@bibleproject

4 years ago

In the New Testament there are four biographies of Jesus of Nazareth about his announcement of God’s Kingdom, his crucifixion, and his resurrection from the dead. Altogether they are called “the Gospel,” that is, the good news. But why are there four, and why do they differ in various details? The four New Testament Gospel accounts all come from the first generation of Jesus’ closest followers, preserving the testimony of his disciples. But each account was designed to emphasize different themes and claims about Jesus, so that the reader of all four narratives walks away with a much richer picture. In Luke 1:1-4 and John 20:30-31, the authors tell us they selected only some of the narratives and teachings of Jesus that were available among their sources. They also say that the stories have been arranged to persuade the reader that Jesus is the Messiah of Israel and the risen Lord of all nations. In other words, the Gospel accounts are not simply an ancient version of security camera footage! The authors want us to accept their testimony about Jesus as truthful, but their purpose is not only to give us information about the past. They deeply believe that Jesus is alive, that he fulfilled the ancient story told in the Hebrew Scriptures, and that following him will change your life forever! The four Gospels are persuasive texts that invite you the reader to consider your own relationship to this Jesus. If you’re interested in taking your own reading of the four Gospels to the next level, check out our recent video on How to Read the Gospel, as well as our podcast series that takes a deeper dive into these four books of the New Testament.

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