The Law fast vs. the Gospel fast

Sermon for Midweek of Trinity 16

Isaiah 58:1-14

What does the Bible teach about fasting? There are some references to it. Fasting involved going without food for a certain period of time, denying oneself the pleasures of the flesh in order to pray, to focus on the unseen God. It was an act of humility before God. In the New Testament, Jesus’ 40-day fast at the beginning of His ministry is famous. Many of the Jews fasted, but Jesus’ own disciples didn’t fast. Because Jesus was with them. They didn’t need to focus on the unseen God, because, for a few short years, God was seen by them in the Person of Jesus. After His ascension, believers did fast sometimes, by their own choice, not by God’s command.

In the Old Testament there was only one day of the year on which God commanded all the Israelites to fast. That was the Day of Atonement. It was a 24-hour fast, and a Sabbath rest on top of it, no matter what day of the week it fell on. They were commanded to “afflict themselves” or to “humble themselves” on that day, and to do no work at all, a special Sabbath Day, because on that day atonement would be made for their sins, as God Himself had provided it through the ministry of the priests. They were to devote that entire day to paying attention to the atonement God was providing for all their sins. Once a year.

But people often took it upon themselves to fast on other days, which wasn’t wrong, which could be useful. But in tonight’s reading, Isaiah highlights what was wrong with Israel’s fasting. It was a Law fast, not a Gospel fast.

God speaks, first of all, to the prophet Isaiah, commanding him to expose the sins of the people of Israel.

“Cry aloud; do not hold back; lift up your voice like a trumpet; declare to my people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins.

Then God tells Isaiah which sins, in particular, to expose. Yet they seek me daily and delight to know my ways, as if they were a nation that did righteousness and did not forsake the judgment of their God; they ask of me righteous judgments; they delight to draw near to God.

So they were seeking God, seeking the Lord, pretending to worship Him, expecting help from Him and acceptance from Him, even though they were willfully disregarding His Law. They thought they could draw near to God, without repenting of their sins.

Isn’t that just like the people in today’s world? They don’t have any regard for God’s Word recorded in Holy Scripture. They don’t do what He says. They break His commandments one after the other, with zero repentance, with no intention of listening to Him in the future. And yet many of the same people still pretend to seek the Lord, pretend to worship Him, pretend that He will help them and accept them and bring them into heaven, “just as they are.” But, no, it doesn’t work that way.

Isaiah records the people of Israel complaining to God. ‘Why have we fasted, and you do not see it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no notice of it?’ Many in Israel, probably some of the prominent leaders of Israel, wanted to get some help from God. So they chose to fast. They chose to humble themselves. And God didn’t applaud. He didn’t pat them on the back and say, “Good job! Good job! Thank you so much for not eating for a few hours. It means so much to Me! Of course I’ll help you now!”

No, and God tells them why He wasn’t pleased. Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure, and oppress all your workers. Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to hit with a wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high. They were fasting, all right. They were not eating for a day. But how did they spend their time while they were “humbling themselves”? Still seeking their own pleasure in other ways besides eating. Still mistreating their workers. Still quarrelling and fighting and breaking God’s commandments left and right. And still, they thought that their little act of self-sacrifice and self-denial would earn them God’s favor.

Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? Is it to bow down his head like a reed, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Will you call this a fast, and a day acceptable to the LORD?

No, God says. What does He care if a person doesn’t eat for a while, and walks around all bent over and sitting in ashes? With the attitude of, “Oh, look at how humble I am. God will have to help me now!” No, He says, “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’

In other words, if you want to do something to please God, if you want to take a day to gain His favor, then it’s not not eating that would please Him. It would be the keeping of His commandments. It would be doing away with all wickedness, not mistreating your neighbor, including your worker or your spouse or your children. It would be taking the food that you would have eaten for yourself and giving it to those who have nothing to eat in the first place.

The Lord goes on: If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday. And the LORD will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to dwell in.

Get rid of the “yoke” from your midst. That is, the things you do to burden other people, to make their life difficult, to make your life easier. Get rid of the pointing finger, blaming and demeaning others. Get rid of speaking wickedly about your neighbor. And devote yourself to helping those who need your help. That would earn the Lord’s favor!

The Lord goes on: “If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on my holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight and the holy day of the LORD honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, or seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly; then you shall take delight in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

God tells Israel, do you want to get My attention? Don’t do it with impenitent fasting. Do it by honoring Me, which means honoring My Word, which means honoring My Commandment to rest on the Sabbath Day. Honor Me on that day, not only by not working, but also by not complaining about how I’m forcing you to rest, by, instead, giving thanks to Me for giving you this day of rest, and for all the things I’ve given you. Honor My word. Honor My commandments by obeying them, from the heart, with love for Me, your God and your Savior. Then you will be blessed! Not by hating Me in your heart, not by ignoring My commandments, not by going without food for a little while, which I never commanded you to do in the first place.

What’s the real problem this chapter of Isaiah exposes among the Israelites, and among people still today? They were trying to earn God’s favor with their own self-chosen work of fasting, even while ignoring all the works God had commanded them to do in His holy Law, even while living lives that dishonored the very God whom they wished to appease. That is why I called it above “Law fasting.” And it’s worse than useless. It’s an offense to God.

But “Gospel fasting” is different. The right way to approach God is through the true humility of repentance, recognizing our sins, against God and against our neighbor, and giving them up instead of living in them intentionally. Then, it’s through the atonement made by the Lord Jesus, who paid for our sins on the cross. The “Gospel fast” is to pause and reflect on Christ’s sacrifice, to stop trying to earn God’s favor by your works, and, instead, to seek His favor through Christ crucified, through whom God has promised mercy and acceptance and the forgiveness of sins, for free. Finally, the “Gospel fast,” if you want to call it that, is to live each day, not for yourself, but for Him who died for you and rose again. It’s to deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Him, to endure affliction patiently, to pray for one another, to live each day honoring God’s Word instead of honoring yourself, doing what you can to help those in need instead of obsessing about your own needs and desires. This “Gospel fast” won’t put a scowl on your face, but a smile. Because it’s the easy yoke, it’s the light burden that Christ offers to all who come to Him. God is pleased with it, and it ends in glory and eternal life.

This is the kind of fast you should practice all the time, the God-pleasing Gospel fast, whether or not you choose to go without food for a while. Amen.