This week we are in part two of session two in our “Case for the New Testament” series. Last week, in part one, we looked at the history, and God’s preparation for the coming of His Son, during the “Intertestamental period” (the 400 years between the Old and New Testaments). This week we are covering some cultural elements and background of the first century for the four Gospels and the beginning of New Testament history. This is important to overview before diving into a study of a book of the New Testament so that you can properly understand the context as it was written to the original audience.

Here is this week’s class presentation for this topic:

Overview notes from the presentation

Introduction to the Gospels
Matthew – Mark – Luke – John

Historical and Cultural Context of the Gospels

Politically – A Roman world

Culturally – A Greek world

Religiously (in Jerusalem) – A Jewish world

Languages – Hebrew, Greek, Aramaic, Latin

Dates Written (traditional conservative)

Matthew: Late 50’s early 60’s

Mark: Mid to late 50’s

Luke: Early 60’s

John: Late 80’s early 90’s

The following is from Greg Koukl at STR.org – “A Short Argument for the Early Dating of the Gospels”

“Acts shows Mark can be dated in the 50s, and the undisputed early dating of other books confirms that the Jesus of the Gospels was not the result of a myth evolving over time.

The so-called “search for the historic Jesus” is over one hundred years old. Virtually nothing discovered during that time undermines the Gospel accounts. There is no “new evidence” supporting the idea that the miracle-working Son of God was the result of an evolution of myth over a long period of time. To the contrary, recent discoveries have given more credibility to the content of the Gospels themselves.

Also, we know the Apostle Paul died during the Neronian persecution of A.D. 64. Paul was still alive at the close of Acts, so that writing came some time before A.D. 64. Acts was a continuation of Luke’s Gospel, which must have been written earlier still. The book of Mark predates Luke, even by the Jesus Seminar’s reckoning. This pushes Mark’s Gospel into the 50s, just over twenty years after the crucifixion.

It is undisputed that Paul wrote Romans in the mid-50s, yet he proclaims Jesus as the resurrected Son of God in the opening lines of that epistle. Galatians, another uncontested Pauline epistle of the mid-50s, records Paul’s interaction with the principle disciples (Peter and James) at least 14 years earlier (Gal 1:18, cf. 2:1).

The Jesus Seminar claims that the humble sage of Nazareth was transformed into a wonder-working Son of God in the late first and early second century. The epistles, though, record a high Christology within 10 to 20 years of the crucifixion. That simply is not enough time for myth and legend to take hold, especially when so many were still alive to contradict the alleged errors of the events they personally witnessed.

There is no good reason to assume the Gospels were fabricated or seriously distorted in the retelling. Time and again the New Testament writers claim to be eyewitnesses to the facts. And their accounts were written early on while they’re memories were clear and other witnesses could vouch for their accounts. The Gospels are early accounts of Jesus’ life and deeds.”

Sects and other groups in first century Judaism:

The Pharisees

• Term means “separated ones” in a ritualistic sense
• Originated shortly after the Maccabean revolt
• Consisted of middle-class laymen
• Largest sect numbering ~6,000 at the time of Herod the Great
• Held to the Rabbinic and Mosaic laws in a very strict sense but would find loopholes and create new regulations to get around things they wanted to do

The Sadducees

• Aristocratic heirs that had more power than the Pharisees because they controlled the priesthood
• Regarded only the first five books of the Bible (Torah) as fully authoritative and denied the oral law of the non-priestly rabbis
• Did not believe in angels, spirits, immortality of the soul or the resurrection of the body

The Essenes

• A group that had become disgruntled with the increasing political aim of the Pharisees
• Some lived in monastic communities (such as the one at Qumran that produced the Dead Sea Scrolls)
• They had very strict requirements, admission mandated a two or three year probationary period and relinquishment of all possessions to a communal treasury
• They either refrained from marriage or they stopped cohabiting with their wives
• To symbolize their purity, they would wear white robes

The Herodians

• A small minority of influential and politically minded Jews who were centered in Galilee where Herod Antipas ruled
• They supported the Herodian dynasty and the Roman Government

The Zealots

• Revolutionaries who refused to pay taxes and were dedicated to overthrowing Roman power
• They believed it was sinful to acknowledge Caesar as a god and they refused to give loyalty to him
• They sparked several uprisings including the final Jewish revolt that led to the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.

The Scribes

• They originated with Ezra, according to tradition, and interpreted and taught the Old Testament Law in the Temple precincts and synagogues
• They acted as lawyers on cases brought to them
• Most belonged to the Pharisaical sect, though not all Pharisees were scribes

The Sanhedrin

• The Jewish Supreme Court presided over by the high priest along with seventy members who came from both the Pharisees and Sadducees
• They met daily in Jerusalem, except for Sabbaths and other holy days, to govern domestic and religious matters, and they even commanded their own police force under the authority of the Roman Government
• The New Testament also refers to them by the terms council, chief priests, elders, and rulers

Hermeneutical Keys to Interpreting and Understanding the Gospels:

1. Because the Gospels are historical narratives the author and audience to whom it was originally written, and the broader context of the passages, are extremely important.
2. The Gospels demand background information regarding historical context, culture and social norms.

