'Son of God': Church Leaders Buying Out Theaters For Screenings
Religious organizations are seeking to flood multiplexes with faithful audiences for the Fox-distributed film about Jesus Christ, based on the hit "Bible" miniseries.
Church groups are seeking to take over entire theaters for opening night screenings of Son of God, the upcoming movie about the life of Jesus Christ.
Various religious organizations throughout the country have been buying out screens and distributing tickets to groups of thousands of people for "Theater Take-Overs" on Thursday, Feb. 27, the night before the film's officially released, according to production company Lightworkers Media.
Crossroads Church in Cincinnati is bringing thousands of people to a Cinemark theater, where Son of God will be showing on 13 screens at the same time.
Post by PrisonerOfHope on Feb 28, 2014 16:02:37 GMT -5
Questions to Ask While Watching “The Son of God” Posted on February 28, 2014
Dr. Randy White
I have not seen “The Son of God,” Roma Downey and Mark Burnett’s sure-to-be-blockbuster movie. I am sure I will see it, and want to prepare my mind to critique the movie fully. This article contains the list of some of the questions I’ll be asking as I watch the movie.
First, I want to share some thoughts on the promotion given to the movie by the church community, and then some of the things I expect I’ll find in the movie.
Why Is The Church Promoting This Movie?
If a New Age Catholic wrote a book about Jesus, would we be buying cases of the book to distribute to our church members and their friends? I doubt it. As the dad of a young man who is preparing for a career in movie script-writing, I am keenly aware that movies are based on the written word—the script. Even if such a book was an adequate presentation of Jesus, would the church be concerned with the identity of the author of the book? Of course it would!
What’s good for books is good for movies. Roma Downey and Mark Burnett have written a script and produced a movie, and it is the Pastor’s job to approach such a work critically. One of the things I’ve learned to do over the years is to choose my books based on the author. Does the author have a track record? Does the author have credentials? Does the author know what they are talking about? Even the first-time author has some kind of track record—it is what is printed on the back cover of the book!
Roma Downey has a spiritual track record. Her Master’s degree is from the University of Santa Monica, for which she earned a Masters in Spiritual Psychology. Don’t go into her movie without knowing that the degree she has will have influence on the work she does. From the University of Santa Monica’s own website, here are the “Benefits of USM’s M.A. Program in Spiritual Psychology”
Experiencing enhanced spiritual awareness through knowing yourself as a Divine Being having a human experience. Manifesting greater success and fulfillment personally and professionally. Transforming your consciousness and your life by integrating the Principles and Practices of Spiritual Psychology. Mastering powerful Soul-Centered Basic Skills—tools for spiritual evolution. Resolving (healing) your own issues (anything that disturbs your peace). Aligning with your Soul’s purpose. Fulfilling your deepest aspirations through discovering effective and joy-filled ways of making a meaningful contribution in the world. Participating with a community of like-hearted individuals. Discovering your own answers to these essential questions: 1) Who Am I? 2) What Is My Purpose? 3) How Can I Make a Meaningful Contribution?
Can I ask bluntly: Why are we letting this woman have even the slightest degree of influence in our churches? Why do we invite her to the most influential places of Christian ministry without bringing up her New Age beliefs, calling for her to reject these beliefs? I can’t even imagine any sane pastor, even those of a strong church-growth mindset, making a presentation like this—
Fellow Church members, Roma Downey has written a book called “The Son of God.” Roma was educated in how to know yourself as “a Divine Being having a human experience.” She has a degree that enables her to know how to use “Soul-Centered Basic Skills” for your own “spiritual evolution.” She can help us “resolve anything that disturbs our peace.” I heartily recommend her book.
Can I be so bold as to say that the pastor would be shown the door?
If you want to know more about Roma Downey’s education, click here. Learn how she learned “the process of Self-Counseling, to connect with your Inner Counselor, a source of Wisdom, Unconditional loving, and Compassion that resides at the level of the Authentic Self,” and other garbage. What I Expect to See
Because of the background of the author and the nature of the movie industry, I expect “the feel-good movie of the year.” Thus, I might add, I expect to be criticized for this article. “This movie will do a lot of good, you should praise it instead of criticize it.” We love to feel good!
Specifically, however, I suspect to see the following—
A politically correct Jesus – He will look like we want him to look, talk like we want him to talk, and act like we want him to act. A Jesus free from the Old Testament – He will be free from the Law and free from Israel. An anti-Semitic Jesus – He will make us hate those Jews who did this to our Jesus. A Jesus loved by the masses but hated by the people we hate – or, in other words, a socialist/Marxist Jesus, a “people’s Jesus” who enables the people to rise above their dictators. A Jesus whose death was a pity and makes us feel bad – rather than one who willingly laid down His life.
I hope I am wrong on each of these (and I will gladly say I was wrong). Questions I will be asking—
Is Jesus presented as pre-existent? Is there any indication that Jesus is the eternal Son of God? Does it appear that Jesus “began” in Bethlehem? Is Jesus the Creator, through whom all things were made? Is Jesus presented as the Jewish Messiah coming to establish the Kingdom of God? Is there any concept that Jesus is the fulfillment of ancient prophecy? Are we shown that Jesus was sent to receive “the throne of His Father David” and that He would “reign over the house of Jacob?” Is there any indication that Jesus would restore creation and fulfill that at which Adam failed? Is Jesus presented as the only option for salvation? He will likely be presented as “the way, the truth, and the life,” but will we be informed that “no man comes to the Father but by Me?” Will the uninformed be inspired that Jesus was a good man and a great spiritual Being, or will they be informed that Jesus is their only spiritual option? Is Jesus’ death presented as an essential act of propitiation, or is it an act of love which motivates our obedience? Will the work of Christ on the cross be presented at that which motivates us to be our spiritual best, or that which fully paid the price of sin and made salvation and the forgiveness of sins possible? Is there any indication that Jesus is the returning judge and King? Without a picture of a returning Judge and King, we simply have a motivational story. If Jesus is coming back to “judge the living and the dead,” then we need to commit our lives to Him alone.
