{"id":1349,"date":"2025-04-02T12:00:53","date_gmt":"2025-04-02T16:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/leadershiponfire\/?p=1349"},"modified":"2025-01-27T18:26:31","modified_gmt":"2025-01-27T23:26:31","slug":"five-facts-to-help-you-in-new-testament-bible-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/leadershiponfire\/2025\/04\/five-facts-to-help-you-in-new-testament-bible-study\/","title":{"rendered":"Five Facts to Help you in New Testament Bible Study"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

In our last column<\/a>, we explored five facts to help in Old Testament Bible Study. Contrary to what we often think, it\u2019s not impossible to understand the Bible<\/a>. It takes some effort, but it\u2019s not impossible. Just as we explore topics in-depth when we find them interesting, so we should dive into Bible study in the same manner. Remembering that the Bible isn\u2019t a novel, studying Bible text in context of history and culture, and drawing on word studies (hint: Strong\u2019s is still a great resource) goes a long way to help us learn more about Scripture.<\/p>\n

Here we are going to look at five facts to help you understand the New Testament. New Testament Bible Study is common among both new and seasoned believers alike. It also has its own unique study challenges. Want to dive into New Testament Bible Study and get more out of it? Read on to discover new information!<\/p>\n

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New Testament page. Photo by Christiane: https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/photo\/newtestament-book-2565227\/<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Gospels were not written as events happened<\/h3>\n

Much as we discussed in Old Testament study, the New Testament isn\u2019t a diary. While it took much less time to compile the New Testament than it did the Old Testament, the New Testament wasn\u2019t written as events happened. Narrative writings, such as the Gospels and Acts, were written as a collection of memories, often decades after the fact. Some narrations were written by people who lived them, while others were written by those who heard the stories and recorded them sometime later. Much as with the Old Testament, some of the details we often argue about were inconsequential to them. Their focus was the life and work of Christ and the Spirit in the early church.<\/p>\n

The purpose of these writings was to inspire faith, recounting the Good News of Christ\u2019s life, death, and resurrection, and the empowered way the early church grew across the ancient world. They were not meant to be a social media live event.<\/p>\n

Things aren\u2019t always in chronological order<\/h3>\n

This point was also made with Old Testament Bible Study. It\u2019s our temptation to think that we\u2019re reading Bible events as if they happened, one sequential item after another. The Gospels<\/a> cover approximately a three-year period of time (with insertions in Matthew and Luke about the birth of Christ and one instance when he was around 12) while the book of Acts<\/a> covers approximately 30-35 years. Even when reading the Gospels, we don\u2019t find parallel narratives follow the same order. We don\u2019t know how many days are found between incidents or chapters.<\/p>\n

Remember, the focus of New Testament Bible Study is Christ, not the passage of time.<\/p>\n

Each of the Gospels was written for a different audience<\/h3>\n

Most of us imagine the early church to be a perfected version of our own denominations. This couldn\u2019t be farther from the truth. The early church revolved around the leadership of apostles (both the 12 and others), each of whom led a small group of disciples. Each of these groups varied in practice: some were more Jewish, some more Greek, and so on and so forth. We see evolution of church growth in the four Gospel writers (although there were other Gospels, all of whom had their own audiences, as well):<\/p>\n