Should a Christian Celebrate Halloween?
Notes
Transcript
Haman in the beginning of the year, decides to come to the king and offer to pay for all the expenses to rid the kingdom of a people that would not obey the laws of the land
The king gives his consent, and the day is set for the 12 month - 11 months later!
For nearly a year the Jews were in jeopardy of their lives
Mordecai tells queen Esther of the decree, she fasts along with the Jews for 3 days
Esther goes before her husband and asks to have Haman and the king for dinner
At the meal, Esther asks for another meal with the Haman and king
At this second meal, Haman is exposed for trying to kill her, as a Jew, along with all other Jews
Haman is sentenced to hang on his gallows that he had made for Mordecai
Mordecai was given Haman’s position and the king issued another decree:
Wherein the king granted the Jews which were in every city to gather themselves together, and to stand for their life, to destroy, to slay, and to cause to perish, all the power of the people and province that would assault them, both little ones and women, and to take the spoil of them for a prey, Upon one day in all the provinces of king Ahasuerus, namely, upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar. The copy of the writing for a commandment to be given in every province was published unto all people, and that the Jews should be ready against that day to avenge themselves on their enemies. So the posts that rode upon mules and camels went out, being hastened and pressed on by the king’s commandment. And the decree was given at Shushan the palace. And Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal apparel of blue and white, and with a great crown of gold, and with a garment of fine linen and purple: and the city of Shushan rejoiced and was glad. The Jews had light, and gladness, and joy, and honour. And in every province, and in every city, whithersoever the king’s commandment and his decree came, the Jews had joy and gladness, a feast and a good day. And many of the people of the land became Jews; for the fear of the Jews fell upon them.
The opportunity to defend their lives and homes was granted - many people got saved through this!
Now in the twelfth month, that is, the month Adar, on the thirteenth day of the same, when the king’s commandment and his decree drew near to be put in execution, in the day that the enemies of the Jews hoped to have power over them, (though it was turned to the contrary, that the Jews had rule over them that hated them;) The Jews gathered themselves together in their cities throughout all the provinces of the king Ahasuerus, to lay hand on such as sought their hurt: and no man could withstand them; for the fear of them fell upon all people.
And the king said unto Esther the queen, The Jews have slain and destroyed five hundred men in Shushan the palace, and the ten sons of Haman; what have they done in the rest of the king’s provinces? now what is thy petition? and it shall be granted thee: or what is thy request further? and it shall be done. Then said Esther, If it please the king, let it be granted to the Jews which are in Shushan to do to morrow also according unto this day’s decree, and let Haman’s ten sons be hanged upon the gallows. And the king commanded it so to be done: and the decree was given at Shushan; and they hanged Haman’s ten sons. For the Jews that were in Shushan gathered themselves together on the fourteenth day also of the month Adar, and slew three hundred men at Shushan; but on the prey they laid not their hand. But the other Jews that were in the king’s provinces gathered themselves together, and stood for their lives, and had rest from their enemies, and slew of their foes seventy and five thousand, but they laid not their hands on the prey,
A day of mourning and trouble was turned into feasting and gladness!
On the thirteenth day of the month Adar; and on the fourteenth day of the same rested they, and made it a day of feasting and gladness. But the Jews that were at Shushan assembled together on the thirteenth day thereof, and on the fourteenth thereof; and on the fifteenth day of the same they rested, and made it a day of feasting and gladness. Therefore the Jews of the villages, that dwelt in the unwalled towns, made the fourteenth day of the month Adar a day of gladness and feasting, and a good day, and of sending portions one to another.
This day was a day of feasting and sending food to others and rejoicing in what the Lord had done
This was a celebration of the grace of God and what God has done!
