Family Movie Night: Light of the World

This has been the year of Christian movies. First came The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, then The King of Kings, and now Light of the World!

I got a special chance to take my kids to the pre-screening of Light of the World. This means we got special swag, and a special chance to view this film before it comes to theaters!

So let’s get to it! Here’s all our thoughts on Light of the World, and some ways to turn this into a whole family movie night!

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Light of the World

Light of the World is a new 2D animated film exploring the Gospel of John. John was the youngest of the disciples, some scholars concluding he may have only been 14 or 15 when he joined Jesus’ crew. The movie is seen from young John’s perspective, as he follows Jesus from the wedding in Cana, to the cross, and finally Jesus’ ascension into heaven.

The movie is produced by The Salvation Poem Project. I didn’t know anything about this organization before watching the film. However. They are an organization that has partnered with companies like The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, and Child Evangelism Association. Their purpose is to create resources for churches and ministry organizations to share the Gospel. I feel this is all important to know while viewing this movie. As there are some points of the film that present a bit like a Gospel track, and that’s necessarily outside of this projects’ goal. Spoilers ahead!

What We Liked

Just on the surface, the art work is gorgeous. I also liked that they attempted a more ethnically accurate portrayal of Jesus and his disciples. I’m not sure I saw a single blonde-haired, blue-eyed character. Which is good! From what I’ve learned there probably weren’t a lot of blonde-haired, blue-eyed people in ancient Israel.

This movie also has a lot of humor, something that’s a bit of a rarity in Christian films. Between a zany John the Baptist, a scheming Judas, and shenanigans of having a teenage Apostle John…well, this one is full of clever quips that give us insight to actual themes and undertones within the Biblical text.

You could tell this movie was made by a bunch of Bible nerds, and I absolutely mean that in the best way. There are so many details within the animation and storyline that would only be added by people who really have spent time with the text. This is noticed especially in all the references to Jesus’ divinity. The movie starts with Salome telling her sons James and John about the origins of the world, and the awaited Messiah who would come to end the oppression of His people. This is how the Gospel of John starts, it’s drenched in Old Testament imagery, linking Jesus to the promised Messiah. John was able to write in such a way, because his imagination had probably been saturated in these stories and imagery since childhood. I loved the interpretation of the movie team to have John’s mother be the one passing-on this heritage.

They continue unpacking this theme by showing how every miracle was proof that Jesus is the Messiah. They even have the waters separate into walls as he walked on the Sea of Galilee, an obvious hyper link to the parting of the Red Sea.

They continue to affirm this theme by having characters frequently declare ‘Jesus is the Messiah.’

I also loved that Light of the World feature significantly more female characters than most Jesus films. We see Salome raising James and John. We also get to hear from Mary, the mother of Jesus. The best inclusion is Mary Magdalene. We see her healed of her demons, she continues following Jesus as a disciple, and is the first to discover Jesus is a alive! She is seen with the disciples throughout the rest of the movie. Which is in the Bible! However, this is probably the only Jesus movie I have seen feature her following Jesus as a disciple. In relation to seeing demons cast-out of Mary, it was a fairly tame scene. Very much more like she was healed from mental illness than demons.

They do also feature the exorcism of the demons who are driven into a heard of pigs. This is slightly scarier than Mary’s healing, but I would still say appropriate for older kids. However, more sensitive kiss may be troubled by the pigs being given to the demons and tragically dying. This is Biblical, and though handled in a sensitive way. It still can be a hard story for kids to process, so use discretion.

The Cruxifiction

Now the part I know you all actually need to know how they handled. So many Jesus movies handle this poorly when directed towards kids. Light of the World has probably handlde this the best of all the movies I have seen try to tackle this story for a younger audience. Granted, this is still the cruxifiction. It is literally a horror story. So, again, discern if this is a good fit for your family. Just because it’s in the Bible, doesn’t mean your 3 year-old needs to know about this right now.

