Pure Water Hollow Homestead | |
Why I Do Not Celebrate Halloween Eph. 5:8-16I preached this sermon last Sunday to our home church. Actually, I don't preach word for word what I type out, but it is usually pretty close. Most of the time I don't even type out the sermons that God gives me, but from time to time I feel led to. I thought I would share it here, just to demonstrate some more of my convictions. They are not always popular, but I always feel strongly about them. There is much more that could be said about Halloween, but this is the direction that the Lord led me this week. Our pastor had touched on some of the evil components of Halloween the previous week, but left open the possibility that it may be OK to participate in many aspects of the "fun" part of the holiday. I have difficulty seeing anything about the celebration being appropriate "fun" for a Christian.(I am always amazed when God allows me to put together a message and uses me to deliver it. This message was not copied from anyone else, but the Lord led me through prayer and study. What follows is a copy of my notes for the message with the actual Bible verses put in where they would have been read aloud):
Why I Do Not Celebrate Halloween Eph. 5:8-168 For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: 9 (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) 10 Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. 11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. 12 For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret. 13 But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. 14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. 15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, 16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. I have been asked by many people over the years, why I do not celebrate Halloween. I was not brought up with any convictions against Halloween. I participated in Trick Or Treat as a child, I’ve been to many Halloween parties, I’ve even helped to organize a full fledged "Haunted House" at a church where Lisa and I were the youth leaders. As I grew in Christ, and started looking around at what Halloween is really all about, God convinced me that there was nothing about Halloween that should interest me as a Christian. Today, for me as a Christian to want to celebrate Halloween would be like a Russian citizen wanting to celebrate the 4th of July! It just doesn’t make much sense when I consider the main elements of Halloween. 1) Darkness is Enhanced v82) Fear is Embraced v9-10 3) Sin is Expected v11-12 4) Death is Exploited v13-14 5) Evil is Exalted v15-16 I. Darkness is Enhanced v8
8 For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:Illus: Just look at the decorations surrounding Halloween, and they are everywhere. Halloween decorations are meant to celebrate evil and darkness. The Good Housekeeping Book of Entertainment: "Orange, black and red, the devil’s colors, are the colors associated with Halloween, and this scheme should be carried out as far as possible… Have paper streamers and lanterns hanging from the ceiling, or you could make a giant spider web with black and orange strings, or with narrow strips of crepe paper for the four corners of the room, complete with a large spider – one of the devil’s followers." a) Darkness hides evil "And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkenss rather than light, because their deeds were evil." –John 3:19 b) Darkness is opposite to God "If we say we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth."1John1:6 c) The light of Christ dispels the darkness "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." –John 8:12
II. Fear is Embraced v9-10 9 (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)10 Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. Illus: Haunted houses, haunted trails, scary movies a) Fear is not from God "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." –2 Tim 1:7 b) The love of Christ casts out fear "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love." –1 John 4:18 III. Sin is Expected v11-12 11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.12 For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret. Illus: What teens do when they are too old to trick or treat. Egging, corning, toilet paper, bashing mailboxes, road blocks, etc Illus: Police verify that there are more crimes committed during the Halloween season. a) Sin is enticing Proverbs 1:10-16 10 My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. 11 If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause: 12 Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit: 13 We shall find all precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil: 14 Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse: 15 My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path: 16 For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood. b) The cross of Christ crucified sin "Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, shuld live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed." –1 Peter 2:24
IV. Death is Exploited v13-14
