Page 1177
And against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
Therefore, put on the full armor of God,
so that when the day of evil comes,
you may be able to stand your ground,
and after you have done everything, to stand.
Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist,
with the breastplate of righteousness in place,
and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.
In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith,
with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit,
which is the word of God,
and pray in the Spirit on all occasions,
with all kinds of prayers and requests.
With this in mind, be alert,
and always keep on praying for all the saints.
Pray also for me,
that whenever I open my mouth,
words may be given me,
so that I will fearlessly make known
the mystery of the gospel,
for which I am an ambassador in chains.
Pray that I may declare it fearlessly,
as I should.
Thank you very much, Harry.
Well, please keep your Bible at the ready.
We're going to be looking at a few different passages this morning.
Well, let's pray together.
Father, we ask that you would be present
by the power of your Holy Spirit.
Not just present, but active.
That you would be active through the word of God.
speaking into each and every individual here.
Speaking to all of us together.
That you would help us to understand better
the world in which we live.
And the kind of people we should live in this world.
We ask for your help in all of this.
In Jesus' name.
Amen.
So, the title.
You can't really see it,
but I'll tell you what it is.
Halloween.
Trick or Treat.
So, is it a fun night for the kids?
Or is it the sinister work of the devil?
Now, for many people,
Halloween is just a bit of innocent fun.
A chance to dress up as a ghost,
or even Spider-Man,
and collect as many sweets as possible.
For others,
Halloween has a dark and a more fearful side.
A night when evil and death are celebrated,
and the ways of Satan are explored.
What do you think about Halloween?
Well, we're going to look at God's Word,
and see what it has to say,
and how we as Christians should respond.
But before we get into God's Word,
just a few things.
Firstly, it is big business.
In the US,
Halloween is worth more than $4 billion to the economy.
Second only to Christmas.
But it's not just in the US.
Here, specially themed shops have opened up for the festival,
and you can even buy cards,
which you can send to people wishing them a scary Halloween.
Homes are decorated with pumpkin-shaped lights.
Giant cobwebs are sprayed onto walls.
Ghosts and witches hang from the front doors,
and gardens are transformed into miniature graveyards.
Where we live,
I think ours is the only house
that doesn't have a decoration up at the minute.
So is it just a bit of fancy dress
with an opportunity for retail stores
to make lots of money?
Well, it could be,
but I think there's a little bit more to it than that.
It does have very dark beginnings.
Halloween has its roots
in the Celtic festival of Samhain.
It is spelt S-A-M-H-A-I-N,
pronounced Samhain.
It marked the beginning of the Celtic year.
Going back almost 2,000 years ago.
The end of summer
and the beginning of winter
at that changeover point.
Summer being the season of life
when everything begins to grow,
and winter being the season of death
when everything begins to perish.
Now as summer ended
and winter began,
it was believed that Samhain,
the lord of death,
would send evil spirits
to attack human beings,
taking them from the world of life
and bringing them to the world of death.
And to escape the attack,
people would dress up as evil spirits
in an attempt to try and fool the plan of Samhain.
They thought if the evil spirits saw them dressed up,
they would be overlooked as fellow evil spirits
and they would be able to escape their attack.
Which explains, of course,
the origins of the scary masks
and costumes that people are going to be wearing.
And also the lights,
the pumpkin lights and bonfires that there may be,
were also to try and dispel
the evil spirits from getting close.
Now how much of that is all fable
or real belief at that time?
I don't know.
I wasn't around there 2,000 years ago.
And if you did a survey today
and asked all the little children
as they wandered around knocking on your door
how much of the origins they know,
I'm sure they don't know very much.
I certainly don't know a lot about
the origins of Halloween.
But having said all of that,
this has developed,
or Halloween has developed,
into a fascination with
evil and death.
We can't get away from it.
Movies from Hollywood like
Nightmare on Elm Street
and the Saw trilogy,
I haven't seen it, don't worry,
have only influenced it further.
