Let's take our Bibles and turn
to Matthew chapter six. Matthew chapter six. I'd like to deal with the subject
of, and when you fast, when you fast. Our Lord, this Sermon on the Mount had been
dealing in this particular chapter with doing our alms, that is,
giving. He dealt with prayer. And in both of those subjects,
the Lord had warned His people of this very thing. When you
give, and all God's people, all regenerated people of God give. That heart of giving as the Lord
gives. God so loved the world that He
gave. And when the Spirit of God creates
life in a believer, that life is there. That desire is there. Prayer. God's people pray. When do you pray? There's a desire
to cry out unto the Lord, and when you do your alms, when you
pray, he warns this thing, take heed. And be not as the hypocrites,
as the pretenders, the actors. They do what they do to be seen
of men, that's why they do it. They want the honor and the glory
and the praise. That's what they want. And the
Lord says they have their reward. They got the eye of man. They
wanted men to see what they were doing and so we're warned. When we do our works of obedience,
not for salvation, salvation is by the grace of God. But every
believer, saved by grace, does. He walks. There's a new man there
that longs after obedience to God. But when these things are
done, we're warned to let them be done in secret. Let them be
done for the eyes of the Father only, and therein is the reward
promised, the reward of God. Now, today we want to consider
fasting. Our Lord said in Matthew 6, verse
16, moreover when you fast, when you fast, Be not, as the hypocrites
of a sad countenance, they disfigure their faces, that they may appear
unto men to fast." Now, in the days of our Lord, that obviously
was a practice. That was a practice that was
done. Matthew chapter 9, Verse 14,
it says, Then came to him, then came to the Lord, the disciples
of John, saying, Why do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy
disciples fast not? Now, the Lord's getting ready
to deal with something right here. He just said, Don't be
as the hypocrites are, the Pharisees. He had said previously in chapter
6 about their giving and their praying. But obviously, It always
amazed me when I read that. He said, then came the disciples
of John. Why do we and the Pharisees fast off? Well, obviously they
all knew it. They all knew what everybody
was doing. Think about, there was a book
that was written on one of the old Puritans. And it said that
he made a habit of praying three hours a day. Well, how did somebody
get that information? He had to have told them. How
would anybody else have known that unless he told them? Brother Don told me one time,
I may have told you this, he said, if you ever get a book
on praying, throw it away. Just throw it away. Just throw
it away. The scripture sets forth that
men will perform any act of religion thinking that their acts recommend
them to God, and then they'll look down on those that don't
do it the way they do it. We and the Pharisees. Can you
imagine putting yourself in that group? Me and the Pharisees, you know.
We do this. Why don't y'all do it? So there
were times when fasting was an act that was performed, it was
something that was done. But then there were times truly
in the scriptures when that obedience of fasting was done with, I'm
convinced, a true heart, a desire to seek after the Lord, a true
heart of brokenness and humility and desiring. I'll read this
if you want to read it. It's in 2 Samuel chapter 12. This is the first place that
I actually found the word where someone fasted. It was when David
was found to be with Bathsheba. He took another man's wife. He
was an adulterer. He was a murderer. He had her
husband killed. Her husband was a soldier. And
David said, well, you put him out there in the front, you know,
after he had been unfaithful with his wife. And God sent a
prophet to David, Bathsheba, after David was unfaithful with
her She was found to be with child. Scripture says 2 Samuel
12. And this is what Nathan the prophet
said to him, verse 12, 2 Samuel 12, 12. Thou didst it secretly,
but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the Son.
God told him to a prophet, he said, I'm going to expose what
you did. And David said unto Nathan, I
have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said unto David, The
Lord also hath put away thy sin, thou shalt not die. How be it? Because by this deed thou hast
given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme. The
child also that is born unto thee shall surely die. Now the scripture declares Nathan
the prophet being sent unto David by the Lord Himself, told David,
you're the man. You're the man. This is what
you've done. You've caused the enemies of God to blaspheme. This is a believer? That's what a believer does?
That's kind of, you know. And what David did, many believe
that the very expression of his heart was written down in Psalm
51. And when you look at Psalm 51,
the very title of that psalm indicates that that psalm was
written by David against thee and thee only. My sin is ever
before thee. And you read that psalm. It was
a confession. David's heart was broken. He
had sinned against God. He caused the enemies of God
to blaspheme the God that David loved. Sinned. He truly did. And he wrote that
Psalm 51. I encourage you, go back and read it again. And he
wrote down that Psalm under the inspiration of God's Spirit.
And he sent it to the chief musician. Sent him a song. David said,
you sing this. You make sure that this is sung
often. And everybody knew it was David. There's the heart
of a believer. Broken. I sinned against God. I want
there to be a remembrance before the Lord and for the Lord's people.
