The New Testament of the Bible
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Christian texts are composed into one book called the bible. The bible contains the Old Testament, which focuses on the times before Jesus was born, and the New Testament, which focuses on the times from Jesus’s birth and so forth. The Christian Canon are books in the New Testament, which some were not accepted universally. The New Testament books were added to the Hebrew Scriptures already in existence (the Old Testament), and fulfills those scriptures. The bible contains both the Hebrew Scriptures (the Old Testament) and the New Testament.
The core of Christianity is found in the New Testament. It is divided into four parts: The Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, the Epistles, and Revelation.
The Gospels
The Gospels describe the life and teachings of Jesus, and is composed by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The life of Jesus is primarily found from the gospels. It is filled with powerful stories and images, which greatly influenced Christian art. The first three gospels are called the Synoptic Gospels. The Gospel of John is not a part of the Synoptic Gospels as it relies on its own separate sources.
The Gospel of Matthew is written in about 75-80 CE. It contains a Jewish background as it portrays Jesus as the “new Moses,” a teacher who offers a “new Torah.” This gospel contains many quotations from the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament), showing that Jesus is their fulfillment. |
The Gospel of Mark is written around 65-70 CE. It contains no infancy stories as it begins with the adult public life of Jesus. It ends with the resurrection of Jesus who is no longer found in his tomb. |
The Gospel of Luke is written at about 85 CE. It is filled with repeated acts of miraculous action of the Spirit of God working in the world. It is also called the “women’s gospel,” because there are many accounts of women including his mother Mary, her cousin Elizabeth, his follower Mary Magdalene, and his disciples such as Joanna and Susanna. This gospel shows mercy and compassion.
The Gospel of John is written at about 90 to 100 CE. This gospel views human life as a struggle between principles of light and darkness. |
The Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of the Apostles is written at about 85 CE. It is the second part of the gospel of Luke. This book tells of the initial spread of Christianity.
The beginning of Acts explains that after Jesus's death, Jesus commanded the apostles not to leave Jerusalem. The apostles asked Jesus if he will "restore the kingdom of Israel" but Jesus replies
"But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth." (Acts 1:8) As Jesus spoke to the apostles, he explains that the apostles will be the one to spread the good news of God with the Holy Spirit, hence The Acts of the Apostles is about the spread of Christianity after Jesus's death. |
The Epistles
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The Epistles are letters to early Christians, written by Paul. They were written to instruct, encourage, and solve problems. Its themes vary widely but focus generally on proper belief, morality, and church order. Its topics include nature and work of Jesus, God’s plan for humanity, faith, good deeds, love, the ideal marriage, community harmony, Christian living, the conduct of the Lord’s Supper, and the expected return of Jesus. Several epistles are long and formal; a few are brief and hurried. The epistles are divided into two groups. The first is called Pauline Epistles, which dates from about 50 to 60 CE, as it includes books that traditionally have been attributed to the early missionary Paul. The second group is called the Universal Epistles, which dates to about 125 CE, as it includes all the other epistles and addressed to all believers.
The song playing on this page is Christ is Risen by Matt Maher. Towards the end of this song, Matt Maher sings, "O death, where is your sting? O hell, where is your victory?" This line is taken straight from the Epistles, specifically from 1 Corinthians 15:55 (First book of Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verse 55), which was written in 57 CE. |
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The Revelation
The Revelation is the final book of the New Testament, written at around 100 CE. This book shows that suffering will be followed by the final triumph of goodness over evil. The language of the book is highly symbolic, using numbers and images that would make the meaning clear to early Christians but obscure to others.
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The book of Revelation has very detailed imagery, which has influenced Christian art.
Chapter 7 of Revelation, verse 11 says,
"And all of the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God."
In this imagery, everyone bows down and worships God as God will always defeat evil.