From upper left, clockwise: Kevin Spacey; Allison Mack of TV's Smallville; Ellen DeGeneres; Prince Andrew with Virginia Guiffre; Jessie Smollett; Harvey Weinstein; Matt Lauer, Doja Cat;
Happy New Year! It is the year of the door, of getting onto God’s timeline for our lives, and getting off of the enemy’s. First of all, if you really want to be prepared to be the Bride of Christ, I strongly recommend you purchase the Season Casting Booklet full of prophetic words given by Dr. Robyn Kassas, Dr. Tony Kassas, Pastor (almost Dr.) Nathan Kassas, and the prophetic team of TORCC-NY. This book is full of necessary prophetic words to give us the direction we need going into this next season, which promises to be full of challenges, but can be exciting as well - when we are aligned with God’s plan. The world has its plan, Satan has his, and God has His (as spoken by Dr. Robyn Kassas in the above-mentioned Season Casting booklet). Without the gift of discernment and taking advantage of the prophetic resources the Lord has provided for us, it would be hard to tell the difference.
Part of what the purpose of this blog is going to be this year is exposing the enemy’s agenda in the Arts, especially in areas we may not have recognized before. The great spiritual issue with our (American) culture is that there is so much that has been woven into our every day lifestyle that we assume is good or at least benign, when it is not from God. It reminds me of what the Apostle Paul said of Athens when he visited - his spirit was provoked when he saw the city was given over to idols (Acts 17:16). I sometimes wonder if he’d have a similar reaction visiting most places in America today.
The world has its plan, Satan has his, and God has His.
One idol I am exposing this week is that of celebrity. I can’t for the life of me find a passage in scripture that endorses our culture of celebrity worship. Call it even celebrity admiration. We give our hearts over so darn easily to complete strangers - people we don’t even know - because they are great singers or actors or speakers, when we know nothing of the true heart of the person. TV and media and movies make us feel like we know them - what a deception! If someone is doing admirable things in the world perhaps there is something we can learn from and imitate, but to put that person on a pedestal may be, for all we know, exalting a sexual predator or even a pedophile.
At the very least, celebrity worship often replaces relationship with others that God meant for us to have. Feel free to replace the word “worship” with obsession, admiration, thinking-about-highly-and-often. Why aren’t we giving that time and brain space and emotional space to Jesus? Why not invest more emotionally in our brethren, our church, our families or our church leaders than in total strangers? There are plenty of scriptures to support those practices.
Why not invest more emotionally in our brethren, our church, our families or our church leaders than in total strangers?
Celebrity culture often leads to seduction through charisma. It’s a false sense of loving and being loved. We fall for personality traits, we fall for charm, we fall for people who exude confidence such as talk show hosts who make powerful points we agree with, or actors who act out a character we relate to, and we think we have some deep connection to the person themself. But anyone can say anything. Actors are skilled at acting. They might be a very nice person off-camera, but seeing them on screen or on stage does not constitute a relationship. It’s a false sense of connection. And it gives the person power of influence in your life. Once that person has power over masses of people, they can say just about anything and it will be believed. They can promote just about any agenda and it will be received. Their voice often replaces that of the Holy Spirit, and manipulates the conscience.
Not to mention the effects celebrity culture has on the celebrities themselves. It is not good for anyone to be worshipped (look at what happened to King Herod - Acts 12:23). But we see the effects this has on the personal lives of celebrities today. How many people across the nation have enjoyed the music of Brittney Spears while she suffered? What about Whitney Houston? Rihanna? Tina Turner? And so many others. What of the stories of children being sexually abused behind closed doors while shooting blockbuster movies (e.g., Corey Feldman’s firsthand accounts of what happened to him and Corey Haim; Bella Thorne’s admissions about being abused as a child off-camera)? How many accounts of sexual abuse, drug overdose, failed marriages and early deaths do we need to hear before acknowledging that this is a setup for destruction? Who thinks this is a great lifestyle?
How many accounts of sexual abuse, drug overdose, failed marriages and early deaths do we need to hear before acknowledging that this is a setup for destruction? Who thinks this is a great lifestyle?
No one is doing themself a favor and no one is doing the celebrity a favor by idolizing them. We can admire their work, glean some things to learn from their skills, but then stop there and recognize that they are broken mortals, most of whom need help themselves - probably much more than we know.
The gravest danger is what the enemy can hide behind celebrity. When someone has the image of a demi-god, when they know how to put on a face in front of their people, they can get away with just about anything behind closed doors- heinous practices that most people could never believe even. Our culture has enabled it. Look at what happened with NXIUM. Would anyone have believed that Alison Mack was trafficking women for one of the most notorious sex cults while working on the TV hit Smallville? But that’s what was happening behind the scenes of a wholesome, family-friendly TV series. Even highly esteemed, seemingly Godly church leaders keep getting exposed as having a secret life. If it can happen to men and women through whom many have learned deep truths about God, it can happen to anyone.
Once we repent of idolizing celebrities, what do we replace it with? Worship Jesus. Love the body of Christ.
The Epstein client list is coming out any day now. There will likely be some shocking names of beloved figures we never thought capable of sex trafficking. The best way we can prepare for this now is by repenting of participating in celebrity culture. Once we repent of idolizing celebrities, what do we replace it with? Worship Jesus. Love the body of Christ. Receive His love through relationships you may have thought were unlikely, but who also love Jesus. I have so many close friends now with vastly different upbringings from myself, vastly different personalities (at first glance), but with whom I am united in a passion for Jesus and a desire to be His Warrior Bride. We delight in building one another up and helping one another reach that ultimate finish line in victory. That is a stronger connection than I will ever have from a charming, charismatic stranger. One bond is eternal, the other will perish. Friends, I exhort us all to take these endearing personalities off of their pedestals sooner rather than later. More and more is getting exposed, and many giants will fall. There’s no reason we should fall with them.
More and more is getting exposed, and many giants will fall. There’s no reason we should fall with them.
The Underground Microphone is a weekly blog and email update for Christian working in or who have a burden for the Arts. These blogs are password protected because they are intended for believers only. The password to access all of the blogposts is BroadwayRebirth. There is also a weekly prayer meeting to pray into what the Lord is saying every Tuesday at 10:00AM EST. If you'd like to join the prayer meeting, please email info@regaarts.com and you will be emailed a zoom link.
REGA Arts is a Christian Theatre Company with the mission of training and raising up Christians to have a career in the theatre industry, and creating new works of theater. It is affiliated with Times of Refreshing Christian Center, NY (TORCC-NY) as its spiritual oversight, under the leadership of Dr. Robyn Kassas, Dr. Tony Kassas, and Pastor Nathan Kassas.
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