The New Testament is a collection of twenty-seven books centered on the figure of Jesus of Nazareth. Each of these books has its own author, context, theme, and purpose.
The Gospels and Acts of the Apostles
The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke are all the same story of Jesus Christ, however, told from different viewpoints and authors. This creates differences in some additions, special emphases on others, and particular omissions according to the interests of the author and the message the text are trying to convey. The Gospels tell the story of Jesus Christ, including His ministry, gathering of the disciples, trial, crucifixion, and, in the case of Matthew and Luke, his resurrection. John is also a Gospel, but is very different from the accounts of Matthew, Mark.
The Acts of the Apostles follows John, and picks up the story at the resurrection of Jesus Christ, when the early Apostles are commissioned to witness to the world. Acts is a chronological history of the first church of Christ.
The Epistles
The twenty-one books following Acts are epistles, or letters, written from church leaders to churches in various parts of the world. The first fourteen of these letters were written by Paul and are often referred to as the “Epistles of Paul”.
The seven letters following the Epistles of Paul were written by different church leaders and are addressed to the church as a whole rather than to particular churches. Following the seven letters with no clear authors are the First and Second Letters of Peter. These letters are followed by The First, Second, and Third Letters of John and then Jude attributes itself to Jude.
The Revelation to John
The last book in the New Testament is the Revelation of John, or The Book of Revelation. This book was written by John the Revelator, while imprisoned on the Island of Patmos. John received visions of the destruction of the earth, and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ and the Judgment of all mankind!
Zach's Scripture Study 