Lent (Part 3)

Almsgiving, prayer and fasting are the three principle focuses for the Christian during the Lenten season. We have already looked at the first two of these in previous mornings. Today we’ll examine briefly the impact that fasting ought to have in our lives.

And when you fast, don't make it obvious, as the hypocrites do, who try to look pale and disheveled so people will admire them for their fasting. I assure you, that is the only reward they will ever get. But when you fast, comb your hair and wash your face. Then no one will suspect you are fasting, except your Father, who knows what you do in secret. And your Father, who knows all secrets, will reward you. (Matthew 6:16-18 NLV).

Fasting, like praying and giving, is a legitimate spiritual discipline to be practiced in private between a Christian and the Lord. How often we practice it is not prescribed, because that too is between the believer and Christ. When we desire to seek God’s face more than we want dinner, that will be the proper time to fast. But as with other disciplines, fasting opens the door to showmanship rather than spirituality. In Jesus’ day the Pharisees fasted twice a week. While fasting, they went about with somber faces and disheveled appearances so that everyone would see and praise their piety. Jesus scorned this custom because He could see their hearts and their true motives. If your fast is for your spiritual benefit and God’s glory, no one else needs to applaud your commitment.

Fasting is still appropriate today for the Christian. In the Scripture there are several purposes for fasting.

1. Fasting for spiritual purposes teaches us self-discipline. Jesus said to deny ourselves, meaning we must say "No" to the demands of our flesh. We are to say "No" to illegitimate demands as well as to certain legitimate ones. Fasting enables us to have self-discipline so that we can say "No" and make it stick. And it trains us to say "Yes" to God in terms of prayer, confession, and doing what is right.
2. Fasting helps us to understand how much we depend on God. When we stop eating, what happens? We experience pain and trouble. We may even think we are about to die. When we fast, we begin to understand that we need God to give us daily bread, and that realization should give us a little humility. We realize that we live, move, and have our being in God.
3. When we fast, there is more time to seek the kingdom of God. There is no cooking, no eating, and no washing of dishes. A lot of time is released so that we can really engage in spiritual activity.
4. Fasting enables us to endure suffering and sympathize with others. As we feel pain from fasting, we can better sympathize with others who are suffering.
5. Fasting generates money. When we fast, we save money that would otherwise be used for food. In the second century the church used such money for the relief of the poor.
6. Fasting contributes to spiritual and mental alertness. When we fast, our minds and perception get sharper because we are focusing less on temporal things and more on eternal realities. We are not rushing through our prayer. We are really thinking things through. Our souls become more alert.
7. Through fasting we are telling God that we are earnest in our prayer. Fasting signals earnestness and urgency. Those who come to God must believe that God exists and that he will reward those who diligently seek him. Fasting demonstrates our earnestness, urgency, and diligence.
8. Fasting enables us to perform true self-examination. We are a generation that is steeped in the philosophy of self-esteem. We dislike the concept of sin and are always whitewashing ourselves. But when we fast and pray, God shows us in increasing degrees our own corruption. And when that happens, we are enabled to confess and forsake our sins.