NT Canon Cohesion

Continuity in the New Testament

Introduction

2 Timothy 3:10–17 NLT

But you, Timothy, certainly know what I teach, and how I live, and what my purpose in life is. You know my faith, my patience, my love, and my endurance. You know how much persecution and suffering I have endured. You know all about how I was persecuted in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra—but the Lord rescued me from all of it. Yes, and everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. But evil people and impostors will flourish. They will deceive others and will themselves be deceived. But you must remain faithful to the things you have been taught. You know they are true, for you know you can trust those who taught you. You have been taught the holy Scriptures from childhood, and they have given you the wisdom to receive the salvation that comes by trusting in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.

Let’s Pray

The Greek scriptures, or New Testament, are complementary collection that complete the Hebrew canon.

The Greek scriptures, or New Testament, are complementary collection that complete the Hebrew canon.

Authors wrote across an entire century different letters from various places to numerous groups of people.

The common denominator throughout is the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to show forth the Father’s will carried out by the Son, Jesus Christ.

The Role of the Gospels, Acts, Epistles, and Apocalypse

The Role of the Gospels, Acts, Epistles, and Apocalypse in Constituting the New Testament Canon of Scripture

the New Testament Canon of Scripture

The Gospels are often misunderstood and because of that misread.

The four different authors had varying backgrounds and interactions with the story itself.

The four different authors had varying backgrounds and interactions with the story itself. They also had different audiences they were compiling this news for.

They also had different audiences they were compiling this news for.

If I say I love you to you all, it’s very different than if I say it to my wife.

Understanding the context is critical.

Matthew was a tax collector who became a disciple of Jesus and was meticulous in his recounting of the life and teachings of Jesus.

This gospel gives us the most detailed account of the events surrounding Jesus’ birth and begins with a thorough report of the genealogy of Jesus.

The audience Matthew was most likely addressing was a Jewish audience.

The careful nature of his gospel is aimed at helping the Jews understand the legitimacy of Jesus as the Christ, their Messiah.

Matthew’s account is from an eye-witness perspective and gives us a clear look into the events of Jesus’ life.

The gospel of Mark is the shortest gospel and is somewhat to the point.

Mark does not include lots of details as if he is trying to win over a jury.

Rather Mark shares a rendition of Jesus “greatest hits” so to speak.

He covers the baptism and temptation of Jesus and then spends time on the preaching and debate that happens when Jesus has preached.

He speaks regarding the important event, the transfiguration, that solidified the divinity of Jesus and clearly exalted him above previous prophets.

Mark then recounts the passion of Jesus and focuses on crucifixion and resurrection.

The succinct nature of this Gospel and the clear intentionality Mark uses suggests that this was written with Romans in mind.

Luke was a physician and a historian and his account of the life of Jesus is equally as thorough as Matthew’s account but with a broader effort in mind.

Luke’s account is really only a first half of his two-volume set he wrote to Theophilus.

The second volume being the Acts of the Apostles. Luke’s gospel account is geographically laid out in an organized manner.

He begins with the genealogy and birth of Jesus and moves into the baptism and temptation.

But he then focuses on Jesus’ ministry in the region of Galilee.

The middle portion of Luke’s gospel chronicles Jesus movement towards Jerusalem and the encounters along the way.

When Jesus arrives in Jerusalem this signifies the last portion of Jesus’ life and ministry on earth.

Luke did his homework.

He spoke with eyewitnesses and the fact he was a doctor and historian contribute to the credibility of his account.

Not to mention the harmony with the other eyewitness gospel accounts.

John was the disciple whom Jesus loved.

Many people think this is almost a boast by John, but I consider it to be the most accurate way John knew how to relate to Jesus.

John understood the depth of love by Jesus better than most and he writes his gospel with this in mind constantly.

Throughout the account he speaks of himself as the disciple whom Jesus loved, and this shows the consistent identity that Jesus had forged in John.

This gospel is written not just from an eyewitness perspective but from a heart witness.

The relational component of the interactions and teachings of Jesus are far more distinct in this gospel.

John is not trying to put together a case for a jury, he is recounting the best and closest friend he ever had.

And the privilege it was to be the beloved friend of Jesus.

The acts of the apostles was a continuation of Luke’s gospel account and should be understood to be carefully compiled as a historical narrative.

Luke was wise in his methods and intentional in his progression.

The beginning of acts involves the ascension of Jesus and the response of the disciples to Jesus’ commission. The first step was to wait and pray. The Holy Spirit arrived in a magnificent way and it opened the door to the beginning of the church. After this the main character that is followed is Peter until chapter 8. Peter stepped up during Pentecost in the power of the Spirit and proclaimed a compelling Gospel that brought thousands to believe in Jesus. After this we see different situations and episodes with Peter ultimately culminating in the encounter with Cornelius where the Spirit shows up again in powerful way and the Gospel door is opened to the gentiles by verification of the indwelling of the Spirit.

The second two-thirds of acts focuses on Saul/Paul and the ministry he was commissioned for unto the gentiles. The last 20 chapters details the miraculous work the Spirit did and the birthing of the church in “Judea, Samaria and the ends of the earth” as Jesus foretold. The narrative of Paul’s missionary journeys is helpful in understanding the involvement of the Holy Spirit in the church’s growth and movement.

