Hypocritical Fasting (Matthew 6:16-18)
Hypocritical Fasting
Matthew 6:16-18
Well, I don’t think at this point
The Sermon on the Mount needs much of an introduction.
By now we are all well aware what Jesus is doing.
He is stripping us.
• He is removing all notions of human goodness
• He is removing all thoughts of religious acceptance
• He is removing all hope that anything we may do or have done will be enough to justify us.
Jesus has systematically dismantled any notion we may have
Of our ability to please God on our own.
We have neither done it on our own in the past,
We are not doing it on our own in the present,
And we will not do it on our own in the future.
On our own, there is nothing pleasing to God.
And Jesus has been proving this because understanding this point
Is absolutely crucial to the gospel.
Man in and of himself is sinful and cannot please God.
Romans 8:5-8 “For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”
It has always held true that you cannot find the beginning of God
Until you come to the end of yourself.
The Sermon on the Mount helps you come to the end of yourself.
Most recently we have learned that our religion may indeed be useless.
Jesus spoke of giving and praying and showed us
How both can be absolutely useless to God.
Namely when they are done for recognition.
This is hypocrisy and God is not amused.
This morning Jesus shows us a third example of religious hypocrisy.
Hypocritical fasting.
But obviously before we get in to the perversion of their fasting,
We need to make sure and clarify what fasting is.
“fast” translates NESTEUO
And it literally means “to do without food”
And so in a physical sense to fast is any time
We refrain from eating or do without food.
The bigger question is WHY do we fast?
No doubt some look upon it similar to the way
The Gentiles looked at prayer in verse 7.
Matthew 6:7 “And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.”
The Gentiles looked at prayer as a purely manipulative tactic,
Where they would literally wear God out
Until He finally had enough and chose to answer.
It was manipulation and we talked about why that is not biblical.
But no doubt some look at fasting in exactly the same way.
“I’m gonna go without food and when God sees how serious I am,
Then He will relent and grant my request.”
(Illustration: Opie holds his breath)
There are some who see fasting as a manipulative tool exactly like that.
It is clear that some in the Old Testament saw it that way.
TURN TO: Isaiah 58
And so clearly they thought God would be motivated by their fast
And would grant their request.
God wasn’t interested in their manipulative gestures.
If they wanted to impress Him it was time to refrain from sin not food.
Some fast for manipulative reasons, which we know by now will not work.
God grants requests because He is good, not because He is forced.
OTHERS LOOK AT FASTING AS A LEGALISTIC DUTY.
We see this in the Catholic religion through lent.
It is sort of a duty if we want to be pleasing to God.
They see it as some means to get closer to God.
(It some how purges me and makes me more righteous)
But that isn’t true either.
Galatians 3:1-6 “You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified? This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? Did you suffer so many things in vain — if indeed it was in vain? So then, does He who provides you with the Spirit and works miracles among you, do it by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith? Even so Abraham BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.”
Consider the Colossian church.
Colossians 2:20-23 “If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees, such as, “Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!” (which all refer to things destined to perish with use) — in accordance with the commandments and teachings of men? These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence.”
TURN TO: Zechariah 7
There you see that they were confused, they thought fasting
Somehow caused them to please God, but they were wrong.
GOING WITHOUT FOOD IS NOT THE MEANS TO RIGHTEOUSNESS
Would it surprise you if I told you that fasting is never commanded anywhere in Scripture?
Prayer is commanded.
Giving is commanded.
Fasting never is.
WELL, IF IT IS NOT SOMETHING THAT I’M JUST SUPPOSED TO DO, AND IF IT ISN’T A TOOL TO MAKE MY PRAYER MORE EFFECTIVE, THEN WHY SHOULD I FAST?
Listen:
FASTING IS NOT A TECHNIQUE, FASTING IS A RESULT.
Abstaining from food is not something you manually do to please God
Abstaining from food is something you naturally do
When you are set on seeking God.
Let me give you an example.
Matthew 4:1-2 “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry.”
So was Jesus forcing Himself to starve in order to manipulate God? -No.
Nor was He doing out of command, for it wasn’t commanded.
Did you notice when Jesus became hungry?
“after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry.”
SO WHAT WAS JESUS DOING ON THAT MOUNTAIN?
