God's Not Dead 2 empowers Christians and annoys atheists

Movie Title:      God's Not Dead 2

Grade:   B

Rating:   PG, 2 hours 1 minute

In a Nutshell:   This courtroom drama tackles religious freedom and the 1^st Amendment.  Christians will feel empowered, while “non-believers” will think it’s entirely ridiculous.  

You don’t have to have seen the previous one to appreciate or understand this second.  You can read my movie review of the first God’s Not Dead right here.

Uplifting theme: 

• “I’m not going to be afraid to say the name Jesus.” – Grace Wesley
• Teaching vs. preaching
• Why is it that diversity and tolerance seem to be offered to everyone except Christians?
• “Who do you say that I am?”  Ultimately, we all need to answer that question for ourselves about Jesus Christ.  Denying the existence of Jesus doesn’t make him go away.
• Would your Christianity convict you of being a true disciple of Jesus Christ?

Things I liked:

• Ray Wise has a perfectly evil smile to play the opposing attorney, although it's really over-the-top.
• Duck Dynasty fans will enjoy seeing Sadie Robertson.  They even mention the show by name and take a jab at it when the prosecuting attorney requests a preemptory challenge when a juror admits it’s his favorite TV show.
• It was pointed out that the phrase “separation of church and state” is NOT in the Constitution.  In fact, that verbiage was written by Thomas Jefferson in a letter to a Baptist church, assuring them that they would be able to continue their faith under the Bill of Rights.  Ironically, that phrase means the opposite today.
• It’s nice to see Pat Boone again.
• Mike Huckabee plays himself in the movie.
• The Newsboys sings in this movie, just like in the first one.
• At the end of the movie, audiences are given a call to action…literally.  They’re invited to text the following testimony to everyone they know: “God’s not dead.  He’s surely alive.”  #The HumanRight
• Before the closing credits roll, a long list of real cases that took place in the fight for religious freedom are shown on the screen.  While this particular story in the movie is fictional, these kinds of cases have been going on for years.  I noticed that many of the cases on the screen showed they had received the help from the Alliance Defending Freedom.

Things I didn’t like:

• I got a kick out of Melissa Joan Hart in Sabrina, The Teenage Witch: The Complete Series , but she lacks believable depth in this drama.  Her character’s name is Grace.  Pretty clichéd, right?
• There are a lot of noticeable false eye-lashes.
• Another reminder that people are so easily offended nowadays. 

Interesting lines:

• “I would rather stand with God and be judged by the world than stand with the world and be judged by God.” – Grace
• “What makes non-violence so radical is its unwavering commitment to a non-violent approach.” - Grace
• “We’re going to prove once and for all that God is dead.” – Pete Kane (Ray Wise)
• “So, what do we do?” – Grace

“We win.” – Tom Endler (Jesse Metcalfe)

• “If we stand by and do nothing, the pressure we feel today is the persecution we’ll feel tomorrow.” – Rev. Dave
• “A nail that sticks up gets hammered down.” – government guy  
• “I’m not afraid of telling the truth.  I’m only afraid of not being able to tell it” – Brooke
• “The teacher is always quiet during the test.” – Pat Boone

Real books mentioned in the movie:

• Cold-Case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Investigates the Claims of the Gospels
• Man, Myth, Messiah: Answering History's Greatest Question

Tips for parents:   

• Most children will be bored and not able to sit through the long court scenes.
• No profanity.

      

Other books Christians might like: