“AND WHEN YOU FAST” Matthew 6:16-18
FBCF – 10/18/20
Jon Daniels
INTRO – Fasting is all the rage these days. Typed “fasting” into Google. Didn’t find anything related to any type of Christian fasting until I got to the 8th page. Tons of websites dedicated to intermittent fasting for weight loss, physical health & fitness, the medical science behind fasting, & other non-spiritual fasts.
Fasting is the tool we are taking out of “My Spiritual Growth Toolbox” today, & it may be the most unused tool in the box.
- Maybe you’ve never fasted
- Never really thought about it
- Thought about it, but just don’t want to
- Thought about it, but don’t understand why it’s needed
Let’s be honest: Fasting is not a real popular spiritual discipline, but it’s one that we see practiced by God’s people all throughout the Bible – OT & NT.
- Mentioned over 70 times in Scripture
- Joel 1:14 – “Declare a holy fast; call a sacred assembly. Summon the elders & all who live in the land to the house of the Lord your God, & cry out to the Lord.”
- Ezra 8:23 – Ezra needed God’s protection. “…we fasted & petitioned our God about this, & He answered our prayer.”
- Nehemiah 1:4 – “When I heard these things, I sat down & wept. For some days I mourned & fasted & prayed before the God of heaven.”
- Jesus fasted for 40 days & nights – Matthew 4:2
- Acts 13:2-3 – “While they were worshiping the Lord & fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas & Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ Then after fasting & praying they laid their hands on them & sent them off.”
Website – pic of Bible in the middle of a dinner plate. Good illus of what fasting is all about: going w/out physical food so we can feast on the Spiritual food that we need for a healthy walk w/ Christ.
EXPLANATION – Matthew 6:16-18
Sermon on the Mount – Most famous sermon Jesus gave – maybe most famous sermon ANYONE has ever given. Covers several different topics that are important in the life of the Christ-follower. Practical teaching. Powerful teaching. Pertinent teaching for the Christ-follower. But to sum it up in one sentence: “How to live a life that is dedicated to & pleasing to God, free from hypocrisy, full of love & grace, full of wisdom & discernment.” (https://www.gotquestions.org/sermon-on-the-mount.html)
Right in the middle of this sermon, Jesus addresses 3 spiritual disciplines – that every Christ-follower should be practicing. First 2 are probably a little more accepted by most Christians – Giving & praying.
- Giving – Matthew 6:2-4
- Praying – Matthew 6:5-13
But then Jesus brings up the issue of fasting. Fasting
- Matthew 6:16-18
And just like the disciplines of giving & praying, fasting is a WHEN, not IF discipline.
APPLICATION – Christ-followers should practice the discipline of fasting as an expression of our neediness of Jesus.
FASTING IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO – It’s God’s idea.
Even though it’s not an exclusively Christian practice (Muslims are required to fast during Ramadan), it is certainly a practice that God has made available for His children to move them further down the road of maturity in their walk w/ Him. As we’ve already seen, fasting was practiced & is taught all throughout the Bible.
- It is a normal practice for Christians.
- Jesus expected that His followers would do it.
o Matthew 9:14-15 – John the Baptist’s followers came to Jesus & asked Him why His disciples didn’t fast like they & the Pharisees did. Jesus answered them & said, “Do wedding guests mourn while celebrating w/ the groom? Of course not. But someday the groom will be taken away from them, & then they will fast.”
o Jesus was saying that there was no reason for His disciples to fast b/c He is the Bridegroom & was still w/ them. But when He was gone back into heaven, THEN they would fast as they looked forward to His return.
o That’s US! WE are the followers of Jesus who are looking forward to the Day that He comes back for us. So WE are the ones who are supposed to be fasting in preparation for that awesome event!
o Sandi Patti – “We shall behold Him – Face to face in all of His glory!”
THE RIGHT WAY TO FAST – How do you fast? Is there a right way & a wrong way to do it?
Let’s get practical for a minute: Fasting, by definition, is normally fasting from food for a period of time in order to focus on the Lord in a more intense & intentional kind of way.
- “Fasting in the biblical sense is choosing not to partake of food because your spiritual hunger is so deep, your determination in intercession so intense, or your spiritual warfare so demanding that you have temporarily set aside even fleshly needs to give yourself to prayer and meditation.” (Wesley Duewel)
Doesn’t have to be food.
- Fast from social media is good
Questions:
- What you are going to fast from?
- How long are you going to fast?
- Total fast or partial fast?
- Alone or with others?
o It’s OK to tell others you’re fasting as long as it’s not in a bragging way.
o Accountability while fasting is good sometimes.
THE RIGHT REASON TO FAST – 2 lumberjacks – older & younger. Younger proud of his ability to cut down trees at a fast rate. Challenged older to tree-cutting contest. Younger cut nonstop all day. Older would cut for 1 hour then take 15-min rest. At end of day, older had cut down 1/3 more trees. “How?” Older said, “When I sat down to rest, I sharpened my axe.”
Many of us working hard to do right & live right, but w/ dull axes & wonder why trees aren’t falling.
- Make resolutions, but fail to follow through a month later.
- Rededicate our lives, but quickly fall right back into sin patterns.
- Fasting is one of the means that God uses to sharpen our axes.
- “I am convinced that when God’s people fast with a proper biblical motive — seeking God’s face, not His hand — with a broken, repentant and contrite spirit, God will hear from heaven. He will heal our lives, our churches, our communities, our nation and our world.” (Bill Bright)
Biblical pattern of fasting shows us that fasting occurred when there was a need for a spiritual breakthrough due to the burdens of life. Burdens could be:
- Ongoing battle w/ a specific besetting sin – need to repent
- A serious decision that needs to be made that will affect direction of your life or your family’s life
- Burden for a loved one who is sick
- Burden for a friend or family member who is unsaved or is saved but not walking w/ the Lord – in rebellion, or struggling w/ their own faith & belief in God
- Burden that you are just not where you need to be in your walk w/ Christ
- Burden for a revival in our hearts, in the Church
- Burden due to ongoing spiritual warfare
Any of these could be the reason that you feel led by God to fast.
- We don’t fast to impress others.
- We don’t fast to get all our prayers answered. It’s not an automatic, prayer-answering mechanism.
o No teaching that says, “If you’ll fast, God will answer.” Can’t manipulate God.
- We fast for biblical, God-centered purposes.
- We are not seeking something from His hand. We are seeking His face in worship, commitment, & devotion.
THE RIGHT TIME TO FAST – The right time to fast is any time that you have a biblical, God-centered purpose that drives you to fast & pray.
- They go hand-in-hand.
- Piper – “Fasting is an intensifier of prayer.”
The right time to fast is the time when your prayers need to be intensified. I believe for many of us, that time is right now.
CONCLUSION – Questions to ask:
- Is there something or someone in my life that needs serious prayer attention?
- Is God worthy of my sacrificing my personal desires in order to draw closer to Him?
- Is there some area of my life that I’ve allowed to get out of control?
