1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:08,880 We'll be looking at just three verses as we're continuing our study through Matthew. 2 00:00:08,880 --> 00:00:18,460 Moreover, this is, first of all, this is the word of the Lord. 3 00:00:18,460 --> 00:00:23,940 These are the words of the Lord Jesus Christ speaking to his people there on that Galilean 4 00:00:23,940 --> 00:00:27,120 seaside as they're seated upon the mount. 5 00:00:27,120 --> 00:00:35,080 He says, moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites with the sad countenance, 6 00:00:35,080 --> 00:00:38,520 for they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. 7 00:00:38,520 --> 00:00:42,080 And surely I say to you, they have their reward. 8 00:00:42,080 --> 00:00:49,440 But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face so that you do not appear to 9 00:00:49,440 --> 00:00:56,340 men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place and your Father who 10 00:00:56,340 --> 00:01:01,200 sees in secret will reward you openly. 11 00:01:01,200 --> 00:01:04,200 Let's pray. 12 00:01:04,200 --> 00:01:12,660 Father, the warnings that we see often repeated in the pages of Holy Scripture is the warning 13 00:01:12,660 --> 00:01:15,200 against hypocrisy. 14 00:01:15,200 --> 00:01:21,840 That our heart and our life are not synchronized, Lord, they're disordered. 15 00:01:21,840 --> 00:01:26,920 That we appear to be one thing and inwardly, Lord, we are radically something different. 16 00:01:26,920 --> 00:01:30,960 Father, would you deliver us from such hypocrisy this morning? 17 00:01:30,960 --> 00:01:36,840 Lord, one of the dangers that is inherent with any sin is that we're blind to it. 18 00:01:36,840 --> 00:01:44,000 So Lord, we ask God in your mercy that your blessed Holy Spirit would work, Lord, reveal 19 00:01:44,000 --> 00:01:49,640 to us our sin and show then us the Savior, Christ the Lord. 20 00:01:49,640 --> 00:01:52,520 Lord, we need you this morning. 21 00:01:52,520 --> 00:01:57,400 Feed your people, I pray in Jesus' name, amen. 22 00:01:57,400 --> 00:02:00,480 Jewish religious life was actually built upon three pillars. 23 00:02:00,480 --> 00:02:04,560 You had the pillar of giving and praying, but the third pillar would have been that 24 00:02:04,560 --> 00:02:05,560 of fasting. 25 00:02:05,560 --> 00:02:11,780 Now, each of these is good and proper when done correctly and with the right motive. 26 00:02:11,780 --> 00:02:13,160 So we should start with the beginning. 27 00:02:13,160 --> 00:02:15,680 God's people ought to give. 28 00:02:15,680 --> 00:02:17,840 God's people ought to pray. 29 00:02:17,840 --> 00:02:21,520 And God's people ought to fast at times. 30 00:02:21,520 --> 00:02:25,960 But there was a huge problem in Jesus' day. 31 00:02:25,960 --> 00:02:31,480 The religious leaders were busily engaged and in much activity, and yet they were doing 32 00:02:31,480 --> 00:02:34,240 so with hypocrisy. 33 00:02:34,240 --> 00:02:38,880 The scribes and Pharisees, that's the religious leaders whom Jesus is addressing, they looked 34 00:02:38,880 --> 00:02:39,880 pious. 35 00:02:39,880 --> 00:02:45,000 And we have to understand that no doubt people saw them as God-fearing men who would serve 36 00:02:45,000 --> 00:02:48,000 as great examples to the people. 37 00:02:48,000 --> 00:02:53,480 If you would have asked anyone on that day, the people looked up to them and revered them. 38 00:02:53,480 --> 00:03:00,600 Yet their religious devotion, which seemed exemplary, it looked good, was done only so 39 00:03:00,600 --> 00:03:02,960 that they would be seen by men. 40 00:03:02,960 --> 00:03:06,360 The God that they were serving was the esteem of men. 41 00:03:06,360 --> 00:03:10,560 They loved, they craved the acclaim of people. 42 00:03:10,560 --> 00:03:14,600 And the more pious they looked, the more the people were impressed. 43 00:03:14,600 --> 00:03:19,280 And since the people were impressed, they praised them even more. 44 00:03:19,280 --> 00:03:26,320 Now for some, and I think for some in here, for all of us perhaps, praise, flattery, can 45 00:03:26,320 --> 00:03:28,240 be like a drug. 46 00:03:28,240 --> 00:03:30,120 It's intoxicating. 47 00:03:30,120 --> 00:03:32,520 The more you get, the more you crave. 48 00:03:32,520 --> 00:03:35,280 And you keep chasing after it. 49 00:03:35,280 --> 00:03:37,080 That's what the policemen were doing. 50 00:03:37,080 --> 00:03:42,000 They were held in high regard, and they were given titles, and they loved these titles. 51 00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:45,720 They loved being called teacher or rabbi. 52 00:03:45,720 --> 00:03:49,000 When they would go to worship and they would take a seat in the synagogue, they would be 53 00:03:49,000 --> 00:03:52,280 offered the best seat there. 54 00:03:52,280 --> 00:03:57,040 If there was parties being thrown, they were no doubt on the guest list, and they were 55 00:03:57,040 --> 00:03:58,040 the VIP. 56 00:03:58,040 --> 00:04:02,560 Our Lord, he sees through this charade. 57 00:04:02,560 --> 00:04:04,240 He saw their hearts. 58 00:04:04,240 --> 00:04:06,240 He saw the corruption. 59 00:04:06,240 --> 00:04:09,640 He saw the iniquity that lay within. 60 00:04:09,640 --> 00:04:13,320 And the sobering thought for any of us here this morning, it ought to be sobering, it 61 00:04:13,320 --> 00:04:20,120 is for me, it ought to be for you, is that God sees who you really are. 62 00:04:20,120 --> 00:04:21,660 He sees. 63 00:04:21,660 --> 00:04:24,000 He sees into the deepest recess of your hearts. 64 00:04:24,000 --> 00:04:27,800 He knows your motives even better than we know them ourselves. 65 00:04:27,800 --> 00:04:29,940 He knows why we do what we do. 66 00:04:29,940 --> 00:04:36,200 And Jesus issued a heavy indictment upon these seemingly pious leaders, and he called them 67 00:04:36,200 --> 00:04:39,160 a son of hell. 68 00:04:39,160 --> 00:04:47,480 In Matthew 23, 15, woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you travel land 69 00:04:47,480 --> 00:04:55,440 and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of 70 00:04:55,440 --> 00:04:57,920 hell as yourselves. 71 00:04:57,920 --> 00:05:04,360 Not only were they sons of hell, he said all your converts are, and they're doubly so. 72 00:05:04,360 --> 00:05:09,960 Elsewhere, Jesus called these men blind fools. 73 00:05:09,960 --> 00:05:13,920 They were fools and blind, leading blind men. 74 00:05:13,920 --> 00:05:18,160 And I don't know that anything could possibly be worse than the Son of God upon seeing your 75 00:05:18,160 --> 00:05:21,080 heart calling you a blind fool. 76 00:05:21,080 --> 00:05:24,600 But they didn't think they were that way. 77 00:05:24,600 --> 00:05:25,600 They were deceived. 78 00:05:25,600 --> 00:05:29,000 And the worst deception is self-deception. 79 00:05:29,000 --> 00:05:30,000 The men were devout. 80 00:05:30,000 --> 00:05:31,920 I mean, think about all they were doing. 