But also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all.

Romans 4:16

This week we will continue our study of Dispensationalism. Many people believe there will be a literal reign of Christ on the earth for a thousand years, when Jesus comes back to Jerusalem. What seems strange about this teaching is that Jesus told Pilate, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews.”

Some of them also believe that when Christ reigns in Jerusalem, sacrifices will once again be offered. That sounds kind of heretical. Even David in Psalm 51 said, “For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You do not delight in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken and a contrite heart – these, O God, You will not despise.”

Others say those sacrifices will only be memorial in nature for the people of God. The problem I see with this idea is that each Christian was given a new heart and mind to serve Him. The Holy Spirit working within us is evidence that we have come to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. Not only was Abraham justified by faith, “but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of all.”

If Christ comes back to earth the second time to reign over all, we had better not need sacrifices to remind us of God’s gracious work on Calvary. The entire book of Hebrews is about the sufficiency of Christ, and how He did away with the animal sacrifices. Christ is our peace if we have entered His rest. If you want to bring back the sacrificial system of worship, you should probably rip the book of Hebrews out of your Bible.

Cyrus I. Scofield helped to make a lot of unscriptural ideas popular in His Scofield Bible which was full of his theories, ideas, and footnotes. He was an ungodly liar who was imprisoned in 1878 for what appears to be forgery. Reference, see “Heresy in the Heartland” on Google.

In 1866, he had married Leontine Cerre and had several children to her. He was known to drink a lot of alcohol and some of his friends were questionable. Around 1873, a Daily Times article reported that Pomeroy, Scofield, and Ingalls were involved in “the most infamous of all infamous political bargains transacted in Kansas.” For reference, see Google – The Story of Scofield’s Life by Emma Moore Weston.

When he began to get involved in Christian ministry, his divorce from Leontine was not yet final. Sometime later, he married another woman by the name of Hettie Van Wark (spelling may vary according to reference) and his ministry seemed to flourish. Apparently, the qualifications of I Timothy and being the husband of one wife, of good behavior, not given to much wine, not greedy for money, did not affect his carnal thinking.

So what is my point in mentioning all these things? The apostle Paul told us to follow him, only as he followed Christ. If Godly men are to be our example, then I do not wish to follow the theology of a “scalawag” like C. I. Scofield, as the Atchison community in Kansas remembers him. For reference, see Google – Heresy in the Heartland.

Contact the author at thoughtsonword@gmail.com if you have any comments or questions.

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Lyndon Stimeling, of Richfield, has been writing about faith and family for many years. He has self-published four books, Common Thoughts on The Word in 2016, Eye of a Needle in 2017, Common Thoughts on The Word II in 2019 and A Bridge Between in 2023. He has also had articles published in The Coming Home Journal and local newspapers and has written a children’s book.