Podcast Summary: Renewing Your Mind – "Why Didn’t Jesus Know?"

Date: April 14, 2026
Host: Lee Webb (A), with a featured sermon by Dr. R.C. Sproul (B)
Series: The Hard Sayings of Jesus

Episode Overview

This episode tackles one of the most perplexing statements Jesus made: "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father" (Mark 13:32). Dr. R.C. Sproul explores why Jesus, being fully God and fully man, said there was something he did not know, focusing on the theological implications regarding Christ's two natures and the doctrine of the Trinity.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Context of the "Hard Saying"

[02:20–04:47]

• Dr. Sproul introduces Mark 13, where Jesus discusses his return and asserts that even he does not know the exact time.
• This is characterized as a "hard saying" not for its severity, but for how puzzling it is, having "provoked no small amount of controversy throughout church history."
• Quote:

  "It just seems like every year somebody gets out a calculator...and they try to speculate and name the day and the hour. In spite of the very plain and clear statement of our Lord, that even he didn't know the day and the hour..." (B, 04:06)

2. The Issue of Divine Omniscience and Jesus' Knowledge

[04:47–11:05]

• Traditionally, God’s attributes (including omniscience) are ascribed to all persons of the Trinity.
• The major theological challenge: How could the incarnate Son of God claim ignorance of any detail, especially one as significant as his return?
• Quote:

  "How could Jesus be God incarnate and have this gap in his knowledge?" (B, 07:16)

3. St. Thomas Aquinas’ Theory and Its Critique

[11:05–16:00]

• Aquinas, troubled by this passage, theorized that Jesus’ knowledge as God must have been communicated to his human nature due to their perfect union. Thus, Jesus really did know but pretended ignorance—this is called the accommodation theory.
• Sproul critiques this:

  "If he did know and tells his disciples he didn't know, that's a lie, folks...that's all it would take to destroy his sinlessness and disqualify him as my Savior and your Savior." (B, 16:00)

• The Roman Catholic Church broadened this idea, supporting it with the doctrine of the communication of attributes (communicatio idiomatum), fueling further controversy, especially around matters like the Eucharist and Jesus’ physical presence.

4. Chalcedonian Christology – Retaining Two Distinct Natures

[16:00–19:45]

• The Council of Chalcedon (451 AD) defined that Christ was "truly human, truly divine," with both natures joined but not mixed or confused.
• Each nature retains its own attributes: The divine remains omniscient; the human does not.
• Quote:

  "But the human nature remains human. It's physical, not spiritual. It's mutable... It's not immutable like the divine nature." (B, 18:46)

5. The Practical Understanding: Taking Jesus at His Word

[19:45–21:54]

• Sproul insists that Jesus spoke truthfully ‘touching his human nature’—his human mind was not omniscient, though he could receive divine knowledge as granted by the Father.
• Miraculous and prophetic knowledge shown occasionally by Jesus in the Gospels was extraordinary, but did not equate to total omniscience in his human mind.
• Quote:

  "So I much prefer to say, hey, Jesus said he didn't know. He didn't know. Now, obviously the divine nature knew, but Jesus is speaking now, touching his human nature." (B, 17:01)

• Distinguishing, not dividing, the two natures: Limitation of knowledge, hunger, pain, etc., pertain to humanity, not divinity.

6. Theological Boundaries and the Value of Doctrinal Precision

[21:54–24:05]

• Studying these mysteries deepens our understanding of Christ and warns against overstepping into heresy.
• The creeds and church councils act as guardrails: “We can speculate, okay, but there are limits, there are lines that we cannot cross over, or we end up in serious heresy..."

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Sproul on calculations for Christ’s return:

  "Isn't it strange that this fellow knows something that Jesus himself didn't know? The day and the hour." (B, 04:06)

• Sproul critiquing Aquinas’ accommodation theory:

  "If it's a lie, it may be a little white lie, but that's all it would take to destroy his sinlessness and disqualify him as my Savior and your Savior." (B, 16:00)

• On Chalcedon's definition:

  "Each nature retaining its own attributes, meaning that in the union...the divine nature stays divine... The human nature remains human." (B, 18:46)

• On the limits of our theological speculation:

  "The Church’s creeds and confessions put boundaries in place so that we don’t fall into heresy." (A, 24:05)

Important Timestamps

• [02:20] — Introduction to the hard saying in Mark 13:32
• [04:06] — Discussion of failed predictions of Christ’s return
• [07:16] — The omniscience problem and the Trinity
• [11:05] — Aquinas’ theory and the doctrine of communicatio idiomatum
• [16:00] — Critique of the accommodation theory
• [18:46] — Clarification from the Council of Chalcedon
• [17:01/21:54] — Emphasis on taking Jesus at his word about his human limitations
• [24:05] — Practical advice about creeds, heresy, and theological humility

Conclusion

Dr. R.C. Sproul encourages believers to approach the mystery of Christ’s two natures with intellectual honesty and reverence. The episode concludes by affirming the importance of doctrinal boundaries as established by the historic church, reminding listeners that protecting the true identity of Christ is vital for faith and salvation.

For further study, listeners are invited to access the complete “Hard Sayings of Jesus” series through Ligonier Ministries.