81 00:05:31,920 --> 00:05:33,900 They gave, and they gave a lot. 82 00:05:33,900 --> 00:05:36,200 People knew it, but they gave. 83 00:05:36,200 --> 00:05:40,360 They prayed, and they prayed for long periods of time, but people knew it. 84 00:05:40,360 --> 00:05:45,000 They fasted, and they fasted often, but people knew it. 85 00:05:45,000 --> 00:05:50,760 And Jesus said at the end of the day, you are more a child of hell than ever before. 86 00:05:50,760 --> 00:05:52,940 Terrifying. 87 00:05:52,940 --> 00:05:58,600 So I think this morning, you and I, this is recorded in Holy Scripture for our learning 88 00:05:58,600 --> 00:06:02,720 this morning, we need to heed what the Lord is saying, and the key at the very beginning 89 00:06:02,720 --> 00:06:07,920 is this, do not be like the hypocrites. 90 00:06:07,920 --> 00:06:08,920 This is a warning. 91 00:06:08,920 --> 00:06:12,160 And by the way, that's the theme of Matthew 6, the entire chapter. 92 00:06:12,160 --> 00:06:17,480 Unless you also want to be a son of hell, do not be like these men. 93 00:06:17,480 --> 00:06:22,880 Now in this chapter, Matthew 6, Jesus has a bunch of followers, and they're seated on 94 00:06:22,880 --> 00:06:25,800 a mountaintop there, on a hillside. 95 00:06:25,800 --> 00:06:30,920 And he's going to show them what true piety looks like, what true religious devotion really 96 00:06:30,920 --> 00:06:31,920 looks like. 97 00:06:31,920 --> 00:06:35,800 And how we should practice our religion, if you want to say it that way. 98 00:06:35,800 --> 00:06:39,240 What does devotion to God that is pleasing to God look like? 99 00:06:39,240 --> 00:06:45,960 Well, rule number one, our acts of piety are never ever to be done so that others may see 100 00:06:45,960 --> 00:06:48,440 us and think well of us. 101 00:06:48,440 --> 00:06:51,360 Now there are times people are going to know that you give. 102 00:06:51,360 --> 00:06:55,160 They don't even know how much, but they might see you giving something in the plate. 103 00:06:55,160 --> 00:07:00,660 They might see you bowing your head in prayer, but you don't do it for that purpose. 104 00:07:00,660 --> 00:07:05,760 The applause and esteem of others should never be a factor into the equation. 105 00:07:05,760 --> 00:07:09,800 When preachers stand behind the sacred desk, they should not be wondering, do the people 106 00:07:09,800 --> 00:07:11,760 like it? 107 00:07:11,760 --> 00:07:14,040 We have an audience of one. 108 00:07:14,040 --> 00:07:18,680 So when we're doing religious activity, it has to be done with a heart that is grateful 109 00:07:18,680 --> 00:07:23,080 to the Lord and wants to draw closer to him. 110 00:07:23,080 --> 00:07:24,080 That's it. 111 00:07:24,080 --> 00:07:30,120 So you're not, we don't pray, we don't give, we don't fast to impress others, but rather 112 00:07:30,120 --> 00:07:32,600 we do those things because we love God. 113 00:07:32,600 --> 00:07:34,880 We've been called by God. 114 00:07:34,880 --> 00:07:38,920 Now we've already looked previously in Matthew 6 at the issue of giving, and then we've also 115 00:07:38,920 --> 00:07:42,680 looked at the area of praying, and today we come to that third and final pillar, which 116 00:07:42,680 --> 00:07:45,000 is fasting. 117 00:07:45,000 --> 00:07:47,760 Now what does it mean to fast? 118 00:07:47,760 --> 00:07:51,460 In its literal sense, it literally means to abstain from food or drink. 119 00:07:51,460 --> 00:07:52,920 That's all it means. 120 00:07:52,920 --> 00:07:55,280 But what was the purpose of fasting? 121 00:07:55,280 --> 00:08:01,640 It was done in order to show dependence on God and submission to his will. 122 00:08:01,640 --> 00:08:05,520 David Mathis, I love what he wrote or had written on this. 123 00:08:05,520 --> 00:08:10,080 We fast in this life because we believe in the life to come. 124 00:08:10,080 --> 00:08:14,280 We don't have to get it all here and now because we have a promise that we will have it all 125 00:08:14,280 --> 00:08:16,560 in the coming age. 126 00:08:16,560 --> 00:08:21,680 We fast from what we can see and taste because we have tasted and seen the goodness of the 127 00:08:21,680 --> 00:08:30,520 invisible and infinite God, and this last line, and we are desperately hungry for more 128 00:08:30,520 --> 00:08:31,960 of him. 129 00:08:31,960 --> 00:08:33,280 That's why we do it. 130 00:08:33,280 --> 00:08:37,680 See, there were many occasions for fasting recorded in scripture, particularly in the 131 00:08:37,680 --> 00:08:38,680 Old Testament. 132 00:08:38,680 --> 00:08:42,640 Sometimes you get the impression that the Old Testament was, you had all these required 133 00:08:42,640 --> 00:08:43,640 fasts, not so. 134 00:08:43,640 --> 00:08:47,800 But so a lot of these were, in fact, all of them were voluntary except one. 135 00:08:47,800 --> 00:08:51,720 But you find people fasting, first of all, when they want to seek God's deliverance or 136 00:08:51,720 --> 00:08:53,320 they were seeking protection. 137 00:08:53,320 --> 00:08:55,240 Do you remember Queen Esther? 138 00:08:55,240 --> 00:08:59,360 She called for a fast before she went into the king. 139 00:08:59,360 --> 00:09:02,160 Look in Esther 4.16, and I'll read through these verses quickly. 140 00:09:02,160 --> 00:09:04,400 I just want to give you an illustration here. 141 00:09:04,400 --> 00:09:09,040 Go gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan and fast for me. 142 00:09:09,040 --> 00:09:12,720 Neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. 143 00:09:12,720 --> 00:09:15,920 My maids and I will fast likewise. 144 00:09:15,920 --> 00:09:20,520 And so I will go to the king, which is against the law, and if I perish, I perish. 145 00:09:20,520 --> 00:09:22,480 She did not presume upon the Lord. 146 00:09:22,480 --> 00:09:24,040 She was fasting. 147 00:09:24,040 --> 00:09:26,280 May the Lord protect me and give me favor. 148 00:09:26,280 --> 00:09:30,560 Secondly, it was a sign of confession and repentance. 149 00:09:30,560 --> 00:09:34,040 You see this in Joel, or God himself speaking. 150 00:09:34,040 --> 00:09:39,080 Now therefore says the Lord, this is the high and lofty one, turn to me with all your heart, 151 00:09:39,080 --> 00:09:42,620 with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning. 152 00:09:42,620 --> 00:09:48,800 So rend your heart and night your garments, return to the Lord your God. 153 00:09:48,800 --> 00:09:52,040 Later we're going to see also in Deuteronomy chapter 9, verse 9 there. 154 00:09:52,040 --> 00:09:56,280 And you see that. 155 00:09:56,280 --> 00:09:57,280 This is Moses. 156 00:09:57,280 --> 00:09:58,280 Excuse me. 157 00:09:58,280 --> 00:10:02,840 Moses, we know, went into a 40-day fast upon receiving the law. 158 00:10:02,840 --> 00:10:06,600 And he says, when I went up into the mountain to receive the tablets of stone, then look 159 00:10:06,600 --> 00:10:07,600 at that last phrase. 160 00:10:07,600 --> 00:10:10,560 I stayed on the mountain 40 days and 40 nights. 161 00:10:10,560 --> 00:10:14,560 I neither ate bread nor did I drink water. 162 00:10:14,560 --> 00:10:19,840 But what you see here in that Joel passage as well, fasting does not substitute for confession 163 00:10:19,840 --> 00:10:22,680 or repentance. 