A Strong Church Fasts

Intro: Brief Review

A strong church is devoted.

A strong church prays.

A strong church fasts

Fasting not easy in our culture

If we are to be honest, we are a society filled with gluttony and one that does not like to deny what our passions long for.

The passions—the desires—that God has given us, like the one for food, get out of control because of our sinfulness. Rather than using the appetites for good, which God originally designed them for, there are times we divulge in them for pure pleasure and debauchery (to use an old word). And there is not a one of us who has not fallen into this temptation. It does not matter how “skinny” you are or how healthy you think you are, we have all succumbed to the temptation of gluttony at some point in our life.

Because of this, if we have a genuine faith in Christ, we ought to desire to overcome and keep in check the passions, including and esp the one for food.

So herein lies the importance of fasting:

We are to fast so that we may get in control of our passions and desire for food.

In short: In fasting, we learn self-control and reliance upon God.

1. A little background about our bodily passions and desires

As sinners saved by grace, we need to realize that, although our souls have been born again and made new, our bodies have not. Our bodies have yet to be redeemed and renewed. This will not occur until Christ returns when we will be resurrected and given new bodies.

Romans 8:23 “23 And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body.”

And so, since our bodies are still yet to be made new, the sinfulness that still resides in our bodies continually battles against our minds. It tries to entice us and drag us away to sin, to use the God-given appetites for sin rather than good.

We have this struggle, this battle, between our flesh and our minds. On the one hand, we desire to do what is right. On the other, we have the body and its passions vying for us to do what is wrong. It’s a sort of tug-o-war.

The Apostle Paul explains it this way:

Romans 7:21–25 “21 I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. 22 For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, 23 but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.”

So what is the answer? God has given us the discipline of fasting to help us learn how to control our sinful passions and desires.

But what does fasting do specifically?

2. Why should we fast?

There is a spiritual connection.

It is often connected with prayer to focus on God intently.

Greatest example: Jesus in the wilderness.

OT fasts for religious celebrations, holidays, and ceremonies.

Matthew 4:1–2 “1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry.”

It is done to depend upon God and discern the will of God.

Acts 13:2–3 “2 While they were ministering to 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, when they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.”

It is done to learn self-control.

Galatians 5:22–23 “22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”

One of the best ways, if not THE best way, to learn self-control is by denying ourselves something which our passions desire.

3. How do we fast? What does it look like?

Matthew 6:16–18 NASB95

16 “Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 17 “But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face 18 so that your fasting will not be noticed by men, but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

“When,” not “if”

Do not let anyone know

What will follow?

God the Father will reward you.

4. The challenge: A call to fast so we can be a stronger church

Our relationship with God will become stronger as we realize that we can depend upon God rather than food or anything else.

We will be able to discern God’s will better, individually and as a church.

We will become stronger in self-control.