Christian Quest
Lesson 1-1

The Christian Quest Bible study program will begin with a series of lessons in a comparative study of the four Gospels of the "New Testament."

Lesson 1 provides an introduction to the New Testament, the foretelling of the births of John the Baptist and Jesus, and the forerunner ministry of John.

Reading:
Luke chapter 1, verses 1-80
Mark 1:1-8

Background

The great theme that binds the Old and New Testaments together is the expectation of the Messiah. The hope for a Messiah begins to gain strength in the later books of the Old Testament and becomes the main idea of the New, centering on Jesus Christ.

The terms Messiah and Christ derive respectively from the Hebrew and Greek words meaning anointed. They are rooted in the ancient ceremony of consecration, which bestowed special authority on a leader by anointing him with oil. The early Israelites believed that their kings and high priests were men set apart by an anointing blessed by God. When Babylonian armies conquered the Jews and disrupted the monarchy and the priesthood, the people fervently prayed for a Messiah to rule over them. They envisioned him as a mighty king descended from the great King David.

But as generations and centuries passed, their hopes were not fulfilled. Even in the second century BC, when Jewish independence was finally restored to some degree after many generations of foreign domination, no Messiah arose. The kings of Judea could not fulfill their people's dream because they were not descendants of David.

The last book of the Old Testament, Malachi, was probably written after the time of Ezra (about 458 BC) and it provides an important glimpse of life in Jerusalem in the first half of that century. The rebuilding the Temple, which had formerly been demolished by Babylon, had not realized the good life for Israel that the Jewish nation had anticipated, nor the restoration of the throne of David. Yet the hope that the line of David would bring forth a Messiah did not die.

During the next four centuries a time lapse occurs in the Bible between the Old Testement and the New. During that time, the crown of world domination passed from the Persians to the Greeks as Alexander the Great conquered and the Hellenist culture rose to world prominence. And it prevailed until the middle of the first century BC when Rome, a ruthless military conquerer, came mightily to power.

Polical and religious rifts between the Jewish sects of the Pharisees and the Sadducees led to Roman intervention in Judaea. Out of this chaos emerged an able usurper, Herod the Great, who was established by the Romans as client-king about the year 40 BC. For the better part of 40 years prior to the pivotal year of our common era (CE), Jewish history was dominated by King Herod. His diligent service for Rome gained approval with Caesar Augustus. His court was Hellenised and cultured. He founded the Greek cities of Samaria, and Caesarea with its impressive sea port. He was a master builder of fortresses and palaces, including Masada and a magnificent new temple in Jerusalem. He presided at the Olympic Games. He was a dictator with a police state and, despite his rebuilding of the Temple, he was regarded by the Jews as a detested foreigner. He reigned until his death at about the age of 69 in the year 4 BC. From this, and the account in Matthew about Jesus' birth while Herod was king in Judea, historians believe Jesus was born sometime between the years 6 and 4 BC.

The New Testament Begins

The New Testament begins with four over-lapping accounts about the one called Jesus the Messiah. They are: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. It is here that we will begin our journey of study into the Bible drama with a comparative study of these four Gospels in the order of events as they are recorded. The earliest events of the New Testament are documented in the first chapter of Luke. Of the four Gospels, only Luke gives the details about the birth of John who was destined to be the forerunner of Jesus Christ.

Reading:
Luke chapter 1, verses 1-80 . The births of John and of Jesus foretold.
Mark 1 verses 1-8. John's ministry.
Compare: Isa. 7:14 - prophecy of virgin birth.

Optional research:
Who was Luke?

Review questions:

• From what Israelite tribe was John the Baptist?
• How might John's birth to Elizabeth and Zechariah be compared to Isaac's birth to Abraham and Sarah?
• What indicates that Jesus and John must have been relatives?
• How much older was John than Jesus?
• What had people expected John to be named, and why were they surprised that he was named John?
• When he began his ministry, what was it about the way John dressed that would indicate to people he was a prophet? (Clue: Compare Mark 1:6 with 2Kings 1:8 and Zechariah 13:4.)