1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:15,200
Hey everyone, this is Charlie from Encounterchurch Henley and thanks so much for tuning into our

2
00:00:15,200 --> 00:00:21,280
podcast. Our prayer is that through this podcast you can have an encounter with Jesus that will

3
00:00:21,280 --> 00:00:25,920
change your life and now get ready for an inspiring message from our preaching team.

4
00:00:25,920 --> 00:00:32,000
So we are doing a series right now called Make Room about different spiritual practices

5
00:00:33,680 --> 00:00:39,360
and I'm going to start with a little bit of a story because I was thinking how often we're faced

6
00:00:39,360 --> 00:00:45,040
with decisions that we have to make and sometimes we have a decision and we kind of poke around it

7
00:00:45,040 --> 00:00:49,520
a little bit and we think about it and then eventually we realise we just can't avoid making a

8
00:00:49,520 --> 00:00:55,600
decision any longer. We've got to verbalise it and the words start falling out of our mouth and we

9
00:00:55,600 --> 00:01:00,160
start to panic because we know what's going to come but here are the words anyway.

10
00:01:03,280 --> 00:01:04,640
What do you want to have for dinner tonight?

11
00:01:06,960 --> 00:01:11,440
And if that conversation goes anything like it goes in my house it is met with anguish

12
00:01:11,440 --> 00:01:19,360
and horror because the response is always the same. I don't care but you do care Cara, I mean

13
00:01:19,360 --> 00:01:25,680
people, you do care. You do mind. Now you can ask some people if you're getting takeaway or

14
00:01:25,680 --> 00:01:29,280
something what should we have asked Pastor Mike who we talked about before his answer will always be

15
00:01:29,280 --> 00:01:32,960
Indian Temptations out of prospect. It doesn't matter the occasion, it doesn't matter the time,

16
00:01:32,960 --> 00:01:35,760
it doesn't matter the expense, that will always be the answer. Try it, trust me.

17
00:01:36,800 --> 00:01:39,920
Not try Indian Temptations although you should try asking Mike what he should be getting for

18
00:01:39,920 --> 00:01:46,960
takeaway for tonight. For my lovely wife it's not quite as easy because every answer that she

19
00:01:46,960 --> 00:01:50,640
does give is kind of a failure to give a different answer, right? She's met with like this little

20
00:01:50,640 --> 00:01:55,120
bit of anguish of like what about the choice I didn't make? Like I'm going to feel her anguish.

21
00:01:56,000 --> 00:02:02,640
There's a pretty good reason for that I think is because the average adult actually makes 35,000

22
00:02:02,640 --> 00:02:07,200
decisions every single day. Sounds like a big number trust me, I checked it and then I checked

23
00:02:07,200 --> 00:02:11,520
it again just to make sure. That's more often than we blink and more often than we breathe.

24
00:02:12,800 --> 00:02:16,800
It's pretty astounding. There's instant stuff that we do which is things that we just don't,

25
00:02:16,800 --> 00:02:20,480
we just don't think about it or what we say, how we're going to say it. There's the slightly more

26
00:02:20,480 --> 00:02:26,320
active thought required, should I do that load of washing? Yeah, I probably should. There's some

27
00:02:26,320 --> 00:02:30,000
things we need to think about a little bit more and we kind of struggle with which like do I really

28
00:02:30,000 --> 00:02:35,920
need that fourth coffee today? And the answer is probably not but I probably will. And that's

29
00:02:35,920 --> 00:02:42,160
without even tackling anything of actual importance. These are just the small things that kind of roll

30
00:02:42,160 --> 00:02:48,720
and flow as we go. We make these decisions using our unconscious mind and far too rarely we actually

31
00:02:48,720 --> 00:02:55,920
let our rational mind have any opportunity to have any input whatsoever. Every decision we make

32
00:02:55,920 --> 00:03:04,320
is guided by subjectivity and bias and ego and how quite often actually how difficult that

33
00:03:04,320 --> 00:03:10,400
decision is going to be to make which leads us to just kind of suck at making decisions

