Matthew 6:16 When you fast, do not be sombre like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward.
Fasting for
Christians is not a command such as it was and remains for ethnic Israelites.
However, here, Jesus’ tone suggests that fasting is a given, that it is
something that we will do.
And we see
this played out in the early Church. For example, in Acts 13.2 we read, ‘While
they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for
me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”
And up until
recently the ‘discipline’ of fasting was commonplace.
Today at St
Oswald’s we continued with our engagement with ‘Practising the Way’ by John
Mark Commer. (The Course —
Practicing the Way)
We have been
exploring the spiritual disciplines and practices of Jesus, today we explored
fasting. Jesus both feasted and
fasted. Therefore, if we are to follow
him as his ‘apprentices’ then fasting ought to be part of our own discipline.
How you fast,
why you fast and when you fast are important and guidance is readily available,
even if the practise has fallen into abeyance. Of course, the practise of a Lenten fast is
still widely recognised, even outside the Church.
Therefore,
we recognise that fasting is a good thing to do, that Jesus ‘expects’ us to
fast, it is a given, it was part of the early Church’s practise and continued
to be a key role in the life of the Church until recently when it has fallen
into abeyance, apart from perhaps a Lenten fast of abstinence, like giving up
something for Lent.
However, in Isaiah 58. 5-7 we read these words, ‘Is this the fast I have chosen: a day for a man to deny himself, to bow his head like a reed, and to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast and a day acceptable to the LORD? Isn’t this the fast that I have chosen: to break the chains of wickedness, to untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and tear off every yoke? Isn’t it to share your bread with the hungry, to bring the poor and homeless into your home, to clothe the naked when you see him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?…
And we may
cross reference that with a passage from Matthew, 25:35-36
‘For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you
gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you took Me in, / I was naked
and you clothed Me, I was sick and you looked after Me, I was in prison and you
visited Me.’
Therefore, I
want to encourage fasting as a good thing to do to help us draw near to God, to
deepen our spiritual life and our relationship with God. All to be encouraged
and all very important.
However, it mustn’t be left there, as reflected in the quote from Isaiah 58 above, it must lead us on and out. Check out this selection of Scriptures covering the same theme...
Luke 4:18-19, James 1:27; Galatians 5:13-14; Matthew 23:23; Micah 6:8;
Zechariah 7:9-10; Proverbs 21:3; Jeremiah 34:8-17; Matthew 5:6; 1 John 3:17-18; Acts 10:38; Romans 12:13; Hebrews 13:16; Deuteronomy 15:7-11.
I remember during the time of the movement of the Holy Spirit that became known as the ‘Toronto Blessings’ that spread from Canada into the UK. One of these features, common to Charismatics, but slightly unnerving for those unused to such practises was ‘resting in the Spirit’ (or, ‘being slain in the Spirit.’) This was where a person being prayed for, or sometimes even not being prayed for, fell onto the floor. There was much debate and comment about this and the other more peculiar manifestations. However, on this manifestation, ‘resting in the Spirit,’ I remember a comment by Colin Urquhart, well known for rediscovering and encouraging the work of the Holy Spirit in the Church, he said, “it isn’t so much about the going down, but as to the getting up.”
Maybe, just maybe, over this Lent (and onwards) when we fast we use that time not only to engage deeper with God in prayer, contemplation, reading Scripture, but we do something very practical.
We might volunteer with a Charity, helping in a shop
or raising funds. Maybe if you are abstaining from something then donate the money
you might have spent to that Charity.
Having fasted, prayed, read our Scripture, spent in contemplation the question remains; ‘what am I going to do as a result of this encounter with God?’
O Christ in
the synagogue at Nazareth,
O Christ in
the pulpit of our Churches,
O Risen and
Cosmic Christ,
O Voice of
the Compassionate
And Righteous
God,
Give us no
peace until
We become
workers for your Gospel.
https://youtu.be/S-Bq1YtpQL8?si=xwbHgUCD25Jtwr-o
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