I have been working my way through dozens of Bible and theology questions which people have submitted through that “ask a question” area in the sidebar. Here is one about why God delayed to send Jesus.
Why did God wait so long to send Jesus?
I have answered similar questions before regarding the apparent “delays” in God’s timetable. For example, we have previously considered the question, “Why did Jesus wait three days to rise from the dead?” and “Why is Jesus waiting so long before He comes again?” Obviously, those questions are different than this particular question, but the answers are similar, which is why I reference them here.
So why did God wait to send Jesus?
As with many of the Bible and Theology questions I answer, I find it helpful to step back a little bit and get the big picture for this question.
The question is not just about why God waited so long to send Jesus, but about all the seeming delays in the redemptive plan of God. That is, why does God “wait” to do anything?
Why Does God delay in anything?
I mean, if we pray for something, and God knows He is going to give us what we prayed for, why does He sometimes make us wait weeks, months, or even years before granting the request?
There are, of course, a thousand possible answers to this question. Maybe God’s apparent delay had something to do with God’s perfect timing. Maybe God did immediately answer our prayer request, but Satan temporarily stopped us from receiving God’s answer (cf. Daniel 10:12-13). Maybe God was waiting for us to be an answer to our own prayer, and we were the ones who slowed Him down.
There are other possibilities as well, but these go to show that when it comes to delays in God’s timetable, there is really almost no way to know why God does what He does when He does it.
God’s Strange Order of Events
Here is a basic timetable of God’s major redemptive works in history, counting from the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden. Note that in between each major event, there are larger periods of relatively uneventful history. (The number of years listed below is based on the the most conservative estimates. Obviously, there are more liberal estimates which extend these periods of time out to tens of thousands of years.)
- The Fall of Adam and Eve
- Wait 2000 years
- The Call of Abraham
- Wait 500 years
- Giving the Law to Moses at Mt. Sinai
- Wait 1500 Years
- Ministry of Jesus
- Wait 2000+ Years
- (in the Future) The Second Coming of Jesus
- The New Heavens and New Earth
Obviously, God is not silent and is not inactive during these waiting periods, but this outline of events is simply to show that God’s plan of redemption does seem to occur in small steps spread out over long lengths of time.
Rather than that order of events, we often think it would have been nice for the order of events to follow this outline:
- The Fall of Adam and Eve
- Wait 20 minutes
- The Death and Resurrection of Jesus
- Eternal Bliss
Honestly, from a human perspective, this second order of evens would have saved a lot of horrible grief, bloodshed, death, sorrow, and sadness. Nobody would have ended up in hell. There never would have been wars, or famines, or diseases. Adam and Eve would have sinned, Jesus would have immediately shown up to fix it, and that would have been that.
No Flood. No Hitler. No Atomic bombs. No raping of little girls.
That sounds like a much better plan, does it not?
So why indeed was there a delay in God’s redemptive plan? Why did He wait so long to choose Abraham? Why did He wait so long to give His law? Why did God wait so long to send Jesus? Why is He waiting so long to send Jesus back?
Some Traditional Answers to Why God Waited Thousands of Years to Send Jesus
People have often wondered why God waited so long before sending Jesus. Here are three of the more common answers:
1. It only seems long to us
The first answer some provide is really a non-answer. It is one of those pat answers to difficult theological questions which really does nothing to answer the question. It is a Christian cliche: “God’s timing is not our timing.”
Those who use this first answer quote 2 Peter 3:8 which says that with God, a day is like a thousand years, and a thousands years is like a day. So in other words, though it seems like God took thousands of years to send Jesus, from His perspective, it only seemed like a couple days.
Peter’s point is valid in the context, but I don’t think we can say that just because God is not restricted by time, this means that God doesn’t comprehend time, or that God doesn’t care that we struggle with how long His plan takes. I know that this is not what people mean when they say this, but to many, that is how it comes across.
To me, here is how this answer sounds:
“Oh, life is hard and you are wondering why God is taking so long to answer your prayers and set things right? Well, God’s timing is not our timing.”
This is a Christian way of saying, “Life sucks; then you die. Deal with it.” In other words, “Shut up. Nobody cares. Not even God.”
God does care. He knows that although our lives are less than mere breaths before His infinite existence, the years of our life are often full of pain, hardship, trials, burdens, sickness, fear, and sorrow.
2. To teach humanity about the depth of our sin.
If Jesus had shown up 20 minutes after Adam and Eve sinned, we never would have understood the depth and breadth of our sinfulness. Nor would we have understood how desperately we need God. It could be argued that one reason Adam and Eve sinned is because they didn’t fully comprehend how horrible it would be to live life disconnected from God.
Due to the long period of time in which we have wallowed in our sin, we now know — do we ever! — how wicked, evil, and brutal people can be.
One great benefit to this way of viewing God’s delay is that it seems to be supported by Scripture. Over and over again in Scripture we see this cycle:
- Human development (e.g., the Law, the Land, Judges, Kings, Prophets, etc.)
