March 18, 2007. Matthew 4:1-4, 6:16-18, 9:10-15
Rev. Dr. Richard M. Knight

We’re in the midst of a series this Lent on the Classic Spiritual Disciplines, Back to the Basics," as Linda put it a few weeks ago. We’ve looked at prayer and meditation, as well as, study of scripture (lectio divina).Today our topic is fasting & solitude. Me preaching on fasting is a little like Donald Trump speaking on adopting a simple lifestyle - not his specialty, fasting is not mine either. Therefore when in doubt let’s see what Christ has to say about the subject.

Please read the passages listed above.

Do you know that the greatest people in the Bible fasted? They went without food for a period of time in order to devote themselves to God, to renew their spirits with God.

Moses fasted. David fasted. Elijah, Queen Ester, Daniel & Joel the prophets, Anna the prophetess, Ezra the priest, St. Paul, Jesus Christ.

And the greatest figures in the history of our faith all fasted. Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Knox, John Wesley, Jonathan Edwards, David Brainerd, Charles Finney and more.

Even outside of our faith tradition there are countless examples of well-known, influential people who fasted. Confucius, Plato, Socrates, Aristotle, Hippocrates,

So perhaps we should at least consider the practice?

John Wesley - "Some have exulted religious fasting beyond all Scripture and reason; and others have utterly disregarded it." I suspect if you’re like me you’re in the later category. It makes sense to me that Christianity in our day and age does not stress fasting. (I know I’ve never preached on it here in 12 years) For people living in a highly consumeristic society, fasting is one of the most counter-cultural things we could do! - perhaps that’s one reason right there to do it!

Fasting goes against the Religion of Consumerism, which says, "You are what you consume. You are what you own, what you wear, what you possess. So, consume all you can, whenever you can, as much as you can. Fulfill your every desire. You deserve it. You’ve earned it. You’re entitled to it because you want it so much! Consumption is your God-given right. So exercise it freely!"

Fasting could not be more different.

We just heard what Jesus had to say about fasting. But does Jesus command us to fast? Does Jesus expect us to fast? Would Jesus like us to refrain from food for a time to renew our relationship with him?

In Matthew ch. 4 we read that Jesus fasted for 40 days & 40 nights. Immediately following his baptism he is led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness - it says to be tempted by the devil - and so the first thing Jesus apparently decides to do is not eat - refrain from eating to gain spiritual strength. The devil tempts him to turn the stones into bread. This implies that Jesus’ fast did include water. He drank water during the fast, just no food. Therefore the temptation is for food.

Jesus confronts temptation with - "One does not live by bread alone but by every word that come from the mouth of God." Jesus’ fasting reminded him of his faith conviction that God comes first and that God’s strength is sufficient. Jesus fasted just before his public ministry was to begin. It was a time of great spiritual need - a time to be clear about one’s relationship to God and one’s identity as the Son of God - and so he fasted.

In Matthew 6 Jesus is addressing an abuse of fasting by the Pharisees. The commentaries say that the Pharisees (the legalistic critics of Jesus) fasted on Mondays and Thursdays because those were the busiest days in the marketplace, so there would be more people around to see them looking all pious from their fasting. So Jesus has to say a word about motive. "When you fast, do not look dismal. like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so they can show others that they are fasting." Fasting’s not for showing off – it’s for drawing near to God, not glorifying self! Psalm 69 says, "I humbled my soul with fasting."

It’s important to see what this whole section of the Sermon on the Mount is about. Ch. 6 begins - "Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to been seen by them." And then Jesus talks to his followers about 3 different spiritual practices - praying, giving and fasting. He seems to expect that these will be disciplines that his followers will do. He just wants to make sure that they do them from a pure motive - praying, giving & fasting.

Now, we certainly wouldn’t say that Jesus no longer expects his followers to pray. We also wouldn’t say that Jesus no longer expects his followers to give, especially to the poor - giving alms. And yet, when Jesus talks about fasting - we tend to say, "Well, that for them back then." Or, "That’s for monks and Mr. Ghandi. But not for us." But Matthew 6 doesn’t allow us to interpret it that way.

