Sunday, November 15, 2009: Fasting and Spiritual Disciplines

Fasting and Spiritual Disciplines
Matthew 6: 16 – 18.

I. Introduction.

How much of the Bible do you believe? I remember a man me asked a question along theses lines during my ordination. It wasn’t so much of a question as it was a statement about what he believed and an opportunity for me to state what I believe. He said, “I have heard some people say they believe the Bible is true from cover to cover, even the maps. What do you believe?”

I can agree with that, because I believe the Bible. I think we can say that as a church. The Bible is the authority for all we believe and teach. In fact, every time we gather as a church, we read the Bible. We study and apply the Bible every week in Sunday School. I preach the Bible on Sunday morning, Sunday evening and Wednesday evening. Our youth and children read, study and apply the Bible in all our gatherings. We are a people of the Bible.

However, saying we believe the Bible is one thing. Actually doing all that the Bible says is another thing entirely. Today might just be a good test about what we believe about the Bible. At least it might be a test of whether we practice what we preach.

Read Matthew 6: 16 – 18.

These are the words of Jesus. They fall in the context of the Sermon on the Mount. For the past several weeks, I have been preaching through the Sermon on the Mount. Next Sunday will not be the end of the Sermon on the Mount, but it will be my last sermon from this series until after the first of the new year. I am going to interrupt the Sermon on the Mount to preach about Advent and preparing for Christmas.

At this point in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is preaching about righteousness. He introduced the subject of righteousness by describing the importance of internal righteousness. The Jewish Pharisees and Teachers of the Law had an external righteousness, but their hearts were far from God. Jesus taught us that righteousness begins in the heart. God is the only One who can make us righteous. God is the only One who can place us in a right relationship with himself.

Jesus took the idea of human sin and moved the boundary that separates obedience and sin. The boundary between obedience and sin is not a physical boundary; it is a spiritual boundary. In other words, it is possible to avoid sin in your body while harboring sinful thoughts and feelings in your heart.

However, the Christian life is not restricted to the state of our hearts. Once God has changed us on the inside and placed our hearts in a right relationship with God, our bodies and physical lives will reflect this change. Specifically, Christians will demonstrate financial generosity, a life of prayer and the discipline of fasting.

As Baptist Christians, we are accustomed to hearing sermons about giving our money to the church, to missions and to the poor. (Sermons about giving are probably not our favorite sermons, but we have all heard the pastor preach about money.) We hear a lot of sermons about prayer. (These are usually our favorite sermons…God has the resources to supply all our needs if we will just come to God in a spirit of dependence.) Yet, when was the last time you heard a sermon about fasting? It’s in the Bible. We believe the Bible. We preach the Bible. Are we willing today to hear Jesus’ words about fasting and apply them to our lives?


II. Fasting.

Fasting is an interesting topic in the Bible. There are numerous references to fasting in Scripture, but there is not any practical advice about how to fast. Some people believe this is because fasting was so widely accepted as a spiritual practice that the ancient people did not need additional instructions. They had learned how to fast from their parents and from the Jewish priests. Fasting was a common religious expression of ancient Judaism.

Literally speaking, fasting is to abstain from food for a period of time. One of the most common ways fasting is employed is to show repentance for sin. This was the reason why the people of Ninevah fasted after hearing Jonah preach about God’s judgment. The people were convicted of their sins, felt guilt over what they had done and fasted. This was a way of demonstrating guilt and repentance.

Another example in the Old Testament occurred when someone sought God’s mercy or direction in an upcoming decision. We see this in the stories of Moses and Elijah. Moses fasted before receiving the Ten Commandments from God. Elijah fasted when he fled from the wicked Queen Jezebel. By fasting, we can remove one of our daily distractions and devote all of our time to prayer and seeking God’s will for our future.

The Prophet Isaiah described what true fasting was supposed to look like. Isaiah 58: 6 – 7, “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter-- when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?”

We can apply Isaiah’s words to twenty-first century life by choosing to skip a meal and give our food or money to those who do not have food. This is a justice issue. You and I have more than enough food. It might inconvenience us a little bit to skip a meal, but we would not starve to death in one day.