- Great expectations for human utopia
- Greater evil than ever before
I like this explanation, except that it seems like a bit of overkill. Pun intended. Do we really need thousands of years of bloodshed, rape, murder, torture, war, famine, pestilence, and disease to tell us that sin is bad? I don’t know… maybe we do. After all, human history reveals that every so often, people think that humanity has progressed to the point that worldwide peace and prosperity is just around the corner, that human utopia is almost assured. Usually, not long after these rosy predictions of our future are made, humanity enters into one of the most violent and bloody eras of its history.
In fact, you can almost predict future events based on how rosy of a picture is being painted about that future. The rosier the picture, the bloodier the future. (This is one reason I am not a postmillennialist.)
3. To teach the angels about God’s redemptive purpose
This idea comes from 1 Peter 1:12 and a few other verses which seem to indicate that one reason God created humanity and is carrying out His redemptive plan is to teach something to the angels. Nobody really knows what God might be trying to teach the angels that they don’t already know, but apparently, the angels are learning from watching how God deals with rebellious humanity.
Some have even suggested that God’s plan of redemption may eventually include the angels as well! If so, the Bible says absolutely nothing about this …
Anyway, if God is teaching the angels something, then apparently, it takes a long time to teach them.
4. To wait until the time when the Gospel could spread the quickest
Sometimes, and specifically in connection to why Jesus came when He did, some people say it had something to do with the Roman empire. The Roman empire built roads and had a common tongue which allowed the message of the Gospel to spread more quickly and with greater ease than it could have at other times.
I suppose in theory, this is somewhat true, but if God was waiting until there was a common language and good lines of communication before sending Jesus, He could have picked no better time than right before humans decided to build the Tower of Babel. There was only one language at the time, and it seems their communication was so good, there was nothing they could not accomplish. That is partly why the text says that God scrambled human communication (Genesis 11:6).
Furthermore, if God was really waiting for the quickest and most worldwide method of communication, He should have waited for Twitter.
Ha! I’m kidding.
Kind of …
Look, when we say that God waited to send Jesus until there was a common tongue and a good road system, what we are also saying is that the only part of the world that God really cared about was the part under Roman rule (Most of Europe, Northern Africa, and Western Asia). The rest of the world did not have access to the Roman road system, nor did they speak the common language of the Roman empire. So are we saying then that God didn’t care about most of Africa, most of Asia, and all of North and South America?
That was why I was kind-of only half-joking when I mentioned Twitter. If God was waiting until the quickest form of communication was available to all the world, then He could have waited until a worldwide system of instantaneous communication was in place … a system much like Twitter.
So anyway, while I do think the Roman road system and common language helped the spread of the Gospel, I don’t think we can say that this was why Jesus came at the time and place that He did.
5. To fulfill prophecy
Then there is the explanation that Jesus came when He did because He had to fulfill prophecy.
There is some truth to this, especially depending on how you understand the prophecy of Daniel’s 70 Weeks (Daniel 9:24-27). It may be that Jesus had to come when He did to complete the prophecy given 490 years earlier.
Also, in relation to this, Paul writes that Jesus came “at the appointed time” (Galatians 4:4). Other New Testament authors say similar things.
While there is truth with this answer, it really doesn’t answer the question. All it does it move the question back. If Jesus came at that time to fulfill prophesy, then why did God prophecy that Jesus would come at that time? Why didn’t God move prophets to predict that Jesus would come a two thousand years earlier … or later? Why then? Why there?
(My! This post is getting long … Let’s see if I can wrap it up.)
6. To wait until human theological development had evolved to the point where we could understand Jesus
One final view is that God waited for so long because mankind had to develop socially and spiritually enough in order to understand and receive the revelation of Jesus Christ.
This idea is based on the concept of progressive revelation, that God has slowly explained Himself and unfolded His plan and purposes for the world over time. The reason is that we could not understand and grasp it all at once, and so He has had to teach us bit by bit, one step at a time.
I am teaching my daughters math, and while I know Calculus, I cannot attempt to teach them everything I know about math on day one, from basic arithmetic all the way to calculus. Not only is there not enough time to do this, they would not comprehend most of it, but would instead get overwhelmed and as a result, would not even understand the most basic concepts in math.
So also, this theory goes, God had to slowly teach humanity about Himself and His ways, so that over time, we would grow and develop into the people He wanted us to become.
Progressive revelation is a definite fact of Scripture, but I am a bit wary of this idea, for it seems to fall prey to what C. S. Lewis called “chronological snobbery.” Lewis often criticized other scholars for thinking that just because they lived in 1960, they knew more about how the world worked and what God was like than people who lived in say, 60 AD. Just because we are further along in years, C. S. Lewis argued, does not mean we necessarily know more. We may, in fact, know less.
But, for the most part, I think this view has some merit, and does help explain what Jesus might have meant in John 16:12 where He said He had much more to teach, but could not do so because they were not ready to hear it. Verses like this are everywhere in Scripture (cf. Matt 13:10-13), which seems to indicate that God only provides further revelation after we have incorporated His previous revelation into our thinking and practice (for the most part).
