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The Overview of Matthew to Acts: The Gospels and Acts
A Story to Begin
A young nurse once told me about her first night shift in the emergency ward. She was terrified, machines beeping, patients crying, doctors rushing past. She didn’t know where to start. Then she noticed one senior nurse quietly moving from bed to bed, adjusting pillows, holding hands, whispering comfort. No one applauded her, but the atmosphere changed. The chaos became bearable because someone was serving.
That image captures the Gospel of Mark. Jesus enters history not with fanfare or royal announcements, but with service. He heals, teaches, and comforts. He moves “immediately” from one need to the next. Like that nurse, He shows that greatness is not in being served but in serving.
Why the Old Testament Matters
The Old Testament closes with unresolved tension. Much of its prophecy is only partially fulfilled. Many of its sacrifices remain unexplained. And its pages echo with unsatisfied longing.
David cries, “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God” (Psalm 42). Job voices the same ache: “Oh, that I knew where I might find him!”
The Old Testament is therefore a book of unfulfilled prophecy, unexplained sacrifice, and unsatisfied longing. The Lord Jesus Christ, of course, is that One. We have in the four Gospels the picture of the Person of Christ, showing how Jesus fulfills prophecy, explains sacrifice, and satisfies the deepest human desire for God.
Why the Four Gospels Matters
The four Gospels are not biographies of Jesus. John himself tells us that if everything Jesus did were written down, “the world itself could not contain the books” (John 21:25). Instead, what we have are four portraits, Spirit-inspired pictures of Christ’s person and work.
Why four? Because no single account could capture the fullness of who He is. To imagine one Gospel doing it all would be like trying to take a single photograph of a building and expecting it to show all four sides at once. Each Gospel gives us a different angle, and only together do they provide a complete view.
The Old Testament anticipated this fourfold picture. Its prophecies and types pointed to Christ as:
- King , the triumphant ruler (Zechariah 9:9).
- Servant , the suffering one (Isaiah 42:1).
- Man , the human Messiah (Zechariah 6:12).
- God , the eternal one (Isaiah 40:9).
The Old Testament anticipated this fourfold picture, and the New Testament fulfills it.
Matthew: The Gospel of the King
Matthew presents Jesus as the King of Israel. He begins with a royal genealogy, tracing Christ’s lineage through David to Abraham, establishing His rightful claim to the throne.
Throughout the book, Jesus speaks and acts with kingly authority. In the Sermon on the Mount, He declares, “You have heard… but I say to you…”, speaking beyond Moses. He commands demons, heals the sick, and pronounces judgment on the nation’s leaders.
The key phrase in Matthew is “the kingdom of heaven”, appearing thirty-two times. From His birth, announced as “King of the Jews”, to His crucifixion under the same title, Matthew emphasizes Christ’s kingship.
Matthew emphasizes Christ’s kingship, complementing the Servant in Mark, the Man in Luke, and the God in John.
Mark: The Gospel of the Servant
Mark presents Jesus as the Servant of God. Unlike Matthew, there is no genealogy, because who asks for the ancestry of a servant? Instead, Mark gives us credentials: John the Baptist’s witness, the Father’s voice, and the Spirit’s descent.
The key word in Mark is “immediately”. Over and over, Jesus acts without delay, healing, teaching, casting out demons. This urgency reflects the nature of a servant who obeys at once.
Mark contains only a handful of parables, each about service. Jesus is portrayed as the suffering Servant foretold in Isaiah 53. Even His title “Lord” is withheld until after the resurrection, underscoring His humility.
Thus, Mark gives us a vivid picture of Christ as the Servant of Jehovah, active, obedient, and ultimately suffering for the sake of others.
Luke: The Gospel of the Man
Luke presents Jesus as the perfect Man. To emphasize His humanity, Luke traces His genealogy all the way back to Adam, linking Him directly to the entire human race.
Prayer is a central theme in Luke. More than any other Gospel, Luke shows Jesus at prayer, modelling the proper relationship of man to God: dependence upon the sovereign Father.
Luke also highlights Christ’s sympathy for humanity. He weeps over Jerusalem, heals the ear of the man wounded at His arrest, and extends His mission beyond Israel to all nations.
