What do we do with Halloween?

Every October this question comes up:

How are Christians to relate to our culture with regards to Halloween? Are we to shun Halloween, celebrate it, dress up as Bible characters? Hand out gospel tracts to the kids that knock on our door? Turn off our lights and hide in the dark? Further, what do we do with all the OT feasts and celebrations. For example, our Jewish (non-Christian) neighbors are preparing to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles while my Christian friends are buying Halloween costumes. What’s up with that? What are we to do? What is the Christian’s relation to holidays and holy days? Here are a few biblical principles to consider, to help as you navigate this issue for yourself. (Click here for audio of this message.)

1. We are free.

Colossians 2:16-17 says, “Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.”

It’s clear that Christ fulfilled the law, and that all the OT festivals, feasts, and sabbaths are a shadow of Christ. They all speak of Christ. So we are not to let others pass judgment on us for not observing them, because they are just shadows, and the real thing is here now. The wrong isn’t necessarily in celebrating something, the wrong is giving in to the the fear of man and not the fear of God.

2. We are to do all things “in honor of the Lord.”

Romans 14:4-6 says, “Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand. One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each should be fully convinced in his own mind. The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God.”

Again, we read that the command is to “not judge one another!” We often get so concerned in what Christians should or should not do, when the real thing we should be concerned about is not judging! But who are we to judge, if you will? Ourselves. Be “fully convinced in your own mind.” That is, figure out your convictions and stick by them. And what you decide to do, do it “in honor of the Lord.” If you can honestly say that the choice that you make is “ in honor of the Lord,” awesome! Praise God. You stand and fall before Him and no one else.

3. We are to do all things “for the sake of the gospel.”

1 Cor. 9:19-23 explains that Paul became like the Jews to win the Jews to Christ, he became like the Gentiles to win the Gentiles to Christ. Everything he did he did “for the sake of the gospel.” Paul’s guiding principle, with regard to culture, was, Is this the best route to win people to Christ and spread the gospel of grace? The question then, for us to be discerning culturally, is “Am I doing this for the sake of the gospel?”

For our family, our personal conviction is that we don’t celebrate Halloween. Honestly, I hate Halloween. I can truly see no redemptive value in it. Plus, I spent several years discipling a girl who came out of a background of the occult and horrendous witchcraft practices. Knowing, from her, what the “real” Halloween is all about has made me detest the holiday. Plus, since Christ conquered sin and death, we do not celebrate sin or celebrate death.

However, note THIS: It is possible to engage in Halloween festivities for the sake of the gospel and in honoring God. It’s fun to watch my kids engage and wrestle with this as well. When they see our friends with Jack-O-Lanterns or costumes or what not, they will say, “They’re just celebrating Fall, they’re not celebrating death.” I smile and say something like, “Yes–celebrating Fall is great! Let’s thank God for this wonderful season and celebrate His beautiful creation!” Again, It is possible to engage in Halloween festivities for the sake of the gospel and in honoring God.

Also note: It is also possible to celebrate Easter (or Christmas) in a way that doesn’t honor God or further the gospel at all. It is possible to celebrate Passover and the feast of tabernacles, as a family, in a way that celebrates Christ and honors God and furthers the gospel. It is also possible to observe those same things in a spirit of legalism or the fear of man. It is possible to observe certain holidays in a spirit of thinking we’re somehow spiritual superior because we observe them. And it’s possible to NOT observe certain holidays in a spirit of thinking that we’re somehow spiritually superior because we don’t observe them.

The key, as always: the heart.

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{Response: How does your family celebrate or not celebrate in honor of God and for the sake of the gospel? I would love to hear your thoughts and perspective. Thanks, friends, for reading.}