Three-Minute Bible Study Fasting for All the Wrong Reasons Isaiah 58.2-14 I am often asked about fasting. It is mysterious and seems to suggest some sort of secret spiritual skill. As if, “Gee, if only I fast, then God will do great things in my life!” The problem is a person can fast, or seek any spiritual goal, for all the wrong reasons. Isaiah 58 gives us a glimpse into a moment in the life of God’s people when they fasted for all the wrong reasons. In reality, fasting was just the means they used to try to get God to do what they wanted. We should all be very careful about trying to manipulate God. Verses 3-5 reveal their attempts to manipulate God. They fast, but still oppress their workers (v. 3). They fight each other, then fast (v. 4). The mourn publicly in sack cloth and ashes while fasting (v. 5). They ask God, “Aren’t you paying attention to us?” (v. 3) In short, their conduct doesn’t change but they expect God to respond as they go through the ritualistic motions of fasting and worship. God replies and tells them the fast he chooses means freeing the ropes that bind people. It means sharing bread with the hungry, giving shelter to the homeless, and clothing the naked. Fasting isn’t about the fasting but the changes it brings in us. Spiritual discipline is not an Olympic sport, it is a preparation for service. If we can learn how to grow in our spiritual lives so God can use us fully then we “will be like a watered garden, like a spring of water that won’t run dry” (v. 11). Fasting, done properly, can be a way for us to discover what needs to change in our lives so we can meet the needs of others in God’s name. Fasting is never about spiritual notoriety or attention. Proper fasting, or any spiritual discipline, will always result in lives changed all around you even as your own life is transformed.
Posted on: Wed, 29 Jan 2014 13:50:01 +0000