I realize that no movie can cover it all adequately (just as no sermon can). Because of time constraints, I will be forgiving of some of these being left out. But, my sad prediction is that I will come out of the movie feeling good about Jesus, and—if the movie was my only source of information—not knowing that Jesus is the eternal Son of God sent as Jewish Messiah in fulfillment of every Hebrew prophecy and is my only hope for salvation, the only One who has paid the price, or can, for my sin and the sin of the world, the One whose return I must prepare for by accepting the gift of salvation given by grace, through faith.
He wasn't wrong. Just got back from seeing it. Not because we wanted to see it but because a couple had invited my wife and I. If you don't know much about the bible or you don't hold the word of God high then I can see how one would like or be fooled by it.
Post by PrisonerOfHope on Mar 1, 2014 0:00:35 GMT -5
'Son of God': Clamoring for big-screen Christ Across the country, churches and other groups have rented out multiplexes for screenings of 'Son of God.' Others have bought tickets and donated them.
February 27, 2014, 4:33 p.m.
Each week, thousands of Christians gather for prayer and discussion at Liberty University's cavernous Vines Center in Lynchburg, Va.
One Monday morning in January, they listened to husband-and-wife film producing team Mark Burnett and Roma Downey pitch their new movie, "Son of God."
About 10,000 students and faculty members watched as the pair behind the hit History channel miniseries "The Bible" showed clips from the film and discussed its religious significance.
"Yes, it is a movie, but it is more than a movie," Burnett told The Times. "This is an evangelizing tool."
The Jan. 20 visit was part of a months-long campaign that saw Burnett and Downey visit more than 30 religious organizations to promote their film, which is being distributed by 20th Century Fox and premieres on 3,254 screens nationwide Friday.
"They've been on the road seemingly for months," said Chris Aronson, president of domestic distribution for 20th Century Fox. "It is really a remarkable achievement, what they've been able to do with their tenacity and dedication to the project."
The effort appears to be paying dividends.
Across the country, churches and other groups have rented out multiplexes where "Son of God" will be shown, free of charge, to their parishioners. Other organizations have bought tickets by the thousands and donated them to churches to disseminate to their flocks.
Locally, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles is giving away 8,000 tickets donated by an anonymous individual. The megachurches of high-profile pastors Rick Warren and Joel Osteen are also distributing free tickets.
Burnett is the successful producer of the hit television series "Survivor," "The Apprentice" and "The Voice," among others. Downey is best known as the co-star of the long-running faith-based TV program "Touched by an Angel."
Their efforts could lead to a sizable opening weekend for "Son of God," which tells the story of the life of Jesus Christ and is culled from footage shot for last March's "The Bible."
It is also the first film to be released in what Rentrak box-office analyst Paul Dergarabedian has termed "the year of the Biblical movie." Paramount Pictures' "Noah" will open March 28, and 20th Century Fox's "Exodus" comes out Dec. 12.
If the films are successful, Dergarabedian believes, "this could be an untapped marketplace that could provide dividends for years to come."
Financed by Burnett and Downey's LightWorkers Media and Hearst Entertainment & Syndication, "Son of God" is expected to gross $15 million to $25 million, according to those who have seen pre-release audience surveys.
An opening in that range would put the film far off the pace of 2004's "The Passion of the Christ," which had a domestic debut of $83.4 million and went on to gross $611.9 million worldwide.
But executives at Christian organizations said that the outreach done by Burnett and Downey and the ambitious preselling of tickets — hundreds of thousands have been sold — exceed efforts made to promote "The Passion" a decade ago.
Compassion International, a Christian relief group, didn't mount a ticket giveaway for "The Passion" but is doing so for "Son of God" — and in a major way. The group has purchased 225,000 tickets to screenings in 40 cities including Los Angeles. The tickets are being donated to churches, which are distributing them.
Locally, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles is giving away 8,000 tickets donated by an anonymous individual. The megachurches of high-profile pastors Rick Warren and Joel Osteen are also distributing free tickets.
As far as I'm concerned, that's reason enough right there to NOT see it!
Post by PurplePuppy on Mar 1, 2014 21:39:36 GMT -5
Popcorn vs. Preaching: What Son of God is, and Isn't Eric Metaxas | BreakPoint | Friday, February 28, 2014 ChristianHeadlines.com
Last year the History Channel struck gold with its “Bible” miniseries, a dramatization of selected sections of Scripture from Genesis to Revelation. It was the most-watched entertainment telecast of 2013, drawing a record-breaking 14 million viewers on the night of its finale, and moving over a million copies within weeks of its hard release.
And now, some of the material used in the series—specifically the sections covering the gospels and the life of Jesus—has been re-cut and with additional footage will soon be hitting theaters as the feature film, “Son of God.”
A few of my BreakPoint colleagues have already attended screenings, and I’m encouraged by what I hear. While the miniseries drew some criticism from some pastors and Christian reviewers for taking some creative liberties with biblical details, I’m told the movie respectfully portrays the life of our Lord, His sacrifice on the cross, and His Resurrection.
Based on the events described in the gospels of John and Matthew, this condensed interpretation explores characters often given short shrift in Hollywood, like Nicodemus, Matthew and Mary Magdalene. And players who’ve suffered from one-dimensional portrayals in the past—like the High Priest Caiaphas, Pontius Pilate and Judas—are given motives that make sense.
