Okay, now I'm interested. What did they teach that you don't agree with? Thanks.
I am posting this for you because it is the latest thing I was working on. It is an TV interview with Dr. Charles Ryrie that was transcribed. I have deleted irrelevant chit-chat to save space here. I also highlited some important parts. I also have a good profile of John Nelson Darby if you wish to read that.
The Interview:
DR. CHARLES RYRIE ON THE BIBLE AND DISPENSATIONALISM
Dr. Reagan: I agree, well I appreciate you mentioning that to us. You know, Dr. Ryrie, in 1909, the very first study Bible was produced.
And as I understand it, that’s the very first one in history, one where they had notes at the bottom of the page. And that was by a Dallas pastor, C.I. Scofield.
Dr. Reagan: Now, to get back to the Scofield Study Bible. One thing that sort of intrigued me about that, Dr. Ryrie, is that the Scofield Study Bible is still in print. In fact, I think it has a revision committee that revises it every so often. And it is written from what is called a dispensational view point. You also have a dispensational view point so why was it you felt led to put out another study Bible when that one was already there?
Dr. Ryrie:. And my approach is different from the Scofield [Bible]. Not my theology but my approach because the Scofield, the notes are more synthesis, putting things together. So I don’t think while
our theology is the same, our approach is different.
Dr. Reagan: I mentioned that Scofield wrote his study Bible from a dispensational viewpoint and you did the same thing. What in the world is a dispensational viewpoint, what does it mean?
Dr. Ryrie: It just recognizes a very simple truth. And that is God has dispensed, dispensational, dispensed the way the rules by which He’s governed the world differently at different times.
Dr. Reagan: So give us an example of two different dispensations.
Dr. Ryrie: Well, I think the clearest example is the set of rules that we call the Law, the Mosaic Law. There are 613 commandments. They govern almost every area of a Jewish person’s life, not only how he worshipped but the things he gave, what he ate. Just everything was governed that way. For example, you and I are probably violating the Mosaic Law. I’m not sure about you but I know about me, because I’m wearing a shirt of mixed material.
Dr. Reagan: Actually, to some degree I guess all Christians are dispensationalists in the sense that they would at least recognize two dispensations, the old and the new. Dispensationalists tend to recognize some seven different dispensations, correct?
Dr. Ryrie: That’s the usual.
But I think if you recognize now today the new church grace and the one previous to that, Moses’ law, and if you, as we are, pre-millennialist then you recognize the future one, the millennium, so you’ve got three. Going backwards, the millennium and today and the previous law and the law began at a certain point in time, so there’s a pre-law time. So you’ve got four without trouble, you don’t have to try.
Dr. Reagan: Well it seems to me that another distinguishing characteristic of dispensationalism is that dispensationalists are the only ones that I know of who clearly differentiate between the Church and Israel.
Dr. Ryrie: Absolutely.
Dr. Reagan: Explain that.
Dr. Reagan: Well it seems to me like this is one of the greatest errors that’s made in the interpretation of the Bible today is
the idea that the Church has replaced Israel. And as I mentioned earlier you go to some versions of the Bible and you find that here’s a whole chapter in the Old Testament about Israel. And they say, no it’s a chapter about the Church and they argue that God washed his hands of the Jewish people in the First Century, has no purpose left for them whatsoever and I wonder what they do with Romans 9-11.
Dr. Ryrie: Well there are other passages that distinguish Israel and the Church since the day of Pentecost, at which time the Church was supposed to have begun to replace Israel. The first mention of Church in the book of Acts is in chapter 5. And also in chapter 5, Gamaliel said, “you men of Israel”, same chapter. And of course that’s in 30’s, you get to the 50s, and Paul wrote,
“give no offense either to the Jews, Gentiles are the Church of God”, and
there’s Jews distinguished from the Church.
Dr. Reagan: Do you know of any place in the Bible where Israel is used to refer to the Church?
Dr. Ryrie: No, there’s one passage that people use but that’s only an optional interpretation of the passage.
Note: Ryrie here reveals his meaning of the separation of the "church" and "Israel" and his revernce for the Scofield Bible.