Mensa Otabil - Why Do We Fast?
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Welcome to a brand new week! This is a very great week in many ways. Of course, God created the week, so we are happy for it. This week, we will start our 40 days of power from Thursday. From now to Wednesday, I will teach a bit on fasting to give us the reasons why we fast and some guidelines, because from Thursday we will begin 40 days of prayer and fasting.
So, why do we fast? Matthew chapter 4, verses 1 and 2: «Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. When He had fasted 40 days and nights, afterward He was hungry.» We are all familiar with this. Jesus began His ministry with 40 days of prayer and fasting.
What, then, is the value of fasting to us? The Greek word used in the New Testament for fasting has several meanings; the simplest one is to abstain from food, but that word also means to be made empty or to empty yourself. When we fast, we are emptying ourselves; we are removing things from our lives so we can add things into our lives. Jesus said those who hunger and thirst after righteousness are the ones who are satisfied. If you come to God feeling complete and needing nothing, you will leave with nothing. But when we come into the presence of God seeking, empty, and hungry, then we will be filled.
So, we fast to develop a hunger for God. Yes, we worship the Lord throughout the year, we give our lives to Him, we go to church, we read the Bible, and we pray, but this is a time to set aside and develop a deeper hunger for the Lord. We empty ourselves of everything that hinders our walk with the Lord so that we can receive an infilling — to be replenished and refilled.
Secondly, we fast to show our hearts to God. We want God to know what is in our hearts. Jesus was tempted during His fast to reveal His heart and whether He was truly committed to what He was doing. In fasting, we let God know what our priority is — whether we want bread or we want to obey Him, whether we seek glory or we want to love Him. So, what’s in our heart? If you are seeking for vain things, that is what you will look for in a fast. But in a fast, you want to show the genuineness of your heart to the Lord. In all the temptations of Jesus Christ, He demonstrated the genuineness of His heart and His commitment to the Lord. Thus, we fast to show the sincerity of our hearts to the Lord.
Thirdly, we fast to learn to live by the Word of God. That is the first response Jesus gave to Satan: «Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.» Instead of depending on food to sustain us, we are saying, «Lord, Your Word will sustain us.» That’s why, when you fast, you must spend a lot of time in the Word of God. This may be difficult for some people because you’re working throughout the day, so find portions of time when you can truly feed on the Word of God.
If you have the opportunity to listen to an audio reading of the Bible, get it into your ears and nourish your soul and spirit with the Word of God. Frequently soak in the Word of God because you are learning to live by it; the Word of God becomes your necessary food instead of the regular food we eat throughout our lives. We also fast so that we can yield to the Holy Spirit. Jesus was led by the Spirit, and so when we fast, we seek to become more open and sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit. We won’t look to leaders; we want to hear His voice and determine whether what we hear is truly the voice of God or something else. So let’s fast purposefully and let’s do it well to the glory of God.
Let’s pray. Say with me: «Heavenly Father, I empty myself of everything that displeases You. Fill me with that which pleases You. In Jesus' name, Amen.» Well, I’ll catch you again tomorrow. I’m Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom, peace, and life to you!