34
00:03:10,400 --> 00:03:18,400
because objectively we just suck at being objective. I'll give you this now just so you

35
00:03:18,400 --> 00:03:21,360
don't have to sit there and feel bad. I'm going to give you a list of some bad decisions that

36
00:03:21,360 --> 00:03:26,560
Texas made in the past which I'm sure none of you will be able to relate to so that's good,

37
00:03:26,560 --> 00:03:32,720
you're all in the clear. How about the girl that was really really bad for me that I was convinced

38
00:03:32,720 --> 00:03:40,720
would change for me? Yeah it's not Kara again. I was talking about her before, I was talking about her before not now,

39
00:03:40,720 --> 00:03:46,000
this is someone else. Spoiler alert, she did not change, she was bad for me, I was probably bad for her.

40
00:03:46,880 --> 00:03:54,480
An impossible job in a toxic work environment that I knew I was the right guy to fix. Spoiler alert again,

41
00:03:55,120 --> 00:04:01,200
no longer with their company. Don't worry, it's all going to be fine, this was all part of the plan.

42
00:04:01,200 --> 00:04:03,760
How about the keyboard that you almost kicked over and the mic with it?

43
00:04:05,680 --> 00:04:10,480
And how about avoiding a calling from God, a God that I had claimed to the Tim is like I can't.

44
00:04:12,560 --> 00:04:17,120
Avoiding a calling from God that I had claimed was sovereign over my entire life

45
00:04:17,920 --> 00:04:25,680
and my life sure but my plans, my finances, my ideas don't you dare. Are we just trying to work

46
00:04:25,680 --> 00:04:34,480
out what else I might trip? You know I can see you, it's fine. There we go, anyway. So I was

47
00:04:34,480 --> 00:04:38,400
going to say I can see you like you're right there, it's very helpful. I can mostly as long as the

48
00:04:38,400 --> 00:04:44,720
font's really big I can kind of catch on what's going on. So the final one was yeah, a God that I

49
00:04:44,720 --> 00:04:49,040
genuinely had said sovereign over everything, sing the songs, pray the prayers, follow the path but

50
00:04:49,040 --> 00:04:53,440
as soon as I thought that it might impact my way, my life in a way that I was not 100% comfortable

51
00:04:53,440 --> 00:04:59,840
with, I ran away from that for as long as I possibly could. And the truth is I was just giving myself

52
00:04:59,840 --> 00:05:07,760
far too much power and far too much control because I say that I believe in a God with limitless power

53
00:05:07,760 --> 00:05:15,680
who wants to speak to me and he wants to guide me yet far too often I'm not using that as my

54
00:05:15,680 --> 00:05:24,400
starting point. I'm relying on me far too often and I am completely unreliable. As Dallas Willard

55
00:05:24,400 --> 00:05:30,560
eloquently puts it, our failure to hear his voice when we want to is due to the fact that we do not

56
00:05:30,560 --> 00:05:37,840
in general want to hear it, that we want it only when we think we need it. I'm going to repeat that

57
00:05:37,840 --> 00:05:44,800
with a bit of a difference this which is when we think that we need it, not when he wants to speak

58
00:05:44,800 --> 00:05:50,000
but when we think we want to hear him speak or embarrassingly when times get hard enough that

59
00:05:50,000 --> 00:05:57,840
we think it's probably the right time now to involve the big guy. God has more power than

60
00:05:57,840 --> 00:06:03,360
we can comprehend and we are just doing everything in our power to not embrace that. We're doing

61
00:06:03,360 --> 00:06:08,400
everything we can to still remain in control despite the fact that we know he's more powerful

62
00:06:08,400 --> 00:06:15,040
than we are, has a better plan than we could ever imagine. We're still avoiding embracing that. So

63
00:06:15,040 --> 00:06:19,920
as we turn back to today's teaching text we find ourselves with Jesus as he is about to enter into

64
00:06:19,920 --> 00:06:26,000
40 days of fasting. Now Luke's gospel, I know we're preaching from Matthew's gospel today but bear

