Jesusology is the systematic study of the existence, nature, and teachings of Jesus, and his influence and relationship to human beings.
I taught this subject in the Bible School for more than 8 years, and I still enjoy teaching about His Life, His Ministries, His Sermons, and His Passions on one’s life. I have a lot of lessons I learned from Him during those years yet I still want to learn more. I can say that I have never ran out of lessons to learn from Him, as long as I am hungry and thirsty after Him. I believe that the more we know Him, the more we’ll grow in our faith. The measure of our faith depends on the level of our knowledge on Him. To know about Him is one thing, but to know Him is another thing. May we always find ourselves at His feet listening to His word.
Here, I will, with His help try to share with you what I have learned from Him. Should you have questions, comments, and suggestions, please don’t hesitate to write those on the comments box.
I will be using the Bible (KJV) and the Life of Christ I-IV, Alpha Bible Course Lessons, written by a man of God, Rev. Ralph V. Reynolds. I will be adding my personal comments, revelations, lessons and sermons (English, Tag-lish and Tagalog) in some of the lessons here.
A. THE FOUR GOSPELS
In our study of the life of Jesus Christ, we are limited mainly to four small books written in Greek, which are called the Gospels. (But, we are not limited in our personal experiences with Him, by which, He is revealed to us). These give us four accounts which may be described as biographies of Jesus Christ. As we shall see, each gives a distinctly different aspect and picture of the life and ministry of Jesus. To gain a full knowledge of Jesus, we must study and compare these four records.
One fact should be borne in mind in approaching the Gospels. The church got along for years without any Christian literature. The earliest Christian writings are the epistles of Paul. Probably not until after 60 or 65 A.D. were there any Gospels such as we have today. We must take account of those trained verbal memories cultivated in the East. A Jewish saying was that the good disciple was like “a plastered cistern which loses not a drop.” We must also remember that these four Gospels were written under the direct inspiration of the Holy Ghost. (The writers of the Gospels are so privileged writers. They were not writing about something but about Someone, about the Promised Messiah, the God of the Old Testament who dwelt among them; they beheld his glory and power. Most of them are not actually writers by profession, but because of their deep passion on Him, and more so, they were filled and moved by the Holy Ghost to write what we call the Gospel).
1. Gospel: The word Gospel comes from the Anglo-Saxon “God”-“spell,” or “God” – “story,” from which we get “good story,” or “good tidings.” (Apostle Paul defined the gospel in I Corinthians 15:1-4 as the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is why important to preach the gospel and nothing but the gospel, because this is the only way man could be saved. The gospel must be applied to us. We must die to our sins in repentance, be buried in Baptism and be resurrected in New Birth experience).
2. Synoptic Gospels: The first three Gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, are known as the Synoptic Gospels. These give a record of the same or parallel accounts of the life and work of Christ. John is completely different. The Synoptic Gospels emphasize the works of Jesus, while the fourth Gospel emphasizes the words of Christ. Though the writers gave different records of accounts, they emphasized two important ways to know Him: by His works and His words.
3. Four Different Aspects: In order to give the four aspects of Jesus Christ, as presented by the four Gospels, I quote from New Testament Survey, by Clarence Benson: Each of the Gospel writers presents a different aspect of the Messiah. One writes of His kingship; another of His ministry; a third, His humanity; a fourth, His deity. In this, they complete the picture, using a fourfold characterization of Old Testament prophets:
Matthew-Christ the King – “Behold the King” (Zechariah 9:9)
Mark-Christ the Servant – “Behold my Servant” (Isaiah 42:1)
Luke-Christ the Man – “Behold the man” (Zechariah 6:12)
John-Christ the Son of God – “Behold your God” (Isaiah 40:9).
B. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW
1. Author. The author was Matthew, who was one of the twelve disciples. He is also called Levi. He was a publican who collected taxes for the Roman government. As a result, he was hated by his countrymen and looked upon by them as being a great sinner. Undoubtedly he was a wealthy man, which was shown by the great feast he had in his own house. As a publican, he was accustomed to keeping accounts and wrote from a businessman’s point of view. His language was plain and direct. References: Matthew 10:3. Mark 2:14: Luke 5:27-29.
