Harmless Halloween Fun? Paranormal and Persecution
Ponderings - Purity 875
Purity 875 10/29/2022 Purity 875 Podcast
Good morning,
Today’s photo of a multicolored October Sky comes to
us from Rocco Saya the man behind Celestial
Blue Photography, (https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100069048257152),
who shared this scene from Oswego NY back on October 23rd reporting
that he hadn’t picked up his camera in two weeks due to his “massive preparations
for Halloween” but that he took a break for the sunset and was rewarded with a “perfect
way to end the day in fall.”
Rocco truly has pulled out all the stops in
decorating his home for Halloween and if you are in Oswego area in the evening
hours you can stop by 157 E 9th Street to see it for the next week,
but he suggests stopping by on Halloween night because he will be synchronizing
music with the light show as his way of saying: Happy Halloween. If you aren’t near the shores of Lake Ontario
and want to see a preview of what Rocco has done there is a link (https://fb.watch/gsErl-8ksW/) to a post
on the Celestial Blue Photography page on the blog today that provides a video
of Mr. Saya’s Halloween Decorating Triumph.
Well it is Saturday of Halloween weekend, and it is
my prayer that we all have a good and SAFE weekend, I know that Halloween is
not until Monday but I am sure that won’t stop many a Halloween custom party
from happening between now and then and I know from my past, that mischievous youth
may take to the streets tonight or tomorrow to wreak havoc in their communities
with acts of destruction or vandalism. I
also know that the bars will be profiting off of and encouraging its patrons to
lose their inhibitions and to drink deep and to make some wicked connections with
the safety of masked anonymity.
As much as Halloween can be considered to be just “harmless”
fun for our youth with costumes and trick or treating, this celebration of all
things spooky really is revealed as a dark holiday by its rebellious, destructive,
and licentious spirit that condones mischievous pranks, tricks, fantasy, and
overindulgences in the sins of the flesh.
But beyond these evidences that can easily be seen
there are the spiritual forces of darkness that are unseen but remain very real
that delight in our society turning toward the darkness in the name of fun and
which actively seek to steal, kill, and destroy.
As my attempt to share the truth that the Bible declares
about the “paranormal” aspects of life, I am sharing an excerpt from Freedom in
Christ’s Ministries blog from this week called: Halloween: The Paranormal (https://blog.ficm.org/blog/halloween-the-paranormal). FICM USA’s board member Dr. Jonathan Carol continues
his second installment regarding Halloween by writing:
“So what is the paranormal?
Should I be scared? Is it real, or is it all fake and pretend?
Some
paranormal “occurrences” are nothing but fraudulent hoaxes. Yet some paranormal
activities are very real and spiritually significant.
1
John 4:1 “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the
spirits to see whether they are from God” (ESV)
Are
ghosts real? Can my dead relatives come back to talk to me? What about familiar
spirits and spirit guides? Can a place be haunted? Is it wrong to talk to or
hunt ghosts? Is it wrong to go to haunted houses?
Any
real “ghost” sightings or hauntings are actually disguised demons trying to
gain your attention and affection. They either want you to 1) be afraid of
their powers, 2) be self-confident in your abilities, or 3) be distracted from
God by being absorbed into whatever experience they are presenting. Avoid the
temptations of these experiences and flee from their evil.
2
Corinthians 11:14 “even Satan disguises himself
as an angel of light”
What’s
the one sure-fire thing I can do to survive paranormal attacks?
(FYI: Don’t miss this!)
Real
“paranormal” activities and beings are clearly demonic when they fail to
accurately point to Jesus and His biblical truth, love, and righteousness. The
only way to survive such paranormal attacks is by repenting of sin and being
born again with saving faith in Jesus Christ.
Christians,
if you ever come under paranormal/demonic attack, there is only one strategy
for success. Don’t try to fight these spiritual battles in your own power, seek
Jesus and His truth. Repent from sin. Walk in righteousness. Renew your mind
with His truth (Romans 12:1-3) and “take every thought captive to obey Christ”
(2 Corinthians 10:5).
James
4:7–8 “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the
devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to
you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you
double-minded.”
"Study
Satan’s tricks, and acquaint yourself with his tactics." William Gurnall
What
is evil? What is good? How can I know what is true and what is false? Which is
the best book on this topic? Who is the best person to talk to on this topic?
There
is a spiritual battle raging around us between the followers of Christ against
the unseen spiritual forces of evil (Ephesians 6:12). Although many authors and
books seek to describe this warfare, the best place to start and finish is in
the Bible. If you are a Christian, the Bible is your weapon as a “sword of the
Spirit” who is within you. Don’t go unarmed into battle, cite the Scripture
with your lips and with your life.
