SPEAKER_00: Welcome to Family Church's Sermon of the Week.
SPEAKER_00: We're so glad you're here.
SPEAKER_00: Each week we share a message from God's Word to encourage your heart, strengthen your faith, and help you grow in your walk with Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: We hope this time blesses you and draws you closer to the heart of God.
SPEAKER_01: So I grew up as a kid in the 70s and 80s, and I know to those of you that are like 20s, that just sounds ancient.
SPEAKER_01: Um I had I was talking to somebody in their 20s not too long ago, and they said, What was it like growing up in the 1900s?
SPEAKER_01: And I'm like, get away from me, you punk, you know, 1900s.
SPEAKER_01: But but that's what it was.
SPEAKER_01: But in the 1900s, it was okay for a kid to carry a knife.
SPEAKER_01: So when I was eight years old, I got my first pocket knife, and I carried it with me everywhere.
SPEAKER_01: And some of you, some of you guys that are from my generation did the same thing.
SPEAKER_01: Eight years old, got my first pocket knife.
SPEAKER_01: I was in the Cub Scouts, had a little Cub Scout uh emblem on it.
SPEAKER_01: I carried that with me everywhere I went, and so did every other boy in the third grade.
SPEAKER_01: You know, we all did we because we knew they were tools, not weapons, and we treated them that way.
SPEAKER_01: And if we took it out anytime we weren't supposed to, the teacher took it, and the teacher could take it and never give it back, and our parents were okay with that.
SPEAKER_01: So, so all of us had knives, and so to this day, I carry, I carry a knife.
SPEAKER_01: Always have a knife on me.
SPEAKER_01: This is the one I carry now.
SPEAKER_01: It's your typical, you know, classic Swiss Army knife.
SPEAKER_01: It's got all the tools on it, it's got three blades, it's got a it's got scissors, it's got an auger, it's got a corkscrew, it's got tweezers and a toothpick, it's got it all.
SPEAKER_01: Okay, so so about three months ago, I lost this.
SPEAKER_01: I lost it.
SPEAKER_01: And and I was devastated.
SPEAKER_01: I I got up one morning and I was getting ready for for work, and I grabbed my keys, put it in my pocket, grab my wallet, put it in my pocket, and I went to go find this, and I'm like, okay, I couldn't find it.
SPEAKER_01: I couldn't find it anywhere.
SPEAKER_01: So it was gone for three months.
SPEAKER_01: And I can't tell you how many times in that three months I would reach in my pocket.
SPEAKER_01: I'd need to open a package or or uh uh cut a piece of rope or pick my teeth or whatever, and I'd reach for that knife and it wouldn't be there.
SPEAKER_01: And it and and it was, you know, and I'd replaced it with another little knife, but it just wasn't the same, mostly because you can't pick your teeth with a three-inch blade.
SPEAKER_01: But I mean, it was it there was an obvious void in my life because I didn't have that knife.
SPEAKER_01: And so a couple weeks ago I was doing a wedding and I put on my funeralslash wedding suit and I reached into the coat pocket, and there it was.
SPEAKER_01: And I was just so re I was so happy, so relieved that I found that knife.
SPEAKER_01: I had really missed that knife.
SPEAKER_01: And and it's because when you're used to having something at your disposal like that, it becomes a part of your life, and when it's not there, there's a void in your life.
SPEAKER_01: And so I want to talk about a spiritual discipline today that that most of us, honestly, most of us have probably never done this.
SPEAKER_01: But once you start doing it, and then you don't do it, you will notice it.
SPEAKER_01: You will feel the void in your life.
SPEAKER_01: And so so look with me, please, at uh Matthew chapter 6, starting in verse 16.
SPEAKER_01: And uh Jesus says this He says, And when you fast, don't make it obvious as the hypocrites do, for they try to look miserable and disheveled, so people admire them for their fasting.
SPEAKER_01: I tell you the truth, that is the only reward they're ever gonna get.
SPEAKER_01: But when you fast, comb your hair, wash your face, then no one will notice that you're fasting except your father, who knows what you do in private.
SPEAKER_01: And your father who sees everything will reward you.
SPEAKER_01: Okay?
SPEAKER_01: So let's dig into that passage for a minute.
SPEAKER_01: First word is and.
SPEAKER_01: All right, so I'm I have to stop and explain the first word.
SPEAKER_01: So we might be here a long time today.