Watch carefully what happens next:
And Mordecai wrote these things, and sent letters unto all the Jews that were in all the provinces of the king Ahasuerus, both nigh and far, To stablish this among them, that they should keep the fourteenth day of the month Adar, and the fifteenth day of the same, yearly, As the days wherein the Jews rested from their enemies, and the month which was turned unto them from sorrow to joy, and from mourning into a good day: that they should make them days of feasting and joy, and of sending portions one to another, and gifts to the poor. And the Jews undertook to do as they had begun, and as Mordecai had written unto them; Because Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had devised against the Jews to destroy them, and had cast Pur, that is, the lot, to consume them, and to destroy them; But when Esther came before the king, he commanded by letters that his wicked device, which he devised against the Jews, should return upon his own head, and that he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows. Wherefore they called these days Purim after the name of Pur. Therefore for all the words of this letter, and of that which they had seen concerning this matter, and which had come unto them, The Jews ordained, and took upon them, and upon their seed, and upon all such as joined themselves unto them, so as it should not fail, that they would keep these two days according to their writing, and according to their appointed time every year; And that these days should be remembered and kept throughout every generation, every family, every province, and every city; and that these days of Purim should not fail from among the Jews, nor the memorial of them perish from their seed.
They took the day of Pur - meaning lot - twofold meaning speaking of the lot that was required to kill the Jews and the lot of Jews that were meant to be killed on that day
The called the days that they would celebrate the victory God gave them the days of Purim - which literally means feast - lots of feasting
Not only did the Jews set the same day that Satan tried to use a wicked man named Haman to kill God’s people as a day to celebrate, but took the very name of the day to remember the grace of God!
The principle they followed:
God created the day
Gen 1:1-5
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.
Ex 20:11
For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
Ps 118:24
This is the day which the Lord hath made; We will rejoice and be glad in it.
God promised to bless His people
Gen 12:3
And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
God will not give His glory to another
Is 42:8
I am the Lord: that is my name: And my glory will I not give to another, Neither my praise to graven images.
Satan tried to take God’s glory, but failed
Liar
Deceiver
Murderer
This was a clear reclamation of what God had created and designed for His glory
As Christians it is not wrong to take a day like Halloween, and use it to bring glory to God
Families pass out Gospel tracts
Churches invite young families by for sweets and a Gospel tract
Ministries decorate rooms with scenes from the Bible and even enjoy dressing like Bible characters
This is taking the focus on death and destruction and giving God the glory
Consistent walk with God and among men
Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
Jesus condemned the hypocrisy of the Pharisees
Jesus taught us a life that was authentic and real before God and men
It is dangerous and slippery slope to be inconsistent
The name "Sunday", the day of the Sun, is derived from Hellenistic astrology, where the seven planets, known in English as Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, the Sun, Venus, Mercury and the Moon, each had an hour of the day assigned to them, and the planet which was regent during the first hour of any day of the week gave its name to that day. During the 1st and 2nd century, the week of seven days was introduced into Rome from Egypt, and the Roman names of the planets were given to each successive day.
To be consistent one would also have to reject the very names of our week
Often when this principle is misapplied it hinders a Christian’s walk with God:
Read Bible
Pray
Be in church
Heb 10:25
Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
to reject ⇔ leave v. — to refuse to accept or acknowledge something, conceived of as leaving it behind or forsaking it.
Caution on applying this principle
Some would take this principle and state that if they turned what Satan meant for evil and use it for good; we can use the same principle with everything else.
Be careful with this line of thinking
For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.
Music - Often this principle is quoted as justification for the bringing rock music into church - I’m taking the bad words out and replacing them with good words
There are things in which Satan has used men to author confusion
These things were not created by God and to simply put the name of God into a song doesn’t inherently make it good
This principle ought to be transferrable
If so, then “Christian” pornography should be allowable
Satan authors confusion, and that confusion and fear needs to be cast off and the clarity and peace of God’s Word to be applied
I have refrained my feet from every evil way, That I might keep thy word.
NUN. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, And a light unto my path.
Great peace have they which love thy law: And nothing shall offend them.
Should a Christian celebrate Halloween or any other holiday?
The answer is simple - What are going to do with the day?
Glorify confusion or death
Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.