Lesson 5: The Fifth Dispensation
For what the Law could not do, God will send His own Son to do - to condemn sin
The Age of Law
The fourth and fifth dispensations in particular have slight differences in their period beginnings and endings. I take the position that the fifth dispensation covers the period of time from Moses receiving the Law at Mount Sinai to the cross of Calvary. At the death of Christ, the Law was ended. The position I have chosen is the position of most of the well-known Bible expositors. Obviously, everything which occurred during this huge period of time cannot be covered. This first section will review the Ten Commandments and the little known 613 additional ones that were not written on the tablets of stone. The second section will present the ten plagues of Egypt. Then we must move fast forward to the First Coming of Messiah and on to the Crucifixion which will close dispensation five.
Please open your Bible to Exodus 19:1. The Scripture covering this period of time is Exodus 19:1 through Matthew 27:56, Mark 15:41, Luke 23:49, and John 20:30.
Chapters 19 through 24 deals with the Ten Commandments, which is only one of the five tests for this dispensation. The five tests are trials of conscience, restraint by the Holy Spirit, human government, promise, and the Mosaic Law. As usual man will fail these tests, too. All five of them.
The scene is set with the Israelites having arrived at Mount Sinai. It is here that God will show his love for the Hebrews by giving them a choice. They may either move on ahead with God leading them, or they may choose an alternate. The alternate is the Law, known as the Ten Commandments. They chose wrongly. What were they thinking to choose Law over the grace of God?
The Law was never given to the Jews, or anyone else for that matter, as a means of salvation. It is impossible for anyone to keep the Law. Moses could not keep it. Aaron could not keep it. We today cannot keep it. The only one who has ever been able to keep the Law is the Messiah Jesus Christ. Well, why did God give the Law to begin with if no one could keep it? The answer is found in Galatians 3:19 -"The Law was given to reveal that we are sinners." Paul continues the thought in verse 24, ". . .the Law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith."
- Thou shalt have no other gods before me
- Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image
- Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord in vain
- Remember the sabbath day and keep it holy
- Honor thy father and thy mother
- Thou shalt not kill
- Thou shalt not commit adultry
- Thou shalt not steal
- Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor
- Thou shalt not covet
In addition to the moral code of the Ten Commandments, the Israelites were given laws which regulate social dealing, as well as instructions concerning an altar and the building of the tabernacle. There are 316 laws in this section. They were given as part of the entire Mosaic Law, and are still important today for orthodox Jews.
The Israelites failed the tests for this dispensation. They suffered many judgments as a result. Among the judgments were the Assyrian and Babylonian captivities, countless pograms, and a worldwide dispersion resulting from the rejection of Christ, their Messiah.