13 But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light.14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. Illus: Slasher movies glamorizing brutal, serial murders. Horror movies glamorizing the supernatural.. Wicked movies dealing with the undead like zombies or vampires. a) Death was not from God Genesis 2:16-17 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. b) Death is an enemy 1 Cor 15:26 26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. c) The victory of Christ defeated death 1 Cor 15:21-22 21 For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. 1 Cor 15:54-57 54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. 55O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? 56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. V. Evil is Exalted v15-16 15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Illus: World Book Encyclopedia "Halloween’s beginnings preceded Christ’s birth when the druids, a pagan group of devil-worshipers in what is now Britain and France, observed the end of summer by making human sacrifices to the gods. It was the beginning of the Celtic newyear. They belived that Samhain, the lord of death, sent evil spirits abroad to attack humans, who could escape only by assuming disguises and looking like spirits themselves. The waning of the sun and the approach of dark winter made the evil spirits rejoice and play nasty tricks. Most of our Halloween practices can be traced back to the old pagan ites and superstitions." Illus: Today there are real Satan worshippers and witches who consider Halloween to be their "high holy day" a) We should hate evil "Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good." –Rom 12:9 b) We should overcome evil "Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good." –Rom 12:21 c) We should not look evil "Abstain from all appearance of evil." – 1 Thess 5:22 d) The Devil is evil 1) Satan wants to be exalted and worshipped Isaiah 14:12-14 12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! 13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. 2) The manifestation of Christ destroys evil "He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil." – 1 John 3:8 Darkness is Enhanced - The light of Christ dispels Fear is Embraced – The love of Christ casts out Sin is Expected – The cross of Christ crucified Death is Exploited – The victory of Christ defeated Evil is Exalted – manifestation of Christ destroys Ephesians 5:17 is the verse immediately following our text: 17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. Halloween is celebrated on 10-31 so let's end with a 10:31 from the Bible: 1 Corinthians 10:31 31 Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
A Sunday Morning Devotional from Psalm 95I thought I would share a devotional about worship this morning. Actually it is from a sermon that I preached last night. We have church one Saturday night every month on the second weekend with the monthly church business meeting following after the worship service. It was a blessed service and the church came forward to meet God at the altar after the message. Since I am not going to go into great detail with the following post, I'll call it a devotion instead of a sermon. I pray you will be lifted up and encouraged reading it.
An October Dawn At Pure Water HollowIt was a marvelous dawn this morning, in the woods of Pure Water Hollow. As the darkness of night began to give way to a dim, fog shrouded forest, I began to notice several small woodland creatures arising to greet the new day. It was a chilly 42 degrees according to the thermometer at the house at 5:40 when I began the trek that ended under this protective ledge that we call the West Cave.I had at first gone past my destination because it was so difficult to see, even with a good flashlight. The heavy fog acted as a wall to my flashlight beam and I had never tried to hike up there in the dark before! I was finally in position around 6:00a.m., which would be a full hour and twenty minutes before I could recognize the dawn. I was armed with my muzzleloader and I had hoped that I would have a good shot at my first deer when it walked by on the trail below. (If I can provide meat for our table from wild game on my own land it will save us money and help us move closer to being self-sufficient.) This seemed to be a good spot because I would be well hidden, there would be no breeze from behind me that could carry my scent to an alert deer, and my black powder gun would be able to stay dry if there were a threat of rain. I did not see any buck on the trail that I envisioned him going down, but I was blessed by my time spent there, nonetheless. I stayed there for the next 5 ½ hours, and just took in the whole marvelous scene that God rolled out before my eyes and ears. A gray squirrel high up in the tops of the trees was the first animal to seem to say, “Good morning”, when he caused several leaves to flutter to the ground as he shook the limbs, jumping from one to another with ease. The dew was dripping so furiously from the trees that it sounded like a steady drizzle of rain, making pitter-patter sounds on the blanket of fallen leaves laying all around, but the squirrel didn’t seem to mind at all. I suppose he was used to it. This was his world; I was the foreign guest here, recognizing God’s grandeur in ways I seldom have the chance to in the world of civilization. Gradually, little by little, the night continued to retreat against a mounting army of dawn’s light. At first I could only make out the silhouettes of the nearby trees and branches above me, and they were not even definite forms because of the heavy fog. It was a wondrous experience to observe the fog slowly disappear and more and more trees and rocks to be revealed! It was as if I was looking through a camera lens that was out of focus at first, but then gradually adjusted until the foreground came into perfect clarity, with the background farther away still a blur. It wasn’t long before a chipmunk could be spied running back and forth across a long, half rotted, log. This old log itself seemed to tell a story. It had many years ago given up the fight to remain a towering tree, and was now content to be a home for small, furry, grounded creatures instead of highflying birds or acrobatic squirrels. As the forest floor came more and more into focus, I began to notice not just one, but three chipmunks, all of them scurrying around amongst the logs, rocks and leaves. I could see a greater abundance of the tree limbs of the forest tops and they began bouncing and swaying and showering leaves from