164 00:10:22,680 --> 00:10:27,960 You can fast, but if there is no repentance in your heart, it is done in vain. 165 00:10:27,960 --> 00:10:33,240 We must be willing to part with our sin and not just to acknowledge it. 166 00:10:33,240 --> 00:10:37,180 Thirdly, it was a sign of humility before the Lord. 167 00:10:37,180 --> 00:10:39,200 You see this with King Ahab. 168 00:10:39,200 --> 00:10:43,240 So it was when Ahab heard these words that he tore his clothes, put sackcloth on his 169 00:10:43,240 --> 00:10:47,960 body, and he fasted and lay in sackcloth and went about mourning. 170 00:10:47,960 --> 00:10:51,000 Later on, it says he humbled himself before the Lord. 171 00:10:51,000 --> 00:10:54,880 This is one of the ways that we show our humility before God. 172 00:10:54,880 --> 00:10:59,160 It was also done in moments of tragedy or deep disappointment. 173 00:10:59,160 --> 00:11:04,240 Nehemiah, you know, the one that came back to build the gates and the walls, he said, 174 00:11:04,240 --> 00:11:08,320 they said to me, the survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there 175 00:11:08,320 --> 00:11:10,320 in great distress and reproach. 176 00:11:10,320 --> 00:11:15,120 The wall of Jerusalem is broken down and its gates are burned with fire. 177 00:11:15,120 --> 00:11:17,120 That just devastated Nehemiah. 178 00:11:17,120 --> 00:11:18,120 He's still in Babylon. 179 00:11:18,120 --> 00:11:19,360 He hears the news. 180 00:11:19,360 --> 00:11:25,160 So it was when I heard these words that I sat down and wept and mourned for many days, 181 00:11:25,160 --> 00:11:29,280 I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. 182 00:11:29,280 --> 00:11:34,020 Notice what fasting goes along with, prayer, fasting and prayer. 183 00:11:34,020 --> 00:11:38,200 Later on, you'll go see when there was a threat or the looming threat of war, they would fast. 184 00:11:38,200 --> 00:11:41,120 When loved ones were sick, they would fast. 185 00:11:41,120 --> 00:11:45,600 Do you remember David, when he sinned with Bathsheba, she conceived, the child was born, 186 00:11:45,600 --> 00:11:52,400 the child was born sick, and David was fasting for his infant son who later died. 187 00:11:52,400 --> 00:11:56,520 When loved ones died, you remember Saul and Jonathan were killed in war and when Israel, 188 00:11:56,520 --> 00:12:01,040 when David and all Israel found out about it, they fasted for many days. 189 00:12:01,040 --> 00:12:04,600 So if you look at this idea of fasting in the Old Testament, basically they were fasting 190 00:12:04,600 --> 00:12:07,320 whenever they were seeking God's favor. 191 00:12:07,320 --> 00:12:09,480 They were courting the favor of God. 192 00:12:09,480 --> 00:12:13,640 But as I said just a moment ago, there was only one commanded fast that was commanded 193 00:12:13,640 --> 00:12:19,280 every year and this is on the day of Yom Kippur or what we would know as the Day of Atonement. 194 00:12:19,280 --> 00:12:26,160 On that day, all the nation was required to fast and it says to afflict their souls. 195 00:12:26,160 --> 00:12:29,440 And we read about that in Leviticus 16. 196 00:12:29,440 --> 00:12:31,700 This shall be a statute forever for you. 197 00:12:31,700 --> 00:12:35,720 In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict your souls. 198 00:12:35,720 --> 00:12:37,800 And by the way, that means to fast. 199 00:12:37,800 --> 00:12:43,320 Do no work at all, whether native of your own country or stranger who dwells among you. 200 00:12:43,320 --> 00:12:46,120 Everyone who is in the nation was required to fast. 201 00:12:46,120 --> 00:12:48,720 You're like, yeah, but that's all Old Covenant. 202 00:12:48,720 --> 00:12:51,200 That's all Old Testament. 203 00:12:51,200 --> 00:12:58,320 And as we come to the new, we do not find any direct command whatsoever to fast, but 204 00:12:58,320 --> 00:13:01,880 there's an assumption that we will fast. 205 00:13:01,880 --> 00:13:06,240 Where just as there was an assumption that God's people pray and God's people give, that 206 00:13:06,240 --> 00:13:10,720 same assumption we find that it is assumed God's people are going to fast. 207 00:13:10,720 --> 00:13:15,200 In Matthew 6 verse 3, but when you do a charitable deed, that's giving. 208 00:13:15,200 --> 00:13:17,320 Verse 5, and when you pray. 209 00:13:17,320 --> 00:13:21,480 Verse 16, moreover, when you fast. 210 00:13:21,480 --> 00:13:23,820 It doesn't ever say if here. 211 00:13:23,820 --> 00:13:27,280 Just as you were giving, just as you were praying, it is also assumed that you would 212 00:13:27,280 --> 00:13:28,280 fast. 213 00:13:28,280 --> 00:13:35,280 Now, keep in mind, the Pharisees though, they began to fast two days a week on a Monday 214 00:13:35,280 --> 00:13:36,800 and on a Thursday. 215 00:13:36,800 --> 00:13:40,800 And we read about that in Luke 18 when Jesus was telling the parable. 216 00:13:40,800 --> 00:13:43,960 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself. 217 00:13:43,960 --> 00:13:46,000 And that's so telling. 218 00:13:46,000 --> 00:13:48,120 He's praying with himself, not to God. 219 00:13:48,120 --> 00:13:52,080 God, I thank you that I'm not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even 220 00:13:52,080 --> 00:13:53,280 this tax collector. 221 00:13:53,280 --> 00:13:55,680 I fast twice a week. 222 00:13:55,680 --> 00:13:57,760 Now why? 223 00:13:57,760 --> 00:14:01,800 There's a Jewish tradition that said when Moses went up to Mount Sinai to receive the 224 00:14:01,800 --> 00:14:07,760 tablets of stone, that he went up on a Thursday and the day that he descended from the mount 225 00:14:07,760 --> 00:14:10,640 with the law was a Monday. 226 00:14:10,640 --> 00:14:16,000 As a result, the Pharisees considered these two days holy, so on Thursdays and Mondays, 227 00:14:16,000 --> 00:14:17,000 they would fast. 228 00:14:17,000 --> 00:14:19,800 And they did it devoutly. 229 00:14:19,800 --> 00:14:24,080 But they were fasting in a way that people saw that they were fasting because what they 230 00:14:24,080 --> 00:14:27,400 really wanted was to be seen by others. 231 00:14:27,400 --> 00:14:28,920 They were hypocrites. 232 00:14:28,920 --> 00:14:30,720 They were wearing the mask. 233 00:14:30,720 --> 00:14:33,360 They weren't doing this to show any dependence upon God. 234 00:14:33,360 --> 00:14:34,760 They were not confessing their sins. 235 00:14:34,760 --> 00:14:36,600 They were not contrite or repentant. 236 00:14:36,600 --> 00:14:42,560 They weren't trying to seek him at all, but rather they really were seeking man's applause. 237 00:14:42,560 --> 00:14:44,280 That's what they wanted. 238 00:14:44,280 --> 00:14:51,400 Jesus tells us that they purposely made their faces sad and they appeared disheveled. 239 00:14:51,400 --> 00:14:54,480 They did not properly groom on those days. 240 00:14:54,480 --> 00:14:57,880 They didn't get up and wash their face or comb their hair. 241 00:14:57,880 --> 00:15:03,000 Now some commentators report that the Pharisees at this time would even go so far as to put 242 00:15:03,000 --> 00:15:07,480 on a little makeup to look more pale and more gaunt. 243 00:15:07,480 --> 00:15:09,280 They wanted to look this way. 244 00:15:09,280 --> 00:15:10,280 Why? 245 00:15:10,280 --> 00:15:15,800 And then others would cover themselves with dirt and ashes, a sign of mourning. 