Online Church - Done Different! The Chosen TV Series

 

In our search for an online church that would speak to our high school & young adult kids in a way that they can engage with, we stumbled across the idea of going to a small group format instead.

Preaching is a wonderful tradition, as is 3-5 worship songs beforehand, just like you'd find in an in-person church service.  But it's not always the most participatory format when watching from your living room.

We liked the online church services that we used to watch as a family, but we're enjoying our new format much better.

I've loved watching The Chosen ever since it came out, and it continues going strong with solid story-telling, Biblical plot lines (almost word-for-word at times), and wonderful acting.  It brings scripture to life in a fresh way, one that's never been done before.

It turns out that quite a few others feel the same way I do, and small groups have been created around the world, using The Chosen as a conduit to discussing what the Bible really says about who Jesus is.

We decided to do the same.

Here's what our typical "Online Church" looks like now:

• Watch an episode of The Chosen (we're on S3 E6 right now)
• Using a discussion guide, we work through questions pertaining to that episode
• Work on learning scripture memory verses using charades or some other activity
• Write down prayer items, and then pray over one another's requests

The discussion guides are easy to find online.  You can find some here, and here and here.

We've used these ones by Cornerstone Family Church, and these ones created by Northstar Church.

While many would argue that watching an interpretation of the Bible on the screen isn't the same as listening to a pastor preach, I would counter with the fact that it's very similar to hearing a pastor's interpretation of Scripture.  In both instances, it's always wise (and essential even!) to check human interpretation against God's Word.

Some great spiritual discussions have been birthed out of watching this show, something we never had before when watching traditional church services online.

And we always make sure to differentiate between what the Bible says happened, compared to what was portrayed in the episode.

Do you watch The Chosen?  If so, what's your favourite thing about it?