QUESTION:
Gal.4:10 — Paul telling the Galatians not to observe days and events etc. There are some in the Mid-Acts Grace circles that intimate that we should not celebrate our birthdays, as neither Jesus nor Paul did. What is your take on this?
MY REPLY:
Paul writes to the Galatians: “Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain” (Gal.4:10–11). The context of this passage is critical. Paul is not addressing personal celebrations such as birthdays or anniversaries. His concern is that the Galatians were returning to religious observances tied to the Mosaic law and pagan calendars — feast days, sabbaths, ritual cycles, and annual observances that were being treated as necessary for righteousness. In doing so, they were undermining the sufficiency of Christ’s finished work. The issue here is legalism, not personal joy or cultural custom.
Some within Mid-Acts circles argue that because Jesus and Paul did not celebrate birthdays, we should not either. They claim that observing birthdays is unbiblical, pointing to Gal.4:10 as a supposed prohibition. But this claim is built on inference rather than Scripture. Silence is not prohibition. The fact that Scripture does not record Jesus or Paul celebrating birthdays does not mean they were forbidden. Many personal details of their lives are simply not included in the biblical record. To build doctrine on silence is to fabricate truth.
Paul’s concern in Galatians was doctrinal, not cultural. He never condemned personal milestones; his warnings were against religious bondage. This is confirmed by his teaching in Rom.14:5: “One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.” Here Paul shows liberty in how believers treat days, provided it is not tied to righteousness before God. The principle is clear: if a day is esteemed as a matter of faith or law, it is error; if a day is esteemed as a matter of liberty, it is permissible.
Rightly divided, the truth is this: Gal.4:10 is about law observance, not birthdays. Observing feast days as a means of righteousness is error; celebrating a birthday as a family custom is liberty. Birthdays are cultural, not doctrinal. They are not part of Israel’s law, nor part of Paul’s mystery program. Grace allows liberty, and as long as birthdays are not turned into idolatry or superstition, they fall under the category of personal choice.
The danger Paul warns against is fabricating righteousness through days and observances. When believers elevate cultural customs into spiritual requirements, they fall into the same trap as the Galatians. But enjoying a birthday as a reminder of life, family, and God’s grace is not contrary to Pauline doctrine. The rightly divided answer is clear: birthdays are not forbidden. Gal.4:10 warns against religious bondage, not personal celebration. In grace, we have liberty to esteem or not esteem a day — but never to make it a matter of righteousness.
Credit to Dennis for the question. 👍
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