Growing up in a Christian home, I have always been privy to Jesus and God. I have learned of the goodness of God and why Jesus died for us since I was a very little girl. Because of my upbringing, I have a difficult time understanding why people don’t believe there is a God and the at Jesus died to save us.

Because I don’t fully understand unbelief, I research why atheist and agnostics believe the way they do, some of the questions they ask, and what turns them away from believing the gospel of Jesus Christ. One remark repeatedly comes up when I’m reading about this topic. Why are the gospel stories so different from each other? If the “story” is true, then each account should be exactly the same?

I understand where they are coming from. If you research eyewitness accounts, you would see that most reputable websites say that eyewitness accounts are not reliable and cannot be counted on to convict in a court of law. The National Center for State Courts said, “Research has found that eyewitness accounts can be very unreliable. Although witnesses can often be very confident that their memory is accurate, the malleable nature of human memory and visual perception makes eyewitness testimony one of the most unreliable forms of evidence.”

Even with all of the evidence against eyewitness testimony, I will show you why the stories in the gospel are true and why the differences occur in gospels.

First I want us to look at 4 passages that are of the same event, the betrayal of Jesus by Judas:

While he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a great crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people. Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; seize him.” And he came up to Jesus at once and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” And he kissed him. Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you came to do.” Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him.  And behold, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear. Matthew 26:47-51

And immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man. Seize him and lead him away under guard.” And when he came, he went up to him at once and said, “Rabbi!” And he kissed him. And they laid hands on him and seized him. But one of those who stood by drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear. Mark 14:43-47

While he was still speaking, there came a crowd, and the man called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. He drew near to Jesus to kiss him, but Jesus said to him, “Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?” And when those who were around him saw what would follow, they said, “Lord, shall we strike with the sword?” And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.  Luke 22:47-51

Now Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place, for Jesus often met there with his disciples. So Judas, having procured a band of soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, went there with lanterns and torches and weapons. Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to him, came forward and said to them, “Whom do you seek?” They answered him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said to them, “I am he.” Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them. When Jesus said to them, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground. So he asked them again, “Whom do you seek?” And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus answered, “I told you that I am he. So, if you seek me, let these men go.” This was to fulfill the word that he had spoken: “Of those whom you gave me I have lost not one.” Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant and cut off his right ear. (The servant’s name was Malchus.) John 18:2-10

On the surface, the accounts all sound pretty similar until we get to John’s account. The main difference in Matthew, Mark, and Luke’s accounts are the words Jesus spoke and the words Judas spoke. John’s account seems to have details that the other gospels don’t have.

The first thing I want us to remember is that every word written in the Bible came directly from God laying His Spirit on the writer. In 2 Timothy 3:16, Paul verifies this claim: All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness. From this claim alone, we can say that each account of the betrayal of Jesus is true and accurate. Nothing in the Bible contradicts itself.

Even though we know each account to be true, why the difference in the wording and why is John’s account so different than the others? We can find part of the answer to this in Matthew 26:36-37. Matthew tells us Jesus took his disciples to Gethsemane, but asked Peter, James, and John to go further into the garden with Him. Matthew and John were Jesus’ apostles, His inner circle who traveled with Him everywhere. Matthew and John were both present in Gethsemane with Jesus.

Mark and Luke were disciples of Jesus but not part of His inner most circle and were not believed to be physically present for this event. Scholars believe that Mark’s information came mostly from Peter, who was present at Gethsemane. Luke’s information came from interviews he conducted about Jesus and the events surrounding his life. Both Mark and Luke received second-hand information and wrote about the information they had learned.

Each book of the gospel was written for a different purpose. Matthew’s writing points to and proves Jesus was the Royal King the Israelites had been waiting for. Mark shows Jesus as the Servant Jesus. Luke’s writing shows Jesus as the Son of Man.  John’s writing shows Jesus as the Son of God. Each perspective and every detail in the gospels goes to prove exactly who Jesus is and that He is all of these titles: Royal King, Servant, Son of Man, and Son of God.

Don’t let the details throw you off. Every personality is different and each gospel is written to attract a different personality type to God. People who like logic and facts will enjoy Luke’s version. People who want passion and detail will enjoy John’s version. We can’t discount any of these accounts because they are all true and they are all accurate.

I urge you to read each event together as one story from each of the gospels. I believe you will receive a much better understanding of the life of Jesus and what He meant to each person and what He should mean to you.