Is the Apostle John still alive?

2 know him

Newbie
Dec 9, 2011
482
106
✟7,513.00
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Married
If I had to put together a timeline...

8 AD John is born
29 AD Jesus calls John and Peter to be disciples.
32 AD John witnesses transfiguration.
33 AD Jesus asks John to take care of Mary
45 AD John at Jerusalem council.
54 AD - Mary the Mother of Jesus dies, freeing John for ministry
66 AD John leaves for Ephesus.
70 AD Jerusalem destroyed
80 AD John writes the gospel of John
94 AD St. John was apprehended by the proconsul of Asia and sent to Rome,
95 AD John miraculously preserved from death when thrown into a cauldron of boiling oil
96 AD John banished to Patmos where he writes Revelation
97 AD - John returns to Ephesus after the death of Domitian
96-98 AD John writes epistles
99 AD John dies


And is this the tomb of St John in Ephesus?
Photos_NimRock_Tomb_of_St_John_The_Apostel.jpg



John actually wrote revelations in the spring of 67 A.D. 42 months before the destruction of the second temple. according to his own words in Revelations 11:1. As well he confirms this timeline in Revelations 17:9,10
 
Upvote 0

mindlight

See in the dark
Supporter
Dec 20, 2003
13,596
2,659
London, UK
✟816,990.00
Country
Germany
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Married
No.
John was human. No human can live for 2000 years - even Methuselah only managed 969.

Jesus said, " if I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you?" Jesus was telling Peter to follow him; to do that he would need to keep his eyes on Jesus and not worry about what any of the others were doing. He didn't advance the possibility of John staying alive, he was saying to Peter, "even if I wanted this for this person, it's not your concern".

It's the same for us today. Jesus may say to us "if I want him to have a great ministry/her to be famous and write books/them to start a church which becomes huge, why does that matter to you? You follow me."
It's keeping the 10th commandment - you shall not covet anything that belongs to your neighbour.

Enoch and Elijah never died and are thus both well over 2000 years old. With God this is not impossible.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Marvin Knox
Upvote 0

mindlight

See in the dark
Supporter
Dec 20, 2003
13,596
2,659
London, UK
✟816,990.00
Country
Germany
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Married
And the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not strive[a] with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.”

BUT:

"Jeanne Calment (1875–1997), who lived to the age of 122 years 164 days. "
 
Upvote 0

mindlight

See in the dark
Supporter
Dec 20, 2003
13,596
2,659
London, UK
✟816,990.00
Country
Germany
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Married
God has angels that he sends too and fro - like Michael and Gabriel. He has heavenly citizens like Moses and Elijah who make day trips like the mount of Transfiguration. It is entirely possible God could preserve a mans life for 2000 years but to what purpose? Does the church need such human continuity with its original membership when the Spirit of God and the scriptures already make that possible. Why would God deprive a man of the joys of his heavenly presence by restricting him to this earth with all its pains, limitations and sorrows? It is possible of course but is it necessary? Would it not be a distraction from Jesus to have such superstars in our midst with experience of 2000 years of Christian living behind their words and actions?
 
Upvote 0

Strong in Him

Great is thy faithfulness
Supporter
Mar 4, 2005
27,773
7,919
NW England
✟1,041,802.00
Country
United Kingdom
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Married
Enoch and Elijah never died and are thus both well over 2000 years old. With God this is not impossible.

Nothing's impossible with God.
But there is no reason to think he did not die, there is no evidence he is physically alive - he must have had to pop out for milk at some point in the last 1900 years - so why would anyone think he is?
IF he were, he would be able to tell non Christians that Jesus was alive and it was all true, and probably sort the church out too. But he hasn't.

And I'm pretty sure Moses died, but no one ever knew where he was buried.
 
Upvote 0

Achilles6129

Veteran
Feb 19, 2006
4,504
367
Columbus, Ohio
✟29,682.00
Faith
Non-Denom
Politics
US-Republican
No idea; that proves nothing.
If he is alive, where is he and why has he not witnessed to Jesus in the last 1,900+ years?

