How "Christian" Is Christian Zionism?
Question:
Dear Sirs: What do you know about the Two-House Messianic movement and so-called “Christian Zionism”? Is this something good that we should support? -M.B., Australia
Answer:
According to the organization “Jews For Jesus,” the modern Christian Zionist movement is “more political and actually divorced itself from Jewish evangelism, contending that a Christian’s biblical duty to the Jews and Israel was best carried out through providing material comfort, political support and helping fund Jewish immigration to Israel [with] no intention of evangelizing Jews.” They teach that “proselytism” is offensive to the Jewish people and must be avoided. However, they go further than that.
The largest Christian Zionist organizations are headed not by Christians but by Orthodox Jews, and pull in millions of dollars each year from Christians who think that they are advancing the cause of Christ and Christianity by supporting them. The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ) raised 75 million dollars last year, according to Jews For Jesus. Their leader, Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, an Orthodox Jew, in his book, “What Christians Should Know About Jews and Judaism,” states, “The rejection of Jesus as Messiah is key to Jewish survival.” This is the true mantra of these organizations.
So what do they do with all of this money? Christian Zionist leader David Brog, in his book “Standing with Israel,” states, “...the alliance actually works to impede efforts to convert Jews.” (Frontline Publishers, 2006, pp. 188-189) This is the objective of other similar large organizations as well, such as Christians United For Israel (CUFI). Accordingly, a large amount of the money contributed each year is used by Christian Zionist groups to fund anti-missionary work and other activities which undermine the Christian Gospel—all paid for by Christian supporters who are unaware of the nefarious work of these organizations!
A second and equally dangerous problem with these organizations is their strong emphasis on the Old Testament, its rituals and teachings, to the almost exclusion of the New Testament. Many of them are teaching a popular “dual covenant” doctrine which says that “Jews are saved by race” and are therefore saved without Christ. Growing numbers of Messianic Christian Zionists are renouncing Christ completely and becoming Orthodox Jews.
Some Messianic-type groups do teach a “two-house” message, but most of these are strongly antagonistic to many portions of the British-Israel belief (such as Jeremiah’s voyage to Ireland, the descent of the Royal family line from King David, and other teachings).
