The film begins with a dark tone; it portrays Herod’s soldiers killing all of the babies two years and under in Bethlehem. At first I thought this was a very strange place to start (i.e., a little late in the time line) the Christmas story. However, this was only an opening scene which soon flashed back to the time where the angel appeared to Zacharias to announce the coming of John the Baptist from which the remainder of the story proceeded.

I’m not writing this blog post to summarize the movie but rather to critique it from a Christian perspective. As I mentioned in the paragraph above, the movie begins with a dark tone; nonetheless, parents of young children should not be overly concerned as the scene is non-graphic and short-lived. The remainder of the movie is less intense though some mature topics are dealt with (as they should be). For instance, the movie portrays Mary’s concern with how her miraculous virgin conception will appear to friends, family, and the community at large. You must remember that having children out of wed-lock in those times was punishable by death. The movie also shows the harshness of Roman soldiers and of Herod’s concern for potentially losing his rule.

Despite the harsh realities of the time, the movie manages to bring some light comic relief (at least for me and my odd sense of humor). I thought the wise men were particularly amusing—not in a bad way either. The movie shows them arguing with each other about following the star and then complaining to each other throughout their journey (which is probably not to far off base from the truth). On a couple of occasions the wise men say “if I’m right…and I usually am.” To me this is just wildly humorous because so many times the more brilliant people of our world often feel that they are right most of the time…and these wise men actually were!

Hopefully, the last two paragraphs have sparked your interest and pointed out that the movie was cleverly thought out rather than dully depicting what is often thought as a tired-out story by some. Please note that I do not in any way think the birth of my Lord and Savior is dull, I’m just saying that some critics do. The film was well made and did not have the appearance of being another way under budgeted Christian movie. To me the picture quality, acting, and sets were well done. To more critical movie watchers this may not be the case, but I’m rarely one to complain about acting or sets.

The main concern I had going into this movie was whether the movie accurately followed the Gospels, not the movie making quality. I must say that overall I was pleasantly surprised. On more than one occasion Scriptures were quoted.

The film did not deviate from the fundamental truths of the Gospel story. To make any full length historical film, some interpretations of characters’ thoughts and actions have to take place; The Nativity Story is no exception to this premise.

The biggest inaccuracy that stood out to me was the announcement of Christ’s birth to the shepherds. The film only shows one angel proclaiming the birth of Christ which is technically accurate according to Luke 2:10. The film just doesn’t go to the next stage and show the heavily host praising God as they did in Luke 2:13-15. Another potential error is the time period of the wise men’s arrival. Many people believe that they arrived well after the birth of Christ rather than immediately as the movie illustrates.

Now, I’m no Roman historian or scholar some I’m not going to try and analyze the portrayal of the time period, costumes, and other historic events that occur throughout the movie. So if you’re interested in reading a more detailed analysis of those aspects of the movie then I suggest you check out the Christian Answers website.

Could there have been more Christian themes and focus? Yes, but isn’t that the case with every Christian’s life? So why would you expect a movie to be different? I guess one other thing I would like to have seen is more of a focus on why Jesus came to earth as a child.

Christmas is often looked upon as the most important Christian holiday but to me Easter stands out because it truly emphasizes the love God had (and continues to have) for us by sending his Son to die on the cross so that we may be pardoned from our sins and have the opportunity to spend eternity with Him if only we will only we will ask for forgiveness of our sins and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ.

In conclusion, I recommend The Nativity Story for its positive representation of the greatest story of all time even though the movie had a couple of minor issues. I think this is a classic movie to share with friends and family and hopefully spark discussions about the most important event in history, God the Son coming to earth as a man to save people from their sins against Him.

The essence of sin is man substituting himself for God, while the essence of salvation is God substituting himself for man. Man asserts himself against God and puts himself where only God deserves to be; God sacrifices himself for man and puts himself where only man deserves to be.

These words really touch of the beauty of the Gospel. [via Questio Coram Deo]

As I’m writing this I’m thinking about all the many blessings that God has provided to me and my family. I am truly blessed and I know it. I’m very thankful it too. Easter is a great reminder of all that God has done for everyone, not just myself. He has done many great things in my life. If it weren’t for Him, I would have never met my wonderful wife. If I’m completely honest, if it weren’t for Him I wouldn’t even be here much less have anything at all. Of course my saying general statements like these doesn’t provide enough evidence for people who don’t believe in God.

What could provide evidence? Nothing really. The way I say it, Christianity is about faith. Therefore, God will never show Himself in a completely undeniable way. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be about faith. You see God wants us to believe in Him and worship Him because we choose to. Forced love is never true love. Thus, God leaves the door open for us to accept Him or not.

