User reviews

There are two reasons why a certain kind of 'orthodox' Christian might not like RT's Forgiving God'. One is that the very notion of 'forgiving God' sounds somewhat heretical. (Some reviews seem to denounced the phrase without reading the book to see what the phrase means! That seems to require some forgiveness too!) It might be said, 'Forgive' means 'to pardon wrongdoing' and God is not guilty of anything. Yes, of course, it is true! RT himself says as much again and again (Read the book!). It is clear (surely!) that RT is using the word somewhat differently to make the (very obvious!) point that God's tough and largely inexplicable ways in this world often cause us a lot of pain. So we have to consider within ourselves what we are going to do about this 'suffering' that God causes (or 'permits', or whatever). We have to get through to the point where we let God do whatever he wants, where we allow him to be totally sovereign, where we break away from resentment, where we let him 'explain himself' in his time (maybe on judgement day) and not right now as we would like. This 'getting through' to the point where we let God be God RT calls 'Forgiving God'. It is of course a metaphor. We do not literally forgive God and RT says again and again that nothing he says should be taken as blaming God. The hyper-orthodox critic tends to jump too quickly (even before they read the book) into criticism. The phrase 'Forgiving God' is provocative and untraditional. The hyper-orthodox - like the Pharisees who did not like healing on the Sabbath - jump in too quickly to criticize. Forgiving God is going to be widely read. I guarantee it! The provocative language will offend some but thousands will identify with it and say immediately, 'I know what he means'.

The other reason why a certain kind of 'orthodox' Christian might not like RT's Forgiving God' is that it deals a lot with subjective feelings. It is therapeutic, one might say. Now this person I have in mind - a type not any particular person - is the exact opposite. I call him a certain kind of 'orthodox' Christian. He is very 'objective'. He points - quite rightly - to the sheer 'objective' facts of God's sovereignty, God's right to do as he wishes, and so on. He does not like anything which gives a hint of tender feelings, of emotional comfort. He is nervous about 'comforting' people. He does not want to be 'therapeutic'. He wants sin to be denounced, Jesus' atonement to be declared, justification to be proclaimed. One would like to add '... and eternal security to be assured' - but actually this certain kind of 'orthodox' Christian tends to add so many conditions to eternal security that it becomes eternal insecurity! He likes old-fashioned traditional language and is critical of anything being said in a new way. A glance at a title will bring down the spirit of denunciation!

The great question is: does the bible stress the objective or the 'comforting'? Clearly it does both. Jesus could talk about his being a ransom for sins (Mark 10:45 and so on). Very objective! But look at the thirty-five miracle-stories of the gospels. It is surely obvious that as well as 'telling the truth the way it is' Jesus could also be incredibly 'comforting' and incredibly unorthodox. Imagine making hundreds of litres of wine for a wedding! Imagine stopping, while on an important journey, to talk to an old lady and give her comfort the way Jesus did What should we think of his touching lepers, his chatting to a scandalously immoral lady with no one else around, his inviting himself to dinner with a notoriously corrupt tax-official, his totally ignoring Peter's confession of his wickedness (Luke 5:8). How can he just say to someone 'Your sins are forgiven', without first denouncing them? How can he heal someone who does not even know who Jesus is (John 9). 'I did not come to call the righteous...' - what would the hyper-orthodox say to that; the language is provocative!