Most importantly, Jesus’ claims are made explicit. The movie opens by quoting from John chapter 1. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” And as we watch the birth of Christ, we hear, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” When asked by the Sanhedrin whether He is the Son of God, Jesus replies without hesitation, “I am.” Indeed, the very title of the movie leaves no doubt about that. Director Christopher Spencer gives us, as C. S. Lewis said, the Jesus who is either “lunatic, liar, or Lord,” and offers no “patronizing nonsense about his being a ‘good moral teacher.’”
“Son of God,” like Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ” ten years ago, may just offer a powerful opportunity to witness to our unbelieving friends, or at least to get a conversation started.
But just as with Gibson’s blockbuster, we also need to be a little careful. Author and blogger Tim Challies reminds us that breathless predictions from many Christian leaders that “The Passion” would spark the “greatest revival since Acts 2” not only didn’t come true—a decade later, they’re pretty embarrassing to even repeat. Despite some churches booking entire cinemas for audiences and producing Bible study and small-group curricula based on the movie, the only startling trend in the wake of “The Passion’s” blockbusting success was the absence of revival.
Pollster George Barna summed up the disappointment many Christians felt: “Less than one-tenth of one percent of those who saw the film,” he reported, “stated that they made a profession of faith or accepted Jesus Christ as their savior in reaction to the film’s content.” Wow.
Challies uses these experiences to caution Christians against treating the new “Son of God” movie as something it’s not. He writes, “We should have no expectation that God will accomplish through a film what he has only promised to accomplish through preaching [of] the Gospel.”
So definitely go and see the movie, definitely bring your friends, and definitely use it to start conversations about the claims of Jesus and the gospels. But don’t expect Hollywood to do the heavy-lifting when it comes to evangelism.
The instructions the real Son of God left us were to “make disciples”—not just to pack theaters.
Post by PrisonerOfHope on Mar 1, 2014 23:15:28 GMT -5
The “Son of God” Movie Is NOT What We Think–Do You Know The Voice of Your Master Posted on February 23, 2014 by The Last Hiker
Last year the History Channel featured the epic television event, “The Bible Series,” which was produced by Roma Downey and her husband Mark Burnett. This show captivated audiences and became the talk of many churches. Churches even purchased pre-written sermons to go along with the show, which according to outreach.com made it into 180,000 churches.
Roma and Mark were endlessly interviewed in Christian magazines, and on Christian radio. All along saying that they were sold out Christians and believers filled with the Holy Spirit.
And the churches bought it.
They promoted it.
And yet, as I watched “The Bible Series,” I personally became furious at how much they twisted the word of God. Not just omitting things for the sake of time–but changing the theme, the message, and the nature of Bible characters, and the nature of God Himself.
That is unforgivable.
God will judge that.
I was furious.
My husband and I were sitting in our darkened living room with our bowls of ice cream and we couldn’t even get five minutes into it without pausing it and discussing how, not only is it different than the Bible, but that the way that it is different changes so much of the truth of God and the Bible. We would talk about what message it is sending to people that don’t know God. It got so bad that I had to write about it.
***Disclaimer–Now, in this blog I am going to go on and tell you some things about Roma Downey and Mark Burnett that some of you might find judgmental. I am being judgmental. Jesus told us to know them by their fruit, He warned us that false teachers come in like wolves among sheep. There are two types of judging–judging to identify the nature and identity of someone or something (which Jesus told us to do). And judging to punish or condemn to hell (which we are to leave to God). I am judging to identify, and warn. I am not judging to condemn to hell.
You might not be used to this kind of writing. You might think it is unbiblical. If you haven’t read the Epistles in the New Testament you might not know that most of them are warnings to the churches to be careful of false teachers, and exhortation to stand against false teaching. Paul did this. Timothy did this. Peter did this. John did this. Titus did this. And so did Jude. This is what the church is supposed to do. I am not hateful. I have passion for the truth of the Lord Jesus. I am going to post a verse that sums it up before I let you get back to the article.
“But what I do, I will also continue to do, that I may cut off the opportunity from those who desire an opportunity to be regarded just as we are in the things of which they boast. For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.” (2 Corinthians 11:12-15)***
Last year, I wrote about some alarming information about Roma Downey’s New Age ties and unbiblical twisting of the Bible in “Wake Up! — me screaming then apologizing for some strange reason” and later in “The Bible Series on the History Channel–Turning The Word of God into Hebrew Myth“
All along the thing that got me the most upset was how easily the church allowed Roma Downey and Mark Burnett to come in and deceive us. We gave up our pulpits to strangers, thinking they were like us but all along they were fake Christians.
Did you know that?
They are NOT real Christians.
They are full on New Agers.
This is portion of what I wrote on this topic last year:
I was listening to Christian radio last week and I heard a radio interview on Focus on the Family with Roma Downey and Mark Burnett about their new television series, The Bible. They claimed to be Christian and said that the Lord has called them to make this series. She shared about how she would pray and ask the Holy Spirit to fill her when she was on “Touched by an Angel.” I was a little surprised at the picture she was trying to create, but I let it go. Whatever. But one of their main points was that there are a lot of Christians in Hollywood and they are not ashamed to admit it.
… Then I happened to see a blog by a woman I used to follow years ago. And she mentioned that Roma Downey has some New Age ties. I remembered my red flag and I followed up on her sources and did my own research. Because by now many members of my church were posting on Facebook about how “AMAZING” the show was. I don’t want to be a kill-joy! But it is true. Roma Downey deceived the church when she went on Focus on the Family. She came on Christian Radio and pretended to be a the same kind of Christian that we are. There is room for differences in the body of Christ, but New Age paganism falls outside the fence.
