MATTHEW
Why is Matthew the 1st Gospel
1. Matthew offers the most extensive coverage of Jesus’ teachings
2. Matthew is most concerned with the nature and function of the Church
2 full chapters (10 & 18) are devoted to guidance of the Christian community
3. Matthew forms a strong connecting link with the Hebrew Bible (O.T.)
HOW DOES MATTHEW EDIT?
90% of Mark is in Matthew
Matthew inserts 5 large blocks of teachings:
Sermon on the Mount (5)
Instructions to the Apostles (10)
Parables on the Kingdom (13)
Instructions to the Church (18)
Final Judgement (23-25)
HOW DOES MATTHEW EDIT?
"Q" source - some of the material in the 5 teaching sections is identical to material found in Luke; but NOT found in Mark.
"M" source - material found only in Matthew
example = Vineyard & Laborers parable (20:1-16); and many of the kingdom pronouncements (13).
MATTHEW’S PORTRAIT OF JESUS: THE GREAT TEACHER!!
Matthew’s gospel presents a comprehensive collection of Jesus’ ethical teachings and provides a behavioral guide for the early church.
Jesus as the great Torah interpreter; 60 times Matthew either quotes from, paraphrases, or mentions the Hebrew Bible.
MATTHEW’S PORTRAIT OF JESUS: THE GREAT TEACHER!!
Jesus is Israel’s true Messiah; he fulfills propheses from the Hebrew Bible.
Matthew dilutes Mark’s apocalyptic message by adding parables that picture the church making converts before Jesus returns.
Adds infancy narrative, 5 teaching sections, and a resurrection narrative.
LUKE-ACTS
Jesus: a Savior for all Nations!
Key themes:
- Luke is Part 1 of a 2-volume work: a) The Gospel; b) a history of the early Church.
- Luke emphasizes the HOLY SPIRIT and PRAYER.
- Writes for a Gentile audience; a faith for all people.
LUKE-ACTS
Jesus: a Savior for all Nations
Jesus is portrayed as a gracious forgiver of sins; kindness towards the powerless in society.
Luke has less apocalyptic urgency.
Luke was probably a gentile physician writing after the fall of the Temple, 70ce
Luke apparently had no knowledge of Paul’s letters.
LUKE-ACTS
Jesus: a Savior for all Nations
Parables unique to Luke’s Gospel
Drawn from the "L" source:
Two Forgiven Deptors (7:41-43)
The Good Samaritan (10:29-37)
The Prodigal Son (15:11-32)
The Lost Coin ((15:8-10)
Lazarus and the Rich Man (16:19-31)
LUKE’S USE OF SOURCES
"L" SOURCE - includes unique material: birth stories, prayers, anecdotes about woman, parables of forgiveness.
Luke uses 45-50% of Mark; generally follows Mark’s chronology.
Like in Mark and Matthew, the Hebrew Bible provides another source; Luke uses OT images and themes.
LUKE’S USE OF SOURCES
Luke adds two large blocks of teaching materials to Mark’s material:
lesser interpolation (6:20-8:3) - includes Luke’s version of the Sermon on the Mount; shares the same "Q" source f Jesus’ sayings
greater interpolation (9:51-18:14) - presents Jesus’ teaching on the road from Galilee to Jerusalem; composed of "Q" and "L" material
LUKE’S PORTRAIT OF JESUS
LUKE’S "L" MATERIAL PAINTS A PORTRAIT OF JESUS AS A GENTILE SHEPHERD TENDING HIS FLOCK
IN LUKE, JESUS SHOWS CONCERN FOR THE POOR, THE MARGINALIZED, AND WOMEN; ILLUSTRATES JESUS’ REDEMPTIVE KINDNESS
TYPICAL LUKAN IDEAS
Jesus’ kingdom demands a radical change in society’s present social and religious values.
Jesus as Savior: "Soter" figure for Gentile audiences
Luke: 1:69; 2:11
Acts: 3:13-15
only Luke uses this model for Jesus
THE IMPORTANCE OF PRAYER IN LUKE
Luke’s infancy narrative is full of prayers
The Holy Spirit descends on Jesus while he is in prayer (3:21)
Jesus chooses his disciples after prayer (6:12)
Jesus’ instructions on prayer are more extensive (11:1-13; 18:1-14)
THE HOLY SPIRIT IN LUKE
For Luke, Jesus’ career and the growth of Christianity are the direct result of the Holy Spirit.
Luke uses the term 14 times; more than Mark and Matthew together
Jesus is conceived & anointed after baptism by the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is conferred through prayer
THE HOLY SPIRIT IN LUKE
At death, Jesus commits his "spirit" to God (23:46)
In ACTS 2, the Holy Spirit reappears on the Day of Pentecost
Possession by the Holy Spirit confirms God’s acceptance (Acts 11: 15-18)
Church is led by the Holy Spirit!
THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JOHN
Date: between 90 and 100c.e. ; after some Christians were expelled from Jewish synagogues
Author:
Faith community = John, Son of Zebedee and brother of James; on of the 12 apostles
Scholars = anonymous work; fragments found in Egypt in the 2nd century
THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JOHN
Place of composition: Unknown
Audience: Johannine communities influenced by a uniquely high Christology:
belief in Jesus’ prehuman existence as Cosmic Wisdom (Logos)
proto-Gnostic group
JOHN’S PORTRAIT OF JESUS
Divine Wisdom Made Flesh
JOHN’S JESUS:
- the human form of God’s celestial Word
- the cosmic expression of divine Wisdom by which God created the universe
- Jesus’ crucifixion is not humiliating but a glorification that frees Jesus to return to heaven
- no Second Coming tradition
MAJOR DIFFERENCES BETWEEN JOHN AND THE SYNOPTICS
90% of John’s material is unique and has no parallel in the Synoptics
John has no birth story or reference to virginal conception
John has no record of Jesus’ baptism by John the Baptist
John has no period in the wilderness or temptation by Satan or exorcisms
MAJOR DIFFERENCES BETWEEN JOHN AND THE SYNOPTICS
John does not record a single parable of the synoptic type
John reports none of Jesus’ reinterpretation of the Mosaic Law
Prediction of Jerusalem’s fall is absent
John’s Jesus undergoes no agony before his arrest at Gethsemane
MAJOR DIFFERENCES BETWEEN JOHN AND THE SYNOPTICS
John contains no prophecy of Jesus’ Second Coming; Jesus is already present among believers in the form of the Paraclete
John does not preserve a communion ritual or the institution of a new covenant at the Last Supper
STAGES IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF JOHN
1. Oral tradition; independent from the Synoptic tradition
2. Shaping and developing of the Johannine material into a proto-gospel
3. Organization of the this material into a first edition
4. Re-editing after the death of the author