One of the “frequently asked questions” directed at protestants by members of the Roman Catholic Church involves the issue of “dispensation.” That is to say, if Christ set a Church up after a certain form, how is it that Protestants can claim to be the “true” body of believers if the Messiah declared that the “gates of hell” (Mat 16:18) shall never overcome the body He established?

There are several issues to consider when dealing with that matter, but the simplest of these involves the difference between a “Church” which is a body of believers, and an organization set in place to teach the Gospel, which may or may not remain faithful to its commission. The following article, adapted from letter that I wrote to one who raised such an issue attempts to demonstrate this principle.

Dear sir,

Thank you for your email. I perceive that principle you set forth is based on some fairly significant errors regarding the nature of the “Church.” The error takes its most noticeable form in the assertion that since Christ established an organization that later became known as the “Catholic Church,” this organization is therefore utterly infallible, even in the face of the disagreements of various councils, the reversal of various established dogmas, actions motivated by political factors, and the taking to task corrupt civil pressure against individuals for the suppression of religious liberty.

Your concerns may be alleviated, however, when you come to understand that in the Scriptures, the “Church” as a principle is completely independent of the organization which houses it – the teaching being understood that the Church is the “vine” of certain parables, which never changes, and against which the gates of Hell will never prevail. (Mat 16:18) The organizational structure, which Christ built to house this vine – built not only on Peter, but “upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;” (Eph 2:20) – is known collectively as the “husbandmen” as I will demonstrate shortly, which can be changed if they should fall into apostasy and unbelief. Your claim that the Catholic church has remained faithful “for 20 centuries” is a callous disservice to history, which can be overlooked only by the most glossy-eyed partisan.

To establish upon the Bible’s teachings that the organization may be changed, we need only consider a few verses (although a thorough examination would need to be more... thorough). The first of these is found in the Old Testament. The promise was made by the Almighty to Solomon, “Then will I stablish the throne of thy kingdom, according as I have covenanted with David thy father, saying, ‘There shall not fail thee a man to be ruler in Israel.’” (2Ch 7:18) This is tantamount to saying his kingdom would last forever, a parallel to Christ’s statement that the gates of Hell would not prevail against His Church.

Because of Israel’s repeated apostasy, however, we find this verse in the records of the later prophets: “And I took my staff, even Beauty, and cut it asunder, that I might break my covenant which I had made with all the people.” (Zech 11:10) Considering the context of Zechariah, we see that the staff “Beauty” was a symbol of the covenant that Yahweh had with His people, the guardians of His flocks; yet because the shepherds were unfaithful (verse 5), the covenant was broken. We notice that the covenant was not broken with the faithful worshippers (referred to as the flock – verse 4), but with the “people,” those who were to take care of this flock.

Naturally, we would expect Christ Himself to have the most clear and unmistakable teachings about this principle... and indeed He does. It is, using the very symbols to which I referred before, called the “parable of the vineyard.” 

 
        “‘Hear another parable: There was a certain householder, which planted a vineyard, and
        hedged it round about, and digged a winepress in it, and built a tower, and let it out to 
        husbandmen, and went into a far country:  And when the time of the fruit drew near, he 
        sent his servants to the husbandmen, that they might receive the fruits of it.  And the 
        husbandmen took his servants, and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another.

 

        “Again, he sent other servants more than the first: and they did unto them likewise.  But

        last of all he sent unto them his son, saying, ‘They will reverence my son.’

 

        “But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, ‘This is the heir;

        come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance.’  And they caught him, and

        cast him out of the vineyard, and slew him.

 

        “When the lord therefore of the vineyard cometh, what will he do unto those husbandmen?’ 

        They say unto him, ‘He will miserably destroy those wicked men, and will let out his

        vineyard unto other husbandmen, which shall render him the fruits in their seasons.’ 

 

        “Jesus saith unto them, ‘Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the

        builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord’s doing,

        and it is marvellous in our eyes?  Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be

        taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.’” (Mat 21:33-43)

In Isaiah, we find the place from which the Messiah drew this analogy. “Now will I sing to my wellbeloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard. ‘My wellbeloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill: And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes.’” (Isa 5:1,2)

We see not only a dramatic, but a consistent theme. The Church is the “vine,” and is much older than the 1st century – it is much older than 2000 years. Indeed, Paul referred to the nation of Israel, traveling to the promised land, as a forerunner of those who seek Heaven. He went so far as to call it, “the church in the wilderness.” (Acts 7:38) The organization of people are the husbandmen, or shepherds, who are given the responsibilities of leadership and upkeep of the vine. When Israel failed by persecuting the Son of Man, it fell and the vines were given to others, who would bring forth the fruits.

Similarly, when the Catholic communion became corrupt by imbibing pagan errors (including the much-contested Sunday-sacredness principle) it was no longer a “pure woman” unto whom Christ could be married (2Cor 11:2). When it united with the Roman government in a blatant repeat of the Jewish/Roman union that crucified Christ – and then proceeded to crucify Him again in the person of His faithful saints and martyrs, for “inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me” (Mat 25:40) – when it did this, it fell. The same sins lead to the same results, for Yahweh does not change. The gates of Hell did not prevail against the Church – rather indeed and clearly from Scripture, the gates of Hell prevailed against the husbandmen, not the precious vines. These were given to new husbandmen, and therefore we have this teaching:

“And no man putteth new wine into old bottles; else the new wine will burst the bottles, and be spilled, and the bottles shall perish. But new wine must be put into new bottles; and both are preserved.” (Luke 5:38)

Those who are members of the old, fallen order will inevitably persecute those of the new. Just as the Jews reviled and mocked the apostles for their “new wine,” (“Others mocking said, ‘These men are full of new wine.’” – Acts 2:13), so Protestants have been seen as “heretics” for daring to hold liberty of conscience above the assumed power of popes and priests. Nevertheless, the vineyard has been taken from the old, unfaithful husbandmen, and given to those who will truly bear fruits unto repentance. Israel was given the promise that it would never fall – yet the promise was conditional, by its very nature, on its own faithfulness. Similarly, the Apostolic tradition was given the promise that the Church would never fall – indeed it never has – yet it is only a great deal of spiritual pride that assumes the position of infallibility or eternal security for an organization, with all the warnings and parables of Scripture directed against such presumptuous statements.

I hope this letter finds you in good health, as even the Scriptures desire we have above all things earthly. (3John 1:2)

Yours in Christ,
David.

Email signature: “It is the testimony of all history that just in proportion as any popular and extensive ecclesiastical organization loses the spirit and power of God, it clamors for the support of the civil arm and finally religion becomes a part of the state.” Uriah Smith (1897)

Home | Contact | More Articles