Strive For Sexual Purity

# 309 - Today's Du-votional comes from 1Sa 21:3 "Now therefore, what have you on hand? Give me five loaves of bread in my hand, or whatever can be found." 4 And the priest answered David and said, "There is no common bread on hand; but there is holy bread, if the young men have at least kept themselves from women." ( 1 Sam 21:3) David asks for bread for himself and his men. The priest had no ordinary bread on hand only that bread which was considered holy. This bread was, according to Levitical Law, reserved only for the priests. Le 24:9 "And it shall be for Aaron and his sons, and they shall eat it in a holy place; for it is most holy to him from the offerings of the LORD made by fire, by a perpetual statute." This was serious business, and if we zoom ahead to 1Sa 22:10, we see that Ahimelech took the time to ask God if it would be all right to give David and his men this holy bread. "And he inquired of the LORD for him, gave him provisions, and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine." God said yes to this request, and Jesus would later use this very incident to make the point to the Pharisees that mercy triumphs over judgment. But, please note that God also gave a stipulation for the use of this bread. David and his men were to have had no recent sexual activity. Sexual purity matters to God and not just in the Old Testament. 1Co 6:13b says, “the body is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. And in 1Th 4:2-5 we read, “for you know what commandments we gave you through the Lord Jesus. 3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, 5 not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God;” And then in v7,8, “For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness. 8 Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit.” Strive for sexual purity. It is the will of God, and was commanded by the Lord Jesus. Father, help us to control our illicit sexual passions.

Is It Ever Okay To Lie

# 308 - Today's Du-votional comes from 1Sa 21:2 So David said to Ahimelech the priest, "The king has ordered me on some business, and said to me, 'Do not let anyone know anything about the business on which I send you, or what I have commanded you.' And I have directed my young men to such and such a place. It's interesting, virtually every commentary I have read on this particular verse makes a big deal about David telling a lie. Yes he lied, but we are not given his motivation for lying. Did he lie to save his skin, or did he lie to protect the skin of Ahimelech? Think about it. What if David tells Ahimelech the truth? What if he says, “I am running from King Saul and I need you help?” Such truth telling in this instance would place Ahimelech in a great bind. Should he help David or remain loyal to Saul? I am inclined to believe that David lied for the sake of protecting Ahimelech. You see, Ahimelech was not the only one in the room. We are told that Doeg, one of Saul's loyal servants just happened to be present and David was aware of it! In 1 Sam 22:22 we read, “David said to Abiathar, "I knew that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul. I have caused the death of all the persons of your father's house.” David knew that Doeg would give a full report to Saul of these events, and in lying, he thought he could keep Ahimelech out of it. Unfortunately it didn't work out that way. This is not the only biblical example of people lying in an attempt to save the skin of others. The Hebrew midwives lied to Pharaoh's henchman in order to save the babies that Pharaoh had ordered to be killed. Rahab lied to save the necks of the Israeli spies. And what do you think that a German who was hiding a Jew would say to the Gestapo when they knocked on their door? “Hiding Jews? Why yes I am, you'll find them in the secret closet upstairs!” As Christians we should not lie, but sometimes, it may be necessary in an attempt to protect innocent life. Innocent is key here. You don't lie to protect the guilty. It is as Jesus said in Mt 10:16 "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. This verse pretty much sums up David's experience as he was running from Saul. It's a good rule for all of us to remember. Father give us the discernment that we need.

Being Merciful Even In Sticky Situations

# 307 - Today's Du-votional comes from 1Sa 21:1. Having finished the series on fasting, we return to our verse by verse exposition of 1 Samuel. “Now David came to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest. And Ahimelech was afraid when he met David, and said to him, "Why are you alone, and no one is with you?" ( 1 Sam 21:1) This chapter is the beginning of the account of David fleeing from Saul. It was a very trying time for David. And as we shall see, trying times create desperate men who are capable of many things to save their skin. But trying times also give men the opportunity to be men of integrity and we will also see the integrity of David in the days ahead. God used these trying times for David as He uses them for us, to shape us into the children He wants us to be. Many of the blessed Psalms penned by David through the influence of the Holy Spirit were written from the trials he would face in the days ahead with the murderous Saul in pursuit, and those Psalms have served the Lord's children well throughout history as we deal with an enemy who is in hot pursuit of our souls as well. So we pick up the story with David on the lam. Jonathan has sent him off with an urgent warning, "Make haste, hurry, do not delay!" (1 Sam 20:38) The first place David heads to is Nob, which is called the city of the priests. This episode, by the way, was important enough to be cited in the New Testament by Jesus. There is a lesson in this incident that Jesus wanted us all to learn, and we'll get to that later. A quick lesson for us here today is that when we find ourselves in trial and turmoil, it is wise to head to fellow believers for counsel and prayer. David didn't just receive help from Ahimelech in the form of food and weaponry, but he also received intercessory prayer. 1Sa 22:10 tells us, "And he inquired of the LORD for him, gave him provisions, and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine." Sometimes, we are called upon to help other believers in a time of need. Sometimes we can even get caught in the middle of sticky situations, such as Ahimelech found himself. In such cases, error on the side of mercy as Ahimelech did. Pray for, and with those in dire straits, and seek to help them to the extent that you are able. Father, help us to overcome our fears, when it comes time to be merciful.

