Herein is offered the Pauline answer to present-day Dispensationalism in her dire illness, as well as our counteraction against what we have termed "Neo-Dispensationalism." This movement, recently emerging from Dallas Theological Seminary and elsewhere, is "contemporary, " and "progressive," having left Dallas' founder, Dr. Lewis Sperry Chafer, and his Pauline Dispensationalism far, far behind.
The aim of Neo-Dispensationalism is to equate Israel and the Church as much as possible, while at the same time keeping them separate (for the moment). It has the Lord Jesus Christ now reigning over the Church from David's heavenly throne. And it emphasizes an "already/not yet" millennial kingdom in which the Church is participating--while still fully preserving, of course, the Jewish elements of the Messianic Kingdom.
In other words, Neo-Dispensationalism is "progressing" on the horizontal, kingdom level, and is already halfway to Covenant Theology, which has always been on that earthly plane.
Pauline Dispensationalism is heavenly. The Christian whom Paul presents is heavenly; the Church that Paul presents is heavenly--her Source is in heaven, although her birth took place on earth on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2). She will return to her Source in heaven on the Day of the Rapture.
Traditional Dispensationalism has been brought to confusion by Covenant Theology mainly because they have root similarity. Hence, unless she moves onto Paul's vertical plane, there is little or no hope for her survival.
Coming onto Paul's heavenly ground results in a full escape from all earthly, horizontal, New Covenant, Synoptic, Sermon on the Mount, and Millennial Kingdom influences. The heavenly position and identification factors of the Church via Paul are missing in Neo-Dispensationalism and Covenant Theology. Their horizontal doctrine and law-orientation prevent them from rising above the earthly, kingdom level.
Hence we make no apology for including extensive teaching concerning the heavenly Church and the Christian life, not limited to, but centered in Paul's Church Epistles. Since both Dr. Chafer and Dr. Wm. R. Newell were staunch and faithful Pauline Dispensationalists, we give their rightly-divided writings ample exposure in helping to solve the present-day Dispensational dilemma.
Miles J. Stanford
January 1993