He was seeking God.
He went ultimately to be tempted by the devil,
But that didn’t begin until the forty days was up.
During those forty days Jesus was seeking God, and during that time
He was so intent on finding God that He wasn’t even hungry.
And that answers our question as to why we fast.
When we get to a place where we are seeking God whole heartedly,
The spiritual becomes so important that the physical literally fades away.
LET ME GIVE YOU SOME EXAMPLES
Jonah 3:5-10 “Then the people of Nineveh believed in God; and they called a fast and put on sackcloth from the greatest to the least of them. When the word reached the king of Nineveh, he arose from his throne, laid aside his robe from him, covered himself with sackcloth and sat on the ashes. He issued a proclamation and it said, “In Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let man, beast, herd, or flock taste a thing. Do not let them eat or drink water. “But both man and beast must be covered with sackcloth; and let men call on God earnestly that each may turn from his wicked way and from the violence which is in his hands. “Who knows, God may turn and relent and withdraw His burning anger so that we will not perish.” When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their wicked way, then God relented concerning the calamity which He had declared He would bring upon them. And He did not do it.”
(They fasted because they wanted forgiveness worse than food)
Acts 13:1-3 “Now there were at Antioch, in the church that was there, prophets and teachers: Barnabas, and Simeon who was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. While they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then, when they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.”
(They fasted because they wanted direction worse than food)
Matthew 9:14-15 “Then the disciples of John came to Him, asking, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “The attendants of the bridegroom cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.”
(They will fast because they long for the return of the bridegroom)
Consistent with all those accounts is that these people wanted God,
And they wanted God so badly that they didn’t even think about eating.
And when you fast like that, God responds.
When you seek God like that God responds.
Jeremiah 29:13 “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”
And so you understand a little about fasting.
What is clear from our text this morning
Is that it was yet another area in which the Jews
Were putting on a theatrical performance.
I don’t think there is any question that we would all admit
That we do not often seek God with as much seriousness
As fasting would imply.
I think we would also admit that if we knew someone who did,
We would be impressed.
And this was something the Pharisees realized as well.
Just like in their giving and just like in their praying,
They saw fasting as yet another opportunity to impress people.
And that is precisely the type of hypocrisy Jesus is about to expose.
2 points
#1 THE PITIFUL FAST OF THE HYPOCRITE
Matthew 6:16
“Whenever you fast”
Again, it is not that Jesus is commanding fasting. He isn’t.
However, it is highly understood that those who desire God would fast.
The issue wasn’t IF you do it, but HOW you do it.
“Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.”
And it really doesn’t require much explanation
For you can easily picture the scene.
Here is a man who is fasting.
HOW DO YOU KNOW HE IS FASTING?
Because he looks miserable.
He walks by a hot-dog stand and licks his lips and says
“Man I wish I could eat one of those, but I can’t because I’m fasting”
He purposely looks pitiful, so that everyone will see, not only is he doing without, but he sacrifice for God is a serious one.
Now before we go on and see his hypocrisy,
DO YOU SEE HOW BAD THIS MAKES GOD LOOK?
When you whine because your commitment to God causes you to go without food, what does that say to the world?
-food is better than God
When you complain because your sacrifice to God causes you to not get to go to some event, what does that say to the world?
-that event is better than God
IF YOU’RE GONNA SERVE GOD WITH THAT TYPE OF ATTITUDE, YOU MIGHT AS WELL WEAR A SIGN THAT SAYS
“SERVING GOD STINKS”
Listen friend, don’t do God any favors by sacrificing for Him.
It is God who did you a favor by sacrificing for you.
And if you really understood what that meant,
You wouldn’t be so put out over missing a meal.
No wonder Philippians 2:14 says
Philippians 2:14 “Do all things without grumbling or disputing;”
But this Pharisee was, or at least he looked that way.
He wanted people to notice, so he purposely looked pitiful.
I can certainly identify with wanting people to notice my pain.
When I get sick, or am in pain, I want everyone to notice.
I can’t sing a lick, but I can moan in 3 different octaves
And in 17 different languages.
If I really feel neglected I can dang near yodel when I moan.
And that is what these people do.
They make sure everyone knows when they are fasting.
Without any regard for how it makes serving God look,
They want everyone to be impressed with their sacrifice.
“Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.”
“reward” translates MISTHOS
It means “wages”
They are literally actors performing for donations.
They are no different than a man who performs on a street corner
And then passes his hat for tips.
And Jesus says whatever you get from them,
You had better invest it wisely, because that is all you will ever get.
Don’t expect God to be impressed by your pathetic religious display.
Luke 18:9-14 “And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. “The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. ‘I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ “But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ “I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
God is not impressed.
God is not amused.
In fact it only provokes God to desire to tear that lofty person down.
Why do you think Jesus confronted the Pharisees so harshly?
Because their pride and arrogance and religious display nauseated Him.
The Pitiful Fast of the Hypocrites
#2 THE PLEASANT FAST OF THE RIGHTEOUS
Matthew 6:17-18
What a contrast!
If the hypocrites fast was pitiful,
Then pleasant is the only way to describe this man.
In fact, if you were to be forced to look in a room full of people
And pick the one who had been without food for a week,
This is the last guy you would pick.
He looks clean.
He looks refreshed.
He looks healthy.
AND HE DIDN’T CARE IF YOU NOTICED OR NOT.
The reason is because he wasn’t seeking your attention,
He was seeking God’s attention.
HE LOST FOOD, BUT HE FOUND GOD,
AND HE WASN’T UPSET ABOUT THAT AT ALL.
This is the attitude we see in God’s servants in Scripture.
Remember Paul?
Philippians 3:7-8 “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,”
Remember the Macedonians?
2 Corinthians 8:3-4 “For I testify that according to their ability, and beyond their ability, they gave of their own accord, begging us with much urging for the favor of participation in the support of the saints,”
These were people who sacrificed, but they weren’t grieved,
Because they were gaining Christ.
They saw no need to look pitiful, because they weren’t pitiful.
THEY WERE FULFILLED
And not only are they fulfilled but “your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.”
“reward” translates APODIDOMI
“to give back”
In other words what you give will be given back.
And God is generous in repayment.
Luke 6:38 “Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure — pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.”
SO THERE IT IS AGAIN
God is looking at the heart.
And the overwhelming insinuation is BE REAL
DO YOU REMEMBER THE GREATEST COMMANDMANT?
“Love God with all your heart”
That means that if you do everything the Bible commands,
But you don’t do that, then you have missed the whole point.
Let me put it to you another way.
If you do the things of God, but you don’t delight in them,
Then there is a problem in your heart.
Things like Giving or Praying or Fasting
Or any other number of religious duties
(witnessing – Bible reading – Church attendance)
If you do them out of some other motive other than love for God,
Then there is a problem.
The Pharisees did all the deeds, but they did them for the wrong reasons.
They did them to impress and please other people.
They did them because they loved themselves.
God is only pleased when people do those things because they love Him.
And friend if you set here today and say, “Preacher I have a problem, I don’t love God like I’m supposed to. I wish I did, but I don’t, what do I do?”
The answer is simple.
Ask God to give you a love for Him.
Do you realize that those who love God only do so because God gave them a love for Him?
Romans 5:5 “and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”
We only give it when God first gives it to us.
1 John 4:19 “We love, because He first loved us.”
So if you don’t love God Then ask Him to help you love Him, and
When you ask Him truly wanting Him, He will give it to you.
BUT BY ALL MEANS – BE REAL
This morning we come to partake in the Lord’s Supper.
(And being real is the name of the game)
In fact, being a hypocrite here can get you in a world of trouble.
1 Corinthians 11:27-32 “ Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep. But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world.”
The problem with the Corinthians is that by partaking in the Lord’s Supper they were saying “I love God, and I am a servant of Christ”.
But that was clearly a lie based on the way they lived their lives.
(even in the way they took the Lord’s Supper)
And God was so appalled by their hypocrisy
That he was making them sick, and some of them even died.
And so when Paul says “let a man examine himself”
I think we all get the point.
BE REAL
This morning we are going to have a time of preparation.
I can’t tell you what that time will be for you.
• Maybe a time of repentance.
• Maybe a time of asking God to help you love Him.
• Maybe a time of forgiving someone.
But as we prepare to partake,
You examine your life and make sure that you are real.
If not, ask Christ to make you real.
Pray