246 00:15:15,800 --> 00:15:17,040 Why? 247 00:15:17,040 --> 00:15:19,840 They wanted you to see them. 248 00:15:19,840 --> 00:15:22,160 They were simply playing the part as an actor would. 249 00:15:22,160 --> 00:15:24,080 Like an actor might put on stage makeup. 250 00:15:24,080 --> 00:15:26,800 So did these men. 251 00:15:26,800 --> 00:15:31,160 In contrast, the word Jesus is going to show his disciples, if you're going to fast, here's 252 00:15:31,160 --> 00:15:32,240 how you must do it. 253 00:15:32,240 --> 00:15:35,840 And we find it in verse 17 and 18. 254 00:15:35,840 --> 00:15:38,260 But the key is verse 18. 255 00:15:38,260 --> 00:15:41,220 This is the key of why we're here in worship this morning. 256 00:15:41,220 --> 00:15:45,320 God sees what you do in secret and he rewards openly. 257 00:15:45,320 --> 00:15:48,160 God sees into the secret places. 258 00:15:48,160 --> 00:15:51,840 God is a rewarder of those who are diligently seeking him. 259 00:15:51,840 --> 00:15:52,840 It's the same with our giving. 260 00:15:52,840 --> 00:15:55,160 It's the same with our praying. 261 00:15:55,160 --> 00:15:58,560 Do it as privately as you possibly can. 262 00:15:58,560 --> 00:16:00,320 Try not to be seen by others. 263 00:16:00,320 --> 00:16:04,640 Now I will tell you, admittedly, it is difficult for me to preach on fasting because this has 264 00:16:04,640 --> 00:16:08,240 not been something that I have often practiced. 265 00:16:08,240 --> 00:16:12,800 It has not been a part of my habitual routine. 266 00:16:12,800 --> 00:16:16,800 Now some Christians think that fasting was only a Jewish custom and that's no longer 267 00:16:16,800 --> 00:16:19,440 practiced today under the new covenant. 268 00:16:19,440 --> 00:16:22,160 That's a false assumption, by the way. 269 00:16:22,160 --> 00:16:26,360 Christians refuse to fast because if you look at the Middle Ages, you see the abuses and 270 00:16:26,360 --> 00:16:30,640 the extreme asceticism that had risen and developed in the Middle Ages. 271 00:16:30,640 --> 00:16:33,840 They thought this was a sign of godliness. 272 00:16:33,840 --> 00:16:34,840 That's gone too far. 273 00:16:34,840 --> 00:16:39,400 But can we be honest this morning and be frank? 274 00:16:39,400 --> 00:16:46,000 Let's admit to ourselves that another reason we don't fast is because it is too difficult. 275 00:16:46,000 --> 00:16:47,700 We like comfort. 276 00:16:47,700 --> 00:16:48,700 We like convenience. 277 00:16:48,700 --> 00:16:53,400 I mean there are some Christians, if you talk about fasting, they think you're fanatical 278 00:16:53,400 --> 00:16:56,240 to go without food. 279 00:16:56,240 --> 00:17:00,640 And this is one of the dangers that I think we face in our day, a day of comfort and prosperity 280 00:17:00,640 --> 00:17:02,760 and abundance. 281 00:17:02,760 --> 00:17:07,920 Many today want an easy Christianity that doesn't cost them anything and yet still benefits 282 00:17:07,920 --> 00:17:10,560 them greatly. 283 00:17:10,560 --> 00:17:15,320 They want a relationship with God that requires no discipline, that requires no commitment 284 00:17:15,320 --> 00:17:18,840 from them whatsoever. 285 00:17:18,840 --> 00:17:20,560 But I want us to hear the words of our Lord. 286 00:17:20,560 --> 00:17:26,280 In Matthew chapter 7, just one chapter over, look at verse 13. 287 00:17:26,280 --> 00:17:29,560 Jesus is talking to those following Him. 288 00:17:29,560 --> 00:17:32,560 He's not primarily talking to the scribes and Pharisees. 289 00:17:32,560 --> 00:17:35,000 These are His followers. 290 00:17:35,000 --> 00:17:41,160 Enter by the narrow gate, for wide, broad is that gate, and broad is the way that leads 291 00:17:41,160 --> 00:17:48,920 to destruction, and there are many who go in by it because narrow is the gate. 292 00:17:48,920 --> 00:17:55,240 And notice this next phrase, and difficult is the way which leads to life. 293 00:17:55,240 --> 00:17:58,920 And there are a few who find it. 294 00:17:58,920 --> 00:18:01,960 Difficult is the way which leads to life. 295 00:18:01,960 --> 00:18:07,400 I think we ought to take every syllable spoken by our Lord seriously. 296 00:18:07,400 --> 00:18:14,040 In Luke chapter 14, Jesus said, great multitudes went with Him, and He turned and said, if 297 00:18:14,040 --> 00:18:19,120 anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and 298 00:18:19,120 --> 00:18:23,760 sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. 299 00:18:23,760 --> 00:18:27,520 And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. 300 00:18:27,520 --> 00:18:34,400 We skip down to verse 33, so likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot 301 00:18:34,400 --> 00:18:37,120 be My disciple. 302 00:18:37,120 --> 00:18:42,000 And I heard like, oh, He's talking to the first century, first century followers. 303 00:18:42,000 --> 00:18:46,140 And has the bar been lowered for us? 304 00:18:46,140 --> 00:18:51,240 Has there been an abomination, a recall of this particular command? 305 00:18:51,240 --> 00:18:55,800 And I will say this, and I mean this with all my heart, if you are turned away from 306 00:18:55,800 --> 00:19:00,160 following Jesus because of what He said in these verses, then you don't know Him, nor 307 00:19:00,160 --> 00:19:02,600 do you understand His worth. 308 00:19:02,600 --> 00:19:06,540 You cannot possibly understand His worth and be willing to depart from Him, because this 309 00:19:06,540 --> 00:19:12,480 I know, once the Spirit of God has opened your eyes and you see Him for who He is, then 310 00:19:12,480 --> 00:19:16,920 you are willing to give up everything, you must have Him. 311 00:19:16,920 --> 00:19:18,720 You must have Him. 312 00:19:18,720 --> 00:19:23,300 If you have seen the glory of God in the face of the Lord Jesus, then you know that the 313 00:19:23,300 --> 00:19:29,800 reward of following Him is far surpassing, far outweighs any sacrifice that we're required 314 00:19:29,800 --> 00:19:32,000 to make in following Him today. 315 00:19:32,000 --> 00:19:33,840 We know that. 316 00:19:33,840 --> 00:19:38,160 Friends, following Christ, it cost us. 317 00:19:38,160 --> 00:19:44,360 The life of the disciple is hard, but it's worth it. 318 00:19:44,360 --> 00:19:47,360 No wonder we don't preach on fasting. 319 00:19:47,360 --> 00:19:48,360 Requires sacrifice. 320 00:19:48,360 --> 00:19:54,760 And that runs counter to our flesh and to our culture, which loves comfort. 321 00:19:54,760 --> 00:19:56,920 See, now let me just say this. 322 00:19:56,920 --> 00:19:59,140 Fasting is not simply for the sake of denial. 323 00:19:59,140 --> 00:20:05,760 It's not simply for the sake of sacrifice, and nor, especially, it's not about self-discipline. 324 00:20:05,760 --> 00:20:10,640 Biblical fasting is so that you can seek God more earnestly. 325 00:20:10,640 --> 00:20:11,640 That's why you do it. 326 00:20:11,640 --> 00:20:17,360 See, unless there is worship of God or devotion to Him in your heart when you're practicing 327 00:20:17,360 --> 00:20:20,840 these things, it means nothing. 