Reliability of the 4 Gospels
Nearly all the heresies of the first 5 centuries turned upon the Person of Christ as represented in the Gospels.
Bible Attack - The 4 gospels were canonised/accepted by the church and incorporated into the N.T. more than a century after the Apostolic Age.
Eusebius (in the 4th century) in one of the most important chapters of his 'Ecclesiastical history' - reports the judgment of the Christian Church from the beginning up to his time of the books of the New Testament which claimed to be canonical.
He testified that 21 out of 27 books had all along been received in the Christian Church, without any dispute, as canonical books of the N.T. The 4 gospels headed the list.
All churches known to the writers possessed the entire collection of the 4 gospels.
Bible Attack - Early churches had different gospels to what we have today.
At the first general council held under Constantine - that of Nicea (325AD); Both sides of the Arian controversy did not dispute the gospels.
They were quoted by both sides as of undisputed canonical and divine authority.
Bible Attack - The early churches took a long time to canonise the gospels. Some churches adopted different gospels.
Origen 185-253AD - is said to have spent his whole life in biblical inquiries examined MSS, published commentaries; he has in several of his extant writings given lists of the canonical scriptures, in all of which the four gospels stand first among the books of the N.T.
No doubt was inferred as to the genuine and canonical character of those books.
Tertullian 160-220AD - the most ancient of the Latin Fathers.
In His 4th book against Marcion he rested his whole case upon the notorious fact that all 4 gospels had the unbroken testimony of all the churches (both founded by the apostles and in ecclesiastical fellowship with them).He called this - as known and undeniable fact.
Clement of Alexandria (nearly contemporary with Tertullian).
According to tradition Mark founded the school of Alexandria.
Clement was assiatant to Pantenus ( 1st or 2nd head of the school ).Pantenus and Clement seemed to have taught jointly till 211AD when Clement became its head - dying about 2 years thereafter.
His writings illustrated the peculiar type of theological thought which reigned then at Alexandria.
His writing preserved by Eusebius stated that John Finally perceiving that all which pertained to the body or the outward life of Christ, had been sufficiently recorded, being invited by his friends, and moved by the Spirit, composed a spiritual Gospel. This testimony to the apostolic antiquity and genuineness of the gospels is that not only of an early Presbyter but a Divinity teacher.
He gave no hint that there ever had been the least diversity of opinion on the subject.
The Muratorian Fragment (160, 170, 200AD - first published 1740AD ) ascribed to Caius, a well-known Presbyter of the Roman Church about the close of the second century.
Bible Attack - The sequence of the gospels was at random.
The writer in poor Latin said that Matthew and Mark were the first in order, Luke is the third book of the gospel, and John being the fourth.
Bible Attack - There were Christian Tradition unaccounted for by the Christian churches in considering the Christian Canon.
He described, according to the tradition of his time, how John was induced to undertake this work.
The fragment named all the acknowledged books.
It also named the spurious 'which cannot be received into the catholic church.'
Ireneus - a disciple of Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna, and succeeded Pothinus as Bishop of Lyons in the year 177AD, martyred in his 90s.
His books only survived in a Latin Version. One passage survived in Greek as well.
In this Greek passage and its parallel in Latin he gave an account of each of the gospels, and spoke of the four christian gospels, quoting them largely and verbally, as not only the genuine production of two of the apostles and of the constant companions of the other apostles, but as the very teaching of Christ Himself; and this not as an opinion of his own, but as a matter of undisputed fact.In another chapter of this same book (c.11) occurs a grand passage.
He wrote: "Nor can there be more gospels in number, nor yet fewer than these [four]. For as there are four quarters of the world which we inhabit, and four presiding spirits [principales], and the Church is diffused over the whole earth, and the pillar and foundation of the Church is the Gospel and the Spirit of life, on the same principle has the Church four pillars, breathing everywhere incorruption, and kindling in men new warmth. Whence it is evident that the Word, the Artificer of all things, who sitteth upon the Cherubim and keepeth all thing in order, hath given us the gospel in a four-fold kind, but informed by one Spirit."He wrote of the idea (or plan) [Ezek 1v26 - a grand idea ] of the 4 gospels representing the symbolic signification of the lion, the calf, the man, and the eagle.
He accused heretics of setting aside (God's arrangement) this plan and bringing in either more or less gospels than these 4.
He stated this speculation was familiarly known and recognised in the Church. - that there were not only four harmonious divinely inspired Gospels, neither more nor less, but this by a Divine arrangement.
Papias, Bishop of Hierapolis (in Phrygia), and a disciple of John.
He flourished somewhere about the year 110, 115, or 116AD; and he devoted himself chiefly to the collecting of every scrap of tradition which he could pick up regarding Christ and his apostles.
Eusebius wrote in his time the production of the gospels.
