On February 22nd, which was Ash Wednesday we entered into the Lent season. I am not sure that very many Christians know much about the season. It begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on Holy Saturday before Easter morning. It is technically suppose to be 40 days. The days are intended to remind us of the 40 days of Jesus' wilderness journey that He took before He began His ministry.
There is nothing said in the Bible about Lent. The whole ideal has come from religion. It is therefore a religious ritual intended to remind us to observe certain disciplines that are intended to bring us into a closer relationship with Christ.
One of the rituals that is observed by many is fasting....doing without food. Jesus fasted 40 days and some may even try to follow His example. Few people really fast that long and I certainly would not recommend it without an intended purpose that has come from God through a definite revelation.
Fasting is found in the Bible. Practiced by Old Testament people as well as New Testament. Isaiah, one of the major prophets of the Old Testament, talks about fasting in his 58th chapter. What is found in that chapter is Isaiah being told by God what true fasting is. Here is what you find:
In verse 6 God speaks to Isaiah and declares "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
1. To loose the chains of injustice.
2. Untie the cords of the yoke.
3. Set the oppressed free.
4. Break every yoke.
5. Share your food with the hungry.
6. Provide the poor wanderer with shelter.
7. When you see the naked, clothe him.
8. Do not turn away from your own flesh and blood.
This passage caught me by surprise. I had never thought of fasting in this kind of context. It makes you think. It makes you wonder if fasting is something more than merely not eating or doing without some pleasure. Fasting is seen here as an action on our part to do something for others that we may have never thought of doing.
We are to loose, to untie, to set free, share food and provide shelter. It is Christianity in action. It is obvious that there is more here than merely a ritual or a ceremony or even a period of time. It is action that must not be limited to a few days of religious activity. It is so much deeper than that. This kind of fasting puts our Christianity to the test. A real test of reaching out to those who have become enslaved by sin. Who are suffering the consequences of sins. Who can not free themselves.
True fasting is hearing the cry of the enslaved, the hurting, the hungry, the naked and doing something about it. True fasting is rushing to them to do everything in our power to relieve them of their suffering. It is a soothing act of mercy by reaching out with kind hands and comforting them.
True fasting! I think I'll take a fresh new look at fasting and see if I am fasting at all.
There is nothing said in the Bible about Lent. The whole ideal has come from religion. It is therefore a religious ritual intended to remind us to observe certain disciplines that are intended to bring us into a closer relationship with Christ.
One of the rituals that is observed by many is fasting....doing without food. Jesus fasted 40 days and some may even try to follow His example. Few people really fast that long and I certainly would not recommend it without an intended purpose that has come from God through a definite revelation.
Fasting is found in the Bible. Practiced by Old Testament people as well as New Testament. Isaiah, one of the major prophets of the Old Testament, talks about fasting in his 58th chapter. What is found in that chapter is Isaiah being told by God what true fasting is. Here is what you find:
In verse 6 God speaks to Isaiah and declares "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
1. To loose the chains of injustice.
2. Untie the cords of the yoke.
3. Set the oppressed free.
4. Break every yoke.
5. Share your food with the hungry.
6. Provide the poor wanderer with shelter.
7. When you see the naked, clothe him.
8. Do not turn away from your own flesh and blood.
This passage caught me by surprise. I had never thought of fasting in this kind of context. It makes you think. It makes you wonder if fasting is something more than merely not eating or doing without some pleasure. Fasting is seen here as an action on our part to do something for others that we may have never thought of doing.
We are to loose, to untie, to set free, share food and provide shelter. It is Christianity in action. It is obvious that there is more here than merely a ritual or a ceremony or even a period of time. It is action that must not be limited to a few days of religious activity. It is so much deeper than that. This kind of fasting puts our Christianity to the test. A real test of reaching out to those who have become enslaved by sin. Who are suffering the consequences of sins. Who can not free themselves.
True fasting is hearing the cry of the enslaved, the hurting, the hungry, the naked and doing something about it. True fasting is rushing to them to do everything in our power to relieve them of their suffering. It is a soothing act of mercy by reaching out with kind hands and comforting them.
True fasting! I think I'll take a fresh new look at fasting and see if I am fasting at all.
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