In fact, it won't be uncommon
for people to try and contact the dead
through various mediums
and perhaps explore the darker side of life
through games like the Ouija board.
So maybe
it is a little bit more sinister
than innocent.
But you say,
wasn't Christmas
a pagan festival?
Well, yes,
Christmas was a pagan festival
and over the years
it has become Christianized
to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ,
God incarnate.
Jesus, the God-man,
coming into the world.
So,
why can't we do exactly the same
with Halloween?
Why can't we Christianize it?
Well, that's exactly what some people
have done.
For some,
Halloween is a religious festival.
Halloween is a shortening of
All Hallows' Eve,
or what has become known better as
All Souls' Day,
celebrated on the 1st of November,
and has now been part of the church calendar,
I think,
since the 600s.
So it's a time
when people remember the dead
and when some people
will pray for the dead.
Now,
for followers of Jesus Christ,
to remember
and to give thanks to God
for the lives of loved ones
is a good thing.
I'd encourage us to do that,
to remember
and say thank you to God
for the people
who have influenced us
in our lives.
But to pray for the dead,
that's a different matter altogether,
because
to pray for the dead
is as profitable
as asking the inhabitants
of their local graveyard
to cut their own grass
and say get up out of the graves
and cut your grass.
You see,
the Bible makes it very clear
in Hebrews 9,
verse 27,
I'll just quote it for you,
that we are destined
to die once
and after that
to face the judgment
of Christ.
And at that time,
at that judgment,
God will bring those
who love him
and turn to him
to his heaven,
to his kingdom,
his eternal kingdom
of light.
And he will separate
those who have ignored him
and rejected him
to hell,
to a kingdom of darkness.
So praying for the dead
is actually too late.
While our prayers
are effective
for people today,
and I encourage people
to pray for each other,
it is effective now
for those who are living,
but our prayers
are ineffective
for those who have died.
So what are we to do
with Halloween?
What does the Bible say
about it?
Well,
I've looked through the Bible
and it never mentions Halloween,
and it doesn't say anything
about All Souls Day.
But it does have a lot
to say about evil,
death,
and Satan,
and who has
the ultimate power.
So let's have a look
at what the Bible says
about the devil
and his ways.
The devil's trick.
The devil,
as some will say,
is a made-up character.
Well, he's not a made-up character.
And death and evil
are not just pretend ideas
that just come out
to haunt us
on the 31st of October.
No, the devil is very real,
and his influence
in the world
is very real.
Scripture calls him
the god of this world,
the prince,
or the ruler
of this world.
Meaning that he presides over
and he leads the world's rebellion
against God.
Now, while we must
take him seriously,
we must also remember
that he is primarily
a trickster.
He's a liar.
He's a fraud.
He is an angel,
or he masquerades
as an angel of light.
In fact, the Bible
gives him the title
of deceiver
and father of lies.
in Revelation 12,
verse 9,
he is described as
that ancient serpent
called the devil
or Satan
who leads
the whole world
astray.
So he is chiefly
a trickster.
He tells lies
to people.
And I'm going to suggest
this morning
that one of the things
we need to be careful of
is not to believe
the lies of the devil
who will say
that Halloween
is all just a bit of fun
and fancy dress.
So don't take it
so seriously.
Why are you getting
all excited about it?
It's only pretend.
It's fine.
Now, while we don't want
to over-hype Halloween
and suggest
that all the little kids
who are going to be
knocking on our doors
this evening
looking for sweets
are somehow involved
in a seance
or involved
as a devil's servant,
I think that would be
terribly unhelpful
to think that way.
However,
we do need to be careful
that we don't dismiss it all
as just simply
fun and games.
The mature Christian
will take these things
seriously.
The Apostle Peter
says this in 2 Peter 5
verse 8
Be self-controlled
and alert.
Your enemy,
the devil,
prowls around
like a roaring lion
looking for someone
to devour.
You see,
the ultimate purpose
of the devil
is to disrupt
the work of God
and to distract
people from God.
