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Four Perspectives on the Message of Christ

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Because the good news about Jesus Christ is for all nations (Gen 12:3, Is 66:18-20, Matt 28:19-20, Acts 11:17-18), the message has some inherent flexibility. It can be delivered in various ways to various people at various times.

Please don’t misunderstand: I’m not saying there are no false gospels (nor that any message = God’s message). I’m merely saying that the true gospel can’t be oversimplified to a single, universal formula. For example, “Jesus is Lord,” “Jesus is the Christ,” “Jesus died for our sins,” and “The Kingdom of God is among you” are all biblical and have their place, and each formula will resonate differently for different people groups (or even different individuals).

I believe that’s why God didn’t give a single portrait of Jesus in the New Testament. To communicate the breadth of his grace to the nations, God gave four Gospels, which provide four lenses through which we can view the work of Christ.

All four perspectives are true. All four are important. Each speaks truth in a slightly different way, though there’s significant overlap between them.

And each Gospel lens triggers further reflection on the person and work of Christ in the epistles.

As you read the New Testament, consider these subdivisions:

Kathryn Decker (2013), Creative Commons

Kathryn Decker (2013), Creative Commons

  1. Matthew: with James, Hebrews, Jude
  2. Mark: with 1 & 2 Peter
  3. Luke: with Acts, Romans, 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon
  4. John: with 1, 2, & 3 John, Revelation

Perspective #1: By Jews, for Jews

These books show Jesus fulfilling the Old Testament; he’s everything the Jews had been waiting for. These books clarify points of continuity and discontinuity between Old and New Testaments, and they preach the gospel to people familiar with the things of God.

Perspective #2: Peter’s Perspective

Mark was Peter’s close associate (1 Peter 5:13), and many scholars have noted Peter’s hand in Mark’s Gospel. Many episodes read like Peter’s memoirs (such as, Mark 1:36, 14:72). Mark’s Gospel and Peter’s epistles have a strong sense of “doing,” with comparatively little emphasis on “teaching.” These books preach the gospel to people who feel out-of-place in their world and who appreciate knowing just the facts.

Perspective #3: Paul’s Perspective

There’s a strong case for identifying Luke-Acts as a trial brief written to aid Paul’s defense in Roman court. Undoubtedly, Luke was Paul’s close associate and one of his only companions to the end (2 Tim 4:11). Thus, Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, influenced Luke’s Gospel, where Jesus gives more attention to Gentiles and marginalized outsiders than he does in any other Gospel. Luke, Acts, and Paul’s epistles preach the gospel to people working through the implications of God’s grace and his “all nations” mission.

Perspective #4: John’s Perspective

John was a Jew through and through, and he had a remarkable tenderness in relationships (John 13:23-25). His Gospel and epistles assume unfathomably profound associations between Old and New Testaments, while simultaneously simplifying the message with such clarity that anyone can understand it. Son of God. Believe. Know. Love. Come, Lord Jesus. These books preach the gospel to people who need to learn (or re-learn) the basics.

Read, Study, Preach

These four subdivisions don’t represent the only way to read the New Testament; they merely provide a framework I’ve found to be helpful. Each perspective is like a set of tracks for shipping the cargo of the gospel to a different group of people. As you read the New Testament, you may find it helpful to stay on one track for a time, or you may find it helpful to maintain balance in all four.

As you teach and share the gospel with others, you may want to consider which track is most likely to connect with your audience. Are they already familiar with God or not? Do they have basic Bible knowledge or not? Do they feel like a minority or majority in their environment? Are they likely to feel excluded, and so need more coaxing? Or are they more likely to feel included, and so need more confrontation?

And with a more diverse audience, we have a greater need to cycle through all four perspectives.

Question: Which perspective resonates the most with you?

The Danger of Following Without Understanding

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Image-Jonathan_EdwardsIn our generation, many churches have honed their focus on the gospel of Christ’s grace. This is a very good thing.

Good teachers and useful books abound. Sermon audio multiplies more rapidly than loaves and fishes. Such resources are more plentiful and more available than ever before.

As a result, many thousands of churches fill their pulpits with clones of John Piper, RC Sproul, John MacArthur, Mark Driscoll, or Tim Keller.

Many can imitate the style of great teachers. But can they replicate the study of great teachers? Can you show how your ideas come from the Bible, or do you simply mimic what you’ve heard others say?

Erik Raymond at the Ordinary Pastor blog reflects on a few of these questions. He concludes that without effective Bible study skills “we are susceptible to losing what we have. If we are just fan-boys then we may follow a new theological band someday. If we are just fan-boys then we can’t train a new generation to discover these truths themselves.”

These important issues illuminate why we want to help ordinary people learn to study the Bible. Please continue learning from good teachers. And keep taking what you learn right back to the Scripture.

Erik’s post may challenge you. Check it out!

 

You are Now Approved to Study the Bible

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Sometimes people don’t study the Bible because they feel unqualified.  I’m here to tell you that you’re ready.  You’ve graduated.  You’re accepted for the position.

I just finished a 41-part series on how to study the Bible, but that’s not the source of your credentials.  Your qualifications go much deeper.  Consider Paul’s exhortation to Timothy.

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth (2 Tim 2:15, ESV).

Observe Paul’s command: “present yourself to God as one approved.”  The main verb is “present,” not “approve.”  We make all kinds of mistakes when we get this wrong.

Mistake #1: Present yourself to God to get his approval.

Sometimes we think we need to be qualified before we can approach the Lord (even through Bible study).  Paul says you’ve already been approved, so present yourself accordingly.

Mistake #2: Fail to present yourself, fearing God’s disapproval.

This mistake is the ugly stepchild of the first one.  Sinners who think they need God’s approval eventually stop trying to get it.  They keep failing, so they give up.

Mistake #3: Present yourself to men as one approved.

This is the classic mistake of religious people.  We think that if others respect and appreciate us, we must have arrived.  Either we seek people’s approval, or we act superior as those already approved.  In either case, we focus on the wrong thing – ourselves.

Mistake #4: Present others to God as one approved.

We make this mistake when we find our worth in the success of those we lead.  The Judaizers in Galatia were guilty of this error (Gal 6:13), as am I.  Every week in my 5-and-6-year-old Sunday school class, we sing a song with the names of the books of the Bible.  Subsequently, parents express amazement at how well their children know all the books.  It must mean I’m a great teacher, which must mean I’m gaining God’s approval for my service…

The Challenge: Present yourself to God as one approved.

You don’t need to get approved.  You are approved.  Notice what Paul wrote to Timothy earlier in the chapter:

You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus (2 Tim 2:1).

Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel (2 Tim 2:8).

[The elect] may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory (2 Tim 2:10).

Remind them of these things (2 Tim 2:14).

Paul repeatedly draws attention to the fact that we can’t earn God’s approval.  Our reconciliation with God is initiated by grace, accomplished by Jesus’ death and resurrection, and accompanied by eternal glory.  Timothy must constantly remind his people of these things.

He must constantly remind himself.  We must remind ourselves.  “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved.”  It’s hard work to remember these things.

So I remind you.  Don’t study the Bible to get approved.  Study it because you’re already approved.

Jesus died and rose for you to qualify you for a position close to God.  Now, do your best to remember it.  As you remember it, you’ll be ready handle the word of truth rightly because you’ll see this message of grace on every page.

Miss the message of grace, and you’ll no longer handle the word rightly.  But if you trust in Christ you’re still approved, so you can keep trying each day to get it right.

See How to Study the Bible for help along the way.