What is my view about why God waited thousands of years to send Jesus?
What is my view on all of this? I hold some strange mixture of all of the above.
Essentially, I believe that whatever we say about God’s timing in sending Jesus is similar to what we should say about God’s timing in doing anything. There are a variety of answers at any given time, and any action of God can have a variety of explanations.
I know, I know. Such an answer is not neat, pretty, and tidy. But then, life is not neat, pretty, and tidy, and neither is theology. Theology, like life, is a big mess of guesswork and scrambled answers.
While I believe that faith in God includes faith in God’s timing, I am not always sure we can understand God’s timing …
How about you? Which of the answers above is most helpful to you? Which is least helpful? What did I leave out? Why do you think God waited so long to send Jesus for the redemption of mankind?
PS., This post turned out be so LONG (2500 words!!!), I will post something nice and short tomorrow (for my and yours).
Everything must surely come to pass.
Yet in all those years waiting, salvation through grace was always there and applicable, just that humans had to find favor in God’s eyes.
Perhaps His timing has more to do with a certain ” number” being reconciled. Romans 11:25
Possibly. I always wonder what that text really means. Is there really a big countdown in the sky which drops a number every time someone converts? I have trouble imagining such a scenario… but it does seem to be what Paul is saying.
The “A thousand years is like a day to God” perspective assumes God exists in the concept of time. If everything is happening simultaneously in the realm of spirit (or whatever you want to call it) then God is not waiting or are we. It is our illusion.
Great points. The concept of time is critical when discussing God’s involvement in history. I think we humans have a lot to learn about how time works and how God is related to time.
Why did god wait thousands of years?
Because its all fake.
You’re all fools.
If that is what you believe, why do you hang out in a forum such as this?
I said the same thing ATWAS911. I raised my fist in the air and declared God to be dead, there is no heaven, there is no hell, that it was all a grand hoax….
3 days later I was a true believer.
Wow! Three days!
Same with me! I told God “I hate you! Leave me alone! I never want you involved in my life again! You’re playing tricks on me! Taking everything I love away from me! I f**** HATE YOu!!! And I shook my fist towards Heaven. And I said to myself in my own heart “God doesn’t exist.” And I cried. And then the Devil came to me and said “He hates you but I’ll take you.” So I turned down to the Devil and I let the Devil fill my soul. And I ran with the Devil on the total hatred of God instead of love. And I hated everyone especially God. And it was powerful, or so it seemed. But all Satan wanted me to do was blaspheme the Holy Spirit, take a man’s mark, and kill myself. I couldn’t do that only because God came down and stopped me. Later, I saw a homeless man holding a Scripture verse on cardboard, and I read it and believed again. I’m not sure God will let me unbelieve in Him. He has “Caught” me 🙂 And I hope He always catches me. He says He has and He will. Gods a hunter and a warrior and a fisherman and a slave master too ya know 🙂
Uh … OK.
It’s very easy to claim anything but it’s too intricate to defend or justify the claim.
You claimed it’s all fake and all are fools; can you prove or defend your claim?
I hope you know that in the past many tried to prove that it’s fake but later they realized that they are fools and it’s true.
I respond in such a way because I have such a hatred for religion.. In reality I feel so sorry for you.. I’m sorry that who ever it was that lead your mind to this non-science as a child, brainwashed you, and damaged you for life. The only way religion continues to infect people is by the abuse of the mind of children while they are in their developmental modes.. What you learn as a child will determine who you are as an adult.. That’s why there is such a push to get kids into Sunday school (brainwashing classes)..
There is nothing to prove.. Jesus does exist.. I’m not going to claim that “he” does not.. But not in the way you’ve been brainwashed to believe.. The same as Horus the God of Egypt..The same as Attis of Greece, the same as Krishna, the same as Dionysus, the same as Mithra of Persia.. All of which were born on the 25th of December, of a virgin signified by a star in the east and adorned by three kings…
They are Solar Messiahs.. They are allegories for the SUN… Their entire lives are about the movement though the night sky.. The one and only TRUE savior of mankind, the LIGHT of the world…
You are a brainwashed, mentally ill, sun worshiper.. and you’re too mentally damaged to even know it.
There’s little doubt that much of the mythology that has developed around Jesus was imported from the “mystery religions” of ancient Greece, Rome, Egypt and Persia. But there’s also little doubt that a rabbi known as Yeshua bar Yosef lived and taught in the “Holy Land” two thousand years ago. Most of the theology and dogma that developed around him since then resulted, as I see it, from misunderstanding or avoiding his central teaching, which had nothing whatsoever to do with sun worship. Yeshua preached a way of life that was too difficult and demanding for the average, self-centered individual to contemplate. However, bad theology and faulty dogma do not negate the validity of the fundamental principles he promoted. Be careful not to “throw out the baby with the bathwater.”