65
00:06:26,000 --> 00:06:30,960
with me, Luke's gospel will tell us that Jesus full of the Holy Spirit left the Jordan and was led

66
00:06:30,960 --> 00:06:37,040
by the Spirit into the wilderness. So we'll start by just remembering and looking at here is that the

67
00:06:37,040 --> 00:06:43,200
Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness and we know where it led him from, oh sorry we know where it

68
00:06:43,200 --> 00:06:47,680
led him to but we've not really clarified in this statement is where it led him from and Jesus

69
00:06:47,680 --> 00:06:53,520
actually went straight into the wilderness from his own baptism. Now I don't, it's one of these

70
00:06:53,520 --> 00:06:59,280
things, it wasn't that long ago I got baptized about six years ago and I kind of, I'll never forget

71
00:06:59,280 --> 00:07:05,920
it. I'll genuinely never forget that feeling on that day, that feeling that not only had something

72
00:07:05,920 --> 00:07:13,840
begun but something had also finished somehow at the same time. Yeah I remember, honestly I

73
00:07:13,840 --> 00:07:18,080
remember that night not wanting to, okay stay with me, not wanting to have a shower like I could

74
00:07:18,080 --> 00:07:23,360
still taste, I was fortunate enough to have like a baptism in the sea, I was baptized down at Horseshoe

75
00:07:23,360 --> 00:07:27,840
Bay and I remember still tasting kind of the salt water and being like, just that weird thing, like

76
00:07:27,840 --> 00:07:33,360
if I wash this off of my somehow washing off some of that magic, that power, that incredible start

77
00:07:33,360 --> 00:07:38,880
that I've got here, like I said that beautiful kind of opening and finishing all at the same time.

78
00:07:38,880 --> 00:07:43,040
Now Jesus fresh out of his baptismal waters is led into the wilderness in preparation.

79
00:07:44,880 --> 00:07:49,360
Readiness for God's next move, this is before Jesus public ministry has actually begun

80
00:07:50,400 --> 00:07:57,280
and despite being the literal Son of God, preparation is still necessary. He is not

81
00:07:57,280 --> 00:08:02,880
yet ready to begin. So the Spirit leads him where there will be nothing begging for his

82
00:08:02,880 --> 00:08:07,280
attention. To know other forms of commitment, there's no distraction, there's no ministry,

83
00:08:07,280 --> 00:08:11,680
there's no disciples, none of this has started yet. He now has 40 days in the wilderness

84
00:08:12,240 --> 00:08:15,600
of fasting and prayer to proceed everything else.

85
00:08:18,880 --> 00:08:22,480
Now before we go on because you're going to hear me talk about fasting as we go, I just want to

86
00:08:22,480 --> 00:08:28,560
be really clear that the biblical origin for the word fasting comes from the Hebrew Psalm,

87
00:08:28,560 --> 00:08:33,920
which means to abstain from food. I'm making that really clear because in modern culture you'll

88
00:08:33,920 --> 00:08:39,040
quite often hear people talk about fasting from social media or fasting from fast food or fasting

89
00:08:39,040 --> 00:08:43,200
from Netflix, Benjy and all this and that's a really probably helpful behavior but that is abstaining

90
00:08:43,200 --> 00:08:47,920
from a behavior that is not the same as fasting. So as we enter into this next period, I just wanted

91
00:08:47,920 --> 00:08:55,600
to make that super duper clear. So why fasting and why prayer in conjunction with fasting? There's

92
00:08:55,600 --> 00:09:01,440
Thomas A. Terrence, who was the former president of the C.S. Lewis Institute and he puts it thusly,

93
00:09:02,720 --> 00:09:07,920
think of prayer with fasting as knocking loudly on the gates of heaven. We resort to

94
00:09:07,920 --> 00:09:12,800
fasting out of a deep sense of our weakness and need in order to seek God in a more urgent,

95
00:09:13,360 --> 00:09:18,160
earnest and heartfelt manner for something of great importance to us or to his kingdom.

