Screen Time



A few days from now, the “Son of God” movie will premier worldwide. It’s based on the top-rating “The Bible” TV miniseries aired last year over the History channel. The series got nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards already. (Source: Wikipedia) According to Roma Downey, the producer and the actress who plays the role of Mary in the movie, “Tired of cursing the darkness, my husband, Mark, and I wanted to shine a light. …‘The Bible’ miniseries, born out of this intention and released last year, grew so popular that we were able to make it into our Jesus film, ‘Son of God.’” (The Salt Lake Tribune)
A scene from the "Son of God" movie. Image credit
But it had its share of controversy. On its third week, where Jesus appeared for the first time in “The Bible” series, “there was supernatural opposition at work. The devil was also in that episode. Someone made a comment that the actor who played the devil vaguely resembled our president [Obama], and suddenly the media went nuts. It went global, showing up all over TV and the Internet. That next day, when I was sure everyone would only be talking about Jesus, they were talking about Satan instead. This is a battle of light and darkness.” (Ibid)
A scene from the "Son of God" movie. Image credit

And, so Downey decided to delete Satan from the “Son of God” movie. She explained, “I wanted all of the focus to be on Jesus. I want his name to be on the lips of everyone who sees this movie, so we cast out Satan. It gives me great pleasure to tell you that the devil is on the cutting room floor. This is now a movie about Jesus, the Son of God, and the devil gets no more screen time, no more distractions.” (Ibid)

Part of the crucifixion scene of the "Son of God" movie. Image credit

Hebrews 12 tells us, “And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.” (vv. 1b-2a, NLT) Our lives should be like that movie. Let us not allow the flesh, the world and the enemy to distract us from following Him. Jesus should have all our focus. 

 Brothers and sisters, who gets the “screen time” in our lives?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

God Knows Judas Not Pay

In the National Geographic Magazine (May 2006 issue), in its cover story, The Judas Gospel , Professor Eliane Pagels of Princeton University claimed that the so-called gospel of Judas “ changes the history of early Christianity. ” Even UP Professor Randy David took notice of the Judas Gospel: “Strictly from a sociological standpoint, I think the discovery of the Gospel of Judas makes Christianity a far more interesting religion than what centuries of metaphysical theology has made of it.” (A Gospel for the Postmodern, Phil. Daily Inquirer, April 16, 2006) That’s why I spoke in our Young Pro Fellowship a few days ago on God Knows Judas Not Pay (A Biblical Response on the Judas Gospel). I believe opportunities like this hype on the Judas Gospel or the Da Vinci Code opens a door for us to share the true Gospel. For those who did not attend last Thursday, let me share briefly why we reject the Judas gospel. I came up with the acronym J-U-D-A-S. J udas was portrayed as a traitor in the Bibl...
Read more

“Ubus-ubos Biyaya, Bukas Nakatunganga”

Image
That’s what my mother always told us when we were still kids. (Translation: “You spend everything today, you will have nothing tomorrow.” ) Image source: So, What's New ? Dionie did just that. Last April 2008, he won PHP14,125,032 in the Lotto 6/42 draw. Excitedly, he “lived the life of a millionaire, something he had been longing to experience. He lived in a P4-million house in a posh subdivision, drove around in a sports utility vehicle [which he bought the very same day he claimed his prize] , and gave goodwill money, ranging P1,000 to P 850,000, to relatives and friends. He also gambled daily, womanized, and went on regular drinking sprees.” (Source: Manila Bulletin ) He estimated that he squandered a minimum of P100,000 almost every day. He also lent money even to people he did not really know. “I just gave them and told them not to pay me back.” (Ibid) His bank had to issue him a special card so he can withdraw huge amounts of money quickly from the automated teller m...
Read more

Detour, Not A Dead End

Image
A dead end is “an end of a road or a passage from which no exit is possible.” Image credit A dead end, according to a dictionary, is “an end of a road or a passage from which no exit is possible.”  According to another dictionary , it is “a situation, plan, or way of doing something that leads to nothing further.” Screenshot from Merriam-Webster online dictionary There were times in my life when I thought I was in a dead end.  Impasse. No way out. Caught between the proverbial rock and a hard place. I was like Moses. There’s the Red Sea in front of me and the Egyptian army behind me. Only this time, I can’t part the sea.  I failed. Many times. My dreams became a nightmare. And my nightmare came to pass. (Of course, I can always blame others. The fact is, it’s not entirely my fault. But why waste time blaming? So, I’ll just take responsibility for where and why I failed.) I got burned out. I got myself into stress-related disorder when I pressure...
Read more