Lynn & I loved the new BONHOEFFER movie — you absolutely should see it this Thanksgiving weekend

DENVER, COLORADO — Lynn and I have seen two movies since arriving in the States last week.

One was GLADIATOR II, a bloody, violent, but spellbinding thriller set in Ancient Rome. It’s not nearly as politically or socially sophisticated as the original, but I’m still glad we went.

The other was BONHOEFFER: Pastor, Spy, Assassin.

It is — by far — the better of the films.

And don’t even get me started about WICKED.

Lynn and I were stunned by just how good, how compelling, and how timely and relevant the BONHOEFFER movie is.

We’ve been telling everyone we know — Christians and non-Christians alike — to go see it immediately and to take family by and friends with them.

Make it a group outing. Make it an adventure. You won’t be sorry because I guarantee you’ll be talking about this film all the way home and for days to come.

The film raises fascinating and important questions.

How did the German believer, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, find such extraordinary courage to stand so faithfully and so boldly for Jesus Christ and the Word of God when the wicked Adolf Hitler was rising to power?

Where did Bonhoeffer summon the bravery to confront the weak and apostate pastors and clergymen of the 1930s and 1940s who were bowing down to the heresies of Hitler and the Third Reich as they forced churches to replace the cross of Cross with the swastika, forcing them to preach from Mein Kampf rather than from the Holy Bible, and forcing them to tell their congregations that Jesus was a white Aryan rather than a Jewish man from the land of Israel?

What compelled Bonhoeffer to openly, publicly, and consistently defend and protect the lives of Jewish people — and to urge his fellow Christians to do the same — while the Nazis were rounding up the Jews and sending them to concentration camps, and forcing all German citizens to aid in this effort?

Is it really true that Bonhoeffer spent time in the United States, and specifically in Harlem, being discipled by African American Christians, being inspired by their passion for Christ, being energized by their joyful worship of Christ, and being challenged and humbled by the suffering and persecution they were facing?

And was Bonhoeffer really involved in a plot to assassinate Hitler to stop his murderous rampage and save Germany?

In other words, the film doesn’t just tell Bonhoeffer’s story in such a powerful and vivid way.

It also prompts viewers to go study the true story for themselves.

To that end, Lynn and I immediately reached out to our friend, Eric Metaxas — the author of the definitive biography of Bonhoeffer that inspired the filmmakers to make his must-see movie — and asked if he would come in our podcast, “Inside The Epicenter,” that we host for The Joshua Fund.

Eric graciously agreed and what a great conversation we had about the movie, his book, and the relevance of both in an age of so many weak and apostate churches.

And in a time of such exploding anti-Semitism.

Here’s a link to the podcast.