Childs Hill Baptist Church - The New Testament

The New Testament contains 27 books. It was written in Greek and covers the period from Jesus's birth (probably in 4 BC(1)) to about 100 AD.

It can be divided into four parts:

The Gospels(2) give us 4 portraits of Jesus. They describe his life and teaching, presenting him as the Christ or Messiah, the Son of God. They are based on the authentic testimony of eye witnesses.(3) They were written so that those who read them would believe and receive eternal life.(4)
The Acts describes the subsequent spread of Christianity around the northern Mediterranean area and the establishment of the early church. Much of the action follows the conversion of Paul (the "apostle to the Gentiles") and his missionary journeys.
There are 21 letters. Most of these are from the apostle Paul - to churches that had been established either by him or others, and to individuals. There are also letters from the apostles Peter and John, and James and Jude, two of the brothers of Jesus. Together they lay out patterns for church worship and practice, and expand on the teaching of Christ.
The last book is Revelation. Written by John, it is apocalyptic in nature. It describes the eventual triumph of the kingdom of God - in particular, the last judgment, and the creation of the new heavens and earth.

(1) Dionysius, a monk who lived in the 6th century, called the year of Jesus's birth Anno Domini ("in the year of our Lord") 1, or AD 1. Dates before this were Before Christ, BC. This became the basis for our modern dating system. However, it seems that Dionysius was wrong in his calculations. Jesus was probably born between four and seven years earlier than Dionysius thought.

(2) Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. "Gospel" literally means "good news". These books recount the good news, the greatest news, about the life and work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

(3) "Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught." Luke 1:1-4.
"We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty." 2 Peter 1:16

(4) "Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name." John 20:30-31