Did Jesus Promise to Return within the Lifetime of his Disciples?
For critics of early Christianity, one of the stock objections is that Jesus predicted he would return in the lifetime of his disciples. And since he clearly didn’t return, then he cannot be believed.
Indeed, it is this belief that has spurred many other theories among scholars, most notably Hans Conzelmann’s thesis that Luke’s Gospel was written to explain the delay of the second coming.
But, is it really true that Jesus predicted that he would return in the lifetime of his disciples? Here’s a recent video where I briefly address this question:
As for whether the imminent coming of Jesus affected the development of the NT canon, see my … Continue reading...
Did Early Christians Believe That Jesus Would Return in Their Own Lifetime? Implications for Canon
One of the most-oft repeated ideas about the earliest Christians is that they believed that the Kingdom of God would come (apocalyptically) within their own lifetime. In fact Schweitzer famously argued that Jesus himself thought the world would end in his own lifetime; of course the world didn’t end and Jesus died disillusioned on the cross saying, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34).
In recent years, some have suggested that this belief in early Christianity would even have affected the development of the canon. If Christians thought the world would end in their own lifetime, then, it is argued, they would not have … Continue reading...
The Forgotten Second Coming
As Christians, we are fond of reminding people that the Bible is a book of history. It is not just a book of rules, nor a collection of philosophical treatises, but is decidedly a book about the past. It is about what God has done in real time and space. Indeed, that is the core of the Christmas message we have heard over the last month—two thousand years ago, God became man.
But often forgotten in our zeal to show that the Bible is a book about the past, is the reality that the Bible is also a book about the future. The Christian message is fundamentally eschatological (to use … Continue reading...
Did Early Christians Believe that Jesus Would Return in Their Lifetime? Implications for the Canon
One of the most-oft repeated ideas about the earliest Christians is that they believed that the Kingdom of God would come (apocalyptically) within their own lifetime. In fact Schweitzer famously argued that Jesus himself thought the world would end in his own lifetime; of course the world didn’t end and Jesus died disillusioned on the cross saying, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34).
In recent years, some have suggested that this belief in early Christianity would even have affected the development of the canon. If Christians thought the world would end in their own lifetime, then, it is argued, they would not have been interested … Continue reading...