Have you ever wondered how the New Testament was formed?  How did 27 books become the Christian Scripture?  Who were the authors of these writings and how do we know?  This series explores these issues and more.

Sermon 1: Two Testaments

The phrase “New Testament” can also be translated “New Covenant.”  The first Christians understood that God established a “new covenant” in Jesus.  “The apostles’ teaching” (Acts 2:42), therefore, was a combination of an “old covenant,” the doctrines and commands found in the Hebrew Scriptures, and a “new covenant,” the stories about Jesus.  Long before there were two groups of texts, these were the two testaments.

Sermon 2: The Word of God through the Holy Spirit

Since the churches of the first and second century did not have a complete collection of 27 “New Testament” books, what did they teach from when they met together?  With the Hebrew Scriptures and the traditions of Jesus in hand, the first congregations declared the Gospel through the power of the Holy Spirit.  Each congregation seems to have had prophets and other teachers who gave instruction to the church with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  This instruction was the “Word of God.”

Sermon 3: Preach the Gospel: The Oral Tradition as Word of God

No New Testament! No problem! In the absence of widely-spread written records for the life of Christ and for the teachings of the apostles, the gospel message had to be transmitted orally.  The first Christians took the commands of Jesus to “Go into all the world and preach the gospel” (Mark 16:15; Matthew 28:19-20) seriously.  In fact, even when no written text was available, Christians were expected to teach the gospel and live righteously.  It was possible, therefore, to have a mature congregation without a written “New Testament.”

Sermon 4: Early Christian Use of New Testament Writings

Christian writers in the first three centuries referred to the gospels, the letters of Paul and other writings of the New Testament when writing their own texts.  This practice suggests that they were aware that these writings were particularly authoritative.  This sermon explores the beginnings of this canonical process. 

Sermon 5: Establishing the Canon

The early church identified certain texts to be canonical if they were apostolic, universally accepted (catholic), used by the earliest Christians and conveyed an orthodox position theologically, especially in regard to the life of Jesus.  For them, orthodoxy was based in the gospel message of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ; this was the foundation.

Sermon 6: The Authoritative Word of God

The New Testament is considered by Christians to be the inspired Word of God. What does this mean? The four canonical gospels were considered by the early church to be accurate and, therefore, authoritative accounts of the life of Jesus. For this reason, the Word in the flesh became known through the word in the text. Even the writings of Paul were recognized as the divine command of God. Thus, Christians can preach these texts with conviction as authoritative written guides for life.