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“Some dispensationalists...have suggested that love has replaced law in the Christian era”

By Filings on Wed, 07/08/20
Bible, Theology & Philosophy
Christian Love
Ethics
Dispensationalism
Sanctification

“While love as the fulfillment of the law does inform us that law-keeping alone is an inadequate measure of sanctification, that does not mean that law-keeping is optional to sanctification. We still must obey the laws (else why would the NT writers have been so painstaking in giving so many hundreds of them to us?)!” - Mark Snoeberger

Discussion

Profile picture for user TylerR
TylerR

NewYes

Wed, 07/08/20

This would likely be the fruit of the incoherent approach to the law that many dispensationalists have taken. Myron Houghton’s book Law & Grace is exhibit #1. From the article:

Most Dispensationalists argue that the Mosaic Law in its entirety has been set aside and a new law inserted in its place—the Law of Christ. This “new” law is truly new, but as John points out, its contents are not entirely new (see the harmonization of John 13:34; 1 John 2:7–8; and 2 John 5); indeed, nine of the ten commands in the Decalogue are firmly established in the NT as features of the “new” law. As such, dispensationalists are not antinomian as a general principle; we simply reject the Mosaic Law as specifically normative for the Christian era.

Emphasis added.

This makes little sense. It also doesn’t make sense to most pastors. Try and ask your dispensationalist pastor to explain this approach some time, and watch his hesitation. That means it doesn’t make sense to normal people in the congregation, either.

Ryrie’s explanation in his Basic Theology is perhaps the most concise attempt to explain this “law of Christ” approach. It is difficult to understand, and is built on flimsy evidence. There is simply no way to demonstrate, from all the NT citations of the OT, that the NT authors thought the OC code was totally fulfilled and abolished.

See also the unfortunate dispensationalist essay in Zondervan’s Four (or five?) Views on Law and Gospel volume.

If your system says the OC law has been set aside in its entirety, then you will inevitably have antinomian tendencies in your movement to deal with.

Tyler is a pastor in Olympia, WA and works in State government.

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  • Love Is the Greatest Apologetic

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The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable: But the mouth of the wicked speaketh frowardness.

(KJV, Proverbs 10:32)

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