History of the New Testament

The New Testament.

It may not be as large as the Old, but its claims form the very backbone of our faith.

So…

…how did such an influential work come to be?

Teaching of the Apostles

The earliest Christians didn’t have the same Bible we do.

This should come as no surprise, as they lived during a time when the New Testament was still being written.

In those days, it was the teaching of the apostles, those who actually walked with Jesus, which authoritatively guided the Church. 

Eventually, the apostles passed away, and various splinter groups emerged, teaching a variety of conflicting things about the nature of Jesus and the Gospel.

And so, an agreed-upon grouping of authoritative scriptures became necessary.

Formation of the New Testament

By the second century, many of the books we include in our modern New Testament were already used by the churches.

Examples include:

• The Gospels

• The writings of Paul

• Hebrews

• 1 Peter

• And 1 John

But when did these books become “official” or “canon”, that is, accepted in the authoritative form we know them today?

And when did other, more hotly debated books, such as Revelation, Jude, or James, make it in?

It was around the early fourth century, at a time when Christianity was legalized in the Roman Empire, that the canon took shape.

It was at this time that Eusebius of Caesarea published his Ecclesiastical History (the first ever Church history book), which contained a list of scriptures deemed authoritative for various reasons, including…

• Connection to the apostles (in authorship, association, or timeframe)

• Whether the book promoted the accepted, orthodox teaching of the Church

• And widespread use amongst the Church as a whole

These criteria weeded out certain books while giving a prominent place to the New Testament we know today.

A little over forty years later, Athanasius of Alexandria published a letter containing the authoritative books for the churches in Egypt, which included all 27 New Testament books - further demonstrating the canon’s emergence. 

Identical lists were also used for other churches as the century rolled on.

So, as early as 1700 years ago, an accepted New Testament had already taken shape.

But did that mean all debate ended then and there?

Certainly not.

Come back tomorrow as we explore that more.

For now, be blessed.

Jon,

Theophilus Newsletter