Fast Approved by God

"When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.". (Matthew 6:16-18 NIV)

Back a long time ago, when I was going through boot-camp, I first encountered some customs that seemed foreign to my North Carolina upbringing. Most of our family and friends were either members of a local Church of Christ, Baptist, Methodist, Nazarene or Church of God. The few Catholics I remember coming in contact with were usually during sports competitions, and most of them attended the local Catholic school. So, it was a surprise to me on that first Friday at boot-camp when we had fish, and I learned that we had fish every Friday. I was told by a much wiser young man from way up North in New Jersey that it had something to do with Catholics.

The part of North Carolina where we lived was far from the Atlantic Ocean. We seldom had fish, and that usually came from the Yadkin River or some muddy creek. I love fish, and when I learned that we would have it every Friday that was something to write home about! Later on, as I came in contact with young men from Catholic families and we became friends, I learned that this was some type of fast. It was a fast of giving up meat. I thought – wow, this is my kind of fasting!

This is the beginning of what many people refer to as Lent. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of this time of fasting. We may encounter people who will tell us what they are giving up for Lent. Then they may ask what are we giving up for Lent and we just explain that we don't observe this holiday and perhaps pretend that we know what they are talking about. The reason why we do not observe this tradition is that it is not found in the Bible, and was not a part of the practice of the early church of the first few centuries. Ash Wednesday and Lent were traditions that were added much later.

It is appropriate that we ask the question - what is Lent? When we make a search of the Bible we cannot find mention of this word. So then we must go to church historians and try to determine the origin of this practice. According to various dictionaries the word lent derives from old Anglo-Saxon and Old German words for spring. Webster`s 10th Collegiate Dictionary describes Lent this way: "the 40 weekdays from Ash Wednesday to Easter observed by the Roman Catholic, Eastern, and some Protestant churches as a period of penitence and fasting."

Fasting as an act of piety before God was not written down as a formal law for the Jews, nor was it ever mandated for Christians. We do have several examples in the Bible of where God`s people would fast as a means of developing a sober mind before God during a time of prayer for forgiveness of sins. The fasts in the Bible were always voluntary.

Some examples of fasting in the Old Testament are found in 1 Samuel 7:6; 2 Samuel 12:22; 1 Kings 21:9-12; Ezra 8:21, Nehemiah 9:1, Esther 4:3; Psalm 69:10; Daniel 6:18, 9:3; Jeremiah 36:9; Joel 1:14.

During the time when Christ was upon the earth, we know that the Pharisees fasted two times a week. (Luke 18:12) We also learn that Jesus condemned such liturgical formalism when fasting. (Matthew 6:16-17)

We learn that the early church would sometimes fast during a time of prayer. One example is when the church in Antioch ordained Paul and Barnabas. (Acts 13:2-3) The apostles fasted and prayed when ordaining elders in the local churches. (Acts 14:23)

Long ago, God gave clear instructions on what is considered to be a true and acceptable fast. "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?" (Isaiah 58:6-7 NIV)

Let us bring the kind of fasting that God expects: a life that is devoted to Christ through acts of love and kindness. The outward observance of Lent will not make us holy. Inward joy that comes from being filled with God`s Spirit, and serving God by following in Christ's footsteps brings holiness.

You are invited to all services of the Cedar Key Church of Christ. Write me with any comments or questions at PO Box 186, Cedar Key, FL 32625 or binkley@bellsouth.net.