Supersessionism is common today, capturing a new generation. This view, however, hurts the church’s mission to spread the gospel to the ends of the earth. By discounting the unique, ongoing role of Jewish people in God’s plan, it obscures His intention for gospel proclamation. The great commission, Jesus’ parting words to the disciples before He ascended into heaven, began in Jerusalem (Acts 1:8). His Jewish apostles were to take the message of the forgiveness of sins through Jesus’ death and resurrection from Jerusalem to all the earth.
Even Paul—the “apostle to the Gentiles” (Galatians 2:8)—first preached in synagogues in his missionary journeys. He wrote the gospel is “to the Jew first and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16). Proclaiming the good news of the Jewish Messiah to the Jewish community remains a central feature of the church’s mission. Supersessionism minimizes the place of Jewish people, which discourages believers from spreading this message.
But what is supersessionism, exactly?
Understanding Supersessionism
Supersessionism, or replacement theology, is “the view that the church is the new or true Israel that has permanently replaced or superseded Israel as the people of God.”[1] In other words, Christians who hold this theological position—knowingly or not—believe Israel, the Jewish people, are no longer God’s chosen people. Israel is no more theologically significant than any other nation. This view has energized much of the early rejection of Jewish people and practices as the church became largely Gentile in the second and third centuries.
Supersessionism is not antisemitic in itself. Forms of it, though, have emphasized God punishing Israel for rejecting Jesus.[2] This element has stirred many theologians to present Jewish people as inherently more sinful than others. In this way, supersessionism has fueled disdain and even violence toward Jewish people. It has contributed to violence toward Jewish people in Christianized societies, such as the Spanish Inquisition, the Eastern European pogroms, the Holocaust, and some modern-day anti-Israel sentiments.[3]
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Understanding Christian Zionism
Many Christians today recognize Israel’s ongoing role in God’s plan (Romans 9–11). Part of the reason for this shift is the unlikely founding of modern Israel in 1948. Christians around the world have seen Jewish people’s return to the land as a sign God’s promises about Israel are eternal. So it is no surprise Christians who hold Israel is still God’s chosen people generally support the State of Israel. Standing with Israel does not mean agreeing with every Israeli policy. Like every country, imperfect human leaders run Israel. Nuanced criticism of specific Israeli practices is appropriate and even necessary at times. Standing with Israel does mean supporting her right to exist and defend herself. We call this Christian Zionism, and you can read more about it here.
Many Christian Zionists are also dispensationalists. Dispensationalism is a way of reading the story of the Bible emphasizing the distinction between Israel and the church.[4]
But you do not have to be a dispensationalist to believe God’s promises about the children of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob owning the land of Israel.[5] Sadly, those against Christian Zionism often have an unfair view of it. Some claim all who expect a future for Israel are obsessed with the end times and believe in an outdated dispensationalism. This claim ignores the differences among Christian Zionists.[6]
The Dangers of Anti-Zionism
Anti-Christian Zionists (Christians who oppose Zionism) have lessened the importance of Israel and Jewish people. Their view of the Bible and support of anti-Israel groups turn Christian attention away from missions to the Jewish community. [7] Critics of Christian Zionism often compare Israel’s treatment of Palestinians with South Africa during Apartheid. These drastic (and false!) comparisons present all Israelis in a demeaning light simply for living in the historic Jewish homeland. Anti-Christian Zionists, perhaps unintentionally, give fodder to antisemitic views.
It is hard for many believers to tell the difference between Israel and Jewish people as a whole. The news we see on TV and the internet often casts modern Israel in a bad light. Anti-Christian Zionists often generalize Palestinians as victims and Israelis as aggressors. These lead many to look negatively on Israelis, not distinguishing between government decisions and the individuals within a nation. It is also easy to neglect distinguishing between Israelis and the broader Jewish community, especially when emotions run high. This thinking has sadly made Christians less interested in presenting the gospel to Jewish people. One is generally more likely to proclaim the good news among those to whom we are sympathetic.
Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash.
A Way Forward
As followers of Jesus, we should speak the truth in love. As James warned, “The tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity” (James 3:6). Slandering any group is wrong. We should counter supersessionism with conviction and with grace. As fellow believers in Jesus, we must love one another, even when we disagree. Let us seek to understand our differences even as we engage across the divide. We must pursue godly unity among Israeli and Palestinian believers. It should include Western Christians with varying views of Israel. Those who uphold Israel’s biblical right to the land feel Christians who do not hold this view are not fair in how they speak about them. This makes peace between Arab and Israeli believers difficult.
Dismissing Israel’s present and future leaves us with a significant blind spot as we read Scripture. It harms unity in the church and hinders her mission. God’s faithfulness to His promises to Israel is an essential truth about His character. The union of Jewish and Gentile believers in one new body is a defining feature of the church. Glossing over these truths skews our view of God’s work in the world.
Now is the time to address supersessionism and what it means for Jewish people today. Some strains of supersessionism have bred antisemitism and fueled violence. The church must consider how the manner in which she speaks of Jewish people in the Bible affects the contemporary Jewish community. We must follow the Bible’s call to support and love Jewish people.
Conclusion
True unity in the body of the Messiah, as Jesus prayed for (John 17), is possible through the Holy Spirit. Our hope for the body of Messiah is to build unity between Jewish and Arab people and within the whole church. As the apostle Paul wrote, our being in the Messiah unites us (Ephesians 3:6). Let us join in our mission to proclaim the gospel to all the earth—“to the Jew first and also to the Greek” (Rom 1:16).
Published March 1, 2024.
[1] Michael J. Vlach, “The Church as a Replacement of Israel: An Analysis of Supersessionism,” (PhD dissertation at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Wake Forest, NC, 2004), p. xv.
[2] For a few (among many) examples, see Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho, 16; John Calvin, Institutes, 4.2.3.
[3] Hélène Dallaire, “Anti-Semitic Supersessionism,” in The Future Restoration of Israel: A Response to Supersessionism, edited by Stanley E. Porter and Alan E. Kurschner, McMaster Divinity College Biblical Studies Series, Volume 10 (Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock, 2023), 378–96.
[4] To learn more about dispensationalism, see Thomas D. Ice, “What Is Dispensationalism?,” Liberty University Article Archives, May 2009, 71, https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1070&context=pretrib_arch.
[5] Gerald R. McDermott, “The Reformed Tradition on Israel Is Diverse,” The Gospel Coalition, January 24, 2018, https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/reformed-tradition-israel-diverse/.
[6] Gerald R. McDermott, “Is Christian Zionism Primarily Rooted in Premillennial Dispensationalism?” in The New Christian Zionism: Fresh Perspectives on Israel & the Land edited by Gerald R. McDermott (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2016).
[7] Mitch Glaser, “The Impact of Supersessionism on Jewish Evangelism,” in The Future Restoration of Israel.
