Introduction to

the New Testament

Holy Bible

New TestamentOld Testament

Old Testament

An Outline of the Old

TestamentLaw History Poetry Prophecy

Genesis

Exodus

Leviticus

Numbers

Deuteronomy

Joshua

Judges

Ruth

1-2 Samuel

1-2 Kings

1-2 Chronicles

Ezra

Nehemiah

Tobit *

Judith *

Esther +

1-2 Maccabees *

Job

Psalms

Proverbs

Ecclesiastes

Song of

Songs

Wisdom od

Solomon *

Wisdom of

Sirach *

Isaiah

Jeremiah

Lamentations

Baruch *

Ezekiel

Daniel +

Hosea Joel

Amos Obadiah

Jonah Micah

Nahum Habakkuk

Zephaniah Haggai

Zechariah Malachi

Introduction to the New Testament

“You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life;

and these are they which testify of Me”

(John 5:39)

18. The Lord Jesus Christ then is the chief cornerstone that relates the

Old Testament with the New Testament:

New Testament

The Need for a Written Gospel.

If the Church survived for more than twenty years after the descending of

the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost without a written gospel, and lived

the gospel and practiced its tenants in an abundant life in Jesus Christ,

why then can’t the Church through the ages live and practice the verbal

gospel? Was it necessary to have a written Gospel?

1. Keeping the Tradition Intact:

‘The verbal tradition had its important role in the Church, especially in the

East. The written tradition was born not to replace the verbal one, but to

supplement it and to complete it. The Gospel keeps the tradition intact

without deviation, and tradition lists the canonical Gospels, keeps them

from deviating, and interprets its meanings

The Need for a Written Gospel

. The Church recognizes only one Gospel, not two, whether given to it by

verbal tradition or in writing, and lives it in its thoughts, worship, and

behavior. Thus the Church adopted the Gospel in order to confirm that the

life she lives is according to the principles delivered to her.’

[D. Guthrie]

2. Presenting the Lord Jesus Christ:

The Gospels have their important rank among the Books of the Holy Bible

because they inform us of the life of the Lord Christ on earth. Christ is

the longing of the Gentiles, the Savior and Bridegroom of the Church, and

the object of its joy day and night. It has to be noted that the Gospels are

not just history book of the bibliography of Christ, however they are…

The Need for a Written Gospel

deeper than that. They present the Lord Jesus Christ to us as the way of

our salvation, so that we may abide in Him and live through Him, carrying

the cross with Him to be glorified also with Him.

3. Evangelism:

In their evangelism to the Jews and the Gentiles, the Evangelists

depended generally on the verbal teachings. But when those being

evangelized stated their interest in faith and started to inquire about the

person of the Lord Christ, the Gospels, that are authentic apostolic

documents, were to satisfy their inquiries.

4. The Liturgical Worship:

‘The Gospels not only played the evangelizing and teaching roles, but had

a major role in the worship life of the Church. When the Church met to…

The Need for a Written Gospel

worship, they used portions of the Old Testament for readings and

praising, especially the sections that prophesized of the Lord Christ. The

believers, however, needed apostolic documents describing the

bibliography of the Lord Christ, His teachings and miracles, His death

and Resurrection and declaring the fulfillment of what was prophesized

for in the Old Testament, to be a main part in their Christian worship.’

[D. Guthrie]

Introduction to the Four Gospels

Meaning of the Word ‘Gospel’:

I. The word ‘gospel’ derives from the Old English gōd-spell (rarely

godspel), meaning ‘good news’ or ‘glad tidings.’

-The word ‘gospel’ is repeated 100 times in the New Testament, to

indicate the good news of salvation that God bestowed upon us by

offering His Son Jesus Christ to lead us to the bosom of His Father

through the Holy Spirit:

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God

to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the

Greek”

(Romans 1:16)

Introduction to the Four Gospelsb) St. Matthew and St. John were two of the twelve Apostles of the Lord

Christ. Therefore, they had first hand knowledge of the events they

recorded.

c) St. Mark, according to our Church’s tradition, was one of the seventy

Disciples. He was a relative of both Apostles Peter and Barnabas. He

accompanied Paul and Peter in their evangelizing trips.

- St. Mark’s house was the one chosen by Christ to celebrate the Passover

in with His Apostles. In this house also was the Upper Room of Zion

where the Holy Spirit descended on the Disciples, and is considered the

first Church in the history of Christianity that was attended by Christ

Himself and his Disciples.

d) St. Luke asserts that he obtained his information from eye witnesses.