Don’t get me wrong. Plenty of evidence exists pointing to a Creator just not enough to make God’s existence undeniable. I don’t see how anyone could look at the world around them and think it happened by chance…creation itself points to a Creator. Moreover, how could one man, Jesus Christ, turn the world upsides down. Jesus was born into an average family, worked as an average carpenter, and never traveled far from His home. Yet, He changed the course of history by His truly profound message.

What was that message? That God loved us and wanted to forgive us for all the wrong that we had done. That’s good news to me. I know I’ve done many wrong things in life that were against God’s will. To know that God loves me and is willing to forgive me is outstanding. Of course, the message goes deeper than God love and forgiveness. Jesus claimed to be and was the Son of God who came to earth to be a man–an average man, not a king. This Man performed many miracles to show who He was. During His life, He fulfilled all of the prophecies about the Messiah. The fact that one man was able to fulfill the many, many prophecies written in what is now known as the old testament of the Bible is truly amazing.

Ultimately, His claim to be God led to His death. His death was all part of the plan though. You see He died willingly…for if He was God’s Son (and I believe He was) He could have done anything He wanted including save Himself. His unwillingness to not forgo the suffering when He easily could have is part of the beauty of God’s love.

The excruciating death of Jesus on the cross is what we celebrate on Good Friday today. Seems ironic that we celebrate such a horrendous death of the One we Christians claim to worship. Why could such a day be called Good Friday? Because of what happened three days later. HE AROSE! Death could not hold Him in the grave because He lived a perfect/sinless life while on Earth; death occurs because of sin.

Exactly why was the death of God’s Son part of God’s plan? Seems a bit odd if you ask me. It wasn’t though…not for God. We must remember that God created us. He loves us dearly. At the same time, God can’t stand sin. Humans sin. Therefore, a big problem exists. God loves humans but can’t have complete fellowship with them due to their sin. Only one way exists for sin to be forgiven. That way is someone innocent to pay the penalty for the sinner. Jesus was innocent. We were the sinners. Jesus died to pay for our sin so that God could be with the ones He loved, the ones He created.

You must however accept the gift of God’s love by having faith in Jesus death and resurrection. You must turn away from your sin and ask for God’s forgiveness. That’s all it takes to become a Christian and know you’re going to heaven. No other way exists. Trust me, the decision is totally worth it. Yes, some people will call you crazy but the peace and relief you receive more than makes up for it. I couldn’t imagine my life without knowing God…He makes such a difference in my life.

Hopefully, my ramblings haven’t been completely and utterly confusing. Hopefully, my words have shed some light on what I believe as a Christian. Most importantly, I hope my words have touched you in some way. I tend to write in a confusing a seemingly illogical way according to my wife (she’s probably right…too many philosophy classes in college. It’s really not illogical…not to me anyway Seriously, if I’ve confused you or if you’ve got any questions please contact me and I’ll try to help or point you in the right directions to get more answers.

Here’s a nice video to go with this post. It’s not exactly an “Easter” video but it’s a good one just the same.

Blessings to you this Easter and praises to God for His great love for us!!!

I have so many great memories of Christmas and am sure that more great ones will come this year. Especially since this is mine and Lauren’s first Christmas together (as husband and wife)! Maybe I’ll have a chance to write more about it some time soon. It’s quite sad not to have Internet access at our house. I feel bad about this blog being neglected so much.

Merry Christmas!

P.S. Don’t forget to leave Santa some cookies and milk.

Despite the humor of the term “Mouse Potato”, it raises some series implications. For example, it means people are enjoying less of God’s great creation, not spending enough time with friends and family, and possibly neglecting to worship Christ. I realize that enjoying and spending time of the Internet can be a rewarding and educational experience, but when we become addicted to that connection we can easily lose sight of the more important things in life. I am speaking for personal experience. I enjoy working on this blog and communicating with my readers. In addition I like to read and interact with other people’s blogs on the net. Plus, I try check out the Godbit forum, email, and tech news regularly. Doing all those things takes away time I should be spending studying God’s word and hanging out with friends and family. I am not so addicted that I don’t do those things but I do feel that those times have been reduced and they shouldn’t be.

At the same time, I don’t feel that we all should go from one extreme to another. The Internet can be a great ministry and learning tool. We all, myself included, just need to be careful not to spend too much of our time on the net. In other words don’t become a mouse potato.

So I pose this question to you: Are you addicted to the Internet?
If you answer “yes” to that question (as I”m afraid I do), it is time to cut the tail off that mouse (and I don’t mean by going wireless!)