Why I Love "The Chosen"

Could This Series be Part of the Solution?

For several years now, people in my circles have been talking about “The Chosen”, the series on Jesus. It sounded great but I receive so many recommendations all the time, it is hard to keep up. Recently I finally started watching, and yes, it is amazing! I cry at every episode. It is so moving and what I imagine Jesus and his followers to be. I must admit I have a soft spot for Matthew. The characters are so relatable.

I suppose the reason this series resonates with me and so many others is that it portrays Jesus as genuine, authentic, and very much in line with what I imagine him and his disciples to be. So many of us crave authenticity, a simple faith that is real and raw.

Sadly what we witness in so-called Christianity these days is often not what the Gospel portrays. There is such a dissonance between what we read (and see in this series) and what we observe in churches. Not all churches, granted, but many. It seems as if we have forgotten the actual Gospel, the words and lifestyle of Jesus, and we follow a distorted view of Christianity that has very little to do with the spirit of Christ.

Churches these days are bursting with scandals of greed, immorality, and deceit. This leaves many members disillusioned, shocked, and befuddled. Many who are older and have been around a long time carry on, albeit dissatisfied mostly. The young people, however, are calling things out, pointing out the faults, and voicing their concerns. All too often they are labeled as worldly or rebellious, so they walk away. Then their parents walk away. And soon whole churches are dying out or stagnating in mediocrity and acceptance.

“The Chosen” reminds us of what Christ's fellowship looks like, what it expects out of Christians, and how beautiful and inspiring genuine faith is. The men and women Jesus called left everything to be with him and learned how to live a godly life. There was no place for materialism, greed, and selfishness. They all shared everything and cared for one another and the communities they reached out to.

What an upward call! We as older followers of Christ should be an upward call to the younger generation. We should inspire them by our lifestyle, our convictions, our genuine devotion. I am so encouraged by so many wonderful Christians. But the church itself, the institution too often puts up with and tolerates hypocrisy. Let us not subscribe to that. I know that in many of us is a deep desire, a yearning for something beautiful and genuine, something we see portrayed in “The Chosen”, and even more so in the actual gospels. And that is where the appeal of the series lies.