Why Jesus Is Better Than Elvis

# 306 - Lu 2:36 Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity; 37 and this woman was a widow of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. 38 And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem. In our text today we meet a widow named Anna. She was old. After 7 years of marriage her husband dies and for whatever reason she doesn't remarry. She has lived a long time without the physical intimacy of a husband. How did she handle this lack of intimacy? She prayed, she fasted, and she served God. Was she lonely? I’m sure she experienced times of loneliness. Was she alone? Never. And look what happened. Her praying and fasting and service to the Lord, literally brought Jesus to her door. (She pretty much lived in the temple!) And because she had fasted and prayed, she had become intimate with Jesus and His Word. And she used that intimacy to bless others, as a gifted prophetess (one who spoke of the things of God with others) I don’t think we can speak of intimacy with God too much. The human need for intimacy is great, but living in such a sin-sick world human intimacy more often than not fails. If and when it does, know with Anna, that there is an intimacy that will never fail. And know and believe that this intimacy can fulfill and can satisfy. Ps 107:9 says, “For He satisfies the longing soul.” This is an incredible verse. If we paraphrase it in the Hebrew, it would sound like this. God fills to overflowing the greedy soul. God alone satisfies the longing soul. Is there dissatisfaction in your life? Does God seem distant? Are you experiencing lukewarmness? Have you tried fasting? It’s one way that Jesus promises to show up at your door for the purpose of being more intimate with you. Dr. Tony Evans tells of the Elvis rage of the 70’s. The King of Rock and Roll would go on tour and people would camp out for days at the ticket office hoping not only for a seat, but a front row seat. You’re not going to touch his silk scarf in row ZZZ. He’s not going to come off the stage and put his arms around you and sing to you if you’re in the balcony. So these people would be willing to be inconvenienced by sleeping on a sidewalk, no matter what the weather for days just for the possibility of a front row seat near the king . Well, the King of Kings doesn’t shake his hips but he does shake the world. And He knows tender love, and He knows when you’re lonesome at night, but He will never allow you to be alone.  Elvis would pack up and leave after the concert, but Jesus says, I will never leave nor forsake you. Are you willing to be inconvenienced like those Elvis seekers. Are you willing to skip a meal or two in the discipline of fasting for the purpose of getting a front row seat with Jesus? Jas 4:8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. And fasting is one way that we can use to draw near to Him. Father, there is such a lack of intimacy in our world today. Fill the lonely souls with Your love.  

Jesus Is At the Door. Step Away From the Table

# 305 - Would you like to be more intimate with God? Would you like Him to be more intimate with you? Have you tried fasting? We use to sing a song in worship that went like this: “knowing You Jesus, knowing You….there is no greater thing,” but do we really mean it? Do we really want intimacy with Him? When Jesus walked this earth, His disciples were blessed to have intimate face to face contact with Him, but what were they to do when He ascended into heaven? The answer is found in Mt 9:15, “And Jesus said to them, can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.” Jesus was physically going to a place very distant from where the disciples were. How were His followers going to make it without Jesus right by their side? Well, we know that this was one of the purposes of sending the Holy Spirit, but according to this verse,  this intimacy would be enhanced by fasting. Does God seem distant to you? Do you sense that you are out of touch with Jesus? Have you tried fasting? Fasting is a bridge to the bridegroom, a tool that God has given us to maintain an ongoing connection with His Son in order to help us experience the only fulfilling intimacy that really matters. An intimacy with the truest lover of our souls.  How do we know when it’s time to fast in order to heighten our intimacy with the Lord? Well how about taking your spiritual temperature? Are you hot, cold, or lukewarm?  If we were honest, we would have to say that most of us experience periods of lukewarmness. But we can break out of these periods with fasting! Jesus speaks about this in Revelation chapter three. He wishes we were hot or cold, anything but lukewarm, and then he went on to describe the signs of lukewarmness. The chief sign being, self-sufficiency. “For you say I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing.” Rev 3:17 You may be self-sufficient, you may be experiencing the good life, but if you don’t have intimacy with Jesus, verily, verily, you have your reward. So Jesus in His desire to re-establish intimacy with you, stands at the door and knocks. “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him and he with Me.” (Rev 3:20) Try and get this picture: The food is on the table, (untouched) but you have come to the point in your life that you are hungering for the only intimacy that satisfies, suddenly you hear a gentle knocking on the door. So you get up, you leave the food untouched, you fast. Look who shows up at the door. Jesus, and He says, invite me in, let’s break the fast and let’s eat. Let’s have fellowship, let’s be intimate. Father, give us a hunger for intimacy with You and hear our pleas through prayer and fasting.