SPEAKER_01: But anytime you start a sentence, if you're writing, if you start a sentence with the word and, you have to do two things.
SPEAKER_01: First, make sure your grammar's correct, because it's not always appropriate to start a sentence with and, you know, so make sure your grammar's correct.
SPEAKER_01: You know, that's that's grammatical, not theological, but that's good, good, good advice.
SPEAKER_01: The second thing is to always look and make sure that whatever that and is, make sure you understand what that and is connecting.
SPEAKER_01: Because if it starts, if you start a sentence with an and, there should be an obvious connection to the sentences before it.
SPEAKER_01: So this verse starts with and.
SPEAKER_01: So that means let's look back and see what it was saying before.
SPEAKER_01: And it goes back to a familiar passage of scripture that's all about prayer, teaching you how to pray.
SPEAKER_01: It goes back to the Lord's prayer.
SPEAKER_01: And so it takes that that and connects one of the most used spiritual disciplines and connects it with one of the least used spiritual disciplines.
SPEAKER_01: One of the most used is connected to one of the least used.
SPEAKER_01: Because Jesus talks about prayer, teaches about prayer, and then he says, and when you fast.
SPEAKER_01: So the so it doesn't say, you know, here's how you pray, and you know, you might try fasting.
SPEAKER_01: You know, if you want to, you know, if you feel super spiritual today, try fasting.
SPEAKER_01: If you're just you're just so spiritually mature, you're head and shoulders above everybody else, and prayer and Bible study just doesn't cut it.
SPEAKER_01: You should be fasting.
SPEAKER_01: It doesn't say that.
SPEAKER_01: It says, and when you fast.
SPEAKER_01: So think about it this way the disciples had just been following Jesus for weeks, months at this point.
SPEAKER_01: They were they were rookies at this.
SPEAKER_01: God Jesus didn't choose them because they were spiritual giants.
SPEAKER_01: He choose, he chose them because they were willing, and he knew their hearts.
SPEAKER_01: That's why he chose them.
SPEAKER_01: He didn't choose guys that were already great at all of this.
SPEAKER_01: So they're looking at Jesus after being with him for just a few short weeks or months, and they say, Jesus, we don't know how to pray.
SPEAKER_01: Teach us to pray.
SPEAKER_01: And so Jesus teaches them, uses the Lord's prayer, teaches them how to pray, and then he says, and when you fast, he connects the two.
SPEAKER_01: So fasting is as essential as prayer is to a follower of Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: Fasting is as essential as prayer is to a follower of Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: And that was important because the people of Jerusalem at this time, they didn't have a great example of what fasting was.
SPEAKER_01: You know, they saw the Pharisees fasting.
SPEAKER_01: The Pharisees, they would make a big show of it.
SPEAKER_01: You know, I'm fasting.
SPEAKER_01: Everybody look at me, I'm fasting.
SPEAKER_01: They were doing it for their for their own for their own purposes, to serve their own egos, rather than fasting for the the God for its intended purpose.
SPEAKER_01: So, so everybody was looking at them thinking, that's what fasting's all about.
SPEAKER_01: You know, they so they wanted nothing to do with it.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus said, instead, be quiet about it.
SPEAKER_01: Just fast quietly.
SPEAKER_01: Don't tell anybody.
SPEAKER_01: You know, don't the the the tradition says that Pharisees would would put like dirt under their eyes to make it look like their eyes were, you know, that had bags under their eyes and stuff, and they would make it themselves disheveled like they were so everybody knew they were fasting, like they were doing something really strenuous or whatever.
SPEAKER_01: You know, they would make it look like that.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus said, Don't do that.
SPEAKER_01: Just comb your hair, get dressed, fast, and don't tell anybody.
SPEAKER_01: Don't tell anybody.
SPEAKER_01: And then he then look at the last sentence of that verse.
SPEAKER_01: It says, And your father who sees everything will reward you.
SPEAKER_01: Your father who sees everything will reward you.
SPEAKER_01: So this whole month we've been talking about spiritual disciplines, that if you do this spiritual discipline, there is a promise that comes with it.
SPEAKER_01: There's a blessing that comes with it.
SPEAKER_01: And so first week we talked about honoring your parents.
SPEAKER_01: You know, that's not an option.
SPEAKER_01: You honor your parents.
SPEAKER_01: That's not the that's not the commandment for kids, that's for all of us.
SPEAKER_01: Honor your parents.
