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The pupil of Scripture must understand many important themes and concepts if they are to rightly divide the word of truth and adhere to the faith that has been once for all handed down to the saints (2 Tim. 2:15; Jude 1:3). Regardless of whether a self-identifying Christian is familiar with the technical language, some truths in the Bible are imperative for the body of Christ to know and confess. It is fundamental for God’s people to understand that He is one divine being who eternally exists as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matt. 3:16-17; 2 Cor. 13:14). It is essential to Christian orthodoxy for believers to recognize that Jesus Christ is truly God and truly man (John 20:28; 1 John 4:2-3) and that His death on the cross perfectly satisfied God’s wrath for the sins of all who would ever believe in Him (2 Cor. 5:14-21; 1 Pet. 3:18). It is paramount for Christians to recognize the Bible as the only source of special revelation that God has graciously provided to humanity from now until the return of Christ (Ps. 19:7-14; Heb. 1:1-2). Indeed, the moment that a person goes astray on doctrines such as the Trinity, the hypostatic union, penal substitutionary atonement, or the identification of Scripture as God’s special revelation to humanity, they have assuredly plunged themselves into deep error.[1] But what about the biblical doctrine of covenant? How important is it for Christians to accurately understand covenant if they are to interpret God’s Word properly? Well, depending on who you ask, one could be left with strikingly different impressions.

On the one hand, some regard the doctrine of covenant as central to the Christian faith. According to Charles Haddon Spurgeon, “the doctrine of the covenant lies at the root of all true theology. It has been said that he who well understands the distinction between the covenant of works and the covenant of grace is a master of divinity. I am persuaded that most of the mistakes which men make concerning the doctrines of Scripture are based upon fundamental errors with regard to the covenant of law and of grace.”[2] For Spurgeon, there are many important doctrines to consider in light of the totality of Scripture, but none are of more importance than the doctrine of covenant. J.I. Packer echoes this sentiment in his introduction to The Economy of the Covenants Between God and Man: “The Gospel is not properly understood till it is viewed in a covenantal frame… the word of God is not properly understood till it is viewed within a covenantal frame… [and] the reality of God is not properly understood till it is viewed within a covenantal frame.”[3] As was the conviction of Spurgeon, there may not be any doctrine of more importance to Packer than the doctrine of covenant. These men of different generations and different denominational affiliations represent a conviction that the universal church has expressed for millennia: orthodox Christianity is distinctively covenantal in nature.[4] Tragically, there are myriads of contemporary believers who lack a robust understanding of the doctrine of covenant and undermine its cardinal relevance to the Christian faith.

Contrary to the perspective espoused above, some do not see covenant as integral to sound biblical and theological investigation. Upon perusing the doctrinal statements embraced by many “evangelical churches,” it doesn’t take long to observe how salient or neglected the doctrine of covenant is for those congregations. While this observation shouldn’t be a surprise when examining the standard “seeker-sensitive” churches that encompass much of American evangelicalism, it is certainly troubling to see the absence of attention that covenant receives within contexts that place great emphasis on sound doctrine and expository preaching. There are three churches that I am personally familiar with that have, to my surprise, showcased a disregard for the biblical and theological centrality of covenant: Countryside Bible Church (Southlake, Texas),[5] Grace Community Church (Sun Valley, California),[6] and Trinity Bible Church of Dallas (Dallas, Texas).[7] Each of the aforementioned churches features some of America’s most renowned expository preachers. Each of those churches is led by a group of elders who are wholeheartedly committed to equipping the saints for ministry (Eph. 4:12). Many great things can be said about congregations such as these, and God has surely moved in power within those contexts over the years. Nevertheless, the absence of covenant within a doctrinal statement is far too troubling to overlook, regardless of any positive comments that can be made about an assembly of faith. If covenant is not prominently depicted and thoroughly defined in a church doctrinal statement, it is likely not emphasized from that church’s pulpit or discipleship ministries.[8] Should this really be an acceptable characteristic of any church? In short, absolutely not!

