Dispensationalism and Injustice

This will be my last post on end times stuff (for a while, anyway – I didn’t plan on doing this three days in a row). This one is specifically a moral argument against dispensationalism.

Before I get going, go here to read a good, much more balanced, article that does not include anything about end times speculation.

And watch this video. It is not nearly as tragic as some, but it sets the tone:

And now to my rant.

Any dispensational system of the “end times” or Revelation (made famous by the Left Behind books, The Late Great Planet Earth, the Scofield Study Bible, and others) should be avoided for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that this kind of system has contributed to a huge amount of injustice, persecution, and other forms of wrongdoing. In short, dispensationalism is dangerous.

First you should know what I mean by “dispensationalism.” It is a complicated system that attempts to “take prophecy seriously,” focuses much attention on the “end times,” and usually contains the following elements:

An Antichrist and a False Prophet.

A literal Millennial (1000 year) reign of Christ on Earth

A rapture

A Tribulation (seven really bad years)

An emphasis on predictions and the future

A political nation of Israel on ancient Israel’s land that is treated in a special way by God. The nation of Israel is central to dispensational thought.

While all of the above are poorly supported by scripture and the result of a system of thought (which is only around a hundred years old) being imposed upon scripture, the most dangerous part of the whole thing is the last point: the special place the political nation of Israel plays.

This uncritical support for the nation of Israel is widespread in the USA and it is largely the result of dispensationalism. Note these two quotes from a BBC article (you can read the whole thing here):

Two in three evangelicals believe that the establishment of the state of Israel fulfills Biblical prophecy, the survey found.

And what they see in the news only reinforces their faith, according to Timothy Shah, a scholar at the Pew Forum.

“When they see what’s going on in the Middle East, a whole range of enemies arrayed against God’s people, they see God’s word being played out on their television sets,” he said.

“They see Israel triumphing over its enemies as proof that God’s promises remain.”

And:

Michelle Goldberg is deeply concerned…

She is the author of Kingdom Coming: The Rise of Christian Nationalism…

“Christian Zionism is responsible for American support for some of the most irredentist Israeli positions,” she said, such as support for settlement-building.

I had lunch today with a Christian leader. He is a Palestinian and lives and ministers in Bethlehem, Palestine. He told me that his family has lived in the area for more than 500 years – they can trace the genealogical records back that far. But they live under unbearable persecution from Israel. Not because they are Christians, but because they are Palestinian. Their land is illegally taken. Travel is restricted. Economic hardship abounds. His father was killed by an Israeli sniper. I could go on. But I’ve been nauseous all day from hearing his stories. I may just lose it if I keep going.

But I can’t stop.

He quoted an often used phrase, “The biggest miracle in Palestine is that there is not more violence.” These people are horrendously oppressed.

I could see the pain on his face – hear it in his voice.

I heard the words, “Palestinians are people, they are not objects of prophesy.”

Many (probably not all) dispensationalists want war because if “Armageddon” happens, then Christ will come back. They want Israel to use “the bomb” on its enemies because Israel’s enemies are God’s enemies. (Note the sad irony that I used a-bomb pictures on my previous posts about Revelation.)

He told me that during a Christian meeting – where they were sharing the love of Jesus with their Muslim neighbors – someone stood up and said, “I have a word from God: God has given this land to Israel – if you really love God you will leave.” (That is an idea that comes straight from the core of dispensationalism.) Let me tell you, that kind of thing is great for helping people love Jesus.

Here’s the point: dispensational theology is bad for helping people act in a Godly manner.

Dispensationalism leads to injustice.

Because of dispensationalism, America supports Israel (which is fine) BUT does nothing about the human rights violations Israel commits against Palestinians.

Because of dispensationalism, American Christians ignore our brothers and sisters in Palestine.

I am appalled. I am saddened. My heart has been offbeat all day – I think it’s broke. And at the center of much of this terrible injustice is a theological system.

In my earlier posts I tried to be more gentle. But after I heard about the real human impact this bad theology has on real people I cannot be so kind.

Micah 6:8 sums up nicely what we humans are to be about:

He has shown all you people what is good. And what does the Lord require of You? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

Yet in dispensationalism I see the opposite happening. Palestinians are judged as “God’s enemies.” Injustice abounds (understatement of the year). And, rather than walking humbly with the Prince of Peace, people look forward to war and encourage the oppression of innocent people.

I apologize for the tone of this post. Wait. No, I don’t.

I’m ticked off.

I’m indignant.

And I hope you are too.