96
00:09:19,120 --> 00:09:25,440
It is a response of faith to God's promise, you will seek me and find me when you seek me

97
00:09:25,440 --> 00:09:32,560
with all your heart. Entering into any fast is willingly entering your body into a period of

98
00:09:32,560 --> 00:09:42,320
earthly weakness in pursuit of something greater. We are giving up in the immediate with hope of what

99
00:09:42,320 --> 00:09:48,320
God has promised for the future. We are leaving behind the wants of here and now for the promises

100
00:09:48,320 --> 00:09:55,840
of when kingdom come. We are rejecting our strength for God's. Now it's one of those

101
00:09:55,840 --> 00:09:59,360
interesting things. I think this is the temptation of Jesus and the wilderness, something we hear

102
00:09:59,360 --> 00:10:05,120
about a lot. As I was kind of looking into and studying, there's this realization that like,

103
00:10:05,120 --> 00:10:09,920
this was not an event that was witnessed by 5000. This was an event that was witnessed even by the

104
00:10:09,920 --> 00:10:14,240
12 by Jesus in a circle. The only way for people to have known about Jesus' temptation and the

105
00:10:14,240 --> 00:10:18,800
wilderness is for Jesus to have told them about his temptation and the wilderness, which means

106
00:10:20,320 --> 00:10:25,840
in a weird way, this isn't Jesus having like a look at me moment. This is him retelling a story

107
00:10:25,840 --> 00:10:33,440
of his own trials, of his own temptation and then using it as a proclamation of God's power

108
00:10:34,000 --> 00:10:41,760
along with an example that we can follow. Now after 40 days, I quote, Jesus was hungry.

109
00:10:41,760 --> 00:10:47,520
He feels like that's like the biggest no brainer in the Bible, but Jesus was hungry after 40 days,

110
00:10:47,520 --> 00:10:52,800
no kidding. And it's here and now that the devil strikes offering the Jesus the opportunity to

111
00:10:52,800 --> 00:10:58,240
abuse his power to take immediately what God has promised for the future, assuming that in Jesus

112
00:10:58,240 --> 00:11:04,000
weakened state the human tendency that we talked about earlier to defer to subjectivity, preference

113
00:11:04,000 --> 00:11:09,840
our own willpower that these would be the things that would take control. Jesus has removed all

114
00:11:09,840 --> 00:11:15,520
resilience, all resilience, all resilience. Jesus has removed all reliance on earthly

115
00:11:15,520 --> 00:11:21,680
sustenance at this point. The only rational reason at this point for his ability to withstand what

116
00:11:21,680 --> 00:11:28,800
is to come is heavenly power. Now from the devil there are three temptations. The first is the

117
00:11:28,800 --> 00:11:34,640
devil says, you must be hungry with this power of yours. Why not turn the stones into bread?

118
00:11:34,640 --> 00:11:40,960
Now Jesus responds, it is written, man is not meant to live on bread alone, but on every word that

119
00:11:40,960 --> 00:11:45,600
comes from the mouth of God. Now I love this, there's a blink in your mishap moment in there,

120
00:11:46,160 --> 00:11:52,080
which is that the devil actually recognizes Jesus power in this moment. With this power of

121
00:11:52,080 --> 00:11:56,400
yours, not with this potential power of yours, not with this inferred power of yours, he actually

122
00:11:56,400 --> 00:12:02,480
sees it, owns it and recognizes it in the moment. The devil is saying you have this godly power.

123
00:12:02,480 --> 00:12:06,800
This isn't theoretical at this point. Jesus has literally spent 40 days and nights with

124
00:12:06,800 --> 00:12:11,680
nothing to sustain him but the Word of God through prayer and time spent in direct pursuit of God

125
00:12:11,680 --> 00:12:15,760
himself. And he's a living embodiment that the power of God is greater than the power here on

126
00:12:15,760 --> 00:12:22,560
earth. Bread absolutely not sir. What I have, I cannot get with bread. I don't need the bread,

127
00:12:22,560 --> 00:12:27,120
I have sustenance coming from somewhere much higher, much more fulfilling and the devil

128
00:12:27,120 --> 00:12:33,120
absolutely knows it. Now the devil then takes him up to a mountain and tells him to throw himself off,

129
00:12:33,680 --> 00:12:37,680
uses scripture to reinforce, God's going to protect you, it's okay, you can do this.

130
00:12:38,400 --> 00:12:42,160
Jesus responds, it is written, do not put the Lord your God to the test.

131
00:12:44,560 --> 00:12:49,360
Now again, the devil is literally using scripture to support a false point.

132
00:12:50,960 --> 00:12:55,920
Isn't it said that he commands his angels concerning you and Jesus doesn't mince words?

133
00:12:55,920 --> 00:13:01,200
He is short and to the point in his response, a lesson for some of us. But equally important,

134
00:13:01,200 --> 00:13:07,920
this is Jesus showing us the power in knowing your Bible. Another lesson for some of us.

135
00:13:09,280 --> 00:13:13,600
The devil declares, he will command his angels concerning you and they will lift you up in

136
00:13:13,600 --> 00:13:17,840
their hands so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. This is straight from

137
00:13:17,840 --> 00:13:22,640
Psalm 91, a Psalm that's been accredited to Moses. It's a great Paul devil, well done.

138
00:13:22,640 --> 00:13:26,480
But here's the line directly before you that he doesn't include.

139
00:13:26,480 --> 00:13:32,480
The Lord, if you say, the Lord is my refuge and you make the most high your dwelling,

140
00:13:32,480 --> 00:13:38,720
no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent, then he goes into where

141
00:13:38,720 --> 00:13:42,560
the devil starts with his scripture, for he will command the angels and that's where he kicks off.

142
00:13:42,560 --> 00:13:48,560
Now this Psalm is not a call of testing in God, this is a call for confidence in God.

143
00:13:48,560 --> 00:13:54,960
It's a cry to turn from cynicism to trusting God in his mercies and his power and Jesus knows this

144
00:13:54,960 --> 00:14:01,920
and as a result is able to rebuke and rebuttal the devil immediately. Now church, you need to know

145
00:14:01,920 --> 00:14:07,840
your Bible. You need to read it, you need to study it and you need to know the subtleties it presents.

146
00:14:08,560 --> 00:14:16,240
There is power in the inspired Word of God, but that power is diminished if we paint it with

147
00:14:16,240 --> 00:14:23,120
our context, our bias and our preference. If we allow it to be used only to suit our own means,

148
00:14:23,120 --> 00:14:25,760
not to be spoken through the lens in which God is intended.

149
00:14:29,760 --> 00:14:35,440
After this the devil shows him all the kingdoms, bow down to me and all of this will be given to you.

150
00:14:38,880 --> 00:14:42,400
Jesus doesn't mess around here. Away from me Satan, for it is written,

151
00:14:42,400 --> 00:14:48,160
worship the Lord your God and serve him only. Then the devil left him and the angels came

152
00:14:48,160 --> 00:14:52,800
and attended to him. Now Jesus responds in this final moment in spiritual power at a time when

153
00:14:52,800 --> 00:14:57,200
he would have physically been at his weakest. Jesus is filled with so much power that he

154
00:14:57,200 --> 00:15:05,920
literally drives the devil away. Jesus responds to the devil by showing his willingness to depend

155
00:15:05,920 --> 00:15:16,160
on God's provision and power, not his own. The devil comes to tempt the body, the mind and the heart.

156
00:15:17,680 --> 00:15:21,360
Jesus comes straight from the waters of baptism into the fires of temptation.

157
00:15:23,440 --> 00:15:28,240
And in this great moment of weakness shows us exactly what it looks like to be fully dependent on God.

158
00:15:28,240 --> 00:15:38,800
Church, until we are actually tested, our submission and our conviction and our ability to stand,

159
00:15:38,800 --> 00:15:46,320
our ground, our theoretical, and too often when we're tested we are found lacking.

