Reading the Gospels and Acts – Outline Notes

The Synoptic Gospels

The first three gospels were first labeled the Synoptic Gospels by J. J. Griesbach, a German biblical
scholar, at the end of the eighteenth century. The English adjective synoptic comes from the Greek
synopsis, which means “seeing together,” and Griesbach chose the word because of the high degree of
similarity found among Matthew, Mark, and Luke in their presentations of the ministry of Jesus. These
similarities, which involve structure, content, and tone, are evident even to the casual reader.
Who wrote the gospels? All gospels are anonymous; not all are eyewitnesses

What does ‘Gospel’ mean? “Gospel” and the cognate verb “preach the gospel” are used in the New
Testament, and especially frequently in Paul, to denote the message of God’s saving act in his Son (e.g.,
in Mark 1:14–15; Rom. 1:16; 1 Cor. 15:1; Gal. 1:6–7). Probably at some time toward the end of the first
century or early in the second, titles were added to the church’s authoritative accounts of Jesus’
ministry. Certainly this was when “gospel” was first used to denote a work of literature.

Where did the gospel come from? Luke 1:1-4 - Luke is unique in outlining his process of writing, and
each of his stages of work and research correspond to a type of study of the Gospels. The oldest source
is eyewitness testimony (v. 2). Second, others wrote about Jesus – the ‘many’ (v. 1). Third, Luke makes
his own contribution, of two kinds (v. 3). He does his own research, ‘investigating everything from the
very first’, checking his sources, both oral and written. He also selects and organizes the stories into a
sequence, and puts his own stamp on them by the way that he retells the stories for his readers: all of
this is involved in writing ‘an orderly account’.

Why were the Gospels written: First and most practically, the period of writing the Gospels was a time
when the original eyewitnesses were dying. This would give an urgency to preserving their knowledge of
Jesus’ ministry for future generations, and a written form would be the most permanent (historical
reason), Second, there was an evangelistic reason, namely to communicate the gospel message to
those who were not yet believers. Third, there was a didactic reason, to teach those who followed Jesus
more about their faith and to help them grow in it. Fourth, there was a geographical reason, to spread
the eyewitness testimony further afield.

The written Gospels are often compared with other ancient writings: the ‘acts,’ which were books giving
accounts of great historical figures and their deeds; the ‘memoirs,’ which were collections of individual
stories about, or sayings of, a famous person; the ‘lives’ (Greek bioi) which compare and contrast great
figures. Though four Gospels echoes style and character of more than one ancient literature, modern
scholars argue that these writings are closer to the ‘lives,’ in their expressions and content.

Synoptic Gospels: Scholars often refer to Matthew, Mark, and Luke as the Synoptic Gospels. The term
synoptic means “to see together, to have the same view or outlook,” so the first three Gospels are
“synoptic” because they offer similar presentations of the life and teachings of Jesus.

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Chronology of Jesus' Life
Date Event Major Data for Dating Event
5 BC Birth of Jesus Death of Herod the Great (4 BC) (Matt 2:13–20)
28–29 Beginning of John the Baptist's 15th year of Tiberius's rule (Luke 3:1)
ministry
29 Beginning of Jesus' ministry 46 years since completion of renovation of
temple (John 2:20)
33 Death of Jesus Occurrence of Nissan 14 on a Thursday
Jesus was probably born between 6 and 4 BC (5 BC being the most likely date) and began his public
ministry around AD 29. His ministry apparently lasted about three and a half years and included three or
four Passover celebrations. His Crucifixion probably occurred in AD 33.

Key facts about the four Gospels and Acts

The Gospel According to Mark
Author: John Mark, “interpreter” of Peter; Date: Mid to late 50s; Destination: Gentiles in Rome;
Purpose and theme: to encourage persecuted Christians, apology of the Cross, discipleship, Jesus is
authoritative, miracle-working Son of God.

The Gospel According to Luke

Author: Luke, the beloved physician; Date: 58-60 CE; Destination: Theophilus; Purpose and theme: A
defense of the Christian faith (connection with the secular history 1:5; 2:1; 3:1-2), useful for both
evangelism and discipleship, Jesus brings universal salvation in fulfillment of OT promises of Israel,
challenges the popular theology of rich being blessed and highly favored by God with several stories and
parables, the role of prayer and Holy Spirit is stressed (3:21; 11:1; 1:15; 4:1, 14).

The Gospel According of Matthew

Author: Matthew; Date: 50s or 60s; Destination: Jewish audience in unknown location (OT quotations
and genealogy confirms this notion); Purpose and theme: To demonstrate that Jesus is the Messiah
predicted in the OT and the Savior of God’s people. There is great emphasis on the teachings of Jesus ,
most probably serving as a manual for catechetical purpose and also for refuting the “antinomian”
blame against Christians (5 Blocks of teaching: Chaps. 5-7; 10; 13; 18; 24-25).

The Gospel According to John

Author: John; Date: Mid-or late 80s or early 90s; Destination: Ephesus; ultimately, universal audience;
Purpose and theme: To demonstrate that Jesus is the Messiah so that people would believe in him
(come to believe as well as continue to believe) and have eternal life (20:30-31).

The Book of Acts

Author: Luke; Date: Early 60s; Destination: Theophilus; Purpose and theme: A defense of the Christian
faith showing the birth and expansion of the early church from a Jewish sect to a worldwide movement.

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Theological Emphases and Order of New Testament Books

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Books of the New Testament (arranged according to time of writing)