I am so glad of the 'objective' gospel that tells me that being justified by faith I have peace in relation to God - no matter how I feel. I am glad amidst suffering to be reminded that God 'does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, "What have you done?" ' (Daniel 4:35). But I am also glad when Jesus is my great high priest who comes to meet me after every battle in order to say 'Fear not, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great'. Our Lord Jesus Christ can be so therapeutic! I like Jerry Bridges's Trusting God..... It's great! I also like RT's Forgiving God. It does not contain RT's entire theology! It deals with one point: trusting God when life hurts. His name for it - 'Forgiving God' - is provocative. My hope for you is that you have some good solid objective doctrine to hold you when you are in trouble. But you might need something to press the ointment of the gospel into your heart. 'Is there no healing ointment in Gilead?' Preachers have different gifts. Some are accurate exegetes expounding the text with objectivity and care. We need them. I would like to be one of them. But others are more subjective, more therapeutic. RT Kendall has gifts of originality; he comes up with striking phrases. He is also a 'holiness teacher', one who gets to the bottom line and presses the application of Scripture upon us in considerable detail point-by-point. He writes books on the details of holiness: jealousy, ambition, forgiveness, the use of the tongue, gratitude. It's all very subjective! The hyper-orthodox never get down to details of holiness, although they love the general idea of holiness! But we need this material from RT. The bible itself has magnificent objectivity. Yes, indeed! But it also comes down to minute details. It is practical, therapeutic, subjective, applicatory. There is a strand of biblical teaching which is good psychology, good therapeutics! Keep up the good work, RT! We need you.

I watched this at least 5 times already! The work and thoughtfulness that went into this story is AMAZING!! There should be more movies like this!!! In today's times we all need to forgive others and our selves and learn to except the Lord into our lives!! Great job to all involved in this movie and I pray there are more in the making!!! GOD BLESS!

Wow, the opening scene has the hair on the back of my head standing up! Powerful story of a child coming to terms with his past and working to make the future a positive one not just for himself but others in the system!

I was looking for something to watch not into these kind of movies but it was honestly a breath of fresh air. I love that it was Indy film that was shot in some great locations and actors were very good ,having Dean Cain was a plus . Great movie for people that are looking or needing something positive in their lives. Great job with filming it truly looks and feels not like a low budget movie . The special effects were very good because effects are very pricey...the first segment in the movie showed all of that . Like I said they did a great job producing this movie like I said I loved where they filmed it .

Some times when I watch a movie Im more focused on how much popcorn I have left than the movie. In this case I walked out with almost a full bag bc I was so drawn into the story I neglected my munchies. Suffice to say I loved it. I can really identify with Jon but even more so with Jolene. She's the firecracker that keeps after Jon to consider a different look at life. Well done all around.

Awesome movie storyline and character build a really good everybody should watch this. Would like to see more movies like this It's definitely something the entire family can watch.

I read the book this movie was based on. When I saw it was a movie I wondered how each of the characters would be portrayed, how they would look compared to my mental imagery, and an overall feel for the story. Would it feel the same? I think it does pretty closely follow the story and that same emotional feel. Very nicely done.

This is not your run-of-the-mill million dollar blockbuster, but rather a movie that is organic, passionate, and comes straight from the heart. This story was told by people who hold two things close to their heart: their passion to entertain and their love for Jesus. If you want to watch something that uplifts you and/or gives you hope in a sometimes unforgiving world, give this one a chance. You'll be glad you did.

Great heartfelt movie that glorifies God's great power and grace. Touching and sweet, Forgiving God has a storyline that hits home for many. What a fantastic movie to watch with family. We can learn so much about how God reveals things to us through films like this. How to grow in Christ's love and find our true selves through Him. The writers, producers, and actors created a down to earth story line anyone can relate to, that includes messages of forgiveness, grace and love, and how important it is to have a family devoted to God. You watch and wait for all to be revealed with anticipation of full truths.

I took my girlfriend to the premiere. We weren't planning on staying for the second showing but after seeing it we scratched our plans and hung out. We met the cast and producers all of whom were great and friendly people. I then bought a bunch of DVDs to give out for Christmas presents. Yes it was that good! I can't believe how good a job the team behind this did with the budget they had. Kudos!

Loved working on this and seeing the finally product. Would definitely recommend as half of my job has watched it and loved it. That may just be because of me but I prefer to think it's because they actually liked the film.

I seriously enjoyed watching this film. The quality is there which makes all the difference. A lot of Indy films miss the mark on quality but this one got it. The acting was good and an all around good movie with a good message.

