The Bible is made up of a whole range of different books. These books span multiple genres, such as letters, narrative, prophetic, apocalyptic and biography. There are four ancient biographies of Jesus in the New Testament which are commonly known as ‘Gospels’. ‘Gospel’ means ‘good news’ and is derived from the Greek word ευαγγέλιοv (evangelion).
Although the New Testament contains four Gospels, other gospels were circulating around the time that Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were written and accepted into the biblical Canon. ‘Canon’ is from a Greek word κανόνας (kanonás) and has the meaning of a measuring rod. Through a process of canonisation only the four Gospels found in our Bibles were accepted as inspired by God. There were three main criteria for canonisation, listed below:
The Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke are very similar accounts and appear to rely on each other and on the same source material. They are also known as the “Synoptic Gospels.” Synopsis/synoptic means “to view together, a collective view,” so these three Gospels may be viewed together. The synoptic Gospels focus Jesus’s ministry in Galilee and end with His journey toward Jerusalem where He was crucified for the sins of the world and raised from the dead in victory. They are striking in their similarities but also in their differences. But these differences are not contradictions. Each Gospel writer had a particular portrait to paint and a specific and different readership in mind, and because of this they drew their own truthful picture of Jesus.
The author of this Gospel is believed to be Matthew (Levi), the Tax Collector (Matthew 9:9). Matthew was a Jew and was employed by the Roman Government to collect taxes among the Jews. He became a follower of Jesus and one of His 12 apostles. He wrote his Gospel for a Jewish readership in a style that would appeal to the Jewish mind. He portrayed Jesus as the promised Davidic Messiah and the King of the Jews.
Matthew contains many more quotes from the Old Testament than the other Gospels - some 29 quotations. His purpose seems to be to create a direct link between the Old Testament and Jesus - to show He is the promised Messiah. This may be the reason this Gospel is placed first in the New Testament. 14 times Matthew uses the phrase “All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by…” to connect Jesus with the Old Testament era and as the fulfilment of God’s promises to His people (see Matthew 1:22; 2:23; 8:17; 12:17; 13:35). Matthew’s Gospel was probably written between AD52 and AD68, before the fall of Jerusalem (AD70).
The Gospel of Mark opens with a declaration that it is “the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God” (Mark 1:1). The author of this Gospel is believed to be John Mark who we meet in Acts 12:12, 25; 15:37. He was the cousin of Barnabas (Colossians 4:10), Paul’s ministry partner during his first missionary journey (Acts 13). Mark probably found the hardship of travelling with Barnabas and Paul too difficult (Acts 15:38), resulting in a disagreement between Paul and Barnabas. Later all three were to be reconciled (Colossians 4:10 -11; 2 Timothy 4:11).
Mark was probably converted under the ministry of Peter, hence Peter calling him his “son” (1 Peter 5:13). Some scholars believe the Gospel of Mark is the notes that Mark took of Peter’s teachings or that Peter was his main source of information. Henrietta Mears says “We see the influence of Peter in this Gospel.”1 It is good to note that though Mark had his faults and failures, God used him to write this version of the Gospel.
Mark’s Gospel is the shortest of the Gospels (being only 16 chapters). In this Gospel Jesus is portrayed as a servant. This is seen in the way Jesus’ actions are often preceded by the word ‘Immediately’ which was usually ascribed to servants who were expected to obey and act immediately. In Mark 10:45, Jesus identifies Himself as a servant in saying that “... the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” His ultimate act of service was to die for mankind’s sin to restore us unto relationship with God. Mark’s Gospel dates from between AD55 and AD68.
Luke was a physician (Colossians 4:14) but his detailed writings suggest he had an interest in history (e.g. Luke 1:5, 26, 56). Luke was Greek by birth and therefore the only Gentile Gospel writer. He accompanied Paul on missionary journeys. It is the first volume of a two- volume work, the other being the book of Acts. His primary readers would probably have been Greek, so Luke brings yet another perspective of the life and the person of Jesus. Greeks possessed a wider culture, and loved beauty, rhetoric and philosophy. As an educated Greek, Luke would have been well fitted for this task. There are also poetic sections in 1:46 - 55; 1:68 - 79; 2:8 - 14.
Both Luke’s sources and his purpose in writing are found in Luke 1:1 - 4 (see also Acts 1:1 – 3 and 19:10). In compiling this narrative Luke has consulted with various eyewitnesses, and possibly read many written accounts that were already being circulated. His birth accounts may have come from conversations with Mary the mother of Jesus. His intention was to write an orderly account with a view to confirming what others may have heard (including “most excellent Theophilus'') and to portray Jesus as the Son of Man who came to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10). Luke probably wrote this Gospel around AD60.
The author of the Gospel of John is believed to be John the brother of James, son of Zebedee (John 21:2) and Salome (Matthew 27:56; Mark 15:40; John 19:25). Salome was believed to be a sister of Jesus’ mother Mary. If so, then Jesus and John were cousins, which may explain the closeness of the two shown in this Gospel. John, James and their father, Zebebee, were fishermen. He was one of the 12 apostles of Jesus.
John’s purpose is to present Jesus Christ as the “Son of God” - to reveal His divinity. The Prologue in John 1:1 - 18 is very similar to Genesis 1 and points to Jesus’ eternal existence and divinity prior to His incarnation as one of us. One prevailing philosophy of the time taught that matter and spirit were incompatible - matter was evil and spirit was good. In this view the man Jesus could not be God because God is spirit and would not take human form. In his Gospel, John addresses this issue by selecting stories of Jesus’ life that proved that in Him God has stepped into human history in human form to reconcile humanity to Himself.
Today, as at the time that John wrote, there are many who deny or question the divinity of Jesus. In these views, Jesus was nothing more than a good man, an example, a great teacher etc. John makes it clear this is not the case. Effectively, John is telling his audience that if they want to know what God is like, then they should look at the Person and Ministry of Jesus, as Jesus is God in flesh. The Gospel of John was written around AD 90.
In conclusion, each of the Gospel writers came from different backgrounds and wrote from different perspectives to different audiences. They all wrote under the inspiration of God and that’s why their Gospels were included in the Bible. Taken together, the four Gospels give us a full picture of the Person and Work of Christ.