5 Important Facts About the Gospels

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How much do you know about the Gospels? While the Old Testament talks of the coming Redeemer, the New Testament and particularly the Gospels, tell about the fulfillment of these promises, painting a full picture o f Jesus. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are written from different perspectives and together give a complete picture of the Lord Jesus Christ and how He was the fulfillment of Old Testament promises. The four Gospels we have in our Bible today are called Canonical Gospels. This means they are included in the canon of Scripture. Three of the Gospels are called the Synoptic Gospels: Matthew, Mark and Luke. The reason they are given this title is because these three books are similar in content. The majority of the stories and the chronology of them is similar. The reason John is not one of the synoptic Gospels is because it varies greatly on the stories told and somewhat on the chronology of events. Interested in learning more about the Gospels in the New Testament? Here are five important facts about the Gospels.

Matthew Was Primarily Written For a Jewish Audience

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Matthew is the first book of the Old Testament and written by the Apostle Matthew – a tax collector who followed Jesus and His disciples. Matthew was written primarily for a Jewish audience. The book emphasizes Christ as King as the promised Messiah. There are more than 60 Old Testament references in the Book of Matthew. Even though Jesus is presented as King in this book, Matthew also shows how Jesus was rejected by the Jews. They were looking for an earthly king to deliver them from the Romans, not a heavenly king. The phrase “kingdom of heaven” is used 32 times and only found in Matthew. Christ proclaimed in Matthew that the purpose of His coming was to fulfill the prophecies of the Old Testament.