The word Gospels comes from the message that Jesus Christ preached, the gospel of the Kingdom of God (Mark 1:14-15). Gospel is translated from the Greek word euangelion, meaning “good news”; and the apostles would not have used the word in the plural since there was only one true gospel. The Gospels focus mostly on the 3½-year ministry of Jesus Christ and, especially, on the last week of His life. They give very little information about His life before age 30, and so they are not really intended as full biographies.In writing their accounts each of the Gospel writers had a different background, audience and purpose in mind:The Four Gospel AuthorsMatthewThe Bible tells us that Matthew was a tax collector. His profession was despised by his fellow Jews because publicans supported the Roman occupiers and because they frequently extorted additional money for themselves. Jesus called Matthew to be one of His disciples and apostles, so Matthew left his previous profession and spent his full time traveling and learning from Jesus Christ. He was an eyewitness of the events he records. Matthew’s Gospel shows a special emphasis on the fact that Jesus is the Messiah foretold by Old Testament Prophets. Matthew quotes extensively from the Old Testament and seems to have had Jewish readers particularly in mind.MarkThe Bible does not give Mark’s previous profession but mentions his work in preaching the gospel with Paul, Barnabas and Peter. Tradition says that Mark’s Gospel reflects Peter’s eyewitness testimony of Christ’s life. Mark’s emphasis on Jesus’ mighty and miraculous works makes this Gospel action-packed, fresh and vivid.  In general, Mark presents the miracle-working Jesus, not the teaching JesusLukeLuke was “the beloved physician” and companion of the apostle Paul. He had read many other accounts of Jesus’ life; but using interviews of eyewitnesses and careful research, he determined to write “an orderly account” for Theophilus, “that (he) may know the certainty of those things in which (he was) instructed” . Luke had a special emphasis on Jesus’ humanity and His kindness to the weak, suffering and outcasts. At the end of his Gospel, Luke recorded Christ’s statement to the disciples explaining how the prophecies about Him in “the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms” had been and would be accurately completed.JohnJohn was a fisherman when Jesus called him to be a disciple and apostle. John focused his eyewitness account heavily on the last days and hours of Christ’s life. John explained his reason for including the material he did in his Gospel: “And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:30-31).The four Gospel writers did not intend their audiences to read their books for entertainment, or even just for information. They wrote to get a message across—a message of warning and of hope. The Gospels are a call to action.Go FurtherAn Introduction to the New Testament by D. A. Carson and Douglas J. MooAn Introduction to the New Testament by Raymond E. BrownFour Portraits, One Jesus: A Survey of Jesus and the Gospels by Mark L. Strauss---Article adapted from http://lifehopeandtruth.com/bible/holy-bible/new-testament/gospels/

This form of prayer is what most people think of when they think of prayer. Petitions are prayers of request for oneself and intercessions are prayers of requests for others. An intercessor is one who takes the place of another or pleads another's case.Jesus as IntercessorJesus Christ is our model for intercessory prayer. Jesus stands before God and between God and sinful man, just as the Old Testament priests did. 1 Timothy 2:5 says, “For there is one God, and one mediator (intercessor) between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” Similarly, Romans 8:34 says, “It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.” Because of Jesus being a new sort of high priest, we can approach God boldly without fear (Hebrews 4:14-16). Furthermore, Jesus was an intercessor while He was here on earth. He prayed for those who were sick and possessed by demons. He prayed for His disciples. He even prayed for you and me when He interceded for all those who would believe in Him. Jesus continued His ministry of intercession after His death and resurrection when He returned to Heaven.Praying in this way can be for other’s benefit and our own. Yet, beyond all of that, we pray in this way because that is how Jesus taught us to pray in what we call today “The Lord’s Prayer.”Our Father in heaven,hallowed be your name.Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heavenGive us today our daily bread.Forgive us our sins,as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours. Now and for ever.Go FurtherKnocking on Heaven's Door: A New Testament Theology of Petitionary Prayer by David CrumpPrayer: Does It Make Any Difference? By Phillip Yancey---Article adapted from http://www.allaboutprayer.org/intercessory-prayer.htm

The Book of Psalms has long been a part of the Christian life of prayer and worship. Yet, today many people do not see them as a tool for their own prayer life. Why should we pray with the Psalms and how do we?Why is praying the Psalms a good idea?The Psalms teach us to pray through imitation and response. Real prayer is always an answer to God’s revelation. The Psalms are both prayer and revelations about God — the perfect ideal soil for learning prayer.The Psalms take us deep into our own hearts 1,000 times faster than we would ever go if left to ourselves.Religious/moral people tend to want to deny the rawness and reality of their own feelings, especially the darkness of them. The secular world has almost made an idol of emotional self-expression. … But the Psalmists neither “stuff” their feelings nor “ventilate” them. They pray them — they take them into the presence of God until they change or understand them.The Psalms force us to deal with God as God is, not as we wish God was. “Left to ourselves, we will pray to some god who speaks what we like hearing, or to the part of God we manage to understand. But what is critical is that we speak to the God who speaks to us, and to everything he speaks to us … the Psalms train us in that conversation” (from Eugene Peterson’s Answering God).How do I pray the Psalms?Linger over a Psalm and investigate it.Is there a particular verse that is particularly relevant to your life right now? Chew on it. Read it aloud over and over, with a different emphasis on each word. Why is this word chosen or important here? What difference would this make in my life if I believed this with all my heart? If I applied this to my life? Pray for yourself and others from it.If you don’t understand, look it up.A commentary is particularly helpful to understand the context of the Psalm (Google can offer lots of help here!) What was the Psalmist going through when he wrote this particular Psalm? The Psalms also point to Christ. Where might this psalm fit into his life?Use the Psalms to praise God.Psalms touch on different aspects of who God is, look for them and then celebrate them.Go FurtherPraying with the Psalms by Eugene PetersonPraying the Psalms by Thomas Merton---Article adapted from http://www.redeemer.com/learn/resources_by_topic/prayer/prayer_and_fasting/praying_the_psalms/