Dr. Couch, do older dispensationalists (such as Chafer, Scofield,
Gaebelein) have a different view of the Sermon on the Mount than younger
dispensationalists?
Not in substance, that I know of. But, by
counting heads and taking tabulations as to who believes what, is not
how I do theology. I do theology by CONTEXT, CONTEXT, and CONTEXT, and
by OBSERVATION, OBSERVATION, and OBSERVATION!
The Bible IS dispensational. We do not make up
dispensationalism as we go along! So let’s go to the Sermon on the
Mount and do Observation!
First of all, the Sermon is about the Kingdom
of Heaven, not about the church. When Christ mentions the Kingdom, the
Jews had no other point of reference than the Davidic/Messianic Kingdom
in which the Son of David, the Son of God, would rule over the world
from Jerusalem. There is No other interpretation. The Jews fully
understood this!
In the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew we have
the expressions: "Kingdom of Heaven (used six times), the "Kingdom"
(used two times), and the "Kingdom of God" (used once), though Christ
also spoke of "Your Kingdom" (God’s) and "The Kingdom is Yours."
But I am quick to point out that there are
tremendous spiritual and practical applications for any dispensation. We
do not isolate spiritual principles and say that certain things are
only applicable to one age and not another, unless there is due cause to
do so. Yet, here are some statements of the Lord that fit another era,
the kingdom period, and not the church age:
- "Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth" (5:5).
- If you are angry with your brother you can be brought to judgment in the Rabbinical courts (5:22).
- Do not be presenting an offering to the (temple) altar while your brother has a charge against you (5:23-24).
- Do not make false vows, by heaven or earth, or "by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King (the Messiah)" (5:33-35).
I could go on and on with additional points from
the Sermon on the Mount but you get the idea. To again reiterate: there
are dozens of wonderful principles here in the Sermon that can be
applied to any dispensation. And the Sermon on the Mount is full of them
but it does take some clear thinking and acute observation in order to
avoid a misapplication.
On the Sermon, my old graduate Greek professor, Dr. Stanley Toussaint, writes in his commentary on Matthew:
Not only are the crowds and disciples looking forward
to the establishment of the kingdom, but the message of the sermon is
also anticipatory. This aspect is indicated by the attitude of
anticipation which pervades the entire discourse. It looks forward to a
time when people shall enter the kingdom (5:20; 7:21). ... The sample
prayer includes a request for the coming of the kingdom (6:10). (Behold the King, Kregel)
In my Classical Evangelical Hermeneutics (Kregel) I wrote:
The "kingdom of God" and "kingdom of heaven" both refer
to the future Messianic reign of the Messiah. The only point of
reference the Jews would have known is the messianic kingdom and the
coming rule of peace that would last for one thousand years. Jesus
presented Himself as the king who fulfilled the kingship role for that
kingdom. He told neither His disciples nor the crowds that they were
mistaken in their perceptions [about the earthly messianic kingdom].
And in The Popular Bible Prophecy Commentary (gen. eds. Tim LaHaye, Ed Hindson, Harvest House) I wrote:
When Jesus began His ministry, His message was the same as John the Baptist’s:
"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew
4:17; cf. 3:2). This means "the kingdom that comes down from heaven."
This undoubtedly refers to the messianic kingdom, the Davidic rule that
will be based in Jerusalem but will have sovereignty over all the
nations of the earth.
The Sermon on the Mount is referring to this earthly messianic kingdom!
Thanks for asking.
Dr. Mal Couch
