A Call To Fast

As the New Year begins, we take up the challenge of “21 Days of Fasting and Prayer.” Prayer and fasting—along with a whole array of spiritual disciplines—draw us closer to God and strengthens our soul.

And these are days where we need our soul strengthened! Time spent in undivided attention to God reminds us that God and only God is God. Christ alone saves. Only the Spirit brings life. Recognizing this, we respond in gratitude, by taking the time and by doing whatever it is that makes sense to us to love God in return. As we begin, let’s look at one of the most famous of Jesus’ parables:

Luke 8:4–15 (CSB) 4 As a large crowd was gathering, and people were coming to Jesus from every town, he said in a parable,

5 “A sower went out to sow his seed. As he sowed, some seed fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds of the sky devoured it.

6 Other seed fell on the rock; when it grew up, it withered away, since it lacked moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns; the thorns grew up with it and choked it.

8 Still other seed fell on good ground; when it grew up, it produced fruit: a hundred times what was sown.” As he said this, he called out, “Let anyone who has ears to hear listen.”

9 Then his disciples asked him, “What does this parable mean?”

They picked up on the urgency of what Jesus said at the end of verse 8. Jesus didn’t want anyone to miss the warning he was issuing. He loves people and he knows what we often ignore or reject:

The spiritual reality of life. We look at what we see around us and think that life is about our experiences, accomplishments, joys and pleasures. What Jesus knows is that what we see in this life is but a dim reality of what is behind the physical. There is a spiritual reality to your life and mine, and yet we ignore that reality, we don’t live in light of it and as a result we languish … and even put our souls in jeopardy. So Jesus responds:

11 “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God.

Let me pause right here. We could have an entire message series on the Word of God. But let me make this one point:

In the spiritual life, there is no substitute for God’s word.

If you desire to know God and follow Jesus, it requires your heart and mind being shaped by his Truth — his Word.

12 The seed along the path are those who have heard and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.

Here is another thing Jesus knows that so many people scoff at:

The Devil (Satan) is real.

Spiritual warfare is real.

What’s at stake is your soul and the souls of those you love.

We don’t take it seriously, but Jesus clearly does.

13 And the seed on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy. Having no root, these believe for a while and fall away in a time of testing.

We are living in the days of a great falling away. In the church in West, there is a massive falling away happening. Spiritual apathy abounds. Our senses have been dulled. How many people do you know who used to follow Jesus don’t any longer? How many people do you know who are no longer active in a church? How many of the people in your work place, school, or social circles are living a part from the Lordship of Jesus?

We are living in the days of a great falling away.

14 As for the seed that fell among thorns, these are the ones who, when they have heard, go on their way and are choked with worries, riches, and pleasures of life, and produce no mature fruit.

These are people whom the Apostle Paul called “worldly Christians”

1 Corinthians 3:1–3 (CSB) 1 For my part, brothers and sisters, I was not able to speak to you as spiritual people but as people of the flesh, as babies in Christ.

2 I gave you milk to drink, not solid food, since you were not yet ready for it. In fact, you are still not ready, 3 because you are still worldly.

The church in the West has always battled the pull of the world. Listen to how one author puts it: I want deliberately to encourage [a] mighty longing after God. The lack of it has brought us to our present low estate. The stiff and wooden quality about our religious lives is a result of our lack of holy desire. Complacency is a deadly foe of all spiritual growth. Acute desire must be present or there will be no manifestation of Christ to His people. He waits to be wanted. Too bad that with many of us He waits so long, so very long, in vain. Every age has its own characteristics. Right now we are in an age of religious complexity. The simplicity which is in Christ is rarely found among us. In its stead are programs, methods, organizations and a world of nervous activities which occupy time and attention but can never satisfy the longing of the heart. The shallowness of our inner experience, the hollowness of our worship and that [slavish] imitation of the world which marks our [ministry] methods all testify that we, in this day, know God only imperfectly, and the peace of God scarcely at all.

