The Bible is once again on the small screen in a new TV series, which premiered Sunday on The History Channel. The Bible miniseries was developed by producer Mark Burnett (Survivor, The Apprentice, Shark Tank) and his wife, Roma Downey, who is most known for her role in the popular TV series Touched by an Angel.
The first episode of The Bible begins with Noah as he and his family huddle together in the ark amid the crashing waves. Noah comforts his family by recounting the creation of the universe as recorded in Genesis 1.
The clear theme of the first episode is God’s covenant promise to His people. From Noah, the narrator transitions to Abraham—whose descendants, God promised, would be more numerous than the stars. Much of the episode focuses on the faith of Abram and Sarai (who are renamed Abraham and Sarah), which is always being tested. God sees the strong faith of Abraham and blesses him for it. His descendants multiply just as God promised.
The Bible then takes the audience to the time of Moses. We see how Moses learned his true identity as a child of God and how he brought God’s people out of slavery under Pharaoh. He proclaims to the Israelites that God is with them and His covenant to His people still stands. This two-hour-long, first segment of The Bible ends with Moses handing down the reins to Joshua, and grabs the viewer with a cliff-hanger ending.
The beauty of The Bible miniseries is how it weaves the biblical accounts together while keeping the historical and emotional integrity of Scripture. Burnett and Downey do a masterful job adapting such a large and incredibly significant portion of Scripture.
Some details of certain historical accounts are left out due to time constraints, so by no means can this TV series or any other replace the inspired Word of God, but the first episode of The Bible succeeds in making history more alive.
Parents do need to exercise caution about whether The Bible miniseries is appropriate for their children. There are some heavier action sequences and implied sexuality that wouldn’t be suitable for younger viewers. Otherwise, however, the first episode of The Bible is tremendously exciting, inspiring and uplifting. Best of all, it reminds us that God is always with us.
Click here to read the original article on Movieguide.org.
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