The Men behind the New Testament

A book by Children of God

A Watchmen Brothers publication.

This book is written by many authors. Brothers from Watchmen Brothers and Encountered Ministree have joined together to write this book. We thank all those who helped us to read the Bible and understand it better. Glory goes to the Holy Spirit who is the author of the Bible and who helped us to write this book.

1. Matthew
Matthew was the author of the first Gospel in the New Testament. His main target audience were the Jews. This is evident from the first chapter of is gospel itself where he clearly brings out the Jewish roots of Jesus Christ. He also makes sure to prove to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah and He was the one who was prophesied by the Prophets. Matthew was one among the 12 disciples personally chosen and trained by Jesus for his great commission. His call is significant because it is clearly mentioned in the Bible. Before he became a disciple of Jesus, he was a tax collector. He might have collected taxes from the Hebrew people for Herod Antipas. Matthew 9 :9 gives the detail about his call. He was sitting on his tax collectors booth in Capernaum and he was doing his official duty when Jesus went past him. Jesus looked at him and said Follow Me and immediately Matthew started to follow him. We see implicit obedience here. To do such an act, one must have complete faith. Matthew had such a faith on Jesus. Jesus chose his disciples from various backgrounds; but predominantly fishermen. The authors of the New Testament also came from various backgrounds. Considering the duty that Matthew was doing, he must have been good in numbers and he was a finance executive. In todays scenario he is equivalent to anyone who has done their studies in commerce/ economics, Chartered Accountancy or even an MBA. The other name of Matthew is Levi and he was the son of a man called Alpheus. He witnessed the resurrection and also the ascension of Jesus. It is widely believed that he preached the gospel to the Jews in Judea He suffered martyrdom in Ethiopia where he was killed by the sword. The lessons we learn from his life are 1) Simplicity 2) Implicit Obedience 3) Concern for reaching out to the own community.

2. Mark
Mark also called as John Mark is a cousin of Barnabas. Mark acted as an interpreter for Peter and he wrote this book after listening to Peters instructions. He is the nameless character who runs away naked when Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss (Mark 14:52). He accompanied Paul and Barnabas in their first missionary journey; but left them mid way. This caused a major strife among the apostles and because of the strife Paul did not take Mark along with him in his second journey. However later he became a travel accomplice of Paul. This is evident from Colossians chapter 4 where Mark is also a fellow prisoner along with Paul. Marks house was used for many gatherings of the apostles. After the resurrection of Jesus, the disciples gathered at his house and Jesus appeared in his house after his resurrection. Mark was a linguist and he was of great help for the apostles. Paul also held Mark in high regard. Marks way of writing is very crisp and to the point. He addresses his letter to the gentiles, mainly the church in Rome. He explains to them about Jewish customs and he also translates Aramaic words. His letter is action packed as he gives special importance to persecution and martyrdom. Mark might have written this letter to prepare the believers to go through persecution. Mark lays emphasis on 1) The cross 2) Discipleship 3) The teachings of Jesus 4) The Messianic secret 5) Jesus is son of God He had the gift of explaining things in brief and it was such an amazing quality. This quality of Mark puts him right at the top as one of the most efficient presenters of his time. No wonder everyone wanted to take Mark along with them in their missionary journeys. Mark regained the faith of Paul (2 Timothy 4:11) and Peter addresses him as his son ( 1 Peter 5 :13). He was loved by one and all.

3. Luke
The Name Luke is derived from Latin word Lucas which means from Lucania. Lucania is a place in Italy. But Luke was a Greco-Syrian whose domicile was in Antioch,Syria. He was a physician by profession. He later started to actively involve himself in Gospel ministry predominantly with Apostle Paul. We can also find Paul referring to Luke in his epistles like Philemon, Colossians and 1 Timothy. This is a sign that Luke was very actively involved in the mission work in the first century.Luke is also the author of two major books in New Testament which covers nearly one-third of its volume. They are Gospel of Luke and Acts of the Apostles. His writings narrate the History in three stages i. ii. iii. Before birth of Christ,Life Ministry of Christ Mission work after the after ascension of Christ.

Many Scholars widely appreciate the precision, accuracy and methodical procedure of his writings. Though we do not find much explicit references or events related with Luke, there are many spiritual lessons we can learn from Lukes life. They are given below 1. Humility: Luke actively involved in gospel ministry and missionary journeys. Though he was a doctor by profession; he actively travelled and mingled with all types of people (scholars and unlearned) during ministry. Though he wrote the Acts of Apostles, he was very careful not to mention his name or highlight any event related with him. He remained Behind the screen even though he was one of the backbones to the missionary journeys by the apostles. 2. Faithfulness: He was Faithful not only to LORD but also to his spiritual mentor and Sincere Apostle Paul. He is also faithfully reporting about the missionary journeys 3.Perfection: Lukes writings show the amount of hard work he has taken for collecting accurate information. His methodical writing style is very neat and easy to understand. It not only showcases his perfection but also the burden he had for spreading the Gospel of Christ, especially among Gentiles. He is a wonderful example for people who like to be disciplined. Luke was unmarried and continued to serve LORDs work for most part of his life. He is believed to have died as Martyr when he was 84 at the hands of Greek priests, near Boeotia, Greece.