She was quoted in an article talking about how she listens to books on tape by Eckart Tolle. “I get my own selections [on the radio in the car] — books on tape by Eckhart Tolle, Tony Robbins…” She goes on to say, “My husband says I’m so self-realized I’m practically levitating.’” Really? Because I have never heard my pastor’s wife talk like that? If you are not familiar with Eckart Tolle, he is a New Age teacher who twists the Bible and adds it to his Hindu, Buddhist, Taoist, Shintoist philosophy. If you are familiar with him, and you like him–whatever. He is a false teacher when it comes to Christianity. Charlie Campbell has a list of his troubling statements.
Aside from her VERY questionable theological beliefs, she has gone to the University of Santa Monica to get a degree in “Spiritual Psychology.” When I first read that I thought, “so?” BUT when I looked it up, the University of Santa Monica is not just a school like Cal Poly or USC that people from all walks of life go to. When you click on their home page you will see that it specializes in New Age degrees.
When you go to the page entitled “What is Spiritual Psychology?” you will see that they are indeed promoting New Age ideas. Here is a quote, “Spiritual Psychology is the study and practice of the art and science of human evolution in consciousness.” It goes on to say, “Put another way, Spiritual Psychology is a technology that empowers students to convert their everyday life experiences into rungs on the ladder of Spiritual Evolution.”
Spiritual Evolution.
Do you think that has ANYTHING to do with Jesus dying on the cross for your sins? So you could evolve spiritually? NOOOOO. It is blasphemy to the Christian which she claims to be. A Christian who happens to be so self-realized that she is levitating?!?! Uhm levitating? That is a funny little joke Roma. Because IF you were self-realized, have you realized that you are dirt? You are a sinner? You can’t evolve spiritually, because if you could Jesus wouldn’t have had to come die on the cross for your sins. Do you “realize” that the Bible is the BEST book on “Spiritual Psychology” there is??? And it won’t baby you, or flatter you–but it will give you the truth and give you HOPE that ONLY exists IN CHRIST JESUS!
So this New Age woman and her husband want to go on Focus on the Family and laugh and talk about the Holy Spirit and their love for the Bible, and this call that God placed on their lives to make a Hollywood movie of His favorite book.
Then they wanted all their Hollywood friends to promote the series on Twitter. For some reason John Edward from “Crossing Over” tweeted that he didn’t need to be a psychic to know that this series is going to be SPECTACULAR! And P-Diddy, Christian Aguilera, Jane Lynch, Sarah Ferguson Duchess of York, Adam Levine, and Shakira just so happen to really love the Bible, right? Do they go to church too? Are they some of the Christians in Hollywood that you talked about in your interview? That is crazy.
And then when my friends are telling me, after watching it, that it was “SOOOOOOO GOOOOOOOD.” And they did notice a few things that were different, but other than that it was really, really good. So to them it is okay that it is different from the Bible. A series called the Bible and it is DIFFERENT than the Bible. Okay . . . (The Last Hiker)
Downey on the cover of OM Times Magazine
I just read that Roma Downey was even on TV with famous psychic Jonathan Edward talking to her dead mother. This is a practice called necromancy, which is forbidden in the Bible, at least for real Christians. God hates this.
ACTRESS Roma Downey has talked to her mother through a psychic on live TV. The Derry-born Touched By An Angel star was a guest on a celebrity version of the US psychic show Crossing Over, hosted by medium John Edward. Roma’s mother Maureen died of a heart attack in Derry when she was 10. And Roma was heartbroken that she was never able to tell her how much she loved her. So she jumped at an offer from the producers of the show on the Sci-Fi Channel to speak to her mum using Edwards for the connection. (source).
And her connections to psychic Jonathan Edward do not end there, she even went on to partner with him in a book he wrote. Does this sound like someone you would invite to teach in your church?
History Channel The Bible | New Age heresy and unbiblical errors.
Psychic Jonathan Edward’s book with a Meditation CD of Roma Downey’s
Not only has Downey used and endorsed John Edward’s occult practices, she has assisted him with a book on praying based on heretical Catholic practices. In the book Edwards encourages readers to “pray the rosary” a practice of holding a Catholic Crucifix necklace and uttering repetitive chants in prayers to Mary, the mother of Jesus in the Bible. This practice is sinful for several reasons. As shown above, Christians are not to communicate with the dead. Whether it is a relative, someone from the Bible or a celebrity, any attempts to speak with the dead is necromancy. Secondly, Mary was just a normal person. We are not to pray to her, hail her or seek anything from God through Mary. 1 Timothy 2:3 says: “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” It is Jesus Christ who is our advocate with God The Father. He is our High Priest who we take our prayers too.(Beginning and End)
These people are liars. They have a history of twisting the Word of God in ways that change the message of the gospel and the nature, character, holiness, righteousness, and justice of God. I go into more detail in the “Hebrew Myth” post. Please take time to read it. What they do with the Bible is terrible. And this is very important.
Because this film is being handed to us as a “tool of evangelism” and a way to give Jesus to people who do not go to church–isn’t it important that we make sure we are giving them the real Jesus and not Hollywood Jesus? Because again, they are asking us to do their publicity for them. On their official site you can get free posters and community outreach kits. Pastors can again buy sermons and discussion guides. The level of marketing for this movie is crazy. Not only do they want to market and promote this movie THROUGH the body of Christ, they also want to SELL the doctrine of this movie to the church. As if the Word of God was for sell. As if the message of the life of Christ was something they have some special insight into.
What if millions of people walk away from this film with a false understanding of Jesus Christ? And what if the Church doesn’t notice this as much because we are already so familiar with Jesus, that we may subconsciously fill in the gaps of the story, but the unchurched cannot do that. They don’t have the prior reference to be able to do that.
