DISCLAIMER! This movie might be more violent than you remember! Before watching any movie, make sure it’s right for you and your family. Common Sense Media is an amazing tool to help inform if this film is one you’ll watch with your family.
FACT CHECK! This movie has a lot to say about events and objects that are found in the Bible. The Ark of the Covenant is basically described as an ancient tank used by God’s armies to win military battles. There are also lots of other claims made by the movie concerning the Christian faith. What do you do when someone makes a claim about your faith? What are some common statements people make about Christianity? Where do you turn if the statement doesn’t feel accurate, but you don’t know the right answer?
“Lightning. Fire. The power of God or Something.” What is the most special object you own? Why is it so special? Indiana Jones is obsessed with recovering rare artifacts. These are artifacts that stand alone. They are holy because they are one of a kind. The most holy object in this movie is the ark of the covenant. It’s an object that shows up all throughout the old testament. But what exactly made the ark holy? Read Numbers 7:89 and Deuteronomy 31:24-26 to get an understanding of how the Ark was used. It was never the object of the ark that had any power on its own. The ark was a symbol, a reminder of the God’s relationship to Israel. The power of God isn’t bound by any object. The ark pointed to God and acted as a meeting place between God and his people.
Wait…Why Do We Root for INDIANA? The body count that Indiana racks up is enormous! Why do we still root for him? Because Nazis are the closest representation we have of pure evil. We’re OK with Indiana punching a Nazi into the propeller of an airplane because we know that everything a Nazi does is evil! We love seeing justice served, even if it is brutal, because we know that our broken world needs fixing. Psalm 37:1-9 gives us some direction on how to live in a world full of evil.
What happens to ultimate evil? At the end of the movie the Nazis are utterly disintegrated. The power of the ark (which we now understand to be the power of God) completely wipes out an entire fleet of Nazis. Evil has no chance when it comes face to face with God. Evil is all bark and no bite. In the end, Christ is victorious. We share in that victory. Read and discuss 1 Corinthians 15:50-58. What kind of evil do you experience in your daily life? How does that scripture change your perception of that evil?
