As a Bible Study teacher in my women's class and a former teaching director of Community Bible Study, I have actually taught all of the gospels verse by verse, except for Luke. I actually have a book entitled Harmony of the Gospels, which I use in my teaching especially around Easter as I cover the Resurrection. I'm delighted to see Chapter 6 "Evidence of the Resurrection" and Chapter 7 "How We Got the Gospels" included this resource. It makes it convenient to gather all these facts in one place. As an online coach for Christianity Explored, we are working through the Gospel of Mark. I can see myself using this resource quite often to mentor women.

The four Gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John were writing to different audiences, emphasizing different aspects of Jesus life and ministry.

Matthew, Mark, and Luke are referred to as synoptic gospels. Synoptic means the "same view" or "to see together". These three gospels have different audiences but basically the same viewpoint: Focus on a man who was from God. John's Gospel views Jesus from the perspective of God becoming a man. The Gospel of John shows Jesus is the eternal, divine, incarnate Word. He came to show the world what God is like. One chart of the four Gospels is color-coded and includes the author, the date written, the primary audience, the focus, the link, the keywords, the unique features, and key verses. This would be a great sheet to duplicate for the class.

Chapter 2 The Life of Jesus, is one of my favorites. The Old Testament gives many scripture verses for the many prophecies about the coming of Jesus, his ministry, and his sacrifice. This is a great tool when sharing with nonbelievers.

There are colorful charts and sidebar notes. Photographs of Jerusalem and paintings by famous masters are sprinkled throughout 160 pages. The miracles of Jesus give biblical references from the different Gospels. The page showing Jesus' mission step-by-step is very useful. Special emphasis is given to Jesus' final week on earth. Three pages share the prophecies and scripture reference in the Old Testament and the New Testament. This is a very good resource for Bible study teachers of the gospels. Colorful map with great details is included.

Chapter 3 Harmony of the Gospels will probably be the most useful chapter. I have a separate book. There are numerous charts about the events in Jesus' three years of ministry. Parables and Miracles list the reference in each of the gospels.

Chapter 4 is the Who's Who in the gospels listing of 67 characters in alphabetical order beginning with Andrew pg. 74 and ending with Zachariah.pg 93. A brief paragraph in the biblical reference highlights each character.

Chapter 5 Understanding the World of Jesus gives the historical background of the empires, dynasties, and rulers before and during Jesus' time. An additional bonus was the inclusion of the Maccabees. Also included in this chapter mentions the importance of the religious leaders in the world of Jesus, as well as a chart showing the major differences between the Sadducees and the Pharisees.

Ch 6 Evidence of the resurrection shares seven objections nonbelievers have about the resurrection and very thorough answers for each one. There are four theories along with an explanation of why the theories are not true. This chapter includes an extensive page of references. I have several references for this information, but it is nice to have a compact inclusive resource.

Ch 7 How We Got the Gospels was very informative and detailed. It is very detailed and discusses oral traditions, and testimonies; scrolls and original manuscripts. This chapter covers the canonization of the gospels. Most impressive are five pages of references. The details in this chapter are concise and I appreciate not having to dig through my other resources for this info. This will definitely be one of my favorite resources. The pdf allows me ready access using the search and find features on my computer.

Hendrickson Publishing and Rose publication provided a pdf file of this resource for a fair and honest review.side by side charts and overview.

Rose Guide to the Gospels: Side-by-Side Charts and Overviewsis a handy little book that walks you through each of the four gospels. This book is perfect for personal or group Bible study, homeschool, and Sunday School.

I love the layout of this book. It looks like a text book, and is full of color pictures. (For those with second commandment convictions, there are images of Jesus).

Contributing Authors: Len Woods (chapters 1, 2, and 4); Aaron Clay and Lisa Harlow Clay (chapter 5); chapter 6 is adapted from Evidence for the Resurrection; chapter 7 is excerpted from How We Got the Bible by Timothy Paul Jones.

Chapter 1has short but thorough sections on each Gospel. You learn about the author, date, and audience and get an outline and list of unique features (like what percentage is unique to that gospel alone, how much of the Old Testament it quotes, how much is devoted to Jesus' final week, etc).

At the end of this chapter is a side-by-side chart of each gospel and its author, date, audience, focus, length, key words, unique features, and key verses. There's also a chart of all the titles Jesus was given and how many times they were used.

Chapter 2goes over the life of Jesus. This chapter opens with Old Testament prophecies about the coming, ministry, and sacrifice of the Messiah. This chapter shows how Jesus fulfilled numerous Old Testament prophecies, and listed his miracles (healing, casting out demons, walking on water, feeding the large crowds).

This chapter includes charts about things Jesus did... Like changing water into wine at the wedding in Cana of Galilee, driving the merchants out of the temple, the Samaritan woman, etc. Another chart is on the Sermon on the Mount, the kingdom of this world vs Christ's Kingdom, and there's a three page chart of fulfilled prophecies.

Chapter 3is titled A Harmony of the Gospels. This chapter is mostly charts.Six pages are on gospel parallels of Jesus' ministry, last week, appearances and ascension. Two pages of parables, and two pages of miracles.

Chapter 4 is Who's Who in the Gospels. This is a 20 page alphabetical list of characters with brief descriptions, and where they're at in Scripture.

