Jesus: the actor who played him, and the actor who directed him

I watched the Passion of the Christ for the 2nd time during the Passion Week. I never thought I'd watch it a 2nd time, but I'm certainly glad I did. 

I wonder now, about 7 years removed from the completion of it, if old Gibby considers it his magnum opus or if he has any regrets in making it? Devoutly defending it with his words, Gibson has not done quite as good a job defending it with his lifestyle. Threatening phone calls, divorce, sexual activity outside marriage, alleged abuse....

How could this be? Here's one possibility (another possibility is he might not be a true believer-but that's too easy)

A Bull's-Eye

No doubt Mel had a bulls-eye on his back. Promoting Jesus will get you a bulls-eye on your back. Promoting Jesus and abstinence before marriage on the basketball court, like Dwight Howard claimed such a desire to do, landed him with a kid out of wedlock and leading the league in technical fouls.

I for one am happy I'm not in the NBA. I would hate for cameras to focus on me after I made a bad shot, or complained to the ref's. I would probably lead the league in technical fouls; it takes everything in me not to argue with church softball refs! And I don't know what its like to have cheerleaders throwing themselves at me while I'm a single guy in my early 20's. I don't excuse Howard's or Gibson's behavior in the least. Both have hurt their witness because they chose to do so.

But I don't know the same level of the public bull's eye-ness as those guys know. With fame comes the bulls-eye.

In this article, Jim Caviezel explains how Gibson warned him that "You'll never work in this town again."

I think Gibson understood that there would be a bulls-eye, but he obviously didn't understand the spiritual depth of such a bulls-eye. He understood the professional attack, but he didn't realize how prone he was to real spiritual attack. The man who stood up for Jesus probably didn't consider himself capable of such things (I imagine), just like Peter thought Jesus was loony when He predicted his denial. 

"It could never happen to me." Famous last words, particularly for our witness.

Little did Mel know Satan cares far more about destroying your character than your destroying your career. If he can get two birds with one stone, then great. But when your witness and credibility is destroyed, as you could clearly say is the case with Mel, Satan can say, "It's been a good year."

But there is hope. In this article, Caviezel admits his career hasn't recovered, but his witness, as far as I can remember from lack of "bad press," wasn't destroyed. He can still speak at a Mega-Baptist church and have some credibility.

How? For us who aren't as famous, there is still a bulls-eye on our marriages, our families, our workplaces, where we live and play. But if you recognize that you could and would walk down Mel's path if you pridefully forget you need Jesus every hour, then I think you will walk with the real Jesus. Alongside the actor who played Jesus in the Passion of the Christ.