That being said, Light of the World has a fantastic scene, where the Roman Centurion whose servant was healed is ordered to assist in the crucifixion. The Centurion approaches young John and says something along the lines of “Hey kid, you’re not going to want to see this.” This is the perfect time to skip ahead to the burial and Resurrection if you are watching with younger kids (probably under age 8) and more sensitive children. Again, discern if this is a good fit for your family.

I appreciate that we never see Jesus whipped or tortured. Even in his questioning, they tastefully show the shadows of the Jesus and the officials on the wall. At the crucifixion, we never see anything too graphic. Instead, they show the reaction of the crowd, and that informs us what is going on.

As far as their theory of Atonement, I feel like this film leans more towards the Cristus Victor Atonement Theory. This is the theory where Christ conquered sin, death, and darkens to bring humanity into life with God. There is possibly a touch of penal substitutionary atonement theory, but not nearly as much as portrayed in the King of Kings movie that released earlier this year.

What I Would Have Changed

Before I leave a few critiques, I do want to say this is definitely one of the better Jesus films I have seen. They did so many things well. Between humor, a theologically rich text, and tasteful interpretation of some tricky scenes for children…I have to say well done.

However, I wish there were more ladies. Yes! They did show more women than 100% of the other Jesus movies I have seen. But the Gospels mention so many more. Mary Magdalene, Joana, Suzanna, Mary of Bethany, Martha, and Salome are all women with names who are stated as playing significant roles in Jesus’ ministry. Where are they? And yes, Salome is seen in this movie, which is a rarity, but she is contained to the home in the film. In all actuality, she followed Jesus (Mark 15:40-41). She was there at the cruxifiction. She also was among the women who went to the tomb that first Resurrection Sunday. And some may say, well this is John’s Gospel and she is not mentioned there. However, Jesus also didn’t heal the Centurion’s Servant in John’s account. That story is recorded in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. However, the Centurion and his servant’s healing play a significant role in this film. So back to Salome…yay they included her, but what a let down! They could have done so much more with her. She is there in so much more of the Biblical narrative, and you don’t need a degree to find her.

I also felt they missed the opportunity to have John and Peter race to the tomb. This is recorded in John 20:4. And the text says they were running, and John beat Peter there. That lends itself to some natural comic relief. However, in the movie you never see Peter and John go to the tomb. Instead, we see them at the closing of John where Jesus reveals himself to the disciples in the fishing boat.

The movie concludes with Jesus ascending into heaven, which would have been a nice time to wrap things up. However, instead they have John lead his father in the sinner’s prayer. Which, not going to lie, I did not love. We don’t do the sinner’s prayer our home, because I feel like it misses so much of what the Gospel is actually about. I see why they added it. It is on-brand for this company, and also this movie is in essence a Gospel Track on film. But it would have been better without it.

The very final scene actually has John and his Dad break the fourth wall and invite viewers to scan a qr code on the screen that will lead them to a web page that will guide them in the sinner’s prayer. Again, on brand, but not my cup of tea. I think they could have done something better. Or you know, just ended at Jesus’ Ascension as I mentioned before.

Do we recommend this one?

Despite the pitfalls I mentioned above, I would watch this one again. I would definitely say this one is probably the best choice I have seen for Churches wanting to host a family movie night over Holy Week. If I was using the movie in this context, I would emphasize it’s most appropriate for ages 8+, and pause after the Roman Centurion tells the kids to leave just so parents have the opportunity to use their discretion. I also think I would stop the movie before the QR code scene, as it may be more appropriate to connect people with an actual human than a QR code.

If using this at home, I think this movie can bring new life to Jesus’ story, offering greater depth for Christian families. I watched it with both my 7 and 9 year-old. We will not be watching it with my 3 year-old until he is much older. The crucifixion scenes were too much for my 7 year-old, as she became antsy and uncomfortable during these scenes, indicating she needed a break. I clearly obliged. This movie promoted some fantastic discussions with my 9 year-old. Particularly how amazing it was that John was just a kid. And how there were so many clues that Jesus was the promised Messiah, if people just kept their eyes open. She also appreciated actually seeing a lady following Jesus . This is the first Jesus movie I’ve ever seen show this, even though it is plain as day in the text.