Whoever You Are -- A Halloween Message

A Halloween Message

Today is Halloween. It’s a day most people associate with ghosts, zombies, witches, and so forth. As some of you might already know, Halloween has its origin in the pagan Celtic spiritual tradition called Samhain. It was -- and continues to be in some places -- celebrated from October 31 to November 1 to welcome in the harvest and usher in “the dark half of the year.” Celebrants believe that during this time humans have more opportunity to interact with spirits in the so-called, ‘Otherworld.’

As Christianity gained a foothold in pagan communities, church leaders attempted to reframe Samhain as a Christian celebration. 

In the 9th century, Pope Gregory declared that Christians would celebrate All Saints Day on November 1st, and All Souls Day on November 2 -- which, of course, coincided with the pagan celebration of Samhain. 

So, with All Saints Day on November 1, the evening prior was called All Saints Evening, or All Hallows Evening.

Halloween is really a contraction of three words: "All Hallows' Evening." In old English, the word ‘evening’ was often shortened to a poetic “e’en”. And so we get the modern Hallow’een.

One of the definitions of the word ‘hallow’ means, ‘To honor as holy; to consider sacred; to venerate.’ It’s an old word, not usually spoken any longer in the 21st century, and certainly not in the United States. But Christians are most familiar with the word, ‘hallow’ from the Lord’s prayer: “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name.” (Matthew 6:9)

In other words, we are praying, “Lord, Thy name is sacred. It is holy.”

Christians should remember when they’re tempted to invoke the name of God, or of the Son of God, Jesus. God’s NAME should be venerated. It should NEVER be used as a swear-word or as a casual term we throw around in conversation.

Originally All Hallows Evening was set aside in the Church’s liturgical calendar as a time to remember the saints (the ‘hallows’) who have gone before us. And I suggest today is also a day in which we ought to remember the godly men and women in our own lives who influenced us toward faith in Jesus our Lord.

We could spend a college semester and longer looking at the multitudes of men and women throughout Scripture and throughout Church history down to this present hour whom God calls ‘saints.’ But for the sake of the time allotted us today, we will look at only a few from the pages of Scripture. We do this because God tells us through St Paul’s pen: “For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” (Romans 15:4)

And we also want to remember those whom we have known – parents, family members, teachers, pastors and others to who have influenced our lives for Christ. We should do this because, again as Scripture commands us: “Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you; and considering the result of their way of life, imitate their faith.” (Hebrews 13:7)

So, let’s turn our attention now to a few heroes of faith recorded for us in God’s word. In this message we will look briefly at Abraham, the Father of our Faith. We will also look at Rahab the harlot, recorded for us in the Book of Joshua. Then we will briefly look at Ruth the Moabitess, then King David, and finally, the apostles Peter and Paul. By the way, Abraham, Rahab, and David are listed in the Heroes of Faith Hall of Fame of Hebrews chapter 11.

So, first, Abraham. Originally, God called Abraham to Himself from Babylon, the land of the idolatrous Chaldean culture. We find that in Genesis 12:1-3. And so, not knowing where he was going, but only that God told him to go, Abraham left his birthplace, his friends, and most of his family and traveled toward the land to which God had sent him.

Three chapters later, God makes a promise to him and Sarah his wife that they will have a child. Although Sarah was beyond childbearing years, Abraham believed God’s promise – and God counted his faith as righteousness. (Genesis 15:6)

But righteous though he was Abraham, like all of us, had his problems. We discover in the early chapters of Genesis that Abraham was also a coward and a liar who offered his wife – twice – to foreign kings to save his own neck. If God Himself had not intervened, salvation history would have been altered. You can read those details in Genesis 12 and Genesis 20.

Abraham was a man with a sinful nature – just as we have a sinful nature. But God considered the man ‘righteous’ because of his faith. And on this day when we remember the Hallows of Biblical history, listen to what God tells us through St Paul’s pen:

“Without becoming weak in faith, he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah’s womb; yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully assured that what God had promised, He was able also to perform. Therefore, it was also credited to him as righteousness. Now not for his sake only was it written that it was credited to him, but for our sake also, to whom it will be credited, as those who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead,” (Romans 4:19-24)

Let’s now remember another hallowed hero of faith listed in the annals of Scripture: Rahab the harlot.

She and her family lived in Jericho before Joshua’s army invaded the city. Although a foreigner and an idolater, Rahab came by faith to know the God of Israel was the one true God. Here is what she told the spies who’d entered the city for reconnaissance before the invasion: “The Lord your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath” (Joshua 2:11b).

And because of her confession and obedience, the harlot became righteous in God’s sight. Further, it might surprise some of you to know that Rahab the former idolater and harlot was the great-great grandmother of King David. It gets better. She is also in the direct lineage of Jesus the Messiah!

Her faith – which resulted in a change of life and lifestyle – brought her God’s favor and eternal blessing. Just like YOUR faith and my faith resulted in a change of our lives and our lifestyles and brought us God’s favor and eternal blessing.

While we are remembering women of faith, let’s remember Ruth the Moabite. The interesting thing about Ruth is that because of Moab’s sin against Israel, God commanded Moses that Moabites could not enter the assembly of the Lord for ten generations. Yet here she was, less than five generations later, married into the tribe of Judah. Ruth became the great grandmother of King David, and also the direct ancestor of Jesus. But how could that be, considering God’s commandment about Moab?

Well, some backstory is needed here. Naomi and her husband with their two sons emigrated from Israel to the country of Moab after a famine spread across Israel. While living in Moab, Naomi’s two sons married Moabite women, one of whom was Ruth. The other Moabite bride was Orpah.

