...indeed true or not, we must check the manuscripts. The New Testament documents have more manuscripts, earlier manuscripts, and more abundantly supported manuscripts than the best ten pieces of old literature combined… Scientists believe there are nearly 5,700 hand-written Greek manuscripts of the New Testament. In addition, there are more than 9,000 manuscripts in other languages. Some of these nearly 15,000 manuscripts are complete Bibles, others are books or pages, and a few are just fragments. If you check most of these manuscripts that are in different languages, you will see that they all have the same meaning and are for the most part the same thing. Therefor we can easily say that the Bible and the Gospels were accurately preserved for us....
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...THE FOUR GOSPELS IN PARALLEL 34: Jesus Heals a Leper and Creates much Excitement | 8:2-4 | 1-40-45 | 5:12-16 | | 35: Jesus Heals a Paralytic at Capernaum | 9:2-8 | 2:1-12 | 5:17-26 | | 36: The Call of Matthew (Levi-Son of Alphaeus) | 9:9 | 2:13, 14 | 5:27, 28 | | PART V: FROM SECOND PASSOVER UNTIL THIRD. TIME: ONE YEAR | | | 37: Jesus Heals on the Sabbath Day and Defends His Act | | | | 5:1-47 | 38. Jesus Defends Disciples Who Pluck Grain on the Sabbath | 12:1-8 | 2:23-28 | 6:1-5 | | 39: Jesus Defends Healing a Withered Hand on the Sabbath | 12:9-14 | 3:1-6 | 6:6-11 | | 40: Jesus Heals Multitudes Beside the Sea of Galilee | 12:13-21 | 3:7-12 | | | 41: After Prayer Jesus Selects Twelve Apostles | 10:2-4 | 3:13-19 | 6:12-16 | | 42: The Sermon on the Mount | | | A. Introductory Statement | 5:1-2 | | 6:17-20 | | B. Beatitudes: Promises to Messiah's Subjects | 5:3-12 | | 6:20-26 | | C. Influence and Duties of Messiah's Subjects | 5:13-16 | | | | D. Relation of Messianic Teaching to Old Testament and Traditional Teaching | 5:17-48 | | 6:27-30, 32-36 | | E. Almsgiving, Prayer and Fasting to Be Performed Sincerely, Not Ostentatiously | 6:1-18 | | | | F. Security of Heavenly Treasures Contrasted with Earthly Anxieties | 6:19-34...
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...Theology of the Four Gospels The first three gospels are sometimes called the 'synoptic' or same view gospels. This is because they each cover teaching and miracles by Jesus that are also covered in another account. The fourth gospel, John, writing later, recounts Jesus' other words and miracles that have a particular spiritual meaning. All four gospels present Jesus as both the Son of God and son of man. In this paper information will be provided that describes the major theological differences between the synoptic gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. Information will also be provided that describes a theological perspective of the gospel of John. Finally, information in this paper will include how ones understanding of the various theological perspectives presented in the four Gospels can be used as an additional tool to facilitate the proclaiming of the Four Gospels. Theological Differences between the Synoptic Gospels and the Gospel of John The Gospel According to Matthew The first three books of the New Testament have been identified as the synoptic gospels. These books are Matthew, Mark, and Luke. The first book of the New Testament is identified as the book of Matthew. Matthew was one of the first twelve disciples of Jesus, as recorded in Matthew 9:1; 10:1-4 and therefore an eye-witness. Matthew records more of Jesus' teaching concerning God's heavenly kingdom than the other writers, Mark, Luke, or John. In the first four books of Matthew, the miracle story of Jesus’...