SPEAKER_01: And if you do, you're going to have a long, joyful life if you honor your parents.
SPEAKER_01: Then we talked about tithing.
SPEAKER_01: And the promises if you tithe, then God's going to take care of you, God's going to provide for you.
SPEAKER_01: Last week we talked about keeping the Sabbath.
SPEAKER_01: And if you keep the Sabbath, if you keep a Sabbath in your life, in your routine, if you do that spiritual discipline, God's going to give you rest and provision.
SPEAKER_01: So this spiritual discipline comes with a promise.
SPEAKER_01: If you fast, the God who sees everything will reward you.
SPEAKER_01: That's the blessing.
SPEAKER_01: The fact that God will see you and reward you is the blessing associated with fasting.
SPEAKER_01: And the reward can look like anything.
SPEAKER_01: Whatever your purpose for fasting is, your reward is going to reflect that.
SPEAKER_01: And throughout Scripture, we see we see people that fasted.
SPEAKER_01: Moses and Elijah fasted for 40 days to experience the presence of God.
SPEAKER_01: David fasted for seven days to pray for the healing of a newborn child.
SPEAKER_01: Esther and the Israelites living in captivity in Persia fasted for three days for deliverance from genocide at the hands of King Xerxes.
SPEAKER_01: Daniel fasted and he was visited by an angel that spoke the word of God to him.
SPEAKER_01: And then in the book of Acts, the apostles fasted and sought in the face of God when they were sending out Paul and Barnabas.
SPEAKER_01: So there's you know there were all different reasons for fasting, and God responded to all of them in different ways.
SPEAKER_01: He answered prayer, his presence was known, they were delivered, you know, that God responded to fasting, and God will respond to fasting when you fast.
SPEAKER_01: God will see it and respond because Jesus just said it would.
SPEAKER_01: So God blesses us by responding to our fasting.
SPEAKER_01: He blesses us by responding to our fasting.
SPEAKER_01: And his response is our reward.
SPEAKER_01: That's the blessing.
SPEAKER_01: So let's talk about fasting because the scripture is very specific about what fasting looks like.
SPEAKER_01: And it serves a much greater purpose than just putting your prayers on the fast track to being answered.
SPEAKER_01: That's not what it's all about.
SPEAKER_01: Fasting serves a much greater purpose.
SPEAKER_01: And the Bible's very clear about what we should fast from.
SPEAKER_01: Okay?
SPEAKER_01: The Bible says you should fast from food, and if you're a married couple, that you should fast from sexual intimacy.
SPEAKER_01: Those are the only two things the Bible says we should fast from.
SPEAKER_01: Now you can fast from other stuff, and that's a good thing.
SPEAKER_01: You know, you can fast from social media.
SPEAKER_01: Everybody needs to take a break from social media.
SPEAKER_01: Probably a longer break than you realize.
SPEAKER_01: You know, but but we all need to fast from that.
SPEAKER_01: We need to fast from television, we need to fast from other things, and that's all great, but the Bible only says fast from food, fast from sexual intimacy if you're married.
SPEAKER_01: And and it does that because it he's telling you to take a break from the things that are your most basic urges.
SPEAKER_01: Take a break from the things that are your most basic urges.
SPEAKER_01: Because it's not about giving up your favorite dessert for a period of time.
SPEAKER_01: It's not about giving up your favorite pastime, it's about conquering the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: Fasting is about conquering the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: So you commit to fasting, you know, you say, okay, I'm gonna fast.
SPEAKER_01: You set a period of time, say I'm gonna fast, and then all of a sudden, those hunger pains set in.
SPEAKER_01: That's the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: And you're gonna say no to the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: So you walk downstairs, you know, and then you walk by the pantry and the door's open and you look in it, and you see little Debbie, oatmeal cream pies.
SPEAKER_01: The jumbos, not the fun size.
SPEAKER_01: Nothing fun about a small snack.
SPEAKER_01: But you see those and you look little Debbie in the eye and you say, Get thee behind me, Satan.
SPEAKER_01: That's saying no to the flesh, and in that moment you conquered the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: Okay?
SPEAKER_01: And if you if you establish that as a routine, you establish fasting as a routine, you become accustomed to conquering your most basic urge, hunger.
SPEAKER_01: You come up, you become accustomed to conquering the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: So then when the temptation comes to gossip, you say no to that temptation.
SPEAKER_01: You say no to that that uh that that uh basic desire.
