I had the wonderful privilege of hearing Jim Caviezel speak last night. No, he was not greeted with chants of “Hosanna!” and the waving of palm branches while riding in on a donkey. Yet, I must say that that would have been funny.

He walked on stage in a black leather jacket and black jeans sporting a new hairdo. He was given a warm welcome and no one pressed the stage to be healed. Jim began by sharing how he came to play Jesus in the 2004 film, The Passion of the Christ.

He spoke on the making of the movie and the many trials he went through while playing the part of the Suffering Messiah. His words were honest and inspiring as scenes from the film played on the big screens behind him. The entire audience was moved as Jim shifted everyone’s focus off of himself and onto Jesus of Nazareth.

Jim is a very serious and sincere man. If you have watched any of his films, especially behind the scenes, you will know this to be true. He is very serious about his work as an actor—not for acting sake—but in order to portray good versus evil and judgment versus redemption. I was thrilled to be able to hear his heart as he spoke of his own faith in Christ and how that faith is to be lived out in all the dark places in our world.

I believe what stuck out to me the most about what he shared was what I would call a prophetic message to the church. Jim mentioned the increasingly hostile world that we live in and how persecution and suffering was coming to the church. He referred to this as God’s way. If I remember correctly, he said, in reference to suffering, “This too is from God.”

He reminded the audience that all of the saints who have gone on before us were all acquainted with this one thing: suffering. He went on to encourage the audience to be the Lord wherever they are at and to not be concerned about what others think. He said:

“We may never win an Oscar or be known by men, but we are known by God and that’s all that matters.”

I met Jim after the talk to have him sign something. Relax, it was the only way to speak to him. 🙂  Since I’m aware that he is serious and that he seemed to be tense from all the attention, I thought I would break the mood with some humor.

I shook his hand and said, “Jim, I just want to know one thing… how hard was it not to laugh in your interview with Ron Burgundy?”  (If you don’t know what I am talking about, you can watch the interview on You Tube.)  He laughed and replied, “You know… you didn’t see all of the outtakes. It wasn’t easy.”

I laughed with him and shook his hand one last time.  As I shook his hand to leave, I said, “Keep being a light in a dark world.” His serious look returned with an expression that conveyed appreciation and at the same time a hopeful brother in an evil place; a brother who understands what it means to be in the world, but not of it.

Finally, I just want to say that I was moved by the Spirit of Christ in the hearing of Jim’s words. I was moved enough to stay up until three in the AM to tell you about it. I truly believe the Lord spoke through Jim Caviezel in a powerful way. I just hope that the Christians in the room and those reading this blog are receiving the “heads up” on what God is getting his people ready to endure.

Soon we will have a new context in which to live out our Christianity. Soon and very soon, Christians living in the empire will experience the purification of God’s people on earth; to bear the marks of Jesus on our bodies and identify with him through suffering. May those of us who have long enjoyed the security of the world be ready for what is to come.