328 00:20:20,840 --> 00:20:24,080 You can go without food for 10 weeks if you want. 329 00:20:24,080 --> 00:20:27,600 But unless you're seeking God, it matters not. 330 00:20:27,600 --> 00:20:31,360 But let's be honest, we can see then from this passage, it is clear that Jesus does 331 00:20:31,360 --> 00:20:35,040 have an expectation that at some point His people will fast. 332 00:20:35,040 --> 00:20:36,600 But we're told how to. 333 00:20:36,600 --> 00:20:37,600 He gives us instructions. 334 00:20:37,600 --> 00:20:39,400 He says, hey, get up. 335 00:20:39,400 --> 00:20:41,520 Anoint your head. 336 00:20:41,520 --> 00:20:42,520 Wash your face. 337 00:20:42,520 --> 00:20:44,640 What's He saying? 338 00:20:44,640 --> 00:20:47,040 For goodness sake, look normal. 339 00:20:47,040 --> 00:20:51,320 You ought to go to bed, shower, shave, get dressed, and present yourself as you normally 340 00:20:51,320 --> 00:20:52,320 would. 341 00:20:52,320 --> 00:20:54,560 In other words, here's what you are not to do. 342 00:20:54,560 --> 00:20:58,980 Don't mope around so that people see you moping around, looking weak and looking faint, 343 00:20:58,980 --> 00:21:01,600 so they're going to ask you, why do you look this way? 344 00:21:01,600 --> 00:21:05,400 And then you can mostly say, well, I'm fasting. 345 00:21:05,400 --> 00:21:07,760 Don't do that, He says. 346 00:21:07,760 --> 00:21:10,000 Fasting is to afflict your soul before God. 347 00:21:10,000 --> 00:21:12,100 It's never to impress people. 348 00:21:12,100 --> 00:21:13,100 Don't do it. 349 00:21:13,100 --> 00:21:15,800 Now, some say, hey, but it's not required. 350 00:21:15,800 --> 00:21:17,960 There's no command, pastor, and you are right. 351 00:21:17,960 --> 00:21:24,240 But there is an expectation, and Jesus suggests that it is still, takes practice today. 352 00:21:24,240 --> 00:21:26,760 Look at Matthew 9. 353 00:21:26,760 --> 00:21:33,960 The disciples of John, that's John the Baptist, came to Him and said, hey, why do we, disciples 354 00:21:33,960 --> 00:21:38,520 of John the Baptist, and the Pharisees, we're often fasting, but your disciples aren't. 355 00:21:38,520 --> 00:21:41,320 They're having a party and we're going without. 356 00:21:41,320 --> 00:21:48,040 Jesus said, can the friends of the bridegroom mourn as long as the bridegroom was with them? 357 00:21:48,040 --> 00:21:51,960 But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they 358 00:21:51,960 --> 00:21:53,800 will fast. 359 00:21:53,800 --> 00:21:54,800 And then they will. 360 00:21:54,800 --> 00:21:56,960 So fasting is associated with mourning. 361 00:21:56,960 --> 00:21:59,040 Jesus' disciples were not mourning. 362 00:21:59,040 --> 00:22:00,040 Why? 363 00:22:00,040 --> 00:22:01,520 The bridegroom was still there. 364 00:22:01,520 --> 00:22:02,840 Christ is still physically present. 365 00:22:02,840 --> 00:22:06,800 But He said, the days are coming when the groom will no longer be here, and then they 366 00:22:06,800 --> 00:22:07,800 will fast. 367 00:22:07,800 --> 00:22:11,120 Well, when was the groom no longer there? 368 00:22:11,120 --> 00:22:12,320 At His ascension. 369 00:22:12,320 --> 00:22:13,320 He left them. 370 00:22:13,320 --> 00:22:14,320 He was taken up. 371 00:22:14,320 --> 00:22:16,760 He has not yet returned in glory. 372 00:22:16,760 --> 00:22:22,280 Fasting has resumed, and it will continue until, once again, we are reunited with our 373 00:22:22,280 --> 00:22:24,000 Lord. 374 00:22:24,000 --> 00:22:28,440 And then fasting goes away, and it's all feasting from that point. 375 00:22:28,440 --> 00:22:30,920 Fasting has always been common in the Old Testament and the New. 376 00:22:30,920 --> 00:22:33,840 As I said, with Moses, he fasted 40 days. 377 00:22:33,840 --> 00:22:37,440 But you find a greater Moses who is going to deliver his people, and his name is the 378 00:22:37,440 --> 00:22:38,440 Lord Jesus. 379 00:22:38,440 --> 00:22:42,280 And what did he do before he was tempted by Satan? 380 00:22:42,280 --> 00:22:43,840 He's fasting for how long? 381 00:22:43,840 --> 00:22:45,340 40 days. 382 00:22:45,340 --> 00:22:47,640 You go to the book of Acts and you look at the early church. 383 00:22:47,640 --> 00:22:48,840 What are they doing? 384 00:22:48,840 --> 00:22:50,680 They're fasting and praying. 385 00:22:50,680 --> 00:22:56,320 Acts 13, as they minister to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, separate Barnasm 386 00:22:56,320 --> 00:22:58,360 and Saul for the work I have. 387 00:22:58,360 --> 00:23:03,120 Verse 3, having fasted and prayed, they laid their hands on them and sent them away. 388 00:23:03,120 --> 00:23:07,560 But notice, again, fasting is not just fasting, it's fasting and what? 389 00:23:07,560 --> 00:23:08,760 Praying. 390 00:23:08,760 --> 00:23:10,840 That's what you see that all the way through. 391 00:23:10,840 --> 00:23:12,180 Disciples fasted and prayed. 392 00:23:12,180 --> 00:23:13,180 One more example. 393 00:23:13,180 --> 00:23:16,440 Next chapter, Acts 14. 394 00:23:16,440 --> 00:23:21,040 And when they had preached the gospel to that city, they made many disciples and they returned 395 00:23:21,040 --> 00:23:23,320 to Lister, Iconium, and Antioch. 396 00:23:23,320 --> 00:23:24,320 What were they doing? 397 00:23:24,320 --> 00:23:26,240 Strengthening the souls of disciples. 398 00:23:26,240 --> 00:23:28,800 Now listen, church, this is for us. 399 00:23:28,800 --> 00:23:31,280 Exhorting them to continue in the faith. 400 00:23:31,280 --> 00:23:32,280 Why? 401 00:23:32,280 --> 00:23:34,800 Because they know it's going to get tough and some are going to be tempted to abandon 402 00:23:34,800 --> 00:23:36,280 the faith. 403 00:23:36,280 --> 00:23:40,800 Saying, we must, through many tribulations, enter the kingdom of God. 404 00:23:40,800 --> 00:23:42,920 That's exactly what Jesus said. 405 00:23:42,920 --> 00:23:45,640 The road into life is difficult. 406 00:23:45,640 --> 00:23:50,960 So when they had anointed elders in every church and prayed with fasting, they commended 407 00:23:50,960 --> 00:23:54,160 to the Lord in whom they believed. 408 00:23:54,160 --> 00:23:58,640 Why do we have this different expectation than any of the early church did? 409 00:23:58,640 --> 00:24:02,000 They prayed and they fasted. 410 00:24:02,000 --> 00:24:06,840 The late Andrew Murray says, faith needs a life of prayer in which to grow and to keep 411 00:24:06,840 --> 00:24:07,840 strong. 412 00:24:07,840 --> 00:24:09,400 We see that. 413 00:24:09,400 --> 00:24:12,440 Prayers need fasting for its full and perfect development. 414 00:24:12,440 --> 00:24:14,440 I love what he writes here. 415 00:24:14,440 --> 00:24:20,320 Prayer is the one hand with which we grasp the invisible. 416 00:24:20,320 --> 00:24:27,440 Fasting is the other hand with which we let loose and cast away the visible. 417 00:24:27,440 --> 00:24:29,920 Prayer lays hold of the invisible. 418 00:24:29,920 --> 00:24:32,720 Fasting casts away the visible. 419 00:24:32,720 --> 00:24:33,720 J.C. 420 00:24:33,720 --> 00:24:35,560 Ryle. 421 00:24:35,560 --> 00:24:38,780 He says, we find no direct commandment in the New Testament. 422 00:24:38,780 --> 00:24:44,140 It seems to be left to everyone's discretion whether he will fast or not. 423 00:24:44,140 --> 00:24:47,920 In this absence of direct command, we may see great wisdom. 