And one of the ways
he will do this
is to get us to think
that evil and death
and Satan
are not real.
They're all just
made up.
So we must be
on our guard.
So let's have a look
at three things
under the heading
of the devil's trick.
Firstly,
that evil
is real.
History
and our own experience
today
tells us
that evil
is very present
in our world.
But what we don't
always appreciate
is that the devil
stands behind it all.
He is,
if you like,
the chief
instigator
promoting it.
Have a look
at John's gospel,
chapter 8,
verse 42.
John chapter 8,
verse 42.
It's on page 1074.
Now the context
of this
is Jesus
is contrasting
those who are
children of God
and those who are
children of the devil.
And this is what it says,
John 8,
verse 42.
Jesus said to them,
he was speaking
to the religious leaders,
if God were your father,
you would love me,
for I came from God
and now I'm here.
I have not come
on my own,
but he sent me.
Why is my language
not clear to you?
Why don't you understand
what I'm saying?
Because you are
unable to hear
what I say.
You belong
to your father,
the devil,
and you want
to carry out
your father's desires.
He,
the devil,
was a murderer
from the beginning,
not holding
to the truth,
for there is
no truth in him.
When he lies,
he speaks
his native language,
for he is a liar
and the father
of lies.
So in these
couple of verses,
we see that the devil
is described as a murderer
and a liar.
That is his character.
And all those
who do such things
and those who approve
of them
are also children
of the devil
because the people
he was speaking to
were trying to plot
the death of Jesus.
But there's something
else deeper than that.
Murder and lying
is not just a choice
that we make.
It's actually
carrying out,
if you notice carefully,
verse 44,
it is carrying out
the desires
of the devil.
So behind all evil
in this world,
be it the Holocaust
in which more than
six million Jews
were murdered,
or an unnoticed lie
to your friend
in the workplace,
the devil stands
behind it.
We can't blame him,
we are still responsible
for our actions,
but we must also
understand that
our wrong actions
are fulfilling
what the devil wants.
So our choices,
our behavior,
the things that we say,
they're not just
our free choice
to behave and to act
however we want.
It's telling us
very clearly
that we are ruled
by the evil influence
of the devil.
evil.
So evil is
very real.
Well, evil's
not the only thing.
Death is also
very real.
In the Bible,
when it talks about death,
it's not just physical.
It is also something
eternal
and spiritual.
And it is the consequences
of our rebellion
against God.
Have a look here
at Hebrews chapter 2,
verses 14 to 15.
Hebrews 2,
verses 14 to 15.
It's on page 1202.
And the context
in this section here
has been describing
the person of Jesus,
his work,
and how Jesus
defeated death.
So Hebrews chapter 2,
verse 14.
It says,
Since the children,
that's us,
have flesh and blood,
that's how we're made.
It says,
Jesus too
shared in their humanity.
He came into this world
to be like one of us.
So that,
by his death,
he might destroy him
who holds the power of death.
And who's that?
That is,
the devil.
And to free those
who all their lives
were held in slavery
by their fear of death.
Now we all know
that death is something
that happens to us all.
But notice here
that it is attributed
as being under the power
of the devil.
In other words,
his accusations,
his charges against us,
will lead to our death
and our eternal separation
from God.
So without Christ,
without his intervention,
it is telling us
that the whole world
is held in slavery
to the power of death
and under its master,
the devil.
Death is not just the end.
We don't just suddenly
cease to exist.
It is serious.
If we are to die
without Christ,
it is to enter
into an eternity
with the devil.
evil.
So evil is very real
and death
is very real.
And all of this
leads us to the conclusion
that Satan
and his work
is very real
and we ought
to take it seriously.
Have a look at Acts
chapter 13.
Acts chapter 13.
It's on page 1107.
Acts chapter 13
and starting at verse 6
and the context here
is that Paul is on his
first church planting trip
with his buddies
and they arrive on the island
of Cyprus
where they face opposition
from Satan
through a sorcerer.
Now a sorcerer
was somebody
who was involved
in all kinds of things.