SPEAKER_01: You conquer the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: When you're tempted to use a substance to put yourself in a better mood, and that substance could be anything from a fifth of Jack Daniels to a half gallon of moose tracks, but you're gonna choose something to put you in a better mood, you say no to the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: You conquer the flesh and you don't yield to temptation.
SPEAKER_01: Practicing fasting, making it a discipline rather than an occasional event, making fasting a discipline in your life, a regular uh uh regimen of part, a regular part of your routine helps you to develop the ability to say no to the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: Bill Bright, the founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, uh, said this.
SPEAKER_01: He said, fasting reduces the power of self, or reduces the power of flesh, so that the Holy Spirit can do a more intense work within us.
SPEAKER_01: When you learn to fast, you're learning to let God work in you.
SPEAKER_01: You're saying no to the flesh, and you're letting you're learning to let God do his work within you.
SPEAKER_01: Here's why that's important.
SPEAKER_01: Go back two chapters to Matthew chapter four.
SPEAKER_01: Just a few months before Jesus taught the disciples how to pray, Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist.
SPEAKER_01: And then immediately after he was baptized, this happened.
SPEAKER_01: Look at Matthew 4, 1.
SPEAKER_01: It says, Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil.
SPEAKER_01: For forty days and forty nights he fasted and became very hungry.
SPEAKER_01: During that time, the devil came and said to him, If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.
SPEAKER_01: But Jesus told him, Nope.
SPEAKER_01: The scriptures say people do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes out of the mouth of God.
SPEAKER_01: So Jesus fasted forty days and Satan tempted him.
SPEAKER_01: So he started to he tempted Jesus with his most basic urge at that moment.
SPEAKER_01: You're hungry.
SPEAKER_01: Physically, you're weak because you haven't been eating.
SPEAKER_01: You're vulnerable.
SPEAKER_01: So Satan's thinking, if I'm ever gonna get the Son of God to bow to my will instead of the will of the Father, this is the moment.
SPEAKER_01: Because Jesus had a weakness.
SPEAKER_01: He was hungry.
SPEAKER_01: And that's the first thing that Satan appealed to.
SPEAKER_01: He appealed to Jesus' most basic desire at the moment.
SPEAKER_01: James 1.14 says, temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away.
SPEAKER_01: If Satan wants to tempt you, if Satan wants to get you to sin, if Satan wants to get you to turn from Jesus and turn towards him, he's going to go after your most basic desire.
SPEAKER_01: Go after your most basic desire.
SPEAKER_01: So if your most basic desire is to feel important, then Satan will use that to tempt you to talk about other people to make them seem unimportant and make you feel more important.
SPEAKER_01: And you have to conquer that flesh.
SPEAKER_01: You have to conquer that urge.
SPEAKER_01: You have to say no to it.
SPEAKER_01: If your greatest desire is to feel loved or accepted or popular, Satan will use that desire to tempt you to say yes to things that you know are wrong just so that you can fit in with the crowd or just so that you can feel loved.
SPEAKER_01: And you need to say no to the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: Satan is going to start with your most basic desires.
SPEAKER_01: He's going to take advantage of that, and he's going to strike you when you're most vulnerable.
SPEAKER_01: And Satan only has one play in his playbook.
SPEAKER_01: And if you know this, you can stay one step ahead of him.
SPEAKER_01: He's only got one play in his playbook.
SPEAKER_01: Look at 1 John 2, 16.
SPEAKER_01: It says, For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is not of the Father, but is of this world.
SPEAKER_01: That's Satan's, that's his play.
SPEAKER_01: That's all he's got.
SPEAKER_01: Lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, pride of life.
SPEAKER_01: That's all he uses.
SPEAKER_01: And that's not, that's not just, that's not three separate ways to tempt.
SPEAKER_01: That's one strategy that puts you on a path to compromise and a path to sinfulness.
SPEAKER_01: He uses the lust of the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: Satan's going to appeal to your most basic desires.
SPEAKER_01: He's going to start with a feeling, you know, and it might not even be a bad feeling.
SPEAKER_01: It might not be a sinful feeling.
SPEAKER_01: It might just be, I feel lonely, I feel neglected, I feel angry, I feel overlooked and unimportant, or the opposite of that.
SPEAKER_01: I feel more important than everybody else in this room.
SPEAKER_01: Satan's going to go to that, and he's going to use that to tempt you.
SPEAKER_01: He's going to start at at your your desires.