4. John
John, The Apostle is a fisherman from the Galilee. He is the son of Zebedee (father) and Salome (mother). James is the brother of John. James and John were called the Sons of thunder (Mark 3:17) by Jesus itself. When Jesus called them, they left their father Zebedee, their wealth and their servants to follow Jesus. Scripture says that they met Jesus at the place where they caught large amount of fish. John wrote 5 books in the Bible. 1. The Gospel of John 2. Epistles of John I John, II John, III John. 3. Revelation When the Romans Destroyed Jerusalem (70 AD), John fled to Ephesus (70-95 AD). At that time Domitian (81 -96 AD) was the emperor of Rome. By his order John was later exiled to the island (95-96 AD), Patmos. John wrote the book of Revelation during his exile. When he was released from exile, he returned to Ephesus. John founded and built churches all through Asia until he was old, and died the sixty-eighth year after our Lord's passion, peacefully in Ephesus. He is also the disciple who had the privilege to lie on the bosom of Jesus Christ. John had the privilege to be closely associated with Jesus in his ministry life on earth. He was present at the transfiguration mount and He was treated very special by Jesus Christ. The gospel of John captures the passion of Jesus in a beautiful manner. No other gospel captures the emotional heart beat of Jesus as John captures it. The epistles of John were written to speak strongly against the false Heresies like Docetism, Gnosticism, and Imperialism. 1 John explains us the Sin, Love, Family of God, Truth and Error, Assurance. 2 John has details about Truth, Love and False Leaders. 3 John teaches about Hospitality, pride and faithfulness. The book of Revelation is considered as the hardest and the most important book among the books of the Bible. This book was written by John when he was at the exile of Domitian emperor. This is the subject on which Amos, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Paul, Peter, and all the prophets had written. They spoke of a day of victory that would come, and that the end would be better (more glorious) than the beginning. The victory would be achieved through Jesus Christ. God has revealed, spoken and guided John personally to write the book of Revelation. John was unlearned and unschooled (Acts 4:13). God even uses such people.

5. Paul
Paul is considered as the most renowned Author of all times. No other writer made a contribution to the literature society other than Paul. The most number of researches in Christian literature is made on Pauls writings. The literature society calls him, Paul the great. Two third of the New Testament is written by Paul. Pauls life is similar to the life of Moses. Both had similar experience, became linguists and learned men from non-believing side. God prepared both. God had an eye on them. They both contributed heavily for the Old Testament and the New Testament respectively. When it comes to theology and proving their doctrinal faith, No one had the confidence and courage to challenge people of their time like Paul. Pauls guilt regarding his past life instigated him to take up such hardship for the sake of Gospel. This man travelled the most, planted many churches than anyone, appointed leaders for the second line of mission, wrote more than any other author in the bible. Christendom owes a lot to Apostle Paul. Paul's Journey: Paul was a great traveler, visiting Cyprus, Asia Minor (modern Turkey), mainland Greece, Crete, and Rome. His three missionary journeys is recorded in the book of Acts. He even wrote letters when he was in prison. Acts book covers mostly of Pauls life. Paul's Letters: His letters are full of expositions of what Christians should believe and how they should live. His most explicit references to the life of Jesus are of the Last Supper, crucifixion and resurrection. He wrote 13 epistles to churches and individuals. Pauls letters had 4 core contents 1) Death 2) Resurrection 3) Lordship and 4) Return of Jesus Christ. Paul's concern for the Church and the solutions he offered for the problems the church faced in the first century is so apt to handle church issues even until today. Paul's struggle in mission: In 2 Corinthians 11:20-32 Paul provided a list of some of his adversities as a missionary. In comparing his experiences to those of some of the "most eminent apostles", he wrote that he: worked much harder, was in prison, was flogged, was stoned, was beaten with rods, was shipwrecked, spent a night in the open seas, was in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from his fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. He went without sleep, gone without food, had been cold and naked. He always had the concern for church in spite of his struggles. No one knows when Paul was born or when he died. Paul was by birth a Roman citizen, as was his father. His was a devout Jewish family in the city of Tarsus, one of the largest trade centers on the Mediterranean coast. It was renowned for its university, one in which students could receive a superior education. It is believed he was beheaded in Rome sometime after 67AD.