This is what I am by nature. That's what he said. His heart was awakened to what
he had done and to God's loving, chastening hand. God's chastening
hand. Whom the Lord loveth, He chastens. Can you imagine God
didn't leave him to himself? It just broke David's heart. And he lived with that for the
rest of his life. But he was the first one to say, when we
talk about a sinner, he said, here I am. There's nothing good
in me. God moved on him to be honest
about himself and about God's mercy and readiness. to forgive
his people because of the chastisement, the wrath that poured out on
the Lord Jesus Christ that God saw from before the foundation
of the world. God was satisfied in his Son
and justified David and all of his people that he chose to show
mercy only for the sake of Christ. Knowing that which the Lord promised,
concerning the child. Nathan told him, he said, God's
forgiven you. But he said, I'm going to tell
you something. That child's going to die. That
child is not going to make it. And the scripture declares that
David fasted seven days. And he was broken. Now, I just
can't hardly help but remember what we just considered in the
first message. He was the Lord. Here was a man that possessed
the life of God. David knew God. He knew Him. God had saved him and broken
him. And here was the life of Christ
and the evidence of Christ. And what the Lord did perfectly, we do and desire to do. Did the
Lord pray? in John 17, that high priestly
prayer? Yes, he did. Yes, he did. Do God's people pray? Yeah, why? Because the life of Christ is
there. That's what we do. And David knew, he knew God had
told him. He said, that baby's gonna die
and he besought the Lord for the child and when the child
died, He arose, washed his face, anointed himself, changed his
apparel, came into the house of the Lord, and he worshipped
God. He bowed. He bowed. It's the
Lord. That's what Eli said. When God
killed his two boys for their disobedience, God killed them. And what did Eli do? He said,
it's the Lord. Let him do that which is pleasing.
In 2 Samuel chapter 12, those that watched David for seven
days, he fasted, fasted with a broken heart, crying out to
God. And he said after the child died in 2 Samuel 12, 22, and
they asked him, 21, then said the servants unto him, what thing
is this thou hast done? Thou didst fast and weep for
the child while it was alive, but when the child was dead,
thou didst rise and eat bread. And David said, while the child
was yet alive, I fasted and I wept, for I said, who can tell whether
God will be gracious to me, that the child may live? And now he's
dead. The Lord's will was done. And
he said, wherefore shall I fast? Can I bring him back? I shall
go to him. He can't return to me. And while
he was seeking God, asking God for that child, he besought the
Lord for the child. And when God's will was done,
David said, it's the Lord. That's God's will. And he got
up and washed his face, and he worshiped God. That's the right
thing to do. That's the right thing to do.
Daniel 10, the prophet Daniel was said to fast. He was in mourning.
Three weeks seeking God's Word and longing for the will of the
Lord. And Hannah, remember the mother of Samuel, while she was
yet barren, she wept, the Scripture said, and fasting, seeking God
in bitterness of soul for a son, asking God. And the Lord heard
her prayer, the Scripture says. And then in 2 Samuel 1, David
and the men with him, it says, mourned and wept and fasted until
evening, when they heard that Saul and Jonathan, Saul's son,
had fallen by the sword. And so, there were times throughout
scriptures when God's people fasted. That desire, they just had no desire to eat. They fasted,
and the scripture said, in bitterness of soul and seeking after God. But let me ask you something. Where does that desire come from? Where does that come from? Let me read you something out
of Isaiah. Isaiah 58. Isaiah 58. You hear people say, well, I
think I'm going to fast this next week. Isaiah 58, verse 1. Cry aloud, spare not, lift up
thy voice like a trumpet. Show my people their transgression
in the house of Jacob, their sins. Yet they seek me daily
and delight to know my ways as a nation that did righteousness
and forsook not the ordinances of the God. They ask of me the
ordinances of justice. They take delight in approaching
to God. Wherefore have we fasted, say
they, and thou seest not? Wherefore have we afflicted our
soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast
you find pleasure in exact all your labors. Behold, you fast
for strife and debate and to smite with the fist of wickedness.