160
00:15:49,040 --> 00:15:52,000
We sing songs declaring that we're making room for God

161
00:15:53,440 --> 00:15:55,840
and then we do everything in our power to muscle him out of the way.

162
00:15:55,840 --> 00:16:00,160
And we want to maintain our own position and our preference at every single turn.

163
00:16:02,400 --> 00:16:07,200
We lament the fact that we don't hear God's voice, but too often when faced with trial

164
00:16:07,200 --> 00:16:11,440
or a difficult decision we've already decided what we want him to say.

165
00:16:16,000 --> 00:16:21,920
Even Jesus didn't choose 40 days in the wilderness, don't forget he was led there by the Spirit.

166
00:16:21,920 --> 00:16:27,600
But his willingness to respond, to commit and hand over trust and power in that moment,

167
00:16:27,600 --> 00:16:33,200
and for the 40 days that followed, that's exactly where the power he needed was found.

168
00:16:36,400 --> 00:16:41,760
And when Jesus is asked later, what is the most important commandment?

169
00:16:41,760 --> 00:16:47,200
Mark 12.30 tells us, love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul,

170
00:16:47,200 --> 00:16:49,360
and with all your mind, and with all your strength.

171
00:16:49,360 --> 00:16:52,720
Now at a time when Jesus physical strength would have been at its absolute lowest,

172
00:16:52,720 --> 00:16:56,080
the devil tempts body, mind and his very soul.

173
00:16:59,280 --> 00:17:04,080
The only explanation for Jesus having the power to defend all three was found through God himself,

174
00:17:04,080 --> 00:17:10,800
through prayer and fasting and the inspired word of God he was equipped and empowered to defend all three.

175
00:17:10,800 --> 00:17:23,360
So if we accept that we need God's power not our own, we accept that fasting is one way to do so.

176
00:17:24,800 --> 00:17:27,520
How do we do it? I'm sure we're doing it for the right reasons.

177
00:17:32,320 --> 00:17:34,240
The first is don't forget why you're fasting.

178
00:17:34,240 --> 00:17:39,680
You are fasting to seek God's presence and power.

179
00:17:41,280 --> 00:17:46,160
Fasting is not about legalism, it's about posture.

180
00:17:47,600 --> 00:17:52,640
And if you find yourself tempted by any other desire during the fasting process,

181
00:17:53,440 --> 00:17:56,720
I suggest you repent, reassess and then resume.

182
00:17:56,720 --> 00:18:03,280
Point two, I covered it before but I just thought I'd mention it again.

183
00:18:03,280 --> 00:18:09,680
Fasting is always about food. Please do abstain from too much Netflix, too much social media,

184
00:18:09,680 --> 00:18:15,760
too much whatever, but it's not the same thing. There is something about that dependence on God

185
00:18:15,760 --> 00:18:18,000
for an earthly sustenance that changes everything.

186
00:18:21,040 --> 00:18:24,640
Point three, there's actually four points today so everybody relax.

187
00:18:24,640 --> 00:18:28,400
I know everybody's like, what do you mean four points? Isn't this a sermon? It's okay,

188
00:18:28,400 --> 00:18:33,280
we're going to go three into four. Three, fasting without prayer is dieting.

189
00:18:36,800 --> 00:18:41,440
When you are fasting, I'll tell you how easy it is to fast. I'm fasting right now. I'm really

190
00:18:41,440 --> 00:18:47,040
looking forward to breaking my fast with you guys tonight. When you are fasting, you are

191
00:18:47,040 --> 00:18:53,200
absolutely going to feel hunger pangs. It's about training your body to think about that as a little

192
00:18:53,200 --> 00:18:58,000
reminder. That tummy grumble is a moment of weakness but it's a greater reminder that the

193
00:18:58,000 --> 00:19:02,160
act of fasting is declaring that you are hungry for something much more important than food.

194
00:19:04,240 --> 00:19:11,200
That you are hungry for God to speak and to move and for God's power. So speak to him.

