Happy Halloween?

Should we celebrate Halloween? I am not going to say all of us absolutely shouldn't, but I hope to give some good reasons for why we shouldn't, depending on the context of your celebration. The overarching question I would seek to ask in our celebration could be, "Am I loving death, or am I loving Christ"? Well, that seems like a strange question, but it's a question we should examine with.  We want to love God at all times... of course.  However, there are many things around this national holiday particular that honor death; whether light heartedly or very prominently, I think it begs our sincere attention, and correction if we walk after them.  Then, considering that walk, how we can walk in wisdom.

Ephesians 5:15-17

Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 

 

As we walk into this holiday season (not this holiday only), let's ask ourselves: Why do we do what we do? Why do we celebrate any holiday at all? It should not be just because our neighbor does it, and the calendar says so. We should give thought to our actions. We were purchased with a great price, and we believe a Gospel that makes us very different than those who do not.  Before we give celebration and attention to a tradition, we should consider its worth; especially tradition we know has no claim of origin in God's Word. We should walk as wise, considering our steps in these days that are evil, and know what the will of God is.

Colossians 4:5-6
Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

All Christians should agree that basing our behaviors and celebrations based on cultural inheritance is foolish, yet many of us do it anyways. We inherited many of the things we celebrate in our culture from long long ago, and the fact our neighbor does it seems to be strong persuasion. And, we can often fall prey to the false mindset that says, "How else will I be a witness unless I do what they do?" When, in fact, it is our coming away from deadly practices that ought to confuse the world by our seperated behavior (1 Peter 4:3-4).

For the purpose of this post, I am not going to go into the history of Halloween.  I know some people that adamently cast off Halloween look to the history of it as the reason.  However, I don't know that we need to go there to make a case one way or the other.  I don't think the history of then is important as the reality of now, as far as what we are doing today and with what intent.  Nobody has to know the history of Halloween in order to celebrate it, and most don't.  Rather than basing our celebration of a holiday on history, base it on your actions and your heart right now.  If it's wicked and/or contrary to God, then get rid of it.  Simply, "Is it honoring to the WAY the TRUTH and the LIFE that God gives?"  If we search the history of Halloween we will no doubt find various things about pagan roots. Even so, let's set it asside and go only on this alone:  To know Jesus Christ and Him cruicified.  Is our walk honoring to Him?--walking carefully regarding this life, as we ought to be doing.

Proverbs 8:32-36
³² “Now then, my children, listen to me;
blessed are those who keep my ways.
³³ Listen to my instruction and be wise;
do not disregard it.
³⁴ Blessed are those who listen to me,
watching daily at my doors,
waiting at my doorway.
³⁵ For those who find me find life
and receive favor from the Lord.

... Who is this, "wisdom"?

¹² “I, wisdom, dwell together with prudence;
I possess knowledge and discretion.
¹³ To fear the Lord is to hate evil;
I hate pride and arrogance,
evil behavior and perverse speech -Proverbs 8:12-13

Notice how fearing God and hating evil go hand-in-hand.  Are you enouraging other people to fear something else, this holiday season?  Something other than God?  Something more spooky, mysterious, and more sinister, perhaps?  Is that what we plan to do this holiday season?  Will we hate evil, or love it, and take joy in it?  We know that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom (Psalm 111:10; Proverbs 9:10; Proverbs 1:7), and of course it is ultimately God who is the maker of all things wise, can give wisdom, and from Whom gives us perfect wisdom from above (James 1:15; James 3:17). We can safely say that God, being the beginning of wisdom, giving perfect wisdom, and being the Maker of all things including wisdom, is speaking to us here.

Proverbs 8 goes on to say this, as it ends in verse 36:

But those who fail to find me harm themselves;
all who hate me love death.”

Why this Proverb? Well, like many proverbs its addressing wisdom, and we need wisdom from God to understand how we should walk. It also addresses some matters of fear (whom or what) and death.  It seems to be fitting with the common practices on Halloween.  By His Holy Spirit, and through His Word, He will reveal to us right paths. We are told we should seek it, and we can know it. We can in fact know what the will of God is, and we can do what pleases Him. Also, though, this Proverb has an interesting text that says "All who hate ME (Wisdom, and God Himself who gives it to those who seek), LOVE DEATH."

We know that death is the result of SIN.  Do we give death glory, or God glory?

Death and sin are connected, throughout the Bible.  Jesus died, but we do not love that death accept that we know it actually gives LIFE. If Jesus died, and never rose again, we too would indeed be lovers of death. We love the murder of a just man, who went to the grave into the mystery of death and the afterlife unknown. However, that is not what we celebrate, because it didn't end there. What we celebrate is LIFE that is eternal!

So, should we or should we not celebrate Halloween?  There are many choices on how we celebrate, aren't there?  I would say much of that depends on if the things we choose to do this holiday, displays a love for death.  As we look around on Halloween, we see things that are designed to glorify and honor death.  These things take multiple forms, but mostly take death light heartedly, or give in a place or honor.  We should not be promoting any mystery surrounding death, and certainly not giving honor to death, but we should be promoting the truth revealed in God's Word.  Next to cute lady bug, pumpkin, and a fireman suit, I see a witch, a devil, and a ghost.  Not all things done around this holiday are all the same.  So, what are you doing?

We should all fulfill Eph 5:15-17, as we walk carefully this holiday and every day, knowing that the days are evil; seek to do good in them, knowing what the will of God is. Then, honestly answer that question for yourself. Don't just throw down a nice little sticky window design of a ghost, a witch, or a brain eating zombie, and say... oh look how festive and "cute" that is. Is that what you believe honors God--being stuck in this life or the afterlife, dead but not alive, somewhere in limbo, confused about life and death, seeking to bring death or a similar state to others? Is your freedom to take light-heartedly demonic witchcraft (a very real thing) the reason for why Christ died?  Do we even believe in ghosts, as are represented in society? Do you think ghosts are cute? Is that what the Spirit of God says?  Are these things "cute" to us, and if so... then in the spirit of Eph 5:15-17... consider why, and if they actually should be.

Walk carefully—consider your steps that you take--as wise, not as fools.  Then, do what the Spirit of God, and His Word, says is good and honoring to the LIFE that only HE gives.