6. Peter
The man who denied Jesus also became the one who went on to be the main speaker on the day the Christian church was born. He was an eloquent speaker. His first message resulted in 3000 converts for Christ. He was a man who wanted to live all out for Christ. He and his brother were chosen by Jesus to follow him. They were fishermen. He obeyed Gods call and followed him. When we see Peters life, we can see he acted on instinct. He would first do and then think. This has resulted in Jesus even calling him Go behind me Satan. Later the same Peter who was also unschooled and unlearned, stood firmly for Christ. He is regarded as the first pope of the Catholic Church. His death was gory. He wanted to be crucified upside down on the cross. Such was his fervour for Gospel. Peter also wrote two epistles. These two epistles are brilliant literary articles. These days scholars are doing research on his letters; the letters that were written by an unlearned man. God can use anyone. That is the lesson we learn from Peters life. If only we surrender and live all out for God, God can use us to our full potential. Peter never had any ego problem. Though he was much senior to Paul in his walk with Jesus, he had the humility when Paul opposed him and corrected him. He accepts Pauls correction (Galatians 2). Peter was also instrumental in guiding Mark to pen the gospel of Mark. Peters written style is very simple and is very different from the philosophical writing style of Paul. Even Peter accepts the fact that Pauls writings are difficult to understand; but he had full faith that God was guiding Paul. So he allowed Paul to correct him when he went wrong. We can learn Humility from Peter. He never had the I know it all attitude. He was a learner throughout his life and he could learn because of his humility. God loves humble people and no wonder Peter was in the close rung of disciples of Jesus.

7. James
There is more than one James in the New Testament. The James who wrote the New Testament epistle is the brother of Jesus. He grew up in the same house with Jesus. So he would have known Jesus much before he started his ministry. Paul addresses him as the brother of the Lord (Galatians 1: 19). He became the head of the Christian movement after the ascension of Christ. When Paul and his companions went on missionary Journeys, James was heading the Jerusalem Council. He was the principal author of the apostolic decree of Acts 15. He was also called as James the just. We see that he was not a great supporter of Jesus during the ministry life of Jesus. He had a different idea about ministry. In one instance he advices Jesus to become popular. The gospel of Mark and the gospel of Matthew address him as the brother of Jesus. John 7:5 says that the brothers of Jesus did not believe in him. James was one among them. But later he became a pillar of support for spreading the gospel and he also became the bishop of the church in Jerusalem. He was the eldest of the brothers of Jesus. James- in his epistle constantly warned the brothers to flee away from worldly lust. This was contrary to how he was when he advised Jesus to go behind worldly glory. This change of heart is a result of seeing how his brother lived on earth. The life of Jesus impacted him so much that he finally became a martyr for Christ.

8. Jude
Jude was one of the four brothers of Jesus. He was also among the "Twelve disciples" of Jesus Christ. He also wrote the "Epistle of Jude" in New Testament. He has been attributed as Author of this Epistle based on his definition as "Brother of James"(Jude 1:1).The James referred here is James, the Just who was brother of Jesus Christ. Jude is also scarcely mentioned in the New testament in two places(Mark 6:3 and Matthew 13:55) which point to the same incident where people of Nazareth say about Jesus "Is not this the carpenter, Son of Mary, The brother of James Joses, Jude and Simeon?". It is interesting to note that Jude and his brothers initially did not believe much in Jesus(John 7:5) but later we see after His ascension Jude, his mother and brothers was also among those who gathered to pray(Acts 1:12-14) which indicates that He now started to firmly believe in Jesus Christ. His participation in Ministry is also indicated by Apostle Paul(1 Corinthians 9:5). Jude presents two incidents which are uniquely mentioned in the Bible . 1. First is Archangel Micheal's dispute about body of Moses(Jude 1:9) and 2. Second is Enoch's prophecy about "Judgement day" (Jude 1:14-15). Though Jude was biological brother of Lord Jesus, he chose to reveal himself as "Servant of Jesus Christ" rather than Brother. This shows the "humility" Jude had in Ministry life. Jude's knowledge of scriptures(Old testament) is evident even from this very small epistle. The beauty of illustrating "Spiritual insights" by quoting scriptures is a measure of his closer relationship with God too. Jude's warning about last days and about Ungodly people shows the selfless concern he had on fellow believers in Christ. It is believed that Jude was killed with arrows after refusing to deny his faith in Christ.

Conclusion
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Book Matthew Mark Luke John Acts of the Apostles Romans 1 Corinthians 2 Corinthians Galatians Ephesians Philippians Colossians 1 Thessalonians Author Matthew Mark Luke John Luke 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Book 2 Thessalonains 1 Timothy 2 Timothy Titus Philemon James 1 Peter 2 Peter 1 John 2 John 3 John Jude Revelation Author Paul James Peter John Jude John

Paul

27) The Author of the letter to the Hebrews is Unknown. But the known fact is that the author wrote the epistle by the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Eight authors were used by the Holy Spirit to pen the 27 books of the New Testament. The striking feature about the authors is that they come from different backgrounds, qualifications, work-class, social status. Educated people like an accountant, a linguist, a physician, a scholar were used by the Holy Spirit to pen two-thirds of the New Testament. At the same time carpenters like James and Jude were also used by the Holy spirit to pen two books in the New Testament. The most surprising fact is that 7 of the books in the New Testament were penned by men who were unlearned fishermen (Peter and John). This goes on to show that God can use anyone to complete his task. These were men like us who did extra ordinary things for God just because they walked with God. If we walk with God, God will use us to do extra ordinary things too

Watchmen Brothers and friends.