Learn all about the gospels that narrate the life, passion, death and resurrection of Jesus, discover when its origin took place. In addition to finding out about the types that exist of them, and which ones are accepted by Christian doctrine.
The gospels
The Gospels are the sacred texts that contain the narrative of what Jesus' life was like during his time as a man on earth. They also narrate the message of the gospel of Jesus, that is, the good news of salvation.
The life and work of Jesus described in the gospels represent the fulfillment of the promise given by God to the patriarchs in the Old Testament: Abraham (Genesis 22:17), Isaac (Genesis 25:11) and Jacob:
Genesis 28:14 (NIV): They will become as many as the dust of the earth, and they will spread north and south, east and west, and all families in the world will be blessed through you and your descendants.
From the descendants of Jacob would come the Savior Jesus Christ precisely from the lineage of King David:
Isaiah 9:7 (NLT): His rule and peace will never end. will reign impartially and justly from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. ¡The fervent commitment of the Lord of Heaven's Armies will make this happen!
Being the promise fulfilled the Lord Jesus Christ who establishes the Kingdom of God for all eternity. The good news of the gospel of Jesus is that He redeems the world from sin and reconciles us with our Heavenly Father.
The message started in the gospels about the life, passion, death and resurrection of Jesus is expanded to the ends of the world from the first disciples. Those who were apostolated by Jesus to continue the work of his ministry, through the great commission.
Have you heard of the Great Commission? If you want to know a little more about this important topic for Christians. We invite you to enter here, The grand commision: What is it? Importance for the Christian.
Etymology of the word gospel
The word gospel has its origin from the Greek root euangélion, a word that at the same time is composed of two roots of the same language. Eu which means good or good, together with the term angelion, whose meaning is message or news, to finally indicate good message or good news.
In the translation from Greek to Latin, the original word of euangélion was transliterated to gospel. In this sense, the gospels are the good news of Salvation from sins by the grace of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the greatest and greatest manifestation of God's love for humanity.
John 3:16 (DHH): -Well God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son.So that everyone who believes in him not die, but have eternal life-.
This is how the gospels represent the writings made by the first followers of Jesus Christ. These early Christians became the scribes or interpreters of the teachings of the disciples who walked with Jesus during his ministry.
The central theme of the gospels therefore, is the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus. All this central New Testament message forms the foundation of the Christian faith, hence its relevance for Christians.
Four of the gospels are approved and accepted within the New Testament of the Bible, which is why they are called canonical Gospels. To differentiate one from another, the name of the evangelist or author is added to each of them: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
Most of the gospels were called apocryphal because they were considered false or adulterated. For the different Christian churches, the apocryphal gospels are not inspired by God, therefore they were not accepted.
The word gospel in the New Testament
The terms gospel and evangelize are used in the Bible in the New Testament. In addition to finding them in the canonical gospels, the apostle Paul is one of the authors who most often uses the word gospel.
Of the 76 times that the word gospel appears in the New Testament, only 60 is written by Paul in his apostolic letters addressed to the first Christian communities. An example is the first letter to the Corinthians with a probable date of the year 57 after Christ:
1 Corinthians 15:1 (NIV) Now, brothers, I want you to remember the gospel (εὐαγγέλιον) that I have preached to them. This is the gospel (εὐαγγέλιον) that you accepted, and on which you stand.
In the Synoptic Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke the word gospel can be found a few times. However, the evangelist John does not use it and neither does the word evangelize, an example in each of the synoptic gospels can be the following verses:
Matthew 24:14 (NASB): And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached throughout the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
Mark 1:1 (NASB): Beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ the Messiah, Son of God.
Luke 4:43 (NKJV-2015): But he said to them: “It is necessary for me to announce the gospel of the kingdom of God to other cities also, because for this I have been sent.”
As you can see, the meaning that the authors give to the word gospel is the same: The good news, which is Jesus Christ for the world.
Although Luke is the evangelist who uses this term the least within his gospel. In his book of the acts of the apostles he used the word evangelize 15 times, much more than the other evangelists.
The canonical gospels of the New Testament
As already mentioned above, of the large number of gospels that are recorded; there are only four that were approved and accepted by the Christian church to be written by divine inspiration.
Establishing as canonical or appropriate the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John was a commendable task for the Christians of the first centuries. A harsh Christian critic of the second century as Irineo de León in his book called "Against heresies", shows his disagreement regarding:
- In those times, around 185 after Christ, the Christian communities concentrated on reading only the Gospel of Matthew.
- Gospels considered apocryphal or inappropriate instilled or encouraged false faith or doctrine. Giving rise to sects such as the Gnostic Christian sect of the second century called Valentinians.
For the theologian and bishop Irineo de León, the four gospels considered canonical are fundamental for the knowledge of Jesus. Since each one presents Jesus in a different way, in addition to having been written with a different intention and audience.
In the same way Irenaeus affirms that there must be four gospels of Jesus, according to the prophetic vision of Ezekiel and the four faces of the cherubim on the throne of God:
Ezekiel 1:10 (GNT): The beings also had four faces. Seen from the front, they had human appearance; Viewed from the right side, they looked like faces of Lion; on the left side, they looked like faces of bull, and from behind they looked like faces of Eagle.
The four faces of the cherubim of the throne of God are the four faces of Jesus in the four canonical gospels. In this way, as Irineo de León affirms, it is necessary to read the canonical gospels in order to be conformed to each image of Jesus.
Gospel of Matthew, the face of Lion
Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew is presented to humanity as the King, with the face of the Lion in the vision of Ezekiel 1:10. Matthew emphasizes showing Jesus as the messiah announced by the Old Testament prophets.
