The Gospel Stories

Posted June 1, 1997

(Next update, June 15, 1997)

If the record of Jesus' ministry in the four Gospel accounts is read without close comparison, few readers can retain the thread of the story given in each account in a precise enough way to cause them to question some of the subtile facts which surface with careful observation. To believing Christians, each of the four versions seem like a logical enough progression of those things Jesus said and did during the supposed three and a half years he conducted his ministry. Indeed, it is with the utmost difficulty that a progression of events can be presented in a manner which generates the many questions which should be raised about those accounts--questions which cause the accounts to take on an air of falsehood rather than a presentation of truth.

Christians who are trying to convert others, or increase their faith, often suggest reading the Bible through about once a year. They are clever in doing so because no one has the time in such a setting to seriously evaluate what they are reading and will often lose their concentration when reading such an extensive volume in continuous order. This is also true of the four New Testament Gospels concerning the ministry of Jesus. The accounts are often somewhat confused, seemingly contradictory, and will give a feeling of falsehood when carefully read. Let us begin with a comparison of the four Gospels and learn certain facts which can be gleaned from them.

Opening Gospel Settings at the Start of Jesus' Ministry

Matthew

The Gospel of Matthew begins by first giving the genealogy of Jesus. Next, it talks about the birth of Jesus and suggests that it took place the way it did to fulfill the prophecy that: "the virgin shall conceive and bear a son." Chapter 2 begins by telling us this happened in the: "time of King Herod," and how wise men came from the East to find: "the king of the Jews." Next, we find the parents of Jesus taking him to Egypt in order to avoid King Herod's attempt to destroy him. Certain Old Testament prophecies are alleged to have been fulfilled in bringing these events to pass. Finally, Jesus is said to have returned home. Everything else which might be said to have occurred in Jesus life is passed over in Matthew's account until Jesus is baptized by John the Baptist and driven into the wilderness to be tempted of the Devil just before the start of his ministry.

Mark

The Gospel of Mark begins immediately with the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist. Jesus is again driven into the wilderness to be tempted. So we need to make no remarks about Jesus' life in the Gospel of Mark prior to the beginning of Jesus' ministry.

Luke

Luke tells us that he is presenting a record of the ministry of Jesus as "an orderly account" meaning, we understand, in a progressive manner. He starts out by telling the audience about the birth of John the Baptist. After the mother of John had been pregnant for six months, the angel Gabriel is said to have come to Mary, telling her that she would also become pregnant with one who would be called "the Son of the Most High," and that "God will give him reign over the house of Jacob forever." (The house of Jacob would be Israel.) The prophecy is, of course, referring to Jesus, according to New Testament accounts. By and by, John and Jesus were born. In time, Jesus grew until an account about him is given when he was age 12. Following this, the beginning of Jesus ministry is related in chapter 3 as starting in the 15th year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, which history tells us is 29 C.E. Here we find Jesus being baptized by John the Baptist at about 30 years of age. In this narration, we find the lineage of Jesus written, although somewhat different from the account which we find in the Gospel of Matthew. Apologists often explain the difference as being the result of the fact that one account presents Jesus' lineage as being through his mother Mary, whereas the other account is said to have been through his "father," Joseph. Joseph, however, is said not to be the father of Jesus but, rather, God Himself is the father.

John

In this Gospel we have a rather lengthy prologue terminating in a discussion about John the Baptist. In verses 29-34 of the first chapter, we again come to the place where John the Baptist has baptized Jesus and find some significant questions about the order between the Gospel of John and the synoptic Gospels--the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. The thread of the story, at this point, should be presented and compared to the other synoptics.

My Actions at this Point: When I first tried to analyze the events in Jesus' ministry by comparing the synoptic Gospels with the Gospel of John, I saw great areas of confusion and seeming contradiction. Determined not to draw false conclusions, I decided to seek explanations from certain other religious authorities who have always been very detailed in trying to write time-related apologetic accounts of the Gospels. They were quick to accommodate me by providing exhaustive explanations.

