New Film asks, “Can we find evidence of God acting in history by looking at the nation of Israel?”
The question I‘ve been asking for the last two decades is, “Can I find evidence of God acting in the events of history, and if so, what does that mean for today?” What compelled me to ask this question is that I grew up in a Christian home where the Bible was taught as a historical record of God’s activity. But as I grew older, I was challenged to lose those beliefs.
I’m a curious person; I wanted to know what happened in the past. It began in high school when I started to read ahead in my history book. I liked archaeology and the Bible. In college, my interest in filmmaking began to take hold. At that time, I had no big questions about the Bible or God; that didn’t happen until I was older. Then, I became an investigative filmmaker.
It was during my first filming trip to Egypt that the seeds of doubt about the Bible entered my mind. That story is detailed in my previous films, which began over 20 years ago with my first film, Patterns of Evidence: The Exodus. It was released in 650 theaters nationally and then went on to Netflix worldwide.
This led to more investigative films such as The Moses Controversy, The Red Sea Miracle Part 1 & 2, and Journey to Mount Sinai Part 1 & 2.
When Israel was attacked on October 7, 2023, the question of Israel’s right to existence was once again in the world’s conscience. Many were asking what is behind these ongoing conflicts. Is it merely a political issue, or is there something more profound, more ancient?
I knew there was more to this conflict that needed to be investigated to understand the historical context. So, in the past year, my team and I began to develop the first in a two-part series, Patterns of Evidence: The Israel Dilemma – Ancient Prophecies.
It looks at the conflict in Israel today through the lens of the Bible, which many believe serves as the Israelis’ claim to the land, based on God’s covenant with Abraham, Moses, and the Israelites.
I began with footage I gathered in 2007 from interviews I filmed of the leaders of Israel, including Benjamin Netanyahu, Shimon Perez, Rabbi David Hartman, archaeologists Gabriel Barkay, and Israel Finkelstein.
To test if God is acting in history, we would have to look at the ancient nation of Israel and a Covenant, a legal agreement made between them and God. At the end of Moses’ life, in the book of Deuteronomy, one of the five books of the Torah, Moses recorded a set of specific prophecies about Israel’s future as a nation. He predicted that:
– The nation of Israel would eventually establish a Kingdom
– But they would break the covenant, and the kingdom Destroyed
– The Israelite people would be Scattered
– They would be Persecuted
– They would one day be Returned to the Promised Land.
I don’t believe these biblical events have ever been made into a film of this depth. My prayer and hope is that it will illuminate whether God is acting in the world’s affairs.
“Patterns of Evidence: The Israel Dilemma – Ancient Prophecies” will be in theaters nationwide on Wednesday, November 13, Thursday, November 14, and Sunday, November 17. To learn more and purchase tickets, visit patternsofevidence.com/israel.
To purchase tickets for groups of 25 or more, visit Group Ticket Purchase.
This film is extremely relevant at this time when many are asking these questions: Why do these conflicts exist? What is the historical perspective to help me understand these current events? Why is this region so significant to the God of the Bible? What are the ancient prophecies given by Moses and the prophets?
If you’re asking any of these questions then you will want to see this movie in your theater! You will see amazing and inspiring archaeological evidence of God acting in history!