Atwas911 says: Debates are interesting, in that the person who can influence and showcase his/her stance has a chance of persuading others even if its wrong. You seem intelligent enough to put together a few words to influence or persuade others of your view. My question is why go out of your way to criticize and deter others from what might be a life saving path for them, turned immoral to moral ways? (And many more other reasons) What do you gain? How is it empowering or helpful? The only answer is obvious, you have nothing to offer that I can see is ‘Good’. I am 38 years old and recently became a born again Christian. God came into my life when i least expected it, and it has been a blessing, a ‘Positive’. I know Satan/the enemy or whatever people want to call it does exist because i can look back on my life and see the influence. People can tend to blame God for alot of things, but does anyone blame Satan. Through my past experiences, I can recognize the enemy. The reason i share this story is i can recognize the enemy in your words, being on this forum, deterring others from there grace. This is the work of the enemy at play, whether you realize you are doing it or not. This is not to criticize you but to speak gods word against the enemy’s word, and to empower my fellow brothers and sisters. To the enemy within Atwas911, be gone with your ways as you have no merit or power on this forum. Its a waste of your time and energy, your ways a false and blurred unto yourself as this forum is representative of the house of God and our savior Jesus Christ. Atwas911 : God bless you, may he show you the way to salvation and deliverance and the confirmation of his love. Amen
Seriously challenge the Bible and see if it is true. If I close my eyes does that mean the sun does not exist. I can’t see it. Really read what Jesus said. Study it and see. I’ll not letting you off by just closing your eyes and saying it doesn’t exist.
If you truly feel that way why are you on this site?
I agree with all of your explanations above. Basically, we cannot comprehend God and why He does certain things. If we could understand Him, what kind of God would that be?
I also have a theory ….that God views time differently than we do. As an example, if you take a long tube and lay it down on the floor(lengthwise), this is how we view time. Things happen in a chronological order. God takes that same tube, stands it upright and instead of viewing it lengthwise, He looks straight down through it. So, in essence, He views everything happening at the same time, whereas we see things happening chronologically in a certain order. Therefore, time does not matter to God.
Yeah, I think our understanding of time is quite limited. I think that somehow, God is within time, but in some other way, it outside of time. I don’t know how it works, of course …
I think time is just another dimension like our three room dimensions. The difference being that we can only move forward at a given speed… But God is not limited to this. By the way: Even the best physics people and experts on the topic of time don’t know exactly what time is. Yes, we can measure it, but how fast time passes depends on your velocity and gravity etc. Hope that helps in not understanding time…
The old testament is packed with stories and events foreshadowing the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. God could speak out of the wind right now as a take or leave it offer but then how would we know the voice was from God? His purpose was to bring us back into a relationship with him voluntarily. We now know with a certainty that Jesus is the Way back to God from our rebellion through all the types.
At Passover, all you had to do was paint lamb’s blood on the door and stay in it. To be cured of snake bites, all you had to do was look at a bronze snake on a pole that Moses lifted up. Abraham was willing to sacrifice his only son of promise at the very site where Jesus was crucified many years later. The layout of the tabernacle demonstrates the plan of salvation. Manna from heaven symbolized Jesus as the bread of life. The Sabbath day rest showed us how much work we have to do to be found righteous, none. Crossing the Jordan river, the battle of Gideon, the story of Joseph, it just goes on and on. God has been very meticulous and methodical in showing us the way back home.
Good points. There truly are a lot of foreshadows in the Bible. You have mentioned several.
In response to “Robert says” you have perspectives that are interesting. What other insightfulness of the Bible do you have?
Progressive revelation is more helpful for me. Because it is not only what happened in the scripture, as well as happen in my life, so that it relate to me so much. 🙂
In my opinion, God timing has something to do with the relationship too…. understanding each other character in relationship need time, I guess…. 🙂
I agree with you on point 2 and 5 too. I found that human has short memory… or maybe I can say they do not pass on to the next next generation very well due to circumstances maybe, or free choice? disobedient? the sin which makes us arrogant?
by the way , I have got a question for you.. why Jesus will rule for 1000 years, while the satan will be bounded, so that he will not be able to tempt people to do sin? why God did not just create a new heaven and earth straight away?
Great question there at the end. My answer … I think you are on to something there. I think we humans too easily blame Satan for our own sin. One reason he will be bound is so that humans can no longer blame him, and must finally own up to the fact that we rebel against God just fine all on our own.
wow… I am sooo agree with you… Thanks Jeremy….
Favor is found in Jesus.
Since we believe that Jesus was God in flesh, he could have chosen to come any time. The time He chose was presumably the best time for reasons not entirely clear to us. However, He need not explain to us, if His answer to Job is any indication. Undoubtedly our understanding of time is inadequate at best.
Yep! We have to trust He came when was best for His purposes, and as you say, we have a limited understanding of time, so that is involved as well.
Yes, Jeremy, your insight is once again insightful (lol). It is a mystery and God has a purpose and a plan, to which he has never once consulted me.
Ha! Yep. Many things with God are simply mystery. And that’s how it should be, or else we would be God!