They could use
a mix of science.
They could use drugs
and the occult
to try and trick people.
So let's read
from chapter 13
verse 6.
They travelled
through the whole island
until they came
to Paphos.
There they met
a Jewish sorcerer
and false prophet
named Bar-Jesus
who was an attendant
of the proconsul
Sergius Paulus.
The proconsul,
an intelligent man,
sent for Barnabas
and Saul
because he wanted
to hear the word
of God.
But Elymas,
the sorcerer,
for that is what
his name means,
opposed them
and tried to turn
the proconsul
from the faith.
Then Saul,
who was also
called Paul,
filled with the Holy Spirit,
looked straight
at Elymas
and said,
You are a child
of the devil,
an enemy
of everything
that is right.
You are full
of all kinds
of deceit
and trickery.
Will you never
stop perverting
the right ways
of the Lord?
Now the hand
of the Lord
is against you.
You are going
to be blind
and for a time
you will be unable
to see the light
of the sun.
Immediately,
mist and darkness
came over him.
Perhaps the reason
for that was
to symbolize
or the imagery
of the darkness
of his life
and the way
he was following.
Immediately,
mist and darkness
came over him
and he groped
about seeking
someone to lead
him by the hand.
When the proconsul
saw what had happened,
he believed,
for he was amazed
at the teaching
about the Lord.
You see,
it's not that
Satan is not real,
but that he is real
and therefore
we do need
to take him seriously.
Like Elymas,
people can
and they do
interact with Satan.
I don't believe
that people can speak
directly to the dead,
but I do believe
that Satan
can speak acting
as if he were
the dead.
and willing people
as in this case here
can be used
by Satan
to do his specific work.
I'm just reminded
of my brother Philip
when he first came
to Cork
to university
in the flats
where he was living.
He was woken up
one night
to terrible commotion
and terrible noise
upstairs
and he went upstairs
to see
what was going on.
and Ouija boards
or seance
of some description
was happening
and he could feel
the evil.
He could feel
the presence
of it all
and he rang up
Ted Kelly
who was his pastor
who came round
and to pray
for Philip
for the people
who were in that situation.
So it does happen.
It is very real
and we shouldn't
take it lightly.
So Halloween
I suggest
is not something
to be passed off
as just fun
and fancy dress.
While there is
much innocent fun
involved
there is a more
sinister side.
And behind it
stands the work
of the devil
who wants to
disrupt the work
of God
and distract
people from God.
And he will use
all that he can
including Halloween
to trick people
into believing
that evil
and death
and Satan
are not real.
Samhain
and his evil spirits
may be a fable
that have been
passed down
through folklore
but the devil
and his schemes
are not
and they must
be taken
seriously.
So his biggest
trick
is to say
to us
it's all
fun and games
it's not real
don't worry
about it.
Now having
said all that
as we think
about what
I've called
the saviour's
treat
having said
all of that
we must be
careful that
we don't make
Halloween into
something that
it is not.
I don't believe
that every kid
and everybody
who's going to be
collecting sweets
or buying pumpkins
or anything else
is involved
in kind of
satanic behaviour
but we must
also be careful
not to make
the devil
into something
that he is not.
Sometimes we can
think that
behind the scenes
in this world
in which we live
there's a big battle
between good and evil
a little bit like
Gandalf
and Saruman
in Lord of the Rings
and we're all wondering
who's going to win.
No we must
never give
the devil a position
and a power
that he doesn't have.
The message of the Bible
is very clear
that the devil
is a defeated enemy
and he has no more power
than God allows him.
Perhaps
the most famous incident
is when he comes
to Job
and it is God
who allows
the devil
to come to Job
in the way
that he does.
In fact
the whole purpose
of Jesus Christ
coming into the world
was to defeat him
and to destroy
his works.
That comes in
1 John 3
verse 8.
But for us
let's have a look
at Mark's Gospel
chapter 1.
Mark's Gospel
chapter 1.
