The Unique Aspects Of The Church Of The Mystery
All Spiritual Blessings. This is the first item we meet in the post-Acts epistles of Paul. Spiritual blessings have been mentioned before, but never with the qualifying word all. In his seven epistles written during Acts, Paul never uses the term. And it cannot be found among other writers. It is peculiar to the Dispensation brought in after Israel is set aside and the Salvation of God sent to the Gentiles. These blessings are now the inheritance of The Chuch of The One Body of Christ.
In Heavenly Places. Such a realm had been known even in OT times. But that mankind should enjoy all spiritual blessings there had never been heard of. Solomon knew of a Heaven of heavens. Daniel knew of realms far beyond. But that people should inhabit such places was not thought of. Mankind was made to inhabit and have dominion over the earth and its creatures. But in Ephesians, dominion extends much farther, and man has a part in it.
Before the Overthrow. All-purpose connected with The Kingdom on the earth, and the Dispensation of Promise had been spoken of since the overthrow of the world. But when we come to the Dispensation of The Mystery, we find an earlier purpose revealed. It has to do with a time before the overthrow. So, as far as the purpose of the ages is concerned, this term is peculiar to the Dispensation of The Mystery.
Seated Together. We are well aware that overcomers in the Earth program were promised to be seated with Christ on His throne. But that throne is here on the earth and is in connection with the ruling of the nations of the earth. But the fact that a people should be seated with Christ on His Father's throne in The Heavenlies was unheard of till we came to Ephesians. No one ever had this close association before.
The Both Made One. This has reference to Jew and Gentile. In the Dispensation of Promise, the Jew was first, and the Gentile could only share his blessings, which was not made possible until Acts 10. That a Dispensation in which the two were made one just never entered the mind of man till revealed in Ephesians. It is a part of The Mystery.
No Longer Foreigners. From the time the promise was made to Abram in Gen 12 till the end of Acts, the Jew was the center of God's activities, and it was through the seed of Abram that the earth was to be blest. So, all these centuries, the Gentile was a foreigner outside the Dispensation of Promise.
A Habitation of God. With all her privileges and rights, Israel never had the promise of being a habitation of God. The zenith of the Dispensation of Promise is in Rev 21:3-22. There, we find that God will Tabernacle with men and that there will be no need for a temple, for God and the Lamb will be The Temple of it.
The reader is invited to take the concordance and search and see if the above statements are true. If so, then there is only one place that we can call the dividing line between the Dispensation of Promise and that of The Mystery: Acts 28:28.
