"A LITTLE WHILE" (A Word Study)

Self authored | Feb 16, 2011 | Miztah Rogers

[alexander_busek]

and that at least one eye-witness will return to give his testimony at the end of the age, before Christ returns. If so, I suggest that John is the best candidate.

Do I understand you correctly? Christ's "loophole" was that John didn't TECHNICALLY "taste of Death" (but was rather "transfigured" or some-such?), thus making Christ's claim "some of you shall not taste of Death") veridical?

QUESTION: Who in the room to whom he was speaking, whose SINCERE question he was answering, had the slightest idea that He could have meant that?

If most of them understood His utterance instead to mean, "50-60 years (normal remaining human life-expectancy of those present), tops!", then was Christ deliberately misleading them?

Regards,

[unlearner]

“Do I understand you correctly?”

Apparently not, since you threw in the word “loophole” in quotes and ask about Christ misleading the listeners. I did not say anything about a loophole.

“Christ’s ‘loophole’ was that John didn’t TECHNICALLY ‘taste of Death’ (but was rather ‘transfigured’ or some-such?)”

Okay, I said what I said under the assumption I am talking with a believer who accepts the authority of scripture and is just trying to understand it better. But I’m not sure where you are coming from with your questions.

Christ was transfigured, not John. I was speculating that it is possible John never died but, like Enoch and Elijah, was taken by God without ever dying. My point is that we can not assume that everyone who was present when He said this has died. Further, the transfiguration of Christ was probably, at least in part, a fulfillment of what Christ said. But only a small, select group was present at the transfiguration, and we only know what took place because they shared it. John said there were MANY other things Jesus did, and it would be impossible to relay all of them.

As I intimated earlier, prophecies in scripture rarely spell out future events in such a way that we know precisely what, when, where, why, and how they will occur. Rather, they tend to confirm God’s sovereign wisdom and power AFTER they are fulfilled. Since Christ’s kingdom has not fully been established on earth, I think it is reasonable to believe this prophecy has not been completely fulfilled yet. For someone who was standing there to have never tasted of death is not a problem for God.

“Who in the room to whom he was speaking, whose SINCERE question he was answering, had the slightest idea that He could have meant that?”

Perhaps you have an idea you wish to contribute?

“If most of them understood His utterance instead to mean, ‘50-60 years (normal remaining human life-expectancy of those present), tops!’, then was Christ deliberately misleading them?”

Many things Jesus said left His audience baffled, confused, and asking questions. When Jesus told Martha that whoever believed on Him would never die, did everyone listening assume He meant that the Kingdom was imminent and immortality was about to be immediately conferred on His followers? How about what His listeners understood Him to mean when He said they must eat His flesh and drink His blood to have any life at all?

There are MANY scriptures related to this subject. Without knowing more about where you are coming from, I’m not sure I can give you the answers you are looking for. Probably a large book could be written on it.