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...The Gospel and the Four Gospels In the beginning the New Testament is given in metaphor as described as a turtle. The New Testament should be treated just like a snapping turtle. You do not know that it’s a snapping turtle until your each out for it and it quickly snaps back at you. You have to be very careful in approaching both, we have to take into consideration that dealing with them both we have to not only look at the impression or the first impression they give off. You would think you can trust a turtle because it’s so harmless, but you don’t know until you reach out. The New Testament is innocent until you start to read and you start to see that it’s definitely different from your other readings. The first four documents will give us a more mature look about the New Testament. The content of the message is that its important when reading and studying the four Gospels. You have to recognize that each of the Gospels are written and specifically designed for a certain audience and group of people. Matthew is written for the Jewish audience. Mark is written to the Romans. Luke is written to the Greek. John is written to the Christian that is born again. Even though they all generally, but not always, include events that are the same but gives different information from a certain event. The biggest difference in the four Gospels is that God is reaching out to everyone. He created us all different but the bible was that one source that will make us all alike. He creared...
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...Why is a theological motif important for systematic theology? Is it necessary? What part does it play in the theological task? Theological motif has a great deal of importance. It is one of the four theological formulation that expresses the Christian beliefs. "When we move beyond mere haphazard reflection on faith and consciously seek to articulate our beliefs systematically, we step into the discipline called theology"(Grentz 2000). Grentz admits to its importance although it has been under stress by many systematic theologians. Grentz enphasizes the importance to the identification of a motif or connecting, organizing theme is the systematic expression of doctrines. It was also mention how the integrative motif is basically the central idea that provides the thematic perspective of light of all theological concepts that gives understanding to its meaning and value. Yes theological motif is necessary and the part it play in it is that it is the reflection on and the theology articulation of faith. The part that the theological motif plays in the task for systematic theory is that it is an "ongoing undertaking that involves the philosophies of church heads and intellectuals from the past whose ideas about scripture and works of church are passed along in the traditon"(Grentz 2000). As we look deeper into the understanding of theological we will open up so much understanding while we increase our knowledge of God and awareness. "The theological enterprise, therefore...
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...In completing a hundred percent of my reading for session two, I have learned about the important factors of having the four Gospels in the New Testament. "The books called Gospels deal with the life and ministry of Jesus." P.150 Though each of these books hold a significant value of information on thier own the unity of four gospel books multiples the quality of its value. Having the four authors of Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) be a narrator of who Jesus was and what he did, allows us to encounter who God is in a varity of standpoints. "They give us proclamations and instructions written from theological standpoints." P.150Having the four perspectives provide more of a complete picture of Jesus. Through the four Gospels we can get...
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...Patience Syokau Mutonga |1 When reading the Gospels, the reader quickly realizes that the accounts are similar1. However, a closer look reveals that they narrate the life and work of Jesus Christ in different ways. Four different authors address their Gospels to four different audiences, expounding on four different themes. Can such different narratives collectively refer to the same Person and give a complete, unshakeable picture of His life and work? The answer lies in a study of each Gospel writer’s interpretation of Jesus’ person, life and work2. That way, each Gospel account is seen, “… like a different – coloured thread in a tapestry woven together to form a more complete picture of this One who is beyond description.” 3 Together the diverse themes of King, Servant, Son of Man and Son of God as independently portrayed in the Gospels all relate together to show a complete picture of Jesus Christ’s life and work. Matthew, Mark and Luke are jointly called the Synoptic Gospels4 (from the Greek word, ‘synopsis’, meaning “a seeing together”).5 They share many of the same events and largely concentrate on Jesus’ Galilean ministry.6 Furthermore, there is a common synopsis in these Gospels, namely: the introduction of Jesus, preaching in Galilee, journey to Jerusalem, and Passion (His death and resurrection).7 John’s Gospel, however, stands alone in its perspective and audience. Unlike the Synoptics, John begins his Gospel ‘from heaven down,’ stating that “…the Word was made...
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...However, after studying Christian Socialism in Socialist Theory class it began to be clear to me that Jesus was in fact socialist. The Four Gospels gave me some clues to derive to such conclusion. Although at first sight the Four Gospels seem to only tell us about Jesus’ life, you must analysis a bit further to begin to see similarities. Back in the day when the Four Gospels were written, there was no actual definition for socialism, nor even a term like this. However, Jesus claimed that in addition to asking his followers to respect and trust him, he also talks negatively about the wealthy people, stating that they are greedy and even says that a day will come when the rich and the poor will get what they deserve. The poor ones will travel to Heaven, whilst the rich will be sentenced to life in hell. The main issue with this theory is that it cannot be used to guide socialism. The theory is rather unreasonable especially when stating that the rich will only receive what they deserve once they...
