Lauren Lejeune

Recently, my Bible study group started the book “What Does It Mean To Be Chosen?” a study based around the TV show “The Chosen.” The idea is that you watch the episode correlating with the lesson as well as the scripture verses. I’ll be honest I’ve already cried once. 

For backstory, if you have not watched the show, or read the gospels of the New Testament, “The Chosen” is based on the ministry of Jesus and his life. This is my first time watching it, though there are a few women in the study who have already seen it. 

The first episode introduces a few of the main characters, but a large focus is on Mary Magdalene, or “Lilith” as she is called in the first episode. She is a woman possessed by multiple spirits and not even the help of a rabbi can set her free. Lilith is lost, hopeless in her situation. 

At the very end of the episode, we see Lilith walking out into the night, when someone follows her out of the building: Jesus. He calls her by her real name, Mary. When she turns to look back at him, Jesus begins to speak from Isaiah 43:1 and says “Thus says the Lord who created you, He who formed you, fear not, for I have redeemed you. I have called you by name. You are mine.”

He then embraces her, healing her from the spirits that plagued her body and setting her free. Mary relaxes into the embrace of her savior, the only word really able to describe it to me is rest. She had finally found her rest. That’s when I started crying, of course. 

Watching that scene made me think back on my own life and my relationship with God thus far. Before I became a follower of Christ, my life felt void of meaning and I was plagued with the same hopelessness that Mary showed in “The Chosen.” There was no way out in sight, even though I was looking for something to fill the emptiness I felt. 

But when I found Christ, it was the first time in my life I can recall feeling truly at peace. I belonged to someone who had saved me from the darkest version of myself, someone who made me whole and complete in his goodness. I think everyone craves belonging, whether that’s to friends, family, or any situation in our lives. I find solace in knowing that even when I am rejected in my earthly relationships, I will always belong to Christ. 

Even though I have walked this path with the Lord for almost 10 years, I still find myself in awe, and thankful, that the God of the universe desires to know me on a personal level, to have a relationship with me and will not write me off in the moments I go astray. God’s plan of redemption is for all who want it; having experienced the rest that he gives is something I wish for everyone to have.