Question: Am I against something? Or am I for something?

Some years ago, my family decided that we will not celebrate Halloween. This was because I had discovered that Halloween was the most holy day of another present-day religion (Wicca), one that had a very different worldview than Christianity.

But it is not enough to simply be against things. There is no vibrancy of the Divine life when we simply say no. Yes, the Bible does instruct us to resist, to die, and so on. But it is invariably followed up with a greater pursuit, a resounding resurrection life, and so on.

So anytime I stand against something, I must also seek out and identify what I am passionately for. True Divine strength only comes when my heart is captivated by the opportunity to advance the Kingdom of God BEYOND all my opposition to sin. This is how we bring God glory.

So while it is good to fearlessly stand against anything that I find dishonors Christ (e.g. celebrating pagan festivals), my focus and energy should be on positively advancing the kingdom and glory of God - in that stance.

 

Culture cries out for Halloween. Christ cries out for Hallelujahs

How is the kingdom of God advanced in our stand against Halloween? It is when we joyously sing the Divine Yes of “Hallelujah” far louder than all our Nos to Halloween.

Hallelujah means “Praise the Lord”. Christians are to be a people of fervent praise, with heads lifted up, treasuring Jesus. Some Christians say or sing Hallelujah as a blind ritual or habit. They are just wasting their breath as there is nothing supernatural about the word “Hallelujah”! 

Just like a light bulb needs electricity to shine, our Hallelujah only has power if accompanied by Divine authority. The devil is not particularly disturbed that we stand against Halloween. And he won’t be overly disturbed if we simply voice our displeasure with darkness. The devil only trembles when our “Hallelujah” is proclaimed with authentic authority.

So how do we that? In Revelation 19:1-2, I see three “switches” that we can turn on, so that the electricity of the Holy Spirit flows through our beings to shine the light of a living “Hallelujah”.

 

1. The authority of “Hallelujah” comes as we renew our pledge for purity

Revelation 19:2a – He has judged the great harlot who was corrupting the earth with her immorality

The greatest revival that I can think of in the Bible where the new Ephesians believers brought and destroyed literally MILLIONS OF DOLLARS worth of witchcraft and black magic (Acts 19:19). We can have a similar spiritual revival if we do the same in the arena of immorality. So let’s examine our eyes and kindle a fresh pure light in our eyes -and let us (both men and women) fight against all sources of sexual temptation. 

  • Take a fresh sword to the trashy romantic novels
  • Guard what we watch – whether R or PG13 or anything else – where immorality is trivialized. 
  • Doubly guard what we click on – on the internet and our phones and other devices. 
  • Live with one another in purity in the way we speak and dress 
  • Stand against all flirtatiousness in our eyes, in our speech, and in our joking.
  • Guard our ears for the music that leads us into temptation.
  • Protect our children from normalizing and trivializing gender differences.

The past doesn’t matter. We can start afresh today. We can forget what lies behind and press forward now – hearing the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. If we make the decision now in sincerity and seriousness, we can immediately begin to sing Hallelujah with authority.

 

2. The authority of Hallelujah comes as we cherish those who were killed for the gospel

Revelation 19:2b – HE HAS AVENGED THE BLOOD OF HIS BOND-SERVANTS ON HER.” 

It is very big deal to Jesus when we stand firm for Him, even if it means physical death. The blood of God’s bond-servants is a precious thing to God.

Over the centuries, millions of faithful saints have been unwilling to compromise God’s standards and have been killed for the truth. God will avenge the blood of His saints that was spilled. Every last drop of blood that was shed by every single martyr for the Lord Jesus will be avenged. Avenge is a strong word, but we don’t back down from that – because God tells us that this is how seriously God takes their sacrifice.

So let our Hallelujah be a sober reminder of the price that was paid – by the Captain of our Salvation to begin with, but also the many, many other saints over the years. Let us cherish their stories, let us teach it to our children, and let us make them our heroes – much more than the inventors and CEOs and billionaires. Let us seek to have the same heart as those who were martyred for the faith.