More On Sexual Fasting

# 304 - Today we are continuing a look at sexual fasting and how it promotes intimacy with God and therefore intimacy with each other. So how does this work? What’s the connection between abstaining from physical intimacy and bringing God into the situation. Well, Scripture interprets Scripture. There are other examples of this kind of fasting in Scripture! In Exodus, God told Moses to prepare the people to DRAW NEAR to Him and we read in Ex. 19:15-17, “And he said to the people, be ready for the third day; DO NOT GO NEAR A WOMAN.” (God told Moses to call for a sexual fast among the people.) On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. (God was coming near) Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God.” This fast was part of a process to draw near to God and have them meet Him where they were at..   We see the same principle at work in the second chapter of Joel. God was calling the people to return to Him and one of the things He called on the people to do was engage in  sexual fasting.  (Joel 2:16) ”let the bridegroom leave his room and the bride her chamber” (In other words “put your intimacy on hold for a time!) This kind of fasting as with all other type of fasting invites the Lord into the situation, and in particular here in these passages and in 1 Corinthians 7, it is for the sake of increasing intimacy with the Lord, drawing near to Him  and consequently drawing nearer to each other. By the way chapter two of Joel speaks of a couple of other things that God promises to do when people return to Him.  (v25)”I will restore to you the years that the swarming locusts has eaten. (Intimacy that has been lost through selfish indifference, or a lack of understanding, or just plain familiarity with each other can be restored) This kind of fasting is designed to restore intimacy within the marriage. It’s a tool that God has given to His church because He longs to see intimacy modeled in His people because it reflects the intimacy He desires with all people. We talk much about having a personal relationship with God through faith in Jesus, well this is one way of strengthening that bond. God is all for intimacy in families, but most of us have given up on it. Most of us have chosen to ignore this portion of Scripture because it’s too embarrassing to talk about it. But there it is. Right in the middle of Paul’s letter to the Corinthians. Say, isn’t that the letter with the famous “love chapter?” You know, “Love is patient, kind, not envious, arrogant, or rude. It doesn’t insist on it’s own way, isn’t irritable or resentful. Doesn’t rejoice at wrongdoing but rejoices in truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things and endures all things.” It certainly is, and maybe if we would put our text into practice, God would give us the supernatural help we need to love like this and overcome our problems with intimacy.  God loves marriages and so ought we. Let’s use every weapon at our disposal to commit to them, maintain them, and strengthen them in the church today. Including the weapon of sexual fasting.

Sexual Fasting

# 303 - 1Co 7:1 Now concerning the matters about which you wrote. It is well for a man not to touch a woman.  2 But because of the temptation to immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband.  3 The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband.  4 For the wife does not rule over her own body, but the husband does; likewise the husband does not rule over his own body, but the wife does.  5 Do not refuse one another except perhaps by agreement for a season, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, lest Satan tempt you through lack of self-control. Today, we'll begin looking at the topic of sexual fasting. Remember the definition of fasting is “the deliberate abstaining from physical gratification in order to obtain a spiritual reward from the Father. It is a denial of the flesh in order to gain a response from the Spirit. In our text today, the Holy Spirit speaking through the Apostle Paul is not talking about abstaining from food, He’s talking about a sexual fast. Husbands and wives agreeing to abstain from intimate physical activity for a season (a prescribed time) in order to devote time to mutual prayer. Intimacy involves ALL aspects of the relationship in a marriage, including love, respect, commitment, communication, kindness, and unselfishness.  It is experienced in  emotional, spiritual, and physical closeness, which includes but is not limited to sex. I can feel some of the guys squirming already. Typically we men, are terrible at intimacy. Our idea of intimacy and warming up to someone is some sort of a grunt or maybe a handshake. But our wives deserve more than that, indeed they need more than that. It’s the way God has wired them. Women are wired for relational intimacy and men are wired for physical intimacy. Both husbands and wives need to grasp this and sexual fasting is a tool God has given us to help us in this arena. Unfortunately, it is seldom talked about in church. The purpose of sexual fasting is to deprive yourself of physical intimacy in order to gain spiritual intimacy with God and consequently, each other. How does that work? Well have you forgotten? It’s not just a husband and wife in a marriage, there’s a third party involved. Mal 2:15, “Did HE not make them one with a portion of the Spirit in their union” And so this mutual agreement for deprivation for a short time, in order to devote time to mutual prayer, is a way of praying to the third person in your marriage with your bodies, which have become one in marriage, telling God that intimacy with Him is more important than physical intimacy with each other. And don’t you know that marital intimacy, and all its different aspects will increase as your intimacy with God increases because marriage is God’s idea and has been since day one!  The purpose of sexual fasting then is to seek to regain and enhance all the aspects of intimacy that God intended to be present between a man and a woman, because marriage is to be a showcase of those same aspects of intimacy between believers and Christ. “Father help us to desire more intimacy with You.

