John Ring: Think movies don't depict the gospel? Think again

I love it when the world reveals the gospel, and doesn't even know it. 

The gospel is so much more than, “Jesus loves you.” The definition of the gospel is “good news.”  The gospel actually starts with not-so-good news. Man had it all in the garden. He decided he needed more. So, he fell from grace and sinned.

Just about every movie in Hollywood shows the fall from grace. Just the fact that someone causes pain and suffering displays something is wrong. Death is just not normal for us. 

Why? We were not created to die. We were created to live in harmony with the Creator, God.  Only it didn’t pan out that way. The problem wasn’t God.  The problem was and is us. What does the Bible say, “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” 

Years ago,I was watching  a movie titled “Mean Girls.” It was rough. My wife turned to me and said, “This one sure doesn’t have redemption in mind.” I agreed and went on to tell her, “This one still reveals the gospel. It shows we need something more than man’s attempts to do good.”  Regardless, it still shows the basic need of the gospel. 

After man fell, he needed a redeemer. We have one; his name is Jesus.

 I saw this in the movie "The Guardian" recently. It’s a movie starring Kevin Costner and Ashton Kutcher. In the end, Costner dies. Kutcher is lost, but then he rescues a guy off the ocean. The guy talks about another man who, get this, “held him up and would not leave.”

Sound familiar? It gets better. It goes on to say, “He is a fisher of men, a last hope for all those who've been left behind. He is known as the Guardian.” I was in shock. They were talking about Jesus and they didn’t know it.

It doesn’t stop there. There are redemptive themes in movies such as "Shawshank Redemption" (one of my favorites), "The Green Mile," "Les Miserables" (can’t get any better than this one), "It’s A Wonderful Life" and "The Lion King." What I love about "The Lion King" is Simba is playing around and yet knowing something is wrong. When given the opportunity, he rises up and defeats the evil expressed in Scar. 

One that sticks out in my mind is the Clint Eastwood movie "Gran Torino." Clint gives his life for a beaten and abused Korean family.  Check out the position of Clint in the death scene. He looks like he is on a cross. Simply amazing. 

My all-time favorite comes from "Star Wars."  In "Episode 6:  Return of the Jedi" we find Luke at battle with his father, Darth Vader. Vader has a choice: Let the evil emperor take his son, Luke Skywalker, and put him to death, or save Luke by giving his life. Darth Vader gives his life for his son. I come to tears these days as Luke takes off the mask to see his dad’s eyes. They are so full of love. The giving of your life for another. That is the gospel for sure. 

Recently, there has been a movement toward “Christian” movies that I have to tell you, are pretty good. Take, for example, "I Can Only Imagine" and "Unbroken." I’m not sure they would be put in the distinctive “Christian” category, but they were pretty interwoven with the gospel. 

It reminds me of the classic "Chariots of Fire." What a movie portraying the two different ways to live. One way is without God, going for what you want and desire; the other is for and with God, to have that inner peace that passes all understanding. 

I’m always asked if I watch movies that without question are gospel movies.  When I say “no,” people look at me in wonder.

See, we don’t need distinctive Christian movies. Why? The world doesn’t watch them. Remember a quote I gave a few weeks ago: “The world doesn’t read the Bible (may I add, or watch Christian movies); it reads Christians.” 

We need to get our heads out of the sand. We need to put up with the evil of the world that needs redeeming. We then can see if God is present with us in our conversations and seek to help people to see the gospel in their own creations. I believe we can. 

So, the next time you watch a movie, look for the gospel. Look for the fall. Look for the redeemer.  Look for the change the redeemer brings. Take a friend to watch it. Ask what your friend thinks. If the door is open for the gospel, walk on in. If not, go watch the next one and start all over. 

By the way, read the book “How Movies Helped Save My Soul.”  This is a good primer to allowing the gospel to flow through all we watch and see. It gets pretty amazing. 

That’s why it’s called "Amazing Grace."  It is sweet. 

John Ring is the director of Hope for the Community.