True Fasting

As some of you know, there is a fasting time happening right now in many parts of the world. Today, the Lord spoke this scripture into my heart regarding this issue, and I must share it today. This is from the prophet Isaiah, chapter 58.

1 "Shout with the voice of a trumpet blast.
Shout aloud! Don't be timid.
Tell my people Israel* of their sins!
2 Yet they act so pious!
They come to the Temple every day
and seem delighted to learn all about me.
They act like a righteous nation
that would never abandon the laws of its God.
They ask me to take action on their behalf,
pretending they want to be near me.
3 'We have fasted before you!' they say.
'Why aren't you impressed?
We have been very hard on ourselves,
and you don't even notice it!'

"I will tell you why!" I respond.
"It's because you are fasting to please yourselves.
Even while you fast,
you keep oppressing your workers.
4 What good is fasting
when you keep on fighting and quarreling?
This kind of fasting
will never get you anywhere with me.
5 You humble yourselves
by going through the motions of penance,
bowing your heads
like reeds bending in the wind.
You dress in burlap
and cover yourselves with ashes.
Is this what you call fasting?
Do you really think this will please the LORD?

6 "No, this is the kind of fasting I want:
Free those who are wrongly imprisoned;
lighten the burden of those who work for you.
Let the oppressed go free,
and remove the chains that bind people.
7 Share your food with the hungry,
and give shelter to the homeless.
Give clothes to those who need them,
and do not hide from relatives who need your help.

8 "Then your salvation will come like the dawn,
and your wounds will quickly heal.
Your godliness will lead you forward,
and the glory of the LORD will protect you from behind.
9 Then when you call, the LORD will answer.
'Yes, I am here,' he will quickly reply.

"Remove the heavy yoke of oppression.
Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors!
10 Feed the hungry,
and help those in trouble.
Then your light will shine out from the darkness,
and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon.
11 The LORD will guide you continually,
giving you water when you are dry
and restoring your strength.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like an ever-flowing spring.
12 Some of you will rebuild the deserted ruins of your cities.
Then you will be known as a rebuilder of walls
and a restorer of homes.

13 "Keep the Sabbath day holy.
Don't pursue your own interests on that day,
but enjoy the Sabbath
and speak of it with delight as the LORD's holy day.
Honor the Sabbath in everything you do on that day,
and don't follow your own desires or talk idly.
14 Then the LORD will be your delight.
I will give you great honor
and satisfy you with the inheritance I promised to your ancestor Jacob.
I, the LORD, have spoken!"

To those who are fasting, I must ask, does this touch you? Are you fasting in order to follow the one True God who loves you and longs for you to carry out the things He has listed here in this scripture? Are you following the God of love who is a God of restoration, peace and hope? Are you following the God who is a father to the fatherless and a defender of the oppressed and broken-hearted? Are you fasting in order to seek Him and be close to Him?

Or are you fasting as a ritual, as many of the Israelites during this time? Is your fasting more about tradition and culture than it is a true seeking and yearning for the Living God? Are you hearing from God and being renewed, refreshed and set free from bondage? This is what the True God, Jehovah, wants for all of us. He is not impressed with fasting as a ritual. In fact, if you are not fasting to the God who says of himself that He is love, then you are fasting to a false god. If you are not "in love" with God's Son, Jesus the Messiah, then all your fasting is vanity.

Know that the true and living God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob loves you. He sent His Son to die in our place for the sins of the world. God placed all the sin upon Jesus so that we could be free and have a true, personal, living relationship with the God of the universe. This is the Good News. This is the Gospel.

Ask your Father, your Creator, how He wants you to know Him, how you can approach Him. He will lead you to Himself and He promises to show you the way, the truth, and the life. Don't be afraid, He loves you.