Why will always be the wrong question when it comes to God stuff, and when we receive an answer we still say “Yes but” or “yes but what if”. Jesus did not say “ask why” He said “ask and it shall be given unto you, seek and you will find, knock and the door will opened unto you”. Matthew 7 v 7.
We ask why, because we don’t trust what God is saying, it’s a subtle form of unbelief. How often do we say to someone who has given us some information “I find that hard to believe”.
We could say “That’s interesting or challenging or difficult to understand” we then need to investigate the validity of what is being said to us to clarify it.
For example I have heard that in a Church in South Wales in the UK, revival has broken out as it did in 1903. I have not questioned it but in some way I want to be part of it. Some young people who travelled to see have formed a group and taking their anointing around the UK, a number of us from our Church are going to see and hear at a Church not far from this group on Saturday night. None of us have questioned it’s validity or we would not be going.
The not yet a believer who suggested we were fools would appear to question everything without first investigating. By all means question, and when you investigate be open to the truth and do not look with a mind and heart already made up, with the intent to prove something wrong, a lie in fact.
Why did I not believe until I was 38, because I was a self-opinionated bore and a bully. God allowed me to suffer for three months before he revealed Himself to me, I have never looked back, I am 72 in July.
The trouble with arguing as it never gets anyone anywhere, nothing is learnt, both parties end up being angry and frustrated. There is a Country Park near us where the dear roam free in fact they are given precedence over humans. The stags rut with antlers locked to be in charge of the harem. Just like the Russians and the Americans over the Ukraine and Crimea. Someone once said “jaw jaw not war war” even the God in the Bible said “come let us discuss this ” Isaiah 1 v 18.
I pray that the lord will be merciful to ATWAS911 and that he will not only hear His voice but will have the discernment to understand what is being said. Love came down and rescued me, I ask the same for him. Amen X
Yes, why is often a fruitless question when it comes to God. Nevertheless, as a relational being Himself, He has invited us to come reason with Him, and to interact with Him about how the world runs and His involvement in it. Else why send us Jesus and most of the Bible?
We do, however, need to ultimately accept that there is little which God does that we will fully comprehend.
Yes, we are all fool for Christ 🙂 and for something we will see ( I hope it will be soon)…
yes, we are fool to believe for the things that was promised that we are going to have.. forever.. we are so blessed 🙂
Yes, we are all fool for realizing that we are all sin and need Jesus to save our lives from death 🙂
Yes, we are all fool for feeling and knowing how we are so loved by the Almighty God, the creator heaven and earth…
Thank you for reminding me that 🙂
I feel so blessed!!!!
How about that Jesus was also a Prophet like so many other prophets mentioned in the bible and came at the right time to warn?
God waited hundred of years before taking the Israelis out of Egypt as the sum of the Cananites sin was not high enough
Before Christ God provided access through chosen high priests. This system provided atonement for sins of which the common folk were often ignorant of committing. Christ provides personal atonement and direct personal access to God. Could it be that our society had to mature to a certain level before the common man was educated enough to understand this new system? Jeremiah foreshadows God writing the law on hearts and replacing the old Levitical system with a new system. Perhaps the priests could understand such a new system but maybe not the common man who did not have access to scripture and probably could not read. Of course when Christ came, it might not have been that much better but perhaps enough capable, intelligent non-priests existed that a new system could be delivered and enough would understand and spread it throughout the world.
Ah yes, the common folk, those apes with blistered hands and not a Fabergé egg in sight. It’s always been them, snouts in the soil, not a whit of ambition but milk for their bairns. Thank goodness for the civilizing influence of the priestly class and cultured elite, those virtuous saints, lamps to the world, our guide from peace to peace. You’re right, so many enlightened princelings edify us now compared to those dark demonic bygone days.
I came across your post in doing a search for a Bible Study I am leading. I think you bring up some good points. Before my search as I was praying and pondering the question at hand, I thought of Genesis 2 and of how God brought all the animals to Adam to see if he could find a suitable helpmate before creating Eve. I am certain that since God is sovereign that He did not think a suitable helpmate would be found but that He was teaching Adam that of all creation only Eve would be a suitable helpmate. I wonder if His seemingly delay was not to show us that not only was our sin horrible but that no manner of good works and no amount of law abiding could ever rectify our sins adequately. No good leaders — such as David could remedy the problem. No mere man could take upon our death. Not even (although they didn’t completely obliterate them) driving out those who did not follow God. That the only answer was and is His Son, Jesus Christ. Again as you mentioned above we can only ponder God’s intent — but can not say with any certainty what His reasons may have been.
A whisper of his ways is seen in the natural order of things, an order which he ordained & affixed.
It’s basically the same question as asking; Why not a flower now, instead of a seed?
Those before Christ were not without access to salvation or the mercy of God. Though the crucifixion and resurrection completed payment, even Christ himself was forgiving sin during his life as evidence of this fact.
Perhaps man wasn’t ready for the redeemer in the beginning, shortly after the beginning man spread across the earth and began to worth ship idols and false gods and perhaps they didn’t want a savior and as we know God gave man free will.