See A Need? Sow To It!

# 302 - We've been talking about the fasting of deprivation. Every act of giving to others inevitably involves a withholding of something that could have been spent on you, it is a deprivation, a fast if you will, and God promises to respond in kind.  This kind of fast can involve time, money, or goods. Listen to the preacher in Ecclesiastes 11:1-4 and learn to give from what you have now, rather than waiting to give out of your surplus. Learn the lessons of sacrificial giving because they are in essence a fast. “Cast your bread upon the waters,” (What does bread do when it soaks in water? It expands) “for you will find it after many days, (The results may take time) “Give a portion to seven or even eight, (error on the side of generosity,  for instance, someone you know needs transportation, well, lend them your car, while you're at it, fill up the tank, and give them a gas card....be generous! And don't delay! If you see a need and you are able to help, go for it! “for you know not what disaster may happen on earth. If the clouds are full of rain they empty themselves on the earth and if a tree falls to the south or to the north in the place where the tree falls there it will lie. He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap. In other words don’t let your present circumstances dictate your willingness to give to a need. Don’t wait for ideal conditions to be in place before you act. Do you have a need? Sow to it now! Do you see a need? Sow to it now! When you understand this principle of giving to a need, taking the little that you have and giving it to God, it’s like priming the pump. A pump won’t work unless it has a watertight seal. And if you take just a little water and pour it into the pump. It fills in the gaps around the seal and allows the pump to pull up the water from the spring below. God’s got some gaps He would like you to fill, some needs He wants to meet if you are willing to part with a little of what you have. Prime the pumps of heaven as you learn to give to a need from whatever you have in hand to meet the need. Let’s close with some biblical examples. Hannah, was barren, she fasted and prayed and vowed to give God the child if she became pregnant, and she gave birth to Samuel, but that’s not all, the Lord blessed her with three more sons and two daughters.  Ruth, without a husband, opener her heart to Naomi and became like a husband to her,  and God provided her a husband. The widow’s mite. She was down to her last cent, but gave to her need, and the Lord noticed. The boy with the lunch of fish and bread gave it to Jesus, and 5,000 were fed. No need to take inventory of your resources, that's what the widow of Zarephath did and she was gripped by fear.   Rather look for the need around you, and then give to it with whatever you are able, asking God to bless it. Father, help me to be generous to needs.

Sowing To A Need

# 301 – As we continue our look at biblical fasting, I want to spend some more time on the biblical account of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath. The widows fast could be called a fast of deprivation. She was willing to deprive herself of food for the sake of another (Elijah) Elijah asked her to make a SMALL biscuit for him, and then use the rest for herself. If she was willing to do this, he promised her that God would not only feed her, but her household (her kinfolk) as well until the end of the famine. The widow had a dire need. Do you have a dire need? Have you tried fasting. Have you tried withholding some sensual gratification in order for God to step in and supply? The widow gave up just a little out of her poverty and God blessed her. Dr. Tony Evans relates the story of a couple from his church who were living in a crowded apartment. They wanted to be able to move into their own home, but couldn’t afford it. So they decided to put this principle of giving to their need to work and trust God, by giving a “little” of what they had (their apartment) to Him. How did they do that? They purposed in their heart to have people over for dinner 2 times a month. That’s not a lot…..that’s a little. They didn’t have to do that, they were in a sense fasting their time and space to benefit others. While they did this they prayed that God would supply them with a home. To make a long story short, they wound up in a home three times the size of their apartment, paying less than they had paid for rent. You see they didn’t make the mistake that so many of us make. They didn’t wait for all their ducks to be in a row before they acted. They didn’t say, “When we finally get a house we will open it up for hospitality.” No they sowed to their need with the seed that they had in hand, and we would be wise to learn to do the same. Prov 11:25 says, “Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered. Jesus said in Lk 6:38, “give, and it (The “it” is whatever you give) will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap,  Gal 6:9,10 says, “And let us not weary in doing good, for in due season we will reap if we do not give up. So then as you have opportunity, (even though it’s a little biscuit, or a widow’s mite, or a tiny apartment) let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.” Eph 6:8, says, ““knowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord.” (Eph 6:8) Do you get the picture? These are spiritual principles, spiritual truths, things to trust God for by acting on them. Every act of giving to others inevitably involves a withholding of something that could have been spent on you, it is a deprivation, a fast if you will and God promises to respond in kind.   Father, grant us the faith of the widow of Zarephath.