Chapter 5goes over the Medo-Persian Empire, Greek Empire, the Ptolemies and the Seleucids, the Maccabean Revolt, the Samaritans, the Hasmonean Dynasty, the Essenes, the Temple, the Roman Empire, King Herod, The Herodians and the zealots, Pharisees and Sadducees, and theSanhedrin. This is an excellent chapter if you want a brief summary of those subjects. This chapter has a chart comparing Pharisees and Sadducees, and a timeline of all the empires and dynasties listed.

Chapter 6 is over evidence for the resurrection and answers common objections. There are objections like, "Jesus was a mythological figure", "Jesus was just a man", and other popular things like the apostles made everything up, witnesses were unreliable/hallucinating, the New Testament is unreliable, Jesus' body was stolen, they witnesses went to the wrong tomb, etc. This is a great apologetics starter.

Chapter 7is the final chapter, and it goes over how we got the gospels. This chapter mentions oral history and manuscripts, and early church libraries.

This is a great resource for any library. Thank you, Hendrickson Publishers for sending me a free digital copy for review.

How well do you know the four Gospels? Since the Gospels are essentially a four-part biography of Christ, every believer should have a desire to know the Gospels, at least the basics.

So then, do you find yourself praying for a publication that would explain, categorize, simplify, and condense the vital information of the four Gospels into a verbally understandable and visually appealing format? The solution to these criteria can be found in the newly published Rose Guide to the Gospels: Side-by-Side Charts and Overviews. Rose Publishing is well-known for its creative, conservative and Christ-centered publications. Their modus operandi is to provide Bible students with concisely written and visually appealing Bible information.

The Rose Guide to the Gospels is just what you've been praying for. It is a crisp yet comprehensive examination of the four Gospels. It covers seven major and critical aspects, seven chapters of essential instruction. And in excellent Rose fashion the volume is well appointed with charts, maps and pictures to aid in the education process.

Concerning the hard facts, the primary translation employed is the 2011 NIV with an occasional indulgence to the ESV. The authors of this publication are several to include Rose staff writers and the well-known Timothy Paul JonesHow We Got the Bible.

The seven chapter titles are properly named for their contents. Chapter 1, "The Four Gospels," provides some basics on the Gospels including a book-by-book overview of each Gospel featuring author, date, audience and a brief outline. And, since the Gospels chronicle Jesus' ministry, Chapter 2, "The Life of Jesus," proceeds with His birth, ministry (teachings, miracles, etc.), death, burial and resurrection. The chapter concludes with a three-page chart on the prophecies fulfilled by Jesus.

Chapter 3 is a "Harmony of the Gospels" with a brief explanation of how harmonies work. It includes an eleven page chronological harmony. It terminates with charts on the parables and miracles of Jesus. Chapter 4 is "Who's Who in the Gospels." It includes short, biographical sketches on all the primary characters found in the Gospels. The sketches are short but informative. Chapter 5, "Understanding the World of Jesus," provides background information on the culture that Jesus experienced, vital for a complete understanding.

Chapter 6, "Evidence for the Resurrection," is a compilation of information on the truth of the resurrection presented in Objection/Theory and Answer format. The book concludes with Chapter 7, "How We Got the Gospels," written by Timothy Paul Jones. It details the reliability of the written text.

The Rose Guide to the Gospels is highly recommended for individual Bible study, small group Bible study and Sunday School. It might also serve well as a supplemental text for a Bible College 101 course. This volume might also be beneficial for pastors investigating ways to present the four Gospels.

The most appealing aspect of this publication is the volume of information, both written and charts, that is all compiled in one place. A student studying the Gospels will not have to search far and wide for information. It is perfect to stimulate the appetite for further study.

Disclaimer: This volume was provided to me by Rose Publishing for a fair and honest review.

I have been looking for a book that looks at all of the Gospels including their similarities and their differences. This book fits it to a tee!!

Rose Guide has books that I go to time and time again.

This book is an excellent example of the type of book Rose Publishing does best. The style is multi-faceted. It includes information in paragraph form, charts, and pictures. The visual learner will thoroughly enjoy it as will the reader who enjoys digging deeper.

The book is divided into seven chapters covering everything from the varying approaches of the four Gospel authors to the two final chapters which are written from an apologetic approach. These two chapters discuss the authenticity of the books and their stories and how the Gospels have been passed down to us today. Both chapters have extensive notated bibliographies for those who want original sources or further study.

If you love information in a more quickly accessible form, the many charts will be a plus. Some of the charts include: a chart showing major information about each gospel (author, date written, audience, focus, length [KJV only], keywords, unique features, and key verses), a comparison of the Kingdom of the World and the Kingdom of Heaven in the Sermon on the Mount, the parables, and the miracles.

Chapter 4, "Who's Who in the Gospels," reviews major, and some minor, characters who were parts of Jesus' life. People are listed alphabetically so they are easily found. The narrative is accompanied by pictures of famous artwork concerning the person or the incident where they appeared.



Chapter 5, "Understanding the World of Jesus," will please anyone wanting to know more about the historical setting of the New Testament. From the empires of Bible times (Medo-Persian, Greek, and Roman to the Temple in Jerusalem, the reader will get a thumbnail sketch of the times and the people. The Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, Zealots, and other groups are mentioned.

I received a PDF version of this book to review. It is a book I would like to own. The price of $15.99 is very reasonable for this paperback. It will be available in bookstores on August 1, 2019. I would give the book 5 stars. Enjoy!