Many of you love to measure your progress. You can measure your progress in so many areas of your life. Tools are available to measure your Body Mass Index where you assess your body fat. You can measure your carbon footprint so to know your impact upon the climate. Athletes will measure the size of their biceps. You can even monitor your social media influence over the Internet. Yet, few Christians have a significant handle on how to measure their spiritual maturity. How do I measure myself in terms of my growth as a believer? Time-lapse photography will allow you to see physical growth over a span of years. But there are no photographs that can show you your spiritual growth.
I want to speak to you about forming some great spiritual habits. These habits are called spiritual disciplines. These personal habits that shape and focus your life. I want to serve as a catalyst for your personal spiritual growth by specifically speaking to you about prayer and fasting.
Find Matthew 6 with me and I’ll be there in just a moment. First, let me offer three quick hitters if you will before we get to Matthew 6.
1. Three Stages of Your Growth
I want you to understand the stages of your personal spiritual growth. Watch carefully how the Bible frames the Christian life.
1.1 Your Growth Begins at Salvation
In 1998, 8,000 college students were survey in a nationwide research project known as QuEST. One question presented students with the following scenario: “Your best friend comes to you and says, ‘I want to become a Christian, but I don’t know how.’ What would you tell your friend?” Assume your friend wants you to answer the question and not to be sent to a pastor or minister. The most common response suggested going to church or encouraging some religious practice. Only fourteen percent of the students interviewed, mentioned Jesus in their answer.
Like Monopoly, you cannot collect your $200 without passing “Go.” You cannot grow spiritually unless you have been born spiritually. In one of the most famous conversations known to history, Jesus says three times, “Unless you are born again, you cannot enter the kingdom of God. Unless you are born again, you cannot enter the kingdom of God.” Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5). Now, remember who Jesus is speaking to during this conversation. He’s a member of the Jewish ruling council, the Sanhedrin, a man named Nicodemus. Right away we know several things about him. First of all, it means he’s old - you didn’t get up there unless you were an older man. Secondly, he’s rich. Third, he’s learned. The Sanhedrin were teachers. Jesus says, “You are Israel’s teacher …” and that’s actually a technical term. In effect, Jesus is saying, “You have a PhD from an Ivy League school. You are a Scripture scholar. You are one of the accredited establishment. You are the cultural elite.”
Jesus says everyone must be born again. The new birth isn’t just for drug addicts, convicts, and gamblers. Nicodemus is the very opposite of a “broken-down” person. Here is a man who’s so religious, he makes sure he tithes off even his birthday gifts! Jesus is coming to a very good person, an incredibly moral person, and says, “You have to go back to the beginning. You have to start at day one.” You must be born again. You must trust in death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.
Again, you cannot grow spiritually unless you have been born spiritually: “And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:11). There are three stages to your life in Christ: Justification, Sanctification, and Glorification. Justification is a synonym of salvation or conversion. There’s a new spiritual power in our lives that breaks the habits of sin: “No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God” (1 John 3:9).
1.2 Your Growth Increases Throughout Life
Sanctification is a gradual process after your conversion where you become more and more like Jesus. This growth toward Jesus moves you further from sin in your life: “Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13-14)
Let’s take a moment to understand the difference between salvation and sanctification. You’re looking at a chart that comes from the work of Wayne Grudem.
Growth takes discipline and work from you: “Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness” (1 Timothy 4:7)
1.3 Your Growth Will be Completed at Your Death (or When the Lord Returns)
“Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23)
You will not even have a desire for sin. We don’t fully appreciate how good this feeling is going to be: “But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb's book of life.” (Revelation 21:27)
Think about the difference between the Bible and the Roman Catholic Church here. In the Roman Catholic Church, there’s no glorification and even after death, they go to purgatory for further sanctification.
Now your Growth is Never Completed in this Life: “Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” (Matthew 6:11-12)
Your Growth Begins at Salvation
Your Growth Increases Throughout Life
Your Growth Will be Completed at Your Death (or When the Lord Returns)
1. Three Stages of Growth
2. How You Grow
Most of us want to see dramatic breakthroughs of personal and spiritual growth.
We want to wake up one day to see that we have left our superficiality behind. Yet, spiritual growth doesn’t happen this way. Spiritual growth happens through “little advances” through the spiritual habits.
2.1 God’s Role
The Holy Spirit fuels your growth: “according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you” (1 Peter 1:2). The Holy Spirit is a sin-killing power in your life.
2.2 Your Role
“Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:12-13).
All your work toward growing spiritually happens because of the resources God gives you: “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near” (Hebrews 10:24-25).
God has designed your growth to happen through spiritual disciples such as Bible study, prayer & fasting, and attending worship regularly. The New Testament does not suggest any shortcuts by which we can grow, but simply encourages us repeatedly to give ourselves to the time-honored means of Bible reading and meditation, prayer, worship, witnessing, Christian fellowship, and self-discipline or self-control.
1. Three Stages of Growth
2. How You Grow
3. Why You Want to Grow
3.1 You Desire to Please God
You are motivated to grow because you want to please your Heavenly Father. Jesus, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments” (John 14:15). John Newton, the slave-trader who became a pastor following his conversion to Christ and wrote such hymns as “Amazing Grace,” illustrates obedient service as follows:
If two angels were to receive at the same moment a commission from God, one to go down and rule earth’s grandest empire, the other to go and sweep the streets of its meanest village, it would be a matter of entire indifference to each which service fell to his lot, the post of ruler or the post of scavenger; for the meanest village, it would be a matter of entire indifference to each which service fell to his lot, the post of ruler or the post of scavenger; for the joy of the angels lies only in obedience to God’s will.
I invite you to look at Matthew 6:16–18 with me, page 1031 in your pew Bibles.