Matthew 9 is even clearer. Some folks ask Jesus - "Why is it that your disciples aren’t fasting?" Jesus replies - Guests at a wedding reception don’t mourn when the bridegroom is present. They celebrate! Later, once the party is over and the bride & groom are gone - then the guests mourn. Jesus said, "The days will come when the bridegroom is taken from them, and then they will fast."

Jesus is the bridegroom and while he is with them the disciples celebrate. But when he will depart from them - then they will fast. So it’s hunger-pang-takenly clear that Jesus expected his disciples to fast, and by extension, us as well. Martin Luther - "It was not Christ’s intention to reject or despise fasting . . . it was his intention to restore proper fasting."

Well, the goal of fasting is a closer walk with God. The goal of fasting is to center one’s life upon God. The hunger pangs remind us of how much we need God, how much we need to feast on God, how much we need to be filled with God. We take away what we usually fill ourselves with, in order to be filled with God.

In the Bible, fasting is connected to worship. In Luke 2, Anna is "worshipping and fasting." In Acts 13 the church at Antioch is fasting and worshipping the Lord. John Wesley was a strong proponent of fasting. In fact Wesley would not ordain candidates for the ministry unless they fasted. Wesley said - "Let fasting be done unto the Lord with our eye singly fixed on him. Let our intention be this and this alone - to glorify our Father in heaven."

Well, let me say a few words about practicing fasting - the how-to’s

The most common form of fasting is a partial fast, such as the Roman Catholic tradition of giving up something for Lent. There’s a form of this kind of fasting in the Bible. In Daniel 10, Daniel does a partial fast - for 3 weeks he "ate no delicacies, no meat or wine entered my mouth," it says. A partial fast is restricting one’s diet - not a bad idea for a lot of us. Especially giving up something we have little willpower over. Richard Foster says, "More than any other single discipline, fasting reveals the things that control us." So many people give up something that they struggle to control - sweets like chocolate, chips and other salty snacks, or alcohol.

In Richard Foster’s book The Celebration of Discipline, he suggests that the best fast to start with is a 24 hour fast that is lunch to lunch. For example you could eat lunch today and not eat again until tomorrow lunch. He also points out it’s important to drink lots of water. But if that seems too difficult consider just giving up something that is not so healthy for you personally - something you think you might struggle to control = caffeine, sweets, alcohol.

But there are other ways to fast.

1 - You can take a fast from talking - if you can work it into your schedule - take time for solitude - don’t call anyone on the phone, don’t get together with anyone that day. Just be with yourself and with God.

2 - You can also take a fast from noise - from the TV, from the radio.

3 - I did a news fast for several weeks once. I was happier.

4 - You can also take fast from complaining - try to go through an entire day without complaining or saying anything negative. Don’t let the slightest hint of judgment or criticism come out of your mouth. I’ll leave you with this quote from a man named Andrew Flewelling. It’s suggestive of the idea of taking a noise fast.

"As a young man just 25 years old, the reality that my father was dying gave me the strength to find silence again. I spent uncounted afternoons by his side talking and listening to pure sound, not noise. He told me to be my own man. He helped me recognize the noise, so I could stop listening to it. His dying pushed it away and created a space where silence could bloom and thrive. And in that silence, perhaps for the first time since I was five, I heard the voice of my spirit. It told me what I value. It showed me my weaknesses, illuminated my strengths, and gave me the clarity to decide for myself how I ought to live.

I believe the noise of our world is killing people, stifling spirits, and limiting the potential of humanity . . . I believe there is a person inside all of us that needs to be heard."

Let us pray. O God, teach us the value of denying ourselves in order to give ourselves more fully to you. Help us to have those quiet moments where we become fully present to you. In Christ’s name. Amen.