QUESTION: How different are the Gospels from the other books of the New Testament?

ANSWER: The Gospels give 4 views of Christ's earthly ministry, which lasted approximately 3 years. His first 30 years, are deliberately sketchy with little detail, other than His miraculous virgin birth.

After being baptized by John, receiving the Father's oral commendation from Heaven, and receiving the Holy Spirit, His earthly ministry began.
He emphasized His mission was only "to the lost sheep of the house of Israel".

He did all the signs and wonders the Prophets had foretold, and thus authenticated His claim to be the Son of God. While many individual Jews believed on Him, the Leaders of the nation rejected His claims and were instrumental in His crucifixion. God allowed this for His own purpose of saving sinners.

After the Gospels, the book of Acts is positioned to transition careful readers into the Church dispensation. There is a dramatic, extended reaping of believers from Israel into the Church.

Israel is not abandoned as the church is being formed, but as a nation is "put on the shelf" as God's chosen principal agent in saving the world. She will be offered a second opportunity to be saved at the Second coming of Christ.

Meanwhile, the chief action figure is Peter for about four years. This time allows the saved Jews in the church body to take in many new concepts, which often clashed with what they were taught in the synagogues as children.

Next, enter Saul, a Pharisee who hates the "new sect" and is prepared to imprison and even murder Christians. He is dramatically converted by Christ and called to be "the steward of the church dispensation".

He takes the place of the fallen, unbelieving Judas, and is personally instructed by Jesus Christ in all things to do with the Church. Paul tells us the church was "a secret, hidden in God, and not known by the Old Testament Prophets."

Since it was a secret unknown in the Old Testament, it should be clearly understood the church needed it's own defining scriptures. These were supplied by Christ to Paul who passed them on to us in his epistles.

The theological jungle which passes for the church today is in a mess of confusing, contradictory teachings, simply because the leaders so often fail to give Paul the authoritative position Christ gave him!

And heading the resistance to what I just wrote are very often the seminaries, anxious to sway young minds to conform to their own particular traditions and concepts.

Paul clearly shows us how we are to understand ourselves as Christians and how we can be victorious over self, the world system and Satan himself all because of Christ.

He died for all our sin, gave us a new sinless nature, gave us the Holy Spirit to indwell us forever, and called us to fight the good fight with Him and for Him. All Paul's writings are for the churches' edification.

All the Jewish Christian Epistles (James, 1,2,3 John, 1+2 Peter, Hebrews and Jude), are written primarily to evangelize unsaved Jews and to encourage and edify Jewish Christians.

The book of Revelation brings together harmoniously the saved Gentile nations, converted Israel, and the Bride of Christ under Christ's everlasting rule.

After the Millennial Reign of Christ, Satan, demons and sinners will be judged and thrown into the Lake of Fire forever.

The earth, atmosphere, and space will then be purged by fire and renewed as beautiful and fresh as Eden in the Creation.

The New Jerusalem, a city of magnificent beauty, will come down out of Heaven to be a satellite "planet" to the new earth.

God will dwell among us and with us forever, in perfect love and harmony, first seen in the blessed Trinity! Hallelujah!