424 00:24:47,920 --> 00:24:52,760 It is a matter in which each person must be persuaded in their own mind and not rashly 425 00:24:52,760 --> 00:24:54,840 condemn others who do not agree. 426 00:24:54,840 --> 00:24:56,920 One thing only must never be forgotten. 427 00:24:56,920 --> 00:25:00,400 Those who fast should do it quietly, secretly, and without ostentation. 428 00:25:00,400 --> 00:25:03,200 Yeah, it's not commanded. 429 00:25:03,200 --> 00:25:05,320 But you see Jesus doing it. 430 00:25:05,320 --> 00:25:06,880 You see the early church doing it. 431 00:25:06,880 --> 00:25:09,840 And by the way, the church fathers, they wrote about it. 432 00:25:09,840 --> 00:25:11,800 They all practiced fasting. 433 00:25:11,800 --> 00:25:15,180 If you look through the annals of church history, you see it, at the time of the Reformation, 434 00:25:15,180 --> 00:25:17,480 you had Martin Luther, John Calvin fasting. 435 00:25:17,480 --> 00:25:22,680 You can go from the Reformation, you see our spiritual forefathers like Wesley and Whitfield 436 00:25:22,680 --> 00:25:27,320 and Jonathan Edwards, they were all fasting and praying. 437 00:25:27,320 --> 00:25:31,320 But what is fasting not? 438 00:25:31,320 --> 00:25:36,120 It is not twisting God's arm to get him to do so, something that he was not inclined 439 00:25:36,120 --> 00:25:38,300 to do in the first place. 440 00:25:38,300 --> 00:25:42,200 Some people think if we're fasting, it's like prayer supercharged, like God's like, 441 00:25:42,200 --> 00:25:46,000 oh, I don't want to do this, but now since they're praying and fasting, I have to do 442 00:25:46,000 --> 00:25:47,160 it. 443 00:25:47,160 --> 00:25:49,880 That's not it. 444 00:25:49,880 --> 00:25:54,920 Fasting helps us to align our desires with God, not for him to align his desire with 445 00:25:54,920 --> 00:25:56,960 us. 446 00:25:56,960 --> 00:25:59,600 It helps us to be more in tune with God. 447 00:25:59,600 --> 00:26:02,440 It helps us to be more in tune with his leading in our lives. 448 00:26:02,440 --> 00:26:04,400 At the same time, what are we doing? 449 00:26:04,400 --> 00:26:09,220 We're subordinating our earthly desires, our earthly passions. 450 00:26:09,220 --> 00:26:11,880 It does help to deny the flesh. 451 00:26:11,880 --> 00:26:15,560 It's interesting today, if you turn on any health program, you'll see the benefits of 452 00:26:15,560 --> 00:26:20,920 fasting or intermittent fasting, but that's not the biblical focus. 453 00:26:20,920 --> 00:26:25,560 In biblically fasting, the focus is on God, not on the benefits that may be gained by 454 00:26:25,560 --> 00:26:26,560 us. 455 00:26:26,560 --> 00:26:29,560 There are benefits, but that's not why we do it. 456 00:26:29,560 --> 00:26:34,760 Now, as we start to close, we're not there yet, so hold on, there are ways that fasting 457 00:26:34,760 --> 00:26:37,120 can be abused. 458 00:26:37,120 --> 00:26:39,320 It can make us proud. 459 00:26:39,320 --> 00:26:44,720 Look at the Pharisees, exhibit A. You may be tempted if you practice this discipline 460 00:26:44,720 --> 00:26:51,360 that you're more holy or more pious because of what you do, but fasting never makes anyone 461 00:26:51,360 --> 00:26:52,640 holy. 462 00:26:52,640 --> 00:26:56,040 Only the sanctifying power of God makes us holy. 463 00:26:56,040 --> 00:27:00,680 However, some people get proud of how disciplined they are. 464 00:27:00,680 --> 00:27:02,360 That's legalism. 465 00:27:02,360 --> 00:27:06,800 You're supposing that your good deeds or your religious devotion somehow is earning favor 466 00:27:06,800 --> 00:27:07,800 with God. 467 00:27:07,800 --> 00:27:11,160 He looks favorably upon me because look what I'm doing. 468 00:27:11,160 --> 00:27:12,800 That's an abuse. 469 00:27:12,800 --> 00:27:17,160 Secondly, it can produce a judgmental spirit. 470 00:27:17,160 --> 00:27:20,440 If you practice fasting and you know someone else never does, you may look down with them 471 00:27:20,440 --> 00:27:23,640 in judgment and think, well, they're just not that spiritual. 472 00:27:23,640 --> 00:27:27,640 They don't take their walk with the Lord that seriously. 473 00:27:27,640 --> 00:27:32,400 But we must keep in mind the issue has never been about food, ever. 474 00:27:32,400 --> 00:27:36,720 First Corinthians 8 verse 8, food does not commend us to God. 475 00:27:36,720 --> 00:27:40,480 There was all these wars in the early church about what you could eat and what you couldn't 476 00:27:40,480 --> 00:27:43,100 because you had Jewish kosher laws, dietary laws. 477 00:27:43,100 --> 00:27:48,400 You had these pagans being saved out of paganism who used to eat things offered to idols. 478 00:27:48,400 --> 00:27:52,520 And then you have the church that says, hey, let's have a smorgasbord and have it all. 479 00:27:52,520 --> 00:27:55,880 And so the people said, and Paul is like, listen, stop. 480 00:27:55,880 --> 00:27:56,880 It's not about food. 481 00:27:56,880 --> 00:27:59,080 Food does not commend us to God. 482 00:27:59,080 --> 00:28:00,480 If we eat it, we're not better. 483 00:28:00,480 --> 00:28:02,680 And if we don't eat it, are we better? 484 00:28:02,680 --> 00:28:04,840 Or if we don't, are we the worse? 485 00:28:04,840 --> 00:28:06,880 It's never been about food. 486 00:28:06,880 --> 00:28:09,360 God is not primarily concerned with what we eat. 487 00:28:09,360 --> 00:28:13,060 He's primarily concerned the state of our heart. 488 00:28:13,060 --> 00:28:14,060 That's it. 489 00:28:14,060 --> 00:28:16,520 And you see that in Colossians 2. 490 00:28:16,520 --> 00:28:24,080 Therefore, if, and it means since here, since you died with Christ from the basic principles 491 00:28:24,080 --> 00:28:28,800 of the world, why is the living in the world do you subject yourselves to regulations? 492 00:28:28,800 --> 00:28:33,360 Because there were people in Colossi who were thinking, I have to do this in order to impress 493 00:28:33,360 --> 00:28:34,360 God. 494 00:28:34,360 --> 00:28:35,360 What were they doing? 495 00:28:35,360 --> 00:28:39,000 Don't touch, don't taste, don't handle. 496 00:28:39,000 --> 00:28:41,600 They became legalists in ascetics. 497 00:28:41,600 --> 00:28:44,320 And he said, all these things are going to perish. 498 00:28:44,320 --> 00:28:45,320 These are the doctrines of men. 499 00:28:45,320 --> 00:28:47,480 Look at verse 23. 500 00:28:47,480 --> 00:28:54,000 They look wise, they have an appearance of wisdom, that it's self-imposed religion. 501 00:28:54,000 --> 00:28:55,680 It's will worship. 502 00:28:55,680 --> 00:28:57,200 It's false humility. 503 00:28:57,200 --> 00:29:02,000 It's neglecting the body, and they don't help at all against sin in the flesh. 504 00:29:02,000 --> 00:29:03,880 Do you see? 505 00:29:03,880 --> 00:29:08,220 Like we can, we're so prone to go to extremes. 506 00:29:08,220 --> 00:29:15,280 There is nothing intrinsically good about fasting unless it is accompanied by the right 507 00:29:15,280 --> 00:29:21,120 heart and the right motive, which is to seek the Lord. 508 00:29:21,120 --> 00:29:24,200 Now some of you here, you're like, well, I just think anyone who fasts and you teach 509 00:29:24,200 --> 00:29:26,520 on it, that's legalistic. 