As Revelation 12:10-11 says, we all overcome the devil by the blood of the Lamb (that He shed for us), by our testimony (e.g. that we fight immorality), and by not loving our lives even when faced with death. So we too can fix our eyes on the Kingdom of God and not on this earth (John 18:36; Hebrews 11:16). Revelation 2:10 – Prove yourself to be faithful until death (or, even if it means death), and I will give you the crown of life.

 

3. The authority of Hallelujah is the light of Jesus

Revelation 19:1 – “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God.

Here is the apex of our Hallelujah: Salvation and glory and power belongs to our God.

It can be easy for some of us to relish messages that condemn the growing corruption in the world and maybe in the church. And there is something in our fleshly religiosity that enjoys the cursing of the darkness of Babylon, and even rejoicing in the destruction of Babylon. But this is not the ultimate focus of heaven.

The primary and ultimate focus of the Divine Hallelujah pulsing from heaven is the beauty and majesty of the light of Jesus. All the true and righteous judgments of God on Babylon is the necessary expulsion of darkness – but they are all the precursors to the crowning triumph – where the glory of God illuminates the city with the lamp of Jesus (Revelation 21:22-23).

3a) Fight the good (right) fight: Being the Light of Jesus

Our end goal is not standing against the darkness around us. The bright light of Jesus (His life, His love, His compassion, His holiness) shining through us is our goal. We win our fight against the devil and the kingdom of darkness by simply being as bright a light as possible. That’s it!

Is the devil real and powerful? Yes indeed, and he is also on the prowl to devour us. So will he succeed in devouring the serious and sincere Christian and taking them with him to hell? He’d love to, but I don’t think he will succeed in that for many. But if the devil can get us to somehow fall short of being a bright light that is ablaze for Jesus, then in a way, he has won.

Here are some of the ways the devil can get us to fall short of being a bright light for Jesus:

  • Trying to win against human beings: We don’t ever fight against any friend in school or family member or coworker or institution. Our fight is not against flesh and blood (Ephesians 6:12). So we also don’t have any interest in proving a point, or winning any argument against any human being.
  • Trying to win against the world system: Our fight is not against the world system; the god of this world is the devil, and Jesus has already defeated him. Our job is to remain crucified to the world, and the world to us (Galatians 6:14). 
  • Trying to win against sin? Yes we want to win against sin, but that’s just a partial answer. Babylon destroyed simply leaves us with a vacuum. It needs to be filled with something. So also, the removal of sin leaves us with a vacuum that must be filled. 

The vacuum and darkness can only be filled by the light of the resurrected and glorified Jesus. 

3b) The resurrected and glorified Jesus is our Light

We live amidst a culture that overwhelmingly craves Halloween, and makes it so, so attractive to the children. We can be tempted to cower and feel insecure. But we must learn the arithmetic of heaven: If God is with us, we are an immediate majority (Romans 8:31), and we overwhelmingly conquer (Romans 8:37).

But what is our confident proof of this? Here it is, in the middle of those two verses:

Romans 8:34 – who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.

Paul starts to tell us that the Christ who died would surely never condemn us. But it’s almost like he stops himself and says, “Oh wait, Christ crucified is not the ultimate triumph. RATHER, it is that Jesus was raised from the dead and is raised to sit at the right hand of God Himself!”

There have been many God-fearing and wise men. There are many spiritual people across various religions. But we must never forget that Jesus Christ is the only Person who ever conquered death for all eternity. The only One! Ever!

So the unique light of Jesus (that shines after all human light has faded) is manifested in His resurrection and His eternal glory as God (even after becoming a man). 

We win when we place our sole reliance and firm confidence in the risen Jesus (1 John 5:4). As we subjugate and surrender every other ambition, the light of Jesus shines through.

That is our unshakeable confidence and source of eternal Light!

 

Conclusion:

  • I want my voice against Halloween be drowned out by the authoritative shout of our Hallelujah
  • As I sing Hallelujah, I am renewing my pledge for purity and against every form of immorality
  • As I sing Hallelujah, I am cherishing those whose blood was shed for the gospel.
  • As I sing Hallelujah, I am seeking to shine the light of the resurrected and glorified Jesus.

May God help me and us.