Formation of the New Testament Canon
by Rit NosotroChange Over Time essay
Trace the authentication of the New Testament canon
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Summary:
One of the most important steps in the development of early Church, was the decision about which writings were Divinely inspired, and therefore should be included in Scripture. The leadership of the Church made this decision with utmost care, looking for the “fingerprints” of the Apostles in each book that was considered. However, the process took more than a century and did not receive final confirmation until nearly 400 A.D. The standard for inclusion into the canon of Scripture was described by the Apostle Paul in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.“ Also, the Apostle Peter stated in 2 Peter 1:16, “For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty.” (Holy Bible)
When believers first began to meet, they would only study the Old Testament, from which Jesus had taught. The first written materials to be gathered, were the letters written by the Apostle Paul to the churches. Over time, as the eye witnesses slowly died, and as the oral traditions began to fade, the Church saw its need to record the teachings, and the life of Jesus. This process was further complicated by the “fragility and scarcity of the early written copies of apostolic writings which led to some documents being well known in some areas but lost in others.” Also, another problem was the numerous false teachings being passed through the church. These writings had comparable names and appeared to discuss the same topics, as the genuine texts written by the apostles. Due to the increasingly intense persecution, people were no longer willing to risk their lives for a teaching, unless they were certain it was inspired by the Holy Spirit. (http://www.standard.net.au/~covenant/studies/CanonNT.html, Unger’s Bible Dictionary, How Our Bible Came to Us and Christianity Through the Centuries)
The Gospel of Mark was likely written first and followed by Matthew, Luke, Acts and John. The dates for these books begin at around 60 AD and end with John being written near 100 AD. Though these dates are not certain, Mark is placed first because of its simplicity; the Gospels of Matthew and Luke seem to use passages from Mark and that is why Mark is listed as being penned first.
By approximately 175 A.D, there was general agreement concerning the apostolicity of most of the known books in what is today called the New Testament. Nevertheless, there were several criteria that the books had to pass. First of all, was the book written by one of the apostles, or by someone who was closely linked to an apostle? For example, the Gospel of Mark was accepted, because of the vital link that Mark possessed to the Apostle Peter. Second, did the book confirm the accounts of the eye witnesses of the life of Jesus? Third, was the book able to encourage and strengthen the believers in their faith, when it was read publicly? Fourth, did it confirm the truths contained in the creeds adopted by the founding fathers of the church? Lastly, did it have any heretical doctrines contrary to the teachings of Jesus? (Christianity Through the Centuries, How Our Bible came to Us, and http://www.standard.net.au/~covenant/studies/CanonNT.html)
In reality, the writings that did not appear to be led of the Holy Spirit, were no longer used in the churches. Basically, believers in Jesus continued to “test the Spirit” to see which books were from the Lord. “In the final analysis, it was the historical verification of apostolic authorship or influence, and the universal consciousness of the church, guided by the Holy Spirit, that resulted in the final decision concerning what books should be considered canonical and worthy of inclusion in what we know as the New Testament.” (Christianity Through the Centuries and http://www.standard.net.au/~covenant/studies/CanonNT.html)
The Muratorian Canon in approximately 180 A.D, had judged twenty-two books as being worthy of being accepted into the New Testament. From that time forward until modern times, the question of whether or not to include those books in the New Testament, was not challenged again. Nonetheless, the books of James, 2 Peter, 2 and 3 John, Jude, Hebrews, and Revelation were somewhat problematic. There was some uncertainty about the authorship of these books for a number of decades. Eventually, these books were considered to be authoritative by the Council of Laodicea in 363 A.D. and by the Council of Carthage in 397 A.D. However, it was the constant usage of these books which made them stand out as being valid, as opposed to the undocumented, false teachings of the Gnostic and other heretical groups. (Christianity Through the Centuries and Encyclopedia Americana.)
