How to Read the Gospels

How to Read the Gospels

What are the Gospels? Maybe you’ve heard that word or maye you do know what they are, but let me give you a quick introduction. The word “gospel” means “good news.” In the Bible there are four books with the title “Gospel.” They are Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. They are the first four books in the New Testament. 

The Gospels tell one story but from four different viewpoints. The gospels are eye-witness accounts to the life of Jesus Christ, from Nazareth. The authors of each of the four Gospels tells us about the life of our Savior, Jesus. Each Gospel is unique but also complementary. The gospels give us a well-rounded picture of who Jesus was, what He did, and the implications of His life for us today. 

If you were to read the first three, Matthew, Mark, and Luke you would find very similar accounts. These three are called the “synoptic” gospels. That only means that they follow the same timeline and more or less tell about Jesus’ life in a linear fashion. Many of the events surrounding Jesus’ miracles and signs are repeated in all three of these gospels. Although each of the three have a unique purpose and theme they all basically follow the same flow of thought as they wrote their books.

John is the exception. John’s gospel was probably written many years after the first three were written. John doesn’t follow the same pattern of the other three and only a couple of miracles from the first three books are mentioned in the book of John. John records unique miracles, all for a specific purpose. We’ll get into each book’s themes and purposes below. 

Not Comprehensive

When reading the Gospels, it is important to remember that although these books are one hundred percent historically accurate, they do not include a comprehensive detailed account of the whole of Jesus’ life. 

John says in his Gospel, “Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.” John 21:25

Each of the gospels couldn’t possibly include everything Jesus did in His lifetime, but the things that are included we can know for sure are everything we need to know to believe in Jesus as the Christ. Because we believe that the entire Bible was written by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, this gives us even more confidence that the gospels contain everything we need to know about Jesus’ life. 

So why four Gospels? When we read the first four books of the New Testament it is important to understand that they all had specific purposes and themes when writing about Jesus’ life. Most of these themes are commonly agreed upon.

The following information is a summary from ESV.org. Click the name of the book and be redirected to the page that contains even more information on each of the following books. 

Matthew

The Gospel of Matthew was written by one of Jesus’ apostles, Matthew. Matthew was also called Levi in the Bible. He was of Jewish descent and a “tax collector.” That meant that Matthew was an outcast by his people. He was probably wealthy but gained his wealth possibly by exploiting his fellow countrymen. He worked for Rome, which was the dictatorship oppressing the Jewish nation at the time of Jesus’ birth. 

Matthew’s purpose in writing his account is to prove that Jesus was the long-awaited King, Messiah from the Old Testament. In this book you will find dozens of references to the Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah. Matthew chooses Jesus’ teachings and miracles to prove that Jesus was indeed King. Although Jesus’ kingdom here on earth was not a physical kingdom, Matthew’s Gospel gives us a glimpse of what that future kingdom would look like. Jesus calls His followers to be obedient, but the kind of obedience Jesus asks of His followers doesn’t look like the Old Testament law. This idea comes from Dane Ortlund’s book, Surprised by Jesus.

Mark

The Gospel of Mark was probably the first gospel that was written after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension back into heaven. Mark wrote his gospel at the very beginning of the church’s growth. Although Mark was not an apostle of Jesus, many scholars believe that the apostle Peter helped Mark this gospel. Mark is also known as John Mark in the Bible. 

If Matthew was written mainly to Jewish audiences, Mark is the opposite. Mark was written for the non-Jewish Christians in the early church. Many Jewish customs and prophecies are explained in this book to give the readers a sense of what Jesus meant by various teachings and miracles. 

Some scholars think the theme of Mark is discipleship, others point out that Mrk highlights the “servanthood” of Christ. If Jesus is King in Matthew, Mark shows us that Jesus was also a servant. This does not contradict Matthew’s depiction of Jesus, it only enhances Jesus as both Lord and Savior. Dane Ortlund, in his book, shows us that Mark demonstrates how the King could become a criminal. This paradox is found all throughout the book! 

Luke

The Gospel of Luke was also not written by an apostle, but someone close to an apostle. Luke was a companion to Paul, the last apostle. (1 Corinthians 1:1, 1 Corinthians 9:2, Romans 11:13) Paul was an apostle that traveled around Asia minor building up and equipping the Church. Luke was a physician who traveled with Paul. Luke wrote both the Gospel of Luke and the sequel, Acts to a particular man, Theophilus. He gives us a reason for his book in the first four verses of his gospel. 

“Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.” Luke 1:1-4

Luke is writing to his friend to let him know that he can have confidence that what he has learned is the truth. He wrote for many purposes and others have argued back and forth as to Luke’s purpose, but many agree that Luke wrote to prove that Jesus was the Savior prophesied in the Old Testament and will return again to reign on earth. According to Orlund, Luke shows us that insiders are actually on the outside and how outsiders can become insiders. 

John

The Gospel of John is different from the first three, as mentioned before. John was one of Jesus’ apostles and his gospel gives us a unique look at how God became man. He emphasizes Jesus’ deity and as stated before, contains several miracles not mentioned in the other three Gospels. John also wrote three letters (1, 2, 3, John) as well as the last book of the Bible, Revelation. 

John was the last gospel to be written after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension. Many of the themes of John include eternal life, Christ’s deity, miracles/signs, and salvation in general. John tells the story of Jesus in a unique way by showing how the Creator became the creature in order to save His own creation. (Ortlund)

Understanding each of the Gospel’s perspectives helps us to read them with better understanding and provides for us a clearer picture of who Jesus was while He lived on earth. This allows us a full and complete picture of Jesus our savior today! If you would like a simple Bible reading plan to help you read through the Gospels one chapter a day it should take you about ninety days. Click here to download a PDF.

Next week I’ll share some great resources you can use to further study the Gospels!