I think this “Son of God” film is outright dangerous. It should be treated the same way we treat Mormon and Jehovah’s Witness material. Yes they talk about Jesus. Think about it–they share our same Bible stories. But they have twisted the gospel, the nature of God and the nature of Christ. It is the same thing.
We have seen enough from “The Bible Series” already to convince us that they are going to give the New Age Gospel.
Sunny Shell was quoted on Stand For the Truth, and she said some really important things about how they portrayed two important moments in the life of Christ,
On John the Baptist: Prior to being beheaded John exclaims “He [Jesus] will bring a new age of righteousness and justice. His [Jesus’] power will draw all men to a new world.”This entire statement is very new-age and doctrinally unsound. Jesus is not interested in social reform. He’s interested in reconciling utterly sinful human beings to a holy, righteous and good God through: His substitutionary death for sinful man, His resurrection of new life for those who’ve repented and trusted in Him, and a glorious eternal life spent in the presence of the Almighty once we’ve completed our sojourn here on earth. Jesus did not come to earth, die, be resurrected and ascended to the right hand of the Father so we could have a “better life” here on earth.
On The Last Supper: While the actor who portrays Jesus says the bread is the body of Christ and the wine is Jesus’ blood, he never says the most important thing: it is for the forgiveness of sins (Matt 26:28). Though all of Scripture points to the Gospel, in this mini-series, there is no Gospel message; only a message of man’s power to have enough “faith” to see himself through and lead others to a “better place”.(emphasis mine. Stand Up For Truth)
Well, apparently this film will closely follow the events in “The Bible Series.” They filmed both projects at the same time. Which means that the Jesus story will be similar, where we can expect to find a watered down social gospel, and a great commission to change the world. In “Wake Up” I had written about how “The Bible Series” portrayed Jesus:
It isn’t just watered down. It isn’t just that they didn’t have time for Jesus to speak the real truth of the gospel. It is absolutely that they want to CHANGE the WORLD’s idea of what Jesus came for.
And another thing, why is the Jesus they picked so “hot?”
The Bible says plainly that the Messiah would be plain, not good looking. “He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.” Isaiah 53:2. Look at these people in the picture. He is made into a Hebrew Bieber. A celebrity. Our Lord did not come to find superficial worship and tempt women into lust. He was normal looking. You couldn’t look at His group and know which one was Jesus. His beauty came from who He was. But that is not good enough for Hollywood. Because they DO worship celebrity and beauty, so THEIR Jesus has to be super cute.
The Jesus of Hollywood’s Bible is not my Jesus.
And I am not really upset about that. I expect that. Let the world make their own gods, their own idols, and their own images to worship–the world always has.
What gets under my skin is the church. What bothers me is the fact that Focus on the Family promoted this series and gave spotlight to two false teachers in an interview. What bothers me is that if I could verify in 15 minutes that these people are New Agers–they could have and SHOULD have. What also bothers me is that many of my friends don’t get it. They don’t see that there are reasons we don’t have non-Christians teach Bible studies in church, and there are also reasons we shouldn’t drool all over ourselves when we see Hollywood interested in the best book ever written. I have friends that have already paid over sixty dollars to pre-order the DVD’s before they even SEE the whole thing—”So we can teach our children.”
If people want to watch it, let them go for it.
But the church should NOT promote something that is not Biblically sound.
It is a different Jesus.
Now I am pretty much alone in my convictions. I mean there are people that are saying that these people are New Agers, and that ”The Bible Series” was horrible, but for the most part–those with the most influence are promoting the Bible Series as well as this new movie. 95% of the church that I currently attend will probably go and enjoy it. They don’t know better. To them, it is better than American Hustle and other garbage at the theaters.
And it seems like so many other Christians are saying it is good . . .
Money Money Money
Rick Warren is renting out movie theaters for it. Which is no surprise. I mean he is really a closeted New Ager and New World Order promoter himself.
Many religious leaders are citing the movie as a natural opportunity to evangelize. Warren may have a vested interest in the film, since he wrote a curriculum tied to the movie and published by LifeWay Christian Resources.
The couple behind the show, producer Burnett and former “Touched by an Angel” star Downey, have enlisted interdenominational support from religious leaders such as Texas megachurch pastor T.D. Jakes and Roman Catholic Archbishop Jose Gomez of Los Angeles.
Burnett, who has produced shows like “Survivor,” “The Voice” and “Shark Tank,” said he’s never seen a buyout before.
“There aren’t many things that could garner this kind of support,” Burnett said. “People are going to watch the movie collectively, in community.”
After Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ” made $612 million, observers expected to see more films about Jesus. Several upcoming Bible-related films are now in the pipeline.
While evangelicals are often credited with shoring up support for movies like “The Passion of the Christ” and “Fireproof,” Washington Cardinal Donald Wuerl has commissioned discussion guides and videos for Catholic churches and schools, and Archbishop Thomas Wenski of Miami is planning to rent a theater for thousands of Catholics in Miami. (Religion News)
This is huge. It is Ecumenical. Interdenominational. It is drawing the Osteens, the Catholic Archbishops, the Warren camp. T.D. Jakes, etc. So many BIG NAME religious leaders (and false teachers) are putting money into it, and probably making a lot money out of it.
Liberty University invited Downey and Burnett to speak and give a special screening of the movie. Compassion International is helping to pack movie theaters too.