The New Testament is a collection of books of the Christian Bible, comprising the Gospels, Acts of the Apostles, the Epistles, and the Revelation of St. John the Divine. (Webster) Canon is defined as the books of the Bible recognized by any Christian church as genuine and inspired. (Webster)
The Apocrypha
The Apocrypha is a set of 14 books that had been allowed by the Jewish Sanhedrin
in Jerusalem to be used among Greek speaking Jews over the course of Greek Helenization
that took place between the Old and New Testaments. Although never part of the
Hebrew scriptures, these apocryphal writings had increased in authority merely
by the passing of time. Shortly after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD,
a group of Jewish Rabbis met in Jamnia to codify the ancient scripture for a
population that had now been widely dispersed. They were also reacting to the
Jewish cult of Christianity that continued to grow in popularity. In order to
completely sever ties to these Greek speaking Christians, they purified the
Hebrew canon by discrediting anything that was originally written in Greek.
This, of course, included the Greek Old Testament (Septuegent) and, of course,
the letters of Paul that were ciruclating on par with "the other scriptures"
(1 Peter). Thus the Bible retained by the early Christians contained the Apocrapha,
and the Jewish Bible clarified what were the original Hebrew scriptures.
To Christians, the New Testament was recognized as as the inspired word of God beginning in Acts chapter 15 when the council of Jerusalem excused Gentile belivers from the burden of Hebrew law. Instead, the teachings of Christ became their "New Covenant" or Testament. Peter dictated to Mark the teachings and activities of Christ and other first hand accounts came into cirrculation. Mark is placed first because of its simplicity; the Gospels of Matthew and Luke seem to use passages from Mark. John's account has his own unique style which sets it apart from the three "synoptic gosples". Luke compiled from reliable sources and also reported on the "Acts of the Apostels" much of which he experienced first hand as he traveled with Paul. Paul's inspired letters were currculated and copies were collected by first century church leaders as were other epistles from reliable authors such as James, the brother of Jesus, and intimate eyewitnesses accounts from John and Peter.
The integrity of the gospel writers is apparent as they share personal faults and weaknesses that could be used against them. There were many times that the apostles couldn’t comprehend the miracles and mysteries of Jesus but they included them in their writings. Their honest sincerity even records faithless times when they doubted God. Paul too, records his intimant struggles is Romans 7.
The earliest church elders were extremely cautious in their acceptance of these early Christian scriptures. Paul knew of counterfeits and signed his distinctive signature after he had dictated his letters. The authority of an eyewitness apostle who also confirmed the accurate theology taught in Paul's writings, provided the standard to test subsequent documents that appeared. In this manner, the New testament, as we have it today, was considered a closed cannon shortly after the last apostle died. The martyerdom of many apostles also lends support to the credibility of a message they were willing to die for.
Although the Apocraphal books of the Greek Old Testament remained in use, the were never given the authority of the orignial Hebrew scriptures that were often referred to by Jesus and the Apostles. Contextual criticism of the Aprocrapha's multiple errors in history, geography, and doctrine, lead the reformers to finally remove that section from subsequent translations.
Like the Jewish Rabbies who had met in Jamnia over a thousand years earlier in reaction to a weakened Judiasm, the actions of Christian reformers catipalted the Roman Catholic church into a counter-reformation that sought to strenghten their weakening position. Thus the Council of Trent formally codified the Apocrapha from which they had acquired teachings that went counter to those of the first century church. Doctrines of purgatory, paying money for forgiveness of sin, and Maryoitry all received a stronger stance in oppostion to the Reformation. This is why the Apocrapha has never been a part of the Hebrew or Protestant Bibles.
When questioning the authenticity of written works such as the New Testament, there are several points in which one must be aware. As Christians, we know that the New Testament Canon is the inspired Word of God and is profitable for teaching, reproof and training in righteousness; therefore we simply believe it is true. (2 Tim. 3:16-17) However, further research must be carried out in order to prove its authenticity and validity to unbelievers.
Defined as various religious writings of uncertain origin and doubtful authenticity, the Apocrypha contains numerous fallacies and errors. Though the Roman Catholic Church accepted the Apocrypha into their Bible, Christians have found many evidences against the false works. For instance, the book of Tobit contains verses embracing superstitions such as touching the heart and liver of a fish to keep demons away. Another book of the Apocrypha called 2 Maccabees proves that the Apocrypha is definitely not Biblical. The book tells of a nobleman who “plucked out his bowels[…] and cast them upon the throng” to escape wickedness on earth and later died. Ecclesiasticus also contradicts the inspired Word of God by saying that one can buy salvation. The Apocrypha states that “alms maketh an atonement for sins”. The Bible says that the only way to get to gain eternal life is to believe and confess your sins and you will be saved. (Acts 16:31) The Apocrypha contains many other doctrinal contridictions, and errors in geography and history which are why they were not accepted into the Canon.
