The Gospel (1)

This is part one of chapter five of my book, Biblical Glasses.

The New Testament contains twenty-seven books, as mentioned in chapter one. The first four books are the Gospel accounts that proclaim the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The four Gospels present complimentary portraits of the Man known by non-Christians as Jesus of Nazareth. Matthew, an apostle of Jesus, focused on the fulfilled prophecies of Jesus’ life to show the Jews, his primary audience, that Jesus was the Messiah. Mark, writing to the Romans, focused on the miracles and acts of service Jesus performed. Luke, the only Gentile author in the New Testament, was a medical doctor writing to the Gentiles, so he focused on historical accuracy and Jesus’ teaching toward non-Jews and women. John, one of Jesus’ apostles and closest friends, focused on Jesus as God Incarnate and His purpose to come as Savior to overcome the power of sin once and for all.

The next Book of the New Testament, Acts, is a continuation of Luke’s Gospel. The Book of Acts, which will be explored in chapter six, described the early Church after Jesus had risen. The remaining New Testament Books are letters or epistles written to various people or churches throughout the region to teach more about Jesus Christ, including how to live by following Him.

The 400 years of history that transpire between the Old and New Testaments are well covered in both the apocrypha and secular history accounts. Recall from chapter three that Persia dominated much of the world during the early sixth, fifth, and late fourth centuries B.C., as the Jews’ made their three return trips to Israel from captivity. The final dominant Persian leader was Darius III, who ruled from 336–331 B.C.

Led by Alexander the Great, who ruled from 336–323 B.C., the Greek Empire conquered Persia. After a twelve-year struggle, the Seleucid dynasties sustained the Greek Empire. Despite many decades of peace under Greek-style rule, Middle Eastern strife returned, because the Greek democracy allowed individual governing of its many territories. Middle East regions often fought each other in civil wars; an evil king named Antiochus was amid the turmoil.

Hundreds of years before his time, the Old Testament prophets predicted the reign of Antiochus, who rose to power in the Middle East in 175 B.C. Suppressed throughout years of chaos, the Jews found relief with the aid of the Maccabees, a family of Hebrew people who fought to overthrow their regional government and restore Jewish tradition into the area. Hyrcanus served as their leader from 134–104 B.C.

The Roman government under Gaius Marius ruled peacefully over the entire region beginning in 104 B.C. Julius Caesar won battles in Spain around 61 B.C. He was assassinated in 44 B.C. at the hands of rebels led by Brutus and Cassius. The Roman Triumvirate, made up of Mark Antony, Octavian, and Lepidus, kept the Greek method of ruling large territories, which called for established governors to maintain peace in their respected regions.

For example, Herod the Great was appointed to govern the region of Judea (present day Israel, Jordan, southern Syria, and Lebanon) in 40 B.C.; he took control of Jerusalem, remodeled the Jewish Temple and built several pagan worship centers. Herod’s goal was ultimately to build his own reputation with Rome by maintaining peace in his district.

During Herod’s reign, Mark Antony fell in love with Cleopatra and moved to Egypt with her. Octavian did not approve, so he declared war against the two lovers. With the suicides of Antony and Cleopatra, the Triumvirate came to an end. From 27 B.C. until 14 A.D., the Roman Empire was ruled alone by Augustus Caesar, formerly known as Octavian.

Between 9–5 B.C., God sent the angel Gabriel to a priest named Zechariah. The angel told him that his wife, Elizabeth, despite her old age, would have a child who would fulfill Old Testament prophecy by preparing the way for the Savior to come.

Six months later, Gabriel appeared to a young woman named Mary, who was engaged to a builder named Joseph; Mary was also Elizabeth’s cousin. The angel told her to expect a child; but since Mary was still a virgin, she did not understand how it would come to pass. Nevertheless, she had faith that God would use her to accomplish His will. An angel also appeared to Joseph, explaining that Mary had not been unfaithful to him, that it was by the Holy Spirit Mary would give birth to the Savior. Joseph had good reason to divorce Mary on account of her apparent unfaithfulness; but he was reassured of Mary’s faithfulness by the angel, so their engagement remained in effect.

Not long with child, Mary went to visit Elizabeth, who was further along in her pregnancy. “When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit” (Luke 1:41). Elizabeth’s baby knew Jesus was near! Mary stayed with Elizabeth for three months then returned home. Elizabeth gave birth to a boy; he was named John, just as the angel had prescribed.

Months later, Mary and Joseph traveled to Bethlehem to register for the mandatory census authorized by Augustus. According to secular history, this census was demanded between 8–4 B.C. Because all descendants of King David had to register in Bethlehem, the town was packed; there was no room for Mary and Joseph to stay at the inn. They settled in a stable for the night, and there Jesus was born.

The stable was not pretty like the nativity scenes make it out to be; Baby Jesus was laid in a manger, a feeding trough carved from rock inside a stable, a dreary cave used for keeping animals out of the weather. It was the least likely entrance into this world that the Jews expected from their promised King and Savior, but that is exactly how God often works. “‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,’ declares the Lord” (Isaiah 55:8).

Upon the birth of Jesus, an angel appeared to some shepherds in a nearby field, exclaiming with other angels that the Savior had been born. The shepherds visited Baby Jesus, honored and praised Him, and went around telling others that the Christ Child had been born in Bethlehem, according to Old Testament prophecy.

A short while after Jesus was born, Magi, wise men, came from the east, following a star to worship their promised Savior. They stopped in Jerusalem to ask the whereabouts of the newborn King of the Jews. When Herod found out from them when the star had appeared, he sent them to Bethlehem and asked them to report back to him when they found the Child. Herod had evil intentions; he would not let the promised Savior come between him and the throne! Like most Jews, Herod expected the Messiah to rise to power as a political figure, stage a coup, and overthrow the government, thereby saving the Jews. The wise men found Jesus and presented to Him gifts of gold, incense, and myrrh. Then, having been warned in a dream not to tell Herod about the Messiah, the Magi returned to their homeland by a different route.

When Herod realized the wise men were not coming back, he “gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi” (Matthew 2:16). He was attempting to eliminate any threat to his throne. Fortunately, but not by coincidence, the Bible says Mary and Joseph escaped with Jesus to Egypt until Herod’s death in 4 or 3 B.C.

The birth of John the Baptist, Mary’s conception as a virgin, Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem, Herod’s command to kill the young boys, and the escape to and return from Egypt all fulfilled Old Testament prophecies, written hundreds of years earlier (see Isaiah 40:3, 7:14; Micah 5:2; Jeremiah 31:15; Hosea 11:1). We will examine more of the prophecies surrounding the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ later in this chapter.