A.W. Tozer — June 1948: The Pursuit of God

This shallow version of cultural Christianity is a constant battle … and many are overtaken. Jesus continues

15 But the seed in the good ground—these are the ones who, having heard the word with an honest and good heart, hold on to it and by enduring, produce fruit.

Enduring = the capacity to hold out or bear up in the face of difficulty. Jesus never promised people who follow him smooth sailing.

Instead, he warned us that following him would be difficult with many obstacles. It is for this very reason that we begin this new year with a focus on two of the most powerful spiritual disciplines:

Prayer & Fasting.

Today we’re going to talk about fasting because we are calling our entire church to a

21 Day Fast as we begin the new year.

The first question you may have is… What is Fasting?

Abstaining from food (solid or liquid) for a spiritual purpose.

The comedian Gallagher used to ask, "Why do they call it a fast when it goes by sooooo slow?" Many can relate to that. It does seem to bring the movement of time to a standstill. Of all the disciplines it is, in some ways, the most difficult — because it requires a level of self-denial that's beyond many of us. At its root, fasting is taking something highly significant to us and deciding to lay it aside or postpone it temporarily for a spiritual purpose. Historically, fasting involves depriving oneself of food and drink.

However, there are also additional ways to fast from things. Sacrificing things that are important and meaningful to us can provide a worthy substitution for food. If fasting is a new spiritual concept for you, I think what Adele Calhoun will provide some helpful insights

“Fasting is not a magical way to manipulate God into doing our will; it’s not a way to get God to be an accomplice to our plans. Neither is fasting a spiritual way to lose weight or control others. While fasting, we are one on one with God, offering him the time and attentiveness we might otherwise be giving to eating, shopping or watching television. Fasting is an opportunity to lay down an appetite—an appetite for food, for media, for shopping. This act of self-denial may not seem huge … but it brings us face to face with the hunger at the core of our being.”

THE MOTIVE FOR FASTING

What are our motives for fasting? It's possible to fast for the wrong reasons, as God said in Zechariah:

Zechariah 7:5 (CSB) 5 “Ask all the people of the land and the priests: When you fasted and lamented in the fifth and in the seventh months for these seventy years, did you really fast for me?

Obviously, the purpose for fasting is not to impress anyone. This is what the Pharisees did. Jesus said about them…

Matthew 6:16 (CSB) 16 “Whenever you fast, don’t be gloomy like the hypocrites. For they make their faces unattractive so that their fasting is obvious to people. Truly I tell you, they have their reward.

The Pharisees fasted on Mondays and Thursdays because those were the market days — there were more people in the commerce center to impress with their holiness. Clearly, that's not the right approach. When you fast, it's best not to let anyone know about it, if possible — except your family, of course. Also, there are some health benefits to fasting, but these shouldn't be our primary motivation in fasting. Sometimes people say, "I'll fast, and I'll get closer to God, and maybe I'll lose some weight in the process."

Maybe so, but in my experience fasting is a lousy weight-loss strategy. Whatever you lose you tend to gain back rather quickly. Fortunately, there's more to fasting than just dropping a few pounds, which we'll look at more closely. I've also heard people say that they were afraid to fast because of the health risks involved. I'm not a doctor, and if you're really concerned about it, you need to consult your health professional...but most of them would agree that a certain amount of fasting is beneficial. What should be our primary motive for fasting?

Simply put, to connect with God on a deeper level. As John Piper said,

"Christian fasting, at its root, is the hunger of a homesickness for God. You fast to get closer to God. To be more specific, let's look at 3 good scriptural motives for fasting.

1. To hear from God.

While they were worshipping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said…

Acts 13:1–2 (CSB) 1 Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers:

2 As 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.”

During a time of fasting, the leaders of the church heard from God. This is why church leaders should commit to fasting together. It's also why you personally should commit to fasting.

When you fast, God speaks to you.

2. As an act of repentance.

Joel 1:13–14 (CSB) 13 Dress in sackcloth and lament, you priests; wail, you ministers of the altar. Come and spend the night in sackcloth, you ministers of my God, because grain and drink offerings are withheld from the house of your God.