They were at the Passion Conference in Houston earlier this month promoting the movie as well. It seems that even some popular pastors in the Calvary Chapel movement are promoting it as well. Dave Rolph, who is on KWVE radio, posted on his facebook this week:
I saw the movie “Son of God” yesterday. (It will hit the theaters February 28th.) I’m praying that God will use it to get people talking about Jesus. If you like Bible movies, and especially if you liked the mini-series Mark Burnett did, you’ll enjoy this movie. When it comes to Bible movies I always think the book is better than the movies, but some people might see the movie who haven’t yet read the book. I’m sure there will be people who criticize the movie for not being exactly like the Bible. Like “Passion of the Christ” it borrows from church tradition instead of just Scripture, when it comes to the stations of the cross stuff. But it identifies Jesus as God in the first minute, and has a clear resurrection, so it is already the best movie about Jesus to hit the theaters. I appreciate the considerable effort Mark Burnett and Roma Downey put into this movie, and I pray God uses it.
It is everywhere.
CeeLo giving the middle finger
Even CeeLo Green, most famous for his song “F*ck You” will be singing “Mary Did You Know” at the end of the movie. How touching.
And Christians will go.
They will be entertained.
They will eat popcorn and invite their unsaved uncle.
Then pat themselves on the back for evangelizing their family members by giving them the DVD of the “Son of God” movie for Christmas next year.
A movie that like “The Bible Series,” will probably ignore our sin and our need for the substitutionary death of Jesus on the cross. A movie that will turn the gospel’s call for radical faith, repentance and reliance upon the Lord into a shallow feel good message.
People will walk away liking “Jesus,” or rather liking Diogo Morgado, and they will think because they like the Hollywood Jesus they are Christian more or less. They will not sense their urgent need to come to a saving knowledge of the true Christ. And they will be deceived into thinking they are alright, when they are in serious spiritual jeopardy.
That is dangerous.
There are those who think that all this can be redeemed though, and the movie will serve as a tool of evangelism, a “conversation starter” and an emotionally moving form of entertainment.
I think Sunny Shell did a great job answering these thoughts in the article I quoted from above. Take a look:
Throughout the entire series, God’s holiness and righteousness is either completely omitted or diminished. The Almighty is portrayed as the Roman Catholic’s angry God who curses people if they don’t obey, mixed with the heretical false god of Joel Osteen who wants to give you a big hug and make you happy no matter what you’ve done. Putting both sects of heretical teachings together produces an angry and sappy deity who desperately wants people to know about His love (as defined by the world) and will punish all the “bad” people, while allowing all the “good” people.
Q. “Even though there’s a lot of error in this movie, still, don’t you think it’s a great way to show people who God really is, I mean, can’t God use anything to save someone?
A. No, I don’t think this movie is a great way to reveal the truth about God since it’s filled with lies about God. And yes, I realize God can use anything to save someone, but He only chose to use the message of the true Gospel to save all men (John 14:6, Acts 4:12). Nowhere in Scripture does God command or allow His children to use the work of Satan to proclaim His truth. And God is clear, anyone who denies Him and defiles His holy character or word, works for the devil, not for God. Since the beginning of time, the devil has attempted to minimize and blaspheme God’s holy character by lulling us to disregard His holiness, justice and righteousness. God has never called His children of light to partner with the works of darkness (2 Cor 6:15-16). As God’s children, we are commanded to pursue holiness, rather than try to find a way to compromise the glory of Christ in order to ‘reach more people’.
(Stand Up For the Truth)
In “Wake UP” I shared about how evangelist Ray Comfort did not endorse “The Bible Series” which is super important for the following reasons:
How can someone receive the Lord without a clear presentation of the Gospel? You are not automatically born again if you think “hot” Jesus’ message to “change the world” resonates with something inside of you.
Ray Comfort summed it up on his Facebook yesterday:
“It’s been brought to my attention, by a reliable source who conducted thorough research, that there are a number of unbiblical and very questionable things in “The Bible” television series–about the deity of Christ, the character of God, and the reality of sin (among other things). In light of this recent revelation, I cannot endorse this series. If you choose to watch it, I would urge you to do so with a discerning heart, testing all things.”
Note that is from a man whose only pursuit in life is to see people find Jesus Christ. Don’t you think if it had any evangelical merit, Ray Comfort would know it? I mean this guy still goes to the beach on the weekends (at least twice a month) and stands on a box and publicly proclaims the words of salvation. He cares about reaching the lost. But he also cares about the truth.
FAITH COMES by HEARING
And HEARING by the WORD OF GOD.
If people want to know about God, Jesus and the Bible. There are plenty of other amazing materials they can get their hands on–the best of which would be an actual Bible.
In Conclusion, I am not telling you to not go and see the movie. You can see it if you want. If I do go and see it, I know it will just be to see how much they twist the Bible. And yet I do not want a dime of my money to go to line the pockets of false teachers. But I definitely won’t let my kids watch it, and I won’t recommend it to anyone else.
I personally do not believe that Hollywood, or FAKE Christians can make a good truthful movie about Jesus. I think that the enemy is skilled at doing his best work, using a lot of truth, with just a tiny lie inside of it. Sometimes we don’t even notice the lie because we already agree with so much of the truth.
Roma Downey, Mark Burnet and Diogo Morgado promoting the Son of God movie on Oprah
Roma Downey and Mark Burnett are not Bible loving, gospel preaching Christians. They are New Age Pagans that call themselves Christians. Their gospel is the promise of a New World Order. They are the wolves in sheep’s clothing that come into the church. We need to expose them, not interview them on Focus on the Family.
But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber. (2 Peter 2:1-3)
Let us use this to prompt us to dig into the New Testament on our own. Let us soak in it, and chew on it, and live off of it. Let us memorize the red words in our Bibles. Let us mutter them in our mouths over and over until we can quote them, and be changed by them. They say that the best way to identify the counterfeit is to study the real thing. We don’t know how much time is left, so let us (let me) not think, ‘Hey the master isn’t coming for a while, let’s just sit back and relax’ like the evil servant. Let us keep watch. And be ready. And know the voice of our master.