In the forthcoming articles associated with this section of the Dismantling Dispensationalism series,[9] it will be argued that “Classic/Traditional,” “Revised” and “Progressive” Dispensationalism models seismic misunderstandings of the Bible’s theology of the covenants, which ultimately result in a lack of emphasis on covenant in their respective systems of theology. This contention will be gradually developed by examining pertinent excerpts from some of the “standard” theological resources for each of the respective forms of Dispensationalism. When analyzing the “Classic/Traditional” variety of Dispensationalism, I will be citing material from Lewis Sperry Chafer’s two-volume Systematic Theology[10] set. When evaluating the “Revised” version of Dispensationalism, I will be citing material from Biblical Doctrine,[11] a systematic theology textbook edited by John MacArthur and Richard Mayhue. Moreover, when considering the “Progressive” strand of Dispensationalism, I will primarily be citing two sources. The first source is Dispensationalism, Israel and the Church,[12] a literary work edited by Craig A. Blaising and Darrell L. Bock. The second source is Michael J. Vlach’s Dispensationalism: Essential Beliefs and Common Myths.[13] Because proponents of Progressive Dispensationalism have not solidified a “standard” dogmatics textbook, I will have to utilize multiple resources in an effort to interact with this theological perspective. Nevertheless, my objective is to concentrate the bulk of my inquiry into the sources previously mentioned.

One final word of preface to the reader- The goal of this section of articles is to provide access to primary source material regarding how “Classic/Traditional,” “Revised,” and “Progressive” Dispensationalists understand the biblical covenants. Upon doing so, each of the citations from Dispensational resources will be critiqued from a Particular Baptist framework, as delineated within the Second London Baptist Confession of Faith (2LBCF).[14] Although I am not the final or ultimate authority for dictating how the 2LBCF should be interpreted, I (and the editors of Covenant Confessions) believe that the points of criticism raised throughout this article are in keeping with the covenant theology expressed within the 2LBCF. As such, while this article is not the final or definitive word on how Particular Baptists agree or disagree with Dispensationalists on the Bible’s theology of the covenants, it is certainly a part of the conversation insofar that it accurately represents both theological traditions. May God use this section of articles to facilitate helpful conversations between Dispensationalists and non-Dispensationalists, in an effort to come into alignment with the most accurate understanding of how His Word explicates the doctrine of covenant.

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[1] https://albertmohler.com/2005/07/12/a-call-for-theological-triage-and-christian-maturity

[2] https://ccel.org/ccel/spurgeon/sermons58/sermons58.xliv.html

[3] https://www.monergism.com/introduction-covenant-theology

[4] https://rscottclark.org/2001/09/a-brief-history-of-covenant-theology/

[5] As of June 24, 2021, there is no definition or mentioning of the doctrine of covenant anywhere in the doctrinal statement made available through the Countryside Bible Church website- https://countrysidebible.org/doctrine

[6] As of June 24, 2021, there is no definition or mentioning of the doctrine of covenant anywhere in the doctrinal statement made available through the Grace Community Church website- https://www.gracechurch.org/about/doctrinal-statement

[7] As of June 24, 2021, there is no definition or mentioning of the doctrine of covenant anywhere in the doctrinal statement made available through the Trinity Bible Church of Dallas website- https://trinitybibledallas.org/statementoffaith

[8] For churches that subscribe to the Westminster Confession of Faith (https://www.opc.org/wcf.html) or the Second London Baptist Confession of Faith (https://www.arbca.com/1689-confession), the doctrine of covenant is extensively defined and undergirds the broader theology being expressed within those confessions.

[9] Each of the previous articles in this ongoing series can be accessed here: https://covenantconfessions.com/?s=dismantling+dispensationalism

[10] Lewis Sperry Chafer, Systematic Theology (Scripture Press, 1988).

[11] John MacArthur and Richard Mayhue, eds., Biblical Doctrine: A Systematic Summary of Bible Truth (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2017).

[12] Craig A. Blaising and Darrell L. Bock, eds., Dispensationalism, Israel and the Church (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1992).

[13] Michael J. Vlach, Dispensationalism: Essential Beliefs and Common Myths (Los Angeles, CA: Theological Studies Press, 2017).

[14] For an overview of a Particular Baptist theological framework, see the following resource: https://www.1689federalism.com