April 29, 2017
Lenten Devotions – John Nelson Darby – Dispensationalism

“John Nelson Darby died in Bournemouth on this day April 29, 1882. He is considered to be the father of modern Dispensationalism and Futurism. Pre-tribulation rapture theology was popularized extensively in the 1830s by John Nelson Darby and the Plymouth Brethren, and further popularized in the United States in the early 20th century by the wide circulation of the Scofield Reference Bible. Brethren emphasized the unity of true believers and were strongly interdenominational in outlook. Each group was to be independent. Communion was to be simple and served by a different individual each week. There would be few full-time pastors, since all members were equally called to be priests and were each meant to be as responsible for the whole congregation as their abilities permitted. (John Darby of the Plymouth Brethren, Dan Graves, MSL, christianity.com website)

“Darby traveled widely in Europe and Britain in the 1830s and 1840s, and established many Brethren assemblies. He gave 11 significant lectures in Geneva in 1840 on the hope of the church (L’attente actuelle de l’église). These established his reputation as a leading interpreter of biblical prophecy. America did not embrace Darby’s ecclesiology like it did his eschatology which is still being propagated (in various forms) at such places as Dallas Theological Seminary and by authors and preachers such as Hal Lindsey and Tim LaHaye. Darby is noted in the theological world as the father of “dispensationalism”, whose eschatology was adopted and later made popular in the United States by Cyrus Scofield’s “Scofield Reference Bible.” (Wikipedia)

Dispensationalism is a religious “interpretive method” for Biblical study – but it is not the intention of the writers of the bible. It considers Biblical history as divided deliberately by God into defined periods or ages – and suggests G-d has allotted distinctive administrative principles to each age. However, no one had interpreted the bible in this manner before John Nelson Darby. Many have come and gone saying that they knew when the end of everything was “ordained”. What has been certain is their end – but not the end of the world. That is something only G-d knows. All other interpreters who state otherwise are simply false prophets.

It is the way of humans to want to know how the ending is to manifest itself so that we have time to prepare. But, if we actually did know our exact death date, would it really change how we live our lives? I believe it would only serve to make us even more worried and anxious about life. What is best for each one of us is to trust that G-d knows when, where, how and why – all we need to worry about is maintaining a relationship with the Son of the One who will bring about the conclusion of all things, in their time.

This week please collect bottles of house cleaner for Trinity’s Table.

Pastor Dave