The Fast that God Chooses

Some Facts about myself first...

Some Facts about Poverty and Hunger

Nearly 40 Million people in America live in extreme poverty - most of those are children

Nearly 40% of American food is thrown away - so millions of people in America are hungry, while millions of others have literally more food than they know what to do with

Virginia’s poverty rate is lower than the national average, and Frederick county’s poverty rate is lower than the state’s average - but our poverty rate in Frederick County is still nearly 9%, which is over 8,000 people

So far you have learned that we fast to...

To offer ourselves to Jesus, to grow in holiness, and to amplify our prayers

Today I’m going to talk to you about a 4th reason:

To stand with the poor

Not talking about virtue signaling - but a way of actually connecting and providing for others - 1 John 3:18 “...let us not love in word or speech, but in action and in truth.”

Let’s walk through Isaiah 58

Isaiah 58:3 “Why have we fasted, but you have not seen? We have denied ourselves, but you haven’t noticed!” “Look, you do as you please on the day of your fast, and oppress all your workers.”

Right away we see the people here are fasting for selfish reasons - they want their own blessing and provision

Even while fasting, they were doing whatever they wanted and exploited people for their own gain

Isaiah 58:4–5 “You fast with contention and strife to strike viciously with your fist. You cannot fast as you do today, hoping to make your voice heard on high. 5 Will the fast I choose be like this: A day for a person to deny himself, to bow his head like a reed, and to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast and a day acceptable to the Lord?”

The way they treat one another during their fast was further evidence of their selfishness and the true state of their hearts

God challenges them, “Do you really think you can fool me?”

Real humility is proven by the way you treat other people - you can’t fake it

Isaiah 58:6–7 “Isn’t this the fast I choose: To break the chains of wickedness, to untie the ropes of the yoke, to set the oppressed free, and to tear off every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, to bring the poor and homeless into your house, to clothe the naked when you see him, and not to ignore your own flesh and blood?”

The fast the Lord chooses is to fast from loving oneself

The people were using God (via false humility) and using other people (via their oppression) to serve themselves

Why were these other people enchained and oppressed? Because they were oppressing them!

God wasn’t saying, “Go set them free from others,” he was saying, “Go set them free from you!”

Isaiah 58:8–10 “Then your light will appear like the dawn, and your recovery will come quickly. Your righteousness will go before you, and the Lord’s glory will be your rear guard. 9 At that time, when you call, the Lord will answer; when you cry out, he will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you get rid of the yoke among you, the finger-pointing and malicious speaking, 10 and if you offer yourself to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted one, then your light will shine in the darkness, and your night will be like noonday.”

God is saying, “Take care of others, and I will take care of you.”

The fast that the Lord is looking for is a total giving of self - “If you offer yourself to the hungry”

Consider this...

Both Malachi 3:7-12 and 2 Corinthians 9:7-11 reinforce this idea that when you take care of people, God will provide enough so that you and they will both be blessed

The example of this we have in Christ

Philippians 2:3–8 “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves. 4 Everyone should look not to his own interests, but rather to the interests of others. 5 Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus, 6 who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. 7 Instead he emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when he had come as a man, 8 he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death— even to death on a cross.”

Fasting is about humility and the subjugation of desire and appetite

Resistance to fasting comes from pride, comfort, and entitlement

How does fasting help us stand with the poor?

It helps us relate to their struggle - lowers us from our comfort

It’s hard to relate to those who are struggling when you never let yourself go without

We can give to them what we are giving up

Every penny we don’t spend on ourselves, is one we can spend on others

It strengthens us to fight injustice

It’s hard to fight injustice when you’re fat on opulence

“Running lean” prepares you for spiritual warfare - cut the spiritual fat

Final exhortation

There are people within arms reach of us that are hungry, impoverished, homeless, and dying

You don’t have to go solve that whole problem yourself - but God has given you something to contribute to the community where He has placed you

Titus 2:11–14 “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 instructing us to deny godlessness and worldly lusts and to live in a sensible, righteous, and godly way in the present age, 13 while we wait for the blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. 14 He gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to cleanse for himself a people for his own possession, eager to do good works.”

Ephesians 2:10 “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.”