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At the end of this month, most children will find themselves asking their neighbors a simple question: "Trick or treat?" A simple question that brings us back to our own childhood with memories and thoughts of the past, our favorite childhood candy, costumes, and community. We all know lightheartedly that come October 31, no one is actually asking that as a question. We all expect to receive the treat (after sharing a joke or two). But underneath that lighthearted expectation is a deeper and more challenging reality that we face far more often than once a year. Is this real, or is it a trick? Is what I’m being offered true, or is it designed to deceive me? The problem with a lie is that it rarely announces itself as a lie. A lie wants to look like the truth. That's why the devil's lies can be so powerful. When Satan's deceptions and distortions of the very things that are genuine and true begin to take effect in us, around us, or among us, we can feel shaken to the very core.
Long before candy and costumes, a certain German monk wrestled long and hard with the deceptions, lies, and even assaults the devil afflicted onto him. Tormented and beaten down by the shame of his sin and feelings of guilt, “In virtual despair of ever being reconciled with God," it would seem that he would have been an unlikely champion of the truth. Yet as you and I know, it is precisely the least likely of us that God can use in big ways.
On All Hallow’s Eve, "Out of love for the truth and from desire to illuminate it…" [95 Theses] that German monk began to expose the tricks the devil had been pulling, even in the church itself. What began on October 31, 1517, would eventually lead Martin Luther to the one thing that the devil can never prevail over. The Word, Thy Strong Word of God Alone. Abiding in that Word, Luther's heart would, in the years to come, connect to what he had read and memorized for so many years. He would discover the truth of the Gospel (Rom. 1:16–17), and that Good News would set him free from the shame, guilt, and feeble attempts to prove he was good enough for God (Eph. 2:8–9). It’s as if that Jesus knew what He was talking about when He addressed the Pharisees (John 8:31–32). As disciples of Christ, you and I reflect on what Luther, the apostles, and the church have clung to for over 2000 years — the One who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6).
It is not always easy, comfortable, or popular to hold on to the truth. But it is unshakable. What is true does not become untrue simply because it is questioned or challenged. That’s why Paul can say, "Afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed." We want people to see what we see, understand what we mean, and recognize what we know to be genuine. But Scripture reminds us that there is One who sees far deeper than anyone else can. God knows what is in our hearts. He knows our motives, our genuineness, our struggles, our failures, and our faith. Do not be afraid of the truth, and do not be ashamed of the Gospel's promise. That promise is not some sort of trick, but the delightful treat freely handed out to those who are children of their heavenly Father.
When the devil whispers his tricks, return to the truth. Remember that God knows your heart; He redeemed you after all. When you are knocked down, remember that you are not forsaken. Abide in the Word, be true disciples, trust the truth, and let the Gospel set you free. Let God handle the rest — the devil doesn’t win — and remain unshaken.
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