This series gives one the ability to “binge-watch Jesus” as Jenkins would say and go more deeply into the life of our Lord. The last person one might think would be chosen to lead the apostles. For instance, in the main series, Peter is portrayed as an ordinary man - a husband, a brother and a bit of a hothead - who is struggling to pay his taxes and who always seems to find himself in trouble. The way in which The Chosen gives flesh to the life of not only our Lord but the friends and characters closest to him is inviting and remarkably relatable. This isn’t a Mel Gibson The Passion of the Christ remake either. To speak both about this episode and more broadly about The Chosen, this isn’t your average cheesy Christian film with bad acting to boot. This first episode is a fresh reminder that our Lord came to save the least, the last and the lost that it was some rogue shepherds on the outskirts of Bethlehem who were the first to hear the good news of the birth of the messiah. This 30-minute episode walks through the eve of the birth of Christ through the eyes of a young shepherd. What was the pilot episode that helped attract that level of funding? The Shepherd - A story of the first Christmas. So Jenkins started a crowdfunding project that quickly raised over USD$10 million to get the first season off the ground. However, he then became convicted by the thought that perhaps a wider audience could benefit not only from what he was creating, but from a much larger multi-episode series on the life of Jesus. In 2019, director Dallas Jenkins was originally just wanting to film a Christmas movie for his local church community. So where did The Chosen all begin? At Christmas. Despite all the recommendations I was uninterested at first, with an “I’ve seen it all before” attitude, but finally I decided that if they were bothering with a second season there might just be some substance to this new take on the life of Jesus. Season 2 is well underway, and at the time of writing this, I’ve only just finished episode four of Season 1. The shepherds are told of the Good News, witnessing the birth of the Lamb of God (Luke 2:8-20).I’m a little late to catch on to all the hype around The Chosen series.At Bethlehem, Mary gives birth to Jesus (Luke 2:1-7).The crippled shepherd Simon was healed.Aaron Himelstein as Simon, the shepherd.The Pharisee from before asks where the spotless lamb for sacrifice is, and Simon simply smiles. Leaving the manger, the shepherds tell everyone what they have seen. Seeing the baby, Simon asks His name, and Mary and Joseph reply that He will be called " Jesus". The shepherds arrive and witness the birth of the Messiah. Full of joy, Simon is miraculously healed as he follows after, leaving his staff behind. Suddenly, the shepherds hear the angelic announcement of the birth of the Lamb of God, and they immediately head to Bethlehem. That evening, due to the situation earlier, Simon is forced to eat alone, far from his fellow shepherds. On his way home, Simon meets a couple from Nazareth, a pregnant Mary and her husband Joseph, and Simon offers a drink of water for them. Then, Simon hears a reading of Isaiah from a nearby synagogue and goes in, only to be expelled. The priest rejects it, demanding a perfect and spotless lamb. While Simon asks a Pharisee about the coming Messiah, the lamb he brings is discovered to have a blemish. On the outskirts of Bethlehem, Simon, a crippled shepherd, goes to town and brings a lamb for sacrifice. The prophecies whispered of a coming Messiah who would save God's people. Suffering heavy taxation, the Hebrew people prayed for relief from the Roman occupation, and priests repeatedly read the old prophecies aloud in synagogues. When Augustus Caesar became the emperor of Rome, the prophets of Israel had been silent for 400 years. While bringing a lamb acceptable for sacrifice to Bethlehem, a shepherd hears the angelic announcement and is witness to the birth of the Lamb of God. The pilot episode is released in December 2017.
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