All of us have at some point wished we could travel through time. From an accident to a misspoken word, being able to hop backwards in time could have gotten many of us out of a jamb. And going forward would let us out of a lot of boredom or waiting or at least relieve some of our curiosity. As Christians, it’s maybe not the most pressing question, but even if we are stuck in time, can Jesus travel through time?
I believe that God can do all things, but I’m also sure He approaches things very differently from myself. So He wouldn’t need time travel for the same reasons I do as He doesn’t make mistakes and He knows the future. And because God the Father is entirely outside of time, it doesn’t seem like an accurate question to even ask if He can travel through time. But the simplest way to answer if Jesus can travel through time is to answer if Jesus ever did travel through time.
Jesus travels through time
I may not be in the majority of interpreters, but I lean toward the idea that Jesus and His disciples actually traveled through time once. Below is the passage for reference:
When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, where they got into a boat and set off across the lake for Capernaum. By now it was dark, and Jesus had not yet joined them. A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water; and they were frightened. But he said to them, “It is I; don’t be afraid.” Then they were willing to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading.
John 6:16–21
Something miraculous clearly occurs when Jesus meets His disciples in the boat and acts as though the water is dry land. But something is often missed in verse 21, “Then they were willing to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading.” Another miracle takes place, but in some ways it’s hiding behind the more obvious.
So how does the boat immediately come to the place where it was heading? The three options are that a miracle doesn’t occur—that the boat was already nearing its destination—that Jesus and His disciples teleported, or that Jesus and His disciples experienced some sort of disturbance in time. I think it’s the last.
The first should be ruled out because the sentence isn’t constructed in a way to suggest that they were near their destination. A surface level reading of verse 21 leads us to think that something strange occurs, although it may not be apparent what it is. If we were reading the same story in Mark, the word immediately—the Greek word εὐθέως—would mean almost nothing. Years can pass, and for Mark, the next event would happen immediately. Mark uses the same word a total of 40 times throughout his gospel—9 times in the first chapter alone. But John uses the word a total of 4 times, so it’s clear that this immediately is significant. It means that the boat arrives at the place where it was going immediately.
The serious reader of the Bible, or at least the reader who takes the Bible seriously, can’t suggest that miracles are impossible as Jesus has just walked on water. So the argument appears stronger that something miraculous occurred here because of the construction of the sentence and the word choice.
Why isn’t this simply teleportation?
But why isn’t it teleportation? In a fascinating turn of events, there actually is an account of teleportation in the Bible:
As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptized?” And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him. When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing. Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea.
Acts 8:36–40
This is clearly an account of teleportation, and you’ll immediately notice the difference between this account and the John account. It’s apparent that Philip teleported. At one point he’s here, and the next second he appears in Azotus. There’s no question as to what happened here.
But there is a question as to what happened in the John account. There isn’t the experience of being in one place and then another. And to me, the simplest answer for this is that the disciples with Jesus experience time distinctly from those outside of the boat. It is a singular moment in the Bible in which time stops. Time is extended in Joshua 10, but this experience is universal—it applies to the Israelites as well as the Amorites. But for Jesus and the disciples, time is transfigured.
Time stops
There is a poem by Louis Macneice about the romantic experience of losing time. In the final two stanzas, he writes:
God or whatever means the Good
“Meeting Point,” Lines 31–40
Be praised that time can stop like this,
That what the heart has understood
Can verify in the body’s peace
God or whatever means the Good.
Time was away and She was here
And life no longer what it was,
The bell was silent in the air
And all the room one glow because
Time was away and she was here.
I’m not sure if this really adds to the logic above, but it more closely grasps the experience than all the reasoning in existence. For Louis Macneice, his experience is with the romantic. But for the disciples, their experience is with the Divine. Something occurred on that boat that night, and my best guess is that time was objectively split in two.
Conclusion
Is all of this a bit silly? Maybe. But to consider the infinite nature of God that for a time dwelt in a finite man is the first consideration of the saint. And to make that consideration concrete is at least of interest.
Paul prays that the Ephesians might know “What is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.” [Ephesians 1:19]. And the angel who visits Mary tells her, “For nothing will be impossible with God.” [Luke 1:37] It isn’t entirely empty speculation to consider the infinite power of God to accomplish His purposes for His people.
God is in control of time and matter, and the natural laws that He has written that we lack the ability to escape, He can. Even if Jesus didn’t travel through time here, time and matter are playthings to Him. God is not encumbered by natural laws, and time travel isn’t so much more impossible than producing matter out of thin air, feeding 5,000. [Matthew 14]
I think there are more pressing questions than this one, and I think a local church is the best place to begin asking those questions. But if you have questions at the intersection of faith and philosophy, I hope you’d ask away. I would love to have an excuse talk to talk more about free will and determinism or about a Christian epistemology. Post a comment below or reach out today.