God And His Word - A Question And Answer Approach To Understanding The Bible

3. THE FIRST DISPENSATION is the dispensation of the FATHER GOD. It reaches from Adam to Abraham, a period of 2,000 years. God as the Father is the author of the first covenants, the first prophecies and the first promises: Genesis 3:15; 5:24; 6:18; 5:1-18. The outstanding personality of this dispensation (as concerns God’s dealings with man) is that of God the Father whose name is “The LORD” or “Jehovah.” 4. THE CENTRAL DISPENSATION is that of the Son of God. It is bounded on one side by the covenants with Abraham (Genesis 15:1-18) which were sealed in the blood of circumcision and sacrifice, and on the other side by the shedding of the precious blood of Jesus Christ (Matthew 27:29-38; Hebrews 9:11-15). The MIDDLE dispensation is brought in by the offering of Isaac, the only begotten son of Abraham and Sarah, and reaches its end in the offering up of Jesus, the only begotten Son of God (Genesis 32:1-14; John 3:16). It is the dispensation of the central personality of the Godhead - Jesus the Son of God. 5. THE LAST DISPENSATION is that of the Holy Ghost. It begins with the great outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2). The glorious climax of this age will take place shortly under the present outpouring of the Holy Spirit, in the perfection of the Church, the marriage of the Lamb, and the Second Coming of Jesus to earth (Ephesians 5:25-27; Revelation 19:6-8; 1 Thessalonians 4:16). 6. THESE DISPENSATIONS ARE A WITNESS of the operations of God in the salvation and redemption of mankind. l John 5:7, 8. At the top of the chart is the word "GOD," showing the absolute dominion of our God over all the periods of time from the beginning to the end. Under the word "God" will be noticed the Tri-unity of the Godhead as Father, Son and Holy Spirit - impressing upon the three dispensations the threefold nature of God; below that the combined personal Names of God for our day, "The Lord Jesus Christ." Also shown on the chart are the great signs of the heavens that blend their voices into the ages of time. The sun as the symbol of the Father; the moon as the symbol of the Son of God; and the stars as the symbol of the Holy Spirit. 7. THE "RECEIVED CHRONOLOGY": The dates found in the margins of some study Bibles are not part of the inspired text of the Bible. About 1650 A.D., Archbishop Ussher worked out his interpretation of Bible

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