Now no sooner
does Mark
introduce us
to the coming
of Jesus
and his ministry
and immediately
after Jesus
is baptized
we see that
Jesus is confronted
personally
by Satan
himself.
Chapter 1
verse 12
it says
that once
the Spirit
sent Jesus
out into the desert
and he was
in the desert
for 40 days
being tempted
by Satan.
Now we know
that Satan's
purpose
through the
temptation
was to
distract
Jesus
from his
task
and what
he came
to do.
But having
failed to
distract
Jesus
does go
on to
make very
clear
what he
has come
to do.
Flick over
to Mark's
Gospel
chapter 3
verse 22.
Mark's
Gospel
chapter 3
verse 22.
And the
context here
is that
Jesus
has been
driving out
demons
from people
and the
religious
leaders
think that
because
Jesus
is driving
out
demons
that
Jesus
must be
some
kind
of
evil
spirit
himself.
So
Mark
chapter 3
verse 22.
And the
teachers of
the law
who came
down from
Jerusalem
said
he
that
Jesus
is possessed
by Beelzebub
that's another
name for
Satan.
By the
prince of
demons
he is
driving
out
demons.
So
Jesus
called
them
and spoke
to them
in parables.
How can
Satan
drive out
Satan?
If a
kingdom
is divided
against
itself
that
kingdom
cannot
stand.
In the
same way
if a
house
is divided
against
itself
that
house
cannot
stand.
And
if
Satan
opposes
himself
and is
divided
he
cannot
stand
his end
has
come.
In
fact
no one
can enter
a strong
man's
house
and carry
off his
possessions
unless he
first ties
up the
strong
man.
Then
he can
rob his
house.
Now
pay close
attention to
verse 27
because Jesus
here is
stating his
mission.
Jesus
is saying
that he
is the
true
strong
man.
that he
is the
one who
has come
into the
world
to tie
up
Satan.
To
free
people
from his
influence
and
captivity.
To
carry
off his
possessions.
As we
saw earlier
in John's
gospel we
are all
born
captive
to
Satan.
We
are all
his
children.
But
Jesus
has come
to release
us from
his
power.
So that
we can
be
his
children.
Jesus
has come
to release
us from
the grip
and the
fear of
death and
to give
us life.
He's come
to bind
Satan so
that he
can release
us to
bring us
into his
family.
And as
we will
see Satan
can't stop
the mission
or the
ministry
of Jesus.
So very
quickly we'll
look at three
things here.
Jesus'
authority
over evil.
As Jesus
begins his
work he
makes his
mark in
the world
by destroying
evil spirits
and demons.
So back to
Mark chapter
1 and
verse 23.
We see this
throughout all
the gospels
that there's a
strong emphasis
on the way
in which he
deals with
demons and
evil spirits.
Verse 23 of
chapter 1.
And just
then a man
in their
synagogue
who was
possessed by
an evil
spirit cried
out,
What do
you want
with us
Jesus of
Nazareth?
Have you
come to
destroy us?
I know
who you
are,
the Holy
One of
God.
Be quiet,
said Jesus
sternly.
Come out
of him.
The evil
spirit shook
the man
violently and
came out
of him
with a
shriek.
The people
were all
so amazed
that they
asked each
other,
What is
this?
A new
teaching?
And with
authority?
He even
gives orders
to evil
spirits and
they obey
him.
You see,
the powers
of evil,
as powerful
as they
may be,
are actually
submissive to
the powers
of Jesus.
They know
who Jesus
is,
they know
his name,
they know
what he
has come
to do,
that he's
come to
destroy
them,
and they
are afraid
of Jesus.
So Jesus
does have
authority
over evil,
and not
only that,
he has
authority
over death.
Look at
Mark's
Gospel
chapter 5.
This is
the story
of Jairus'
daughter.
They had
come initially
to Jesus
to tell him
that Jairus'
daughter was
dying,
and on
his way,
verse 35,
we read
that while
Jesus was
still speaking,
some men
came from
the house
of Jairus,
the synagogue
ruler.