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...BOOK CRITIQUE: WHY FOUR GOSPELS? Tiago Souza NBST 515 September 24, 2013 INTRODUCTION This work will analyze the book “Why Four Gospels” by David Alan Black. The main objective will be compare the Fourfold-Gospel Hypothesis opposed to the Markan Priority. In order to do that, this work will first analyze the historical background and reality context of the composition of each gospel. The author David Black has published over 100 scholarly articles and book reviews in such journals as Novum Testamentum, New Testament Studies, Bible Translator, Journal of Biblical Literature, and many others. He also serves as Professor of New Testament and Greek and the Dr. M. O. Owens Jr. Chair in New Testament Studies at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. SUMMARY The book starts by bringing up a description of the development of the gospels, and a not very known basic historical fact is that the Gospels were written through a not so brief period of time. The “Gospel according to Mathew” was published in 42 AD, and there was a 20-25 years gap between its publication and the publication of “Luke’s Gospel” and “The gospel according to Mark”. And than, another huge gap between the publication of those and finally “The Gospel of John” being published in 96 AD, so there was a 54 years interval between the publication of the 4 Gospels, and that fact shows that sometimes God likes to act in a way that takes time, seems unusual to human eyes, but in...
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...The Gospels include the first 4 books of the New Testament which are Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. These stories in a way show the time period from Jesus' birth to Jesus' death and resurrection. One of the purposes of the 4 Gospels is to share the same stories but from different people with different perspectives from each other. Which has a whole message in it's self. I believe a key theme in these 4 books is the theme of laying down your life for others. Jesus obviously laid down his life in huge ways for all of us and we are to lay down our lives for others as well. We are taught in these books many things that we are called to carry out still to this day. There are so many themes that I can not even begin to list them all. You can get...
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...The four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John 1. Introduction The term Gospel means good news, a message which was desperately needed (Guthrie, 1965: 11). According to Talbot (2013: 69) gospels can be divided into 2 groups namely the Synoptic gospels- Matthew, Mark and Luke and Gospel of John. He explains that Matthew, Mark and Luke are called the synoptic gospels because they have so much in common. Kotze (6), outlines their similarities and differences as follows: |Mark | |Matthew | |Luke | |Total: 661 verses | |Total :1068 verses | |Total: 1149 verses | |600 verses parallel to Matthew | |505 verses parallel to Mark | |380 verses parallel to Mark | |61 verses peculiar to Mark | |235 versus parallel to Luke | |235 versus parallel to Matthew | | | |328 verses peculiar to Matthew | |534 verses peculiar to Luke | There are suggestions due the similarities and differences that (1) Mark was the original writer and was copied by Matthew and Luke (2) Matthew was original writer copied by Luke, and Mark made a shorter version. The material where obtained from the following suggested sources: (1) Oral tradition – the good news spread by word of mouth before it was written down (2) An earlier...
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...Four Portraits, One Jesus: A Survey of Jesus and the Gospels Chapter 1: What are the Gospels? | Four Gospels, One Jesus | What are the four Gospels? | * Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John each paint a unique portrait of Jesus Christ | | * The Gospels exhibit both unity and diversity, bearing witness to the same Jesus | | (unity) but viewing them from unique perspectives (diversity) | What are the four unique portraits | * Matthew presents Jesus as the Jewish Messiah, the fulfillment of the Old | each Gospel paints of Jesus Christ? | Testament hopes | | * Mark portrays Jesus as the suffering Son of God, who offers himself as a | | sacrifice for sins | | * Luke portrays Jesus as the Savior for all people, who brings salvation to all | | nations and people groups | | * John portrays Jesus as the eternal son of God, the self-revelation of God the | | Father | | * Christology refers to Jesus’ person and work | What is the difference between the | * Mark is more dramatic, it is a powerful and vivid story; Matthew is the most | four Gospels? | structured of the Gospels; Luke is the most thematic, like God’s love for the lost, | | the role of the Spirit, and Jerusalem’s role in God’s plan resurfacing repeatedly; | | John is the most theological of the four, with more explicit statements | | concerning Jesus’ identity and purpose. | What are synoptic Gospels? | * Synoptic Gospels (from the Greek word synopsis...
