Joshua 21:43-44 “And the LORD gave unto Israel all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein. And the LORD gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their fathers: and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; the LORD delivered all their enemies into their hand.”

In discussions with dispensationalists, it must be pointed out to them that they are looking for a literal fulfillment by the works of the flesh. We of the Reformed understanding are looking also for the literal fulfillment of prophesy. We are looking for a literal spiritual fulfillment.

John 6:63 “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.”

Hebrews 10:1 “For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.”

In the same way, and by examples from Scripture, the spiritual trumps the physical. (Malachi 4:5-6 and Matthew 11:7-15; Joel 2:27- Joel 3:2 and Acts 2:16-21; Deuteronomy 18:15-22 and Acts 3:17-26; Isaiah 61:1-3 and Luke 4:16-21; etc.)

The leaders of Israel also missed the coming of Messiah because of their version of “literal fulfillment” while Simeon and Anna (see Luke 2) had no problem understanding that Jesus was the Christ. Dispensationalists of today interpret Scripture very much as did the Pharisees.

Joe V.

Yes indeed, the church of the New Covenant is the new temple of God. I marvel at how many dispensationalists ignore Peter’s quote in Acts 2. He shows quite clearly that Joel’s prophecy was symbolic of spiritual things. The same things many interpret today as signs for the end of the world are spiritually symbolic AND were fulfilled at Pentecost.