Most of us love holidays and festivals – the glitter, the colors, the presents, the special schedules, and of course, the Peanuts TV specials! What is wrong with these things? In principle, absolutely nothing at all. Special days on the calendar give us opportunities to celebrate our lives in particular ways, and half the fun is in the anticipation and preparation.
A point to note is that “holiday” comes from the phrase “holy day.” Many of our fun days we celebrate started as religious observances. For many, that religious connection is real and still relevant.
There’s the rub [problem]. Special days are fine as long as we don’t confuse our calendar with God’s calendar. There are two concerns here. First, in the Old Testament, there were many special days of religious significance that God ordained, such as the Sabbath, Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles, Atonement and others (Leviticus 23; Deuteronomy 16). While the Old Covenant was in force, God expected the Jews to follow such a calendar.
However, now, we are under the New Testament exclusively (Romans 10:4; 2 Corinthians 3:5-6; Colossians 2:13-17). The New Testament has no such calendar, and we are forbidden to create one (1 Corinthians 4:6; Galatians 4:8-11).
So, commands today for the Christian to keep the Sabbath are false. Also, to teach that manmade holidays are to be kept as holy to God, such as Christmas and Easter, is to teach falsely (Colossians 2:20-23). Personal devotion to a particular day is to be kept private and personal (Romans 14:5-6, 22).
What is the conclusion, then? Enjoy each day. Count each day that God gives you as holy to the Lord. Whatever special celebration you wish to practice on a particular day is up to you. Yet, be sure not to confuse your personal calendar with God’s schedule. Beware of any practice that advances false teaching.