We learn a great deal from the descriptive text in Acts that helps us understand the context and purpose of the later letters written mostly by Paul, Peter and John.

The Letters are instructions and conversations from Apostles to either a person or group of people.

The book Colossians is not about the city of Colossae, rather it is for the people of God in that city.

The epistles are important because they contain the most prescriptive instructions in the NT of any genre.

Prescriptive vs Descriptive and it’s implications

It is important not to forget these letters were written in specific time for a specific people in a specific place with a specific culture.

Disregarding Cultural Context will lead to Incorrect interpretation.

We do not dismiss everything because we are in a different time or culture but we must be careful to find the heartbeat of the passage.

We do not dismiss everything because we are in a different time or culture but we must be careful to find the heartbeat of the passage.

“Braided hair” passage - Not primarily about hair being straightened vs braided vs permed...

About the heart. God made women beautiful. Women, are you using your beauty to distract from the worship of God during the gathering?

If you want to learn more about good interpretation - Come on Wednesdays… Joe’s gifting

Be careful not to grasp so tightly to a minute detail that you miss the meaning of a passage, especially when it is prescriptive.

The good news that Jesus brought was being fulfilled in the ways Jesus foretold they would.

The Gospels and their good news would not be complete without the coming of the Spirit in Acts and the new covenant open to all men and women, slave or free, Jew or Gentile.

he Gospels and their good news would not be complete without the coming of the Spirit in Acts and the new covenant open to all men and women, slave or free, Jew or Gentile.

The apocalyptic scriptures reveal the end, hence the Greek word translated into the English to mean “reveal”.

Much of the interpretation of this portion of scripture is disagreed on.

Many traditions and denominations have made claims regarding the specific events of history only to have to renege when it did not come to pass as they thought it would.

The revelation serves multiple helpful purposes in my understanding.

There is a clear harmony of the heavenly scenes in Revelations as there is in both Ezekiel and Daniel and the cohesion this creates between the Old and New Testaments is important and beneficial.

The letters to the seven churches are very insightful for the challenges and temptations the church will face until the day of Christ’s return.

We are blessed to have these letters so we may watch and be vigilant to remain faithful in the midst of tumultuous times.

The last portion of the book is mysterious and awe-inspiring. I believe that is for a reason.

There is a realm we do not fully comprehend where our God is waging a war against evil.

There will come a day where he will allow no more sin and suffering and will cast out Satan.

He will fulfill his prophecies and promises spoken all throughout scripture; from to .

We will see the serpent be completely defeated and he will be with us to the end of the age.

Our Hope in teaching these things

2 Timothy 3:10 NLT

But you, Timothy, certainly know what I teach, and how I live, and what my purpose in life is. You know my faith, my patience, my love, and my endurance.

2 Timothy 2:15 NLT

Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive his approval. Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the word of truth.

2 Timothy 3:10 NLT

But you, Timothy, certainly know what I teach, and how I live, and what my purpose in life is. You know my faith, my patience, my love, and my endurance.

It’s not just about hearing some words, or even just studying those words.

The words interacted with people in a place and a culture and God did that on purpose.

Are we looking for God’s purpose amidst the scriptures?

The Central Message of the Greek Scriptures

Jesus Christ is the culmination of all that the people of God, since the creation of the world, hoped for.

This is the central message of all of Scripture but is fulfilled in the New Testament. Each aspect of the New Testament canon is vital to the beauty and legitimacy of the Divinity of Jesus Christ.

The gospel narratives give us an eyewitness account of the Godman Jesus.

If we only had the epistles or revelation our understanding of the nature and essence of Jesus would be hollow.

We don’t learn about a person primarily from the rules of their life but from their story.

The end product is helpful, but the process is what brings about intimacy.

The Gospels bring about the process of the humanity and divinity of Jesus in a profound way.

The narrative of God continues in the acts of the apostles but not with the person of Jesus.

The overt work of the Holy Spirit reinforces what we saw and believed all along in the Old Testament Scriptures: the pillar of fire, the cloud in the temple, the storm on the mountain with Moses.

God’s presence has been at work and is now the central Force of the Church.

The epistles serve a function of giving us an understanding of how the gospel is applied in various contexts and cultures.

The letters to the churches are a helpful blend of prescriptive instructions and descriptive conversations.

Paul, Peter and John are wrestling through the difficulties of learning to be led by Jesus’ Spirit in the midst of a very un-Jesus world.

The help it brings to us as believers now is incalculable.

The end must come. All things must be made new.

This is what God has promised and he does not disappoint.

He shares the vision with John on Patmos as a means of concluding the redemptive narrative.

There must be a culmination to the struggle that began in Genesis three.

Redemption is not complete unless the intimate communion with God is fulfilled and the “good” creation of humanity is reunited entirely with the Good Creator.

Conclusion

The New Testament completes the story of the Old Testament.

Movies that end without resolve are lame.

We are designed for completion. We are designed for wholeness.

We are designed for our Joy to be complete.

God through the person of Jesus Christ and the presence of the Holy Spirit are showing the nature, power and goodness of God in the new covenant.