Well, good morning, Wildwood. How are you? You guys be seated. We've got a lot of stuff to do today and a lot of stuff's already been done. The choir, the orchestra, the praise band, the soloist, everybody's done a phenomenal job. Give them another hand. Let them know you appreciate it. We begin today our series on Show Me Your Glory, and we begin a series of 50 days of fasting, beginning today and ending on October the 12th. I want to talk to you this morning about fasting, and then I'm going to come back a little later in the service and talk to you about things that we can be fasting for over the next 50 days. Let me give you a definition of fasting. Fasting is a voluntary withdrawing from food or drink or other fleshly appetites for a specified period of time. And all through the scripture, Old Testament, beginning in Exodus, all the way through the scripture, you'll find that men and women would go on a fast. What is fasting? Fasting is a removal of distractions. Now, how many of you would agree that there's a lot of stuff in Atlanta, Georgia, to distract you? And it distracts us in our pursuit of God. And so fasting is a setting aside for the physical to connect or even reconnect with the spiritual. Fasting is exposing our heart to God. Richard Foster said, more than any other discipline, fasting reveals the things that control us. Fasting is expressing hunger for God. John Piper said, God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied with Him. And fasting is always coupled with prayer. You don't fast from something only, you fast from something to something, and that is connecting in prayer. So over the next 50 days, many of you have said, you know what, I'll take this day and I'll take that day, and all those days are filled and we want a number of people on every day fasting. But during your fast, what we want you to do is not simply set aside food or anything else, without also spending time in God's Word and in prayer. Fasting is brokenness and humility. When I fast, here's what I'm saying, God, I am profoundly needy. And you can never be arrogant and fast. It's hard to sit in sackcloth and ashes and be proud. God brings brokenness, humility and repentance into our life. Now, what fasting is not? Fasting is not universally commanded. In other words, God doesn't say, through the Word, you have to fast on this day. But it is expected. Fasting is not getting the attention of God. Somehow we've made the misconception that if we fast, all of a sudden God's going to begin listening to us. Listen to me. God already listens to us. Fasting is not to get the God to love you more. Do you understand this morning, beloved? God can't love you any more than he already loves you. And the only thing that's going to change when we get to heaven is not God's love for us. And suddenly he's going to say, oh, there you are, good looking, cleaned up in heaven crowd. Now I can really love you. What's going to happen is our love for him is going to be perfected. Fasting is not about getting God to forgive you. He's already forgiven you in the cross of Jesus Christ. Fasting is not penance. Fasting is not saying, oh, God, I'm so sorry. And so here's what I'm going to do. No, fasting is walking and obedience to God. Now, let me talk to you about three different types of fasting. There's the normal fast and the normal fast. is when you don't eat food, but you may drink liquids. There's a one-day fast in the book of Judges, chapter 20 and verse 26. They went on a one-day fast. There's a 40-day fast. The Bible talks about Moses going on a 40-day fast. Now, Moses' fast was a fast from food and water. Listen to me very carefully. Don't try it. Twenty days from now, we'll be having your funeral, and you'll die with a smile on your face, but you'll be dead anyway. It was a miracle when God gave him the Ten Commandments. So there's the normal fast when I say, okay, I'm going to set aside a day, and on that day, or two days, or three days, or however many days God leads you to fast, I'm not going to eat any food, and I'm going to replace that time with prayer. And then there's an absolute fast. An absolute fast is what it sounds like. I fast from food, and I fast from drink. Ezra. In the book of Ezra, chapter 8, he fasted an absolute fast for three days. He did not eat nor did he drink anything. And then there is a specific or partial fast. Daniel and the Hebrew children decided that they would fast from the king's delicacies. Now, some of you may not be able to fast because you have hypoglycemia or you have other physical issues. You may not be able to fast from food, but there may be some things God calls you to give up. It could be television. Don't gasp, don't faint. It could be movies. It could be Dunkin' Donut coffee. I don't really believe God's that cruel, but it could be that. And there are just certain things, if you can't, from food that you abstain from and other things. So there's a normal fast, an absolute fast, and then a specific or a partial fast. You say, well, Pastor, tell me how to fast. No, I can't tell you how to fast. I can tell you what the scripture says. I can tell you the results of it. We're going to see that. But I can't tell you what to give up. I only believe that God is calling us as his body to set aside some things to seek him, not to get his attention, but so that he can get our attention