This way of the evangelist to show Jesus is because the audience for which he writes is primarily the Jewish people, who had knowledge of the scriptures. As for the ministries that Paul says, Jesus constituted:
Ephesians 4:11 (NIV): He himself appointed some, apostles; to others, prophets; to others, evangelists; and to others, shepherds y teachers,
The Gospel of Matthew represents the ministry of the Teacher, highlighting the teachings of King Jesus, such as: The three great sermons, the Sermon on the Mount, the parables of the kingdom and that of stewardship.
If you want to learn more about Gospel of Matthew: The book that the collector wrote, be sure to enter here. Mateo was a publican and tax collector in the city of Carfanaum, in Galilee, today Israel, whom Jesus Christ called to follow him and be part of his disciples.
Gospel of Mark, Ox face
Jesus in the Gospel of Mark is presented to humanity as the Servant, with the face of the Ox or bull in the vision of Ezekiel 1:10. Mark makes an emphasis on showing Jesus as the servant, the strong man with authority.
This evangelist's way of depicting Jesus is because the audience for whom he is writing is primarily the Romans. The Romans were a warrior people, accustomed to power, that is why in the Gospel of Mark Jesus is highlighted performing wonders and miracles.
The Gospel of Mark on the other hand, represents the Pastoral ministry, highlighting the Service and the works of Jesus as the Good Shepherd with his sheep.
Gospel of Luke, the face of Man
Jesus in the Gospel of Luke is presented to humanity as the face of Man, with the human appearance in the vision of Ezekiel 1:10. Lucas emphasizes showing the humanity of Jesus, his dedication to the most needy and those rejected by the society of that time.
This way of the evangelist to show Jesus is because the audience for which he writes is primarily the Greeks. The Greeks were the civilization of knowledge and perfection, that is why he shows the glory, beauty and perfection of Jesus as an exemplary and universal man.
The Gospel of Luke, on the other hand, represents the evangelistic ministry by highlighting Jesus as the Savior, the man who came to save the lost. That is why he emphasizes in the Parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son.
In your Christian life, do you think you define yourself as an evangelist? To know the characteristics of this ministry, we invite you to enter here: QWhat is it to be an evangelist?? Functions and much more. Being an evangelist is one of the ministries by which we can serve God in our profession as Christians.
Gospel of John, the face of the Eagle
John presents us in his gospel Jesus as the son of God, with the face of an eagle in the vision of Ezekiel 1:10. John emphasizes showing Jesus as the son of God, the Word made flesh, the way, eternal life.
This way of the evangelist to show Jesus is because the audience for which he writes is for the whole world, for the universal church. At the time this gospel was written, a proliferation of heresies had arisen that spoke out against the divine nature of Jesus.
In this sense, John proposes the task of exalting and placing Jesus as the Son of God, emphasizing the teachings of the divine character of Jesus.
The Gospel of John, on the other hand, represents the apostolic and prophetic ministry, because this evangelist reveals the revelation of the mystery of Jesus Christ as the Son of God. John exalts the person of Christ above the actions of Jesus.
the synoptic gospels
Of the canonical gospels, three of them are considered synoptic, due to the similarities in some of their passages. Similar texts that each author gives his approach according to the way they present Jesus to humanity.
The canonical and synoptic gospels are: Matthew, Mark and Luke. The term was adopted as a result of a table presented by Johann Jakob Griesbach in 1776, in search of a solution to what he called the synoptic problem of the gospels.
The table presents an analysis in synopsis or joint view in a three-column table, where the coincidences of the three Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke can be better visualized.
Authorship of the canonical gospels
The authorship of the canonical gospels is accepted more by tradition than by verification. In any case, the church affirms that the four canonical gospels have an apostolic origin, in this sense the authorship of each one is attributed according to the following:
- Matthew: Gospel written by Matthew the apostle of Jesus.
- Mark: Written by a disciple of the apostle Peter.
- Lucas: Written by the author of the same name, Lucas, who was a doctor and apprentice of the apostle Paul.
- John: Written by the beloved disciple and close friend of Jesus, the apostle John.
Canonical Gospel Dates
Scholars and theological experts mostly agree that the four canonical gospels were written in a period between 65 and 100 AD. Although there is no information on the exact date of writing of each one, the investigation places them between the following years:
- Marcos: Between the year 68 and 73 after Christ.
- Mateo: Between the year 70 and 100 after Christ.
- Lucas: Between the year 80 and 100 after Christ.
- Juan: Between the year 90 and 100 after Christ.
the apocryphal gospels
In addition, there are other ancient manuscripts of the canonical gospels which are known as apocryphal gospels. The latter are a large majority of texts that, because they are not considered to have been inspired by God, are not accepted or recognized by the Christian church.
Thus, none of these gospels were included in the Greek Septuagint Bible, nor in any of the later versions of it.
However, in the first centuries of the Christian era, some sects that were formed from the Christian communities, came to consider the apocryphal gospels as sacred writings. As is the case with the second century Gnostic Christian sect called Valentinians.
There is also the case of the first Christian communities that were formed from the Jewish people. That they considered the gospels of the Hebrews and the secret of Mark, as sacred writings.
From this point of view, there are critics who stop considering some of the apocryphal gospels, to call them extra-canonical. In order to remove them from what would be considered false manuscripts or unrelated to divine inspiration.
Based on this, the manuscript defined as the Gospel of Thomas, would become the oldest of the Gospels. Because according to experts this manuscript is dated to have been written in the year after Christ.
The etymological origin of the word apocryphal comes from the Greek roots: από which denotes far away and κρυφος, whose meaning is hidden. When transliterated into the Latin language, the word apocryphus remains, to indicate, according to its Greek origin: hide away.
Among the apocryphal gospels can be mentioned among others the gospel:
- of the Hebrews
- greek of the egyptians
- Mark's Secret
- jude
- Nativity Apocrypha
- of Mary Magdalene