Your
daughter
is dead,
they said.
Why bother
the teacher
anymore?
Verse 39,
he went
in and
he said
to them,
why all
this commotion
and wailing?
The child
is not
dead,
but asleep.
But they
laughed at
him.
After he
put them
all out,
he took
the child's
father and
mother and
the disciples
who were
with him,
and he
went in
where the
child was.
He took
her by
the hand
and said
to her,
Talitha
Coom,
which means
little girl,
I say to
you,
get up.
Immediately
the girl
stood up
and walked
around.
She was
twelve
years old.
At this
they were
completely
astonished.
death to
Jesus
was just
like waking
somebody up
from their
sleep.
In an early
morning,
just giving
them a tap
and they
wake up.
That's what
it's like
for Jesus.
He has
the supreme
power.
But that
was only
the beginning
because throughout
the rest of
Mark's gospel,
Jesus repeatedly
says that
he himself
must be
killed.
And after
three days,
he's going
to rise
again.
So when
Jesus does
die,
his disciples
go looking
for him
in the
tomb.
Look at
Mark's
gospel,
chapter 16.
Mark's
gospel,
chapter 16,
verse 5.
So the
story of
Jairus'
daughter was
only a
little picture,
a little
cameo,
of a
greater
victory over
death,
Jesus'
resurrection
from the
dead.
And in
verse 5
of chapter
16,
it says,
as they
entered the
tomb,
they saw
a young
man dressed
in his
white robe
sitting on
his right
side,
an angel,
and they
were alarmed.
Don't be
alarmed,
he said.
You are
looking for
Jesus the
Nazarene,
who was
crucified.
He died.
He has
risen.
He is not
here.
See,
look,
have a look
around the
tomb.
Search all
you like.
you won't
find him.
So,
Jesus rose
from the
grave,
defeating
death,
and the
promise is
that everybody
who believes
in him
will also
live.
Or as we
read in
Hebrews
chapter 2,
he destroys
him who
holds the
power of
death,
and he
takes away
our fear.
So,
he has
authority
over evil
and over
death.
And this
all points
to the
fact that
Jesus
ultimately
has
authority
over
Satan.
Have a
look here
at
Colossians
chapter 2
verse 13.
Colossians
chapter 2.
And that's
on page
1183.
Colossians
chapter 2.
We're
looking at
all these
different
passages
because
there's
no one
place
where it
deals
with all
of these
things
together.
Now,
Jesus'
authority
over
Satan
is seen
supremely
when Jesus
died on
the cross.
We're going
to pick
it up
in the
middle
of verse
13
of chapter
2,
where it
says,
God made
you alive.
So,
we'll read
from there.
God made
you alive
with Christ.
He forgave
us all
our sins,
having
cancelled
the
written
code
with its
regulations,
that was
against us
and that
stood
opposed
to us.
He took
it away,
nailing it
to the
cross.
And having
disarmed
the powers
and authorities,
that's a
reference to
Satan and
his angels,
having disarmed
the powers
and authorities,
he made a
public spectacle
of them,
triumphing
over them
by the
cross.
Now,
for people
looking at
Jesus'
death at
a local
and a
physical
level,
Jesus,
the man,
just simply
died.
But on a
cosmic and
a spiritual
level,
Jesus'
death was
the once
and for
all defeat
of Satan.
Behind the
cross,
or if you
like,
at the
cross,
there was
an invisible
battle taking
place,
a battle
that Jesus
fights in
our place,
a battle
that sees
our release
secured
and Satan
disarmed.
Let's have a
look at those
two issues,
our release
secured and
Satan disarmed.
Look at
verse 14,
as Jesus
died,
he was
suffering the
execution for
you and
for me.
As it says
at the beginning
of verse 14,
Jesus cancelled
the written
code.
It's telling
us that he
took the
death sentence
that you
and I
deserve for
our rebellion
against him.
What was
against us?
Verse 14,
Jesus took
it away,
nailing it
to the
cross.