Maybe he has - who's to say he hasn't? And who's to say his body would age like a normal person's? Maybe he looks like he's 30.
 
Upvote 0

Strong in Him

Great is thy faithfulness
Supporter
Mar 4, 2005
27,773
7,919
NW England
✟1,041,802.00
Country
United Kingdom
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Married
Maybe he has - who's to say he hasn't? And who's to say his body would age like a normal person's? Maybe he looks like he's 30.

I'm convinced someone's going to jump out and say, "April fool" in a minute.
 
Upvote 0

PsychoeDial

God Return To And Bless America
Mar 10, 2016
1,017
458
Tokyo
✟11,034.00
Faith
Non-Denom
Marital Status
Married
Interesting theory in the first post. I think the operative word regarding John still being alive and with respect to John 21, Jesus said, if it is my will....I take that to mean Jesus was rebuking the Disciples in as much as he was saying his will is not to be questioned or judged by his Disciples. And then he's giving an example of a , could do. He could let the Apostle John to live till he returns in the second coming. Not that he did bless John to live until that second coming.

The boiling oil miracle as I read it is like unto the three brothers,Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. , in the furnace surviving the flames. They didn't survive because they were made immortal by God and that's why they survived the furnace. Rather, that they were blessed by God to serve as a sign of his power in them to overcome the flames.

Seriously now. Come on. I encountered a person I worked with years ago that belonged to a cult sect that believed this, and get this, they thought they even had John come and talk to them. You know, turn the lights down low, a darkly dressed PERSON would then show up, take a seat and speak to them, that supposedly being John.

Preterists take that as part of their proof that the second coming transpired in 70 a.d. which is of course another anomaly.

The scriptures produce some really strange social phenomena. The John is alive cults are certainly one of those areas where gullible people gather for manipulation.

s
With regard to the preterists believing this 21st century John appearing at behest of this cult. Wouldn't that appearance actually prove the preterists wrong? Per the John. 21:21-23 verse, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?
 
Upvote 0

PsychoeDial

God Return To And Bless America
Mar 10, 2016
1,017
458
Tokyo
✟11,034.00
Faith
Non-Denom
Marital Status
Married
Do you not believe the Bible? In Genesis you had people living to 900+ years. Do you suppose they aged normally?
And yet because of peoples wickedness God cleansed the earth with water and eliminated all but eight people from the face of the planet. And after the flood people's lives were no longer to be lived for centuries but for at most a little over 100 if that.
 
Upvote 0
This site stays free and accessible to all because of donations from people like you.
Consider making a one-time or monthly donation. We appreciate your support!
- Dan Doughty and Team Christian Forums

Strong in Him

Great is thy faithfulness
Supporter
Mar 4, 2005
27,773
7,919
NW England
✟1,041,802.00
Country
United Kingdom
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Married
Do you not believe the Bible?

Yes of course I do. And it seems pretty clear from John's Gospel that Jesus was not saying that John was going to live, physically, for ever.

In Genesis you had people living to 900+ years. Do you suppose they aged normally?

No idea. But that was before the flood, a year may have been shorter, or different then, and it's been far more than 900 years since the 1st Century.
 
Upvote 0

Strong in Him

Great is thy faithfulness
Supporter
Mar 4, 2005
27,773
7,919
NW England
✟1,041,802.00
Country
United Kingdom
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Married
Noah lived for 350 years after the Flood. In that case years must have been drastically shorter both before and after the Flood.

So? There is still no evidence that John is alive.

If you want to believe he is and is living somehow and somewhere; if you want to believe that one of the original disciples is still alive, could teach the church about things he saw first hand and challenge non Christians, but just chooses not to - that's up to you.
 