He was thorough in his writing and never documented information before

ascertaining its accuracy.

Introduction to the Four Gospels

Matthew Mark Luke John

Time ofWriting

Aramaic A.D. 39-45

Greek A.D. 60-65

A.D. 55-61 A.D. 63-67 A.D. 90-100

Place of Writing

Palestine Mostly Egypt

(May be Rome)

Mostly Rome Ephesus

Whom it was Written For

Jews

(Messiah)

Roman

(Power)

Greek

(Philosophy)

Whole World

(Incarnation)

Opening Genealogy

of Christ

Voice Crying

in the wilderness

Offerings In the Beginning

was the Word

Portraying of Christ

King - Conqueror of

the devil

- Miracle maker

- Friend of

mankind

- The Sacrifice

and the Priest

The Incarnated

Word

Christ Came to

Fulfill the Law Perform Miracles Save humanity Dwell among us

Elaborated on Prophecies Works History Divinity

Its Symbol Face of a man

(His Incarnation)

Face of a lion

(His strength

Face of an ox

(He is the Offering)

Face of an eagle

(His divinity and

Introduction to the Four Gospels

1. The Gospels, especially the first three, show similarity in content, order

and statement, in terms of their content of the life, ministry, and sayings

of the Lord Christ and are thus called ‘Synoptic Gospels,’ nevertheless in

their essence each offer a face of the life and saving work of the Lord.

2. The Gospel according to St. John appears to have a unique way, as it

was written towards the end of the 1st century, when the other Gospels

have already been known and circulated. St. John wrote mainly to attest to the divinity of Christ and His holy incarnation, to counteract the heresies that emerged at that time. He wrote to detail some events and

to record others that were not mentioned by the other Evangelists, which

refute those heresies.

Introduction to the Four Gospels

3. While the four Gospels have much material in common, and each

Gospel affirms what the others are saying, yet they differ from each other

so that they are complementing each other.

4. The Gospel of Christ according to Matthew, or Mark, or Luke, or John is

none but a foursome true picture of the person of Christ and His ministry.

5. While a statue is better than a picture, for it can be viewed from all

angles, the same is for the foursome picture of Christ, witnessed by four

Evangelists, that enables the viewer to enjoy its beauty from all points of

view. The viewer always gains new knowledge. Thus the Gospels express

four angles or faces or pictures of one Gospel or good news.

6. The person of the Lord Christ is like a vast ocean, and the four Gospels

are likened to floodlights shining over this unique Person.

Introduction to the Four Gospels

7. Each of the four Evangelists intended to portray a particular view and

show a side of the Lord Christ and His ministry as it affected him, and to

serve the purpose that he wrote for and whom he addressed the Gospel

to. The end product of the four Gospels is a complete picture of the Lord

Christ and His ministry that sticks in our mind.

8. Thus each Gospel was written for a certain purpose and for a particular

group of people, in order for every person to understand that Christ came

for him and to redeem him. The Spirit of God moved the Evangelists and

they wrote about the need of all men, without prior agreement on what

they should write. This explains some of the apparent discrepancies

among the four Gospels.

.

Introduction to the Four Gospels

9. The church fathers cared and talked about the unity of the Evangelists

in their description of the events, explaining what might seem to some as

controversies:

- St. Augustine wrote a book in the 4th century about the harmony among

the Evangelists, titled ‘De Consensu Evangelistarum.’

- The scholar Origen in the 2nd century A.D. wrote about the agreement

among the four Evangelists and the harmony between their Gospels and

the rest of the New Testament Books, even though each Book discusses

the facts from a different point of view than the other Books. Origen

compares the Holy Book to a harp with many different cords that deliver a

beautiful and harmonious melody.

Introduction to the Four Gospels

10. Regardless of the purpose of each Evangelist in writing, it is clear

that the Holy Spirit inspired the Gospels. They altogether include enough

biography and teachings of our Savior to lead His Church in faith and

ministering throughout all generations.

Introduction to the Four Gospels

spiritual life and to our union with the Savior who is resurrected from the

dead.

4. The four Gospels are not just historic Books meant to record all that is

related to the life and teachings of the Lord Christ. They are not complete

record of the bibliography of the Lord Christ on earth. Many facts known

to the Disciples are not recorded in their writings:

“And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples,

which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may

believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you

may have life in His name”

(John 20:30-31)

“And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were

written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not…

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Bible.”

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