He paid
the penalty.
He became
the death
penalty for
us,
so that we
don't have to
die for our
rebellion.
Because we
had sided
with the
devil.
Jesus has
secured
our release.
But that's
not all.
As Jesus
died, he
also defeated
Satan.
The power
that Satan
had over us
to condemn
us and to
point at us
and say,
have you seen
the way
they've messed
up, the way
they sinned,
the way they've
done all these
wrong things?
The penalty
for sin is
death.
They deserve
to be sentenced
and to be
killed.
Well, that
power to
condemn has
been completely
taken away.
Look at
verse 15,
the beginning.
It says,
he has
disarmed
the powers
and authorities.
So Satan
can no longer
threaten us
with death
and separation
from God.
He may try
to.
He may tell
us all kinds
of lies that
were just not
good enough
for God.
but as we've
been saying,
he's a trickster.
He has no
power.
In fact,
Jesus' death
was a cosmic
victory.
He made,
look at the
end of verse
15,
he made a
public spectacle
of them.
Here were the
forces of evil
thinking that
they were
getting rid
of the
Messiah,
Jesus Christ.
But he
turned that
event into
a public
spectacle for
the whole
world to see
that Christ
in the
weakness,
even in
death itself,
was triumphing
over them
by the
cross.
So Satan
has been
disarmed.
So Halloween
reminds us,
I think,
of the trick
of Satan,
but it also
reminds us
of the
Saviour's
treat,
that Jesus
is the
supreme power
and authority.
When we
submit to
Christ and
trust in
his death,
the power
and the
influence of
Satan is
broken.
We are
set free.
As we were
thinking about
the pumpkin
earlier,
he transforms
us from the
inside,
he takes
all the
mess,
takes all
the sin,
deals with
it all,
and he
replaces it
with his
light,
so that we
can shine
for him.
So finally
then,
how are we
to celebrate
Halloween?
Maybe you've
already made
your plans,
and you've
already set
your mind
very firmly
what we're
going to
do.
Well,
this is what
I think.
I'm not
going to
tell you
what to
do,
as far as
trick-or-treating
goes.
That's up to
you,
and your
mum and
dad,
and it's
not the
place of
this church
to tell
you either
whether you
should trick-or-treat,
or anything
else.
I think we've
looked at enough
to say what
we need to be
careful of.
but let me
suggest two
things in
which I
think we
can positively
engage with
Halloween.
Firstly,
if your
parents here,
or even
older people
and you do
talk to
others,
engage with
your children.
Halloween is
actually an
ideal time to
talk about
big issues,
like evil,
and death,
and Satan.
When was the
last time you
had a conversation
about those
things with
your kids?
Now's your
opportunity.
Find out what
they know about
it, and more
importantly, what
the Bible teaches.
We've looked at a
whole range of
things in the
Bible this
morning.
They need to
know about the
devil, who he
is and what he
does, because
people will say
he doesn't exist,
he's not real.
We also need to
prepare them for
the devil's tricks.
Remember what we
read in Ephesians,
the armour of God,
finally, be strong
in the Lord and
in his mighty
power.
Put on the
full armour of
God so that
you can stand
against the
devil's schemes.
But don't
stop there.
This is the
opportunity for
us to talk
about Jesus
Christ, his
victory over
evil and over
death and over
Satan.
Tell them about
how Jesus has
come to set us
free from the
devil's influence.
Tell them that
Jesus has come to
deal with death,
so we don't need
to fear it.
It's not good
enough to try and
hide our kids
from it and
lock them inside
for the night and
pretend it's not
happening.
We should talk to
them and tell them
everything about it
so that they can
better understand
and even engage
with their own
friends in school
and what they did
over the weekend
and what they
think.
So engage with
your children and
then secondly,
engage with the
world itself.
For a long time,
and I think we as
Christians struggle
with this,
that we've taken
the attitude very
often, not just at
Halloween, but in
all kinds of
different ways, we
retreat, don't we,
and we hide from
the world.
