Holy, Hallowed and Halloween

Hallow.  It isn’t a word commonly used today.  When the model prayer of Jesus is repeated, we say, “Hallowed be Thy name” (Matt. 6:9).  More often the word is identified with the last day of October, in which we in the United States refer to Halloween, which means “all Hallow’s Eve.”

The Bible word is actually a form of the word for “sanctify,”” “set apart” or “holy.”  Thirteen times in the Old testament the word “hallowed” is used to speak of God’s name, God’’s Sabbath, or God’s people (Lev 22;32, Ex 20:11, Ezek 20:41).

God’s name is holy. Hallowed. Reverend.  His name is not to be used in vain.  It is not to be used an exclamation mark or shock or surprise as in OMG!

God also has a set apart day.  It’s the first day of the week.  We call it Sunday. In our day it’s easy to forget that Sunday belongs to God and not the NFL!   It is a sanctified day.  A day of worship.  A day of remembrance.  A day of spiritual fellowship.  Hallowed.

And God’s people are to be sanctified, set apart and dedicated to Him.  Christians are called saints. Holy.  And yes hallowed.

In the New Testament the word translated “hallowed” is used 28 times and rendered “sanctify,” “sanctified” and “holy.” Paul  admonished Timothy to be a vessel sanctified and useful for God by pursuing “righteousness, faith, love, [and] peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart” and by avoiding “foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife” (2. 2:21-23).

The Corinthian Christians, some of whom were previously fornicators, idolaters, homosexuals and thieves were “sanctified,” “washed,” and “cleansed.”  They had now become vessels of holiness instead of containers of corruption.  Their lives were set apart.

Halloween is not hallowed in an religious sense by Christians. It is a secular day set apart for children to wear costumes, carry bags from door to door and beg for candy.  But thinking of these little goblins scarfing down their sweet treats can remind us to ask ourselves, “What is filling the vessel of my life?”

Am I drinking at a bitter fountain that leads to foolish disputes, discord, and division?  Or am I imbuing at the sweet stream  that  yields the peaceable fruit righteousness, faith, and love?”  Am I filling my soul with the husks of carnality, or the substance of spirituality?  Am I feeding upon the bread of life?  Or am I like Esau trading my birthright for a mess of pottage that fails to satisfy the soul?

In a culture that often has greater interest in Halloween than in holiness, may we hallow our Lord, set apart His day, and keep our own vessel holy, sanctified and pure.

—Ken Weliever, The Preacherman