31 October 2007 Devotion for Today “Trusted” Ephesians 1:12-13
Tonight is the night of the great masquerade called in our country “Halloween.” It’s a holiday based on darkness and upon death. I don’t necessarily approve of it because of its pagan origins, but I have changed my tune about participating in the humor and fun of it all. I remember how I used to preach and hyperventilate against Halloween, as though people really listened to what I said. I sometimes regret not having allowed my children to participate in trick or treating- much to the disappointment of my parents. Because when I was a kid I used to have the best time at Halloween, dressing up and going to parties, bobbing for apples, and filling my bag with candy going door to door visiting good neighbors.. It’s a tradition that I never remember having a bad experience with. It brought the community together in an age of innocent fun. Only very rarely did we ever hear of someone poisoning candy or putting a razor blade inside a piece of fruit. Back in the 1960s, no one that I remembered dressed as a “skank or a pimp” for Halloween, either. I don’t ever remember anyone talking about the pagan origins of “trick or treat,” etc. or stealing someone’s virgin daughter away in the night to set fire to them in a giant wicker-basket. While it is true that the night of Hallows Eve fell roughly at the same time of the Irish pagan celebration of Samhain, Trick or Treating is largely an American tradition- something we invented at the turn of the last century and have made popular over the years, combining and Americanizing the English celebration of Guy Fawkes Day (bonfires and candy on November 5) and the European celebrations of St. Martins Day (Dress up and going door to door asking for treats on November 11) which are prevalent in those countries at this time of year.
At my church, as do many churches, we have seized back the holiday and call it a harvest party where we can invite un-churched neighbors and friends and show them that Christians can have fun without all the scary, evil attachments to the tradition of Halloween. But back to the dressing up part of it. We don’t like the scary costumes because of the association with the dark side of Halloween. Dressing up on the outside never really hurt anybody, but what does hurt, and damage us is how we masquerade on the inside. We put on masks all the time to cover over our deceit and our treachery. We paint over lies and hide all the hypocrisy. What is even worse is that while we go to such great lengths to hide our sins from others, God knows who we are, and can see right through it. God knows us instantly. When we hide behind the masks we break down trust and expose more than we realize. That is the scary part- whether we believe in celebrating Halloween or not!
In Ephesians 1:12-13 Paul gives us a word about trust when he says:
“That we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise.”
Paul’s word for the day is trust. Unfortunately, the older I get the more difficult it is for me to do it. If you have ever been disappointed by the good faith you have had in people shattered by their deception then you can identify with my feelings this morning. But Paul is not talking about trusting people, but trusting Christ. People are reluctant to trust in someone they have never seen, but we trust in people whom we can see all the time and have had our trust shattered. Unlike the rest of us, Jesus has never abused the trust of anyone. And even though we cannot see His face, we can see Him in the hearts of those who are living in Him, and in those whom the Holy Spirit has sealed for all eternity. They have no masks to wear, nor do they need to. You can see them, warts and all and know that you can trust a person who doesn’t mind all the warts and imperfections showing through because of Jesus who radiates His truth, glowing from the inside.
Which is scarier, the masks which we wear on the outside, or the ones which we wear on the inside? May the Lord Jesus Christ plant His seed of truth within you that you may not only trust Him, but that others will see that trust, and want to trust in Him because of it.
Have a blessed day!
Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com
jcrussell@liberty.edu
Church website: http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday
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