and speak to us through clear minds so that we can have a clear vision of who he is. Now, what did Jesus say about fasting? Turn within your Bibles to the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 6. Matthew's Gospel and the sixth chapter. Now, I want to share with you that this week in particular, I've learned a great deal of things about what Jesus was talking about in Matthew 6, and I've learned the danger of trying to build an entire doctrine on one passage, especially if we do not understand that passage. And so what Jesus is saying in Matthew chapter 6 is this, giving, praying and fasting are Christianity 101. In other words, Jesus said these are the things you do. These are the basic things. These are the basic disciplines of your Christian life. It is giving, it is praying, and it is fasting. And so when we talk about fasting or calling the church to a fast, it's not radical Christianity at all. You say, wait a minute, man, if I want to fast, it must be way out there. There must be really some problems. There must be really some issue. No, it's not weird. It's the same as giving. It's the same as praying. Fasting is Christianity 101. Let me show you some things. Jesus says to them in chapter six and verse one, beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them. Would you make a note that that is the key to fasting, giving and pray? Jesus says, don't be like the Pharisees and show off about it. Now, I have always believed, and it was erroneous, I have always believed that if you went on the fast, you shouldn't tell anybody. That's not what he says. As a matter of fact, there are some people who believe that when we give, we should do it not publicly, but privately. And there are times when that is called for. But in the Old Testament and New Testament, there was public in-gatherings of giving. There were certainly public prayers. And there are other times when we're fasting. It's all right to say as a church we're fasting. It's all right for you as an individual to say we're fasting. But here's the clue. Don't make a show out of it. Don't be pretentious. Don't be like the Pharisees. And that's what Jesus is saying in here. He's given a contrast. Look at verse two. He said, when you give alms, do not sound the trumpet before you. Can you imagine how hilarious that would be? All right, it's time to give. And some guy gets up and he says, well, I'm about to give the biggest gift in here. And another one says, hey, no, you're not. I'm about to do it. And somebody stands up and says, well, I can't give much. He's saying, listen, when you give, don't draw attention to yourself. Look at what he says down in verse five. And when you pray, You are not as the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogue, on the street corners, in order to be seen of men. Oh God, Thou who has put the green in the grass, and the blue in the ocean, and the chlor in the chlorophyll. Oh God. God says, don't do that. Don't act like that. Don't be silly. Then notice what the Bible says. Look at what He says again. over in verse number 6. But when you pray, go into your inner room and there shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret and your Father who sees in secret will repay you. Why does He call us to fast and give and pray? Why does He call us to fast? Because if you can't say no to food, are some other thing for a small specified period of time, what else can't you say no to? If you can't say no to the physical appetite for 24 hours, what else can't you say no to? And so what he does is he gives us a contrast between the Pharisees and truth. Now, when we fast like the Pharisees, write these three things down. Number one, it robs us of the reality of Christian living. Look in chapter 6 and verse 16. And whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do. For they neglect their appearances in order to be seen fasting by men. Truly, I say to you, they have their reward in full." The word gloomy there means tired and dreary and sad. How many of you know this morning, beloved, God did not call us to bondage, but to freedom? God called us to victory. God called us to glory. He says, don't act spiritual, be spiritual. Number two, It robs us of our spiritual reward, because He said, you've got what men can give. When you stand up and you look like you're dying and you're so tired because you've given up so much, and men see that and they say, oh, how pious you are, how wonderful you are. God says, that's all. That's all you get. There is no more. And thirdly, it robs us of our spiritual influence. Now, how many of you know this is the truth? You ain't fooling nobody. And it does not matter how pious or proud you act, you ain't fooling nobody. And don't take to the street your list of rules and do's and don'ts because people are simply not impressed. I am sometimes embarrassed to be identified with Baptists because we can do the stupidest things in the world. Let the church say Amen right there. And God says, I don't want you to be gloomy. I don't want you to have all that men can give. I want you to have all that I can give. And look at the conclusion in verse 17. Jesus says, this is a matter of the heart. What's this? But you, when you fast, he says, it's all right to fast. I want you to fast. I'm calling you to fast. