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The seven dispensations
pastor corner

Dr. Lawrence Butler

The Bridge Church, Pembroke

When discussing the history of the earth, so many opinions abound that little agreement can be found. From circumstances surrounding the age of the earth to the appearance of man there are more questions than answers.

 I am aware, as you are, that studies now show the earth to be perhaps millions of years old. There are scriptures that seemingly reveal the possibility of an existence prior to that of the earth we know today. However, not all theologians concur. So, the scientists don’t all agree on our history, and the ministers don’t all hold the same opinions on scripture interpretation. The questions begs to be asked (as Pilate said many years later), “What is truth?” (John 18:38). From our perspective as Christians, history began about 6,000 years ago with the creation of Adam.

What we know today as truth is that man sinned in his early days following his creation by God, despite being made in the image of God. No greater creation existed, for nothing else was made like unto God. Man came about because God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness” (Gen. 1:26). Man is the only creation formed in the image of God. Man is the only creation whose building material was revealed to us. The Bible says God made the beasts of the field, and God created the whales, but never tells us from what. Did He use any material, or did He make them from nothing? However, we are clearly told that man was formed from the dust of the ground (Ge, 2:7). Not much to brag about there. But more importantly, God breathed into man the breath of life, and man became a living soul. No other creature received the same blessings and abilities as man, and no other creature became a living soul. Also, no other creature will have to give account for the life granted to them as will man.

It is my purpose to start from here, at the point of the creation of Adam, and to study in a panoramic fashion the existence of man on this earth. His interaction with one another as well as his interaction with his Creator will be presented. It is Biblically driven and divided into seven dispensations that take us all the way to the eternal city of New Jerusalem. I invite you to go with me on this most fascinating journey as we go from the Garden of Eden into eternity with the Father. It will take some time as the story of man is not short, but will certainly be worth the investment of your interest.

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