5) "But for many Christians, we consider our separation from the rest of society who needs Jesus as a kind of badge of honor, when in reality it's just Christians acting like a bunch of weirdos in the eyes of the very world we're called to reach."
Absurdly illogical arguments. Is Halloween the only day we can evangelize our neighbors? We are not called to reach them with candy but with the Gospel. I know this is lost on Wilson because he ascribes to such false teachings about church to begin with. The church essentially tries to reach the world with candy and passes it off as being evangelical. The problem is when you reach them with candy and carnality then only candy and carnality will keep them. When you reach them with the Gospel, Christ will keep them. As for the weirdos comment, which way is better? That the world sees Christians who behave exactly as they do? That the world sees Christians unwilling to take a stand for anything? The overwhelming reason given by young adults for why they leave the church is that it is no different than the world. Think about how sobering that thought should be to us. Maybe it would be a better thing for the world to see us as a little off from their norm. As a little peculiar. Maybe even a tad weird. Remember the things of God are foolishness to them anyway. Just the fact that we proclaim Christ makes us fools in their eyes and we think by trick or treating with them they will suddenly feel differently? It should be a badge of honor that we consider ourselves separated from a society that is leading people to hell. Wilson actually states here that if you choose to abstain from Halloween then you are not normal like the rest of your neighborhood. Think about that for a second and what it says about what Darren Wilson actually believes in. The unsaved people in the world who dress up their children like all forms of wickedness are the normal ones. The Christians who choose to say no to the carnal world and yes to the Bible are the ones who are not normal.
6) "We're not called to run from Halloween. We're called to redeem it."
No Darren we are not. Nowhere in the Bible does it say we are to redeem anything but the time. That verse means we are to make the most of the time we have to spread the Gospel, not conform to the evils of this world. Once again though, we see the end result of the false teaching Wilson follows. It turns us into God. It is God who redeems us beloved. We do not have the power of redemption within us. You may as well say we are redeeming adultery or fornication by partaking in the very sin. Do you think the world cares if Christians celebrate Halloween? If anything it only furthers their belief that we are hypocrites. To redeem Halloween we would have to be changing it to something holy. Is that what happens when we dress our kids up as ghouls and goblins and do exactly what the world does?
While we are on the subject, there is also no redemption is pretending we are not celebrating Halloween by changing the name. Harvest parties are still celebrating Halloween. Hallelujah parties are the same. Trunk and treat or whatever other ridiculous slick carnal marketing idea can be cooked up in the laboratory of purpose driven, seeker friendly theology will all still result in the same thing. You will be partaking in Halloween. I know to Darren Wilson that doesn't mean anything but it ought to. It really ought to.
Reverend Anthony Wade - October 28, 2015