Ephesians
6:16–17 “In all circumstances take up…the sword of the
Spirit, which is the word of God”
"Do
not pretend you want to be led into truth if you will not bother to study the
whole Word of God." William Gurnall
Is it
ok to watch paranormal movies and TV shows? Read books and blogs? Is there any
harm in Zombies? Pokémon? Cartoon witches? Avatars? Vampires? Werewolves?
Should Christians “celebrate” Halloween?
Sometimes
we face complicated decisions that are best left up to Christian conscious. We
should study God’s Word, evaluate our motivations, consider the potential
impact on our Christian obedience and witness, and prayerfully seek the Holy
Spirit’s guidance.
If a
Christian finds peace about participating in Halloween activities, they must
use wisdom. Many faithful Christians have a clear conscience about
participating in certain Halloween activities by taking with precautions about
their destinations, costumes, and behaviors. Some believers see Halloween as a
wonderful witnessing opportunity in which their neighbors and strangers will
visit their homes or community outreach events (Galatians 5:13 and 1 Peter
2:16).
1
Corinthians 10:23–24 “All things are lawful,” but
not all things are helpful. ‘All things are lawful,’ but not all things build
up. Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor.”
What
if I am just a “normal Christian”? Does this subject really affect me? Am I
safe from all of this paranormal and demonic stuff? How can I prepare for
future attacks (spiritual, mental, marriage, etc.)? How can I live with ongoing
struggles and suffering? What if Satan doesn’t leave me alone?
The
lessons of Halloween carry over throughout the year. Everyday we all face
spiritual battles where “we do not wrestle with flesh and blood” (Ephesians
6:10-20). We must daily prepare as we go into spiritual battle. As we mature in
our faith, our perspective and passions may change or grow regarding the
details of Halloween. May we seek to use our Christian freedom in ways that
honor Jesus and share His light with a dark and dying world. May we live with
joy in our salvation and move forward with bold courage against Satan and his
demons!
Luke
10:17 “The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, ‘Lord,
even the demons are subject to us in your name!’”
For more about spiritual warfare in the early church,
summaries of some of Neil Anderson’s most important works, or A Bible reading plan for 2023, Dr. Carl
invites us to www.spiritualwarfare.blog/free-books for some
of his free e-books and writings on the various subjects regarding our faith
and spiritual warfare.
So tonight as I will be volunteering at the last
installment of Operation Adopt a Soldier’s Harvest Festival and Haunted Hayride
at Gaven Park in Wilton NY, probably as a bouncer for the “bouncy house”, I will be sure to encourage everyone I
encounter to be kind to one another and to be safe in their celebrations and if
I get the chance I will remind them that the darkness, no matter how prominent
it may seem around Halloween or in our culture, has been defeated in the person
of Jesus Christ on the cross and I will tell them that they can participate in
that victory by putting their faith in Him and by continually walking and talking
with God.
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Today’s Bible verse comes to us from “The NLT Bible
Promise Book for Men”.
This morning’s meditation verse is:
2 Corinthians 4:9 (NLT2)
9 We are hunted down, but
never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed.
Today’s Bible verse reminds us that our Christian faith may not
always be a bed of roses and that we may be knocked down from time to time in
our walk of faith but it assures us that no matter whether we are hunted down,
we are not abandoned by God and even if we get knocked down, we are not
destroyed.
Hunted down? Yup, in the Bonhoeffer’s Discipleship Lesson I
presented the other night, the German theologian warned of a time of coming
persecution and while we in the relatively safe confines of the US may say we
don’t see it, an article on Forbes (https://www.forbes.com/sites/ewelinaochab/2022/01/20/one-in-seven-christian-minorities-under-threat-in-2022/?sh=58e956a77d2d)
states that:
“According to the research, the persecution of Christians has
reached the highest levels since the World Watch List began nearly 30 years
ago. “Across 76 countries, more than 360 million Christians suffer high levels
of persecution and discrimination for their faith – an increase of 20 million
since last year.” 312 million Christians live in the top 50 countries alone.
One in every seven Christians live under at least high levels of persecution or
discrimination for their faith.”
“An increase of 20 million since last year”! So although we in the US are mostly only
socially ostracized and encouraged to remain silent in our faith by our Post
Christian culture, other Christians in the world aren’t waiting for the persecution
to come, it’s already here and it is apparently increasing at an alarming rate.
