COMMENCING MARCH 24, 2022
During this Bible Reading plan we will be reading the Gospels (St. Matthew - St. John) our intention is to take a closer look at the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.
The Gospels
Four Gospels – The Message
The four Gospels refer to the first division in the New Testament and consist of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
The “gospel,” is the good news of Jesus the Christ as He is the Messiah/Savior, and Son of God—fully human and fully God. His name, given to Mary, was Emmanuel meaning “God with us,” who came in the flesh to atone for our sins (John 3:16). Jesus came to not to be an earthly king, but the heavenly King who will be recognized by all as the King of Kings (Revelation 19:16).
In the four Gospels, we are shown fulfillment of many Old Testament promises and prophecies (given to the Hebrews) of the coming of the Messiah. These New Testament books tell of Jesus’ birth, lineage, ministry, miracles, crucifixion, miraculous resurrection, and ascension.
Four Gospels – The Authors
The authors of the four Gospels each bring a unique perspective:
I. Matthew had been a tax-collector, an occupation which reaped the same dislike as many feels for tax-collectors today. Matthew’s account begins with the genealogy of Jesus through the line of King David. We also read of Jesus choosing the original 12 disciples, His well-known Sermon on the Mount (Beatitudes), the parables He shared, and the account of Jesus walking on water.
Chapter 26 details the betrayal by Judas Iscariot and the Last Supper, more accurately known as the Passover Meal. Matthew ends his account with Jesus’ death on the cross, His resurrection from the dead, and in chapter 28, Jesus issues the Great Commission.
II. Mark - The book of Mark is reportedly the first of the Gospels to be written (around AD 55) and records more miracles than any of the other Gospels.
Mark begins setting the stage of Jesus’ ministry by featuring the ministry of John the Baptist. John was God-sent to “prepare the way of the Lord.” He preached primarily to the Roman Christians on “baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.” Though people flocked to hear John, he declared another would come who was even mightier than he.
He stated in Mark 1:8 “I baptized you with water; but he shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” After John baptized Jesus (as an example to all), Mark records much concerning Jesus’ public service. Covering Jesus’ ministry in Galilee and beyond, Mark records numerous miracles of healing, casting out demons, and feeding “five thousand from five loaves of bread and two fishes.” Jesus preached about resisting temptation, blessing little children and serving others.
Though Mark’s book contains some of the same topics of the other Gospels such as the Crucifixion and Resurrection, he concludes by letting us know that the Lord ascended to heaven and is sitting “on the right hand of God.” About one-third of Mark’s gospel is devoted to the last week of Jesus earthly life.
III. Luke, unlike the other original disciples, was uniquely well educated as a physician, and was a Greek and a Gentile Christian. It is reported that his book was written around AD 60 (about the same time as Matthew was written) from either Rome or Caesarea.
Luke traveled with Paul on his missionary journeys. He presents Jesus as the Savior available to the world and as a compassionate healer and teacher. Luke accurately records the actions and teachings of Christ from the very beginning and helps his readers comprehend the sure way of salvation. His book attests to the way we are to live and become a faithful child of God.
IV. John, the son of Zebedee, was called a “Son of Thunder.” His book was written a bit later than the others around AD 85-90 after the destruction of Jerusalem (in AD 70). This book is often called the book of love.
John’s portrayal of Jesus and His love is clearly shows that Jesus is not just an ordinary human being. John illustrates how Jesus is indeed the Son of God and tells us of Jesus meeting with people personally, preaching to large crowds, and lovingly training His disciples. John shows that this divine man offered “life” and changed the hearts of people from hard and hate-filled to kind and loving.
John recorded many of Jesus’ acts and teachings, as do the first three Gospels, but he distinctively interprets them so we might apply spiritual meaning. He says in John 20:31 “But these have been recorded so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and so that through believing you may have life in his name.” John uses spiritually pertinent words such as love, life, light and living water to further impact His message of salvation that is from Jesus to us all.
The goal is for every member to prayerfully read the assigned chapter each day as we seek to take a closer look at the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.
We trust that every member of United Apostolic Church will come on board and “search for truth” daily and apply the truth received to their lives.
Here is our daily scheduled of readings:
March 24, 2022 - Matthew 1
March 25, 2022 - Matthew 2
March 26, 2022 - Matthew 3
March 27, 2022 - Matthew 4
March 28, 2022 - Matthew 5
March 29, 2022 - Matthew 6
March 30, 2022 - Matthew 7
March 31, 2022 - Matthew 8
April 1, 2022 - Matthew 9
April 2, 2022 - Matthew 10
April 3, 2022 - Matthew 11
April 4, 2022 - Matthew 12
April 5, 2022 - Matthew 13
April 6, 2022 - Matthew 14
April 7, 2022 - Matthew 15
April 8, 2022 - Matthew 16
April 9, 2022 - Matthew 17
April 10, 2022 - Matthew 18
April 11, 2022 - Matthew 19
April 12, 2022 - Matthew 20
April 13, 2022 - Matthew 21
April 14, 2022 - Matthew 22
April 15, 2022 - Matthew 23
April 16, 2022 - Matthew 24
April 17, 2022 - Matthew 25
April 18, 2022 - Matthew 26
April 19, 2022 - Matthew 27
April 20, 2022 - Matthew 28
April 21, 2022 - Mark 1
April 22, 2022 - Mark 2
April 23, 2022 - Mark 3
April 24, 2022 - Mark 4
April 25, 2022 - Mark 5
April 26, 2022 - Mark 6
April 27, 2022 - Mark 7
April 28, 2022 - Mark 8
April 29, 2022 - Mark 9
April 30, 2022 - Mark 10
May 1, 2022 - Mark 11
May 2, 2022 - Mark 12
May 3, 2022 - Mark 13
May 4, 2022 - Mark 14
May 5, 2022 - Mark 15
May 6, 2022 - Mark 16
May 7, 2022 - Luke 1
May 8, 2022 - Luke 2
May 9, 2022 - Luke 3
May 10, 2022 - Luke 4
May 11, 2022 - Luke 5
May 12, 2022 - Luke 6
May 13, 2022 - Luke 7
May 14, 2022 - Luke 8
May 15, 2022 - Luke 9
May 16, 2022 - Luke 10
May 17, 2022 - Luke 11
May 18, 2022 - Luke 12
May 19, 2022 - Luke 13
May 20, 2022 - Luke 14
May 21, 2022 - Luke 15
May 22, 2022 - Luke 16
May 23, 2022 - Luke 17
May 24, 2022 - Luke 18
May 25, 2022 - Luke 19
May 26, 2022 - Luke 20
May 27, 2022 - Luke 21
May 28, 2022 - Luke 22
May 29, 2022 - Luke 23
May 30, 2022 - Luke 24
May 31, 2022 - John 1
June 1, 2022 - John 2
June 2, 2022 - John 3
June 3, 2022 - John 4
June 4, 2022 - John 5
June 5, 2022 - John 6
June 6, 2022 - John 7
June 7, 2022 - John 8
June 8, 2022 - John 9
June 9, 2022 - John 10
June 10, 2022 - John 11
June 11, 2022 - John 12
June 12, 2022 - John 13
June 13, 2022 - John 14
June 14, 2022 - John 15
June 15, 2022 - John 16
June 16, 2022 - John 17
June 17, 2022 - John 18
June 18, 2022 - John 19
June 19, 2022 - John 20
June 20, 2022 - John 21