Great resources for background:

Playing With Fire, by Walt Russell—reading the Bible with interpretation

Killing Jesus, by Bill O’Rilley and Martin Dugard—the history and culture of the times

The Essential Bible Companion series—contains hermeneutics along with culture and historical content

3. Read the entire Gospel in one sitting then focus on studying specific passages (Note: thoughts and stories sometimes flow across chapters because chapters and verse were not there originally).
4. One of the primary goals of the Gospel writers is to provide evidence that Jesus is the Messiah, God incarnate – look at the Gospel teachings through that lens.
5. The central theme of the Gospels focuses on the Kingdom of God now and to come.
6. The Gospels are eyewitness accounts given by people who recorded first-hand experiences of Jesus, the Jewish Messiah’s life and ministry in the first century (unlike the Gnostic presentations of Jesus found in the second century and on).
7. The Gospels present the “New Covenant” and show how Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament Covenants through His victory over death including Satan’s attempt to crush the righteous seed.
8. The Gospels demonstrate Jesus’ fulfillment of the promised Messiah from a multitude of prophecies in the Old Testament.
9. The Gospels present the “Good News” of Jesus Christ who brings us Salvation by the grace of God (hesed) and not of our own abilities—and we are commanded to share this “Good News” with others.
10. The Gospels reveal the character of God through the person of Jesus.
11. The Gospels present The Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, given to us by Jesus when we come to faith in Him. The Holy Spirit is the teacher of truth—God’s truth about life, human purpose, and eternal destiny found in the Holy Scriptures.
12. The Gospels give Jesus’ teachings on end times (apocalyptic) including glimpses of Heaven versus hell (also known as eschatology) 

With four different Gospels it is important to do comparisons in order to understand the perspectives and intent of the writers as eyewitnesses, or as taken from eyewitness accounts. We will look at that next week in Part 3 of our “History and Background” session of this class.

Reflection: Memorization Practice

To practice your memorization skills, and to improve your Biblical knowledge, practice memorizing the following things…

1. Review the Ministry Statement’s four focus points for your Christian Walk (from the “Class Introduction” post). Reflect on how you think you are doing in each area, or how you might make improvements.
2. Recite, and practice memorizing in order to tell the story, the 15 points for the Bible’s Big Picture from last week’s post.
3. Recite, and practice memorizing the 27 books of the New Testament, in order by their categories, from last week’s post.

Bible Study

(Review answers will be posted during the week so you can have a “leader’s guide” for your own studies)

Always remember to pray before you study and ask the Holy Spirit to teach you and lead you into the truth found in God’s Word – pray for protection from the evil one who will try to discourage, distract and deceive us when we commit to growing closer to the LORD.

NOTE: Questions are taken directly from the chapters, and answers should be found and cited from the Scripture text in order to be Biblically accurate (unless asked to summarize in your own words). Study Bibles, commentaries and your own thoughts can be used for “Discussion” or “Going Deeper” questions.

Read Acts chapters five and six then, to the best of your ability, answer the following questions:

The fate of Ananias and Sapphira; Peter and the Apostles arrested; The choosing of the seven

1. Read Chapter 5:1-16 with your Table Group

In the first part of this chapter, we find “the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul” sharing all that they had with each other (see 4:32-37), but…

a. Even though the Holy Spirit had come, believers were not immune to Satan’s temptations. Describe what Ananias and Sapphira had done. Who did they sin against?

b. Discuss: Why was the sin of Ananias and Sapphira dealt with so severely at this time in the history of the Church, and what effect did it have on the people?

c. Discuss: At this time in Church history, the Apostles were able to perform all kinds of miracles, including healing. Why don’t we see these kinds of miracles today, or do we?

2. Read Chapter 5:17-42 with your Table Group

In the second part of this chapter, Peter and the Apostles are arrested (again):

a. Why were the Apostles arrested this time, and how did an angel of the Lord help them escape?

b. Where did they find the Apostles after they escaped; and when they were brought back to the council how did Peter and the Apostles answer them this time?

c. What was Gamaliel’s counsel to the Jewish rulers? Going Deeper: Who was Gamaliel and where else is he talked about in Scripture?

d. Discuss: Write down and share two or three things that you think are important to remember about chapter five.

3. Read Chapter 6:1-15 with your Table Group

In this chapter, the Apostles assign specific duties for the young Church to address certain concerns, and we meet a man named Stephen:

a. What was the complaint that the Hellenistic Jews had, and how did the Apostles decide to handle this complaint? Discuss: What might have happened had they not taken care of this disturbance right away? Going Deeper: Who were the “Hellenistic Jews”?

b. Who was Stephen? What did he do to upset the men from “the Synagogue of the Freedmen” and how did they respond?

c. Going Deeper: Who were these men that rose up against Stephen, and what was “the Synagogue of the Freedmen”?

d. Discuss: Write down and share two or three things that you think are important to remember about chapter six.

Join us next week as we continue our “Case for the New Testament” and a study in Acts! 

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You will not find this material in the public school curriculum even though it is based on solid evidence and grounded in research. It is ironic that following the evidence to where it leads stops at the door of our public schools as they will not let a “Divine footprint” in!  Join us as we examine evidence for Christianity and learn how to become a thoughtful defender and ambassador of your faith.

Click into the resource page of this website to view many of the top Christian thinkers and apologists along with some of their work; connecting to these types of resources is essential in your Christian growth.

Please let me know what you think: Give feedback, ask questions or send concerns in the comment section of the blog.

Teri Dugan

TeriDugan@truthfaithandreason.com

1 Peter 3:15