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face." Now, oil was used for all kinds of things. Oil was kind of the moose of their day. Aren't you grateful for moose? And so he says, when you fast, get you some oil and put it on your face and make yourself look vibrant and put on some eternity. That's what it means. And wash your face. Take a bath, man, you smell. Because it's an issue of the heart. And he says, you're praying, you're giving, you're fasting, and this is the beauty of it, before an audience of one. And when you get ready, don't get ready for anybody else but God. And God, who sees in secret the matters of the heart, rewards in full. Now, what are some of the benefits of fasting? Well, let me give you three. There's help, H-E-L-P, there's healing, and then there's hearing. I want you to go to three different Old Testament passages with me as we talk about fasting. Go with me first of all to 2 Chronicles. 2 Chronicles is in the clean part of your Bible. 2 Chronicles chapter 20. And here we have the story of Jehoshaphat. and there is trouble in the camp. They are surrounded by the enemy. 2 Chronicles chapter 20. If you have it, say, I have it. If you don't, just fake it. Now, it came about after that the sons of Moab and the sons of Amnon, together with the Mianites, came to make war against Jehoshaphat. Now watch verse 2. Then some came and reported to Jehoshaphat, saying, A great multitude is coming against you far beyond the sea, out of Amram, and behold, they are in En-Gedi. Now look at verse 3. And Jehoshaphat was afraid, now watch what he did, and turned to seek his attention toward the Lord, as he sought the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all of Judah. And He calls the people together and He prays. And you can do for your homework that prayer as you kept on reading, you would read the prayer of Jehoshaphat and what Jehoshaphat did and what happened. Now look at verses 14 and 15. Then in the middle of the assembly, the Spirit of the Lord came upon. Hey, hey, hey, wouldn't you like today to see that happen? The Spirit of the Lord have freedom and reign in our fear, in our intrepidation, in our intimidation. The Spirit of the Lord came, and look at verse 15. And He said, listen, all Judah and the inhabitants and Jerusalem and the King Jehoshaphat, thus saith the Lord to you, do not fear or be dismayed because of this great multitude, now underline this in your Bible, for the battle is not yours but God's. I don't know what you're facing today. It may be physical. It may be domestic. It may be economic. It may be spiritual. But whatever you're facing today, the battle is not yours. The battle is the Lord's. Now, how does the battle become the Lord's? When self is released. And God is enthroned, and fasting does that. And you know how he won the battle? He won the battle when he took the worshipers, he took the choir, and he put them out before. Oh, it's beautiful. Look down in verse 20. And they arose early in the morning, and went out to the wilderness of Tekoa. And when they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, Listen to me, O Judah, and inhabitants of Jerusalem. Put your trust in the Lord your God, and you will be established. Put your trust in His prophets, and succeed. And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who sang to the Lord, and those who praised Him in the holy attire, as they went out before the army and gave thanks to the Lord, for His lovingkindness is everlasting. And when they began singing and praising the lord said ambushes against the son of ammon and moab to mount sire And he and he had come against judah So they were routed look. I love this. I love this I love this look at verse 23 for the sons of ammon and moab rose up against the inhabitants of mount sire Destroying them completely and when they had finished with the inhabitants of sire They helped to destroy one another god so confused the enemy when the people of god turned their attention to him that they destroyed one another. Your battle is not yours, it's the Lord. And when you fast, there's help. Secondly, when we fast, there's healing. Look with me in the Gospel of Matthew again, chapter 17. Matthew chapter 17. And if ever there was a text where you had two different types of experiences, it's Matthew 17. In Matthew 17, the first half of the text, There's a mountaintop experience. Jesus is with Peter, James and John. And they get to see their inner glory of Jesus as the transfiguration takes place. But down in the valley, there are His disciples. And they're faced with an issue, a demoniac. A father brings his son who's possessed with demons. And he prays and asks the disciples if they would heal His son, and they couldn't do it. And after Jesus comes, you know what happens. Look at verse 17. And Jesus answered and said, Oh, unbelieving, perverted generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here. And Jesus rebuked him and the demon came out of him and the boy was cured at once. Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, Why could we not cast him out? And he said to them, because of the littleness of your faith, for truly I say unto you, if you have a faith as a mustard seed, you shall say to this mountain, move from here to there, and it shall move, and nothing shall be impossible to you. You believe that? Look at the next verse. But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting. Now listen to me very carefully. When Jesus cast out the demon, it's not necessarily a miracle, and it's certainly not magic, but it was typical biblical behavior. Prayer and fasting takes faith. And we believe in God. And the Scripture says, those who believe in Him, that He is a rewarder. And when we fast and when we pray, amazing things happen. Do you know what most of the stuff that happened in the book of Acts did not happen in the church? It happened in the street. The ministry has to be taken to the street. If you get on an airplane in the morning, the ministry has to be taken into that airplane. One of my men, Terry Anderson, told me the other day that he's starting a Bible study in his neighborhood. Ministry has to be taken to where people are. Miracles. Not miracles, not magic, just typical biblical behavior. And when you and I fast and God speaks to our heart, here's what He does. He clears our minds and we begin to live miracles every moment, every day. Here comes a mountain to you. And believe me this, if we start fasting, these next 50 days, two things are going to happen. Number one, all hell is going to break loose. Every mean church member is going to give us the devil, which means about half of you. But here's what else you can believe. Not only will all hell break loose, all heaven will break through. And here comes the mountain, and you say, look here, mountain, step aside. Why? Because God has given me a word. God has given me a touch of faith. God has told me this. God is doing this. God wants to do this. God has cleared my mind. God is working through our life. God is moving in power throughout our church. And the mountains will come, but the people of God have the ability to stand in front of the mountain and say, mountain, be thou removed. When God's people fast. I only have 15 minutes and I've used up most of them. All right. One more, Isaiah 58. Isaiah 58, and here is the creme de la creme when it comes to the passage and text on fasting. In the first half of the text, Isaiah 58, God is rebuking Israel for wrong behavior when it came to fasting. They're saying, oh, we went to fast and it didn't do us any good. We went to fast and we did all the things you called us to do, but you didn't answer it. And God, for the first half of it, wears them out. Fasting, by the way, is not a diet plan. It's good for you. As a matter of fact, if you fast more than one day, here's what you'll find on the first day. You know what your body will say? I gotta have some food. You'll go to the refrigerator and the refrigerator will say, eat me, eat me, eat me. On the second day, you'll find yourself being typically a little lightheaded because of toxins that are coming out of your body. And you'll be amazed at when you withdraw from food, how the toxins will begin to come and you will see it around your ring, around your watch, you will see them come out. But if you fast longer than that, what you'll find out on the third day and the fourth day is this, you are totally blessed. And you can sit down with anybody. You say, well, Pastor, if I'm fasting, I shouldn't go to lunch with them. You go to lunch with them. Now, don't do it on the first day. First day, you'll stab them with a knife. But if God calls you to a longer fast, you go to them and you pray and you say, listen, I'm just drinking water today, man. I just want to have fellowship with you. And you know what you'll find? You are so totally blessed. God is so totally speaking to you. Look at what he says here. Look at what he says here. Look at verse 6. Is this not the fast which I choose to loosen the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into the house when you see the naked, to cover him and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? Look at verse 8. Then your light will break out like the dawn, and your recovery will speedily spring forth, and your righteousness will go before you. The glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Listen to this, church. In our life, we will consume 310 pigs, 225 lambs, 26 sheep, one telephone, 150 steer, 59 acres of fruit and vegetables, 26 acres of grains, 2,400 chickens. Are you full yet? My question is this, can you lay aside at least a leg and a breast for one day and say, God, let your glory break through. I want to pray with you and then here's what I want to do. I'm going to ask our pastors and some of our deacons, some who are in the balcony and some down here on the floor, we're going to have a prayer time. And if you are sick, or if you have other maladies or other issues and you want someone to pray with you, we want to spend just a few moments in praying for you. If you are sick, I would like to pray with you personally and anoint you. If there are other issues that you need to pray for, you may want to come by yourself to the altar, or you may want somebody else to pray with you. Father, do a work, even now as we prepare later for the Lord's table, and the laying on of hands in ordination, and the vision casting. Do a work in our hearts and our lives. Glorify yourself through us. Fill us with you, so that with you alone we might be satisfied. In the name of Jesus. Church, would you stand with me please? Pastors, would you come? Deacons, if those of you are in the balcony, if some choose not to come down from the balcony, if you could pray with them there.