Trick or Treat?
With Fall quickly approaching, the topic of Halloween weighs heavy on my heart. Though salvation is completely of the Lord, we as Christians have been charged with the awesome responsibility of raising our children up to be God-fearing, Christ-exalting, Bible-saturated adults. Is there really anything wrong with dressing up our children in costumes and allowing them to join in the throng of "trick-or-treaters" that will fill the streets on October 31st? I would have to say a resounding Yes! We should be teaching our children that the Christian life is one of separation from that which is evil. We should desire to protect them from the wiles of the evil one and to teach them the truth of the Scripture. We should never compromise the glory of God for indulgence in "harmless" worldy fun, which truly is not harmless at all.
"There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who casts a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For whoever does these things is detestable to the Lord; and because of these detestable things the Lord your God will drive them out before you. You shall be blameless before the Lord your God." (Deut. 18:10-13)
Notice in this passage that the Word doesn't say these types of people don't exist, are fairy tales, or that they are only make believe. There really are spiritist, spell-casters, sorcerers, mediums, witches and those who conjure up the dead. They are detestable to the Lord! We should want nothing to do with that which is detestable to our God! We shouldn't watch movies that make them out to be good and we certainly shouldn't dress up like them or participate in their rituals.
"Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them." (Eph. 5:11)
If lost children come to your door on Halloween, by all means, preach the gospel of Christ to them! But, if you're going to preach the gospel to the lost, then don't dress up like them and act like them. Be separate. Be not like the darkness! Be light. Be different than they.
"But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil." (1 Thess. 5:21-22)
Be careful of that in which you or your precious children participate. Research. Examine. Scrutinize and view through the lens of Scripture. As my husband always says, "Don't have a 'What's wrong with it?' mentality." Even though there may be many things 'wrong with it'...you may be blind to them because of your fleshly desire to indulge in worldly fun or because of the peer pressure from your family and friends who think Halloween is okay. Ask yourself rather, 'What's right with it?' 'Does it bring glory to Christ who died to save me?' 'Is this the way Christ would have me to spend my time?' 'Is this the best way to teach my children that satisfaction is in Christ and truth is in the Word?'
If you have children, please do your research on Halloween, the wicked holiday rooted in pagan/druidic ritual around a summer's end festival called Samhain (pronounced SOW-HWEEN). Learn about the reason jack-o-lanterns were originally carved. Research the Celtic beliefs that on the eve of Samhain, the barrier between the spirit worlds and the physical worlds was thinned so that the dead could walk the earth and cause terror. Look up the origin of the "trick-or-treat" ritual and the reason why people started dressing in costumes. You'll be disturbed that you've participated in this so blindly. I know I was when God first opened my eyes to this evil. I felt horrible about having dressed up my 5 month old baby in a jack-o-lantern costume (though it bore a happy face) and parading him through the streets with those celebrating Satan's holiday.
With all that said, it also raises concern that so many Christians feel the need to 'replace' Halloween for their children with a fun 'Fall Festival'. This replacement urge comes from one of two thoughts. One, they think Halloween is okay and they want to provide a 'safe place' to trick-or-treat. Or, two, they have been convicted and have boycotted Halloween but feel sorry for their kids because they don't get to 'have fun like the other neighborhood children'. Do we as a church want to Christianize a demonic holiday and provide a safe place for our children to enact these pagan rituals? Do we want to teach our kids that they are missing out on something when they abstain from participating in deeds condemned by the Word of God? Does this make any sense, brothers and sisters? The problem with Halloween is not in the safety issues of the community! The issue is not whether we need to protect our kids from razor blades in apples or poisoned candy (though that would be a sensible concern). The problem is in the very participation in the pagan rituals of wearing costumes and trick-or-treating on the eve of Samhain. Safe place or not, participating in Halloween is not godly and does not in any way exalt Christ! We shouldn't attempt to make a Christian version of something demonic. We should separate ourselves and our children from it entirely.
"'Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate,' says the Lord. 'And do not touch what is unclean; and I will welcome you. And I will be a Father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to Me,' says the Lord Almighty." (2 Cor. 6:17-18)
Below is a link to a good website with a plethera of information on the origins of the Celtic holiday (holy day) and the wicked behind all the rituals including trick-or-treating, wearing costumes, carving jack-o-lanterns, bobbing for apples, and many more. Out of all the articles I have read on this particular subject, this was by far the most solid and informative. Of course, there are many more available if you google "Should Christians celebrate Halloween". Beware -- many of the articles exposing the evils of Halloween are sponsored by the Mormon "church".
http://www.apuritansmind.com/ChristianWalk/McMahonWayOfTheHeathen-Halloween.htm
May Christ alone be glorified in all we do and in all we teach our children. May all our 'holy days' be focused and centered on the only Holy One who is the triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
"There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who casts a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For whoever does these things is detestable to the Lord; and because of these detestable things the Lord your God will drive them out before you. You shall be blameless before the Lord your God." (Deut. 18:10-13)
Notice in this passage that the Word doesn't say these types of people don't exist, are fairy tales, or that they are only make believe. There really are spiritist, spell-casters, sorcerers, mediums, witches and those who conjure up the dead. They are detestable to the Lord! We should want nothing to do with that which is detestable to our God! We shouldn't watch movies that make them out to be good and we certainly shouldn't dress up like them or participate in their rituals.
"Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them." (Eph. 5:11)
If lost children come to your door on Halloween, by all means, preach the gospel of Christ to them! But, if you're going to preach the gospel to the lost, then don't dress up like them and act like them. Be separate. Be not like the darkness! Be light. Be different than they.
"But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil." (1 Thess. 5:21-22)
Be careful of that in which you or your precious children participate. Research. Examine. Scrutinize and view through the lens of Scripture. As my husband always says, "Don't have a 'What's wrong with it?' mentality." Even though there may be many things 'wrong with it'...you may be blind to them because of your fleshly desire to indulge in worldly fun or because of the peer pressure from your family and friends who think Halloween is okay. Ask yourself rather, 'What's right with it?' 'Does it bring glory to Christ who died to save me?' 'Is this the way Christ would have me to spend my time?' 'Is this the best way to teach my children that satisfaction is in Christ and truth is in the Word?'
If you have children, please do your research on Halloween, the wicked holiday rooted in pagan/druidic ritual around a summer's end festival called Samhain (pronounced SOW-HWEEN). Learn about the reason jack-o-lanterns were originally carved. Research the Celtic beliefs that on the eve of Samhain, the barrier between the spirit worlds and the physical worlds was thinned so that the dead could walk the earth and cause terror. Look up the origin of the "trick-or-treat" ritual and the reason why people started dressing in costumes. You'll be disturbed that you've participated in this so blindly. I know I was when God first opened my eyes to this evil. I felt horrible about having dressed up my 5 month old baby in a jack-o-lantern costume (though it bore a happy face) and parading him through the streets with those celebrating Satan's holiday.
With all that said, it also raises concern that so many Christians feel the need to 'replace' Halloween for their children with a fun 'Fall Festival'. This replacement urge comes from one of two thoughts. One, they think Halloween is okay and they want to provide a 'safe place' to trick-or-treat. Or, two, they have been convicted and have boycotted Halloween but feel sorry for their kids because they don't get to 'have fun like the other neighborhood children'. Do we as a church want to Christianize a demonic holiday and provide a safe place for our children to enact these pagan rituals? Do we want to teach our kids that they are missing out on something when they abstain from participating in deeds condemned by the Word of God? Does this make any sense, brothers and sisters? The problem with Halloween is not in the safety issues of the community! The issue is not whether we need to protect our kids from razor blades in apples or poisoned candy (though that would be a sensible concern). The problem is in the very participation in the pagan rituals of wearing costumes and trick-or-treating on the eve of Samhain. Safe place or not, participating in Halloween is not godly and does not in any way exalt Christ! We shouldn't attempt to make a Christian version of something demonic. We should separate ourselves and our children from it entirely.
"'Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate,' says the Lord. 'And do not touch what is unclean; and I will welcome you. And I will be a Father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to Me,' says the Lord Almighty." (2 Cor. 6:17-18)
Below is a link to a good website with a plethera of information on the origins of the Celtic holiday (holy day) and the wicked behind all the rituals including trick-or-treating, wearing costumes, carving jack-o-lanterns, bobbing for apples, and many more. Out of all the articles I have read on this particular subject, this was by far the most solid and informative. Of course, there are many more available if you google "Should Christians celebrate Halloween". Beware -- many of the articles exposing the evils of Halloween are sponsored by the Mormon "church".
http://www.apuritansmind.com/ChristianWalk/McMahonWayOfTheHeathen-Halloween.htm
May Christ alone be glorified in all we do and in all we teach our children. May all our 'holy days' be focused and centered on the only Holy One who is the triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Amen Sister! Let's celebrate Reformation Day on October 31 when Martin Luther nailed his 95 thesis to the chapel door.
(P.S. The Watchtower Society is the Jehovah's Witnesses, not the Mormons)
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Yes! Reformation Day should absolutely be celebrated! The problem comes when we organize an activity for our kids with the mindset of "replacing" Halloween for our children because we somehow think they are missing out on something fun.
So is your name Piper, Larry the Cucumber or R.C., James White? Hah Hah!
(P.S. Thanks for the correction. It should have been the Mormon "church".)
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AMEN! I am quite saddened by ignorant or callous Christians who excuse their participation in the evil of Oct. 31. I checked out of the public library a secular book on the origins of Halloween to read to my children (I didn't allow them to see all the pictures). They want to have nothing to do with it now. Resources are available to reach non-believers with secular resources if they won't listen to Bible scriptures. And certainly we who are Christians should know the scriptures you quoted in your blog. These evil doers still exist. Let's truly be separate and shine for Jesus!
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Yes, I agree. So many say that they are passionate for purity of thought and action, yet they remain immersed in pagan culture and tradition. May God be magnified as we come out from among those involved in evil pagan practices. May our children be taught the truth so that they never feel they are "missing out" on anything of the world. May they be given eyes to see God's will for them and hearts to desire those things that bring Him glory. Thank God that He has burdened a remnant of parents to protect and teach their children the truths that lead to Christ.
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