The Chosen is an award-winning series that dramatizes the life of Jesus, adding plausible historical and cultural details not found in the Bible. While The Chosen doesn’t contradict Scripture, Christians are divided on whether using creative license in retelling biblical events is appropriate.
The Chosen, a series about the life of Christ, came about through the work of Dallas Jenkins, who has a degree in Biblical Studies and is the son of author Jerry Jenkins of Left Behind fame. Dallas Jenkins invited an ecumenical panel to consult on the show to ensure historical, cultural, and biblical accuracy.
The Bible offers some principles that can guide believers in how to approach productions like The Chosen. Both Old and New Testaments exhort believers to know the Word of God well—read it regularly, meditate on it, and pass it on to children (Deuteronomy 6:6-9; Joshua 1:8; Psalm 1:1-2; 2 Timothy 2:15). Believers who do this will know how to distinguish true biblical content in the show from content added for creative license. Still, some worry that unbelievers who haven’t read the Bible will be misinformed by the extra-biblical details The Chosen includes. Another related concern some in the Christian community raise is that passages like Deuteronomy 4:2 and Revelation 22:18-19 warn readers not to add or take away content from God’s Word, and they perceive the show as doing that. While the Deuteronomy and Revelation passages apply specifically to those two books, the general principle applies to all of Scripture. Supporters of The Chosen point to the reach of the show, noting that it can be a tool to introduce Christ to unbelievers around the world; passages like 1 Corinthians 9:20 support this principle. Ultimately, watching The Chosen is a matter of conscience. Paul indicates that our conscience and love of others should guide us in matters the Bible doesn’t explicitly prohibit (Romans 14:1-23; 1 Corinthians 10:23-31).
When does an artistic endeavor become a misleading one? At what point does extra-biblical become anti-biblical? Christians grapple with such questions concerning The Chosen. Estimates indicate that 108 million people in 180 countries have seen at least part of The Chosen. The Come and See Foundation's (the nonprofit organization The Chosen partnered with for funding) goal is to reach at least one billion people by translating the show into six hundred languages and distributing it worldwide. The show is free to watch and is currently available through its original distributor (Angel Studios), the show's own app (The Chosen App), as well as major apps like Peacock, Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Roku.
Considering that reach, some Christian have raised concerns about the show adding content that isn’t in the Bible. Supporters of the show respond that believers can distinguish the difference between truth and artistic addition, and that unbelieving viewers who don’t know the difference may at least be introduced to Christ and be led to read the Bible. The latter group finds support in some of Paul’s letters, such as when he writes to the Corinthians of how he appeals to various groups: “To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law” (1 Corinthians 9:20). Critics respond with passages like Mark 8:36: “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?” They fear that the show will compromise God’s Word through the addition of content not found in the Bible.
We should all be leery of any work that compromises God’s Word (Galatians 1:8-9). But each believer’s conscience, honed by the Holy Spirit and supported by God’s Word, can determine whether The Chosen does that (1 Corinthians 10:23-31). We shouldn’t judge others for choices that are not directly addressed in the Bible (Romans 14:4). All believers should be guided by love for God and for others (Matthew 22:36-40).