My wife and I heard some people talking about The Chosen over the last few months so we decided to sit down and watch it. The first season is on Netflix, making it simple enough to stream and it’s free to stream on their website and app too.
We were shocked at how well it was done. After the first few episodes, we decided to start over and watch with our kids too.
Why were we shocked? You get used to low budget, poorly acted Christian movies with some rare exceptions like the Bethany Hamilton story Soul Surfer or I Can Only Imagine. Then there are really well done movies like The Passion of the Christ that are simply too intense to watch with younger children.
We’re only 6 episodes into The Chosen and we are hooked. It’s well written, well acted and from everything we have seen so far, Biblically accurate. There are details of backstories that are written in to provide a coherent production simply because they have to be, as we don’t have all of the details to fill in those stories otherwise (and this is explained).
You see the story from the standpoint of the disciples and from Mary Magdalene. The confusion and wonder. The circumstances that they were in. The portrayal of Matthew the tax collector is an extremely interesting approach as well.
If you don’t know the story of Jesus and you’d rather stream a show than read the Bible, I get it. This is true for many people. It’s hard to commit to reading the Bible without being very motivated to do so. Many people, myself included, didn’t sit down and read the Bible until God had already intervened in our lives and we were desperate for understanding. It took me 3 years to read a 1 Year Bible.
In the World War II story Unbroken, Louis Zamperini does exactly the same thing many years after he returns from the war, in the throes of nightmares and alcoholism. I just finished reading that book this week and it’s one of the most powerful and horrifying stories I’ve ever read.
The Chosen is a great way share the Gospel with friends and family. The cast is clearly having a good time too.