195
00:19:12,880 --> 00:19:18,320
God knows the desires of your heart. We know that already but that doesn't mean he doesn't want to hear

196
00:19:18,320 --> 00:19:26,400
them. Best way I've ever heard somebody put this was when for any parents in the room or people

197
00:19:26,400 --> 00:19:33,360
have kids in their life, they're really important. I love my kids. I know that they love me. It's

198
00:19:33,360 --> 00:19:37,440
vice versa. It really works. I tell you man, as a parent there's nothing more important in the world

199
00:19:37,440 --> 00:19:41,920
than when your kid brings you their problems and they feel comfortable to do so. Or when your kids

200
00:19:41,920 --> 00:19:46,080
come up to you out of the blue and say, hey, I love you dad. Genuinely that is nothing, no better

201
00:19:46,080 --> 00:19:50,960
feeling in the world. That is an earthly manifestation of that. God wants to hear your voice. He wants

202
00:19:50,960 --> 00:19:54,320
to hear your problems. He wants to hear you tell him that you love him. It's no different.

203
00:19:57,600 --> 00:20:02,560
When I'm fasting and I am struggling and let me tell you I struggle when I fast, this is one of

204
00:20:02,560 --> 00:20:12,000
those really great spiritual practices that is not my favorite. I do it because I need, for that

205
00:20:12,000 --> 00:20:16,240
very reason, that's the truth. I do it for that exact reason because I really struggle too fast,

206
00:20:16,240 --> 00:20:22,560
which tells me I'm on the right track. When I struggle, I just have like a little simple,

207
00:20:22,560 --> 00:20:25,040
it's not always like this. It looks really good when you write it down. Honestly,

208
00:20:25,040 --> 00:20:29,120
normally it's some kind of a version of something like this. I would just start with a simple God,

209
00:20:29,120 --> 00:20:34,880
be with me in this moment. Speak to me and let my discomfort be a small sign of my faithfulness.

210
00:20:34,880 --> 00:20:41,120
I'm talking to God. You've got to talk to God through the whole process.

211
00:20:42,160 --> 00:20:46,720
I'm point four. If the above still feels like a bridge too far,

212
00:20:46,720 --> 00:20:52,480
well, you're not quite sure where to start. Fast for a cause. Fasting as a way of seeking God's

213
00:20:52,480 --> 00:20:56,080
presence is reason enough and it should be reason enough and hopefully eventually you get to that

214
00:20:56,080 --> 00:21:01,680
point. Because fasting can ask more of us physically than a lot of other spiritual disciplines,

215
00:21:01,680 --> 00:21:07,440
it can be hard to find a good rhythm with it. So why not try and fast for a cause?

216
00:21:07,440 --> 00:21:11,760
For generations, the church has prayed and fasted in times of great distress.

217
00:21:11,760 --> 00:21:17,760
When we fasted as a, sorry, I'm going to stop actually, we had a group of us fast for a cause.

218
00:21:20,160 --> 00:21:24,080
We were seeking a movement of God's power. We had a friend of ours that was carrying a very

219
00:21:24,080 --> 00:21:32,800
sick baby and there was a group of us that decided that we were going to fast and sorry,

220
00:21:33,920 --> 00:21:36,960
we were going to fast and pray and seek God in that moment.

221
00:21:42,400 --> 00:21:50,640
Sorry, I didn't hear one person complain in that group about hunger pangs or

222
00:21:50,640 --> 00:21:57,920
what it meant like to go without sugar or coffee or food for a day. Not one person.

223
00:21:57,920 --> 00:22:02,640
You're not sure where to start. Find a cause that hurts you. Start there.

224
00:22:07,920 --> 00:22:13,520
Maybe you got a heart for the disadvantaged. Maybe you're not sure what the future holds

225
00:22:13,520 --> 00:22:17,200
for you will work. Maybe you got a sick family member.

