Hyper-Dispensationalism*
The distinctive doctrines of dispensationalism have been most
consistently taught by a movement variously identified as
Hyper-dispensationalism, Ultra-dispensationalism,
Consistent-dispensationalism or Bullingerism. The movement had its
origin in the teaching of Ethelbert W. Bullinger. Bullinger was a
descendant of Heinrich Bullinger, the successor of Zwingli. Bullinger's
teaching separated Israel and the church even more radically than Darby
or Scofield, placing the beginning of the church with the
imprisonment of Paul in Rome.
There
was no beginning of a church on that day of Pentecost.1 This positive statement that Paul was not
only confirming the word which "began to be spoken by the Lord"; but
that, like the Lord's own ministry, Paul's was based entirely on the
Old Testament prophetic Scriptures, "Moses and the Prophets." From this
it is conclusive that there can be no Dispensation of the Church in
Acts of the Apostles, and certainly no revelation of the mystery (or
Secret) as subsequently made known in the later epistles written from
his prison in Rome2.
This doctrine does amazing things with the application of Scripture to
the church. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John describe the preaching of the
"gospel of the Kingdom" and have no direct application to the church.
The period between the cross of Christ and the end of the Acts of the
Apostles is the realm of the Hebrew Church, as distinguished from the
"mystery" church to which Paul's prison epistles are addressed.
During this transitional period the "gospel of the Kingdom" which
Christ had offered to the Jews was still in effect. Peter, James, Jude,
Hebrews, and the epistles of John are all addressed to this Hebrew
Church, which is not the "body of Christ" but a church "built on
Christ". This Jewish Church, built on Kingdom promises, will be
reestablished during the millennium, and will worship at the rebuilt
Temple with atoning sacrifices. The "mystery" church has only the
prison epistles of Paul for doctrine. The sacraments of Holy Baptism
and the Lord's Supper, having been instituted before the revelation of
the "mystery" church are relegated to the old dispensation, although
they may have application to the tribulation saints.
The "mystery" church needs no "mediator of the New Covenant" as it is
the "body" - it IS Christ. Some Bullingerites have taken up heresies
such as soul sleep and annihilationism, and others proclaim a brand of
universalism that grants salvation even to Satan himself. The extent to
which the Hyperdispensationalist has gone with Darby's doctrine has
shocked even the dispensational faithful. Harry Ironside, one of
dispensationalism's stalwarts, states - Having had most intimate
acquaintance with Bullingerism as taught by many for the last forty
years, I have no hesitancy in saying that its fruits are evil. It has
produced a tremendous crop of heresies throughout the length and
breadth of this and other lands; it has divided Christians and wrecked
churches and assemblies without number; it has lifted up its votaries
in intellectual and spiritual pride to an appalling extent, so that
they look with supreme contempt upon Christians who do not accept their
peculiar views; and in most instances where it has been long tolerated,
it has absolutely throttled Gospel effort at home and sown discord on
missionary fields abroad. So true are these things of this system that
I have no hesitancy in saying it is an absolutely Satanic perversion of
the truth3.
Bullinger's schemes show the weaknesses in traditional dispensational
interpretation, and set out to solve them with consistent
dispensational application. Bullinger was one of the first to admit
that the Old Testament saints were to arise at the end of the
tribulation, and came up with a program of multiple resurrections. Most
dispensationalists see the gospel of Matthew as a Jewish book with the
Jews in mind in the apocalyptic chapters 24 & 25, yet wish to
preserve the Great Commission as applicable to the church. Consistent
dispensationalists assign the Commission to a future Jewish remnant
church.
Thus we see that the ultradispensationalists go to the end of the
dispensational line while the more moderate dispensationalists, at the
cost of consistency, try to get off at midpoint. Both varieties of
dispensationalists believe that there is a qualitative difference
between Israel and the church...
The moral of all this for the Scofieldian dispensationalist is that if
he will not build on the covenantal continuity of the earlier
dispensations, there is simply no way by which he can make room for the
church at a later stage. The ultradispensationalist has been pointing
this out for a century. Covenant theologians have been showing it for
millennia4.
The Bullingerite stands with arms outstretched to welcome the moderate
dispensationalist. All that is required is to apply the dispensational
system consistently.
1.E.W. Bullinger, Foundations of
Dispensational Truth (London: Eyre and Spottiswood, 1931), p.34.
2.Ibid., p.219.
3.Harry Ironside, Wrongly
Dividing the Word of Truth, sub-titled "Ultra-Dispensationalism
Examined In The Light Of Holy Scripture" (Loizeaux, n.d.), p.11.
Ironside himself was an ardent dispensationalist but rejected
Consistent-dispensationalism.
4.John H. Gerstner, Wrongly
Dividing the Word of Truth: A Critique of Dispensationalism
(Wolgemuth & Hyatt, 1991), p.204-5.
* Extract from the article "Dispensationalism" by Gospel Plow