Fasting For Needs and Direction

# 300 – As we continue our look at biblical fasting, I want to spend some time on fasting to meet needs. I'm going to start be recalling the biblical account of Elijah being taken in and fed by the widow at Zarephath. You can read about it in 1 Kings 17. At first glance, we can look at this account of the widow and Elijah and ask, “what has this got to do with fasting? The word “fast” is nowhere to be found in the story. This is true, but the concept of fasting is cleverly hidden in the fact that the widow was willing to give up her last meal and trust God to come through and provide for her. This is the essence of fasting! In fasting we are telling God, “I am giving up on my own resources and looking to Your resources.!” In 1 Kings 17, Elijah had just told the wicked King Ahab, that God was going to judge him through drought. Drought means no rain, no rain means no crops, no crops means famine, famine means no food. Famines are mandatory fasts imposed by God. The God who has the first and last say in nature uses them to get our attention, just as He encourages us to fast to get His attention. Remember Mt 6:18? “That your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” (You fast for God’s attention, not man’s) Now, Ahab wasn’t happy with Elijah. He didn’t want to hear the preacher telling him to change his ways, and the best way to silence somebody is do em’ in. So Elijah’s life was in danger, but God was way ahead of Ahab. He already had a pace of safety set aside for  him. So he tells Elijah to beat feet to the brook Cherith where he can hide out and he would  have water to drink and food catered in daily by the Crow Catering Service. Do we have a great God or what? I mean have you ever tried to command a crow? Did you ever try to tell a crow what to do. But God COMMANDED the crows to feed Elijah. Now, He could’ve commanded the chickadees to feed Elijah, but that would’ve meant birdseed, instead Elijah gets the steak and bread diet of the crow! But lo and behold eventually the brook dries up. Now what God? Well sometimes, God has to dry things up in our lives in order to get us to move on. Maybe things are drying up in your life even as I speak. Well, don’t panic, wait to hear from the Lord. Keep looking to Him and His Word. Pull still another fasting card if you have to, it was what Ezra did when he was wondering what to do. He said in Ezra 8:21, “Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from Him a safe journey for ourselves, our children, and all our goods.” You see, fasting can also be used to ask God for direction in your life. Fasting for needs or fasting for direction. Whatever the case may be, we are admitting that our resources are used up and we need to rely on His! Father, thank You for the spiritual tool of fasting.

He Is Able

# 300 – Still more today on the role of fasting in conquering fear. Let's read from 2 Chronicles 20 beginning at v1: “After this the Moabites and Ammonites and with them some of the Meunites came against Jehoshaphat for battle. Some men came and told Jehoshaphat , “a great multitude is coming against you from Edom, from beyond the sea, they are in Hazazon-tamar (that is, Engedi) Then Jehoshaphat was afraid.”   He was what? Afraid. Great fear gripped Jehoshaphat! No wonder they called him, “jumpin' Jehosophat!” The enemies of Israel were far superior to his forces and they were coming after him and they were already at a nearby city, the deadline was looming. There was no running, no escaping.   What did this fear cause him to do? V3 - And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the LORD, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. It was this fasting that set his face to seek the Lord. It was fasting and prayer that caused God to intervene. It was the fasting that caused God to jump into his field of vision, it was fasting that allowed him to see God instead of the problem!   What happened to Jehoshaphat  and the Israelites after their fast. Incredibly, the armies of the Ammonites, Moabites, and Meunites destroyed each other, and by the time the Israelites arrived for the battle , “they looked to the horde and behold there were dead bodies on the ground.” (2 Chron 20:24.)  This is what God is able to do to your source of fear. He is able to scatter your fear like the dead bodies of the Ammorites And after this stunning victory Jehoshaphat addressed the people and said, "Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the LORD your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper." God is able! Just ask those who went through the Red Sea and saw the source of their fears drowned when the sea closed in over Pharaoh’s army.   Just ask Daniel, when the source of his fears had their mouths silenced and their jaws wired shut when he spent the night with his fears in the lions den.   Just ask Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego  when the source of their fears tried to turn up the heat in the fiery furnace. Just ask Peter, when his head was on the chopping block and the way out was opened up to him. What is He able to do in your life when fear grips you. I don’t know, I only know when it grips you to the point of immobilizing you, it’s time to fast. It’s time to call out to God, and say “I can’t, but You can!” In fasting you call God into the picture, and He stands between you and the source of your fears.   And His shadow alone is enough to scatter the enemy, and to give you the victory!