In essence, what I learned is as follows regarding early events in the ministry of Jesus: Apparently, several things were said to have transpired in the Gospel of John prior to Jesus' final arrival near the Sea of Galilee where they claim that Jesus "recalled" his disciples and started his Galilean ministry. We relate these events below. Note, in particular, the progression of time from Jesus' baptism and the forty-day temptation in the wilderness:

[John 1:29] The next day he (John the Baptist) saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, "Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! (30)This is he of whom I said, 'After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.' (32)And John testified, "I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. (33)I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'he on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' (34)And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God."
(35)The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, (36)and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, "Look, here is the Lamb of God!" (37)The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. (40)One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. (41)He first found his brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is translated Anointed). (42)He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said, "You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas" (which is translated Peter).
(43)The next day [day three], Jesus decided to go to Galilee, [about 50 miles north of where he is said to have been]. He found Philip and said to him, "Follow me." (45)Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth."
[But one would have a very difficult time, indeed, trying to find a literal account written by Moses where he talks about "Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.]
(49)Nathanael replied, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!" (51)And he [Jesus] said to him, "Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.
(2:1)On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. (2)Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. (11)Jesus did this [made water into wine], the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him. (12)After this [exactly when, we are not told], he [Jesus] went down to Capernaum with his mother, his brothers, and his disciples; and they remained there a few days. (13)The Passover of the Jews was near, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. (14)In the temple he found people selling cattle, sheep, and doves, and the money changers seated at their tables. (15)Making a whip of cords, he drove all of them out of the temple.
(22)After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside [about fifty miles south], and he spent some time there with them and baptized.
(4:1)Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard, "Jesus is making and baptizing more disciples than John"--although it was not Jesus himself but his disciples who baptized-- (3)he left Judea to go through Samaria. (5)So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them; and he stayed there two days. (43)When the two days were over, he went from that place to Galilee. (46)Then he came again to Cana in Galilee where he had changed the water into wine. Now there was a royal official whose son lay ill in Capernaum. (53)The father realized that this was the hour when Jesus had said to him, "Your son will live." So he himself believed, along with his whole household. (54)Now this was the second sign that Jesus did after coming from Judea to Galilee.
(5:1)After this there was a festival of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. [We do not know if this was a festival in the fall of the year or the Passover the following year.]
(6:1)After this Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, also called the Sea of Tiberias. (2)A large crowd kept following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing for the sick. (3)Jesus went up the mountain and sat down there with his disciples. (4)Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near.

With this passage, we are brought up to the time of the Sermon on the Mount, an event which is also talked about in the Gospels of Matthew 5, and Luke 6.

Several serious conflicts in the story up to this point appear if all of the events given in the Gospel of John are said to have happened in conjunction with the synoptic Gospels. Here, we want to learn if all of those contradictions can be eliminated by suggesting that these early events in the Gospel of John happened prior to the start of Jesus' Galilean ministry. (Some apologists attempt to say that the early events mentioned in the Gospel of John happened prior to the start of Jesus' Galilean ministry in an attempt to cover over some of the difficulties between the accounts given in the Gospel of John and the synoptic Gospels.)

When Did Jesus Call His Disciples?

After the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask John the Baptist who he was, and after Jesus had been baptized by John, Jesus is said to have walked toward John. (This is related in the Gospel of John.) Verse 35 of John 1 tells us that John said: "Look here is the Lamb of God!" Two of John's disciples heard it and decided to follow Jesus. One was Andrew and the other one was his brother Simon Peter. It should be noted that for all of Jesus' "early" travels back and forth between Judea and Galilee, some fifty miles apart, these disciples followed him. John 2:1-2 tells us:

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. (2)Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding.
[John 2:1 also tells us:] Jesus did this [making water into wine], the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
[John 2:12 tells us:] After this he [Jesus] went down to Capernaum with his mother, his brothers, and his disciples; and they remained there a few days.

Notice how the disciples (whoever they were at this point) continue to follow Jesus and that they are said to have believed on him.

Next, we find Jesus going up to Jerusalem during the Passover festival. This is a very important point which we will address shortly. Following the Passover, we find Jesus going back into the Judean countryside. Notice John 2:22:

After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside, and he spent some time there with them and baptized.

Again, notice that the disciples were with Jesus at this time.

When Jesus learned that the Pharisees were talking about the fact that Jesus' disciples were baptizing more people than John the Baptist, he was determined to return to Galilee and halt his baptizing efforts. One should take notice of the fact that Jesus' "early ministry,"according to the Gospel of John, seems to be a baptizing ministry, something quite different from his later ministry in Galilee.

On route, he had to pass by Samaria. Scripture records an event in the city of Sychar in which Jesus had talked to a Samaritan woman and discussed the various events in her life which were not too savory. It is apparent that the disciples were still with Jesus at this time because we read in John 4:7-8 and verse 27 that:

A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink." (His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) (27)Just then his disciples came. They were astonished that he was speaking with a woman, but no one said, "What do you want? or, "Why are you speaking with her?"

Again, note that his disciples are with him as he returned toward Galilee through Samaria to begin the Galilean ministry.

