Well wow, ‘The Chosen’ has seriously hit the ground running, releasing several episodes from Season 2 just weeks after wrapping filming in January(!!). Incredible (and incredibly unheard of) speed!
I honestly don’t want to say too terribly much, seeing how quick people already are to enormously over-analyze every last little thing in this show... (which, ahem, they’d never do with another show... so, umm, stop that. :P) But I thought I’d just highlight a few things I’ve really appreciated/loved/am excited about/etc.
First off, that Dallas Jenkins and his co-writers haven’t hesitated in giving the audience what we need to see, not just exactly what we expect or think we want.
#GetUsedToDifferent is exactly right; be prepared to hold your presuppositions loosely, and to reread the Gospels (and all of Scripture) over and over again, as we already should have been doing all along. Things you would have sworn were one way or were said this or that way, actually weren’t, and incredible things you may not remember, or missed when they were said as an aside to a bigger event, actually WERE there, not even made up for the show. Beautiful.
Now yes, it is absolutely ture that things have been expanded, and backstories we don’t get to see in Scripture have been created, but they have been built, as Dallas has stated numerous times, out of what IS plausible, not out of thin air.
Which is absolutely the best way to retell history: truthfully and honestly retell what IS there, and when adding anything, be sure it’s plausible, consistent, and doesn’t undermine what is actual history, while enriching what we’ve heard before and become jaded to.
That brings me to a second thing I appreciate more than I know how to say. Going with what’s consistent and probable and grounded in the grit of history, not keeping everything behind stained-glass and hung up high, out of reach, in the dimly-lit rafters, in an effort to somehow “preserve” what God has done in a way that feels unsoiled and “holy enough” to us.
Our God is great enough to take care of that for Himself. And He proved that He is unthreatened by our dirt, in exactly what The Chosen is about; God becoming Man, to “wrap our injured flesh around [Him], breathe our air and walk our dust”, as the familiar Christmas carol says it. His becoming a Man, a man who got hungry, got tired, had sore muscles and injuries before the Cross ever happened, and living among broken, rough-around-the-edges disciples, from every background and trade, with all kinds of shortcomings and struggles... None of that was clean, or necessarily seemed holy or great, or would sadly even be “good enough” to belong in most of our churches today.
It was all very unceremonious. All very dusty. All fairly clumsy and ugly for our human sensibilities — but in reality, more beautiful and humble than we can fully grasp.
This is is where I see really strange reactions to ‘The Chosen’ all over the place from people. Lots of “Jesus wouldn’t do/say that”, or “you shouldn’t have the disciples act like this or that”, etc. etc.
Now yes, it is absolutely ture that things have been expanded, and backstories we don’t get to see in Scripture have been created, but they have been built, as Dallas has stated numerous times, out of what IS plausible, not out of thin air.
Which is absolutely the best way to retell history: truthfully and honestly retell what IS there, and when adding anything, be sure it’s plausible, consistent, and doesn’t undermine what is actual history, while enriching what we’ve heard before and become jaded to.
That brings me to a second thing I appreciate more than I know how to say. Going with what’s consistent and probable and grounded in the grit of history, not keeping everything behind stained-glass and hung up high, out of reach, in the dimly-lit rafters, in an effort to somehow “preserve” what God has done in a way that feels unsoiled and “holy enough” to us.
Our God is great enough to take care of that for Himself. And He proved that He is unthreatened by our dirt, in exactly what The Chosen is about; God becoming Man, to “wrap our injured flesh around [Him], breathe our air and walk our dust”, as the familiar Christmas carol says it. His becoming a Man, a man who got hungry, got tired, had sore muscles and injuries before the Cross ever happened, and living among broken, rough-around-the-edges disciples, from every background and trade, with all kinds of shortcomings and struggles... None of that was clean, or necessarily seemed holy or great, or would sadly even be “good enough” to belong in most of our churches today.
It was all very unceremonious. All very dusty. All fairly clumsy and ugly for our human sensibilities — but in reality, more beautiful and humble than we can fully grasp.
This is is where I see really strange reactions to ‘The Chosen’ all over the place from people. Lots of “Jesus wouldn’t do/say that”, or “you shouldn’t have the disciples act like this or that”, etc. etc.
Yes, of course if what someone is objecting to goes against what is really in Scripture (not just what they learned from tradition or what they personally like to think), then well and good. That should be corrected. But I have yet to see even ONE of these comments that falls into that vein.
Those objections appear out of people reacting to what doesn’t sit right with their preconceived ideas or understandings, or doesn’t feel “holy enough” for them. How sad this is! And what a misunderstanding of holiness. If we insist on things looking and feeling clean and properly covered in hallowed stained-glass, and out of reach of grimy human hands, we miss out on so much of the shocking grandeur of what our truly Holy and perfect God actually did. Stooping down to meet us on our level, and pulling us “out of the miry pit” the Psalmest described. Walking the dirt in the hot sun, because He loves us.