Finally, Luke gives the fullest account of Jesus’ agony in Gethsemane, where He sweats blood as He enters into the sorrows of humanity. Here we see Him sharing our trials, feeling our infirmities, and being tempted as we are.
Luke’s Gospel portrays Jesus as truly Man, entering fully into our human experience while remaining sinless.
John: The Gospel of God
John’s Gospel presents Jesus as the Son of God. While Matthew shows Him as King, Mark as Servant, and Luke as Man, John answers the question: Is Jesus truly God? His answer is a resounding yes.
John begins with a brief genealogy: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). This links Jesus directly to the Father, affirming His divine nature.
John highlights Christ’s deity through His use of the divine name “I AM.” Seven times Jesus declares Himself: “I am the bread of life… I am the light of the world… I am the good shepherd… I am the resurrection and the life… I am the way, the truth, and the life… I am the true vine.”
Finally, John states his purpose clearly: “These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:31).
John’s Gospel is the portrait of Jesus as God Himself, calling us to faith and life in His name.
Acts: The Gospel Continued
Acts is not the story of the apostles, but of what the risen Christ continues to do through His people by the Spirit. Luke’s Gospel records what Jesus began to do; Acts records what He continues to do.
It is a book of apostolic success, full of triumph and rapid movement. It bridges the gap between the Gospels and the Epistles, showing how the message moved from Jerusalem to Judea, Samaria, and ultimately to the ends of the earth.
The outline is given in Acts 1:8:
- Chapters 1-2: The coming of the Spirit at Pentecost.
- Chapters 3-7: Witness in Jerusalem.
- Chapters 8-12: Witness in Judea and Samaria.
- Chapters 13-28: Witness to the ends of the earth, culminating in Rome.
Acts ends abruptly, with Paul preaching in Rome “openly and unhindered.” This unfinished ending reminds us that the story continues. The book of Acts is still being written today, as men and women carry the gospel forward in the power of the Spirit.
Acts shows us that the Gospels were only “the end of the beginning.” The ministry of Jesus did not stop at His ascension; it expanded. The King, the Servant, the Man, and the God revealed in the Gospels continues His work through the Church.
A Quick Recap
- Matthew shows Jesus as the King.
- Mark shows Jesus as the Servant.
- Luke shows Jesus as the Man.
- John shows Jesus as God.
- Acts shows Jesus continuing His work through the Spirit and the Church.
Together, these books give us the full panorama of Christ’s person and mission.
A Story for First-Time Readers
Three tourists once visited Rome and were shown a chicken said to descend from the rooster that crowed when Peter denied Jesus. The American asked, “How much to buy it?” The Englishman wondered about its genealogy. The Irishman simply asked, “Does it lay eggs?”
That last question cuts through the noise: Is it useful? Does it matter?
The same question applies to the Gospels and Acts. They are not just ancient texts or religious artifacts. They matter because they reveal Jesus as the King who reigns, the Servant who acts, the Man who understands, the God who speaks, and the Lord who continues His work through the Spirit and the Church.
So What?
For someone who has never read these books, the “so what” is simple: they are not distant history but living portraits of the One who fulfills human longing.
- Matthew shows us a King with rightful authority.
- Mark shows us a Servant who obeys and suffers.
- Luke shows us a Man who shares our humanity.
- John shows us God Himself, calling us to faith.
- Acts shows us Christ still at work, building His Church and sending His Spirit.
Together, they invite us to see Jesus not as a figure of the past, but as the answer to the deepest human question: Does it matter?
Yes, it matters, because the Gospels and Acts reveal the One who still speaks into our present, who reigns, serves, understands, saves, and empowers.
Conclusion: An Invitation
The panorama of Scripture is clear: the Old Testament sets the stage with longing and promise; the Gospels reveal Christ in His fullness; Acts shows His work continuing through the Spirit and the Church.
The invitation is simple: open these books and meet Jesus. Not just a historical figure, but the living Christ who reigns as King, serves as Servant, shares as Man, speaks as God, and continues His mission through His people today.
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