With regard to the CS LEWIS part of the answers, people think due to advance technology that, “they” themselves are smarter than people in the past, irronically, they fail to realize how many engineers can actuallu build he world we live in today? Let alone the average person. Yet, the truth is, the average person at the start of America could farm, build their own homes, etc., Not that we couldn’t have learned what they did, I mean, to understand the mathmatics, langauges, science of their day it seemed the average person was pretty sharp. Everytime you see the “man on the street” questions by a show like Jay Leno (tonight show) and they ask some Amercan’s basic questions like geography or current events and it seems very few of those asked know much of anything basic.
I have always wondered how in Genesis and Leviticus, during the wilderness wandering, all the sacraficing being done, it seems like they wouldn’t have had time to do anything else, how did they feed that many animals in the desert???? I mean, I don’t think the deserts in America could support enough animals to support million plus, and if they had animals why did they need the mana?????? The rest of the world cant benefit from theknowledge of God if they are all over the Globe and only the hebrews knew of God during those early times, I mean, during the Egyption times there were Asian/Chinese right? Those people would not have known of what was going on (I know Romans says we know of God by looking at Creation, I guess my brain just isn’t smart enough to connect it all.)
Father is involved with humanity’s rehabilitation. Someone who loves you doesn’t just fix things. They walk the road and wrestle for you, along with you, and even against those things that arrest you from your best self. We have been involved in our rehabilitation with Father. This indeed is a timeless relationship, and we aren’t meant to do life alone or rehab alone. It’s not about keeping hold of our sacred cows and our love of a law we can’t keep. Humanity is walking out our salvation with Father.
I have recently been leading our weekly church bible study. We have been considering God’s plans and purposes and have just swept through the OT. We are considering God’s plans for our fellowship since we believe God has spoken to us about re-casting our nets. We want to know what this means for our current mission. Although we have been really invigorated by refreshing or learning for the first time some of what has been seen in scripture, we still come up against the limitations of our thinking and the lack of lots of explanation which God has not revealed (as per Job). We have just had to say, “Don’t know; probably can’t know”. The hymn writer said it with the lines, “‘Tis mystery all, the Immortal dies. Who can explore His strange design?” But to take up Greg’s point above, Yes Jesus forgave people before His death and so did God in the OT. But it is not just about making us better people, although that is important, but as Jesus said to Nicodemas, it’s about becoming new creations, actual sons of God by the work of His Spirit. How amazingly incredible that this is what God lovingly wants for us, his creatures! Thanks for this blog. It has helped me to approach answering a question raised this week by a young christian about why God didn’t send Jesus instead of the flood.
The flood i believe was because the blood of the people on the earth was tainted by the demonic angels that only blood not tainted could be redeemed by Jesus only noah and his family were clean in that sense that is why the flood happened.Satan tried the same ploy after the flood and all those Giants were killed because they had the potential to destroy mankind.As they were a hybrid people so only those who were of Adam and Eves descent could be redeemed by the blood of Jesus for the forgiveness of sin from Adam and our own sin.It also explains the reason why God took it personally to destroy those nations as he was protecting mankind.Acts 17:26 brentnz
“A comprehended God is no God at all.”
+St. John Chrysostom
According to Jeremys (and others) calculation above about 6000 are over, and we expect Jesus’ return soon. Then 1000 years of joy and peace are coming, the Sabbath millenium. One day is like 1000 years. So we have first the creation, which was very good and lasted for 7 days. Now we have the destruction/ anti-creation, which lasts 6000 years plus one 1000y rest, and then(?) the new creation. I think this parallel is striking. God does not need to stick to a timetable, but I believe He does so because He wants to. One mor point to note: Life (with a soul, not plant life) comes after day 4. Jesus is the life and comes after year 4000.
Why do I think this is not only a coincidence? Because the bible is full of such symbolism. (e.g. the biblical God-ordained feasts and their re-interpretation with respect to Jesus, and lots more).
So I’m looking forward to Christ coming soon to deliver us.
I think the bible is sabotaged to make God appear stupid and sadistic.
This is evident in the book of Job when God allowed the devil to torture Job in various ways. That makes God appear sadistic and stupid.
There are many other such examples in the bible.
I wish Jesus Christ would have stayed until tv cameras and radio and Internet would have been invented. There were inventions before Jesus came as well.
Him staying would have erased doubt and the numerous contradictions in the bible.
And so I think the bible was sabotaged.
I think Jesus was vegan as in Eden and Heaven and so if we are to make heaven on earth then we must make vegan paths, but I do suspend my vegan choice sometimes because Jesus is on the menu at churches and so I go and eat him just incase it helps.
I am extremely frustrated that Jesus didn’t stick around until now because I have many questions for him.
Also why didn’t Jesus write what he had to say into the mountain sides with his finger considering he could walk on water and flatten mountains on command and probably levitate.
Also why can’t the pope walk on water considering he has the most faith or perhaps the other Christians could walk on water instead?
I am beginning to think Christianity is a con job.
