Have you ever thought about why there are four gospels? Referring to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, “each of them deals with the same period of history, each sets forth the teaching and miracles of the Savior, each describes His death and resurrection” (Pink, 2007). Even though each of the four contain many similarities, each book is also unique, “and it is in noting their variations that we are brought to see their true meaning and scope and to appreciate their perfections” (Pink, 2007).
I have always found it interesting that there are so many gaps in time in the biographies of Christ; even when putting the information from all four together, the picture remains far from a complete life biography of our Lord. For instance, after the Gospels reveal the infancy of Christ, Luke briefly describes a situation in Jesus’ childhood at age twelve, and then nothing more is mentioned until Christ is thirty. Furthermore, it is interesting to think of all the other messages and miracles of Christ that were not recorded, even after age thirty. John, in the gospel that bears his name, states in chapter 21 verse 25, “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” (ESV). Is this not a fascinating thought?!
But why four books? As little as is covered, according to John, why was there not just one account of Christ’s earthly life and His Messianic ministry? I believe the answer to these questions can be found by looking at the other books of the Bible. As Christians, most of us believe that the Bible is the inspired word of God. And with this, I refer again to author Arthur Pink:
“Because one or two was not sufficient to give a perfect presentation of the varied glories of our blessed Lord. Just as no one of the Old Testament typical personages (such as Isaac or Joseph, Moses or David) give an exhaustive foreshadowment of our Lord, so, no one of the four Gospels presents a complete portrayal of Christ’s manifold excellencies. Just as no one or two of the five great offerings appointed by God for Israel (see Lev. 1–6) could, by itself, represent the many-sided sacrifice of Christ, so no one, or two, of the Gospels could, by itself, display fully the varied relationships which the Lord Jesus sustained when He was here upon earth. In a word, the four Gospels set Christ before us as filling four distinct offices.”
To illustrate this, think of it this way: if I were tasked to report to you in detail the Statue of Liberty, I wouldn’t simply take a picture from one vantage point and give you only one piece of information about it, say the history. No, rather I would take pictures from multiple angles, reference sources to obtain information about its history, symbolism, location, etc. In order for me to present to you a reliable, complete, and trustworthy report, I must supply to you material from multiple sources, otherwise it would be deemed unreliable. I believe the same holds true for the Gospels.
In Matthew, Christ is presented as the Son of David, the King of the Jews, and everything in his narrative centers around this truth. This explains why the first Gospel opens with a setting forth of Christ’s royal genealogy, and why in the second chapter mention is made of the journey of the wise men from the East, who came to Jerusalem inquiring “Where is He that is born King of the Jews?”, and why in chapters five to seven we have what is known as “The Sermon on the Mount” but which, in reality, is the Manifesto of the King, containing an enunciation of the Laws of His Kingdom (Pink, 2007).
In Mark, Christ is depicted as the Servant of Jehovah, as the One who through equal with God made Himself of no reputation and “took upon Him the form of a servant.” Everything in this second Gospel contributes to this central theme, and everything foreign to it is rigidly excluded. This explains why there is no genealogy recorded in Mark, why Christ is introduced at the beginning of His public ministry (nothing whatever being told us here of His earlier life), and why there are more miracles (deeds of service) detailed here than in any of the other Gospels (Pink, 2007).
In Luke, Christ is set forth as the Son of Man, as connected with but contrasted from the sons of men, and everything in the narrative serves to bring this out. This explains why the third Gospel traces His genealogy back to Adam, the first man, (instead of to Abraham only, as in Matthew), why as the perfect Man He is seen here so frequently in prayer, and why the angels are seen ministering to Him, instead of commanded by Him as they are in Matthew (Pink, 2007)..
In John, Christ is revealed as the Son of God, and everything in this fourth Gospel is made to illustrate and demonstrate this Divine relationship. This explains why in the opening verse we are carried back to a point before time began, and we are shown Christ as the Word “in the beginning,” with God, and Himself expressly declared to be God; why we get here so many of His Divine titles, as “The only begotten of the Father,” the “Lamb of God,” the “Light of the world” etc.; why we are told here that prayer should be made in His Name, and why the Holy Spirit is here said to be sent from the Son as well as from the Father (Pink, 2007).
Although this is only the tip of the iceberg on this topic, I hope it gives you some insight into why there are four gospels of Jesus Christ. I encourage you to also research this topic, while comparing and contrasting the gospels.
Josh
Sunday, November 7, 2010
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