SPEAKER_01: Then he's going to go with the lust of the eyes.
SPEAKER_01: Satan's going to show you something that could offer temporary relief from whatever it is you're feeling.
SPEAKER_01: He could satisfy that feeling temporarily.
SPEAKER_01: If you're lonely or neglected, Satan will show you people who will readily accept you for all the wrong reasons.
SPEAKER_01: You know?
SPEAKER_01: If you're feeling like life's not going your way, Satan's going to show you somebody else's life that's better.
SPEAKER_01: And you're going to look and say, well, if I was like that, I'd be happy.
SPEAKER_01: And you'll compromise your life to imitate someone else.
SPEAKER_01: Then it's pride of life.
SPEAKER_01: The pride of life causes you to say, I don't need God.
SPEAKER_01: You know, I can do this on my own.
SPEAKER_01: You know, I can do it in my own time.
SPEAKER_01: I can do it in my own way.
SPEAKER_01: I don't need God.
SPEAKER_01: I've got this.
SPEAKER_01: That's the pride of life.
SPEAKER_01: And all of that starts with a battle against your flesh, and this is why conquering the flesh is so important.
SPEAKER_01: Fasting is a discipline you can't afford to ignore.
SPEAKER_01: And Satan knows that.
SPEAKER_01: Satan knows this.
SPEAKER_01: And that's why, that's why Satan pulled out the big guns when Jesus was fasting.
SPEAKER_01: And this, you know, this is not, this is not, this is my opinion.
SPEAKER_01: This is just an observation I make from the scripture, not necessarily biblical principle, but this is the only time we see Satan tempting Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: It's the only time.
SPEAKER_01: When Jesus was probably at his, you know, if Jesus had a vulnerable moment, this was it, because he was hungry.
SPEAKER_01: And Satan probably thought, if I'm gonna, if I'm gonna get him to fall, I have to do it now before he completes that fast because fasting is so powerful.
SPEAKER_01: So Satan went after him at a time when he was vulnerable.
SPEAKER_01: And if you implement a routine of fasting in your life, you're going to experience opposition just like Jesus did.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus started fasting, Satan came and tempted him.
SPEAKER_01: Same thing's gonna happen to you.
SPEAKER_01: So when you fast, expect opposition.
SPEAKER_01: You've heard me quote Josh Howerton, a pastor out in Dallas.
SPEAKER_01: You've heard heard me quote him before, say this quote.
SPEAKER_01: He says that the birthmark of a believer is a bullseye.
SPEAKER_01: And every time you take a giant step toward Jesus, Satan goes for that bullseye.
SPEAKER_01: Satan does something to attack you, and he takes aim, and he's going, he's going for the jugular.
SPEAKER_01: Because you've got a bullseye on your back when you choose to follow Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: Elmer Towns, anybody ever go to Elmer Towns' classes at Liberty University?
SPEAKER_01: He's one of the founders of Liberty University, taught there for about 50 years, and some of y'all in here, I think, went to his classes.
SPEAKER_01: He said this if you are serious enough to take up the discipline of fasting, you can expect resistance, interference, and opposition.
SPEAKER_01: Plan for it.
SPEAKER_01: Insofar as you are able.
SPEAKER_01: Do not be caught unawares.
SPEAKER_01: Remember that you are attempting to advance in your spiritual journey and gain ground for the kingdom that necessitates taking ground away from the enemy.
SPEAKER_01: And no great movement of the Holy Spirit goes unchallenged by the enemy.
SPEAKER_01: So if you want to, if you want to live a blessed life, you want to take that giant step towards Jesus and start fasting, expect opposition.
SPEAKER_01: Expect opposition.
SPEAKER_01: So that's the challenge this morning.
SPEAKER_01: I want you I want I want to challenge you to start incorporating fasting into your routine.
SPEAKER_01: Make that one of your spiritual uh uh one of one of the tools in your spiritual tool belt.
SPEAKER_01: And start start practicing fasting.
SPEAKER_01: And and here's how you do that.
SPEAKER_01: Okay?
SPEAKER_01: First, pray about it.
SPEAKER_01: Don't don't don't make any life change thing without praying and talking to God about it.
SPEAKER_01: And but talk to him and say, God, I I need you in this.
SPEAKER_01: I need you to give me wisdom on how to do it.
SPEAKER_01: I need you to give me the strength to be able to do it.
SPEAKER_01: I need I need your your strength.