Next, Jesus heals a son of a royal official who lay ill in Capernaum. Following this, Jesus goes back to Jersusalem for a festival of the Jews (festival not mentioned by name). Here, Jesus deals with a man who had been ill for thirty-eight years and heals him. Following this Jesus goes to the area where he delivers the Sermon on the Mount, which ties in with all of the (apparently) missing information in the synoptic Gospels (between the time he was baptized by John and the temptation by Satan), and the Sermon on the Mount according to Matthew 5:28 and Luke 6.

What is significant is the fact that his disciples appear to be with him and appear to believe in him during this whole period of time, yet, according to certain apologists, appear to have left him upon his return to Galilee for the start of the Galilean ministry. It seems that Jesus had to "recall" his disciples upon that return to Galilee. Notice what the Gospel of Matthew has to say about this period of time:

(Mat. 3:7)But when he [John the Baptist] saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? (13)And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him.
(4:1)Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. (17)From that time Jesus began to proclaim, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near." (18)As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea--for they were fishermen. (19)And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.

You will recall that Jesus had previously called Andrew and Simon Peter down fifty miles south in Judea where they had been disciples of John the Baptist. From that time forward, for as much as a year (according to certain apologists), Andrew and Simon Peter had followed Jesus and believed in him. So why is Jesus calling them all over again, up on the Sea of Galilee? It is suggested that they lost interest and went back to their previous occupations when they returned with Jesus to Galilee after spending, perhaps, a whole year with him previously. This ought to strike you as rather illogical. The whole intent of the picture painted when Jesus calls Andrew and Simon Peter up on the Sea of Galilee, according to the Gospel of Matthew, is that Jesus is doing so for the first time, for he said: "Follow me, and I will make you fish for people." It does not make logical sense that Jesus would declare this if he had already called them to this discipleship previously, down in Judea where they were disciples of John the Baptist.

When Did Jesus Cleanse the Temple?

We have seen where apologists assert that everything mentioned in the book of John, prior to Jesus return to Galilee and the sermon given on the mount, is supposed to have happened before the great Galilean ministry began. Included in these accounts is the mention of a first Passover where Jesus goes to Jerusalem, enters the temple and drives out all of the people selling merchandise. Jesus states: "Stop making my Father's house a marketplace."

When the Gospel of John states that the account of the temple cleansing happened prior to the start of Jesus' Galilean ministry, this is a serious problem. In Mark 11:15-17, Jesus is also shown cleansing the temple. The difference here is the fact that Jesus is shown as performing this act during the final week of his ministry just shortly before he was crucified, not before the start of his Galilean ministry. Apologists attempt to explain this seeming contradiction by suggesting that Jesus performed two cleansings of the temple, one very early in his ministry and one just before the end of it and his crucifixion. If this were the case, it is rather strange that no account of Jesus' first temple cleansing is mentioned if he supposedly performed a second one.

A Prophet Without Honor

All three of the synoptic Gospels talk about the fact that a prophet often has honor only in places other than where that prophet lived. This, of course, is made to apply to Jesus who came from the little town of Nazareth in lower Galilee. Matthew 12:57, Mark 6:4, and Luke 4:24 all record the saying. These latter three accounts record something which is quite different than what we read in the Gospel of John. The account in Matthew reads as follows:

He came to his hometown and began to teach the people in their synagogue, so that they were astounded and said, "Where did this man get this wisdom and these deeds of power? (57)And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, "Prophets are not without honor except in their own country and in their own house.
As we said, Mark and Luke record the same event.

Now, let us see how the Gospel of John relates the saying:

(John 4:3)he left Judea and started back to Galilee. (4)But he had to go through Samara. (5)So he came to a Samaitan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. (43)When the two days were over he went from that place to Galilee (44)(for Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in the prophet's own country). (45)When he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, since they had seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the festival; for they too had gone to the festival.

Clearly, John is trying to imply here that either Samaria or more probably, Judea was the real home of Jesus. John is saying that Jesus had no honor in Judea "or Samaria" but did have honor in Galilee. Therefore, the Gospel of John has turned the saying upside down by making it apply to a different area and circumstance.

The Miracles of Jesus

Another matter which makes the Gospel of John quite suspect, revolves around the "miracles" of Jesus. In John 2:11 we read:

Jesus did this [making water into wine], the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

Following this, Jesus goes up to Jerusalem for the Passover. Here it is written of him:

(John 2:23)When he was in Jerusalem during the Passover festival, many believed in his name because they saw the signs that he was doing. (3:2)..."Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.

Obviously implied in these verses is the fact that Jesus had done several signs or miracles by this time. Yet, following this we read in John 4:53-54 that:

The father realized that this was the hour when Jesus had said to him, "Your son will live." So he himself believed, along with his whole household. (54)Now this was the second sign that Jesus did after coming from Judea to Galilee.