2. To Whom Addressed. This Gospel was addressed to the Jews. This is seen by the fact that there are sixty references to the Jewish prophecies and there are forty quotations from the Old Testament. Matthew emphasized Christ’s mission to the Jewish nation:
Matthew 10:6 “Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
Matthew 15:24 “I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
3. Date. It is not certain whether Matthew or Luke was written first, both of which followed the writing of Mark’s Gospel. The date is placed between 60 A.D. and 70 A.D.
4. Purpose. The purpose of this Gospel was to show that Jesus of Nazareth was the kingly Messiah of Old Testament prophecy. The picture of Jesus, as given in this Gospel, was that of a king.
5. Key Words
a. Fulfilled – This word was repeated to indicate that the Old Testament prophecies were fulfilled in Christ.
b. Kingdom – The word “kingdom” is found fifty times in the Gospel. The expression “kingdom of Heaven” is found thirty times.
C. THE GOSPEL OF MARK
1. Author. The author was John Mark, the son of Mary of Jerusalem. His Jewish name was John, but his Roman name was Mark. He was a relative of Barnabas (Colossians 4:10). His mother was apparently a prosperous woman, and the church often met in her home (Acts 12:12). Mark is considered a convert of Peter, who spoke of him as being, “Marcus, my son.” Ancient tradition certifies that Mark was a companion of Peter. The book was also called “Peter’s Gospel” by some ancient writers. It is thought that Peter furnished much of the material. Irenaeus wrote, “Mark, the disciple and interpreter of Peter, delivered to us the
things that had been preached by Peter.” Mark had accompanied Barnabas and Saul on their first missionary journey. Because he turned back at Perga, he became the reason the apostles parted company on their second journey. Barnabas was determined to give him a second chance, and Mark made good. The Apostle Paul recognized this and spoke of him as being profitable (II Timothy 4:11). John Mark spent his last years in Alexandria, Egypt, where he founded a church and served as its bishop until he met a martyr’s death.
2. To Whom Addressed. This Gospel was addressed to Roman Christians. The explanation of Jewish words and customs indicates the author wrote to Gentiles.
3. Date. The date is placed between 50 A.D. and 60 A.D. It was the first of the four Gospels written, and both Matthew and Luke borrowed from Mark?s Gospel.
4. Theme. This Gospel pictures Jesus as being Christ, the servant.
5. Key Word: The key word in Mark’s Gospel is straightway,
6. Style. The style is vivid, picturesque, and full of action. There are nineteen miracles recorded: eight, showing power over disease; five, power over nature; four, power over demons; two, power over death.
D. THE GOSPEL OF LUKE
1. Author. This Gospel was written by Luke, the beloved physician, (Colossians 4:14) who was a native of Antioch and a Greek. He was a close companion of Paul for seventeen years after his coming into Macedonia. He remained with Paul until his death. Students see the stamp of Paul’s doctrine. Undoubtedly, Luke received much information from Paul.
2. To Whom Addressed. This Gospel was addressed to Theophilus, a high ranking Greek (Luke 1:3). We find that Jewish customs are explained and Greek names are substituted for Hebrew.
3. Date. The date is placed between 60 A.D. and 70 A.D.
4. Purpose. The purpose of this Gospel was to give an orderly narrative of the life of Christ. The theme was to picture Jesus as being the Son of Man.
5. Key Verse. Luke 1:4, “That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed.”
E. THE GOSPEL OF JOHN
1. Author. This Gospel was written by John, the beloved disciple. He was the son of Zebedee and Salome, who appears to have been a sister of Mary, the mother of Jesus. Although he was spoken of as being the beloved disciple
because of his affectionate nature, he was by no means effeminate. He was a man of courage, energy, and enthusiasm. He was a disciple of John the Baptist before he became a disciple of the Lord. He was present at the raising of Jairus’ daughter, the transfiguration, and the agony in Gethsemane.
John made Jerusalem his headquarters for many years and cared for Mary, the mother of Jesus, until her death. He later made Ephesus his headquarters. During the reign of Domitian, he was exiled to the Isle of Patmos. He was freed and permitted to return to Ephesus about 96 A.D. It is assumed that he lived to be over100 years of age.
2. To Whom Addressed
This Gospel was written to the church.
3. Date
It was written about 97 A.D., some thirty years after the Synoptic Gospels were written.
4. Purpose
The purpose and theme of this Gospel was to show the deity of Jesus Christ.
5. Key Verse
John 20:31, “But there are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.”
SEE YOU NEXT LESSON. (Thank you for your time reading this post, please visit us again. Lessons on Jesusology are posted monthly).