several squirrels now. I got a very good look at one squirrel in particular when he stopped in a tree in front of me, not much higher than my eye level, and looked at me. I sensed that his eyes met mine, but he did not seem to be alarmed. After a few seconds he jumped to another limb. The continual dripping of the dew became less and less pronounced as the light continued to gain command of the situation. Not only was light obliterating the darkness, but it was also driving the fog away and the noise making dew seemed to be running away with the fog. The sound of birds singing in the new day soon began to replace the dawning dripping pitter-patter of the dew. The most pronounced cry of the morning was that of a Pileated Woodpecker from the other side of the hollow. Another Pileated Woodpecker, which was above and behind me somewhere, would answer his call. The whole time, more and more of the view from this ledge was coming into crystal clarity with the foggy background moving farther and farther away. I heard some definite leaf rustling noise across the trail and on the other side of the hill, below the point that was in my line of vision. I could tell it was getting closer and closer, coming up the hill. Soon it would emerge on the trail right below me. I cocked the hammer back on my gun and was ready to take down the deer that I knew would appear. Then I saw a strange oblong shape on a stick moving back and forth. As it came a bit higher and closer to the trail I realized it was the head of a wild turkey, which was scratching in the dirt and leaves! Soon there were two magnificent birds on the trail below me. I thought about touching one off, but at that point I still had hopes of getting a deer. I thought that the deer might hear the turkeys and not notice that I was up there, too. Maybe the turkey noises would make the deer feel as though everything was normal, I thought. The turkey must have noticed me when I slowly lowered my gun because they went back over the hill and disappeared silently and quickly. As the day became brighter and the sun began to push it’s golden rays through the canopy of leaves above, I couldn’t help but notice the variety of different shades and colors of the leaves all around me. I thought that last weekend the woods were pretty, but this spot, at this time, was far more dazzling than anything we saw last weekend! The variety of golds and oranges and light greens of the poplar, beech, hickory and oak were complimented wonderfully by a couple of deep red maple trees. I thought to myself that I would be happy to stay here forever. I may have been able to stay much longer, had it not been for my being so cold and hungry and stiff. I decided that it was not meant for me to get a deer at this time and place, so I began the hike down the hill and to the clearing. I still had my gun ready, and decided to go along the Split-Rock Trail to see if I might scare up a deer or two there. It is a wide bench with many deer trails through the beech and birch trees. This would be my next pick for a perfect place to get a deer and some day I will try to hide out at the Split-Rock much like I did this morning at the West Cave. I found no deer along this trail and decided to set the hammer back to the lock position as I came through the pine tree decent to the barn, because of the possibility of slipping. By this time, I had given up on the idea of getting a deer. It was about noon now. I was ready to get to the house so I was no longer walking stealthily. As soon as I crashed carelessly through the woods onto the dirt road in front of the barn I saw something across the ravine! It was two white tails bounding along the Pear Tree trail directly across from me on the other side of the ravine! I didn’t have much time to think, and had I been able to get the hammer up in the firing position quicker, I may have had a chance. There were many small trees and brush in my line of fire, and the deer were on the run, but I got off a shot in their direction anyway. Both deer dashed away, unharmed. My muzzleloader, on the other hand, was not so fortunate. I’m not sure why it happened, but the nipple that the hammer strikes to send fire to the powder to shoot the ball was somehow blown away! I had been target practicing with the muzzleloader a couple of times this week and did not have any trouble with it but this was the first time I tried it out in the field. Without that nipple, the gun is dead. So instead of killing a deer I killed my gun! That meant I could not go back out tonight deer hunting like I had planned. (Instead of hunting this evening, I went out and bought our first two pigs! I will write about that in my next post, maybe tomorrow.) In conclusion, my first attempt at deer hunting was not a success. Or was it? After being out in God’s nature all morning, I have come to a conclusion about the hobby of hunting. (My brother philosophized to me in a similar manner about golf last weekend. I don’t play golf, but do people really just like to chase a little white ball around, or is there something deeper?) Hunting is such a popular hobby for many people not because they like killing animals, but because it gives them an excuse to experience the world outside an office the way God intended. A world without the phone ringing or the TV blaring or all the stress that goes with living in the modern rat race, when you don’t even know the difference between night and day because of all the artificial man-made lights and stores that are open 24 hours a day. It gives people a chance to get closer to the God that created them, and to see Him at work in ways that we usually do not even recognize. If I shed that light on this morning, then my first try at deer hunting was a great success indeed! { Last Page } { Page 1 of 2 } { Next Page } |
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