510 00:29:26,520 --> 00:29:30,800 I get so tired of hearing people brain me about the word legalism anytime you talk about 511 00:29:30,800 --> 00:29:33,360 standards or obedience. 512 00:29:33,360 --> 00:29:35,360 Listen, grace. 513 00:29:35,360 --> 00:29:39,280 God's grace teaches God's people to do something. 514 00:29:39,280 --> 00:29:41,320 Grace is active, it's not passive. 515 00:29:41,320 --> 00:29:45,800 If grace in your life isn't doing anything, James 2 says it's a dead faith. 516 00:29:45,800 --> 00:29:51,800 Listen, Titus 2.11 says, for the grace of God that brings salvation as appeared to all 517 00:29:51,800 --> 00:29:56,240 men, wonderful, verse 12, teaches us, what teaches us? 518 00:29:56,240 --> 00:29:57,720 The antecedent, grace. 519 00:29:57,720 --> 00:30:00,000 The grace of God teaches us what? 520 00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:04,980 To deny ungodliness and to deny worldly lusts. 521 00:30:04,980 --> 00:30:10,960 It also teaches us to live soberly, that's seriously, righteously, and godly right now. 522 00:30:10,960 --> 00:30:16,120 Do you see, friends, this type of licentious behavior we see in the church today is an 523 00:30:16,120 --> 00:30:19,520 antinomian spirit and it's of the devil. 524 00:30:19,520 --> 00:30:25,800 The grace of God teaches us and it teaches us to deny ourselves and to seek him and fasting 525 00:30:25,800 --> 00:30:28,040 is one of the tools that you can use to do that. 526 00:30:28,040 --> 00:30:33,400 You say, oh, you're just fanatical, legalistic. 527 00:30:33,400 --> 00:30:36,240 Or maybe you just want to go along with the cultural norms. 528 00:30:36,240 --> 00:30:39,720 Our culture is always about self-indulgence. 529 00:30:39,720 --> 00:30:42,380 Don't sacrifice anything. 530 00:30:42,380 --> 00:30:46,140 If your walk with Christ asks you to sacrifice, don't do it. 531 00:30:46,140 --> 00:30:49,920 Because these people have Christ as a means of convenience. 532 00:30:49,920 --> 00:30:54,200 But you don't get to use Christ. 533 00:30:54,200 --> 00:30:56,320 That doesn't happen in any relationship, does it? 534 00:30:56,320 --> 00:30:58,720 And it doesn't happen in our walk with Christ either. 535 00:30:58,720 --> 00:31:04,920 He will not allow you to use him as a means to your own benefit, nor can you take advantage 536 00:31:04,920 --> 00:31:07,360 of him. 537 00:31:07,360 --> 00:31:09,120 That doesn't work in human relationships. 538 00:31:09,120 --> 00:31:14,960 My wife can tell if she's being used if I'm just taking advantage of her. 539 00:31:14,960 --> 00:31:17,680 Christ certainly knows that. 540 00:31:17,680 --> 00:31:22,760 Love in any relationship requires sacrifice. 541 00:31:22,760 --> 00:31:25,000 Any relationship. 542 00:31:25,000 --> 00:31:31,200 Are you willing to sacrifice so that the relationship you have with our Lord might be strengthened? 543 00:31:31,200 --> 00:31:32,680 That's what we're asked this morning. 544 00:31:32,680 --> 00:31:35,800 Now, it might mean fasting at times. 545 00:31:35,800 --> 00:31:40,760 Now, I said earlier, fasting in its pure form means going without food, going without drink. 546 00:31:40,760 --> 00:31:42,120 But there are other ways that Christians fast. 547 00:31:42,120 --> 00:31:44,500 There's one other way mentioned in the New Testament. 548 00:31:44,500 --> 00:31:46,760 We find it in Paul's letter to the Corinthian church. 549 00:31:46,760 --> 00:31:51,240 And this was about a sexual fast for husband and wives in 1 Corinthians 7, starting in 550 00:31:51,240 --> 00:31:52,240 verse 2. 551 00:31:52,240 --> 00:31:56,560 He says, but because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his 552 00:31:56,560 --> 00:31:59,080 own wife, each woman have her own husband. 553 00:31:59,080 --> 00:32:01,560 This is the only legitimate sexual expression. 554 00:32:01,560 --> 00:32:05,760 The husband should give his wife her conjugal rights and likewise the wife to her husband. 555 00:32:05,760 --> 00:32:09,360 For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. 556 00:32:09,360 --> 00:32:12,000 They would have known that, but this next part would have been radical. 557 00:32:12,000 --> 00:32:15,320 The husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. 558 00:32:15,320 --> 00:32:16,320 Women have very few rights. 559 00:32:16,320 --> 00:32:18,560 And Paul's like, no, man, you don't have a right to your own body. 560 00:32:18,560 --> 00:32:19,560 Your wife does. 561 00:32:19,560 --> 00:32:20,560 Verse 5. 562 00:32:20,560 --> 00:32:24,160 Now listen, don't deprive one another of what? 563 00:32:24,160 --> 00:32:26,280 The sexual relationship. 564 00:32:26,280 --> 00:32:32,480 Except perhaps by agreement, husband and wife both aligned here, for a limited time, it's 565 00:32:32,480 --> 00:32:36,700 temporary, so that you can devote yourselves to prayer. 566 00:32:36,700 --> 00:32:41,080 Then come together again, resume normal sexual relationship, so that Satan does not tempt 567 00:32:41,080 --> 00:32:42,440 you for your lack of self-control. 568 00:32:42,440 --> 00:32:46,160 Do you see what he's saying? 569 00:32:46,160 --> 00:32:49,280 The husband and wife have agreed to have a sexual fast. 570 00:32:49,280 --> 00:32:50,280 Why? 571 00:32:50,280 --> 00:32:53,400 Because they're going to seek the Lord more earnestly in prayer. 572 00:32:53,400 --> 00:32:54,400 It's right there. 573 00:32:54,400 --> 00:32:58,960 It must be mutual, it must be agreed upon, and it must be temporary. 574 00:32:58,960 --> 00:33:01,360 Then come together again, he says. 575 00:33:01,360 --> 00:33:02,360 So what are we doing? 576 00:33:02,360 --> 00:33:07,600 You're setting aside the normal routines of life for a special, specific time of seeking 577 00:33:07,600 --> 00:33:08,600 the Lord. 578 00:33:08,600 --> 00:33:11,880 I have known people who have fasted when they have an important decision to make. 579 00:33:11,880 --> 00:33:15,200 I've known people when they have a health diagnosis and are waiting to see the results 580 00:33:15,200 --> 00:33:18,200 have fasted and prepared their hearts. 581 00:33:18,200 --> 00:33:20,120 The fasting also could take other ways. 582 00:33:20,120 --> 00:33:24,200 It could be a fast from your resources, a fast from your time. 583 00:33:24,200 --> 00:33:27,440 Something that I've engaged in, and I think this can be helpful for us in our day, it's 584 00:33:27,440 --> 00:33:29,840 a media fast. 585 00:33:29,840 --> 00:33:34,800 Take a break from TV, movies, internet, social media. 586 00:33:34,800 --> 00:33:36,400 Why? 587 00:33:36,400 --> 00:33:39,840 To engage in a more concentrated time of prayer. 588 00:33:39,840 --> 00:33:41,240 Martin Lloyd Jones talked about that. 589 00:33:41,240 --> 00:33:46,920 He said, fasting, if we conceive of it truly, must not be confined to the question of food 590 00:33:46,920 --> 00:33:47,920 and drink. 591 00:33:47,920 --> 00:33:52,360 It should really be made to include abstinence from anything which is legitimate in and of 592 00:33:52,360 --> 00:33:56,360 itself for the sake of some special spiritual purpose. 