14 Announce a sacred fast; proclaim a solemn assembly! Gather the elders and all the residents of the land at the house of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD.

There are times when we, as a nation, or we, as a church, need to come together in a public expression of repentance through fasting. Abraham Lincoln wrote an address to the nation during the Civil War that was at least as important as the Gettysburg Address. Recognizing that our country had gotten far off track, in 1863 he declared April 30 to be a day of national repentance, fasting and prayer.

“It is the duty of nations as well as of men to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God; to confess their sins and transgressions in humble sorrow, yet with assured hope that genuine repentance will lead to mercy and pardon;

and to recognize the sublime truth announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history, that those nations only are blessed whose God is the Lord.

The awful calamity of civil war which now desolates the land may be but a punishment inflicted upon us for our presumptuous sins, to the needful end of our national reformation as a whole people.

Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity, too proud to pray to the God that made us.

It behooves us, then, to humble ourselves before the offended Power, to confess our national sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness.”

Maybe this has happened in your life — you've forgotten that you need God. One way to express heartfelt repentance is through the act of fasting. I want to make it clear:

Fasting doesn't earn you forgiveness, or get you forgiven faster or more thoroughly than you would experience otherwise.

Fasting does, however, help you come to grips with your sin.

It helps you to see sin for what it really is. It helps you to see sin as God sees it. Fasting intensifies the act of repentance so that you understand more about the ugliness of sin and the beauty of God's mercy.

3. For strength and direction

Acts 14:23 (CSB) 23 When they had appointed elders for them in every church and prayed with fasting, they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed.

When Paul and Barnabas appointed elders in the church, they fasted for wisdom and guidance in choosing the right men. They also fasted, presumably along with the elders, for strength for these men to perform their duties effectively.

If you don't know the right decision to make, fasting will help discover God's wisdom.

If you know the right thing to do, and need strength to do it, fasting will help you experience more of God's power.

Three Suggestions for Fasting

1. Focus on Jesus when you fast.

I will confess that the first time I fasted I didn't think about Jesus, all I thought about was food and how hungry I was. Needless to say, it wasn't a very effective fast.

When you fast, take one of the events of Jesus’ life in the gospels and focus on him. Maybe the Christmas story, his temptation in the wilderness, his teachings, his miracles, his passion, his death, his resurrection. As you focus on Jesus, you will draw closer to him and strengthen your soul and spirit.

2. Don't be legalistic.

Don't be legalistic about the fine print of your fast, and don't look for loopholes. It's not an international treaty, it's an act of spiritual devotion.

If you go on a three day fast and you fail half way through, don't give up, don't beat yourself up, just pick up where you left off and keep going. Remember, the purpose of the fast is not just to go without food.

The purpose is to help you connect with God on a deeper level and to strengthen your soul.

3. Expect results, but not immediately.

Usually I don't reap the benefits of the fast until later. Fasting has brought me into a closer relationship with God, fasting has enabled me to experience more of God's power, fasting has improved my prayer life — but these aren't changes that took place at the snap of a finger.

There have been times when I have ended a fast thinking, "It didn't work this time. I didn't accomplish what I wanted to accomplish." But a week or two later I realized, "God has done a work in me that I didn't recognize at first." Fasting is a way to connect with God on a deeper level, but don't expect your fast to be full of bliss. Most likely it will be challenging. God will move as the result of a fast, but you need to be patient. You may not see it immediately. Jesus said this about fasting...

Matthew 6:18 (CSB) Your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Bottom Line: Fasting brings strength to the soul.

Action Steps:

~Participate in a group

~Be here for the the next two weeks

~Sign up for the daily devotional emails

~Begin your fast

Resources

~Renew.org (keyword search “fasting”)

~Dr. Bill Bright resources on Fasting https://www.cru.org/us/en/train-and-grow/spiritual-growth/fasting/personal-guide-to-fasting.html