Further Study

Review Questions

These questions are designed to help you review important material covered in the lecture.

1. What is the genre of the Gospels?
2. How do we know that the Gospels are historically reliable?
3. How were the Gospels composed, and why is their composition important?
4. How do we know that the four canonical gospels are authentic?
5. How unified is the story told by all four gospels?
6. How unified is the portrayal of Jesus throughout the four gospels?
7. What apparent difficulties arise from the variety between the Gospels?
8. What are the distinctive emphases of each of the four gospels?

Application Questions

Application questions are intended for group discussions.

1. How should the literary character of the Gospels influence the way we read them?
2. How do the Gospels help us understand the historical narratives in the Old Testament?
3. How can we trust that the Gospels are reliable when they were written by fallen human beings?
4. How might the diversity amongst the Gospels help us to appreciate the diversity of the church?
5. How might the Gospels help us refute and reject erroneous doctrines like the belief that Christ’s return in glory has already occurred?
6. What assurance and hope does the future coming of the kingdom give us? How should this hope impact the way we live presently?