But that was never
God's intention.
We're not to be a
little holy huddle who
are stuck away and
don't relate to
everybody else.
It tells us very
clearly we are to be
in the world, but
not of it.
In other words, we
are to engage with
the world.
We are to be an
influence for good.
What's the point of
having a pumpkin
light if you hide it
in your house?
And what's the
point in us being
lights if we're
shut away?
We are to be
influences for good.
We are to penetrate.
We are to be out
there.
And please don't
take that that I'm
saying that you have
to be involved in
trick or treat.
I've said that.
That's up to you
what you do.
Now, what have we
done?
Let me just give a
couple of examples.
In the past, we've
welcomed kids to the
door.
We've given them
their goodies and
their sweeties and
maybe even a bun as
well.
And we use these
little books here.
Halloween, it's a
scream.
We didn't give them
to the kids, but we
gave them to the
parents if they came
with parents.
So you can engage
with kids.
You don't have to
put a sign up on
your door and say,
no sweeties in here,
go away.
You can offer
something good.
I sent a link
around earlier on,
a couple of weeks
ago, which was sent
on to me very
helpfully, and it
told about one
family who had set
up a hot chocolate
stand outside their
house.
And they had lots
of goodies, and they
were engaging with
their neighbours and
also giving out little
books as well.
So there's a whole
host of different
ways, and I
encourage us to
engage with the
world and to think
about it.
remember what it
said at the end of
the armour of God
section?
It finishes with a
prayer, and the
prayer was this, that
whenever I open my
mouth, words will be
given me so that I
will fearlessly make
known the mystery of
the gospel.
In other words, when
we put the armour of
God on, we don't put
armour on so that we
can retreat.
People who go out to
battle don't put the
armour on and then
run away.
They put the armour on
because they're going
out into the battle.
They are going out to
engage.
Which reminds us again
that we are to engage
sensibly, reasonably,
intelligently with the
world in which we live.
But we can be strong as
we engage with the
world.
So, this morning, let me
encourage you to
remember and take
seriously the trick of
Satan.
Evil is real, death is
real, the devil himself
is very real.
But let us remember the
treat of the Saviour,
that he has conquered
all evil, he rules over
death, we do not need to
fear the grave, and he has
the power and authority
over Satan.
We can stand strong if we
are trusting in him, that
we can be his people.
So, enjoy your day and
enjoy your evening in
whatever you may do.
Let's pray.
Our Father God, we thank you
so much for the clarity of
your word telling us all
about the world in which we
live in big ideas.
That there is a world full of
darkness.
There is a world in which the
devil does roam, where he
does influence.
Help us to take this
seriously.
But help us to celebrate
and to live in the victory
of Jesus Christ and all that
he has done.
We celebrate this morning
the wonderful rescue that
when we trust you we are
brought from a kingdom of
darkness into a kingdom of
light.
we are transferred from being
children of the devil to
being children of God.
We are taken from fear of
death, where we welcome and
look forward to an eternity
with you.
We thank you for Jesus.
I pray for every family
represented here, for all of
the children.
Please help them to
understand these things that
are going on over the
weekend.
Help them to engage with it.
If they belong to you, that
you would make them strong.
To stand firm.
To have a reason for the hope
that they have.
To have a different way of
looking at Halloween.
We pray for those who do not
yet love you.
That they would be challenged
afresh to put their hope in
Jesus.
I pray for all of the parents
that you would help them to
make good and wise decisions.
Not just today, but throughout
all of their lives.
As we seek to bring up our
children in a way that honors
you.
Help us to engage with the
world, not just on a day or a
night like tonight, but throughout
the year.
Help us to be relevant.
Help us not to run away and
hide, but to engage.
To equip ourselves with your
armor.
That we may take our stand.
And when we stand firm, to hold
out the light of Christ.
We ask these things in Jesus'
name.
Amen.
Well, if you want to discuss or
talk further about any of these
things, if it's probed any
questions, be delighted to talk
with you further.
Amen.