I loved the movie Jesus Revolution! I laughed, I cried, I wanted to jump up and down and cheer, and I’ve pondered. It tells the story of Chuck Smith, Lonnie Frisbee, and Greg Laurie, and a remarkable movement of the Holy Spirit among a lost generation of young people – hippies.
I remember the hippies well. I remember them hitchhiking along the pre I-75 highway from our home town in Baxley, GA through Macon, Atlanta, and Chattanooga as we traveled to visit family. At the beginning of the movie, Chuck Smith (Kelsey Grammer) remarked, “They need a bath!” I laughed out loud because it reminded me of my dad’s remarks: “They need a bath and a haircut.” Also, I had an uncle, and some older cousins, who attended the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and identified squarely with the hippie culture.
I loved the music of the movie, music I listened to often as a teenage Christian – Love Song, Pat Terry Group, Second Chapter of Acts, and my favorite, Andrae’ Crouch and the Disciples. I still have some of those old LPs.
I loved the story of a pastor willing to take a risk by opening the door of his church to a group of lost, spaced-out, drop-outs. I loved the story of radical conversions to Christ, of thousands of young men and women being baptized in the ocean.
About half way through the movie, we are introduced to conflict between the principle characters of the movement – Chuck Smith and Lonnie Frisbee. Both were Pentecostal/Charismatic believers. But Smith and Frisbee clashed over the dramatic manifestations. Also, Frisbee seems to be troubled by an over-inflated ego. This conflict demonstrates how difficult it is to navigate a movement of the Spirit. Too often, gifted and anointed humans are lifted into pride and the result is a toxic brew.
Throughout the movie I found myself hungering for a fresh move of the Spirit that restores joy to the people of God, a movement that provokes church leaders to move beyond the anger and fear of a culture gone mad and risk leading in grace. Also, with all my heart, I hope for a serious reckoning among Pentecostals about the need for discernment of the spiritual gifts, what it really means to be anointed, and the dangers of gifted, but toxic, leadership.
This movie was joyful, uplifting, and thought provoking. I loved it!