Then tragedy struck. Naomi’s husband died. Then her two sons died. Destitute and grief stricken, Naomi decided to return to Israel and she urged her two daughters-in-law to return to their families and their gods. Orpah returned, but listen to what Ruth said to Naomi: “Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God.  Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may the Lord do to me, and worse, if anything but death parts you and me.” (Ruth 1:16-17)

Christians remember Ruth, a foreigner, a former idolater, a woman who had no place in God’s kingdom, but who received a place in God’s kingdom because of her faith in the God of that Kingdom. And by God’s grace she too is listed among the ancestors of Jesus, who is God-made-flesh.

For those today who are not part of God’s family, for those who come from families far afield from the faith that brought Abraham, Rahab, and Ruth to the one Triune God – let nothing on this day when we remember the Hallows of Biblical history keep you from remembering God is a God of mercy.

But let’s go on now with another hero – David, the beloved Psalmist and king of Israel, the one of whom God called a man after His own heart (1 Samuel 13:14).

We find his biography recorded in 1 and 2 Samuel. But oh, what a dark chapter there is in his story. This same man, called a man after God’s own heart, the one to whom God promised that from his loins would come a king who would reign forever and ever, this same man was guilty of adultery and of murder in the affair of Bathsheba. You’ll find that salacious scandal recorded in 2 Samuel 11.

And equally important to the story of David’s sin with Bathsheba and her husband Uriah is the commandment God gave Israel through Moses – that being that the Law provided absolutely no recourse for finding forgiveness for such sins. God commanded such men be stoned to death. There was no other alternative available.

And yet, who can understand the mercy of God? Here is the vignette we find in 2 Samuel 12 when God sends Nathan the prophet to rebuke the king: “Thus says the Lord God of Israel, ‘It is I who anointed you king over Israel and it is I who delivered you from the hand of Saul. I also gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your care, and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added to you many more things like these! Why have you despised the word of the Lord by doing evil in His sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword, have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the sons of Ammon . . . .”

Remember, David was King of Israel. At his word people lived and people died. David could have easily commanded his soldiers to kill the prophet and continue to cover up his scandalous behavior with Bethsheba.

But that is not what he did. Instead, he confessed his sins and with great remorse repented before God. We pick up the story in verse 11 of 2 Samuel 12, “Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has taken away your sin; you shall not die. However, because by this deed you have given occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also that is born to you shall surely die.”

We gain a glimpse of that remorse and repentance from the two psalms he wrote in the aftermath of Nathan’s rebuke. Here is a portion of Psalm 32:1-2 “How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered! How blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity.”

And now Psalm 51: “Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your loving-kindness; According to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against You, You only, I have sinned and done what is evil in Your sight,
so that You are justified when You speak and blameless when You judge.”

Let’s now move on again to two others on this All Hallows Eve whose life can inspire us to move forward with Christ, despite our past sins and failures.

First is saint Peter, the one to whom Jesus gave the keys of the kingdom (Matthew 16). It was this same saint who vowed to never deny that he followed Jesus. But you know what happened. At the Lord’s trial, Peter denied three times – even with an oath – that he knew His best friend and Lord.

No wonder Peter went out of the courtyard and wept bitterly over his failure.

But you and I must ever remember what happened after the resurrection and the interchange between Jesus and Peter recorded in the last chapter of John’s gospel. We don’t have time to rehearse the full impact of what happened there as it is given to us in the Greek text, so suffice it to say, Peter’s repentance brought him full pardon. Full pardon. It was to the Lord Jesus as if Peter had never sinned.

 

Finally, before we get to the remembrance of the Lord’s Supper, we must remember one more person who found grace and mercy in the eyes of the Lord—the one we call St. Paul.

 

This man, formerly known as Saul the former religious terrorist, had made it his life’s goal to kill and imprison as many Christians as he could find and bring to Jerusalem for judgment. But you know what happened to him on that road to Damascus. And Saul, his eyes now opened to the truth of his murderous sins, found grace and forgiveness in God’s eyes.

 

Listen! Of what sins have you been guilty? Do any of them rise to the level of Abraham, or Rahab, or Ruth, or David, or Peter, or Paul? Listen to what Paul wrote to his young protégé, Timothy: “It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life.” (1 Timothy 1:15-16)

 

Today is Hallow’ e’en, a day set aside in the Church calendar to remember our godly forbearers who lived lives of faith, and through their faith found mercy with God.

 

Which brings us finally for today to the remembrance Jesus spoke of at the last supper. “And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.” (Luke 22:19-20)

 

What is it that we can remember whenever we come to Holy Communion? In a few words, as I close this message, we can remember this: His body bruised, whipped, bloodied on that Good Friday because of your sin. And mine.

 

Jesus gave Himself over for you and me as our substitutionary sacrifice to pay the penalty God requires of all who sin. Jesus had never sinned. That is why He could become our substitution.

And so, whoever we are, whatever we have done – and how often we’ve done it – Jesus wants us to remember we can find – just as those heroes of faith we looked at in this message – we too can find utter forgiveness and cleansing and welcome at His table.

Whenever you come to the Lord’s Table, Jesus invites you to come, just as you are. Come, just whoever you are. Come with repentant hearts and humble spirits.

 

Come, as He said to wayward Israel through the prophet Isaiah: Every one who thirsts, come to the waters . . . Seek the Lord while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; And let him return to the Lord, and He will have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.” (Isaiah 55:1-6)