Any time I see a locally made or low budget movie advertised I automatically expect it to be on a lower level than a traditional Hollywood production. Not putting those film efforts down but usually it takes a lot of money to make a movie like this one. While it isn't Top Gun or something you expect from Marvel it certainly was a pleasant surprise and I stayed focused until the end credits. No spoilers but I was drawn in and felt like I knew Jon personally after about 10 minutes into the movie. I felt his pain and could identify with much of his struggles. Very powerful spiritual message too! Highly recommend.

The cast did a great job and the movie had some great shots and scenes. Good sound and audio and very creative storyline. Kudos and recommend to families for an inspirational movie!

This is what movies should be about. Everyone has struggles in life and choices for how to handle them. While this story involves an almost worst case scenario the element of salvation, which is available to us all, is there. The title's evocative which may initially cause concern among the Christian community but once you realize the context, God is honored. Hopefully saying that isn't a spoiler for anyone. Very well done; the effort of the actors and crew is obvious. Two thumbs way up!

First- Parents, while there are some serious life situations, there's nothing graphic or anything like that to hide the kids from. Second-Every work of art should be judged based on the artist's intent and as a result I give this series a top rating of ten stars out of ten stars. It's an independent production that knows its audience. Aaron Dunbar gives it a "kitchen sink" approach similar to early indie auteur projects. The story was pretty good, it plays like a family film with morals, of course, but there's a lot of emotions and dramatic performances that keep you enganged. I was very anxious on how it would end. Always great to see Dean Cain in a film as well, a welcomed surprise.

Forgiving God, conceived, written and co-directed by one artist, Aaron Dunbar, along with director Jason Campbell has a personal feel, an artist's work. It's a simple production and at times feels like a documentary because it logs very day to day dialogue and interchanges between the characters, some regular folk in a small rural American town. The brunt of close-up acting is borne on the shoulders of Matthew Utley who plays Jon. Utley infuses a very believable disposition to an understated subtle script which is a real achievement and it seems the entire production is well crafted by Dunbar's vision for the story. The musical selections are perfectly placed and are not overbearing. Nothing about the film is overbearing, the story and its message speaks very well for itself through the very believable process by which Jon is tranformed. The understated natural flow of the film comes into magnificent focus in the end and is very moving.

I'm not good at writing reviews but I can say I really liked this film. It wasn't riddled with bad acting and terrible camera work. The music was very nice and the ending was satisfying. Good job guys. And girls.

I truly enjoyed this movie.

It is refreshing to see indie movies that serve a biblical purpose. This one is very inspirational and shows yet another way God can work in our lives.

I'm a huge Dean Cain fan, but Alexandria Sertlk stole the show. One of the better low-budget indie films I've seen in a long time. I have a very special place in my heart for kids, and seeing the kids in this film really touches my heart.

Indie films don't always have the resources to match Hollywood's big budget films, but one thing for sure is they are written, produced, and performed from the hearts of the artists behind them.

Well-written script with a beautiful message. The actors did a good job and the young leads fit their roles very well. Also enjoyed the original score. It added a lot to the film.

Having previously read the script, I did feel that the director missed some key pieces of the story that could have been further explored, but all in all, it was a good film. Very family-friendly with a faith-based foundation.

I highly recommend "Forgiving God" for people that appreciate courage and personal growth in film. It would make for a perfect family-film night for adults and teens. I hope others enjoyed it as much as I did.

Took my Wife and Mother to see the Premier of this movie, could have watched it again it so good. As someone who grew up in the system, a few details hit home for myself. Without giving anything away, by far my favorite part was with the case worker because she nailed her part. They get vindictive with little concern for the client. She was great in her acting. I've never been great at reveiws but I can honestly say that I enjoyed the whole cast , such talented people . If there were to be a follow up, a sequel, ill be the first in line .

Indie films have come a long way or at least this one has. It simply does not look or feel like a production in its stated budget range. Having said that, the story itself is so intense and each character was portrayed beautifully by the actors. The three main actors were especially talented and believable in their performances. Without giving any of the movie away I'll just comment that you will need tissues.