Fasting: The Spiritual Hand Grenade

# 299 – We are continuing a series on fasting. Today I want to talk further about fasting as a weapon against fear. Fear can give birth to very unhealthy obsessions, which can lead to addictions which we often use as a place to run to in order to escape our fears. When does fear grip you? Is it in the area of your finances? A relationship? A lack of a relationship? Some fear regarding loved ones? Is it the nagging health problem that you don’t want to go see the doctor about? Is it that new job you’re starting? It could be something as simple as standing in front of a class to give a speech, or going  to the dentist. Fear is fear. It is whatever it is that distracts you and paralyzes you. Whatever it is that  consumes you and adds stress to your life.   When you find yourself paralyzed, when you find yourself obsessed because of fear, it’s time to reach into the armory of weapons that God has put at your disposal and pull out the spiritual hand grenade of fasting, and let God scatter that enemy that has brought such fear into your life. Fear often comes with deadlines and ultimatums doesn’t it? A payment is due, a court date, is looming, that dentist appointment is tomorrow! What do you do? You do all you can do and then you fast. In the Book of Esther, the Jews were gripped with fear because an order had been given and a date set for their extermination.  Esther was gripped with fear because she was being called upon to stand up to the king. What did they do? They fasted!. Esther even called on others to fast on her behalf! Esther called for a fast because she knew she didn’t have the courage to do this alone. The heartcry of fasting is always, “God I can’t do this on my own, I need your help! This circumstance is too big for me to overcome. Fasting then turns our fear to faith. Dr. Tony Evans tells the story of the time that his church was meeting in a school. A couple of members of the school board got a bee in their bonnet about separation of church and state and decided to kick the church out of the school. The church, like Esther, asked for a special meeting with the school board to see if they would change their mind. Guess what the church did? They fasted and prayed. On the day of the meeting two of the members of the school board were late. They waited for them for over 45 minutes and finally went ahead with the meeting at which the board overturned it's decision and allowed the church to continue meeting. Guess what? It seems the two missing members were the two with the bees in their bonnets. It seems that they were hung up in a huge traffic snarl and couldn’t make any noise but the honking of their horns. Do you need God to allay any of your fears? Fast and pray! Let your fears harmlessly honk their horns, as you allow God to step in and take care of His business as you admit your need for Him in your situation through prayer and fasting. Father, help us with our fears today.

Fasting To Overcome Fear

# 298 – We are continuing a series on fasting. As we have seen, this spiritual discipline is not just for Old Testament believers, yet we can learn much about fasting from their example. Our next example will come from the Book of Esther. Some quick background on the situation in the Book of Esther. An order was issued by the king to exterminate all the Jews in the country on the 13th day of the 12th month. Imagine such an order given in our country today for all Christians to be annihilated on Dec.13th! Imagine the fear that would grip us! How did the Jews (the OT church) react? They fasted and prayed. Es 4: 3 And in every province where the king's command and decree arrived, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping, and wailing; and many lay in sackcloth and ashes. There was a glimmer of hope for the Jews because the Jewess Esther was in the king's harem. Perhaps she could persuade the king to change the order. This was very risky for Esther and so she asked the people to fast on her behalf. Es 4:16 "Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king, which is against the law; and if I perish, I perish!" There was an atmosphere of fear among Esther and the people and they responded by fasting. Are you wrestling with fear right now? Have you told others about your situation? Have you asked them to fast and pray for you. Have you tried fasting yourself? Fear is a powerful emotion. If someone could bottle it and use it to make tires we wouldn’t need 4 wheel drive vehicles, because when fear gets a grip on you, it doesn’t let go easily does it?  Perhaps that’s why we find the phrase “fear not,” 80 times in Scripture.   But it’s one thing to say “fear not”  and quite another to be delivered from this paralyzing emotion, especially when you’re the one being gripped by fear!  You know what I’m talking about don’t you?  Fear that consumes your every waking moment. You can’t stop thinking about something impending in your life, something that is larger than you! In the next couple of days we will talk about fear and the weapon of fasting that God has provided for us to combat it! Father, help relieve our fears.

