Jerry Jenkins Reflects on His Literary Legacy and His Son’s Success

Best-selling author Jerry Jenkins recently shared insights about his son, Dallas, whose book I Was Chosen has become a worldwide success. This success is reminiscent of Jenkins’s own experiences from three decades ago. Back in 1995, he teamed up with the late Tim LaHaye to release Left Behind, which skyrocketed to number one on the bestseller lists, influencing millions.

“It’s surprising that lightning strikes the same family twice in a generation,” Jerry remarked in an interview.

Fans of I Was Chosen now recognize Elder Jenkins as the author behind this latest novel, The Chosen: Not My Will, which is tied to the show’s fifth season. However, those familiar with previous generations of Christian literature still associate him with the Left Behind series.

“We’ve sold about 64 million copies, and it still moves around 10,000 units monthly,” he mentioned. “I was fortunate to advise Dallas during this success. I told him to relish it but not to stress over it. Of course, he understands that.”

Reflecting on his own early success, Jenkins revealed how he felt a sense of humility when the initial three books sold over a million copies.

“The day after, the Vice President of Editorial at Tyndale called and asked if I’d seen the Amazon rankings for Book Four, which wasn’t set to release for another two weeks. To my surprise, it was already ranked number one,” he recalled. “That moment hit me hard. I realized I’d never claim credit again. This was clearly God’s doing; my role was simply to keep writing without pretense.”

Dallas Jenkins often recounts how his ideas for I Was Chosen emerged from setbacks, such as when his previous project, The Resurrection of Gavin Stone, flopped at the box office.

“He learned a lot from that failure,” Jerry noted. “It humbled him and reminded him to stay grounded, no matter the circumstances.”

He expressed gratitude for the family’s dual success, although he’s unsure why it happened this way. “It truly feels like a blessing,” he added.

“Authenticity is what I celebrate about I Was Chosen. It feels genuine,” he said.

The novel expands on the universe of I Was Chosen.

“Dallas and his team wanted more depth—characters, dialogue, and monologues. I had a blast creating these elements. I wanted readers to recognize them from the screen accurately,” he explained.

While remaining true to biblical text, Jenkins mentioned that there is a creative aspect involved.

“Whenever we touch on something from the Bible, that’s how it appears. We invoke literary license to explore, like, ‘What if this event were to unfold?’”

Jenkins aims for what he calls “plausible credibility.”

“We take Scripture and ask, ‘Is it believable that this could result in that event?’ People seem to appreciate it—many have commented that the disciples feel like real individuals.”