Earlier this week, I watched a trailer for an upcoming movie produced by Fathom Events called "Church People." Here is the trailer followed by my thoughts:
At first, I surprised that Fathom Events put together a movie like this. Normally, they would release Operas, concerts, or even theatrical productions. I am surprised by some of the actors in the movie but to honest, it might just work for a movie like this. My response on social media was looks funny and terrifying.
Funny as in it might actually be a clean, comedic movie without profanity and/or sexual references (I could be wrong). Terrifying because I wonder if this what majority of people see with Christianity especially in America, which is mostly accurate.
Amazingly, the trailer asks the question that many Christians are still asking, is the Gospel enough? What does the Mega Church Pastor want to do on Easter Sunday, he wants to do a live crucifixion on his son-in-law, which happens to work in the church with him. The son-in-law wants to just preach the gospel, which one dude was saying no. This is what is happening in the church today. People want to go bigger than the gospel.
I am curious about this movie and the message it will be communicating. I am also curious if the son-in-law goes with the live crucifixion. I know there will be only three days to see this film, which means many probably won't be able to see, so I hope it ends up on a streaming service in the near future.
This movie might be, and that is a big might, an excellent commentary to what is wrong with most mega churches in the United States.
As the Christmas season began, I am sure many of you wondered what presents you will be giving to the people you love as well as the presents you hope to be getting. You probably began listening to Christmas music after Thanksgiving or you started sooner because you just want to. Like most people I know, one thing my family and I look forward to every year is Christmas movies. I am sure some of the men reading this are rolling their eyes at the thought of watching 100 Hallmark movies.
My family and I have many favorite Christmas movies such as Home Alone, The Grinch (the one with Jim Carrey), and the Santa Clause. One favorite of ours is The Nativity Story. I will have be to honest, the first time I heard about this movie, I did not have high expectations. For one it is a Hollywood movies telling the story of Christ's birth. For another there will be a lot of liberties because the Bible does not go into great detail about the birth of Christ as does His earthly ministry, death, burial, and resurrection.
When I finally saw the movie, I was amazed at the quality of the movie and how well it tried to stay on course with the history that took place during Christ's birth. Was the movie accurate regarding the birth of Christ? Not perfectly. As expected, the movie took a lot of liberties in the dramatization of the birth of Christ. There were a lot of things added in the story that was not in the Bible. Overall, it was a good movie.
Now comes the question if this is a movie I should watch. I would not say you cannot celebrate Christmas if you do not watch it, but it will be an open door for your family to discuss the birth of Christ. It might be an open door to share the gospel with friends that are coming over to watch a movie. It will also be a good opportunity to open the Bible and see what says regarding the birth of Christ not just when it happened but why it happened.
Some of you may say that this could violate the second commandment where we are to have no image of God made. Well, I am not calling all to worship the baby on the screen. We are to worship the Risen King. Praise God that Baby grew up (Luke 2:52). Some of you may not want to watch this movie and that's fine. This is a matter of Christian liberty. You may hate the movie and that is okay too. You are no more spiritual if you hate this movie or don't see it and no less spiritual if you like it.
Whether you use this movie, though unperfect as it is, I hope you show people and remind your family that the story of Christmas not about giving us a holiday, but to remember why God sent Jesus. He sent Him to live on our behalf and die on our behalf. He lived a sinless life which a miracle in itself because we are all born with a sinful nature except Jesus. Mary's sinful nature, which goes back to Adam, did not transfer to Jesus Christ. This is why the Virgin Birth was so miraculous not just a virgin giving birth, but that baby did not receive a sinful nature.
So if you use this movie, please open the Bible and share why Christmas is important to all who call on the name of the Lord. If you do not, do that same thing.
A few weeks ago, I did a poll on Twitter asking the question, "Should Christians watch horror movies?" I think it is a fair question considering that there are many movies in that genre. Some become blockbuster hits while other get a low rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Not many participated in this poll, but to my surprise the results were split down the center, 50% voted yes and 50% voted no.
With Halloween approaching, its time to consider if Christian should be engaging themselves in horror movies. One person on Twitter said no because Philippians 4:8 says, "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." We are fill our minds with pure things and things that will cause to ponder on the things of God. Most horror movies deal with the occult or demons with a twisted view of God mostly from the Catholic church. So, I guess that is case closed, right? Let's dive a little deeper.
Another person on Twitter said a better question would be, "Is it permissible for Christian to watch horror movies?" Sounds like a fair question. Consider 1 Corinthians 10:23, “All things are lawful,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful,” but not all things build up." Does apply to horror movies? Yes. Does this apply to all forms of entertainment? Indeed. When it comes to horror movies or any forms of entertainment, we should always approach it with a discernment. We should be aware of what kind of movie this is.
Some horror movies do contain sex scenes, so we have to be very careful about that and really wonder is this a movie that we should be seeing. There are places on the internet where you can search for a movie to see why it is rated R or any other rating such as Film Ratings.com and IMDb.
Granted we have the tools to help us know if a movie is appropriate or not to see, but we really to ask the question if a horror movie is something a follower of Christ should be watching. The same can be true with crime drama and sporting events. Do I have the freedom to watch horror movies? Yes, but, as I said earlier, you need to be discerning when approaching them movies or any form of entertainment. Is watching them permissible, yes, but is it helpful.
