Fill The House Part 1 - The Importance of Fasting and Prayer - a podcast by Lakeshore Christian Fellowship Sunday Sermon

By Pastor Gil Dirmann

Fill The House:
Posturing ourselves for God to FILL US with:
His manifest presence
His supernatural power
His divine purpose

Scriptures

- Isaiah 43:18-19 (NIV) - “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; Do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the waste land.”

- Isaiah 58:1-14 (NLT) - “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.
4What 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!”

Message Points

1. What is Biblical Fasting?
Biblical fasting is abstaining from the pleasure of eating in order to draw closer to God, in order to gain spiritual balance/vitality.

Matt 5 & 6 – Sermon on Mount…
Blessing our enemies = Filter our response in order to pass along God’s mercy and forgiveness (5:38-48).
Serving/Prayer = Sacrifice time and energy to invest into others (6:1-15).
Give up food = Fast physical and emotional strength to receive spiritual strength (6:16-18).
Giving = Forfeit finances to acknowledge God’s ownership, and invest outward (6:19-24).


False reasons for fasting:
To earn God’s favor.
Ephesians 1:3 - Already blessed with all spiritual blessings
To show how spiritual we are!
II Corinthians 5:21 - We are already righteous To get God to do something He doesn't want to do
I John 5:14 - If we ask anything according to His will…He hears and we receive!

2. Why do we need to fast?
Fasting helps us draw closer to God, and gain spiritual balance and vitality.
Fasting softens a hardened heart and sharpens our spiritual ears.
Fasting exposes selfishness and pride, and trains undisciplined flesh to submit
In this way…fasting can release God’s power into areas that are currently stopped up.

3. When do we need to fast?
Vision for Future (Ezra 8:21-23)
Navigating or Readying for Transitions (Luke 3:21-22)
In Need of Deliverance (Esther 4:16)
Intercession/Spiritual Warfare (Dan 10; Mark 9)

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