Who is Christ?
Is He man or Son of God? Social revolutionary or the Savior? This groundbreaking documentary series travels deep into the heart of the Holy Land to answer the question that religious leaders, scholars, and all mankind have been asking for centuries – Who is Jesus Christ?
Follow scholars as they walk the roads He walked, examining all facets of the Savior’s existence – from His premortal ministry to His death and resurrection, to the restoration of His Church and His latter-day reign.
With enlightening new scholarly evidence, powerful testimony, and stunning visual effects, this seven-part documentary will help you see the Savior in a whole new light.
Episode 1: “Before Abraham Was”: Premortal Savior
Who was Jesus before He was born? The idea of Christ’s premortal existence is not new to believers; however, many scholars shun such a notion. Latter-day Saint scholars, who affirm Jesus’ premortal existence, proclaim the reality of His foreordination in the pre-earth life as the Messiah, His role in the War in Heaven and the Creation, and His pivotal place as the Jehovah of the Old Testament.
Episode 2: “Knowest Thou the Condescension of God?”: Birth and Childhood
Though many deny the miraculous birth of Jesus Christ, Latter-day Saint scholars search the differing biblical accounts of the birth of Jesus found in Matthew and Luke to conclude that Christ’s birth was, in fact, divine. The scholars explore the traditions surrounding the sojourn in Egypt as well as the scripture and traditions surrounding Jesus’ childhood and youth.
Episode 3: “If Thou Be the Son of God”: Power and Authority
Though Jesus was born to mortal parents, there were early manifestations of His divine power and authority. Scholars explain the importance of the Savior’s early ministry in the Jewish synagogues and the calling and organization of the original Twelve Apostles. Scholars also offer new insights as to whether Jesus considered Himself to be the Messiah.
Episode 4: “He Went up into a Mountain”: Sermon on the Mount and Miracles
This episode explores the many miracles of Jesus’ ministry – including His turning the water into wine at Cana, healing the paralytic man and the woman with the issue of blood, generously feeding the 5,000 and raising His friend Lazarus from the dead. A close look at these miracles highlights their stunning reality.
Episode 5: “I Have Trodden the Wine Press Alone”: Atonement
Latter-day Saint scholars dive deep into the historical and social climate that surrounded Jesus’ arrest, trial, and Crucifixion. As the archeological evidence for Jesus’ suffering on the cross is examined, new perspectives surface concerning the Atonement in the Garden of Gethsemane. Scholars also review the Roman and Jewish laws that defined Christ’s trial and sentencing.
Episode 6: “He Is Not Here; for He Is Risen”: Resurrection
Referencing both New Testament and Book of Mormon accounts, Latter-day Saint scholars explore the validity of witnesses’ accounts of seeing and touching the risen Savior and review the remarkable events of Jesus’ post-Resurrection ministries in both Palestine and the Americas.
Episode 7: “Behold the Bridegroom Cometh”: Second Coming and Final Judgment
Latter-day Saint scholars appeal to scriptural accounts and explore the events that will precede the Second Coming and Final Judgment of the Savior, including the Apostasy, the Restoration of the gospel in the 1800s through the Prophet Joseph Smith and the importance of temple work in the latter days.
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This seven-episode documentary explores Jesus’ existence, from premortal life to Second Coming, with the help of Mormon scholars, mostly faculty at Brigham Young University. The main point of the documentary is to show that Jesus is the Son of God, despite what modern historians say.
The concept behind the documentary was born after Kent Brown, professor of ancient scripture, watched “From Jesus to Christ,” a PBS documentary that portrays Jesus as a Jewish rabbi whose followers later ascribed divinity to him. Brown had a “visceral” reaction to that concept, “Messiah” director Sterling Van Wagenen said in a short film about the documentary.
“Messiah” brings together dozens of scholars to talk about the life of Jesus. Some of the interviews are filmed on a sound stage at the LDS Motion Picture Studio, while others speak at Biblical sites in Israel. Some of them dissect the Greek text of New Testament manuscripts, while others compare and contrast New Testament and Book of Mormon scriptures. Most of them reference a spiritual confirmation and a personal belief in what they are teaching.
The production has appealing visual effects and illustrations that kept the show interesting and also helped me understand the geography of the New Testament story. Perhaps its most valuable element is the analysis of sacred texts and archeology that helped me understand the scriptures in a new way. “Messiah” helped me understand the Sermon on the Mount, the crucifixion, the resurrection and the apostasy more deeply than I had before. By surrounding the story with cultural context, the scholars bring life to the story and the doctrine of the New Testament.
The production is not without its weaknesses. The few boring moments are not too long nor overbearing. Several of the scenes depict hosts having scripted conversations with each other, and this was not pulled off convincingly. (They’re scholars, not actors.) At a few points, scholars read several verses in Greek, and the Greek letters are shown on the screen. This might be helpful for someone schooled in classical languages, but it might be a little confusing to the average viewer.
Overall, “Messiah: Behold the Lamb of God” provides an intellectual and spiritual feast seven hours in length. You can watch episodes of the documentary on BYU Broadcasting’s website, but if you buy the DVD on DeseretBook.com, you also get 10 bonus segments of scholarly commentary.
Bryan Gentry lives in Lynchburg, Va., where he writes for a daily newspaper. He is a native of North Carolina and a graduate of Southern Virginia University. He blogs at bryangentry.wordpress.com.