And this is being reported by Forbes, not exactly some right wing reporting
agency trying to disseminate Christian propaganda. So as we move forward, we
need to really know who we are in Christ and know the truth of today’s
verse.
We may be hunted down someday because we are Christians. We may be
knocked down because of our faith in Christ. But we will never be abandoned by
God and we will never be destroyed.
But that only applies to those in Christ: Jesus said in
Matthew 10:28-33 (NKJV)
28 And do not fear those who
kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to
destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are
not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the
ground apart from your Father's will.
30 But the very hairs of your
head are all numbered. 31 Do
not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.
32 "Therefore whoever
confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in
heaven.
33 But whoever denies Me
before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.
So take courage and comfort if you have made Christ your Lord and
Savior because in Him we are safe, we are never abandoned, and we are never destroyed.
But don’t just rest in your safety, let those you know who aren’t
Christians learn the truth: that they need Jesus, and encourage them to seek
the safety, acceptance, security, and significance that is found in Christ alone.
___________________________________________
As always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.org where I
always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to
assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.
Today we continue sharing from Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s
“Discipleship”, also known as “The Cost of Discipleship”
As always, I share this information for educational
purposes and encourage all to purchase Bonhoeffer’s books for your own
private study and to support his work. This resource is available on
many websites for less than $20.00.
The
Sermon on the Mount
Matthew
5
On
the “Extraordinary” of Christian Life
The Enemy—the “Extraordinary”
“You
have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your
enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies; bless those who curse you, do good
to those who hate you, and pray for those who abuse and persecute you, so that
you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the
evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.
For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the
tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers and sisters,
what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Be
perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matt. 5:43–48).
This is the point in
the Sermon on the Mount where we encounter for the first time the word which
summarizes everything in it: love. Immediately it is put into the clear-cut
context of love for our enemies. Loving one’s kindred is a commandment that
could be misunderstood. Loving enemies makes unmistakably clear what Jesus
intends.
“Enemy” was no empty
concept for the disciples. They knew it well. They met enemies daily. There
were those who cursed them as destroyers of the faith and lawbreakers; there
were those who hated them because they had left everything for Jesus’ sake and
did not highly value anything but communion with him; there were those who
insulted and scorned them for their weakness and humility; there were those who
persecuted them, who feared a growing revolutionary danger in the group of
disciples and were intent on destroying them. One kind of enemy were the
representatives of a people’s piety, who could not tolerate Jesus’ claim to
exclusive and complete loyalty. They were armed with power and respect. Another
enemy, which would be apparent to every Jew, was the political enemy in Rome.
The Jews experienced powerful oppression from that enemy.[133] In
addition to these two inimical groups, there was all the personal enmity which
anyone encounters who does not participate in the norms of the majority: daily
defamation, humiliation, and threats.
To be sure, nowhere
in the Old Testament is there a statement which commands us to hate our
enemies. On the contrary, we find the commandment to love our enemies (Exod.
23:4f.; Prov. 25:21f.; Gen. 45:1ff.; 1 Sam. 24:7; 2 Kings 6:22; and elsewhere).
But Jesus is speaking here, not of natural enmity, but of the enmity of God’s
people against the world. Israel’s wars were the only “holy” wars[135]
the world has ever known. They were God’s wars against the world of idols.
Jesus does not condemn that enmity, otherwise he would have to condemn God’s
entire history with God’s own people. Instead, Jesus affirms the Old Covenant.
His only concern is to overcome enemies, to achieve victory for God’s
community. But in this command, once again he released his community of
disciples from the political form of the people of Israel. As a result, there
will be no more wars of faith. God promised that we would gain victory over our
enemies precisely by loving them.
Loving one’s enemies
is not only an unbearable offense to the natural person. It demands more than
the strength a natural person can muster, and it offends the natural concept of
good and evil. But even more important, loving one’s enemies appears to people
living according to the law to be a sin against God’s law itself. Separation
from enemies and condemning them is what the law demands. But Jesus takes God’s
law into his hands and interprets it. To overcome enemies by loving them—that
is God’s will which is contained in the law.[1]
---------------------------more
tomorrow------------------------
Join our “Victory over the Darkness”, “The Bondage
Breaker”, "Freedom in Christ" series of Discipleship Classes via the
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Podbean (https://feed.podbean.com/tammalyn78/feed.xml)
Encouragement
for the Path of Christian Discipleship
[1]
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Discipleship,
ed. Martin Kuske et al., trans. Barbara Green and Reinhard Krauss, vol. 4,
Dietrich Bonhoeffer Works (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2003), 137–139.