Well, ‘The Chosen’ is paying close attention to that, and showing clearly the state Jesus finds us in without the rose-colored glasses.
Those objections appear out of people reacting to what doesn’t sit right with their preconceived ideas or understandings, or doesn’t feel “holy enough” for them. How sad this is! And what a misunderstanding of holiness. If we insist on things looking and feeling clean and properly covered in hallowed stained-glass, and out of reach of grimy human hands, we miss out on so much of the shocking grandeur of what our truly Holy and perfect God actually did. Stooping down to meet us on our level, and pulling us “out of the miry pit” the Psalmest described. Walking the dirt in the hot sun, because He loves us.
Well, ‘The Chosen’ is paying close attention to that, and showing clearly the state Jesus finds us in without the rose-colored glasses.
It’s marvelous, respectful of Scripture, and honest. And some people are certainly finding it difficult to see, which isn’t directly a bad thing — very like the Pharisees of Jesus’s day. Some of them just couldn’t stand to think that God would “soil his hands” with the likes of this broken soul or that one. But some, like Nicodemus, wrestled with what they saw and heard, and believed God was who He said, and then the scales fell off so they could see Him in the flesh.
I definitely believe ‘The Chosen’ is helping us to see Him like that more clearly. It’s been interesting to see how few people have ever thought about things like Jesus getting tired in His human body just like we do...but by the reactions from so many on the end of Se.2 Episode 3, it’s clearly a new concept for the majority of Christians, at least in America. That has been somewhat of a surprise. Books like John Eldridge’s ‘Beautiful Outlaw’ also speak to this topic beautifully.
The third thing I’m really loving about ‘The Chosen’ is the fact that in using great storytelling and withholding some information until the last moment, till you actually need to know it, they are actively retraining us as the audience to think for ourselves, to be patient as things unfold, and not to expect things to be handed to us on a silver platter, with the explanation highlighted in red and spelled out for us. We’ve lost so much critical thinking skill, so much imagination in the last many years; this retraining is so fantastic for entertainment as a whole.
I definitely believe ‘The Chosen’ is helping us to see Him like that more clearly. It’s been interesting to see how few people have ever thought about things like Jesus getting tired in His human body just like we do...but by the reactions from so many on the end of Se.2 Episode 3, it’s clearly a new concept for the majority of Christians, at least in America. That has been somewhat of a surprise. Books like John Eldridge’s ‘Beautiful Outlaw’ also speak to this topic beautifully.
The third thing I’m really loving about ‘The Chosen’ is the fact that in using great storytelling and withholding some information until the last moment, till you actually need to know it, they are actively retraining us as the audience to think for ourselves, to be patient as things unfold, and not to expect things to be handed to us on a silver platter, with the explanation highlighted in red and spelled out for us. We’ve lost so much critical thinking skill, so much imagination in the last many years; this retraining is so fantastic for entertainment as a whole.
But it's also important for our understanding of events and people and struggles in Scripture itself. It’s far too easy at this point to just be frustrated or confused with, or even disparaging of, the people we read about in in the pages of the Bible (or even general world history), because we have so much more finished Scripture than they ever had. We know how Jesus’s time on earth would play out. We know the ending and the Resurrection. The Disciples had no idea. When Jesus taught, and walked and lived life with them, they had to dig deep and really chew on the things Jesus said; no one had ever (or has ever since) spoken the way He did.
So we get to experience it at the speed through which the disciples are living it; wondering what on earth Jesus could possibly be up to. What an incredible perspective, an incredible view to get a peek from. One of our pastors said the same kind of thing this past Sunday:
“Think about it — you know more about God’s character today
than Abraham ever knew. And yet, he believed God,
and so it was credited to his as righteousness.”
That really reminds me of this quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson,
‘All that I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator
for all I have not seen.’
And lastly for now, a brief appreciation gush for Season 2’s Episode 2.
Oh. my. goodness. me. I needed this episode, and all the cool water it brought to my soul. This quickly became my favorite episode, and some of the deepest encouragement I’ve heard...I think ever. So much happened in this episode. So much was hilarious, so much was weighty food for thought, and so much was said, unsaid, and shown about trusting God’s heart. I’m afraid to give anything away by saying too much...but it was my favorite. I needed it. And I’m so thankful for it.
So wrapping up for now... If you haven’t yet gotten in ‘The Chosen’ boat, what are you waiting for?? #ComeAndSee #TheChosenSeason2
So wrapping up for now... If you haven’t yet gotten in ‘The Chosen’ boat, what are you waiting for?? #ComeAndSee #TheChosenSeason2