Today’s Passage
“And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 17 But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18 that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you” (Matthew 6:16–18).
I want to speak to you about the Importance of Prayer and Fasting by sharing with you 3 reasons why you should consider prayer and fasting.
1. Fast Because Jesus is Gone
I think it is noteworthy that to carefully reread Jesus’ words here: “And when you fast…” (Matthew 6:16a). Jesus expects his followers to fast. Does that surprise you? I wonder how many of us have fasted in our lifetimes?
Fasting is the pushing back from some form of physical gratification, for a short time, in order to achieve a greater spiritual goal. Fasting is not just focused on food. Instead, fasting is about the appetite. Fasting is about focusing on the Lord. Fasting could just as easily pointed to the finger that controls the remote control that controls your life. Fasting is about pushing back from anything that is a substitute for God. Fasting is about focusing on the Lord.
But for the moment, turn to Matthew 9:14-15 or page 1034 in your pew Bible.
“Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, ‘Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?’ 15 And Jesus said to them, ‘Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.” (Matthew 9:14-15)
The reason why you should fast is the same reason why Jesus’ Disciples didn’t fast. Jesus’ disciples didn’t fast when they were with Him. Why? Because Jesus Himself says, “I am the bridegroom.” He is Jesus, the Messiah. And generations have longed to see Him. God has taken Jesus away until the Second Coming. And any and every believer should fast because of a “homesickness” for our Savior.
Fasting is akin to the soldier who savors his wife’s letters while he is away at war on a foreign field. His physical appetite is threatened by a stronger hunger. Fasting is the yielding to a higher hunger.
Some of you maybe spiritually dry (ask for a show of hands of people who’ve experienced this). There are times when reading and worship is simply drudgery for you. Fasting is a time when we hunger for Jesus Christ. Jesus is gone but many of us don’t miss Him. Why? Because we’re love with other things.
Remember Jesus told a story about the kind of things that kept people from His feast at the end of days. Jesus said it was a piece of land, farm animals, and wife that kept people away (Luke 14:18-20). Fasting delivers us from the danger of being mastered by other things.
Pleasures such as TV-watching and Internet-surfing…
… gardening…
… reading and decorating…
… and traveling and investing.
1. Fast Because Jesus is Gone
2. Pray & Fast When You’re Faced with Big Decisions
Our second purpose to both pray and fast is when we are facing big decisions. Consider fasting and praying for big decisions: “While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ 3 Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off” (Acts 13:2–3).
Our church calls for an annual 24 hour fast in early November for our mission partners around the globe. We set aside time to pray for our mission partners in Brooklyn, Vancouver, SE Asia, and India. We do this because they live in spiritually dark places and we’re earnest in asking the Lord to add to the number of disciples in these places.
Now, there’s a long history behind spiritual leaders who have fasted during times of crisis and big decisions. Let me offer you a few examples from biblical history. Moses fasted and prayer for 40 days when he prayed concerning the nation of Israel’s sin (Deuteronomy 9:9, 18, 25-29; 10:10). Queen Esther of Persia called for fasting and prayer when she faced a big decision: “Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai, 16 ‘Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish’” (Esther 4:15-16). The prophet Elijah fasted as he fled from the wicked queen, Jezebel (1 Kings 19:7-18). Nehemiah fasted when he learned the walls around Jerusalem were broken and the city had no security. (Nehemiah 1:4–2:10). When Jonah came preaching his “turn or burn” message, the people of Nineveh fasted as they heard God’s message (Jonah 3). And when Paul encountered the Lord on the road to Damascus, he fasted for three days as a result (Acts 9:9).
Big decisions in your life could be selling some property or even buying some. You should consider fasting and prayer when choosing your lifelong marriage partner. Consider fasting when you seek the Holy Spirit’s power in influencing others. When your child is running from Christ, consider combining fasting with praying.
1. Fast Because Jesus is Gone
2. Pray & Fast When You’re Faced with Big Decisions
3. Fasting is a Weapon of War
Here is our third purpose, fasting is a weapon of war: “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 And the tempter came and said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.’ 4 But he answered, “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:1-4).
Since the body can normally not function without water no longer than three days, we assume Jesus drank water during His fast. Satan tempts Jesus in the wilderness to use his power to do what God did, make manna. Everything God had planned for eternity hung on Jesus’ success here – E V E R Y T H I N G. And when so much was at stake, our Savior sought to depend on the Lord. He did not fight Satan alone, he grabbed time-honored weapons of warfare: prayer, fasting, and the Word of God.
The Pages Are Blank
Former Mission Board President, Jerry Rankin, tells about two university students who were studying English with a missionary couple. They enjoyed practicing their English skills with Americans when given the opportunity. Yet, when Rankin’s wife transitioned the conversation over to talk about Jesus Christ, one of the two students began to be uncomfortable. He quickly darted out the door when the conversation moved to Jesus Christ. This young man had previously made a pact with a local witch doctor in order to obtain relief from his abusive father. As the missionary couple talked about Christ with the young man, they got him a Bible so he could read the Word of God. When he looked at the Bible he said, “But there are no words. The pages are blank.” Although the words were on the pages, he keep saying, there were no words for his eyes to see.
Fasting is aimed to cultivate a hunger for God but fasting is also aimed as tool of spiritual warfare to fend out Satan’s temptations. I read sad statistics about the number of children leaving the Faith once they leave their parents home. There’s way too much wrong with this world for you to discredit the work of the archenemy, Satan. I love Romans 16:20: “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you” (Romans 16:20). Yes, I cannot wait for that day! But until then, we must fight. Fasting and prayer are two powerful tools to fight evil in your life. We need to seek the Lord seriously and pursue Him with the habits God has designed for us.