You shall not fast as you do this day to make your voice to
be heard on high. Is it such a fast that I have
chosen? A day for a man to afflict his
soul? Somebody says, well, I'm gonna
seek God. I'm gonna seek God. I'm gonna
pour out my heart to the Lord. I'm gonna mourn. How you gonna
work that up? How you gonna work that up? Now
I tell you, when these people, Hannah, David, whenever they
fasted, God brought them to the bottom. Almighty God was going
to pour out a blessing. But I'm telling you, they were
brought to the very brink of absolute despair. There's only
been one man, that ever humbled himself. The one we just considered. In Matthew chapter 4, whenever
he was led of the spirit, the Lord, into the wilderness to
be tempted of the devil, when he fasted 40 days, he was hungry. He humbled himself. God humbles
his people. So whenever this fasting, whenever
fasting, I mean, I've said this about Everything we do, messages,
whatever, you know, it's not automatic. It's not automatic. Somebody said, well, we're going
to fast. I fast every week. I'm going to say, what, you just
worked it up? How'd you do that? This is more. This is more than
what a man can accomplish. This is more than what a man
can do. We know this. Everybody that
we read about in the Old Testament, Everybody we read about in the
scriptures that came before the Lord or even after. There's times
in the book of Acts that there was Acts of fasting. These all were but types and
pictures of our Lord. He alone was the one who truly
submitted Himself. as the servant of Jehovah, actually
doing that which we could never do. We have not that ability
to mourn before God. God Almighty brings a man to
somewhat of a realization of himself. But I'm telling you,
even when we read of these in the Old Testament, New Testament,
on fasting, Who can we think about but the Lord Himself, who
truly fasted before God. And this abstinence of meat. You know, John's disciples said,
we fast, I mean Pharisees fast. Listen to this scripture. And
when it comes to us eating or not eating, and then men will
do something like that, bread, they think they've done something
for God. You know, well I fasted. I fasted 15 hours. I fasted all
day, really. The scripture says in 1 Corinthians
8, 8, but meat commendeth us not to God. For neither if we
eat are we better, neither if we eat not are we the worst. Spiritual fasting is more than
an outward abstinence from food. It's the heart. Man looks on
the outside. Man looks on the outside. God
looks on the heart. Unless there's a heart, Mitch,
of submission, true humility before God Almighty, it doesn't
matter if you don't eat today or not. Outside of that, Carl,
it's just a show. That's all in the world it is. I know that there is a reference
in the scriptures concerning a laying of ourselves before
the Lord, but remember this, without that true heart that
desires His honor and His glory and His praise, it's nothing. We need a mediator. We need an advocate. We need
a representative. We need a federal head. Fasting,
and I'll tell you this, there's no direct command in scriptures
that men should do it. I'm going to tell you this, back
in Matthew 6, I'm going to wrap this up very quickly. This has
been left to every believer's leadership of God's Spirit. Now
there's some records. of these men and these women
that did fast. And their hearts were truly humbled. I believe when Hannah was praying,
asking the Lord to give her a son, a man's child, I believe when
David heard Saul and Jonathan, his son, had been killed with
a sword, it broke David's heart. Saul had been trying to kill
him. Jonathan was his friend. But whenever these men, Moses,
Ezekiel, Daniel, when these men, these women in the Scriptures,
were brought down and humbled before God, I'm convinced that
they were absolutely sincere. But, the Lord is going to give
us some instruction concerning fasting. And the only absolute
It wasn't a command. It wasn't something that men
were commanded. Now you fast every once a month,
every third week or something. No. Moreover, when you fast,
if God Almighty brings a man, a woman in absolute, they just
can't eat. God, I just don't have desire
out of a heart. If that is the case, Let me tell
you something. It is to be a secret. Just like
giving of alms, praying, it's a secret. Moreover, when you
fast, be not as the hypocrites of a sad countenance. They disfigure
their faces that they may appear unto men to fast. Come up to
somebody, you're talking to them. Are you okay? Oh yeah, I'm fasting. I'm fasting. I'm seeking God. The scripture says, verily I
say unto you, they have their reward. But thou, when thou fastest,
if the Lord is just Brought you to a place, your heart's broken,
just, I'm not hungry. I just, I don't have, I'm not,
I'm not recommending myself to God because I don't eat or if
I do eat. God's brought my heart down and I just, I'm just, I'm
not, I'm not eating. But thou, when thou fastest,
anoint thine head, wash your face. that thou appear not unto
men to fast, but unto the Father, which is in secret. And thy Father,
which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly." What are
you to do? Look just like you always do.
Get up and take your shower, wash your face, brush your teeth. All outward signs of hypocritical
religious denial of self. All outward signs of supposed
godliness or devotion or spirituality only to be seen of men is forbidden. It's condemned by the Lord. Listen
to this scripture in closing. Matthew 16, 24, 25. If any man
will come after me, what is it truly to fast? What is it to
truly spiritually fast. Here's what it is. It's to deny
myself. To deny me. To deny me. My ability, my will, my wants,
my desires. It's to deny me. If any man will
come after me, let him deny himself. Take up his cross and follow
me. For whosoever will save his life
shall lose it. Whosoever shall lose his life
for my sake shall find it. For what is a man profited if
he gain the whole world and lose his own soul? What shall a man
give in exchange for his soul? Does the scripture say anything
about fasting? Yes, it does. What did they do? Well, they didn't eat. They didn't
eat. Well, what does the Bible say
that we should do if we're brought to that point? We're not commanded
to do so, but it happened. It happened. And God Almighty
reveals that the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, the only one that ever
truly fasted with a right heart in Himself. Well, what are we
to do? The Lord says, if you do it,
Don't you tell anybody. You keep it to yourself. Don't
do it for the praise of the eyes of men, but you do it as unto
the Lord. And I pray God teach us something
in that. For Christ's sake and our good,
amen.