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Introduction
Fasting has fallen into disuse among modern Christians such as ourselves.
We probably give on a weekly basis.
We probably pray on a daily basis.
But how often do we fast?
Is it even yearly?
As Jesus continues speaking to His disciples He assumes that fasting will be a part of their religious expression.
Just as he assumed that charitable giving and prayer would be a part of their lives.
Like these other expressions, fasting had also been corrupted by the hypocrites of their day.
Jesus sets the record straight on the matter in just a few sentences, which we will look at today.
The first rule of fasting?
Don’t be a hypocrite!
The religious landscape of the day was overflowing with hypocrites.
They gave to be seen.
They prayed to be seen.
They wanted other people to be impressed with their level of spirituality.
This was easy to accomplish when the thing you want people to see is something that you are actively doing.
How can other people be properly impressed when the religious expression that you are engaged in something that you are NOT doing instead of something that you ARE doing?
Praying and giving are things that we do.
Fasting, though is something we don’t do.
The hypocrites of Jesus day had come up with a way to signal to others that they are indeed fasting.
Jesus lets His audience know that God is not impressed by the show that these people put on when they are abstaining from something, supposedly, “for God.”
It is a big-time show, and these hypocrites are the actors.
This is fitting, because the word hypocrisy was actually born out of the actors in ancient Greece who would pretend to be someone that they were not.
The actors, who Jesus is calling out, even went so far as to put on makeup.
You see they needed people to know what a sacrifice they were making for God.
So, they would disfigure their faces.
They would not only walk around with a look of pain, but they would apply make up so as to look sickly.
Of course this was all in the hopes that someone would say something like, “aw you don’t look well, are you feeling ok?”
Then the faster could say “yes, ...i am fine…I’m just (sigh) fasting.”
Hopefully, if you were lucky, that person would be impressed with your display.
They might verbally applaud your dedication to your face.
They would, ideally, think more highly of you, privately.
If you were really lucky, they would go and publicly talk to other people about how spiritual and pious you were.
If this is what you are after, then when/if it happens, you will have your reward.
You abstained from something so that men would think you are spiritual.
If that is why you did it, then that is all you will receive.
Jesus’ disciples must take a different approach.
You will notice that there is still an emphasis, in Jesus’ words, on the external.
Rather than make a show of your deprivation, Jesus tells His disciples to just be normal.
If this was the 90’s He might have said something like, “look, if you are going to fast, just be cool about it.”
Do what you would normally do.
Anoint your head, wash your face, and go about your day just as if you weren’t fasting.
We aren’t talking about week-long fasts here.
We are talking about skipping a meal or maybe a day’s worth of meals.
Most of us have enough reserves stored up that no one is going to notice if we fast for a day.
That is, unless we tell them.
Which is exactly what Jesus is telling His disciples not to do.
There are a variety of goals that we engage in through our religious expressions.
Charity has a goal of affecting others.
The goal of prayer is to, in some ways, affect God.
When it comes to fasting, however, the goal is to affect ourselves.
We are not trying to change man’s opinion of us.
We are not trying to change God.
Fasting is a means by which we seek to be changed by God into what we should be.
When we understand the purpose of fasting, we will be much more inclined to follow Jesus’ directions.
He says that there is a reward for fasting the way that we are supposed to.
If our fast is a secret that we keep between ourselves and God, then the rewards will be what is visible to others.
Which would you rather have people notice?
The sacrifice you made for God?
The rewards that God gives to you?
What kind of rewards are we looking at here?
Let’s think about what a fast is and what it is for.
If we are going to fast it means we are going to abstain.
Most often this means abstaining from food.
In the Old Testament, though, we see an interesting anecdote regarding fasting.
The Hebrew language has a word for fasting from food, it is the word tsom.
The OT doesn’t use this word.
Instead it uses the word anah, which means to deny yourself.
Denying ourselves is the essence of fasting.
It is a decision to forego our participation in something that is pleasurable.
This certainly could apply to food.
It could also apply to other things we enjoy.
But why would we do this?
What is the goal?
Is it to convince God to give us what we want?
Is fasting the currency we must use for God’s vending machine??
We do not fast so that men might see us, nor do we fast so that God will be obligated to fulfill our will.
We fast or deny ourselves so that we might become more like Jesus.
Matthew 16:24 “24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.”
Self-denial promotes a God-focused direction for our life.
You cannot wholly invest your life in fulfilling your will and think that you will end up looking more like a disciple of Jesus.
Somewhere along the way, all of Jesus’ disciples will have to deny themselves in order to truly follow Him.
If we can’t deny our appetite for food for a meal, or for a day, then how do we expect to deny other appetites?
Fasting helps us to do what Paul advocated for in 1 Corinthians 9:27 and that is to keep our bodies “under subjection.”
As we redirect our focus from food and onto God we build spiritual muscle that God will use to enable us to say not other appetites.
We won’t have to tell anyone that we’ve been fasting, because the people closest to us will see the effects.
God will reward us openly by giving us the victory over the sins that have been plaguing us.
Would you rather people notice you for the process or for the results?
Fasting is a process through which God changes us into a better example of His Son.
In what ways are you denying yourself this morning?
You may not be a regular food faster.
You should be a regular denier of self.
Whether that means food, hobby, recreation.
When we deny ourselves and we focus on God, we position ourselves for change.
Fasting isn’t a result of how spiritual we are.
Fasting is a sign of how much we need God.
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