There are spiritual reasons to fast, and there are justice reasons to fast. However, I think the very best reason to fast is to discipline our bodies. Hunger is one of our most basic human desires. Fasting is a way to break our own selfishness and devote our bodies to God. Fasting is a way to submit ourselves to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Will we be controlled by the same basic instincts that control the rest of humanity? If we are just like the rest of humanity, then self is Lord.


III. Rewards.

Jesus’ words about fasting followed closely the formula he used to describe giving and prayer. He described the way the hypocrites fasted and the rewards they could expect. More than likely, this is a reference to the Pharisees. They fasted two days every week: Mondays and Thursdays. On one hand, this sounds very spiritual to fast twice a week. On the other hand, that is exactly what the Pharisees wanted people to think. They didn’t fast in order to be closer to God. They fasted in order to be seen by others.

The mistake the Pharisees made in fasting was the same mistake they made in their giving and their prayers. They wanted applause and congratulations from other people. It doesn’t matter how spiritual you might act in public. If you are trying to impress other people with your spiritual life, that is the only reward you will get. Do you want the earthly reward of having people think you are spiritual? Or, do you want the heavenly reward of pleasing God? Choose which reward you prefer. Because you can only get one reward.


IV. “When” You Fast.

Twice in this Scripture passage, Jesus used the word “when.” Again, this is part of the formula he used in describing financial gifts, prayer and fasting. Jesus didn’t say “If you give, pray and fast.” Jesus didn’t say “You should give, pray and fast.” Jesus assumed that giving, praying and fasting are already a part of our lives. In other words, giving, praying and fasting are spiritual disciplines that all Christians should practice.

Baptists don’t spend a lot of time talking about spiritual disciplines. We concentrate on evangelism and missions. We celebrate when our children make professions of faith. We get excited when an adult hears the Gospel and commits to become a Christian. But, what do we do with new Christians? For that matter, what do we do with people who have been Christians for twenty years or longer?

This is the purpose of the spiritual disciplines. Spiritual disciplines relocate our religious expression from the beliefs of our hearts into the actions of our bodies and lives. This is what it looks like to have an experiential faith…Experienced in our hearts, minds and bodies.

Richard Foster’s book, Celebration of Discipline (San Francisco: Harper San Francisco, 1978, 1988), is one of the most popular books about spiritual discipline. In the book, Foster introduces his reader to what he calls the 12 “Classical Spiritual Disciplines.” These are the disciplines Christians have practiced for centuries: Meditation, Prayer, Fasting, Study, Simplicity, Solitude, Submission, Service, Confession, Worship, Guidance and Celebration.

On one hand, the spiritual disciplines are work. They do not come naturally to human beings. Yet, look at what our lives produce naturally. At our very basic nature, we are sinners. We face temptation every day. And, some days we don’t need temptation…We volunteer for sin without any pressure from Satan or from other people. Foster compares our natural lives to the churning of the ocean. Every day, the ocean churns, and this natural movement of the ocean produces dirt and weeds and trash. Without any discipline in our lives, we produce sin and rebellion and self-serving actions.

On the other hand, spiritual disciplines are not the same thing as trying to work to earn our salvation. No amount of work can ever bring about forgiveness of sin, eternal salvation or a proper relationship with God. This is the work of God’s grace in our lives. The spiritual disciplines come AFTER God’s grace has saved us and forgiven our sins and placed us in a proper relationship with God.

The best way I know to describe this is to think in terms of a farmer. Farmers are some of the hardest working people we will ever meet. There is always ground to plow, seeds to plant, weeds to kill, bugs to kill, crops to fertilize, harvest to gather, and then it all starts over again… However, the farmer has no control over whether or not the crops will grow. Only God can grow the crop.

While the farmer does not cause the crops to grow, he still has a lot of work to do to ensure that the conditions are right.


V. Conclusion.

I cannot bring about a change in my own life. You cannot bring a change in your life. Only God can bring about a change. Through the presence of the Holy Spirit in us, God is at work to change us and shape us into the image of His Son Jesus.
But, just like the farmer…There is a work we need to do. The work ensures that the conditions are right for God to grow us into the men and women he wants us to be. Reading the Bible, praying, giving, fasting, meditating…These are like the work of the farmer.
Are you doing the work Jesus expects you to do? Are you preparing the soil of your life so God can grow you?

Jesus did not command us to give, pray and fast. Jesus assumed that giving, praying and fasting are the works you are already doing so God can make you the Christian he wants you to become.