SPEAKER_01: I need your strength and your courage to be able to do this.
SPEAKER_01: Okay?
SPEAKER_01: So pray about it.
SPEAKER_01: Talk to God about it first.
SPEAKER_01: Then seek accountability on this.
SPEAKER_01: And this is so important.
SPEAKER_01: Anything you do for God, you should have accountability.
SPEAKER_01: You should have somebody that's accountable with you.
SPEAKER_01: Because you need the encouragement.
SPEAKER_01: And you know, if you're not used to fasting and you start fasting, you know, sometimes little Debbie is a little more powerful than you think she is.
SPEAKER_01: You know, you're gonna need somebody to encourage you.
SPEAKER_01: You need somebody to encourage you.
SPEAKER_01: But if you've got a target on your back, you need somebody that has your back in prayer.
SPEAKER_01: So when you go into this, have somebody praying for you, and maybe maybe somebody else is gonna go into it with you, and they're gonna pray, you can pray together for each other about fasting.
SPEAKER_01: But but go but have some accountability.
SPEAKER_01: Take a partner down this road with you.
SPEAKER_01: Um, consider your own health, you know.
SPEAKER_01: If you've got a chronic health condition, fasting might not be good for you.
SPEAKER_01: Okay, so think about that.
SPEAKER_01: Um, and then then pray about, okay, how am I gonna do this?
SPEAKER_01: And you might want to start small, just fasting from a particular meal every week for a while, or or fast, you know, 24 hours, or you know, work your way up to extended fast or whatever.
SPEAKER_01: And so so you might be thinking, okay, what does that look like?
SPEAKER_01: John, what is your fasting routine?
SPEAKER_01: Here's my routine.
SPEAKER_01: And I'm not saying this to to be like the Pharisees and say, look at John, he's fasting, you know, and and really, I don't think anybody out there is gonna go, hey, look, John's fasting again.
SPEAKER_01: You know, nobody nobody's gonna say that about this.
SPEAKER_01: Um, but uh so so my fasting routine is is this the first week of the month, I'll fast for three days.
SPEAKER_01: 72 hours, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday.
SPEAKER_01: Okay?
SPEAKER_01: And and so that that's the plan for the first week.
SPEAKER_01: Every week, the rest of the month, I'll fast one day for 24 hours.
SPEAKER_01: That that's my plan.
SPEAKER_01: Okay, it's very simple, easy to follow.
SPEAKER_01: Now, now if you put yourself on a plan and you feel like I'm failing over and over again, don't beat yourself up, okay?
SPEAKER_01: Because this isn't about keeping a schedule, it's about conquering the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: It's about experience, experiencing this to know what it means to conquer the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: So, like this week, this is the first tomorrow is June 1st, so this week, normally I would fast Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday this week.
SPEAKER_01: But right after church, Melon and I are getting on a plane and going to Los Angeles to hang out with our uh uh with Haley and Spencer, our daughter and son-in-law, and our grandkids.
SPEAKER_01: So we're gonna be there for a few days.
SPEAKER_01: And so I'm not gonna go on vacation and and and fast.
SPEAKER_01: You know, it's just not the right time to.
SPEAKER_01: Okay?
SPEAKER_01: But but that's not a big deal because it's not about keeping a rigorous schedule, it's about learning to conquer the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: This past week we had friends in town, and so Wednesday was my fast day, so I wasn't gonna come home and sit down at the dinner table with them and Go.
SPEAKER_01: You go ahead and eat.
SPEAKER_01: I'm fasting.
SPEAKER_01: So I'll just watch you eat.
SPEAKER_01: You can watch me fast.
SPEAKER_01: It's kind of rude and a little creepy.
SPEAKER_01: So you know, so I fashioned for breakfast, I fashioned for lunch, and I went home and I had dinner with some awesome friends.
SPEAKER_01: So it's not about it's not about keeping a rigorous schedule.
SPEAKER_01: It's about considering and experiencing what it's like to conquer the flesh and taking that that where you can conquer the flesh on a basic common urge and be able to translate that into conquering the flesh when Satan tempts you.
SPEAKER_01: That's what it's all about.
SPEAKER_01: And don't think for a second that this is all about conquering sin.
unknown: Okay?
SPEAKER_01: It's not about that.
SPEAKER_01: It's about conquering the flesh so that you can learn to manage temptation and say no to things that will lead you down a path of sinfulness.
