While checking facebook I couldn't help but notice all of the criticizing going on from Christian people...this is disheartening to say the least. Of course, this is only my opinion...but then again, it is my blog so I'm definitely entitled to my opinion in my space.
Here are just a few of the facebook posts I've seen this evening:
*Some things bothering me about The TV series The Bible : the Hebrew land of Goshen was NOT affected by the 3rd plague and on... They made it seem like it was dark in Goshen as well. Also, there was a cloud that God placed between the Egyptians And the Israelites so that the Israelites could cross the Red Sea... They were held back until until the right time.
*There were many inaccuracies. Sarah never ran after Abraham when he was going to sacrifice their son. And that was no ram!! Oy, my boys were really disappointed.
*Wow... A little disappointing!!
*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.
While I can understand that as Christians we want any retelling of God's story to be accurate as possible, I feel many have missed the big picture while focusing on such small minor details. Does it really matter that the land of Goshen "seemed" to be affected by the angel of death? Does it really matter that the movie depicted a lamb instead of a ram? Do either of these things diminish the miracles that God did or the strength He showed on behalf of the people He loved? I think not. I've spent some time thinking about what Jesus would think if he was watching; I cannot for one moment think that He would get wrapped up in the details of a film depicting His story when the bigger picture is that thousands and maybe millions of people have now had the opportunity to watch on screen the amazing works of His Father.
Let's look at some facts:
The average screenplay created from a book is 1.5 - 2 hours long; most books that are turned into screenplays have around 16-20 chapters...in fact, the Lord of the Rings series has 30 total chapters and the sum of screenplays equal 9.2 hours of total viewing time. In stark contrast, the Bible has 66 books & 1189 chapters and the entire story is being scrunched into 10 hours minus an average of 35 minutes of commercials per episode = approx. 7 hours of total viewing time. I don't think most people understand how much longer this production would have to be in order to add many of the factual details they have complained about; for the time constraints & budget, I am amazed.
If we used the number of hours in the Lord of the Rings movies compared to the books as a guide, the Bible series would have to be over 20 hours of solid viewing time (if we made each of the 66 books a chapter) - making it almost 3 times as long as it currently is in order to supply a similar amount of detail. The fact that for 7 hours over a 5 week span may possibly open the truth of God's Word to those who have never heard it before is truly amazing. After all, I feel that most screenplays created from books were made to interest the watcher to actually read the book...I know, a shocking thought!
Imagine what would happen if thousands of people were inspired to actually read the Bible after watching this series to find out for themselves the detail of what actually took place all those years ago...this could inspire a revolution for Christ that the world has never known!
I wish Christians could gain a new perspective and not be so focused on being factually accurate. There is definitely a time and place for complete detailed Biblical accuracy; however, in my opinion, a 7 hour mini-series on national television is not it.
God can use anything to show how much He loves us & call us to Himself...He has used a flood, a talking donkey, countless foolish things, rubbing mud on a man's eyes...and maybe even a 5-part mini-series called The Bible on the History channel that may contain a few historical inacurracies. Instead of looking for inaccuracies, I choose to pray for this series - that people's hearts and minds would be open to the truth of God's Word and His love for them by watching it. I also pray for Christians to remember that this mini-series is probably more for those who do not know Christ than for those who already do.
PS - I have totally been inspired to go back & read the stories shown on tonight's episode before next Sunday...hope I can read it all!
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