#synoptics

Who Really Wrote the Gospels?

John never lists all of the Twelve Disciples and names at least one disciple, Nathanael, whose name is not found in the Synoptics.

When I read the Synoptic gospels (Matthew through Luke), I'm struck with how different they are from the gospel of John. More conservative Christians would say that they present varying emphases, but the same essential message. I used to say that, too, until intellectual honesty caught up with me. The message of John, I now maintain, is so different than the preceding gospels that it barely seems like the same religion. In John, everything comes down to believing in Jesus. "Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son" (John 3:18). That text has many equivalents in John – none in the Synoptics (as far as I can tell).  In the Synoptics, Jesus never seems to offer simple faith in himself (plus nothing) as the deciding factor in the struggle between darkness and light. Rather, inward purity, love and good works determine who is with God and who isn't. In Matthew, love for our enemies makes us God's children (5:44-45); we receive forgiveness by forgiving others (6:14-15); our righteousness must exceed that of the Scribes and Pharisees (5:20); the Judgment turns upon how we have responded to the needy (25:31-46). There seems to be no call for a distinct "born again" experience in the first three gospels that involves a primal act of saving faith in "Jesus as Savior." Yes, people repent and go on to live renewed lives. But the evangelical idea of turning from one's own righteousness to receive a free, perfect righteous from Jesus is an concept alien to those writings. Also, the Synoptics speak far less about "eternal life" than about the Kingdom of God, a reality that was ready to break in upon that generation. That kingdom was a realm that one entered via radical righteousness – not by one act of justifying faith. "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven" (Matt. 7:21). The dogmatic Christians with whom I've discussed these matters tell me I'm dead wrong. The New Testament paints a perfectly unified portrait of salvation and righteousness, they insist. In the Synoptic gospels, Jesus is simply enjoining upon us the logical aftereffects of the conversion experience (by faith alone). I can't help but wonder what they would admit as a negation of their claims. Had Jesus said, "black is black," in Matthew and, "black is white," in John, I'm confident that my disputants would have a ready argument to dispense with the difficulty. Theological necessity will always find a way. What is the upshot of all this? Must we choose between the Synoptics and John? Or should we accept a religion that amounts to a synthesis of both? I have come to the conclusion that the first three gospels probably contain a more accurate account of what Jesus said and did than John's gospel. Accordingly, the Synoptics hold a more prominent place in my Christian faith and life. Let everyone be persuaded in his or her own mind. If John is your doorway into a life of love and exalted goodness (as it is for many), I certainly won't lodge a protest.

View On WordPress

17.6.17 || I promised myself I was going to actually upload to this blog more, even if it was a text post. Once again, I have failed to do so because of my idle procrastinating ass. Here's a quick update (more for myself than anyone else): - So, I have survived Synoptics week! I genuinely revised well for English Language, and I feel as if I understood the paper. Well, I answered it with about 6/8 pages worth of writing anyways. It consisted of Paper 1, Section A, Analysis of two text and a comparison and also Paper 2, section B, a varieties question. Odd to think that that's everything we've learned in just under a year! Text A was a bit shite as it was a leaflet but Text B proved better, and I managed to pick out some high grade features (hopefully correctly) and had a crack at the comparison question although I doubt that fared as well :/ the varieties question was based on gender, my strong topic, but I forgot to include some examples. I'd love an A but I doubt I'll get one, which is really disheartening. English Literature was a weird paper. It seemed too easy, and with the arrival of my new teacher I'll be lucky to have scraped a C. Lit used to be my favourite subject that I was getting As in, with my favourite teacher and now it's gone to pot. I know that my grade will be rubbish and will effect any chance I have of getting into a Russel Group uni :( Luckily, I sat the media exam in may, leaving me a lovely sunny day off! I gave my horse a much needed bath and also went to my exercise class. If I don't get an A in media, I will absolutely kick myself, and will reconsider sitting my first year of college again. Unfortunately, I won't find out until August! - It seems everybody but me is sitting their EPQ (extended qualification project). You needed AAA in your spring Synoptics to do it and I got AAB, even with speaking to my tutor he isn't allowing me to do it, as "it'll distract me from my other studies". However, with this EPQ I can have my university entry requirements lowered! Which would be much much better and relieve some of my anxieties! I'd write my epq on equestrian shit, so it'd be useful too, or maybe books! If I get AAA in these summer exams, then I can do it, but I highly doubt this will happen - Today, I went to Leeds Beckett university open day, and by god, I am in love! I think I've now got my heart set on doing a liberal arts degree, majoring in English and combining it with the theatre, performance and music module, literature and visual arts module, and either the history or politics module! It's meant to be super diverse and would be more than suitable for my career choice, much more than comparative English anyhow! But the entry requirements are AAA, so I better get studying! I've bought a life planner today, so I'm going to attempt to actually use this blog, as well as set up a blog on a different site as a personal journal. Hopefully I'll upload some pictures soon, who knows! My friend has made an Instagram studyblr and it's reminded me to use this blog again. Happy Saturday everybody!

Let it rain! #thunder #thunderstorm #storm #lightning #ipnone #nature #fury #urban #weather #forecast #badweather #wet #rainy #rainynight #synoptics

Studying relatively hard, aided by my #mighty #malmö pen! #semiotics #synoptics #lastpush

#freddie #synoptics #project #cobblers #breakdown #hashtag #1togo #finalyear #university #malta