2006-07-21
Good Morning Cherished of God,
Last week, I mentioned that I was being led to write on a topic which is very difficult for me, fasting. Because of my own physical condition, I have been told not to fast. However, that medical advice surely doesn't apply to all others. The Holy Spirit has me writing on this subject, partly because He wants all of us to have a better understanding of it. Some of my own issues with it have to do with the people who have misused it and sometimes done it to excess, thus compromising their health. Those people have forgotten the directive in 1 COR 6: 19-20, "Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, Who lives in you and who was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourselves but to God; He bought you for a price. So use your bodies for God's glory."
We are encouraged to fast in private. Let's look at what Christ says in MT 6: 16-18, part of the Sermon on the Mount. "And when you fast, do not put on a sad face as the hypocrites do. They neglect their appearance so that everyone will see that they are fasting. I assure you, they have already been paid in full. When you go without food, wash your face and comb your hair, so that that others cannot know that you are fasting-only your Father, Who is unseen, will know. And your Father, Who sees what you do in private, will reward you." The kind of hypocrisy mentioned is the same kind that leads certain people to brag about almsgiving, to wear longer tassels on their prayer shawls than anyone else, and to find other ways to expose what should be reverential and obediently faithful good deeds. I had a man write to me, who believed that God was leading him to fast for long periods of time in order to be forgiven. What a sad state of spiritual affairs this was! Over a period of time I did my best with God's help and His word to show this man the error of his thinking.
Fasting is strictly between God and the believer. Healthy fasting involves abstaining from food for a limited time and can involve abstaining from water for a very limited time-I would say no more than a day to 11/2 days on the latter. The idea is to help the believer focus on God, not to injure the health of either his body or his spirit. Not all people can or should fast. That's up to the individual and sometimes his doctor.
There are several types of fasting. 1) Partial fasting. Daniel was fasting when he saw a vision by the Tigris river in DN 10: 2-3, "In the third year that Cyrus was king of Persia [about 536 BC], a message was revealed to Daniel, who is also called Belteshazzar. The message was true but extremely hard to understand. It was explained to him in a vision. At that time I was mourning for three weeks. I did not eat any rich food or any meat, drink any wine, or comb my hair until the three weeks were past." [Remember, Daniel was alone and this was long before Christ's Sermon on the Mount]. To put this passage in perspective, Daniel had just spent his time praying for the Jews in exile. He was just about to see an Angel of God, Who explains in DN 10: 13-14 the reason for his 21- day delay and to give Daniel a vision of the future. 2) Total fasting. Christ actually fasted for 40 days in the wilderness in MT 4. I'm not convinced that ordinary humans can do such a thing safely. God equipped Christ for this time in the wilderness, and examination of MT 4: 1-11 shows us how He was able to use God's word and His inherent supremacy to best the devil. We must note that at the end, Christ was spent and needed angels to help him recover from this experience. Since total fasting involves having no food or water, this equipping of Christ had to be a supernatural act. Ordinary people cannot go longer than 3 days maximum without water, which is why no one reading this message should assume any suggestion of this kind of total fasting for such a lengthy period. 3) Absolute fasting. I really can't discern much difference between total and absolute fasting, but there is an example which I feel compelled to share. It in ES 4: 15-16 where Esther, the Jewish queen of Persia, is preparing to go before her husband, Ahasuerus [Xerxes], to ask him to preserve the lives of her people, the Jews. "Esther sent [her cousin] Mordecai this reply: 'Go and get all the Jews in Susa [Sushan, the capital city] together; hold a fast and pray for me. Do not eat or drink anything for three days and nights. My servant girls and I will be doing the same. After that, I will go to the king, even through it is against the law. If I must die for doing it, I will die.'" The rules for approaching the king in Persia were very limiting and strict. At that point, the king didn't know that Esther [Hadassa, in Hebrew] was a Jew. 4) Voluntary fasting. This is purposely taking no food, as was done in DN 9: 3 during Daniel's intercessory prayer. "And I prayed earnestly to the Lord God, pleading with Him, fasting, wearing sackcloth, and sitting in ashes." And lastly 4) Involuntary fasting. This is not eating because in deep grief and lacking desire. We see this on the part of King Darius who liked Daniel in DN 6: 18 when Daniel is in the lion pit. "Then the king returned to the palace and spent a sleepless night, without food or any for of entertainment." There is more to say about involuntary fasting and other fasting- related issues, which will have to wait for next week's message.
PRAYER: O Lord, we come before your mighty throne to appeal to You for a greater understanding of fasting, especially the kind that serves Your purpose, is healthy, and pleases You. In the meanwhile, we will continue examining whatever you reveal about this subject in Your word. The lessons of the Lord's Prayer taught us how to pray. Now, You ask us to look into ways to prepare our bodies and spirits to be in an attitude of prayer and service. The idea is to sharpen our focus on You, for us to listen carefully for Your wisdom and direction. We must be patient, as Daniel was during that three weeks before receiving the vision of the future and Christ was during that 40 days in the wilderness. PS 27: 14, "Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; yes, wait for the Lord." Fasting, prayer, patience, and courage don't come to us naturally; they are lessons modeled by our Lord Jesus. But You are a God who is kind, tells the truth, is just and fair. You love us more than we understand. PS 33: 4-5, "The Lord is truthful; He can be trusted. He loves justice and fairness, and He is kind to everyone everywhere on earth." You are a Lord Who is there for us whenever we need You. PS 34: 19, "The good man does not escape all troubles-he has them too. But the Lord helps him in each and every one." You never abandon us; You provide for us, and You care about every detail of our lives. PS 81: 10, "I, the Lord, am your God, Who brought you out of Egypt. Open your mouth and I will feed you." PS 37: 23-24, "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and He delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with His hand." We stand before You today, knowing that we cannot live righteously without You, nor can we gain eternal life in Your Kingdom without You. You are the only God we love, worship, thank, and praise eternally. In Christ's holy name we pray. Amen.
As mentioned above, the Holy Spirit leads me to continue writing about fasting next week. How can we imagine a life without the Lord Jesus in it? Knowing that He died on the cross so we, who will listen to the truth and believe in Him, can be saved is an overarching motivation to obedient faith. As with most of us, I know the contrast between a life without faith in Him and a life with it. Naturally, we should want to share our faith in Christ with others, but this must be done with gentleness and sensitivity to where that person is in his own faith. Cultural differences must be understood and taken into account. Just as the Lord Jesus met us where we were at the time we became aware of Him, we must met those we encounter while witnessing the same way. The same is true of prayer. We must look at Christ's example and His obvious God-connectedness in determining our own attitude toward prayer. He has led the way to living righteously, and He will lead us on the way to resurrection in God's perfect time and way. We can each take tremendous comfort in the blessings God so eagerly bestows upon us when we commit our hearts to Him. PS 84: 12, "O Lord of hosts, how blessed is the man who trusts in Thee!" The Holy Spirit urges each of us to pray often and to prepare ourselves prior to praying in a way appropriate to promoting reverence for God. He knows that if we love, honor, and obey God, we will have an inner peace that can't be acquired from any other source. So, I'll close today's devotion by citing PS 62: 5, "Only God gives inward peace, and I depend on Him."
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn