As a child, Halloween was my favorite holiday. I have fond memories of my dad driving me, my brothers, and our friends around town so we could fill trash bags with Snickers and Skittles. Every few blocks or so, he would ask for a bite-sized Snickers bar. It was a small price to pay for chauffeur services considering the car load of sweets we were accumulating.
We lived in the poor part of town, so dad would treat us to trick-or-treating in the “rich” neighborhoods. It paid off, as year after year we ate more candy on Halloween night than any child should be allowed to consume in one sitting. We’d have candy for weeks.
My family did lots of decorating for the holiday, too. We always had a strange fascination with spooky things. Every October, our house was covered with cobwebs, skeletons, and pumpkins with creepy faces.
Our fascination spread far beyond Halloween. I owned a plethora of black Kiss t-shirts which I wore year-round. The shirts complimented my long black hair and my black hooded pullover. It felt as if my family participated in anything dark, slightly creepy, or possessing the ability to make people do a double take. Eyeliner was a thing for a season. I even shaved off my eyebrows in elementary to get a reaction out of my peers.
What Are We Celebrating?
My family is not unique, as far as I know. Many people share a love for Halloween and darkness. Now that I have been walking with the Lord for over a decade, my love for Halloween has greatly waned. I’m concerned about the demonic activity people are welcoming into their home as a result of celebrating the holiday. I’m afraid much of this activity flies under the radar. There are Christians who fail to recognize or believe that “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12).
There really are demonic forces trying to destroy us. So, what are we celebrating?
I was walking around my neighborhood this week and saw several skeletons and severed zombie heads in the yards of my neighbors. I just don’t get it. Are we celebrating death? Death is not a part of God’s plan or design. It is utterly opposed to God’s heart. He created us for life. He intends His people to live forever in peace and with joy and has guaranteed it by sending His Son to die for our sin.
Are we celebrating demons? Demons exist to carry forth the purposes of Satan. Satan’s entire agenda is to kill, steal, and destroy (John 10:10). He wants you dead and separated from anything wholesome for all eternity. Why give a foothold to a being who hates you and wants the worst thing imaginable to become your reality?
As for me and my house, we will not be celebrating Halloween this year or any hereafter.
Opposite Kingdoms
The Bible tells us about two opposing kingdoms. One is a kingdom of light. The other is a kingdom of darkness. Jesus rules and reigns in the first and Satan and his demons control and manipulate the second. These two dominions are very real though often ignored by secular culture.
I mentioned earlier that people don’t recognize or believe in spiritual forces at work in our world. I actually think there is a third group. I think some people don’t care. I meet people regularly who believe in a spiritual realm and have admitted to engaging with ghosts or spirits yet laugh at the idea of Jesus and angels. Somehow, these people live as if they have the final word on matters of spirituality. They toy around with spirituality with seemingly no concern about how it will impact their eternity. Many think, “A little ghost here, a little creepy thing there. No harm, no foul.”
Halloween is not entirely bad. I can name some good things about the holiday. I think meeting neighbors is always a good thing. Trick-or-treating gives us the ability to meet people we’d likely not meet otherwise. Even still, I question the bizarre nature of the holiday and think Christians may be better off avoiding it altogether.
We are children of light who belong to an eternal kingdom. When Paul was warning the Corinthian church against idolatry, he asked, “What fellowship can light have with darkness” (2 Corinthians 6:14)? I second Paul’s question, only I direct it toward Halloween.
Daniel Seabaugh 