Hail To the Chief

# 297 – We are continuing a series on fasting. As we have seen, this spiritual discipline is not just for Old Testament believers, yet we can learn much about fasting from their example. We've been looking at Nehemiah's prayer and fast as found in Neh 1,2. We'll pick it up in Neh 2:3 and following: Nehemiah has found himself before the king. The time has come to make his request., and the first words out of Nehemiah's mouth were: “May the king live forever!” This is a term of respect for the office, and is the equivalent of “long live the king,” or here in America, “Hail to the chief” This respect for the office is why we address our letters to our president and our congressmen to “the honorable so and so.” Unfortunately many times we Christians leave out the honorable and just say, “you so and so.” We honor our leaders because of our understanding that all authorities come from God. He puts them in place and He removes them at His whim. Romans 13:1 says, “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God. The person who grasps this truth knows that when when you talk to authorities, you are in a sense talking to God! After Nehemiah addresses the king with respect and explains to him how sad he is over the condition of Jerusalem, the king asks, “What do you request” Pay close attention to Nehemiah's answer in verses 4 and 5a. “ So I prayed to the God of heaven. 5 And I said to the king,” There's no break in the action here! Petitioning God and petitioning the king is one and the same. Nehemiah didn't take a time out and say to the king, hold on while I say a prayer to God. No! He prayed to the God of heaven as he spoke to the king. You see when you petition the king you are in a sense petitioning God because as we have heard in Rom 13:1, the king is only there by the appointment of God.  We have such limited vision as it concerns the plans of God. We forget that the grand scheme of things is like a chess match and the king (good or bad) is nothing but God’s pawn. When we forget this, we get distracted from those things that really matter…..namely our spiritual growth. Spiritual growth that God desires for us in order to expand His kingdom.   The results of Nehemiah's right view of fasting, prayer, and governmental authority? Well he got a leave of absence to help rebuild Jerusalem. He got the kings protection to do the job, and he got all the supplies needed to complete the job! Pretty good deal for skipping lunch wouldn't you say? Fast and pray brothers and sisters, believing Eph 3:20 Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations forever and ever. Amen

A Great Example of Proper Fasting

# 296 – We are continuing a series on fasting. As we have seen, this spiritual discipline is not just for Old Testament believers, yet we can learn much about fasting from their example. We've been looking at Nehemiah's prayer and fast as found in Neh 1,2. The reward that Nehemiah sought from God through fasting, was the restoration of the church (the rebuilding of the walls and gates) and that he would find favor with the king (Government) He specifically asked God, “give success to Your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. (King Artaxerxes) (Neh 1:11) Nehemiah knew some things about God. He knew, “The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes. (Prov 21:1) and so he turned to the only One who was capable of manipulating the government. I'm amazed at how slow we are in the church to realize this. Oh, the time, energy, and money we waste trying to turn the heart of the king (government) on our own. Nehemiah had no PAC money. He didn't run a multi million dollar ad campaign. He didn't hire lobbyists. He humbled himself, fasted and prayed to the One who had the real power to do something about it. We complain about capitol hill, we gripe about the white house when official policies and laws are passed that fly in the face of biblical morality. We resort to unkind words and rants, but how come we never seem interested in following Nehemiah's example of dealing with the government? How come we never quietly fast and pray for the favor we desire from the king? Now let's pick it up in Nehemiah 2:1 “And it came to pass in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, that I took the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had never been sad in his presence before. Key points here regarding fasting. We know that Nehemiah started his fast in the month of Chislev, now it is the month Nisan. For those of you who don't have a Jewish calendar handy...that's 4 months. Fasting brings results, but the timing of those results is in the hands of God. Therefore, it is often necessary to persevere in your fasting and prayer! It wasn't that he went without food for four months, he was the cup bearer! Part of his job was tasting food so the king wouldn't be poisoned! Rather he likely engaged in some sort of periodic targeted fasting involving some sort of a denial of his flesh. Remember our definition of fasting: “a denial of the flesh in order to gain a response from the Spirit.” Furthermore, Nehemiah had never been sad “in the presence of the king,” until this instance. He had never scrunched up his face and made a big deal about his fast: He was fasting in accordance with Jesus' instructions given in His Sermon on the Mount, “Do not be like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others, but when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in the secret place and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. Stay tuned because Nehemiah, was about to be rewarded for his proper fasting. Father, help us to persevere in our fasting and prayer, trusting you for the results.

Fasting For Favor From Authorities

# 295 – We are continuing a series on fasting. As we have seen, this spiritual discipline is not just for Old Testament believers, yet we can learn much about fasting from their example. We've been looking at Nehemiah's prayer in conjunction with his fast. The prayer is found in Ne 1:5 -10, and we'll pick it up today in v8, “Remember, I pray, the word that You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, 'If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations; 9 'but if you return to Me, and keep My commandments and do them, though some of you were cast out to the farthest part of the heavens, yet I will gather them from there, and bring them to the place which I have chosen as a dwelling for My name.' 10 "Now these are Your servants and Your people, whom You have redeemed by Your great power, and by Your strong hand. Here Nehemiah reminds God of His covenant promise to His church. When the church returns to God in humility and repentance, treasuring God's Words, God promises to restore it. This has always been the case with God's dealings with His people...the church. Then, he makes a plea that God would restore the people so that His redemptive work wouldn't be for nought. Let His church rise, rebuild the walls, restore the gates so that it would no longer be the laughing stock of the world.  It’s about God’s name being hallowed!   Finally, after (1) acknowledging the greatness of God, and (2) acknowledging God’s faithfulness, and (3) telling God that he is aware of the responsibilities of God’s people, then (4) confessing how far short they had fallen of their responsibilities,  and (5) reminding God of His promise toward the contrite people, and asking Him to intervene for His name’s sake, His glory, Nehemiah finally brings His request before God. This request was the focal point of his fast and prayer.   “give success to Your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. (King Artaxerxes) Nehemiah was simply asking for some forward movement in the project of rebuilding the walls. He had some ideas as to what he would need for the project, but he was going to first of all need the approval of Artaxerxes. So this fast served a twofold purpose. Nehemiah was fasting for the restoration of the church, and he was fasting to find favor with the government. The latter has been greatly overlooked in the church today. More on that next time. Father, thank You for this model from Nehemiah, let us put it into practice today!