I really wish I can give a more direct answer, but this lies within where you are in your walk with Jesus. Some may feel like those movies should be avoid while others do not. If you are a brother or sister that watches horror movies, let me give you some caution from the Bible, "But take care that this right of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak" (1 Corinthians 8:9). Yes, this passage is in context to food being sacrificed to idols, but the principal is the same. We should never use our freedom as a stumbling block. If you are a brother or sister that avoids horror movies, do not judge those who watch them. Once again, this is a Christian freedom issue, but, like all things we do, must be approached with discernment.
I know what you are thinking, then again, I am not God who knows the minds of all. You might be thinking why am I doing a review of a book that is trying to apply the gospel to Star Wars. For starters, I love Star Wars. I was born one month after the release of the first movie. I have been a fan of the films since I was a kid. The only Star Wars film I can remember seeing as a kid was "Return of the Jedi" before the special editions came out in 1997. So when this book, The Gospel According to Star Wars came out, my curiosity was killing my cat so I decided to review it.
I wish I had some clever way to make this book sound like it is the greatest thing since sliced bread, but it really is not. What the author tried to do was take elements of the films (Episode 1 to The Force Awakens) and put some biblical application to it. It sounded like a good idea, but the more I read the book, the more confused I was getting. Where was the author going? What was the point?
I get what the author was trying to do, but as the same time, I just gave up. Yes, I gave up on a book because it seemed it was going nowhere. The gospel does apply to everything in our lives but not everything needs to be applied to the gospel. Can we get the gospel from a song by a non-Christian band? Can we get the gospel while attending a sporting event? The gospel helps us response to what God has done through the finish work of Christ and how we are to live our lives for the glory of God.
In regards to my review for The Gospel According to Star Wars, I would pass on this one.
Tim Challies reflects on Matt Chandler's sermon, "God is for God," which was preached at Steven Furtick's Elevation Church. I don't think Chandler has ever been invited back to preach there since.
Introducing Christian Breakup Lines and you might want to have a pillow on the floor in case you fall laughing because this is so good. I have watched this for a week and I am still laughing.
If I was asked the question, what would the one Disney film I could watch for the rest of my life? It would be "The Incredibles." I loved this movie. I still watch it to this day. It was also the first time my wife and I took our son to the movie theatre. If you have seen the movie, you know it ended on a cliffhanger which made people wonder if there was ever going to be sequel especially after 3 Toy Story and 3 Cars movies.
This past week during the Olympics, the first trailer to the high anticipated sequel came out, which has some cheering and some not so much. For those who have not seen it, here it is:
After the trailer was released, I twitted the video saying I have been waiting a long time for this, which is true. Some have voiced their opinion that this is another attempt to promote feminism because Elastigirl is now the main hero while Mr. Incredible becomes a stay at home dad. I can see where they are coming from because it seems Elastigirl is now the main hero of the family. Others have said, I think it is too soon to jump to conclusions because it is the first trailer and the movie has not been released.
My attempt here is not to gloss over any comment or concern regarding what they have seen in this trailer nor am I trying to pick a fight with anyone in particular. I am just giving my opinion over what I have witnessed in this trailer.
While it does seem Disney is pushing feminism by making Elastigirl the primary hero make Mr. Incredible the stay at home dad, I think there is more to the story. There was a lot of cutting a splicing in this trailer where it seemed some of the lines were not matching what the characters were saying. Remember this is trailer not the movie.
I think there is a bigger story as to why Elastigirl is the primary hero while Mr. Incredible is on the sidelines. If the movie does take place where the original left off, something must have happened to why Elastigirl is out fighting crime while Mr. Incredible is at home. There must be more to the story than what this trailer is suggesting.
Wikipedia gives us a brief overview of what the film is about:
Taking place immediately after the first film, the end of which introduces The Underminer (John Ratzenberger), the Parr family struggles to maintain normal lives while Helen Parr (Holly Hunter), also known as Elastigirl, is out fighting crime and campaigning for the return of supers. Meanwhile, Helen's husband Bob Parr (Craig T. Nelson), also known as Mr. Incredible, remains at home watching their children Violet (Sarah Vowell), Dash (Huck Milner) and Jack-Jack, discovering the secret powers of the latter in the process. However, they, along with Frozone (Samuel L. Jackson), will have to battle a new villain with a sinister plot.
So based on this brief overview, there might be more to the story. Am I saying some went overboard with their first impressions? No, I was thinking the same thing at first when I saw the trailer, but at the same time, I was thinking there has to be more than what they showed in the trailer. A lot of times, you get an idea about what the movie is about based in the trailer and even some trailers give away some of the movie.
Some of you probably have decided not to see Incredibles 2, which I respect that. You have the freedom in Christ to do that. The rest of you, along with myself, have decided to reserve judgment till the movie comes out which okay as well. Maybe there was more to the story than what this first trailer was showing, which I know there will be more trailers to come as the release date gets closer, so I am eager to see this movie.
Once again, I am not trying to pick a fight or disagree with anyone regarding their opinion. I am just saying there might be more to the story. However, that does not mean I am going to watch this movie with an open mind, which is not a good idea anyway. I will be watching with a discerning heart and talk to my kids about it once the movie is over. In fact, all Christians should be watching movies and television shows with a discerning heart. The Bible tells us that we should "test everything" (1 Thessalonians 5:21). That includes sermons, books, podcasts, and even our entertainment.
Popcorn Theology celebrates their 100th episode as they speak with Tim Challies on cultural engagement and if Christians should watch content with nudity and hyper sexuality
Earlier this week, our city officials announced that Uber is available for people to use. Comedian Jon Crist came out with a video that I felt should be shared to celebrate this occasion.
Joe Thorn and Jimmy Fowler, the guys behind Doctrine and Devotion, did a little video as they were riding in the car and smoking cigars.
