Fasting
If you ask the average Joe on the
street if he knows anything about Lent, the majority will talk about
“giving up something” or fasting some type of food or fasting on
a particular day. It's so popular that restaurants actually advertise
their fish options during Lent. Have you noticed the number of fast
food places that are pushing fish sandwiches?
Traditional fasting is denying yourself
food for a period of time. The purpose is to deny the physical and
focus on the spiritual. Jesus fasted for 40 days in the wilderness
before starting out in ministry (Matthew 4). He was so hungry that
Satan actually used bread as a temptation. Jesus kept his spiritual
focus and responded to each temptation with scripture.
But what about alms-giving and why tie
it to fasting?
If you fast and give up red meat, only
to replace it with a meal that consist of a 1200 calorie Filet-O-Fish
combo, or give up sweets and use 15 packs of aspartame, I don't think
you've accomplished what you were after.
I think the early church leaders
understood this. So they encouraged Alms-giving. That's an old
English term for giving to people who have less than you. Both
fasting and giving go hand in hand. They both take the attention off
of ourselves. When you give money, food, clothing, and time you take
away from what you have give it to someone else. Putting fasting
and giving together help us to keep the emphasis on God and others.
Jesus fasted food for 40 days, but he
continued to give of himself as a way of life. Acts 10:38 sums up His
life as “doing good.” That should be our goal during Lent! We
should look to cut away the excess, refocus our lives on the
spiritual, and look to see how much good we can do for others! That
is the greatest commandment, to love God and to love our neighbor
(Mark 12:38).
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