I posted on 'spiritual biology' yesterday to reveal my bias. I believe what I wrote is true in reality, not just in theological principle. I also believe it describes the life of Jesus Christ in Nazareth. As the firstborn of a new race, he lived a new kind of life. He had a body, soul and spirit that functioned together and properly, giving him an advantage in knowing the Father that no human being before him had ever enjoyed.
The Israelites were commanded to love God with all their heart, soul, mind and strength but Christ attained true worship in the spirit. According to the Gospels, he definitely achieved that close communion with God by the time of his ministry. The question I'm trying to answer somewhat more definitively is... how much earlier in life did that spiritual connection develop? A good start at a generalized answer might be, "Somewhere between learning to walk and learning to walk on water." But when?
Various theological traditions might place that point before age 12, after age 12, or not until the day of the Baptism itself. But fooey on "theology". Historically, it happened. Whether gradually or suddenly, by some point it had happened. Approximately, when? And what possible grounds do we have for concluding as such, even generally?
I'm going to try and answer these questions a bit less vaguely than is usually done - I hope. We obviously don't see the gospels giving us a direct answer on this, but it's an important issue. What did Jesus do for "about thirty" years to earn the audible praise of God at the Jordan River? Was his devotion purely soulish? Or was there a mystical connection, and if so from what age?
I'm also going to try leaving "theologic" completely out of things. In other words, I'm going to take a stab at answering this question historically, from the scriptures. I may fail. Or not. Perhaps we shall see.
Stay tuned...
Get the NT/History Blog in your Inbox:
Recently Popular
-
The Roman registration of Herod's Kingdom is historically bizarre, and could not have been part of any "worldwide" registration. For Caesar ...
-
(so called): Did it really exist before Acts 10:45? If it did, it was fully inclusive of all believers in Christ, at that time. Or, to put t...
-
My main interest in Lysanias, tetrarch of Abilene, began in hopes of finding a comparative case study (however minuscule) to make with Hero...
-
My answer, in 2 paragraphs, an exercise suggested by Brian LePort: After nearly a decade of apostle-ing churches, having founded at leas...
-
Chronology on the Roman Empire is much easier to sort through than chronology on the New Testament for one simple reason – because ancient h...
-
If Nero got to hear Luke's version of Jesus' wilderness temptations, one must wonder (I think) what Nero thought about Satan claiming to be ...
-
The miraculous is always "unlikely", but reported miracles are not always "improbable". Yes, both statements are true; it's just difficul...
-
Why do conservative scholars defend the Gospels as historically reliable yet deny that it's possible to write a reliable History based on th...
-
Tyndale Publishing was founded because Ken Taylor wanted to help people understand the Bible in simple ways. The Living Bible evolved into ...
2 comments:
"from what age?" sounds to me like a silly question. We all know people, mostly brought up in Christian homes, who say that they have had a relationship with God as long as they remember, since early childhood. One adult I knew could remember this going back to when she was only two. Of course at first it was a childish relationship and it matured gradually. These people didn't claim to be sinless like the Son of God. But if they could have a gradually growing relationship like this then surely Jesus also could.
love it. I think you're right, Peter. That's actually really helpful.
Somewhere between leaving things absolutely vague and inventing wishful specifics, I'm trying to find some 'concrete generalities'. Not sure how far I'll get, so keep the input coming.
Thanks again.
Post a Comment