Review of K-Love Movie "Virgin Birth"

The K-Love movie Virgin Birth debuted on Tuesday, November 25, 2025 and was offered free to all. Let's examine how it presented the Scriptural account of Mary's call to bear our Savior.

Scripture presents Mary as a woman of great faith

In Luke 1:26-38, Mary is troubled when the angel Gabriel first appears. When he tells her she'll bear the Savior, she asks how this can happen when she's a virgin. he explains, and Mary says, “I am the Lord’s servant. May your word to me be fulfilled” (Luke 1:38).

If we compare Mary's response with Moses' 5 Excuses at the burning bush, Mary's immediate acceptance points to her great faith.

 

Scripture also tells us that Zechariah lost his voice because he didn't believe the angel Gabriel's announcement that he and Elizabeth would have a child in their old age. Mary, in contrast, believed and accepted her call, which required even greater faith to believe.

 

Nothing in Scripture hints that Mary was troubled or afraid after the angels' visit. 

Virgin Birth presents Mary as fearful, anxious, and troubled

The movie begins with Mary walking alone in rain and darkness, stumbling, falling, crying, waking up on the ground next to a hissing snake symbolizing Satan. She constantly calls out to God in sad or panicked tones. 

Then it shows a flashback with Mary in bed in her house when the angel Gabriel comes in an eerie, blurry, pulsating cloud-like vision to tell her about her mission to carry Jesus. 

The movie's Gabriel commends Mary for her faith saying, “Of all the women in the world, he chose you. Because of your great faith.” Mary replies, “I belong to you. Let it be as you have spoken.”
 

While not the actual quotes from Scripture, this conversation is faithful to the biblical account. But the movie doesn't show Mary as a woman of “great faith.”

After this, the movie switches back to Mary's journey and shows Elizabeth finding her on the ground with parched lips.

When I researched this, I found that Elizabeth lived 80-100 miles from Mary. During that time, no one traveled alone because it wasn’t safe. Even family groups traveled with larger groups in caravans. But the movie depicts Mary who was probably still in her teens (source), traveling alone on foot without enough food and water, having only left a note to her parents before leaving. This is pure fiction and the only purpose I can see is to create scary, troubling situations for Mary.

Throughout the movie, Mary is presented as fearful and insecure, haunted by flashbacks of a woman being stoned. 

 

Especially disturbing is the dream scene (minute 26:34) where Mary awakes to a baby's cry and a voice calling her and drawing her to the edge of a cliff where a duplicate Mary tells her there's no shame of letting go because “it is an impossible task, and it will crush you. God has asked too much of you to think you could actually carry his son.” This alternate Mary repeatedly encourages Mary to jump off the cliff. Then Mary wakes up. 

 

The focus of the show is her dread and anxiety with only a few short moments of joy and understanding mixed in.

Scripture presents Joseph as honorable and gracious

In Scripture, Joseph is presented as a kind and honorable man. I'm sure that's why God chose him to be Mary's husband. Matthew 1:18-25 describes Joseph this way: “Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.” 

Joseph had decided to divorce her in a way that would not bring her shame.

 

When an angel came to Joseph in a dream, clearly explaining that Mary was bearing the Messiah, Joseph immediately took Mary as his wife. He didn't lose his voice for doubting like Zechariah.

Virgin Birth presents Joseph as legalistic and selfish

In Virgin Birth, (minute 36) the angel comes to Joseph in a dream, rebukes him for already knowing that Mary is pregnant by the Holy Spirit and accuses him of using the law to deny it: “Joseph, you already know the truth yet you hide behind the law to justify your lack of faith.” 

 

So Joseph knows the truth -- believes Mary is pregnant by the Holy Spirit but will divorce her anyway. Then the angel in the Virgin Birth contradicts his previous statement by asking two questions: 

“What if you are wrong? What if the child that she carries was placed by the Holy Spirit?” 

 

So Joseph knows the truth that Mary is carrying the Savior, but what if he's wrong and Mary is actually carrying the Savior?? This makes no sense and note also that the angel never clearly states the truth. He simply asks questions.

