Mr. Mauro sets off by describing the dispensational teaching presented in the notes in the Scofield Bible as Modernism, ancient Rabbinism, and even akin to Russell-ism. And yet he once firmly believed it, and found support in the Word of God for it, but now has no terms too strong in which to denounce it.
What is meant by the dispensational teaching that is particularly engaging our attention? Briefly, it began with the preaching of John the Baptist, that the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand, followed up by our Lord and His apostles proclaiming the same truth. That consequent on the rejection of our Lord by the Jews, the Kingdom of Heaven is in mystery; that is, it is not in display; that when the present Church period is closed by the rapture, the Jews, gathered to their own land in unbelief, will pass through unparalleled judgments, culminating in the Great Tribulation, as foretold by our
Lord, followed by His coming as the Messiah to reign over His ancient people and over the world as King of kings and Lord of lords, the Kingdom lasting for 1,000 years, commonly called the Millennium, the Kingdom in manifestation in all its splendor, no longer in mystery. Then "the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea" (Hab. 2:1414For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. (Habakkuk 2:14)).
This dispensational teaching was in vogue on both sides of the Atlantic long years before the Scofield Bible saw the light. It was taught by such spiritual giants' as J. N. Darby, W. Kelly, C. E. Stuart, C. H. Mackintosh, W. Trotter, F. W. Grant, Walter Scott, etc., and cannot be rightly described as "a humanly contrived system that has been imposed upon the Bible."
He claims that in every place in the Bible where the word "dispensation" occurs, it means administration or stewardship. We fail to see how this affects the definition that Dr. Scofield gives. For instance, take the dispensation of promise. Was not Abraham made the steward of God's promises to be passed on to Isaac, then to Jacob, then to the twelve patriarchs, etc.? Did these promises not impose a test upon all to whom they were made? They caused Abraham to leave his country and his kindred and his father's house to go into the land that God promised his seed should possess. The reason Mr. Mauro gives for refusing to use the word "dispensation," as defined in the Scofield Bible, is that the word with that meaning attached to it is not in the Bible. Yet he chooses the word "era" in its place, and that word likewise is NOT in the Bible. Verily, "the legs of the lame are not equal" (Prov. 26:77The legs of the lame are not equal: so is a parable in the mouth of fools. (Proverbs 26:7)).
The two great eras Mr. Mauro divides the Word of God into are: "First: The Old Covenant; or the Law and the Prophets; or simply, The Law. Second: The New Covenant; or the Kingdom of God; or simply, the Gospel" (The Gospel of the Kingdom, p. 39).
Mr. Mauro's book considers that the Kingdom of Heaven was fulfilled in the Church Era. He wipes out to a large extent the distinction between. Israel and the Church in New Testament times. He has strange views, too, as to the similarity between the Law and the Gospel. He does in a grudging way allow that the Gospel is better than the Law. He says that the Law of Moses was an unspeakable blessing to Israel, and finds fault with the note in the Scofield Bible, which says: "It is exceedingly important to observe... that the Law was not imposed until it had been proposed and voluntarily accepted" (Note on Ex. 19:33And Moses went up unto God, and the Lord called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel; (Exodus 19:3)). "At Sinai they (Israel) exchanged Grace for Law. They rashly accepted the Law" (Note on Gen. 12:11Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee: (Genesis 12:1)).
Mr. Mauro says this is "Palpable error," and goes on to say: "The statement that 'they rashly accepted the Law' implies that they acted without due consideration, and did not know what they were doing or what would be the consequences of their rash act. And this necessarily implies that God acted unfairly toward them; that He took advantage of their ignorance concerning what it meant to be 'under the law,' that He thus led them into a deadly trap from which it was impossible thereafter for them or their posterity to extricate themselves" (The Gospel of the Kingdom, p. 36).
Is this fair comment? Was it not true that the children of Israel did not fully know what they were committing themselves to when they cried out, "All that the Lord bath spoken will we do" (Ex. 19:88And all the people answered together, and said, All that the Lord hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the Lord. (Exodus 19:8))? Were they not rash in their promise to do all that God commanded? Assuredly they were. And God knew it better than they did. He had a purpose in giving the Law, which was just to show that there was no divine blessing that way. If any one had kept the Law perfectly his natural life would not have been forfeited, but not one single individual did or could keep the Law perfectly. God knew all this; but for any one to say that this means that God led men into a "deadly trap" and acted "unfairly" is going beyond fair criticism.
The same comment might be made on the verse, "Him being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain" (Acts 2:2323Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: (Acts 2:23)).
God knew what man would do when He sent His well-beloved Son into the world. He put man to the test, full well knowing what would happen. How wrong it would be to accuse God of leading the Jews into "a deadly trap," and of acting "unfairly" toward them. The cross was the only way of blessing for the world.