Anything or anyone that adds to or subtracts from the Word of God should be avoided like the plague. And from what I'm hearing, this movies does both repeatedly. I don't trust Roma Downey or her husband.
Philippians 3:20-21 “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.”
Movie Review: 'Son of God' Is Most Certainly Not The Son of God By Sunny Shell February 28, 2014 | 10:47 pm
Today, "Son of God", a new movie produced by Roma Downey and her husband Mark Burnett opened in theaters across the country. Individual Christians and well-known Christian churches, organizations and even schools are raving about seeing Jesus on the big screen.
Many Christian groups bought out multiple screens at theaters or purchased mass quantities of group tickets for this epic film...or rather, epic fail of the true and biblical story of Jesus, the Son of God.
Last year I was contacted by a media group for The History Channel. They emailed me requesting my help in promoting their upcoming 10-episode miniseries called "The Bible". After reviewing their material, Bible studies based on the series, and clips of every episode, I responded kindly telling them that due to the unbiblical nature of the series, I was unable to help promote it. After watching the entire miniseries I wrote and published my review and I haven't heard from them since.
Prior to entering the theater today, I went in with an open-Bible-mind and open-Spirit-heart. I hoped that this movie was better than the miniseries, but alas, it was not. The majority of this film was simply scenes taken from the heretical and blasphemous miniseries. Please know, I don't take these two terms lightly, and you neither should any professing Christian.
I won't go point by point on all the biblical errors in this movie because honestly, there's just not enough room in one review, nor time in one day to cover the ineptness of the writers and producers of this film. I will only cover some of the topics and scenes that are fundamental to God's holy precepts and His loving relationship with His people which include God's:
Authority Righteousness Love
As a movie, it was gripping, emotionally engaging, well-performed and the cinematography was good. I'm not an emotional person, but even I found myself tearing up when Matthew was called away from his tax collecting table to follow Jesus. Unfortunately, the way this scene is portrayed (as many others) is not actually how God inspired it to be written in His Word.
Jesus Asks Peter To Go Fishing When Jesus comes to the Sea of Galilee, rather than call His first four disciples (Peter, Andrew, James and John), He only calls one disciple—Peter. But rather than call Peter and Andrew from their boat while they were fishing, Jesus pleads, "Peter, just give me an hour and I'll give you a whole new life." After sassing Jesus, Peter takes him fishing where Jesus works a miracle and provides him with an abundance of fish. When Peter asks what they are going to do, Jesus says, "Change the world."
In the real Bible, Jesus doesn't beg anyone to spend time with them. After all, He is the Lord and has all authority to command who He wants and what He wants. Therefore, He commands Peter and Andrew to follow Him and they immediately leave their boat and nets and obey Jesus' command. Just as all the Apostles who were commissioned by Christ to go into all the world and make disciples, that is, learners. He didn't tell anyone that He came to "change the world" nor did He ask for their help to do so.
Christ came into the world to save sinners from the righteous wrath of God, which is the just penalty for our sins. He never said He came to change the world. He said He came to transform people by giving them new hearts and new minds through repentance and faith in Christ alone.
The 13 Disciples/Apostles Yes, you read that right. I know in Scripture there are only 12 apostles...all men (Peter, Andrew, James and John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James, Thaddaeus, Simon and Judas Iscariot). But in the film, there are 13 apostles, and the thirteenth apostle is a woman named Mary. Not only is she always with them, but she's with them in the boat during the storm when Jesus walks on water; she's with them when they travel privately, though in the Scriptures, Jesus pulled aside and taught only The Twelve...men. Mary is also very outspoken and often reproves the male apostles to have more faith as it is very apparent her faith is stronger.
During the crucifixion scene when Jesus is being jeered at by the crowd, Mary defends Jesus and shouts "Leave him be!" Wow, brave gal, huh? Braver than the male apostles who never speak up or do anything heroic or faithful. Then when Jesus is resurrected, she's the first (and only woman) to enter the empty tomb. She also accompanies Peter and John who later come to the empty tomb to see for themselves. In Scripture, three women go to the tomb early in the morning and are greeted by angels who remind them that Jesus said He would rise on the third day. In the movie, she and the apostles remember all this on their own.
Lazarus Rises With More Than a Command In Scripture Jesus purposefully delays from going to see Lazarus when he was ill, allowing him to die. Then He purposefully goes to see Lazarus after he's been dead four days. When Jesus arrives, He is greeted by Martha (one of Lazarus' sisters) who says, "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died." Martha confesses that Jesus is the Christ and that she believes she will see her brother on the last day, the resurrection. Then Jesus tells her that He is the resurrection and the life. Shortly after telling her this, as He comes to the tomb He weeps. Then from outside the tomb, the Lord Jesus commanded, "Lazarus, come out." With his face wrapped in a cloth and the rest of his body wrapped in linen strips, Lazarus obeys Christ and comes out of the tomb.
In this unbiblical portrayal of the true Son of God, while the fake Jesus and his disciples are walking through a crowd, Mary (the thirteenth disciple) just happens to see Martha weeping and asks her what's wrong. When Martha says that Lazarus has died, Jesus is surprised (which he often is throughout this film) and asks to be taken to the tomb. Once Jesus arrives at the tomb, he actually goes in...with Martha! Then he touches Lazarus (who's face is not wrapped), gently cradles his head, weeps, kisses the back of Lazarus' head, quotes some Scripture and gently suggests that Lazarus rise; and he does. Martha and Lazarus embrace and the three of them emerge from the tomb as the crowd cheers. This scene was performed more like football players exiting a tunnel and onto their home field, than the truly majestic and awesome scene that is depicted in Scripture.