 

Virgin Birth presents Joseph as saving Mary from stoning at the last second.

Scripture presents Joseph as considering how to quietly divorce Mary but before he could do that the angel appeared, and Joseph immediately responded: “When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.” Matthew 1:24 

 

However, Virgin Birth shows pregnant Mary thrown in the dirt surrounded by people shouting at her and picking up stones to kill her. Joseph intercedes at literally the very last second and says, “Lay down your stones. I was wrong.” This means he'd publicly disgraced Mary and now changed his mind. Did the angel visit him the night before her stoning or did he publicly disgrace her after the angel visited? Either scenario contradicts Scripture. 

This incredibly significant scene in the movie contradicts God's Word and discredits Joseph. 

We know that Mary may have experienced gossip and ridicule from people who thought she and Joseph consummated their marriage before the official ceremony. But this stoning is unsupported in Scripture and also in history: While Mosaic law allowed the stoning of people who committed adultery, the Jews were still under Roman jurisdiction, and the Roman government maintained the legal right to approve capital punishment. 

This is one reason the men in John 8:1-11 tried to trick Jesus by bringing him a woman caught in adultery. They thought he would have to deny Mosaic law if he stopped the stoning or disobey Roman law if he approved it. But their trick backfired. 

Virgin Birth presents Elizabeth as the heroine 

Scripture tells us that God chose the priest Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth to be parents of John the Baptist and “both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly.” But Elizabeth is not shown as possessing greater faith than Mary.

Virgin Birth presents Elizabeth as the most faithful believer in the story. She repeatedly counsels a fearful and insecure Mary, encouraging her to accept her call to bear the Savior. It's as if she is the main reason Mary accepts God's call.

 

But the movie contradicts that image in one scene where Elizabeth jokes about enjoying the fact that her husband Zacharias couldn’t speak for 9 months (minute 10:40). That doesn't reflect a godly character or a good marriage.

In summary:

 

God's Word is not like any other book. It's 100% true, accurate, holy, perfect, and alive. It's not appropriate to add significant elements to the story that contradict Scripture. Virgin Birth sensationalizes Mary's Story instead of sharing it honestly. What purpose is there presenting so much darkness when only light is presented in Scripture?

Mary was human and imperfect, and perhaps Virgin Birth could have included a short scene with her acknowledging some fears but presenting that as the dominating aspect of her pregnancy cannot be supported in Scripture.

 

And no good purpose was served by presenting Joseph as “hiding behind the law” or publicly disgracing Mary before trusting God. 

I can't recommend Virgin Birth even though most of the feedback I see online praises the movie. 

 

There is a dangerous trend in Christianity to defend error if it makes the gospel look attractive or exciting to culture, as if presenting a slightly flawed gospel is okay if it makes Jesus popular. 

We must not let cultural views of God enter the church. That's the main reason I've written my book Lies in Disguise. It doesn't discuss these books and movies specifically, but it discusses the way Satan is successfully weakening the faith of many (perhaps the majority) of professing Christians by gradually undermining their respect for Scripture.  See Lies in Disguise for more information about the book. Currently available from the publisher with a discount: Lies in Disguise. Also available on Amazon: Lies in Disguise.

“The word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).

If you correct popular books and movies, be prepared for ridicule and disrespect. But keep warning people of these lies-in-disguise which are preparing the church for even greater lies. 

Choose this day what you will defend... movies, books, and mini-series or the perfect, unchanging Word of God.

✞✞✞

If you are unaware of the serious flaws in The Chosen and the beliefs of the creator, see Are You Willing to Address Scriptural Contradictions in The Chosen? and the video Dallas Jenkin's Incredible Quotes about The Chosen. If you are unaware of the serious flaws in Jesus Calling and in the beliefs of the author, see Are Sarah Young's Claims Biblical? or Please Examine the Claim of the Jesus Calling Author. If you are unaware of the serious flaws in The Shack, see Examining The Shack.