SPEAKER_01: Because Jesus conquered your sin.
SPEAKER_01: We don't need to conquer sin.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus conquered it.
SPEAKER_01: So fasting is not going to earn you any points with Jesus that are going to make it more likely for you to go to heaven.
SPEAKER_01: It's not what it's about.
SPEAKER_01: Nothing you do in fasting is going to improve your standing with Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: Because nothing can improve on infinite love.
SPEAKER_01: Nothing can improve on that.
SPEAKER_01: He's going to love you and care for you and just as much now as if you've never fasted as you would if you fasted 40 days.
SPEAKER_01: Nothing changes that.
SPEAKER_01: Your sin was conquered when Jesus died on the cross.
SPEAKER_01: That's when your sin was conquered.
SPEAKER_01: And so fasting or nothing you can do can earn that kind of forgiveness.
SPEAKER_01: And Jesus died on the cross, was buried, and rose again so that you can have forgiveness of your sin and so that you can have eternal life in heaven.
SPEAKER_01: And that's the only way you can do that.
SPEAKER_01: Nothing you do will earn that.
SPEAKER_01: Nothing you do will ever put you in a place where you deserve to go to heaven.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus did that for you.
SPEAKER_01: He conquered sin.
SPEAKER_01: So if you're here this morning, you've never accepted Christ, you've never stopped and prayed and said, I'm giving my life to Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: I need forgiveness of my sin.
SPEAKER_01: I can't save myself.
SPEAKER_01: I'm giving my life to Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: If you've never done that, make today the day you do that.
SPEAKER_01: Don't walk out of here today wondering, huh?
SPEAKER_01: I wonder if I were to die today, would I go to heaven?
SPEAKER_01: You don't have to wonder.
SPEAKER_01: In John's first epistle, he said, I'm writing this letter to you so that you can know for sure that you have eternal life.
SPEAKER_01: And if you think you have to earn it, but there's nothing in the scripture that says you do this much, do this 10 times, do this 20 times, you know, accomplish, you know, do all these things on the checklist, and then you go to heaven.
SPEAKER_01: There's nothing like that in the scripture.
SPEAKER_01: So earning it, there's no way you could ever know if you go to heaven.
SPEAKER_01: It'd just be a big guessing game.
SPEAKER_01: Maybe I'll go.
SPEAKER_01: I hope I'll go.
SPEAKER_01: But because of Jesus, you can walk out of here today and go, I know I'm going to heaven.
SPEAKER_01: Not because of anything I did, but because of what Jesus did on the cross.
SPEAKER_01: Let me have every head bowed and every eye closed for a second.
SPEAKER_01: If you're here today, you've never accepted Christ as your Savior.
SPEAKER_01: It's simple.
SPEAKER_01: Very simple.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus did it all.
SPEAKER_01: There's nothing in the scripture that says, hey, I need you to pray this many times a day.
SPEAKER_01: I need you to go to church this often.
SPEAKER_01: I need you to be this generous.
SPEAKER_01: I need you to count this.
SPEAKER_01: I need you to do that.
SPEAKER_01: I need you to light this candle.
SPEAKER_01: Nothing in the scripture that says you have to do any of that in order to go to heaven.
SPEAKER_01: What it says is there's nothing you can do to earn it.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus did it for you.
SPEAKER_01: And so all you have to do is talk to him and tell him all the things we just talked about.
SPEAKER_01: Just tell him, I'm going to trust in the death, burial, and resurrection for my salvation.
SPEAKER_01: I'm going to trust in the shed blood for the forgiveness of my sin.
SPEAKER_01: And if you're struggling right now to put all of that into words, let me put it into words for you.
SPEAKER_01: It's not about repeating a prayer.
SPEAKER_01: I'm not here for people to repeat prayers.
SPEAKER_01: You know, you repeat prayers all day long and nothing happened.
SPEAKER_01: But pray something like this if you want to accept Christ and just pray and say, Dear God, thank you for sending Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: Because on my own, I could never earn my way to heaven.
SPEAKER_01: I could never deserve a place in heaven.
SPEAKER_01: So thank you for sending Jesus to pay the price for my sin.
SPEAKER_01: So today I trust in the shed blood of Jesus, and I confess my sin to you, and I ask forgiveness of my sin.
SPEAKER_01: And I trust in his death, burial, and resurrection for my eternal life.
SPEAKER_01: Thank you for sending Jesus, and today I choose to follow him.
