So, why fast?

Fasting is putting aside food for a period of time to recognize where our true strength comes from in life.

We absolutely have to have food to survive. God created us this way. God created us with the desire for food.

But fasting is saying that He is the one truly in control our our survival.

Before we get too far, some will say you can also fast from things like social media or electronics. This may be true, but that is more sacrificing to the Lord those things. In God’s word, we see fasting many times and it is always from food. There are many who can not fast on food due to medical issues, and that is TOTALLY alright. Find something that is a NEED in your life and fast from that.

Fasting is a topic that is very dear to me. Our family has had to make some important decision through our life in ministry. We have fasted before each major decision. Now you ask me…why?

There are many traditions and religious aspects of the Jewish culture that I believe the church has forgotten about. Many of these we can benefit from if practiced today. One of these practices is fasting.

As we are going through the BEST. SERMON. EVER. We left off on the last passage on Christ teaching on prayer. It is important to note that these two things go together; prayer and fasting. They are directly correlated with each other.

I used to do fasting together with our youth group in GA. So I messages some of them to ask what that time meant to them. Here are their responses:

“I had a lot of down time to really dive into what I was reading & truly evaluate it where as just skimming through verses. Also prayer time— sooo much time to self reflect on my life & how I could better myself ‘through God’ which would than in return better others around me.

“Fasting helped me to clear my mind of everything going on and actually “listen” to God speaking through his word.”

“The 30 hour fast also helped me focus more on the Lords word and less about the world going on around me. I fasted through the month of January this year and I felt like I could connect with God on a deeper level by turning away from worldly desires. during that month, I felt like I could hear clearer messages from God and further my relationship with him on a deeper level.”

“I would say the 30-hour fast allowed me to truly put aside the desires of my flesh (like wanting to eat sweets lol) and to put my best effort into only concentrating on fellowship / God’s teachings. i personally loved the individual quiet time with our Bibles to learn how to be completely vulnerable in the present of God & focus on feeling the Holy Spirit.”

So today let us discuss why we fast and how we should fast.

First I believe it’s important to once again note on why we pray to our God? This is important because again…fasting and prayer go together.

1) We express our need for Him in our lives Matthew 6:8-13
-His divine Sovereignty
-The desperate need for His grace in our lives (Come…Give us…Lead us…)
-David Platt said in a sermon “We need daily divine intervention.”
-We often convince ourselves that we can do life by ourselves.

2) Asking God to intercede in our lives
-Our prayers are an intercession to the ruler of everything. God can intercede on anything in our lives.
-By going to Him for intercession, we are recognizing that He is in control.
-Not only are we recognizing that He is in control, but He is the forgive of sins and it recognizes our need for grace in our lives.
-When we pray, we need to yield to His will in our lives and stop to listen to what He has to say.

So, why fast?

Fasting is putting aside food for a period of time to recognize where our true strength comes from in life.

We absolutely have to have food to survive. God created us this way. God created us with the desire for food.

But fasting is saying that He is the one truly in control our our survival.

Before we get too far, some will say you can also fast from things like social media or electronics. This may be true, but that is more sacrificing to the Lord those things. In God’s word, we see fasting many times and it is always from food. There are many who can not fast on food due to medical issues, and that is TOTALLY alright. Find something that is a NEED in your life and fast from that.

So where do we see fasting in God’s word? Here are many instances in where we see fasting:

Nehemiah 1:4-5: 4 “As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. 5 And I said, “O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments.

Matthew 4:1-3: “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.”

Ezra 8:21-23: "Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from him a safe journey for ourselves, our children, and all our goods. 22 For I was ashamed to ask the king for a band of soldiers and horsemen to protect us against the enemy on our way, since we had told the king, “The hand of our God is for good on all who seek him, and the power of his wrath is against all who forsake him.” 23 So we fasted and implored our God for this, and he listened to our entreaty."

Esther 4:15-16: “15 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.”

So from these passages and from or main passage today…let’s seek out the answer to how and why we fast.

Why?

Focus on God and His direction and leading
-Psalm 35:13-14: “But I, when they were sick— I wore sackcloth; I afflicted myself with fasting; I prayed with head bowed on my chest. I went about as though I grieved for my friend or my brother; as one who laments his mother, I bowed down in mourning.”

-Seeking God’s face in times of trial and tribulation, or in times of needing Him in a weighty decision.
-If you have a decision to make, spend extra time with Him.

Sometimes life gets so busy and crazy, we forget that God wants time with us. It maintains our relationship with Him and it helps recognize His goodness in our lives.

HOW?

Why are you fasting? And How long?
-Ask yourself why now? What are you seeking Gods face for?
-This helps you dedicate His word for the Holy Spirit to purposefully lead you.
-Hebrews 4:11-13: “11 Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. 12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 13 And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”
The Holy Spirit will speak to you through His word.
-An archbishop once had a great quote on fasting when he said “Fasting detaches you from this world. Prayer reattaches you to the next world.” (Fulton J. Sheen)


2) Keep it between you and Him
-This is what our main passage was talking about today.
-The religious people of the day were great at making and following rules, but they made sure everybody knew about it. Whether it was giving or fasting, they knew to make it a public thing.
-Jesus was pointing out that this time is supposed to be about the Father and you.
-This builds our relationship with the Father. It is all about Him during this time.
-Be about your normal day when fasting.
-During meal times, step aside from your normal routine to spend time in prayer and in His word.

Again, if you cannot do this, fast on something you absolutely need in your life. Electronics and such are great sacrifices, but not a necessity.

This time is recognizing that our greatest need is His manna.