Some claim that there are controversial books in the Bible that discredit the Epistles of Paul. Martin Luther was one of those who despised the book of James because of its apparent contradiction to Luther's idea of salvation by faith alone as taught by Paul. The crucial point that Martin Luther failed to realize was that James was addressing the Jews while Paul wrote to Christians and fellow believers of the Word. James wrote to the Jews as a counselor and in order that they might grow in the Christian faith. He included many portions of useful advice to aid them during their sufferings. When one decides to critique scriptures, one must ask who the intended audience was at that time and read the scripture in context. It is never profitable to take scriptures and twist them out of context to fit a presupposed truth.
2 Peter 3 warns against false prophets and heretics who distort God’s Word to their own destruction. The book reminds its audience to be wary during the last days when men will rise up and try to turn us from the truth of God’s Word. From the Gnostic heretics that Paul dealt with, to today's cults of Christianity who manipulate scripture like the Jehovah Witnesses, or add their own scripture like the Book of Mormon, evangelicals stand still stand secure God's word.
The flawless, life giving text of the New Testament clearly reveals God’s inspiration upon the authors who wrote this holy work as He guided them and filled their minds with His perfect words.
QuickQuiz:
1. True or False: The Apocrypha was accepted into the Bible but then rejected
due to false teachings.
2. What is the order that these books were written?
A. Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts
B. Matthew, Luke, Mark, John, Acts
C. Matthew, John, Acts, Mark, Luke
D. Mark, Matthew, Luke, Acts, John
E. They were written all together.
3. How do we know the authors wrote truthfully?
A. They were inspired by Joseph
B. They wrote honestly
C. They doubted Jesus
D. They loved the Lord
4. Which book did Martin Luther dislike?
A. Matthew
B. The Apocrypha
C. James
D. Mark
E. Tobit
Bibliography:
1. Bible, The. New American Standard Version.
2. Breaker, Robert III. “The Book of James”. RobertBreaker.com.
22 Jan 2004.
<http://www.robertbreaker.com/honduras/honduras/pages/james.htm>.
3. Pickett, Russ. “The Apocrypha”. Faith Mountain. Sep 2003. Russpickett.com.
22 Jan 2004
<http://www.russpickett.com/basic/apoc.htm>.
4. Random House Webster’s Dictionary. 2001 ed.
5. Warfiield, B.B. “The Formation of the Canon of the New Testament”.
Center For Reformed Theology and Apologetics. 1892. Center For Reformed Theology
and Apologetics. 22 Jan 2004
<http://www.crta.org/bible/warfield_canon.html>.
6. Warner, Tim. “2 Peter 3 and the Day of our Lord”. Nov 2001.
The Last Trumpet-Post-Trib-Research Center. Geocites.com. 22 Jan 2004
<http://www.geocities.com/lasttrumpet_2000/2peter3.html>
7. “What’s in the 27 Books of the New Testament?” Home Church
Ministries. 18 Jan 2004. Big Valley Grace Community Church. 22 Jan 2004
<http://homechurch.bvg.org/Documents/NTBooks.htm>
Cairns, Earle E. Christianity Through the Centuries (Third Edition, Revised and Expanded) Grand Rapids, Michigan. Zondervan Publishing House. (C) 1996
Doney, Meryl. How Our Bible Came to Us. Icknield Way, Tring, Herts, England. Lion Publishing. (C)1985.
Holy Bible. Nashville, Atlanta, London, and Vancouver. Thomas Nelson Publishers. (C) 1992
Unger, Merrill F. Unger’s Bible Dictionary. Chicago, Illinois. Moody Press. (C) 1966
Encyclopedias:
Grant, Frederick C. “Bible: Canon of the New Testament.” Encyclopedia Americana. (C) 1995.
Websites:
Unknown. “The New Testament Canon.” http://www.standard.net.au/~covenant/studies/CanonNT.html Unknown. Unknown. March 24, 2004
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