One of the new things we have started doing in our home is inviting people to a movie night once a month. This is one of the tools we use for evangelistic purposes. Easter season is a perfect time to show a movie telling the story of the Son of God.
Whether it is a home movie showing, a Good Friday, or an Easter Sunday Church outreach, these movies are all great ways to share the story of Jesus. When I was a child, we would have movie nights at church. However, we would have to order the film, which was sent to us, and then we would play the movie and send it back.
Today we can rent our favorite Easter movie on Amazon Prime, Netflix, or Google Play. Here is a list of films I recommend watching this Easter weekend.
Risen (2016)
This movie will lead your congregation to worship the Risen Christ. I appreciate how well done this film is. The movie follows the Easter story from the point of view of a Roman Soldier named Clavius. Clavius is present for Jesus’ death, and when he hears rumors of Jesus’ resurrection, he tries to prove the rumors false.
As an audience we watch Jesus Christ change the life of Clavius as he learns Jesus is the son of God. I have four older teenage daughters. This is a Biblical movie an older teen audience would like.
Movies about Jesus are important to show our family, and this movie is one of the best movies for a family movie night if you have teenagers or young adults. I love how this film brings the story of Jesus alive and shows us the impact of the love of Christ.
The Passion of the Christ (2004)
This is not a family-friendly movie. Although it is a faith-based film, The violence of the death of Christ makes this film an adult-only film. I know the rule is not to write a review for a film you have not seen, I am going to break that rule.
I can’t watch violent movies. And I choose to send my husband to watch this film in my place. He watched it in the movie theater and was shocked at the response of the audience. The audience was very still, no one moved throughout the movie.
Watching the brutal murder of the King of Kings was only worsened by the knowledge that our sins caused the pain. The movie spends a long time focusing on the crucifixion of Jesus.
While I did not watch the film, I did see the change in my husband. Although he has been a Christian since he was ten years old, this was a moment when a new fire was lit. This is the audience I recommend, the Christian who has forgotten the true meaning of the Easter holiday.
My husband was especially moved by the garden of Gethsemane scene. Knowing that Jesus prayed for us just before his death, and knowing he knew the pain he would soon face is a reminder of how great the love of Christ truly is.
The Robe (1953)
I love to watch classical movies; they are the greatest films. This movie made in 1953, made 36 million dollars at the box office. The plot line is similar to the film Risen. The story of a Roman Centurion named Marcellus in charge of Jesus’ Death and guarding the tomb where his body was laid.
Marcellus wins the robe of Jesus when a Roman soldier gambles for Jesus’ robe on Calvary during the crucifixion of Jesus. His nightmares after the crucifixion of Jesus lead Marcellus to wonder if the robe he won that day was cursed.
When Marcellus becomes a follower of Christ, he finds himself on trial with the only way to escape death is to deny Jesus is the son of God.
I love this movie for a few reasons. One, because the film has the classic movie charm that you can only find in a pre-1960 film. The second reason I love this good movie is the storyline. Not only do we see the story of Christ, but we also see the story of the birth of the church.
This is a great way to introduce classic film fans to the Bible story of Jesus’ death and resurrection. The acting in this film is amazing and the powerful performances capture the time period of Jesus’ life.
My husband and I love to have movie dates, and classic films are one of our favorite options. While we would usually pick a Christian movie about love, this classic movie is a good choice for a date night, especially at easter time.
The Lion of Judah cartoon (2012)
It can be hard to find a family-friendly film when you are looking through Christian Easter Movies. Since the story of Easter is a violent one. But the life of Jesus Christ, including his death and resurrection, is good news. Jesus of Nazareth lived a life of sacrifice and then died as a sacrifice for our sins. The resurrection of Christ makes a way for us to have our sins forgiven.
This cartoon tells the story of Easter from the point of view of the animals that watched the Easter story unfold. This is a great movie for very young children. As I said earlier our family hosts a movie night once a week, and sometimes we have a kid’s movie happening in a separate room.
This movie is great for Easter weekend and any time of the year. This will be the favorite movie of the young children in your life.
The story keepers the Easter (1997)
I love the Story Keepers series for children. The animation has recently been upgraded. This series tells the story of the early church, as they escape the tyrannical government. The Early Church men and women pass on the stories of both the Old Testament and the life of Christ to the children living with them.
This series is a visual Bible for your children to learn the Bible stories we all want them to know. In this episode, they tell the story of Christ’s death and resurrection. All of these episodes are fantastic, but this episode is great for Easter time.
If you have a child or grandchild, and you are looking for a gift for this Easter, I recommend not only this movie but the whole series. I highly recommend this series. If you are looking for a fun way to give an Easter gift, I recommend Easter eggs hunts.
Inside one of the plastic egg hunts should be a piece of paper that says Gift, they can bring that one to you to receive their special gift. You can then tell them the story of the greatest gift ever given to us, Jesus Christ.
Show your children the Easter bunny is not the hero of this time of year, Jesus, and the empty tomb is why we celebrate this season.
Paul, Apostle of Christ (2018)
Before the death of Jesus Christ, He said that He would return. The church is waiting each day hoping this is the day of his return. While they wait for his second appearance, they preach the good news of the Gospel.
They are hunted and killed. One man leads the charge against the Church. Saul. But when Saul meets the resurrected Jesus, his life is changed.
This is the movie I have picked to show my family this Easter. Because I have older teens, they have high expectations for film quality. This movie is well-crafted, and the family member of a friend who doesn’t normally enjoy the Christian film genre will still enjoy this film.
Paul is not the only biblical character portrayed in this film. Priscilla and Aquila also are shown in this film, and their story is very powerful. Luke’s story is also well portrayed in this film.
Warning: This film has extremely violent scenes and is not appropriate for children or sensitive viewers. The scene with children walking into the coliseum and waiting for their death is difficult to see. However, it is important to remember this part of Church history.
While this might not seem like an Easter movie, the birth of the church is an important part of the Easter story we sometimes forget. I recommend spending a week praying for your family before viewing this film. Pray for the Holy Spirit to impact your family.
The greatest story ever told (1965 and 2009)
In the 1960s a man named George Stevens took a trip to The Holy Land and was so moved he decided to turn the story of Jesus into a feature film. This film is now listed among the best Easter movies of all time. George used the whole gospel collection of Mathew, Mark, Luke, and John.
This film was then updated in 2009. George’s casting was controversial at the time. Joseph Schildkarat played Nicodemus, and Charlton Heston played John the Baptist. The cast was a great choice. The powerful performances of each cast member make the greatest story ever told worthy of a watch.
I personally enjoyed the 1965 version, however, if you don’t like the classic genre then you can try the 2009 version.
This story starts with the call of Herod to kill all the boys under the age of two. Continues with the temptation of Christ, the miracle maker traveling through Israel healing the sick and preaching the good news, And then the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Like The Robe, this film has classical film value. Although Christian films are now very popular, in the 1960s the idea of seeing the story of Christ at the box office was controversial at the time. I love this movie because it is a reminder of the people who created the Christian film genre.