September 24 - Mark 1:1 | Luke 1:1-4 | John 1:1-18 | Matthew 1:1-17 | Luke 3:23-38 | Luke 1:5-38

Good morning everyone,

Oh! My! Word! Today we begin the New Testament and that is so exciting to me. Today we begin to build on the foundation, the principals and the truths that we spent months reading about in the Old Testament. We, of course, begin with the four Gospels which recount the story of Jesus the Christ, each book giving us a unique perspective on his life. They were written between A.D. 55-65, with the exception of John's Gospel, which was written around A.D. 85-90.

I love how the different personalities, writing styles and what each writer felt important are so apparent as we move from book to book. Matthew, a former tax collector before becoming one of Jesus’ 12 disciples, presents undeniable evidence that Jesus Christ is the promised Messiah the eternal King. 

Mark, John Mark, was not a disciple. He was younger than the rest, only in his teens when Jesus was teaching. He accompanied Paul on his first missionary journey and spent a lot of time in the company of Peter. In a short, fast paced book, Mark shows us Jesus the Servant. 

Luke, was a Greek Christian (Gentile) and doctor. He is actually the only known non-Jewish author in the New Testament. He was a close friend to Paul and is also credited for penning the Book of Acts. Luke was written to give a reliable and precise record of Jesus Christ's life, to present Him as the perfect human Savior. 

John, an apostle and one of the “Sons of Thunder” writes to new Christians and non-Christians, giving an up-close and personal look at Christ's identity as the Son of God.

Our reading began with Mark writing, “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” the NLT version says “This is the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God.” That just thrills me to chills. When you are excited about something you want to shout it from the roof tops, you want to share it with all you know and even those you don’t know and Mark was excited. 

As we go through the gospels I would encourage you to use your mind’s eye all of the time.  See yourself in the crowd as Jesus heals the sick, as He teaches and feeds the hungry. See His righteous anger in the market place, at the well with the woman, see Him walking on water and see the tears roll down His face while weeping over the city of Jerusalem. Then ….. then see Him hanging on a cross with a crown of thorns savagely slammed down on his head, his side pierced and him crying out in agony, not from pain but from having to be separated from God the Father as He took on the sin for all mankind. See also Him showing his hands to Thomas and ascending into heaven. There is so much you will get to use your mind’s eye to see. I can hardly wait.

Though we can not see Jesus walking the face of the earth, the Bible tells us that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. He is just as alive for us today as he was for those nearly two thousand years ago. So hear his words, feel his love, believe that He is, Jesus absolutely is the truth the light and the way. I love Jesus, I love Him in a way that is far beyond words. Like Mark, I want to shout about it. It is my prayer you will want to too. Amen?

Have a great day and to God be the glory.

God bless you all…..