Expert: Scott Talbot - 12/28/2008

Question
What is the best argument in the Gospels (apart from Luke 2:51-52) that Jesus did not go away (abroad, to the East etc) between 12 and 30? Can you cite the specific extract?

Answer
Hi Yiangos,

There is very little said in the Scriptures about Jesus' life between the time of His infancy and childhood until the time He began His public ministry in His late twenties. The passage you cited in Luke is perhaps the only passage that makes reference to this period of his life in any fashion.

We can make inferences from other things we know about Jesus. The absence of any reference to the East, as well as the absence of any evidence that would suggest He traveled there, hints that He did not make a trip to the East. But the absence of evidence is not proof.

It was not the purpose of the gospel writers to provide a complete biography of the life of Jesus Christ. They merely highlighted the more significant facts about His identity, message, ministry, miracles, and His death and resurrection from the grave. One would think that a special trip to the East would warrant mention by at least one of the gospel writers. The fact that no mention was made suggests it never happened. But again, the absence of any references to such a trip does not prove that there was no such trip.

We can infer from His experience as a carpenter that He spent quite a bit of time learning and engaging in this trade. But this does not rule out the possibility of a trip to the East either.

The bottom line is that the Bible is silent as to this period of His life. We do not know much about what He did or didn't do during this period. We only know that, whatever happened, it was not crucial in God's mind to share that with us in the Scriptures.

Now I think I know why you're asking. Some have proposed that Jesus traveled to the East and that, when He did, He picked up ideas from Eastern religions, and He perhaps shared ideas that may have influenced Eastern religions as well. There was a sort of give-and-take of religious ideas, which helped to shape modern-day religious views.

This theory is an attempt by some to further the erroneous concept that 1) Jesus' ideas were not unique. He is just one of many religious leaders who both contributed to and benefitted from the religious ideas of others; 2) All religions are fine, and will ultimately lead us to God, so long as our motives are pure and sincere. We can all learn from each other, and it's wrong to think of any one religion as being correct at the expense of all others.

While we may not be able to prove or disprove the theory that Jesus traveled to the Far East, this we CAN claim as absolute truth: 1) Jesus IS unique. He is God in the flesh, sent to the earth to reveal God's absolute truth. Jesus is THE way, THE truth, and THE life. No one comes to the Father but by Him (John 14:6); 2) It is NOT OK to believe whatever you want and hope that God will honor your sincerity. Sincerity will not save you. Only by trusting in the one and only way of salvation--Jesus Christ--does one have hope of salvation. Truth is absolute. God's truth is absolute. And anything that contradicts that is error, plain and simple.

We don't need to know the entire history of Jesus' life to take the correct theological position on this issue. We have enough information to know and understand the truth when it comes to the unique message and work of Jesus Christ without having to speculate about any possible interaction with those from the Far East.

I don't know if this is why you asked the question. Maybe there is more to it. If you would like to discuss further, I would be happy to do so. I hope this helps. Feel free to write back.

Scott