593 00:33:56,360 --> 00:34:00,800 There are many bodily functions which are right and normal and perfectly legitimate, 594 00:34:00,800 --> 00:34:05,120 but which for special peculiar reasons in certain circumstances should be controlled. 595 00:34:05,120 --> 00:34:07,880 Well, that's fasting. 596 00:34:07,880 --> 00:34:10,880 So we're gonna close now, okay? 597 00:34:10,880 --> 00:34:15,800 Let's say that the Spirit of God has impressed upon your heart and you have never fasted. 598 00:34:15,800 --> 00:34:19,840 Can I just give you some three practical suggestions here? 599 00:34:19,840 --> 00:34:22,920 First of all, start small. 600 00:34:22,920 --> 00:34:25,840 Don't start with a 40-day fast. 601 00:34:25,840 --> 00:34:27,480 Don't start with a week-long fast. 602 00:34:27,480 --> 00:34:31,920 The Jews, when they would have daily fasts, it would be from sundown of one day to sundown 603 00:34:31,920 --> 00:34:32,920 of the next. 604 00:34:32,920 --> 00:34:36,200 After the sun went down, you could resume eating. 605 00:34:36,200 --> 00:34:41,560 It could be, friends, fast a meal and seek the Lord in prayer in that one meal. 606 00:34:41,560 --> 00:34:44,800 It could be where you have a liquid fast, you're abstaining from food, but you're still 607 00:34:44,800 --> 00:34:47,520 having juice and other liquids. 608 00:34:47,520 --> 00:34:52,800 Secondly, and I think this is key, plan the purpose. 609 00:34:52,800 --> 00:34:54,880 It's not simply about denial, friends. 610 00:34:54,880 --> 00:34:58,520 Not simply to deny yourselves, rather to seek God. 611 00:34:58,520 --> 00:35:03,960 Spend the time that you would normally engage in these particular activities, either praying, 612 00:35:03,960 --> 00:35:06,840 reading, meditating upon some passage. 613 00:35:06,840 --> 00:35:12,040 It's because you have to plan what you wanna do or else fasting is just a way for you to 614 00:35:12,040 --> 00:35:13,040 get hungry. 615 00:35:13,040 --> 00:35:18,600 Thirdly, lastly, in our day, and I would say this, in Jesus' day, diabetes almost didn't 616 00:35:18,600 --> 00:35:20,280 exist because of their diet. 617 00:35:20,280 --> 00:35:25,520 But today, if you are diabetic, it may not be wise for you to undertake a fast. 618 00:35:25,520 --> 00:35:29,120 It may, going without food may throw you, I don't know, glucose levels off, hypoglycemic 619 00:35:29,120 --> 00:35:31,720 reactions, I don't know. 620 00:35:31,720 --> 00:35:33,480 Consider another type of fasting. 621 00:35:33,480 --> 00:35:36,800 If your health does not allow you to fast from food, then be creative and undertake 622 00:35:36,800 --> 00:35:38,040 another type of fast. 623 00:35:38,040 --> 00:35:43,960 Again, that will allow you to specifically and specially focus on the Lord. 624 00:35:43,960 --> 00:35:44,960 And I close. 625 00:35:44,960 --> 00:35:45,960 Look at the reward. 626 00:35:45,960 --> 00:35:46,960 Look at the latter part. 627 00:35:46,960 --> 00:35:49,040 Look at the last part of verse 18. 628 00:35:49,040 --> 00:35:54,780 Your Father who sees in secret, He's gonna reward you openly. 629 00:35:54,780 --> 00:35:55,780 This is the key. 630 00:35:55,780 --> 00:36:01,280 We fast from food in order to have a greater taste of Jesus. 631 00:36:01,280 --> 00:36:03,400 It's intensely Godward. 632 00:36:03,400 --> 00:36:05,440 We do it to commune with Him. 633 00:36:05,440 --> 00:36:08,440 We seek Him when no one else knows that we're seeking Him. 634 00:36:08,440 --> 00:36:11,640 Do you wanna have a greater hunger for God? 635 00:36:11,640 --> 00:36:15,280 Or I wanna know you more. 636 00:36:15,280 --> 00:36:16,280 Desire Him. 637 00:36:16,280 --> 00:36:17,440 But see, fasting is awesome. 638 00:36:17,440 --> 00:36:18,440 I love this. 639 00:36:18,440 --> 00:36:21,120 We're getting ready to feast at the table. 640 00:36:21,120 --> 00:36:25,320 Fasting is a reminder that a feast is coming. 641 00:36:25,320 --> 00:36:28,940 In this age, we fast. 642 00:36:28,940 --> 00:36:31,480 In the age to come, we feast. 643 00:36:31,480 --> 00:36:35,560 In this age right now, friends, this is the age in which we bear our cross. 644 00:36:35,560 --> 00:36:37,840 We cross-bear. 645 00:36:37,840 --> 00:36:40,160 In that age, we wear crowns. 646 00:36:40,160 --> 00:36:43,200 There's cross-bearing and crown-wearing. 647 00:36:43,200 --> 00:36:45,480 You're never, ever gonna fast in heaven. 648 00:36:45,480 --> 00:36:47,840 You're never gonna fast in the age to come. 649 00:36:47,840 --> 00:36:48,880 Why? 650 00:36:48,880 --> 00:36:49,880 We will be with the heavenly bridegroom. 651 00:36:49,880 --> 00:36:52,020 Remember, Jesus said, you don't mourn. 652 00:36:52,020 --> 00:36:54,320 You don't fast when you're with Him. 653 00:36:54,320 --> 00:36:56,020 And we're gonna be with Him. 654 00:36:56,020 --> 00:37:02,480 So right now, we can deny ourselves because we know in the age to come that all our desires 655 00:37:02,480 --> 00:37:04,800 will be perfectly fulfilled. 656 00:37:04,800 --> 00:37:07,520 It's a declaration of faith. 657 00:37:07,520 --> 00:37:08,520 We believe that. 658 00:37:08,520 --> 00:37:10,040 Earlier, I quoted David Mathis. 659 00:37:10,040 --> 00:37:14,280 I wanna do this one last time, cuz he says it better than I. 660 00:37:14,280 --> 00:37:17,320 When Jesus returns, it's gone. 661 00:37:17,320 --> 00:37:18,320 Fasting will be done. 662 00:37:18,320 --> 00:37:23,320 It is a temporary measure for this life and age to enrich our joy in Jesus and to prepare 663 00:37:23,320 --> 00:37:27,680 our hearts for the next, for seeing Him face to face. 664 00:37:27,680 --> 00:37:31,280 When He returns, He's not gonna call a fast, but He'll throw a feast. 665 00:37:31,280 --> 00:37:32,280 Think of the prodigal. 666 00:37:32,280 --> 00:37:34,940 There's a feast that's coming. 667 00:37:34,940 --> 00:37:40,480 Then all holy abstinence will have served its glorious purpose and be seen by all for 668 00:37:40,480 --> 00:37:42,720 the stunning gift that it was. 669 00:37:42,720 --> 00:37:45,360 But until that day, we fast. 670 00:37:45,360 --> 00:37:48,800 We're gonna come to the table, folks. 671 00:37:48,800 --> 00:37:52,040 And we're gonna come to this table in faith. 672 00:37:52,040 --> 00:37:54,480 We wanna feast upon the Lord. 673 00:37:54,480 --> 00:37:55,960 It's just a glimpse, right? 674 00:37:55,960 --> 00:38:01,160 This is a small preview of the age to come in which we will forever enjoy perfect and 675 00:38:01,160 --> 00:38:03,480 unhindered fellowship with our Lord. 676 00:38:03,480 --> 00:38:06,960 But this is a special means of grace that God has given to His church. 677 00:38:06,960 --> 00:38:12,540 We remember Him, we feast upon Him, and we grow closer to Him. 678 00:38:12,540 --> 00:38:19,320 And all of this is with this longing, oh, to be with Jesus in that coming age. 679 00:38:19,320 --> 00:38:25,880 With the saints of old, we cry out, even so, come Lord Jesus. 680 00:38:25,880 --> 00:38:28,360 Before we partake of the meal, we're gonna sing a song. 681 00:38:28,360 --> 00:38:32,600 It's a new song that Katie, I think you know, and Kirsten and Brian, have we sung it here 682 00:38:32,600 --> 00:38:33,600 before?