Jesus In India — Page 41
J e s u s i n I n d i a 41 the same ears, eyes and tongue, but deeper reflection reveals a different universe. The world cannot understand this kind of experience, for the world lies in a state of indifference. This experience is a gift of God for those who are endowed with an extra sensory perception. The experience is of course genuine and authentic. Therefore, when Jesus appeared to John after the destruction of Jerusalem, though the latter might have seen him while fully awake, and though they might have had some conversation and a handshake between them, nevertheless, the incident has nothing to do with the prophecy. Such phenomena often take place in the world and even now, if I devote some attention to it, I can by the grace of God see Jesus or some other holy prophet while I am awake. But such a meeting would not fulfil the prophecy contained in Matthew 16:28. What actually happened was that Jesus knew that he would be saved from the cross and would migrate to another land, that God would neither let him die nor take him away from this world as long as he had not seen the destruction of the Jews with his own eyes, and that he would not die unless and until the kingdom of heaven, vouchsafed to the godly, realized its aims and objectives. Jesus made this prophecy to assure his disciples that they would presently see the sign that those who had raised the sword against him would be killed with the sword during his lifetime and in his very presence. Thus, if evidence is of any value, there is no greater evidence to convince the Christians than the fact that Jesus himself prophesied that some of them would still be alive when he returned.