Biblical Reflections

The letter to the Romans is the Apostle Paul’s magnum opus, or great work.  Here Paul gives a complete and thorough doctrinal basis for the gospel message and for how that should be applied in a person’s life after believing in faith.  Many people witness the gospel from Romans by citing several verses that make statements.  This practice is known as the Romans Road.  In this episode we will present the Romans Road through a series of five-questions.  Luke portrays Jesus in his gospel as teaching by asking questions.   

The Gospel of Luke is written by the only non-Jewish, non-Hebrew writer in the Bible.  Luke is the gospel of inclusion, specifically calling to women, underprivileged, and non-Jewish gentiles.  The key verse in Luke is 19:10, for the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.  

The Gospel of Mark is short and full of action scenes.  Unlike Matthew, who presents Jesus giving five great oral teaching dissertations, Mark presents Jesus saying very little, and with no long sermons.  Rather than what Jesus says, we learn who Jesus is and why he came by what he does.  Mark and Matthew are two diametrically opposed teaching methods, which carry the same message.  In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus is not presented as a king but as a suffering servant.  For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.  Mark 10:45

The Gospel of Matthew is the transition between the Old and the New Testaments.  Matthew is writing to Jews living outside of Israel to tell them that in Jesus all of the prophecies and the promises of the Old Testament have been fulfilled.  The key verse for Matthew is 5:17, where Jesus says that he did not come to abolish the law and the prophets but to fulfill them.  Matthew presents Jesus as the Messianic King, the descendant of King David, and the new Moses, who presents a New Covenant and a New Law.

Paul’s Letter to the Galatians is likely his earliest letter in the New Testament and his most stern letter.  He is upset that people in the churches in Galatia are turning from a gospel of “grace through faith” to a different gospel of “grace through faith plus obedience to the Law of Moses” in order to be saved.  This is an intense presentation of the Gospel.  This is the book that turned the heart of Martin Luther to salvation and became his constant companion when preaching the gospel during the Reformation.

The Gospel of John is a deep, deep book, that is exquisitely written.  While we focused on the person of the Apostle John and his first epistle, 1 John, in Episode 1 of this series, here we take a look at the Gospel of John.  John says that he wrote this Gospel so that we, the readers, would believe that Jesus is the Christ, that is the Messiah, God come in the flesh, who died to take away the sins of the world, and that believing this truth we would have eternal life in Christ Jesus.

The testimony of the Angels is reported to us in scripture by Mary, the Mother of Jesus.  Mary tells us that the Angel Gabriel told her she would give virgin birth to the Messiah.  Mary reported what the shepherds told her that the angels had said to them on the night Jesus was born.  Mary told us what the angel of God said to her betrothed, Joseph, that Mary was pregnant with the Messiah by reason of the Holy Spirit and that she was still a virgin.  And she waited 50-years to be able to tell her story.

The testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ by the early church is recorded in 1 Corinthians 15:1-11.  Taken on its face, it is a masterful, legal presentation of concentric rings of evidence, consisting of different witnesses, with different perspectives, sympathies, indifference, and even opposition, yet who all testified that Jesus is God come in the flesh, who died to take away the sins of the world.  After reading this, no objective person can deny that there is enough evidence to prove the Gospel Message.

The Apostle Paul was a Type A++++ personality, who always graduated first in his class. Unlike Peter, Paul, as a Pharisee, thought that if he could work hard enough, he could get to heaven on his own merit.  And so, God broke Paul, over and over and over.  Finally, in his old age, Paul could say with confidence in his letters, it is not my work or my accomplishments, but God’s grace that has saved me.

The Apostle Peter was the oldest of the disciples.  He was not an ignorant fisherman.  He could read and speak four-languages; he ran a small business; he was an accomplished speaker; and he wrote two of the letters in the New Testament.  Unlike the other disciples, Peter knew that he was not good enough.  Peter constantly failed, yet our Lord in his mercy restored Peter each time.  Peter’s testimony of the Gospel emphasizes not only God’s grace but also God’s mercy, in not giving Peter what he deserved.