I do believe in God because i have felt and seen miracles but i think Christianity seems to me to be a con job.
Ok so a nun went to heaven and saw Jesus, and she came back and told all the nuns that Jesus has a huge white light penis and the other nuns said when can we go to heaven? Your probably going to take that compliment as a insult because your Christians.
God bless
The creator of all things waits all that time to send his son?
He did this to give the human race time to develop enough to understand his teachings?
Why then with all this power didn’t he just give Man this comprehension to start off with? This would have prevented a lot of pain, suffering and bloodshed in the name of religion. And why with all this power didn’t he just make us all good? Is this all a sick and twisted game? The mind boggles.
God said: “be fruitful and mutiply fill the earth”. He obviously wanted fellowship with mankind but gave us a free will to accept or reject Him. The facts prove that many reject Him and he is not willing that any should perish but come into that glorious fellowship He inteded.. This It is His perfect timing!
1. There isn’t a hell. Learn your history of where and when this teaching entered christiantity.
2. Christianity in 2018 is not the same as the 1st century.
3. Read the bible. It tells you specifically why things take so long.
4. Prophecy has and always was answered by man’s actions and belief. Read the potter’s story in Jeremiah or Jonah, among many others. Read acts where peter explains why jesus departed and that his return is dependent on Israel accepting him as their messiah.
5. Read about why it took 490 years from daniel to jesus, read why they went into babylon for 70 years. It tells you why these events happened and it’s not predetermined dates like god is a chess master and we idly sit by and watch. We have all the control as to when things happen. The bible is explicit about this. I cant believe no one reads it.
Instead the problem is the same as it was in the garden. Man exalts himself to be his own god rather than being a sheep in need of a shepherd. Whether you depend on your job, your country, neighbor, doctor, whatever and whoever, we tend to always put something before God. When we stop doing that and make him the shepherd we will have the messianic age begin with jesus’s arrival.
The bible is clear as crystal about this, but my only confusion is who exactly has to yield to his leadership; a group, a percent, a totality, or individuals of humanity.
I think people have a misunderstanding. God’s timing is not an undisclosed event on his hidden calendar like us western christians have been taught by church. I’ve yet to find a pastor or minister who understands Hebrew in the west.
Here’s a few examples.
1. Abraham had Ishmael. Such actions by abraham pushes God out for 13 years.
2. Israelites wander in the wilderness 40 years as the journey was less than 2 weeks.
3. Judah sleeps with his daughter in law and has a child. The law the Israelites demanded by Moses stipulated that a child conceived in such a way would cause a 10 generation gap of time until entering the congregation. Perez was the offspring and exactly 10 generations was to David.
If you calculate 40, 50, or 70 years for a generation we have a total of 453-753 years of delay right there.
That’s just a snippet but should be enough of an example to prove the point.
Now according to Paul and Peter, the 2nd coming arrival is also based on this precedent, but Christians in the west have lost sight of the Hebrew culture and the proper understanding of the scriptures.
I see difficulty with this question of a delay in Christ appearing from the first appearance of modern man, in that the Gospel records teach that if we die outside of faith in Christ as our personal Saviour then we face judgement, and hell, and separation from the divine.
This is fundamental Christianity, in that Jesus said that no man or woman can come to the Father for forgiveness except via Himself. Now it is estimated that modern man is 200,000 years old, but even if we halve that to 100,000 years, then 98 000 years went bye prior to Jesus coming (as it were yesterday) because of great love for humanity, and a desire that none perish? How great was the divine love that could wait for at least 98000 years to save us from ourselves? Civilisation can be found up to about 9000 years ago, as is known from archeology, and before then its all a mystery.
Let me say, that I have had the benefit of university level theological education, and ministry training, and I don’t tell that to impress, because like all education I left with a myriad of unanswered questions, but there are what seem to me to be some very trite evangelical posted to this mystery.
If Christ is the only way to Salvation, then we have many many hundreds of thousands of lost souls who died as sinners over the millennia do we not? Also it is obvious that the gospel of Christ is not going to take the world over universally, and so many even to this day many have not heard or understood it.
While I am strongly disposed to the doctrine of election by God in Christ myself as shown in the NT writings, there are the most incredible unknowns about God and His ways, and the great worry to me is those who carry his name, and have all the answers indexed instead of saying, “I don’t Know” . Of what there is to know, we know a fraction of one percent, and this matter of delay, timing, what happens to those who never heard the gospel is just one of many matters for which we have no answer, least of all me. Hope you find this stimulating to some extent, and is in no way comprehensive of course.
I am asking the question, why did God wait 5,500 years after Adam to make the Bible available to the masses? The New Testament text was available to the world within the first 100 years of Jesus’ birth. It was 1,500 years before the printing press made its decimation available to the average person. Why? Has the Christian community place unwarranted value of comprehensive knowledge of the Bible. Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.”
I am nearly a full year into the study of this question and no closer to a satisfactory answer than when I started.
I like your discussion but think you should remove”life sucks ; then you die”. “Sucks” has objectionable connotations to many people.