226
00:22:17,200 --> 00:22:25,520
You need to remember we're not fasting for God. We're fasting to draw closer to God,

227
00:22:26,240 --> 00:22:33,680
to become more dependent on Him. We want to seek His power to replace our own and absolutely to replace our purpose.

228
00:22:33,680 --> 00:22:45,280
You can probably start coming back up now. Charlie, what's left of your setup?

229
00:22:49,200 --> 00:22:55,040
Hebrews 4.15 tells us that we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our

230
00:22:55,040 --> 00:23:04,880
weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are yet without sin.

231
00:23:07,040 --> 00:23:12,480
Church, we have been on an endless pursuit of fighting desperately to control our lives and

232
00:23:12,480 --> 00:23:17,840
live by our preferences and it is completely exhausting.

233
00:23:17,840 --> 00:23:23,520
And it's also completely unnecessary.

234
00:23:26,960 --> 00:23:35,360
Through Jesus we see a God who has a holy and perfect plan and path for us, yet He humbles

235
00:23:35,360 --> 00:23:41,600
Himself and becomes a man and allows Himself to be tempted and then eventually relinquishes

236
00:23:41,600 --> 00:23:47,920
all control of preference ending with His own death and our salvation.

237
00:23:53,200 --> 00:23:58,000
As Jesus prayed in the garden, the temptation to flee the path of the cross

238
00:23:58,880 --> 00:24:05,040
and let the world face the judgment it deserved was undoubtedly available and present to Him.

239
00:24:05,040 --> 00:24:10,960
But He didn't flee. He stayed.

240
00:24:14,320 --> 00:24:18,720
And in His moment of temptation and weakness He prayed the most desperate prayer of His entire

241
00:24:18,720 --> 00:24:28,240
life and ministry. If it is your will, let this cup pass from me.

242
00:24:28,240 --> 00:24:33,600
Yet not as I will, but as you will.

243
00:24:36,800 --> 00:24:40,160
In this moment Jesus has laid His own preference bare.

244
00:24:46,320 --> 00:24:48,880
But Jesus was willing to submit to God's plan,

245
00:24:51,680 --> 00:24:54,080
to be dependent on God, to live out His mission.

246
00:24:54,080 --> 00:25:02,080
A mission and a life and a sacrifice that we are still living out of today.

247
00:25:06,320 --> 00:25:11,520
Jesus entered into our battle and He lived under the conditions of our struggles

248
00:25:11,520 --> 00:25:27,280
and saw it through to its bitter and beautiful conclusion. Church, it's time to stop.

249
00:25:30,480 --> 00:25:35,840
It's time to stop trying to live by our own means, by our own measure,

250
00:25:35,840 --> 00:25:41,520
by our own preferences, by our own power, by our own ego, our own desires.

251
00:25:44,880 --> 00:25:46,720
Because that's just a better source.

252
00:25:49,040 --> 00:25:53,360
There's a better way. There's a better path and it's available to all of us.

253
00:25:56,240 --> 00:26:00,400
It's available to all of us in an endless supply. Katie can't take my supply of grace.

254
00:26:00,400 --> 00:26:06,800
The staff can't take my supply of power. Even Tim can't take my supply away.

255
00:26:08,480 --> 00:26:14,560
It's an endless supply of power, grace and love and forgiveness.

256
00:26:18,960 --> 00:26:23,520
Jesus gave up control and preference so that we could realize our need for Him

257
00:26:23,520 --> 00:26:29,760
and in turn, with a great peace, we could give our control and our preference to Him.

258
00:26:33,040 --> 00:26:36,240
The power that is only available through Jesus Christ.

259
00:26:41,920 --> 00:26:46,800
Thanks so much for tuning into this week's message. If you felt challenged or need prayer,

260
00:26:46,800 --> 00:26:50,320
we would love to hear from you on Instagram, at encounterhenley.

261
00:26:50,320 --> 00:26:54,800
Or if you're interested in how you can support this ministry, please go to our website,

262
00:26:54,800 --> 00:27:21,280
www.encannadelaide.com.au. Thanks again for listening. God bless you.