True and False Fasting. Isaiah 58:1-14
VI. THE SERVANT OF JEHOVAH, Isaiah 49-57
3. The Fulness and Freeness of Salvation, Isaiah 54-57
64. What kind of a fast meets with God’s approval? What is true Sabbath-keeping?
TRUE AND FALSE FASTING
“Cry aloud, do not hold back; Lift up your voice like a trumpet, And declare to My people their transgression And to the house of Jacob their sins.
“Yet they seek Me day by day and delight [superficially] to know My ways, As [if they were in reality] a nation that has done righteousness And has not abandoned (turned away from) the ordinance of their God. They ask of Me righteous judgments, They delight in the nearness of God.
‘Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and You do not see it? Why have we humbled ourselves and You do not notice?’ Hear this [O Israel], on the day of your fast [when you should be grieving for your sins] you find something you desire [to do], And you force your hired servants to work [instead of stopping all work, as the law teaches]. [Lev_16:29]
“The facts are that you fast only for strife and brawling and to strike with the fist of wickedness. You do not fast as you do today to make your voice heard on high.
“Is a fast such as this what I have chosen, a day for a man to humble himself [with sorrow in his soul]? Is it only to bow down his head like a reed And to make sackcloth and ashes as a bed [pretending to have a repentant heart]? Do you call this a fast and a day pleasing to the LORD?
“[Rather] is this not the fast which I choose, To undo the bonds of wickedness, To tear to pieces the ropes of the yoke, To let the oppressed go free And break apart every [enslaving] yoke? [Act_8:23]
“Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry And bring the homeless poor into the house; When you see the naked, that you cover him, And not to hide yourself from [the needs of] your own flesh and blood?
“Then your light will break out like the dawn, And your healing (restoration, new life) will quickly spring forth; Your righteousness will go before you [leading you to peace and prosperity], The glory of the LORD will be your rear guard. [Exo_14:19-20; Isa_52:12]
“Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; You will cry for help, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you take away from your midst the yoke [of oppression], The finger pointed in scorn [toward the oppressed or the godly], and [every form of] wicked (sinful, unjust) speech, [Exo_3:14]
And if you offer yourself to [assist] the hungry And satisfy the need of the afflicted, Then your light will rise in darkness And your gloom will become like midday.
“And the LORD will continually guide you, And satisfy your soul in scorched and dry places, And give strength to your bones; And you will be like a watered garden, And like a spring of water whose waters do not fail.
“And your people will rebuild the ancient ruins; You will raise up and restore the age-old foundations [of buildings that have been laid waste]; You will be called Repairer of the Breach, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.
“If you turn back your foot from [unnecessary travel on] the Sabbath, From doing your own pleasure on My holy day, And call the Sabbath a [spiritual] delight, and the holy day of the LORD honorable, And honor it, not going your own way Or engaging in your own pleasure Or speaking your own [idle] words,
Then you will take pleasure in the LORD, And I will make you ride on the high places of the earth, And I will feed you with the [promised] heritage of Jacob your father; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” [Gen_27:28-29; Gen_28:13-15]
64. What kind of a fast meets with God’s approval? What is true Sabbath-keeping?
THE FAST THAT GOD HAS CHOSEN
The divorce between outward rites and inward piety has been the curse of every age. When the Pharisees were plotting our Lord’s death, they refused to enter Pilate’s hall. Not the bowed head, but the broken heart; not the sackcloth and ashes of the flesh, but the contrition of the soul!
Notice the three paragraphs descriptive of the experiences of the devout and consecrated soul: (1.) The conditions of blessedness, Isa_58:6-7. (2.) The successive items which go to make a blessed life, Isa_58:8-12. (3.) The true Sabbath-keeping, Isa_58:13-14. Primarily, it is inward, not outward. Let us be on our watch against the entrance into our hearts of all thoughts that would break the holy inward calm. Remember to imitate Nehemiah’s instructions: Neh_13:16-22. Let the divine peace rule within and be as a sentinel keeping the outward gate, Col_3:15; Php_4:7. Cease to follow your own ways, or find your own pleasures, or speak your own words. Delight yourself in God; so shall you sit with Christ in heavenly places and feed at the heavenly table.
On MeWe join our group at Friends in Jesus
We also have a Page about Creation Ministries International.
See also Young Earth Creationists
On Facebook;
Join our closed group at : Quo Vadis Christian Community Group to read and partake in the Bible study learn to know Jesus Christ. To know Him is to Love Him.
We also have an open Page at Quo Vadis Christian Community you might want to know more about.
Please ad yourself to our Messenger group to receive notification and chat to other members of the group.
You may however wish to disable notification and look at post when you have the time.
Join our messenger group at Friends in Jesus.
If you want a Bible please contact: Please let me have a Bible.
If you want a Bible in Pakistan.
You may also want to join Creation Ministries International.
Find more Study topics at Quo Vadis World
We give thanks and acknowledgement to Rick Meyers for e-Sword.
P.O. Box 1626
Franklin, TN 37065
United States of America
www.e-sword.net