This scene (along with the entire movie) was bankrupt of Jesus' power and authority over life and death.
Not One Stone Left In Scripture, when one of the disciples are marveling at the architecture of the temple, Jesus says, "Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down." But in the movie, no one is marveling at anything. Rather, when Jesus sees a little girl in the crowd He kneels down to her, smiles, chuckles and playfully pokes the little girl, who giggles as Jesus' quotes Scripture.
The filmmakers take this powerful and frightening prophecy and turn it into a light and impish exchange with a little girl.
Pharisees Care About God's Name and His People In Scripture, the Pharisees and Sadducees are clearly jealous of Jesus' popularity and despise Him to the point of wanting and plotting His death. But in this unbiblical adaptation of the Pharisees relationship with God and His people, they want Jesus dead because they truly believe Jesus is a blasphemer and they are concerned for the Jewish people's welfare under the tyranny and oppression of the Romans. In the movie, the Pharisees want Jesus dead, not out of sinful hatred and jealously, but out of deep concern to spare the people of Israel any further harm from the Roman Empire.
Jesus Convinces Judas to Betray Him In Scripture, Judas willingly betrays our Lord for a mere 30 pieces of silver. In the Bible, Judas is clearly depicted as a thief and someone who loves money more than people. None of the other disciples are aware of this impending betrayal while they're eating their last supper with the Lord. Rather than being consumed with His predestined suffering and death, Jesus once again portrays the humility of a servant (contrasting the disciples lack of humility and care for one another) as He removes His outer garment and wraps the towel of the lowliest servant around His waist, and begins to wash the filthy feet of His disciples—loving them "to the end". While Judas is lolly gagging and enjoying this meal, Jesus turns to him and tells him "What you are going to do, do quickly." And he does.
In this movie, Jesus is never shown humbling himself and serving the disciples as one of the lowliest servants in a household. But he doesn't have to since throughout the film the Lord is depicted as more of our buddy than our glorious Master and King. So here, the Lord is shown laughing and enjoying this meal with his disciples when suddenly he has a vision of being betrayed by Judas. Then pretend Jesus has a look of surprise and defeated sadness as he tells the disciples, for the first time, that he is going to be betrayed, suffer and die. Though in Scripture the Lord foretold His suffering and death three times prior.
After Jesus has this surprising and upsetting vision of Judas betraying him, he turns to Judas and convinces Judas to betray him. With tears, Judas adamantly refuses. But Jesus endearingly holds Judas' face, then gently and lovingly insists that Judas do it, and do it quickly. Reluctantly, Judas does as Jesus says. In this false adaptation, the other disciples are aware of Judas' betrayal and Peter tries to stop him, but Jesus tells Peter to let him go.
The Great Commission Has a Great Omission
"Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw Him they worshiped Him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age...And He said to them, 'Go into all the world and proclaim the Gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned."
~Matthew 28:16-20, Mark 16:15-16 (ESV)
The Gospel, that is, the Good News of Jesus Christ is essentially in John 3:16-21. This passage proclaims why Christ came into the world—to save sinners from the full penalty of our sins. Which is why the Good News is the greatest news any human being can receive. For there is only one Mediator between man and God Almighty; Christ the Lord, the only Son of God.
However, in the movie, Jesus never mentions the just penalty of sin, or that we need to be made into new creations through repentance and faith in Christ; which alone equips us to go forth into all the world and make disciples—not converts to a new way, a better world or just a happier and more peaceful life.
Jesus Visits The Apostle John on The Island of Patmos In the very beginning of the film and throughout the film, the Apostle John is narrating from the Island of Patmos as he reminisces his time with Jesus. At the close of the movie, John's narration is interrupted by Jesus who appears with a reassuring smile saying, "There will be no more death, pain and crying...I am coming soon." Then with a twinkle in his eye and calming gesture, the fake Jesus disappears.
In Revelation 21, the real Jesus says, "He [God] will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away." The Lord says this to the Apostle John after showing him the new heaven and the new earth that only Christians will see and dwell in. This delightful promise is not generic nor is it all inclusive as the filmmakers try to convey to the audience. This great and awesome promise is only for those who have repented of their sins and trusted in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and the only Savior for all mankind.
Conclusion If someone called to you, suggesting that you come out of your comfortable home to take you to a more comfortable and elegant home, you may think they're nice, but you wouldn't consider this to be great news or even an impossibly generous gift. Which is the essential message of this film. But if you were in a burning inferno and someone called to you with instructions on how to be saved from a horribly painful and terrifying death, you would consider this person a great savior with the greatest news you've ever heard, and you would listen to him. This is the Gospel—the true Good News of Jesus Christ.
The truth is, we're all in the burning and destructive inferno of our sins until we are washed by the pure and precious blood of Jesus. We are all covered with the ash of our sins until we are baptized into Christ and made new creations, with new hearts and new minds; no longer darkened and depraved but enlightened by the Gospel and credited with the righteousness of Christ.
There is no evidence of this glorious truth anywhere in this movie. There is no evidence of God's authority, righteousness or saving and powerful love that continually conforms us into the likeness of Christ.
This film does a great disservice to anyone who is infected by it's anemic and sclerotic message of false hope in a false christ.
Post by PurplePuppy on Mar 28, 2014 16:32:48 GMT -5
I had lunch with a friend the other day who saw this movie and said it was "Wonderful! It was exactly like the Bible!" I wonder what Bible she's been reading?
Be thou comforted, little dog, Thou too in Resurrection shall have a little golden tail. ~ Martin Luther