With the Halloween holiday just around the corner, I thought it would be a good idea to take time to study the history and characters surrounding the holiday.
As Christians, we have the responsibility to…
“Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil.” (1Th 5:21-22)
So with this as our motive and the desire of our hearts, let’s begin our 5 part series on Halloween:
A Study of The Halloween Celebration (All Hallows Eve)
- A Study of The Death Symbols – Skeletons, Ghosts, Jack O’ Lanterns, Frankenstein, Vampires, and Bats
- A Study of The Sorcery Symbols – Witches, Black Cats, Spiders, Werewolves, and Full Moons
- A Study of The Necromancy Symbols – Séances and Ouija Boards
- A Summary of Our Study On Halloween
May the Lord be glorified in our study….
THE SCRIPTURE:
For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret. But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light.(Eph 5:8-13)
The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.(Rom 13:12-14)
THE STUDY:
A Brief History of Halloween:
The Celtic New Years Day, November 1st was set apart for the observance of the feast of Samhain. This day was set apart to worship Samhain the “lord of the dead” or “the lord of darkness”.
The evening before this celebration, the last day of the Celtic calendar (October 31st ) was set aside as a holiday to honor and pacify the dead. The pagans believed that, on October 31st, dead souls and demons walked the streets at night on their way to the place of the dead. During the celebration, costumes and masks were worn in the hopes of keeping away the evil spirits. They would leave gifts of food for these beings to insure peace with them for the coming year (modern-day “trick or treat”).
Bonfires also held a major role in the observance, with the burning of animal remains resulting in purification of sin and the preparation of entrance into a new year.
The Catholic church tried to “Christianize” this holiday by changing it name to “Hallows Eve” (the evening before All Saints Day a day set aside for the honoring of the Catholic saints.)
For further information about the history of Halloween please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halloween and http://www.holidayinsights.com/halloween/samhain.htm
Many beliefs surrounding the Halloween celebration run contrary to Scripture…
- The worship of “the lord of darkness”
- the belief that the spirits of the dead roam the earth
- the presentation of offerings to the dead
- the purification of sin through animal sacrifices
All of these, plus many others, clearly go against the principles of Scripture.
If there was one word that best describes the Halloween celebration it is the word “darkness”. Everything about the holiday centers on the occult, the dark forces of this world, and the darkness of spiritual blindness being clearly on display.
THE PRACTICAL APPLICATION
For the Christian….
Not only should we be aware of the history of Halloween, but also the principles laid out in the Scriptures that should apply to each of our lives.
In our two texts, in both cases, the basic principle is that a Christian is to be separated from the works of the darkness of this world…
“And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.”
“let us therefore cast off the works of darkness”
Also, remember that we are to be completed separated from these works….
“For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light”
“For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.”
“let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.”
Why are we to make certain we are not taking part in the works of darkness?…
Our testimony is at stake…
“now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:”
“But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.”
“(For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.”
The time is short before His coming…. We must reach the lost with our testimony…
“The night is far spent, the day is at hand:”
The level of our participation in the Halloween observances is between each Christian and his Lord. We need to prayerfully consider the history of Halloween as well as the principles of the Word of God. May the Lord lead and guide each of us as we continue our study of Halloween.
For those who have never trusted in Christ…
What is necessary for your life, is to turn from your sin to Christ (repentance) and place your faith in Him as the only way of salvation. You can do nothing to save yourself but the Lord Jesus Christ, came to the earth and died on the cross for the sins of His people. He took upon Himself the punishment for sin, so those who look to Him will not be punished.
Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father: To whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.(Gal 1:3-5)
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How refreshing Rob! Thank you! It seems as though most Churches in America support Halloween and I have never been able to fathom out why. It is so good to hear someone give the true account.
Australia caught up with the American practice of Halloween about ten years ago. Before then we saw almost nothing of Halloween costumes etc in the shops, but now there are racks and racks and shelves and shelves of them.
It is past time – especially with the increase in the number of occult, vampire, witches etc TV programs and movies – that all blood-bought, adopted children of God live like children of Light and stand against these practices. Last year I told some children and their mums what Halloween was really about and they were horrified. They thought it was just a fun thing. I don’t know it will make a difference, but I’ll tell anyone who calls and give them a New Testament.
I agree it seems as if these are MANY people who do not understand the origin and symbolism of Halloween. It amazes me until I remember that Satan is the great deceiver who continually works to keep men blinded to the truth. Lord bless you. Thanks for the comments.
This is a timely reminder for the children of Light not to indulge in things of darkness. Let our testimony of God’s light show forth in everything we do. Where there is light there is no darkness – they are exclusive. We choose. Let us live as children of light that the world may see Christ lives in us and learn to love Him too.
AMEN Evelyn. You are so right, we all have a choice placed before us… will we dabble in the dark things of this world or shine forth as lights in the midst of this darkness? Lord bless you. Thanks for the comments.