More amplification on the "100 believer" experiment:
I believe that most would see a distinction between the nation of Israel and the NT church. That is so obvious. After all, there is the OT, then the NT! (duh
) What would not be obvious is the splitting of the NT into the however-many parts that some teach.
This is not entirely a pretended experiment. I have throughout my 56 years of life and 36 years of ministry been exposed to the teachings of the Scriptures. I have had the opportunity to speak with many pastors and many more dedicated believers. The only ones that I have met that had a dispensational view (other than just the OT/NT split) were those who heard it or read about it from someone else and not the Scriptures themselves. None that I have spoken to personally have been able to explain how one discerns where each of the lines are drawn. In fact, it has only been in the past year that I heard that Matthew was not written to me. ( I must stop here for a moment and say that I spend almost no time reading commentaries, and do not own a "study" Bible - other than SwordSearcher.
) I would say that I do not fit into any of the labeled boxes that are so common today. My focus of study has been almost exclusively on the text issue. As for figuring out where all these parts are supposed to fit, I suppose that I will be behind the pack for a while. I just have far too many questions to be comfortable with any of the boxes yet. Thank the LORD, the future doesn't depend on me figuring it all out like the rest of you have.