Fasting the World Out of the Church

# 294 – We are continuing a series on fasting. As we have seen, this spiritual discipline is not just for Old Testament believers, yet we can learn much about fasting from their example. In the next couple of days, I want to spend some more time looking at the fast of Nehemiah. You can read about it in Nehemiah 1 and 2. Nehemiah was greatly bothered by the broken down walls and gates of Jerusalem (the church) He didn’t have to be bothered by that news. His faith was intact, he had a good job in the kings court many miles away. Why not just live his life as is. It’s not his concern! But it is! He rightly saw the church as his concern, and guess what? The Body of Christ is your concern, it is my concern!  There is a breach in the wall, the gates are down. The world has broken into the church! What will you do about it? Will you pass on lunch and pray?   His first step in fixing the problem was to go before the God of heaven. The God of the dispensary of grace and all things needful, and he prayed and fasted before Him.   Listen to his prayer as found in Neh 1:5-11: “And I said, O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God (everything in that opening line acknowledges that God is bigger than the problem!)  “who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love Him and keep His commandments,  (next, Nehemiah let’s God know that he is very much aware of God's faithfulness to His Word. He is also aware of the responsibilities of God’s people. They are to love God and keep (treasure) His commandments.   Let (allow) Your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer of your servant that I now pray before you day and night. The mention of the ears and eyes of God link prayer and fasting. God hears the prayer, but He also sees the prayer of fasting. This prayer is with Nehemiah day and night!   Remember the sermon on the mount as it regards proper prayer and fasting? “And Your Father who SEES in secret will reward you.”  Nehemiah was simply stating the promise  expounded on by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount.      He goes on to confess the sins of the church, “confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which WE have sinned against You. Even I and my father’s house have sinned. We have acted very corruptly against you and have not kept (treasured) the commandments, the statutes, and the rules that you commanded Your servant Moses..   Here Nehemiah acknowledges the sin of the people, but he makes it clear that he and his father’s generation are also guilty. Walls don’t fall down overnight, they deteriorate over time.  The reason the walls are broken down and the world has flooded the church, and the gates have been opened is because he, his father’s house, and all the people have gotten sloppy with the Word of God. Father, move us to mourn and fast for Your church when She is in shambles and rejoice when She is doing well.

Fasting For the Church

# 293 – We are continuing a series on fasting. As we have seen, this spiritual discipline is not just for Old Testament believers, yet we can learn much about fasting from their example. In the next couple of days, I want to spend some time looking at the fast of Nehemiah. You can read about this fast in the first two chapters of Nehemiah. As we go through this portion of Scripture, we will look at the reason for his fast, the prayer connected with his fast, and the results of his fast. First, a little background for you.. The Jews had been carried off into captivity by Babylon for 70 years. When Persia defeated Babylon, king  Cyrus allowed the Jews to return to their homeland and rebuild  the temple in the year 536 B.C.  Now they once again had a place to worship.   But they didn’t know how to worship, how to live if you will, and so a second wave of exiles returned led by a man named Ezra in 457 B.C. who had “set his heart to study the Law of the Lord and to do it and to teach His statutes and rules in Israel.” ( Ezra 7:10)   Evidently, Ezra’s message was not received whole-heartedly and by the year 444 B.C. the city (the church) was a mess. The believers, their religion, and by inference, their God had become a laughingstock to those around them,  and that’s where we pick up the story.   In Neh 1:3, we read that the wall of Jerusalem was broken down and it's gates destroyed by fire.” What are city walls and gates for? Well, the walls are for protection from any and all enemies, and the gates are a way of controlling who enters the city and who doesn’t. And they were gone, broken down, burned with fire. The people of Jerusalem had no protection from the influences of the world.   In many ways, the church of Jesus Christ today has become like this city of Jerusalem. There is no separation between the world and the church, and who needs gates, when “all roads lead to God.”  How dare anyone insist that Jesus is the only way to salvation!   The church has become the influenced, rather than the influencer. The salt has lost it's saltiness. Look around people! The walls are down people. The gates are burned! Does this bother you? Does it bother you enough to give up dinner? Does it bother you enough to fast to invite the power of God into the situation? It bothered Nehemiah, look at verse 4.  “As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. Father, open our eyes stir our hearts, come and help us rebuild the walls and gates of Your church.