But what comes next? One of two things.

The boy will appreciate what has been done for him. He will take advantage of the lessons in culture presented to him, working hard to learn the manners of the house and to make his new father proud of him. Little by little change will come in his actions, his speaking, his thoughts.

When he is older he will decide on a career and go off to school. There he will study hard—again to show his appreciation for being removed from the slums and made a worthy member of an illustrious household.

We would not say he had earned his place in the family. Rather he responded appropriately to the gift given him. He worked it out, so to speak. He proved himself worthy of the good fortune bestowed on him.

But suppose the boy decided the old fool (not realizing the iron discipline that had made the man wealthy) was soft in the head. "Dad will give me anything I want." He began to sneak out at night with his old friends. Pretty soon he was bringing them in through his bedroom window where they drank and fooled around with girls.

It became evident to the household there was no change in his actions, his speech, or his thinking. Once in a while he would pretend to be fitting into the household but it was evident he was conniving so he could live in luxury but maintain his old filthy ways.

When the time came for school he enrolled in college where he continued to drink and womanize, failing every course. He was a drunken lout—a disgrace to the family that had adopted him.

Now you tell me. How will the father respond to this?

You are right, he will disown him and look for a more worthy candidate.

Can you see from this illustration how dispensational thinking has destroyed the reality of the Kingdom of God?

We are saying (in dispensational thinking) that no matter whether the boy becomes a worthy member of the household he is part of the home forever because of the gift given him in the beginning.

I wonder how many passages of the New Testament directly deny this point of view? There are a number of them.

We must be proven worthy of the Kingdom of God. There are several verses of the New Testament speaking of the need for us to behave in a manner worthy of the Kingdom of God. It is not at all a case of our attempting to earn the gift of grace or to improve on it in any manner. It is rather that we must prove we are worthy of it. This clearly is scriptural.

To be continued.