Saved through the Passion of the Christ

Simply go to the web site

www.clarionledger.com/news/0402/26/ma03.html

and you will see first hand response to viewing--- I believe the quote is "I believe God directed this movie!"---friend, does anyone see yet the lasting result of what is going to be said about this movie for years to come??

Keep repeating it to yourself

"I believe God directed this movie!"

"I believe God directed this movie!"

And after a while you'll start believing what the quoted person evidently believes!!

Am I going to trade ABSOLUTE TRUTH for anything less?? ANYTHING LESS that ABSOLUTE TRUTH must be thrown out! "A house divided against itself cannot stand!"---

Brother David

 

Huh? My simple reading failed to find St. Veronica and other Roman Catholic symbolism in the Biblical account.

This movie is no different from other Hollywood movies except it is probably more accurate in its story line. However, the story line is relatively unimportant in comparison to doctrine. Everyone oohs and aahs the accuracy of the story line but they fail to discern the doctrinal heresy. This is what makes the film so dangerous. The excellent quality of the filmmaking and professionalism makes it appealing thus obscuring the destructive heretical teaching.

 

God is not limited that He cannot save, but he ordained that by the foolishness of preaching, people shall find the truth.

If we use worldly means to attract the world, do we end up with worldly Christians? How far do we go? Do we employ the practice of Buddhism that we may reach into India and influence many millions of people? Do we compromise the firm foundations of the Christian religion so that our compromise will not offend many?

The preaching of the cross is already foolishness to the unsaved, yet it is by the preaching of this foolish word that men have been drawn to Jesus, and it is by this foolishness to-day that men will be drawn to Jesus.

Just my thoughts.

Cheers,

Jim

PS> I never did support the sin of Hollywood and still don't. As a Christian, my testimony bfore an holy God is more important than viewing some moving picture show. Thank you very much.

 

This movie is not only winning the lost, it is convicting Christians to rededicate their lives.

The "sin of Hollywood" might be lessened if Christians would support Christian films instead of just whining about the unGodly films (which accomplishes nothing).

People who say they don't go to movies is fine. But how much have they really hurt the film industry by their silence???

 

There is NO difference in going to the movie or renting it at Blockbuster or off your satellite. That's supporting Hollywood the same as if you went to the theatre.

Wouldn't it be amazing if this film grossed so much money that Hollywood was encouraged to produce more positive and Christian friendly movies!

This is the second non-kid movie I've seen in 10 years. I've seen Toy Story 2, Spy Kids and one or two other kids movies in that 10 years.

Diane

 

It is? It doesn't even present the gospel...just the death of Christ. It does not talk about man's sinfulness, his standing before God, why Christ had to die, substitution, faith, repentance. Why would you think someone could be saved without all these other vital aspects?

OK...maybe. But why? See above statement. THIS MOVIE IS NOT THE GOSPEL...it cannot and does not convict of sin...because it does not speak of sin.

Modern Christians so badly want to find acceptance with the world that we will latch on to anything "mainstream" with the hopes that it will some how validate us as legitimate in this culture. That is why we snag any celebrity who remotely mentions Jesus, and we offer them up as a beacon of Christianity. We do this with bands as well. This celebrity mentality has killed us. I have a feeling this is yet another item in that long list.

I feel this movie will be good, for what it is worth...a movie about the death of Christ. It will surely start conversations that will eb very fruitful, especially if someone sharesthe gospel with them. But, IT IS NOT THE GOSPEL. Nor is it evangelism. Nor does it get people out of the responsibility of sharing the gospel. Many churches are giving out tickets to this as if it fulfills their obligation. Sadly, these are probably the same churches that don't (can't) rightly articulate the gospel nor are concerned with proper evangelism.

 

can u post an example of what unbelievers think of the movie, perhaps some statements querying "why, why did this happen and what did he do so wrong?"

or is this pure speculation?

well, i have seen some of their REAL comments that aren't just speculation: http://pub1.ezboard.com/fbibleversiondiscussionboardfrm12.showMessage?topicID=590.topic&index=11

 

It is? It doesn't even present the gospel...just the death of Christ. It does not talk about man's sinfulness, his standing before God, why Christ had to die, substitution, faith, repentance. Why would you think someone could be saved without all these other..........

Respectfully, have you seen the movie? I just did. It was well worth seeing. Yes, I thought it did present the Gospel. No, there were not scenes of a preacher preaching a sermon on those aspects. But it showed Jesus identifying Himself as "I AM", it showed Jesus identifying Himself as the "Bread of Life". It showed Jesus saying, "I AM the Way, the Truth, and the Life, no one comes to the Father except through Me."
It showed Jesus willingly picking up His cross and carrying it. It showed what Jesus said on the cross, including "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" It did not just show violence but the why. But admittedly, not in sermon form.