John 2:23 and 3:2 imply that Jesus had done many signs (or miracles) by this time yet, John 4:53-54 suggests that Jesus had only done two miracles a short time after this. Certainly, this is quite an inconsistency!

Other Problems in the Gospel of John

The problems which cause some apologists to say that the early pre-Galilean ministry described in the Gospel of John took place before all of the events mentioned in the synoptic Gospels clearly become less descrepant once one reaches the place where the account concerning the Sermon on the Mount is discussed. However, there are certainly other serious problems with this Gospel and some of them concern that famous sermon.

To begin with, where does the writer tell his readers that the Sermon on the Mount took place? Reading in John 6:1-8 we observe the following:

After this, Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, also called the Sea of Tiberias. [2] A large crowd kept following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing for the sick. [3] Jesus went up the mountain and sat down there with his disciples. [4] Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near. [5] When he looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, "Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?" [6] He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he was going to do. [7] Philip answered him, "Six months' wages would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little." [8] One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, [9] There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But what are they among so many people?" [10] Jesus said, "Make the people sit down." Now there was a great deal of grass in the place; so they sat down, about five thousand in all. [11] Then Jesus took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. so also the fish, as much as they wanted.

Although verse 1 does not say that this place was necessarily near the Galilean city of Tiberias, the 22nd through 24th verses of the chapter do make it obvious. There we read:

The next day the crowd that had stayed on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there. They also saw that Jesus had not got into the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. [23 Then some boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. [24] So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus.
In order to get a better feel for the places mentioned, please see the map below.

Note that Tiberias is located down in the lower left side (West) of Galilee and that the people got in there boats and went up to the north end of the lake (top) to Capernaum in an attempt to find Jesus.

But the Synoptic Gospels seem to show us a totally different place where the Sermon on the Mount took place. Notice where the Gospel of Luke places the event:

[Luke 9:10] On there return [Jesus had sent the apostles out to preach] the apostles told Jesus all they had done. He took them with him and withdrew privately to a city called Bethsaida. [11] When the crowds found out about it, they followed him; and he welcomed them, and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and he healed those who needed to be cured. [12] The day was drawing to a close, and the twelve came to him and siad, "Send the crowds away, so that they may go into the surrounding villages and countryside, to lodge and get provisions; for we are here in a deserted place." [13] But he said to them "You have not more than five loaves and two fish--unless we go and buy food for all these people." [14] For there were about five thousand men...

Obviously, this is the same event described in the Gospel of John but it now takes place near a city called Bethsaida. Again, look at the map. Bethsaida is located completely away from the area of Tiberias at the extreme north end on the Sea of Galilee whereas Tiberias is located quite southwest on the lake. Thus, the Gospels of Luke and John do not agree on the place where Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount. Again, this is another conflict which you will not find in apologetic books such as Gleason Archers Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties or Norman Geisler and Thomas Howes When Critics Ask.

One other problem related to the Sermon on the Mount is one concerning who actually handed out the bread and fish to the crowds. John 6:10-1 tell us:

Jesus said, "Make the people sit down." Now there was a great deal of grass in the place; so they sat down, about five thousand in all. [11] Then Jesus took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated; so also the fish, as much as they wanted.

Here, we find that Jesus, himself, is the one said to have distributed the fish and bread. however, in Luke 9:16 we read:

And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he [Jesus] looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd.

So, once again we have a discrepancy, this time between accounts concerning who it actually was that distributed the bread and fish to the crowd. And, if this is not enough, note also that John 6:10 tells us that there were about five thousand people in all, including the little boy whom John 6:9 says had the original loaves of bread and fish. But we note that Luke 9:14 tells us that there were about five thousand men, thus implying that many more were there when chldren and woman were taken into account. Therefore, the message given in Luke 9:14 would suggest that at least 10,000 people in all would have to have been present. One can only conclude that the Gospel of John had to have been simply a story built around some of the same sayings which we find in the synoptic Gospels but painted into totally different imaginary settings.

It seems obvious that the Gospels do point to a person called Jesus who lived at or near the time alleged by the accounts. But the most grave of doubts exists about who this human being was. He was not the Messiah which is predicted by the Old Testament, that is for certain.

Our next posting will be the last one in this series. It will prove that Jesus could not possibly have been the long awaited Messiah predicted by the Old Testament because the changes he helped bring about in the religion originally promoted by the Old Testament patently breaks the tenets demanded by it.

Following the last article, we will turn our attention to current events in the Christian religion.