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...Truth and Fiction in The Da Vinci Code -Bible did not arrive from heaven: or not divinely inspired, God-breathed; product of man -Man created it as a historical record and has evolved through countless translations, additions, and revisions. History has never had a definite version of the book -Jesus Christ was a historical figure of staggering influence -Over 80 gospels were considered for NT, but Constantine the Great chose the 4 of Matt, Mark, Luke, John -Was Constantine a Christian? Hardly – He was a lifelong pagan who was baptized on his deathbed, too weak to protest -In Constantine’s day, Rome’s official religion was sun worship – the cult of Sol Invictus, or Invincible Sun – and Constantine was its head priest -After crucifixion of Jesus Christ, Christ’s followers had multiplied exponentially and Constantine changed religion to Christianity because he was a good businessman, because he could see that Christianity was on the rise and he simply backed the winning one -Historians still marvel at the brilliance with which Constantine converted the sun-worshipping pagans to Christianity -Fused pagan symbols, dates, and rituals into growing Christian tradition, he created a kind of hybrid religion that was acceptable to both parties -transmogrification the vestiges of pagan religion into Christian symbology are undeniable -Egyptian sun disks became the halos of Catholic saints; Pictograms of Isis nursing her miraculously conceived son Horus became the blueprint...
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...relationship between the synoptic Gospels | | The New Testament of the Bible begins with the four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. These four books are a biography of the life Jesus Christ. Most want to views these books as photographs of the life and ministry of Christ, but they should really be viewed as portraits of Christ. A photograph takes a picture and shows you exactly what is there, while a portrait can add different perspectives on the same image. If four people each painted a picture of a sunset each painter would show the sunset from a different perspective (1). Each author of the books of the Gospels adds his own views into each book. Matthew, Mark, and Luke are known as the synoptic Gospels. The word synoptic in Greek means “seeing together” this is appropriate for these books because of the common viewpoint. While John is known as the supplemental Gospel, and has very different characteristics from the other three books.(2) If we view the Gospels as a modern day biography we would want to see all the facts of Jesus's life and them all to be laid out in chronological order. The authors of the Gospels however were basing their versions of Jesus's life off of ancient biographies. These works were not written in chronological order, but were written with specific facts to show the significance of one's life. The way the Gospels were written was very understandable to the people of that time. (1) The synoptic Gospels share an over reaching chronology...
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...LIBERTY UNIVERSITY BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY Synoptic Problem Submitted to Professor Laurie Schweinsberg., in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the completion of the course NBST 510 New Testament Introduction by Jacqueline Goldston June 2, 2014 TABLE OF CONTENT INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………1 UNDERSTANDIN THE SYNOPTIC PROBLEM…………………………..2 SIMLARITIES BETWEEN THE GOSPELS………………………………..3 HISTORY OF THE SYNOPTIC PROBLEM………………………………..6 A PROPOSED SOLUTION TO THE SYNOPTIC PROBLEM……………..7 THE TWOFAVORED SOLUTIONS………………………………………..8 DEFENDING TWO GOSPELS HYPOTHESIS (GRIESBACH)…………..9 CONCLUSION …………………………………………………………….12 BIBLOGRAPHY……………………………………………………………13 1 INTRODUCTION The Synoptic problem can be a very difficult subject to understand at times. When you take a look around or start asking question of your bible scholars or even your casual readers of the Bible you find out people don’t even realize there is a Synoptic problem. There seems to be many different proposed solutions that will fix the problem. Some accepted and some of which has very little support at all. When you read you see that there are different scriptures in the bible that shows a level of agreement in the content of reading, and seems as if the authors have borrowed each other’s writings’ or used the same materials in research they had in common. However, even though they...
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