Did you celebrate Easter? If you did, hopefully, you did so with the resurrection of Jesus in mind. However, “Did you celebrate Easter?” is not the most critical question we must answer regarding the holiday. Consider these: Is a Christian required to celebrate Easter to be faithful? Furthermore, Does God permit churches to celebrate Easter as part of their faith?
Question 1: Is a Christian required to celebrate Easter to be faithful? No. There is no Scripture that requires a Christian to celebrate any holiday, save the Sunday worship gathering, as part of their faith in God. This absence of a requirement means no person has the authority to force any Christian to celebrate Easter at all.
Question 2: Does God permit church congregations to celebrate Easter as part of their faith? No. There is no authority from God for any church congregation to establish or perpetuate any holiday as part of their faith in God.
These questions concern the authority God has given to the church through His Word. He has neither required nor permitted the addition of any holiday as part of the Christian faith, whether that holiday is Easter, Christmas, or my birthday. Such an additional requirement would fall under the categorical condemnation found in Galatians 1:9.
However, God has permitted Christians to celebrate holidays privately, even religious ones, in passages like Romans 14:5-6. In this passage, Christians are allowed the choice of privately celebrating or ignoring such holidays, according to their conscience. Christians are forbidden, however, from forcing any holiday celebration on their brethren, even within the same congregation, by Romans 14:4, 10.
Churches that celebrate Easter as a required religious holiday have gone beyond the authority of God on this matter. If they desire to be His people, they must cease the practice and return to His Word.