SPEAKER_01: And if you just prayed that and you meant it, Scripture says you can walk out of here today and know for sure that you have eternal life.
SPEAKER_01: The Bible says that you just crossed from death to life.
SPEAKER_01: It says your sins are cast as far as the east is from the west, buried at the bottom of the ocean to be remembered no more.
SPEAKER_01: Your name is written in the Lamb's Book of Life.
SPEAKER_01: All of that is a guarantee.
SPEAKER_01: The Holy Spirit just took up residence in you.
SPEAKER_01: That is God's guarantee.
SPEAKER_01: That's his stamp of his stamp of approval saying, You have eternal life.
SPEAKER_01: And nothing can change that.
SPEAKER_01: So if you just prayed this morning to receive Christ, do me a favor.
SPEAKER_01: I would like to pray for you.
SPEAKER_01: Just throw your hand up real fast and let me see it.
SPEAKER_01: If you pray to receive Christ.
SPEAKER_01: Awesome.
SPEAKER_01: God, thank you.
SPEAKER_01: Thank you for this man that prayed today to receive Christ.
SPEAKER_01: Lord, I pray that this would become very real to him.
SPEAKER_01: He would understand the decision he just made and the prayer that he just prayed.
SPEAKER_01: Lord, that it's not just repeating a prayer.
SPEAKER_01: Lord, it's it's it's the it's the intention of our heart to follow Jesus and to seek forgiveness from him.
SPEAKER_01: So Lord, help him to understand that.
SPEAKER_01: I pray that you would just surround him with people that will encourage him.
SPEAKER_01: God, I pray that you would uh uh just bring bring God's word to life in a new way as he reads it.
SPEAKER_01: And Lord, anyone else in here that that may have accepted Christ, I pray that the same would be true for them.
SPEAKER_01: Lord, help us as a church to be there to to disciple them and to raise them up uh in a in a relationship with you.
SPEAKER_01: So God, we're just grateful for all that you've done.
SPEAKER_01: Still with heads bowed and eyes closed.
SPEAKER_01: If you're here today and you were challenged by this message on fasting, and you say, John, I I I need this.
SPEAKER_01: I need to include fasting as one of my uh spiritual disciplines in my life.
SPEAKER_01: And and I just I'm gonna do this.
SPEAKER_01: I want you to pray for me.
SPEAKER_01: If that's you, lift your hand today.
SPEAKER_01: Okay?
SPEAKER_01: My hands are going up all over the place.
SPEAKER_01: You know, Satan, right now, Satan is going, doggone it.
SPEAKER_01: He's got all these people fasting.
SPEAKER_01: This is an awesome thing.
unknown: Okay?
SPEAKER_01: Thank you for taking this challenge.
SPEAKER_01: God, I pray all these people that raise their hand, I pray that you would just give them strength.
SPEAKER_01: Lord, give them give them courage and wisdom, surrounding them with people that will have their back.
SPEAKER_01: Lord, as they take this giant step towards Jesus, Satan is going to take aim with a big dart just for them, and he's gonna discourage them.
SPEAKER_01: He's gonna give them every reason in the world why not to do this.
SPEAKER_01: But God, I pray that you would protect them from the enemy, and Lord, that they would they would just just take this time, take this experience, and learn what it means to say no to the flesh and conquer the flesh and and say no to sin.
SPEAKER_01: And Lord, keep the devil far from them.
SPEAKER_01: God, thank you so much for your love for us.
SPEAKER_01: Lord, thank you for loving us.
SPEAKER_01: Thanks for sending Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: Uh, we we know you love us because you sent him.
SPEAKER_01: There's no greater love than the fact that Jesus laid down his life so that we can have eternal life.
SPEAKER_01: So we thank you for that.
SPEAKER_01: And Lord, as we continue to worship you now, we pray that you would be blessed and your son would be magnified.
SPEAKER_01: And we ask this in Jesus' name.
SPEAKER_01: Amen.
SPEAKER_00: Thanks for listening to Family Church's Sermon of the Week.
SPEAKER_00: We pray this message encouraged you and helped you grow in your faith.
SPEAKER_00: If it blessed you, share it with a friend and follow so you never miss a new episode.
SPEAKER_00: You can learn more about Family Church at myfamilychurch.com.
SPEAKER_00: If you are in the area, join us on Sunday mornings at 10 a.m.
SPEAKER_00: We meet at Patriot High School 10504 Kittle Run Drive.