Justin Martyr - born 89AD (according to Fabricius and Grabe) some 7 years before the last survivor of the apostles died. Martyred 164 - 167AD.
He wrote extensive and accurate summary of the principal contents of the gospels. All this, however he drew from what he called 'Memoirs of the Apostles'.[ Document Q is probably part of the Memoirs of the Apostles. The early Christian Churches did not recognise any source gospel predated Matthew, Mark and Luke. ]
He produced the Epistle to Diognetus (classical Greek) 117AD - this letter leaves no doubt that the writer of it was acquainted with the first and fourth gospels, and with the Epistles.
Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna. Martyred 166AD. Converted about 80AD. A disciple of the Apostle John. And some have thought that "the angel of the church in Smyrna," to whom Christ directed the second of his Apocalyptic Epistles (Rev. 2v8), was no other than this Polycarp.
His letter to Philippians survived (written around 108AD). It contains more references to the N.T. than was customary in such early writings, interwoven with his own language.
And these show beyond doubt that this Asiatic bishop was familiar with the Gospels and the Epistles of the N.T.
Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch. Ordained by Eusebius 69AD, after the death of the Apostles Peter and Paul at Rome.
Attack - Early Christian Churches did not know enough doctrine and teaching of Christ and His Apostles, and had to rely on the gifts of the Spirit for daily affairs. Early Christians did not have the complete New Testament as we possess today, therefore miraculous acts were necessary for church growth.
Chrysostom said Ignatius conversed familiarly with the apostles, and was perfectly acquainted with their doctrine.
He suffered martyrdom, under Trajan, about the year 107AD.
His references to the Gospels and the Epistles of Paul are numerous and explicit.
Barnabas in his Epistle gives plain evidence that he was acquainted both with the Gospels and the Epistles of the N.T.
Clement, Bishop of Rome. (Phil. 4v3)
His references to the Epistles of the N.T. as well as to the OT, are numerous.
He quoted 3 to 4 passages as the words of the Lord Jesus.
Tatian - only remaining work is an Oration against the Gentiles.
His literary activity was preserved by Eusebius.
Titian wove the collection of the Gospels into Diatessaron.
Ephraem the Syrian issued a commentary on this Diatessaron.
This work seemed actually to have superseded the Gospels themselves in the public worship of the churches in the fifth century.
Theodoret - little more than 70 years after the death of the Apostle John, the same 4 gospels were equiped in the orthodox church and Tatian (heretical sect) church.
Theodoret charged Diatessaron left out the genealogies. - additional evidence that in other respects it differed not from the orthodox copies.
Marcion 130-144AD used only part of Luke to suit his own ideas.
Marcion gained many followers and impressed his own critical spirit upon them.
In his statements he accused all the apostles except Paul of altering and corrupting the original Gospel.
Tertullian challenged Marcion to produce a copy of the original gospel, with historical attestation of it being handed down as such from the beginning.
Marcion threw the blame upon Christ for choosing such apostles as to have corrupted the records.
His claims are purely subjective and doctrinal.He rejected the rest, not because it was not historically attested, but because it taught what he was not prepared to believe.
He indirectly affirmed the firm historical foundation of the true canon of the N.T.
We now come to Christian heathen authors:
Celsus ( wrote against Christianity in the latter part of the second century ) and Porphyry ( lived a century later ) were obliged to admit the genuineness of its sacred books. (regarded as beyond question).
Origen in the middle of the third century quoted happily from Celsus's work 'The True Word'.
Celsus denominates the Evangelical writings 'The Gospel,' and refers to circumstances peculiar to each of the Gospels, showing that he had them all four before him.
Irenaeus testified to the universal reception of the Gospels in his day.
[ If the corruption could have happened, or anything like it, there must of necessity have remained some historical traces of it; but that as there are absolutely none, it is against all the principles of historical evidence to assume and affirm it. ]
Internally the language of these narratives is Jewish Greek, bearing the nearest resemblance to the Greek of LXX - such Greek ( we may say with Michaelis ) could not have been written a hundred and twenty years after Christ. Hardly any Jews were converted to Christianity after that date.
Thus these narratives must of necessity have been written the three quarters of that one century when the language pattern exhibited the same characteristics. ( The Apostolic Age. )
For anachronistic challenge -
The allusions to the different memebers of the Herod family, with the account of the Baptist's death - agreed with record of Josephus.
Their minute accuracy only appears on investigation, but which, when pointed out, are at once felt to be astonishing and beautiful.
Undesigned coincidence between the different Gospels -
The four gospels are independent work as apart from their remarkable agreement, they have differences and apparent contradictions - some of them exceedingly difficult to explain.
Much of the remains of the Aprocryphal Gospels - being so childish, extravagant, and contradictory, as only to act as a foil to Christian Gospels.
Hebrew Gospel and Document Q || Anachronism in Luke? ||
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