Why God Gave Us Four Gospels: How to Gain a Greater Revelation of Jesus

The four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John form the foundation of the New Testament and are a bridge between the Law of the Old Testament and the grace of the New Testament.

The Old Testament cannot be properly understood without the revelation of Jesus that the New Testament gives, for all the Law and the prophets pointed to Jesus (1 Pet. 1:10–12). The symbolism of the tabernacle and sacrifices, along with the ordinances of the Law, were all shadows or pictures of Christ (Col. 2:16–17).

Likewise, the New Testament cannot be fully appreciated without an adequate understanding of the Old Testament. A person without the knowledge of God’s judgment on the sin of adultery, as revealed in Exodus 20:14, Leviticus 18:20, and 20:10, would not realize the extent of God’s love and forgiveness as revealed in John 8:3–11.

Therefore, it is fitting that the combination of the Old and New Covenants comprise God’s Word to us, but, as Christians, it is imperative that we realize the difference between the two and live exclusively under the New Covenant as revealed in the twenty-seven books of the New Testament (Gal. 3:11–14, 5:1; Heb. 7:18–19, and 8:7–13).

The Gospels reveal Christ unto us. Certainly not everything that Jesus did is revealed (John 20:30–31 and 21:25), but the accounts given by the Gospel writers reveal the very nature and person of Jesus. Even with all of the great doctrinal truths revealed in the epistles, our total picture of God would not be complete without the accounts of Jesus’ life and ministry.

Jesus is the express image of God’s person (Heb. 1:3). Jesus said of Himself, “he that hath seen me hath seen the Father” (John 14:9). So, in recording the events of Jesus’ life, the Gospel writers teach by precept what the epistles teach through doctrine. The Gospels are written from a viewpoint that refrains from interpretation and expounding doctrine, letting the life and actions of Jesus speak for themselves.

Many sources are highly authoritative in establishing the authorship of the Gospels. However, except for Luke and John, these sources base authorship on external evidence (evidence found outside the Bible itself). While not ignoring external evidence, we should refrain from stating as fact anything that cannot be shown in Scripture.

Similarly, the dates the Gospels were written cannot be established on internal scriptural evidence either. Some scholars believe that all four Gospels were written within four years of each other, from AD 60 to 64, while others have placed them as being written as much as sixty-five years apart.

It is evident from the introduction to Luke’s Gospel that many had tried to give an account of Jesus’ earthly ministry (Luke 1:1). Therefore, an official record of these events was necessary. Based on external evidence, the accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John were unquestionable and accepted by the church as Scripture as early as the second century. Before the year AD 200, the writings of Irenaeus, Clement, and Tertullian all mention the general acceptance of the books composing the New Testament canon.

These four Gospels have stood the test of time and have come to us as the inspired scriptural account of Jesus’ life and ministry.

The need for four Gospels becomes apparent upon studying them. Each Gospel was written with a specific purpose in mind for a specific group of people. Therefore, taken as a whole, they present a complete picture of Jesus to all men. To combine all the events and different presentations of the events into one Gospel would make such a voluminous work that the overall story would be lost, and many would not go to the effort of studying out these truths.