The Chosen is a TV series directed by Dallas Jenkins, based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ as recorded in the gospels. It beautifully portrays the lives of the disciples before and after they encountered Jesus.
As we know from Scripture, those who were chosen to be his disciples were not the most qualified, like the Jewish religious leaders who knew the Torah in and out and who followed the law to a T. But, they were fishermen, tax collectors, zealots, women—not the kind of people one would expect the Messiah to choose as his followers. Jesus looked beyond their occupation and gender to their hearts, that was willing to follow and obey him. As The Chosen series unfolds from one season to the next, we see that though the disciples struggle to understand Jesus' words and ways, they simply trust, follow, and obey him.
One of the characters that really stands out for me is Little James (played by Jordan Ross). Although the personal details and background of Little James are not found in Scripture, the series creators have added creative and beautiful details to this character.
In the series, Little James is portrayed as having a beautiful voice and auditioning for the Jerusalem Temple choir. Though he is a talented singer, he is denied a position in the choir because of his physical deformity. One night, as he encounters Jesus in the woods, he decides to follow Him.
One of the most significant scenes with Little James is in Season 3, Episode 2. It is a conversation between him and Jesus (played by Jonathan Roumie) right after Jesus had assigned his disciples on a two by two mission. The disciples are granted the authority to heal the sick and lame and to cast out demons. Distressed and emotional, Little James asks Jesus how he could have the ability to heal the sick and lame when he himself remains unhealed. He also wonders why Jesus has not healed him while He is healing so many others.
Jesus’ answer is profound. He says “because I trust you.” He says while there are “dozens and hundreds and thousands” of people who can share great stories of miraculous healing, thereby revealing the glory of God, Little James is entrusted with the difficult task of proclaiming and praising God despite not being healed.
Jesus trusts Little James to endure and serve Him gladly in his present limitation which would be an even more remarkable witness, showing that God's power is not always revealed through healing, but through faithful endurance. Jesus further assures him that though he carries his condition every day, he will discover a deeper strength and his life would go on to inspire countless generations to believe that God's grace is sufficient even when miracles do not come as expected.
Although Little James's physical ailment was creatively introduced by the series' writers, it serves as a powerful metaphor for the human condition. It exposes the vulnerabilities, limitations, and inner struggles that most of us carry. Some of us may be living with some affliction or another. It may be either physical or emotional, or perhaps we feel less qualified and gifted than others. We feel inadequate to testify about the good news of Jesus Christ when we ourselves are struggling with our own weaknesses.
Like Little James, we too may question why God does not heal us from our afflictions or make us smarter like others before we can preach about His goodness and faithfulness. In the same scene, Jesus strongly rebukes Little James when he sincerely shares that he finds it difficult to accept that he is “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14) and that he feels like a burden to the group because he is slower than the others. This scene encourages us to believe that Jesus entrusts us with responsibilities regardless of our circumstances. It reminds us that true strength is found in our weaknesses, for as 2 Corinthians 12:9 declares, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
The conversation in the scene reiterates that not every limitation is necessarily a weakness. At the beginning of the scene, Little James asks Jesus for forgiveness for not being confident in speaking. Jesus replies, “Slow to speak, it's a very good quality.”
Confidence in speaking has always been seen as a strength. This line in the show makes us pause and reflect, suggesting that being quiet, slow to respond, or lacking confidence in speaking can also be a strength. It helps one think deeply before speaking. Having depth in one’s speech also helps prevent the risk of hurting others and ourselves.
Fluency in speaking is attractive, but dysfluency can also have advantages, such as improving listener attention and verbal planning. Slowness can also be a strength. It can help those who are always in a rush to slow down, especially in this fast-paced world. Slowness in reading and writing can help one to ponder and reflect more on the words and thoughts. In short, there is strength in our weaknesses when they are reframed through the right perspective.
When it comes to our calling, 1 Corinthians 1:26-27 can help shape our perspective as it says, “For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong.”
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, did not come into this world by being born into a royal family, nor did He come as a mighty warrior. Instead, He was born of a virgin, and He was born in a manger. He was also from Nazareth, a place that was looked down upon. In fact, in John 1:46, Nathanael said to Philip, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Yet, God chose such despised and lowly people and places for the birth of His son, Jesus Christ, our Master and Saviour (Philippians 2:5-11). Truly, God chooses what is perceived as weak to reveal His glory.
The scene in The Chosen ends with Little James trusting in Jesus and obeying Him in faith, even when he finds it difficult to understand. Likewise, even when we do not fully understand what God is allowing in our lives, we can trust, obey, and serve him because of who He is.
Photo by Iva Rajović on Unsplash
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