The Gospel of Jesus: Understanding the Message

The Gospel of Jesus

• The Gospel of Jesus is divided into four books: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, which are ancient biographies of Jesus.
• These books offer more than individual stories about Jesus and his teachings, but connect Jesus' story into the overall biblical storyline.

Meaning of the Gospel

• The word "gospel" means good news.
• The good news is about God's Kingdom arriving.
• God's Kingdom is the central theme of Jesus' message.

The Biblical Story

• The biblical story begins with God creating a good world and appointing humanity as his representatives to rule it.
• However, humans rebelled, leading to a world of violence and death.
• God chose Abraham and his family to restart the project, and through Moses, brought them into a garden land of abundance to restore all nations.
• Israel becomes a kingdom with amazing kings like David, but eventually, Israel rebels too, leading to destruction.
• The prophets said that God would personally come and restore Israel, and this hope was called the Kingdom of God.

Jesus' Message

• Jesus' good news is about God's Kingdom, the new creation that is arriving to restore humanity to their role as God's partners in ruling the world.
• Jesus liberates people from death and disease, and teaches about generosity, forgiveness, and loving one's enemies.
• He invites people to live in God's new world.

The Gospel Authors

• The Gospel authors constantly appeal to the Hebrew Scriptures while telling the story of Jesus.
• They weave biblical phrases into the story, often without directly quoting them.
• The Gospel accounts show how all of the biblical stories about Abraham, Moses, David, and the prophets point forward to Jesus.

The Four Gospels

• There are four different accounts of the Gospel because each author has shaped and arranged their stories about Jesus differently to emphasize different things about him.
• Matthew presents Jesus as a greater Moses.
• Luke highlights Jesus as God's royal servant from the book of Isaiah.
• Mark presents Jesus as a new start for humanity, bringing the mystery of God's new creation.
• John focuses on Jesus' claim to be Yahweh, the God of Israel, become human.

The Purpose of the Gospel

• The Gospel authors want their readers to become a part of God's Kingdom.
• The Gospel is designed to persuade readers to trust and follow Jesus, so that they can participate in the new creation that he began.

The Gospel of Jesus

• The Gospel of Jesus is divided into four books: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, which are ancient biographies of Jesus.
• These books connect Jesus' story into the overall biblical storyline.

Meaning of the Gospel

• The word "gospel" means good news.
• The good news is about God's Kingdom arriving.
• God's Kingdom is the central theme of Jesus' message.

The Biblical Story

• The biblical story begins with God creating a good world and appointing humanity as his representatives to rule it.
• However, humans rebelled, leading to a world of violence and death.
• God chose Abraham and his family to restart the project, and through Moses, brought them into a garden land of abundance to restore all nations.
• Israel becomes a kingdom with amazing kings like David, but eventually, Israel rebels too, leading to destruction.
• The prophets said that God would personally come and restore Israel, and this hope was called the Kingdom of God.

Jesus' Message

• Jesus' good news is about God's Kingdom, the new creation that is arriving to restore humanity to their role as God's partners in ruling the world.
• Jesus liberates people from death and disease, and teaches about generosity, forgiveness, and loving one's enemies.
• He invites people to live in God's new world.

The Gospel Authors

• The Gospel authors constantly appeal to the Hebrew Scriptures while telling the story of Jesus.
• They weave biblical phrases into the story, often without directly quoting them.
• The Gospel accounts show how all of the biblical stories about Abraham, Moses, David, and the prophets point forward to Jesus.

The Four Gospels

• There are four different accounts of the Gospel because each author has shaped and arranged their stories about Jesus differently to emphasize different things about him.
• Matthew presents Jesus as a greater Moses.
• Luke highlights Jesus as God's royal servant from the book of Isaiah.
• Mark presents Jesus as a new start for humanity, bringing the mystery of God's new creation.
• John focuses on Jesus' claim to be Yahweh, the God of Israel, become human.

The Purpose of the Gospel

• The Gospel authors want their readers to become a part of God's Kingdom.
• The Gospel is designed to persuade readers to trust and follow Jesus, so that they can participate in the new creation that he began.