“For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He also has rejected you from being king.””
I Samuel 15:23 NKJV
Halloween... that time of year where Christians have opinions that range from complete avoidance of the day (usually while condemning others as pagans) to complete participation.
I feel the need to be honest. I spent a few years despising Halloween. I, too, read of the paganistic, Celtic roots. I have seen the articles and videos put out by those that used to practice Wicca.
But... My dislike for Halloween had more to do with not understanding why there is an obsession for the dark and the dead. Skulls and zombies and witches flying on a broom are not intimidating to a blood-bought believer. I was the one that, even before Jesus, wasn’t afraid of haunted houses. I don’t believe in ghosts.
I do believe in demons. I know that evil is real, just as Satan is real. I know demonic possession and oppression are real. I know the occult is real.
The occult has no pull for me as I love Jesus and feel like messing around with demonic anything is the antithesis of what Jesus has for His Bride. As a Christian washed in the blood of Christ, those things don’t hold any fascination. I have seen true evil. I have seen the damage true evil can do.
What has that to do with Halloween? Well, according to some, evil reigns on Halloween and Christians should hide in their houses so as not to accidentally worship Satan. Christians that participate in Halloween must not be true Christians as they participate in such a evil day. Right? (Yes, that was a bit sarcastic.)
Every year churches around the country host Trunk or Treats and harvestfests. Kids often dress up in costume. This causes nearly as much controversy in some as if the church was playing with an Ouija board on the altar.
For awhile, in my early walk with Christ, I became concerned enough about the day from the articles I was reading that I didn’t take my kids trick-or-treating. I wanted an alternative. But the day would come and go. And I struggled to correlate my child dressing up as a princess and getting candy with actively participating in witchcraft.
Now, my annoyance for Halloween is mostly because the day doesn’t add to my faith. It can be an expensive day, and I often didn’t have the extra funds for five brand new costumes to be worn once for a couple of hours to get a bunch of junk food. My kids are now mostly grown, so that is no longer an issue.
But then there are those pagan roots. Right? Unlike Christmas and Easter, which also hold paganistic traditions, there isn’t an emphasis on Jesus coming to earth as a baby or His sacrifice for the world. But I do hold a different perspective now that I’ve been a Christian for a number of years.
This is an opportunity for the church. It is a chance for one more way to serve the community. Whether it’s a harvest fest with hayrides and games or a trunk-or-treat, it is a day when the community comes to us. The hardest to reach, the 20 and 30 somethings, come in droves with their young children. They are looking for something safe for their children. They don’t worry that the church is going to slip a razor blade in the candy bars they pass out. They don’t worry that their children are going to hear foul language or their child might be a target of a pedophile. If the gospel is a part of the festival or the passing out of candy, it’s not seen as “cramming religion.” It’s seen as part of the church serving the community.
The church should serve the community all year. And most look for ways to be active in the area. Some churches hold food pantries. Others have miracle trees at Christmas. Some hold large, free holiday dinners for those that have nowhere to go. A few have soup kitchens, hold back-to-school supply drives, or host free lunches in the summer. Many churches even hold an Easter egg hunt for the local community.
None of those events in serving the community are seen as “paganistic.” In fact, the sign of a healthy church is that it finds ways to support the community, even when there isn’t a blatant “in your face” gospel message. To serve the community, to show them love because of Jesus, and to expect nothing in return is the heart of the gospel. It is being a light in a dark world.
We shouldn’t shut that light off or hide it just because the calendar date is October 31. For Christians, washed in the blood of Jesus, we should not live in fear. We shouldn’t live in fear that we will somehow accidentally worship Satan.
In the New Testament there were similar quandaries. The culture then was very paganistic. In 1 Corinthians 8, there was a discussion about eating food sacrificed to idols. What does Paul say?
“Now regarding your question about food that has been offered to idols. Yes, we know that “we all have knowledge” about this issue. But while knowledge makes us feel important, it is love that strengthens the church. Anyone who claims to know all the answers doesn’t really know very much. But the person who loves God is the one whom God recognizes. So, what about eating meat that has been offered to idols? Well, we all know that an idol is not really a god and that there is only one God. There may be so-called gods both in heaven and on earth, and some people actually worship many gods and many lords. But for us, There is one God, the Father, by whom all things were created, and for whom we live. And there is one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things were created, and through whom we live.”
1 Corinthians 8:1-6 NLT
So, some people that practice witchcraft or Wicca use Halloween as their day. They celebrate the dead and worship nature. They hold their rituals. We worship the one true God. We worship a God that overcame the world. We worship the God that created the world. We worship the God that gave His life as the ultimate sacrifice. October 31 is a day created by God, no matter how much pagans twist the day. Guess what? People find Jesus on Halloween. People are fed on Halloween. People come voluntarily to God’s people on Halloween because God’s people pass out some candy and give a smile and safety and some of the Joy of Christ on Halloween.
To hide on this day says that God can’t do anything against the power of darkness on this one day of the year, and that’s a lie. Did He not create October 31 just as much as he created December 25th. (Guess what? Jesus wasn’t born in December 25th.) Instead, the Bride of Christ is reaching out on this day with His love.
As it says in Psalms 37:
“Trust in the Lord and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper.”
Psalms 37:3 NLT
It’s easy to trust and do good when it’s a miracle tree in December. It should be just as easy to trust and do good when it’s a chocolate bar and a superhero costume at the end of October. We redeem the time when we trust and do good, when we add light to what some would make dark, and we refuse to bow to fear.
But what about those that have this area as a stumbling block?
Yes, some of the redeemed came from a background that included the occult. They used this day in their worship and rituals in the occult as a day sacred to them. They know the hold this day had in them, because it was the hold Satan had on them. To them, seeing this day differently is difficult for them because there was such an emphasis. They know the day held evil intentions for them and holds evil intentions for others.
If it is a stumbling block, then work to get a perspective on the day. October 31st should not hold a power over you. It should not be a day of fear. It should not be a day of looking down on your brothers and sisters in Christ because they don’t have a history with the Wiccan practices. If anything, let this day be a day that is a reminder that Jesus redeemed you from Satan and broke the chains of slavery to idol worship and the bondages of the occult.
For me, personally, the day holds no power. I don’t fear accidentally contributing to some pagan cause because my heart belongs to Christ. He has paid a high price for me. I’m not going to deny any opportunity to be light, and I especially am going to fight the dark on a day some feel I should hide. I’m certainly not going to live in fear and believe I’m condoning witchcraft by passing out chocolate pumpkins. I may be promoting tooth decay or unhealthy food choices, but no more so than passing out chocolate Santas at Christmas or Chocolate bunnies at Easter.
The church hosting a trunk-or-treat or a harvest fest is not the same as holding a Wiccan ritual or playing an ouija board or promoting idol worship. It’s outreach. It’s being a light in the community.
I never want to partake of evil. But like food offered to idols, I have to ask myself if I believe in the power of the idol over the power of Christ. Do I believe I am compromising my faith by giving our candy on October 31st? No. I do believe I am participating in evil when I gossip. I do believe I am participating in evil when I harbor bitterness. I do believe I am participating in evil when I have a knowledge that puffs up instead of a love that builds the church. I do believe I am participating in evil when I am rebelling and backsliding and am angry at God... or His Bride. I’ve seen those do much more damage to my soul and my relationship with the Lord than when I try to bring light to a community on a day in October.
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