Bible 101: Synoptic Gospels + 1
Spoiler alert: John was basically Ross Geller.
Welcome to another fabulous episode of Bible 101.
I’m your host, the Reverend Doc.
As we inch closer to the Basics of the New Testament, it’s important we get a few things out of the way first…
One of them being the Synoptic Gospels.
To make your life easier, I have divided this Substack into two parts: the Short Explanation and the Long Explanation.
So, let’s get into it, shall we?
The Short Explanation
It’s the grouping of three Gospels (there are four Gospels).
The End.
The Long Explanation
It’s the grouping of the Matthew, Mark and Luke, where all three talk about Jesus’ life, ministry, death and resurrection. John is not included.
Here’s the dealio: all three books have overlapping stories, sometimes even accounting the same details. John talks about similar things, but his adaptation is a smidgen different.
For a prime example, Matthew and Luke both start with Jesus’ birth. Mark starts with John the Baptist (a friend of Jesus).
And John….. being a bit of an attention seeker starts with a large monologue about how in the beginning was the Word and the Word was God. It’s a whole thing that we will get into later, but as you can tell…it’s a smidgen different (which is also why people tend to love the book of John).
All three Synoptic Gospels are separate, but go together flawlessly. There are no conflicts, whatsoever, among the three of them. Even adding in John, there are still no major conflicts.
The Church tends to overlook the importance of the Gospels. Yes, they’re important (because Jesus), but they’re even more important because we don’t just have one account of Jesus, but four.
FOUR.
Do you realize how big of a deal that is?
We have four accounts of Jesus’ life, ministry, death, resurrection and overall personality.
It’s a big deal.
Now, listen, I know they all kind of glob together. I’m aware. I’ve created a flawless system for you to figure out which one would be the most fun to partake in first, including a verse from each to best describe the Synoptic-esque feel (plus John).
Matthew
A bit of an OCD man. Good at finances. Has exactly seven pairs of socks for each day of the week. Listens to dubstep and 90’s party anthems. Takes an insane amount of notes at every Sunday service and only reads self-help books. He focuses on the priesthood of Jesus (meaning Jesus’ inherent holiness), the kingdom of Heaven and how to read the Old Testament laws with mercy rather than reading them with an iron fist.
“One of the disciples cut off a man’s ear…”
(Matthew 26:51, The Reverend Doctor’s Translation)
Mark
Blonde hair, blue eyes, frat bro. Used CliffNotes in college, exclusively. Never has picked up a book in his life. Listens to new rappers you’ve never heard of, all of which have names starting with Lil’. He focuses on the final week of Jesus’ life, the kingdom of God (versus the kingdom of Heaven like Matt), mentions Jesus callin’ out people Wild ‘n’ Out style frequently and the emotional side to Jesus and the disciples. Because of this emotional intelligence, we can (meaning me and only me) assume that he was raised by a single mom who worked two jobs.
“But one of the disciples cut off a man’s ear…”
(Mark 14:47, The Reverend Doctor’s Translation)
Luke
He has the travel bug and does so through extreme budgeting, even though he is a physician and makes more than all of us. Has seven 401(k)’s. When you ask him what his favorite song is, he would respond “oh, that one on the radio is pretty good” with zero context as to which radio station he was listening to. Prefers tea over coffee. Calls you just to make sure you are thriving and not in fact only surviving. He focuses on the parable side of Jesus’ story telling abilities, understanding God’s Plan (not the Drake song) and Jesus’ identity as Messiah/Servant/Lord and that miracles prove that the kingdom has, in fact, arrived.
“And one of them struck the ear of the high priest’s slave…”
(Luke 22:50, The Reverend Doctor’s Translation)
John
His hair is coated in hair gel. He smells strongly of a cologne that you can neither afford nor pronounce. At his wedding, he has five Best Men instead of one. Takes the nickname Jesus gave him as a very literal thing (“son of thunder”). Just wants to sing along to Shania Twain and Doobie Brothers very loud in a convertible with his BFF’s. He focuses his adaptation on Jesus being God, “I am” statements from Jesus, healing, restoration and being the most talented and good-looking disciple.
“And then Simon Peter had a sword. Yes, that Simon Peter. And Simon Peter cut off his ear. It was Simon Peter. No one else. Just Simon Peter. Also, I’m faster than him and grow a better beard.”
(John 18:10, The Reverend Doctor’s Translation)
Now you know.
Go read with confidence. Thanks for being here.
