Traveling with my children affords many teaching opportunities. We sing songs, play guessing games, sing the Hebrew alphabet (they’re catching on), pretend they are lost and have to call my phone number, and so on. I’ve come to learn in our travels that computing location is a challenge. We live in a city that exists within a bigger city, that remains in a state that is part of a country, which sits on a particular continent. That’s a great deal of information to compute. My kids don’t realize the extent of their location yet, but by God’s grace over time they will.

Younger Christians (in terms of spiritual age), and even older Christians, may not realize their theological location. Their beliefs take place within theological systems that have been developed to make sense of God’s full revelation to us. Two such systems are Dispensational and Covenantal. Both systems are held to by born-again believing Christians who follow Christ, believe God’s Word, worship the triune God, and adhere strongly to the Gospel. However, they see Scriptural themes and the overarching development of the old and new testaments uniquely. Christians, whether they know it or not, generally fall within one of these systems, are generally taught Scripture on Sunday morning through one of these systems, do devotions through one of these systems, and have their practical Christianity shaped by one of these systems.

What follows is a simplified explanation of Dispensational and Covenantal thought. They are both much richer and contain myriads of sub doctrines to explore, but we will only lay a general foundation.

Dispensational

System: Dispensational thought sees Scripture unfolding according to or within dispensations as given by God. James I. Fazio offers a modern theological definition that considers the socio-historical context of the Greek word behind dispensationalism—oikonom( - os/ - ia). He states, “Dispensationalism is that theological system which reflects God’s administration over His household, whereby a sovereignly appointed steward has administered a divinely apportioned measure of God’s grace; each of these administrations, which have occurred throughout the successive ages, have ended in judgment, and will find their culmination in the coming Messianic Kingdom.”¹ Therefore, within the one unified storyline of Scripture, there are recognizable dispensations or distinctions in God’s activity with mankind.² The number of dispensations in Scripture vary according to different authors, but seven seems to be a workable standard. “These seven dispensations are (1) innocence; (2) conscience; (3) human government; (4) promise; (5) law; (6) grace; and (7) kingdom…. While belief in seven dispensations is held by many, others say there are anywhere from four to eight.”³

Hermeneutic: Dispensationalism uses a literal grammatical-historical approach to interpreting Scripture. The words of Scripture are approached according to their plain authorial meaning as discovered in their historical and grammatical context.

Soteriology: Dispensational thought varies from a Calvinistic understanding of salvation (T.U.L.I.P.) to an Arminian one (F.A.C.T.S.).⁴ For example, well known pastor and teacher John McArthur would fall under a Calvinistic lens whereby David Jeremiah would be the latter.

Eschatology: Dispensationalism is unique in its end-time interpretation. Distinct markers include “pre-millennial eschatology, a future second coming (ie, rapture), a future tribulation period…Jewish salvation and restoration, [and] a distinction between national Israel and the church.”⁵

Denomination: Dispensationalism is generally adhered to in Non-Denominational, Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal, and Brethren circles.⁶

Covenantal

System: Covenant Theology sees the unfolding of Scripture according to covenants. A covenant consists of promises made by God under specified conditions.⁷ Michael Horton States, “That particular architectural structure that we believe the Scriptures themselves to yield is the covenant. It is not simply the concept of the covenant, but the concrete existence of God’s covenantal dealings in our history that provides the context within which we recognize the unity of Scripture amid its remarkable variety.”⁸ All Scriptural covenants fall within three groups: the covenant of works (or covenant of life, or covenant of creation), the covenant of redemption, and the covenant of grace.⁹

Covenant of Redemption: Before creation the triune God entered into a covenant within Himself to provide redemption for mankind.¹⁰ The Father would send the Son (John 5:23) to redeem His people (John 10:11) and promised the Son those people (John 10:29) as well as the Holy Spirit to pour out (Acts 2:33). Christ would come to obey where Adam failed in the covenant of works and to sacrifice Himself for our sins as well as earn our righteousness (2 Cor. 5:21; 1 Cor. 1:30).

Covenant of Works/Life: God made a covenant with Adam in the Garden of Eden. If he obeyed, he would have life, if he disobeyed, he and his offspring would die. While not stated explicitly in Genesis, Hosea 6:7 arguably reads that Adam broke the covenant. Thus, in Adam (our representative head in this covenant) all humanity is guilty of sin and dies (1 Cor. 15:22; Romans 5:12–19).

Covenant of Grace: “The Covenant of Grace is made by the Triune God of grace who shows Himself to be willing to pardon sin and restore sinners to Himself through the Savior whom He provides. He is the one who sovereignly declares the terms on which sinners may become His people.”¹¹ God enters into a saving covenant with sinners to rescue them by grace alone through faith in Christ alone, our new representative head. Michael Horton sheds further light when he says, “With the covenant of redemption, in which the Son is made the mediator of the elect, and the covenant of creation (or works), under which terms the Son, acting as mediator and second Adam, won eternal life under the law, ‘earning eternal life has forever been taken out of his [man’s] hands.’”¹²

Hermeneutic: Covenantal theology embraces a very similar grammatical-historical approach to uncovering the authors intended meaning of Scripture. One major difference is the centrality of Christ in fully interpreting and making sense of the old testament Scriptures (Luke 24:44).

Soteriology: Covenant theology embraces a Calvinistic understanding of salvation.¹³ Well known bible teacher R. C. Sproul falls under this understanding of salvation within a covenant theological framework.

Eschatology: Covenant theology discerns the last days to be best constructed through an amillennial (inaugurated millennial period that exists currently) or a post-millennial view.

Denominations: Covenant theology resides in Presbyterian (OPC, PCA), Reformed Baptist circles, and more.

Conclusion

Studying God is a privilege and a growing grace for His people. And as we grow in God’s grace we generally do so in a certain theological location. It’s good to recognize our theological location, to listen to one another, to find conviction in Scripture, to be passionate in our convictions, but nonetheless gracious with our brothers and sisters in a different camp (or location). These theological systems have tremendous impact on our understanding of God, humanity, salvation, the church, and the last days.¹⁴ May God grant us growth in the Scriptures, in humility, and most of all in love for one another.