In this book, through a distinctive evangelical and critical approach, Michael Bird explores the historical development of the four canonical Gospels. He shows how the memories and faith of the earliest believers formed the Gospel accounts of Jesus that got written and, in turn, how these accounts further shaped the early church. Bird's study clarifies the often confusing debates over the origins of the canonical Gospels. Bird navigates recent concerns and research as he builds an informed case for how the early Christ followers wrote and spread the story of Jesus -- the story by which they believed they were called to live. The Gospel of the Lord is ideal for students or anyone who wants to know the story behind the four Gospels. Watch an interview with Michael Bird from our Eerdmans Author Interview Series:

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1908 edition. Excerpt: ... 309 CHAPTER XVII. CONCLUSION. The Four Gospels, it may be reasonably concluded, were written by the Evangelists whose names they bear, and to whom they were ascribed by the almost unbroken tradition of seventeen centuries. That tradition derives consistency and strength from the society within which the Gospels originated, and for whose spiritual requirements they were written--the Church of believers in Christ, which early spread over the Roman world. The Church as it passed beyond the borders of the Holy Land preserved its continuity still with the mother Church of Jerusalem. Hegesippus,1 a Jewish Christian writer of the second century, tells how on his journey from the East to the West he met a great number of bishops, and found the same doctrine held by them all; from which it is clear that the life, the thought, and 1 Euseb. H. E., IV. 22. the activity of the Churches of Antioch, Ephesus, Corinth, and Rome were governed from the first by the traditions of the Life and Teaching of the Lord which came down from the Apostles. Considering the importance attributed to the works of Apostles and Apostolic men, it would be strange if the Church which recognised the Four Gospels as precious above all others and gave them currency--making copies of them and using them early in the Christian assemblies for worship and instruction--should have lost all trace and knowledge of their authors. It is nothing wonderful that the Evangelists themselves do not put their names in the titlepage of their Gospels. Not one of Plato's dialogues designates him the author; we owe the attribution to literary tradition. The tradition within the Church of the authorship of the Gospels is equally worthy of acceptation. The Evangelists whom Irenaeus quotes by name...

Why does the New Testament contain four Gospels—four different accounts of the same Man? And don’t the Gospels contradict one another? Masterful Bible teacher Arthur Pink explains how the four Gospels do not contradict but rather collaborate in order to provide us with a deeper, multifaceted description of the person of Jesus Christ. In Matthew, we see Jesus as Messiah and King of the Jews. In Mark, we are introduced to the Servant of Jehovah. In Luke, we see the human Jesus as the Son of Man, Adam’s descendant. Finally, in John, we thrill to the supernatural Jesus who is undoubtedly the Son of God. No believer can truly know Jesus without having an understanding of the four distinct roles He fulfilled in His time on earth. Pink’s in-depth look at the four Gospels will boost your faith and bring you ever closer to a Savior who is fully human, fully divine, and above everything, Lord of all.