Does one "need" to go see this movie? No. Not ultimately. It is only an imperfect tool, one of many. No, it did not say absolutely everything that could be said. But what it did say, it said far more clearly than many seem willing to admit.
And sure, there was some dramatic fleshing out of a couple of characters such as Simon of Cyrene. But nothing that couldn't have happened or that hasn't been in many a book of Christian historical fiction.
God does not depend on this in any way. But I do think that He has been and will be using this movie.

I was at one of three showings yesterday in my town hosted by Presbyterians . They rented the theater, presented the Gospel clearly afterwards, had handouts of Bible readings, had counselors on hand in another room. Very well done. The Gospel very clearly presented.
All three showings were packed full.

Baptists have it tonight. The independent church (Willow Creek type) has it tomorrow night. And on it goes for another week at least. The host churches all have active evangelism campaigns, all the time.
They are not depending on this movie, but neither are they hesitant to use it.

From my husband--a frequent global traveler:
"Many of the unbelievers around the world think of Jesus as just an autocratic rule-maker--not as a Saviour or forgiver of OUR decisions. Confronting this idea is one of the big challenges to reaching people in many cultures. God did make the rules, but he also gives a way to come to him in simple, direct terms that every person can do. The movie shows the magnitude of Jesus' love and the price He paid to do this. We need more tools like this."

Karen

 

We fight about versions. We fight about women preachers. We fight about clothing. We fight about what is and is not good scripture for witnessing. We fight about names of churches. We fight about movies that were made by a mere man.

No wonder the lost world doesn't think they need Christ. They don't see Him in us.

Diane

 

Man's sinfulness was spoken of?
Christ as substitution was spoken of?
Need for faith spoken of?
Repentance?

If the answer is "No" to any of the above (which it is for all of them), then the Gospel is not present in the movie.

It need not be in sermon form (I never said it needed to be), but the issues I listed baove need to be made clear for someone to be saved. None are present.

BTW, I am glad that the churches are preaching the Gospel after the movie, that is the proper use of this film. The film will stir up discussion about Jesus, believers need to be able and willing to share the Gospel. The film cannot and does not do it....believers must.

People reject the gospel on moral grounds...not because they don't like Christians or think we don't get along.

This is really an issue of what the Gospel is...I don't see how this is a peripheral issue.

 

I just listened to a rabbi and a Catholic priest discussing the film. The Rabbi saw the holocaust...a Jew was killed by the Romans because he was a Jew. The catholic priest saw the overt violence in the picture. Neither one said they saw a gospel message or anything compelling them to change how they thought.

I wonder if Christians see the gospel because they want to see it, and they are reading between the lines.

I did not, will not patronize Hollywood as a Christian, but that is my view. We don't win a drunk to Christ by sitting down and having a beer with him.

Cheers,

Jim

 

I think you are right.

 

Vaspers:

THE PASSION is going to make my witnessing harder, not easier. It's going to make me discuss all the errors and heresies and falsifications in the film. I may have to spend alot of time dealing with questions about "Did this really happen?" No, Mel added that. "Did Mary really say that?" Not sure, Bible doesn't say, Mel added that because he's a Catholic and they pray to Mary. "Did this really occur?" No, that's based on a weird mystic's demented visions.

S&T:

Amen...this is what I am concerned about most. This review agrees with your view of the errors:

http://www.SeekGod.ca/gibson.htm

 

A young man was in the store today working on the credit card machine. I asked him had he seen The Passion of the Christ and he had not. We talked for over an hour about it. His girlfriend is Catholic and her family is going to see it. He said he's a very religious person but doesn't think he'd be able to watch the movie. He said that the local talk shows have talked about the emotion the film evokes and that he's not comfortable showing his emotions about God.

My boss and his family went last night. They thought it was very accurate even with the minor references to Catholic folklore, such as the blotting of Christs' face with the veil.

I'll be going again tonight with my best friend who is half my age.

Diane

 

May I ask where in the Biblical account that the screenplay was taken from these things are found?

I've made the same point several times and it's funny that the people who make this argument never have an answer.

Nor are they present in the Biblical account but you don't seem to have a problem with that.

 

That's why the Bible consists of more than just the last 12 hours of Jesus' life.

That portion is not enuff to save a fly, much less a human being.

We need the life, teachings, death, resurrection, ascension, giving Holy Spirit on Pentecost to have complete saving story. (Romans 10:9 and I Corinthians 15)

Thus, this film is nearly worthless as evangelical tool.

Therefore, why bother sending unsaved people to it? Why can't we just present gospel thru our behavior and witnessing?

To each his own I suppose.

But if this film encourages us to witness, why weren't we witnessing before without it?

This is a silly situation in my opinion.

 

You need to think about this remark! It was enough for the thief on the cross.

 

Ouch, you pinched my smugness diane. doggone it, now I gotta dive back into the Bible and see if I can fix a possible error in my theology.

Bless you for using scripture.

Debate makes us sharper believers. thanks BBoard!