliefs in premillennialism, Christian Zionism, and a rapture of Christians before the expected Second Coming of Jesus, whom Christians believe to be the Messiah, generally before the Great Tribulation.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “dispensationalism” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.