Here’s my 2¢ worth about why God has waited so long to do things he said he was going to do. I think part of the answer might be so that millions and millions of humans could be born. What am I talking about? It’s simple really…
Consider what Jesus said in Mark 12:25:
“When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven.”
Mark 12:25 NIVUK
When Christ returns with all his saints and angels, that will be the end of the old order of things. And it would appear that like the angels, humans will no longer get married and have families. No more population growth. If Jesus would’ve come right after Adam and Eve had sinned, then there would have been no further procreation. Maybe God wanted there to be as many people as possible conceived so that Heaven would be filled with people. It takes time to be fruitful and multiply. And humans have done that. It’s kind of a sad plan in a way, because a lot of those people were not going to choose God, they were not going to believe in Jesus. But on the other hand, millions WOULD believe and become part of the kingdom of Heaven. God loves his creation and he wanted lots and lots of people to be in it.
Regarding the fact that in the new earth, no one will be marrying and creating new families anymore… I’m not at all sure what a society with no children being born anymore will be like… it sounds kind of sad… but, I lean on the promise that God said it’s going to be more wonderful than we can imagine.
She didn’t; distorted, untrue and plagiarized story. Many Jesus’ ,many crucified saviors, and Christ or Karast means anointing.
The bible indicates that a single day to God is a thousand to us, so God’s time-table, it would have only been a day short of a full week,,, I have also concluded that the starting date of the 6,000 years is unatainable. If God set the dates at 2,000 year intervals; from Adam to Abrahm to Jeaus evenly, we would than calculate Jeaus bith date via., Herods death (That is attainable, to attain the date of the crusifixion, and add 2,000 years. Sill questionable but does give us 2029. Be blessed.
There might be another way of answering this kind of question.
Let’s see why God waited 2000 years to call Abraham, the key point here is that God waited 2000 years so Abraham had to be born. God doesn’t choose random people and sends his word. God doesn’t send his word to just random persons but to those that are chosen to him. The same logic applies to Jesus, God has to wait 5,500 years for Mary to be born for he can send Jesus through Mary. The Bible teaches us that being chosen is not by chance, but God has his own way of choosing the right people for the right task. No one can do what Abraham was chosen to do, the same goes for Moses, David, John the Baptist, and also Mary the mother of Jesu Christ. Therefore, God has to wait all those years for the right time to come, so that Mary has to exist, all the apostles have to exist, and so on. Everything has a reason!
He didn’t wait thousands of years, he waited millions, from the appearance of the earliest ancestors on the homo sapiens branch of the tree of life. 2,000/300,000 = 0.00666667. isn’t it far more likely that he “waited” until human mythology was advanced enough to develop the salvation myth?
All of this is based on a book written by many people over many years telling stories from many years before that. Maybe real, maybe fake. Who knows what really happened? I don’t believe in any of it, but find it fascinating as to why so many people do believe. There are many religions and many stories and all of them are thousands of years old. Why are there no new books added to the religious texts? Are we to believe that religion became flat at some point? Did God be lazy and decide not to have any more stories for us? Religion baffles me.
If freedom is to mean anything to us at all, God cannot use his supreme intelligence and power to overwhelm us. Therefore, it seems to me that he must work with us in our human capacities, speak a language we’ll understand, and lead us no faster than we’re able to follow.
One way that it seems he does this is by allowing us the freedom to make bad choices and reap the consequences – and hopefully learn something in the process (he DOES give us plenty of warnings and instructions!). Rather than impinging on our freedom, he works by revelation and he allows the truth to unfold and evil to unmask itself.
It’s interesting that the serpent’s initial accusation against God had to do with prohibition. Yet by God’s permissive provision, the very thing the serpent said was lacking in God’s government, the enemy is eventually undone. The deceiver is unmasked. The truth has revealed itself. But it all takes time because God values our freedom so highly.
So as to why Jesus came when he did, it seems to me that we need to look around at what was happening at that time that was different from all prior times. I also wonder if what happens here on earth is like a mirror’s reflection of what is taking place in the heavens. So could there be something going on there that also impacted God’s timing? I don’t know. But I’m terribly curious and can’t wait to find out someday! 😀
The idea that God waited until our species has the appropriate infrastructure, both culturally and physically, to bring Jesus really struck a chord with me. I came to this article for possible answers to this question, and I feel like this brought me the most solace. However, it seems you are much less convinced about it. Could you explain a little more why this may not be as great of a reason as i am thinking it is?
Interesting. The Old Testament, the New Testament, the writings left out, the writings of many other religions – what’s next? It’s been a little over 2,000 years since Jesus Christ – whether man or myth. What’s next for humanity?
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“One final view is that God waited for so long because mankind had to develop socially and spiritually enough in order to understand and receive the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
Apparently mankind’s intellect and ability to rationalize took a backseat to social and spiritual development.
everything I see that God has created is why God sent Jesus when it was God’s way.
I have noticed a lot of different things in life from childhood that do and don’t make sense to me, but in giving time those things have always have a explanation…
AMEN