Exposing the myth of first century “competing Christianities” and “lost gospels”
There is a myth among sceptics that there were multiple versions of Christianity and gospels floating around in the beginning of Christian history but the versions of both we have today won out after suppressing all these other sects of Christianity and their gospels.
Alex O’Connor also quickly referenced this in his discussion with Ruslan claiming Christianity as we have it today could have been different if Valentinus did not narrowly lose out in his bid to be Bishop of Rome.
Is there any truth to this though? Let us examine the facts.
First, the writers of the New Testament operated on the assumption that the Christian faith was complete in the first century and as at the time of writing. Jude writes,
“Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.”
(Jude 1:3)
The term “once for all” means “once and for all”, it is a finished and complete faith that the writer urges his audience to contend for. The New Testament writers use that same phrase to describe the death of Jesus,
“For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God.”
(Romans 6:10)
And again, according to the writer of Hebrews,
“who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people’s, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.”
(Hebrews 7:27)
and again,
“Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.”
(Hebrews 9:12)
The point is, the same terminology used to describe the finality of Christ’s death for sin and the redemption His death provides from sin is used to describe the finality of the faith delivered to the saints. This would show that the writers were working with the assumption of a finished Christian message, not one that was still in flux or being ironed out.
Further, the New Testament writers were careful to denounce every message that did not line up with what they were preaching as a deviation or something different from the apostle’s original message. Paul for example writes,
“I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.”
(Galatians 1:6–9)
And then again,
“For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted — you may well put up with it!”
(2 Corinthians 11:4)
Note the reference to “another Jesus” and “another gospel” which means there was an established gospel and an established Jesus which was being preached as a standard. Anything outside this was an aberration to first century Christianity. The apostles then warn about these aberrations to the pure message,
“But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.”
(2 Corinthians 11:3)
And again,
“Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons”
(1 Timothy 4:1)
And again,
““Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Do not be carried about with various and strange doctrines. For it is good that the heart be established by grace, not with foods which have not profited those who have been occupied with them.”
(Hebrews 13:8–9)
The second point to note is that the book of Acts tells us exactly what the early church was preaching. From the first to the last sermon in the book of Acts, the gospel is the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of and redemption from sin.
An excerpt from Peter’s first sermon reads
“This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear.
“For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself:
‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand,
Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” ’
“Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”
Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”
(Acts 2:32–36, 38)
And to Cornelius Peter says,
“how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. And we are witnesses of all things which He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem, whom they killed by hanging on a tree. Him God raised up on the third day, and showed Him openly, not to all the people, but to witnesses chosen before by God, even to us who ate and drank with Him after He arose from the dead. And He commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it is He who was ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead. To Him all the prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins.”
(Acts 10:38–43)
Those sermons (a snapshot out of a couple others) show that the gospel as preached by Peter is pretty much the same gospel Paul preached and the same gospel we know today. This would corroborate Paul’s testimony to the effect he fact checked the gospel he was preaching with Peter and the other apostles,
“And I went up by revelation, and communicated to them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to those who were of reputation, lest by any means I might run, or had run, in vain.
But on the contrary, when they saw that the gospel for the uncircumcised had been committed to me, as the gospel for the circumcised was to Peter for He who worked effectively in Peter for the apostleship to the circumcised also worked effectively in me toward the Gentiles), and when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that had been given to me, they gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised.”
(Galatians 2:2,7–9)
Third fact to consider here is the creed in 1 Corinthians 15. Paul writes,
“For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time.”
(1 Corinthians 15:3–8)
Scholars are in agreement that Paul is reciting a creed here. Even atheist scholars like Gerd Ludeman date it to within the first two or three years of Christianity, Robert Funk (another atheist) dates it to within two to five years. Some more conservative scholars date it to within a few months from the death of Jesus. Point is it is very early tradition attesting to Christian belief and it again sounds like the gospel preached by the New testament writers of the epistles.
Paul also confirms all the apostles were on the same page in terms of what they preached,
“Therefore, whether it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.”
(1 Corinthians 15:11)
This again is corroborated by the fact the gospel preached by Peter in Acts, Paul’s meeting with Peter and the approval of his message by the apostles in Galatians 2 referenced above.
Fourth fact to consider is that of all the books that the early church had debates over, the gospels according to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were never in contention. These gospels were recognised as authentic from the very beginning.
The standard applied by the early church to identify authentic books of the Bible (of which it was taken for granted that the four gospels met these standards) was that it should not conflict with the teachings handed down by the apostles and it should have apostolic (eye witnesses of Jesus and their close companions) authority behind it.
Nothing in the gospels contradict the teachings of the church. In fact the earliest evidence of some events attested in the gospels are contained in the epistles not the gospels. In fact, the earliest attestation to the ascension of Christ is in the epistle of Paul to the Romans!
“Who is he who condemns? 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.”
(Romans 8:34)
The Gnostic gospels and “lost gospels” so called were weeded out as nonsense because it did not meet the criteria of orthodoxy (established Christian beliefs based on the “once for all” faith handed down). So the bodily resurrection of Jesus, for example, is an established belief but the Gnostic gospels tend to deny this because they (the Gnostics) believed the body (matter) is bad and evil so Jesus as the divine God could not have a body. This kind of teaching would put the Gnostics outside the realm of orthodoxy. The “lost gospels” also do not meet the criteria of apostolic authority because they are mostly mid to late second to third century accounts and are very much removed from the eye witnesses of Jesus Christ.
In essence, the “lost gospels” are nothing but late fabrications. They are not “suppressed truths” or anything of the sort and the church, for good reason, did not take them seriously, and neither should any serious Christian (for purposes of learning about Christ and His teachings).
So in conclusion, there has only been one version of Christianity, there has only been one gospel and one Christ. The apostles preached one gospel and one Christ, everything else was a deviation, Christianity — as far as the gospel is concerned — was a complete faith in the first century, during the time of the apostles. The gospels in our scripture today — Matthew, Mark, Luke and John — are the most authentic accounts of the deeds and sayings of Jesus Christ. There are no such “lost gospels” that were suppressed and no “competing Christianities” floating around in the early church.
