As a teenager, I began admiring Jesus when I first read his teachings in the Sermon on the Mount. Later, while growing older and studying him more carefully, I started seeing that Jesus, like his predecessor John the Baptizer, thought – and proclaimed – that the end of the world was going to arrive within his own generation. But unlike John who stressed the coming of God’s fiery wrathful punishment, Jesus emphasized the good news of God’s rapidly approaching Kingdom.

Although ultimately I felt compelled to acknowledge that Jesus’ proclamation went unfulfilled, I continued admiring him, and still do, for this reason: I became convinced that Jesus expected his death would almost immediately be followed by his being gloriously lifted up before the eyes of all the world so that people everywhere could see his death as a loving, forgiving gift of God intended for the benefit of all humanity.

Boswell is a retired pastor of The Christian Church (Disciples of  Christ) whose views may be more fully accessed in his You Tube videos “Jesus Laid Bare – Imagined Conversations with Jesus” parts 1-4, and in his novel, “The Dead Sea Gospel.”

Originally published on pantagraph.com, part of the BLOX Digital Content Exchange.

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