Today is Guy Fawkes Day.

Today marks the anniversary of the Gunpowder Plot, a conspiracy to blow up the English Parliament and King James I in 1605. On November 5, King James was to open Parliament. But the conspiracy came to light when a mysterious letter was sent to Lord Monteagle, urging him not to attend Parliament on opening day.

When the contents of the letter were brought to the attention of others in Parliament, an extensive search of the House of Lords was conducted. In the cellar underneath the building, 36 barrels of gunpowder that were overlaid with iron bars and firewood were discovered. Guy Fawkes, one of the conspirators, was arrested when he entered the cellar.

Guy Fawkes Day—the remembrance of the failure to blow up Parliament—is still celebrated in Britain today with fireworks and bonfires on which effigies of the conspirators are burned.

Seems strange doesn’t it, to have a holiday marking the failure of something? Usually we celebrate victories like the Fourth of July.

When the Roman and Jewish leaders nailed Jesus to the cross, they thought they had gotten rid of Jesus and his radical ideas for good. Little did they expect what was to happen three days later when Jesus left the tomb. Not only was Jesus alive, but his followers were energized and empowered to spread the gospel.

Easter marks the failure of men to defeat Jesus—and ultimately the failure of Satan to defeat God’s plan to offer salvation to all people who accept forgiveness of their sins through Jesus. Satan must have been dancing on that dark Friday afternoon, but it was God who did the ultimate victory dance.

Victory in failure? You bet!

But now in a single victorious stroke of Life, all three—sin, guilt, death—are gone, the gift of our Master, Jesus Christ. Thank God! (1 Corinthians 15:57, The Message).

To Do

Celebrate Satan’s failure today by thanking God for the great victory at the cross when Jesus defeated sin, guilt, and death.

Also on this day

1872—Susan B. Anthony was fined $100 for attempting to vote in the presidential election. She never paid the fine.

1935—The game Monopoly® was introduced by Parker Brothers Company.

1940—President Franklin D. Roosevelt won an unprecedented third term in office.

From Betsy Schmitt and Dave Veerman, 365 Trivia Twist Devotions: An Almanac of Fun Facts and Spiritual Truth for Every Day of the Year (Cincinnati: Standard, 2005). Scripture quotations are from the New Living Translation unless otherwise noted.