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The New Testament, or you might even say the last will and
testament of Jesus Christ, is actually a continuation of the Old
Testament. Jesus can be clearly seen from Genesis all the way
through Revelation. In fact, both Old and New are revealing the plan
of salvation for mankind through Jesus.
God gave the law to Moses and to His chosen people (The Hebrews).
They were not able to keep the law, and God gave them a more perfect
plan. The plan of salvation, not by works but by grace.
After Malachi, there were 400 silent years. There was a falling
away from God during this period, and the Apocrypha written during
this period was not accepted as inspired writings.
You see, faith has always been the one thing that gets God's
attention. Christianity came not unawares, but was actually the plan
of God all along for mankind.
God's plan for mankind's salvation could not, and even cannot
today, be worked out by the efforts of man.
The words "New Testament" are associated with the covenant God
made with mankind through His Son, Jesus Christ the Lord. It is the
last will and testament of Jesus Christ to the believers. He sealed
this covenant with His shed blood.
At the end of the fourth century, years after the death of Jesus
Christ, the books of the New Testament were first compiled.
The New Testament begins with the four gospels. "Four" means
universal and tells us this message is for the entire world. "Gospel"
means good news. So you see by this, that the good news of Jesus
Christ is for all the world.
You might say that the New Testament is the last will and
testament of Jesus Christ our Lord, making great and wonderful
provisions for His followers. Just as when any will is read, the
inheritors must prove their heirship. We have to lay hold to our
claim. Just as any will is not activated until the testator dies, so
is it with Jesus Christ our Lord. We could not lay claim to His gift
of salvation, until He died on the cross. As in any inheritance, we do
not pay for it. The beneficiaries just receive the blessings by
claiming inheritance through sonship.
This was God's plan from the beginning, when He promised a Savior
in Genesis 3:15 "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and
between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou
shalt bruise his heel."
The four gospels were written by four men who were well acquainted
with Jesus. Matthew, the tax collector (also known as Levi), was one
of the disciples of Christ. He was very knowledgeable of the Old
Testament. There are about 60 references to the prophecies in the Old
Testament in Matthew. Tax collectors were hated people, and Jesus was
criticized for choosing him. Matthew, in his writings, tried to
emphasize that Jesus fulfilled the promises of the coming of the
Messiah. Matthew shows the Kingship of Jesus, or if you will, the
Lion of the tribe of Judah. The genealogy that is shown is just for
another proof to the world of His right of Kingship. Jeremiah
prophesied in chapter 23 verse 5 of his book about this and I quote,
"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a
righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall
execute judgment and justice in the earth."
St. Mark, the second of the four gospels, was written by John
Mark, who was believed to be the son of Mary of Jerusalem. He was
related to Barnabas, probably, his nephew. Mark was a companion of
Peter. Many of the early writers believe that Peter wrote the book.
It is generally accepted that much of this book's information was
furnished by Peter. Mark shows Jesus as a servant to mankind.
Nineteen miracles are mentioned in Mark. Eight having to do with
disease, five show His power in nature, four show Jesus' authority
over demons, and two show His power and authority over death.
The gospel of Luke was written by Luke the physician. Luke was a
personal friend of Paul, probably, his doctor.
The gospel of St. John shows Jesus as God. The book of John
begins, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and
the Word was God". The eagle is symbolic of God. This gospel
completes the four faces mentioned in Revelation.
The writer of the book was John himself. The purpose of the book
is to instill faith in the believer of the deity of Jesus Christ, to
show Him as God manifest in the flesh.
St. John builds faith and points to eternal life in Jesus Christ.
You may have already recognized that this is my favorite book in all
the Bible. In the l4th chapter of John, we are told of the power to
heal, that we have when we ask in Jesus' name. I won't get into that
now. I am just explaining that St. John is a very powerful book.
The Acts of the Apostles are just what the name says. It is the
history of the early church.
Then most of the rest of the New Testament was written by Paul.
Beginning with Romans, we see letters to groups of people to instruct
them in right living. Then in Revelation (written by John), we see
the prophecy of the end times and the second coming of Christ.
Matthew 1 Questions
1. What could the New Testament be called?
2. Is Jesus confined to just the New Testament? Explain.
3. What are both the Old and New Testament revealing?
4. Who did God give the law to?
5. Describe the plan of salvation.
6. After Malachi, how many silent years were there?
7. The promises of mankind were descended from what three people?
8. Who was the father of the faithful?
9. What has always been the thing that gets God's attention?
l0. What are the words "New Testament" associated with? Name 2.
ll. When was the New Testament compiled?
l2. Why does it really not matter whether there were eight or nine
writers of the New Testament?
l3. What does "Gospel" mean?
l4. How many times in the Old Testament were there prophecies of
Jesus?
l5. What is spoken of as the last will and testament of Jesus?
l6. What must an inheritor prove?
l7. Why should we thoroughly read the Bible?
l8. What other name was Matthew known by?
l9. What did Matthew emphasize in his book?
20. What animal is symbolic of Kingship?
2l. What proof does the genealogy show?
22. In Mark's writings, what did he show Jesus as?
23. How many miracles are mentioned in Mark?
24. List the faces mentioned in Revelation and tell which of the four
gospels each reveal.
25. What is Jesus presented as in the book of Luke?
26. The gospel of St. John shows Jesus as what?
27. The eagle is symbolic of what?
28. What is the purpose of the book of St. John?
29. Who was the only disciple present at the crucifixion?
30. Who wrote most of the letters in the New Testament?
31. Which book shows the Fatherhood of God?
32. What is the Acts of the Apostles all about?
33. What is Revelation all about?
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