Upvote 0

BobRyan

Junior Member
Angels Team
Supporter
Nov 21, 2008
51,118
10,509
Georgia
✟900,262.00
Country
United States
Faith
SDA
Marital Status
Married
"21 When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, what about this man?” 22 Jesus said to him, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!” 23 So the saying spread abroad among the brothers[b] that this disciple was not to die; yet Jesus did not say to him that he was not to die, but, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?”" Jn. 21:21-23 (ESV)

There are several very interesting things about this passage. First, notice that Christ is the one who advances the possibility that John might remain until his second coming. This is not a possibility that is advanced by anyone else in the discussion - Christ himself suggests the possibility. This means that there is a strong implication that this will in fact happen in reality.

.

John is the one pointing that that Jesus DID NOT say that he would live until the 2nd coming. John writes this in the 90's and is by that time very aged - not at all a case of eternal youth.

John died.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Strong in Him
Upvote 0
This site stays free and accessible to all because of donations from people like you.
Consider making a one-time or monthly donation. We appreciate your support!
- Dan Doughty and Team Christian Forums

BobRyan

Junior Member
Angels Team
Supporter
Nov 21, 2008
51,118
10,509
Georgia
✟900,262.00
Country
United States
Faith
SDA
Marital Status
Married
If I had to put together a timeline...

3 BC John and Christ are born
27 AD Jesus calls John and Peter to be disciples.
31 AD John witnesses transfiguration.
31 AD Jesus asks John to take care of Mary
34 AD Stephen is stoned to death - and the 490 years of Dan 9 - probation for the Jewish nation ends.
45 AD John at Jerusalem council.
?? AD John leaves for Ephesus.
?? AD - Mary the Mother of Jesus dies
70 AD Jerusalem destroyed
90 AD John writes his epistles
94 AD St. John was apprehended by the proconsul of Asia and sent to Rome,
95 AD John miraculously preserved from death when thrown into a cauldron of boiling oil
96 AD John banished to Patmos where he writes Revelation
97 AD - John returns to Ephesus after the death of Domitian
96-98 AD John writes the Gospel of John
99 AD John dies


And is this the tomb of St John in Ephesus?
Photos_NimRock_Tomb_of_St_John_The_Apostel.jpg
[/QUOTE]
 
Upvote 0

BobRyan

Junior Member
Angels Team
Supporter
Nov 21, 2008
51,118
10,509
Georgia
✟900,262.00
Country
United States
Faith
SDA
Marital Status
Married
I see. How do you know John is very aged by the 90s? I don't recall that statement in Scripture.

He was a young disciple of Christ in Ad 27... then in ad 97 is freed from Patmos and returns to Ephesus -- that is 70 years later -- so he is in his late 80's early 90's by then.... very old.

And not one historic reference of John appearing to be 24 years old when he is in his 90's.
 
Upvote 0

Strong in Him

Great is thy faithfulness
Supporter
Mar 4, 2005
27,773
7,919
NW England
✟1,041,802.00
Country
United Kingdom
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Married
That doesn't mean he aged naturally. His mind would certainly have had to be very sharp in order to write the book of Revelation at that age.

What reasons do you have for thinking that he didn't age naturally and didn't die? If that is the case and he is living somewhere; where, how, why and for what purpose? Clearly not to help the church, preach Jesus and proclaim God's love.

And if the answer to all the above is, "don't know", then how would you find out and prove it and why does it matter?
 
Upvote 0
This site stays free and accessible to all because of donations from people like you.
Consider making a one-time or monthly donation. We appreciate your support!
- Dan Doughty and Team Christian Forums

prodromos

Senior Veteran
Supporter
Nov 28, 2003
21,435
11,981
58
Sydney, Straya
✟1,167,727.00
Country
Australia
Faith
Eastern Orthodox
Marital Status
Married
What reasons do you have for thinking that he didn't age naturally and didn't die? If that is the case and he is living somewhere; where, how, why and for what purpose? Clearly not to help the church, preach Jesus and proclaim God's love.
Just wanted to point out that there are many people who are fighting on the front lines of spiritual warfare and are in fact a great help to the Church through their prayers and struggles against demonic forces, despite many people being unaware of their existence. If the Apostle John is still walking the earth, he does not need to do so in a publicly visible ministry.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Achilles6129
Upvote 0