Theater by Dean Gotcher

Theater.

by
Dean Gotcher

To act is to be hypocritical, i.e., to be someone else. In acting, your confidence is in pretending to be someone else, receiving praise by convincing your audience that you are who you are not, someone else. The Lord has called us not to act but to be "perfect, thoroughly furnished" (artios) in him (2 Timothy 3:15, 16). "Throughly" (Old King James) is not the same as thoroughly. Thoroughly means to be clean or complete on the outside. "Throughly" means to be clean or complete from the inside out. It is a work only the Lord can do, otherwise all you are doing is putting on an act.

Theater is man's praise of man, i.e., an outward appearance, even when it is done "in the name of the Lord." The Kingdom of God is increased by only one means, preaching, i.e., preaching the Word of God, proclaiming it as is, without putting on an act. Theater is all about man putting on an act, receiving the praises of men. God has not called us to put on an act, but instead to be complete in him, inside out, so he alone receives the glory and the praise. Preaching the Word of God brings men to God. Theater, i.e., being a good actor brings man to man. When done in the "church," worshiping the experience ("feeling") of worship itself, worshiping God in appearance (theater, i.e., "seems to be") only instead. The fruit is: if you leave the "worship service," for example, talking about (praising) the worship service and the performers, how wonderful it and they were, you were in theater. If you leave praising God, you were in the real thing.

"for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart." 1 Samuel 16:7

"All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works." 2 Timothy 3:15, 16