Jim O'Brien (Church of God, Cincinnati) says that as Christian people we need to understand we are at war. The world is reeling around us and the United States is in election turmoil, unlike any other election we have seen. Society and church members are depressed. COVID has wreaked havoc on society, businesses, and churches. As usual, the gays are behind a lot of the problems O'Brien sees in the world.
So where does O'Brien turn to? Does he look to Jesus for comfort and ways to cope in this weird world? Nope! He looks back at the law, Moses, Nehemiah, and fasting. Fasting in the old covenant was a time of lamentation and the visible presence of sackcloth and ashes. Contrast that with the new covenant where Jesus is the focus and the focus is upon joy and feasting:
...in the Old Testament individual and corporate lamentations were often accompanied by fasting. Likewise, in the only legislated fast, the people of Israel afflicted themselves on the day of atonement (see Lev. 16:29–31; 23:27–32). In short, because of God’s absence, the people of Israel fasted. This would also explain why the disciples of John the Baptist fasted. He was, in Jesus’s words, the greatest son born under the old covenant (Matthew 11:11), but now that the bridegroom has come, fasting has been replaced with feasting. This is exactly the point of Matthew 9:14–15,
Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.
Just as John the Baptist himself said: Jesus is the bridegroom, John is the friend of the bridegroom, the one who prepares the way for the groom to receive his bride (John 3:25–30). Hence, the relationship between John and Jesus—and the difference between John’s fasting and Jesus’s feasting, is eschatological and covenantal. It is not simply a matter of personal ministry styles.
Accordingly, when Jesus answers the question about fasting, he reveals an important truth—his presence means the cessation of fasting. A New Covenant Perspective on Fasting
Armstrongism has always placed its emphasis upon old covenant laws and rules, all easily laid out in plain view as a schoolmaster writing on a chalkboard. Perhaps, during difficult times, the focus can be made upon the good and joyful things in life that are always present, even in the darkest of times. Those little epiphanies display the grandeur of God far more than bemoaning the evils in the world and actually lift people out of their depressed state of being where they dwell in negativity.
Jim O'Brien writes:
Hi Friend,
During the past few months the world we live in has changed dramatically. Formerly we were accustomed to living in a country with freedom to worship God, where leaders invoked the Bible, the name of God, and revered the God of the Bible. All those freedoms are now being threatened.
Sociologists declare that we live in a post-Christian world. The Bible is ridiculed, and Christians are accused of using hate speech for advocating a moral lifestyle. As a result, marriage is threatened, the family is undermined, and parental rights are rapidly diminishing. The state is the new parent.
Many churches are closed. There can be severe fines and even jail sentences for attending a funeral, celebrating marriage or just attending church and singing hymns to God.
We are watching American cities being burned and innocent people attacked.
As spiritual people we understand that this is a religious war and we need to use spiritual weapons to combat the enemy. This war may be new to us, but it is not new to the people of God. The Apostle Paul wrote, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12)
After church this past weekend, I reflected on several comments about a spirit of depression that is covering the world. For this reason, I decided to read the Book of Nehemiah, the Prophet who faced depression after the destruction of Jerusalem.
Nehemiah’s solution was to fast and pray. His prayer is recorded for us.
“Lord, the God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night for your servants, the people of Israel. I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father’s family, have committed against you. We have acted very wickedly toward you. We have not obeyed the commands, decrees and laws you gave your servant Moses.
“Remember the instruction you gave your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations, but if you return to me and obey my commands, then even if your exiled people are at the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for my Name.’
“They are your servants and your people, whom you redeemed by your great strength and your mighty hand. Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name.” (Nehemiah 1:5-11)
Nehemiah did not simply point the finger at other people. Remember, he said that not only had Israel sinned, but the sins “myself and my father’s family, have committed against you.”
Let us, who believe in the God who led Israel out of slavery—the God who founded America—confess our sins before God and believe that He will hear our prayers and protect the “elect” that He has chosen.
When Solomon dedicated the temple to God, he knew man would sin. Solomon prayed to God before all the people, “When [your people] sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin—and you become angry with them and give them over to the enemy, who takes them captive to a land far away or near; and if they have a change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their captivity and say, ‘We have sinned, we have done wrong and acted wickedly’; and if they turn back to you with all their heart and soul in the land of their captivity where they were taken, and pray toward the land you gave their ancestors, toward the city you have chosen and toward the temple I have built for your Name; then from heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their pleas, and uphold their cause. And forgive your people, who have sinned against you.” (2 Chronicles 6:36-39)
God has blessed us with the freest country ever to exist in which to live. We have lived in wealth without threat from foreign enemies. We have been blessed with justice. Therefore, we take wealth and justice as a natural part of life—we take them for granted without considering the urgent need to “cry out to God” as Moses and the Prophets did.
Now these blessings are threatened. Many of us feel that we are becoming captives in our own country. It is time for us to seek God in urgent prayer. Let us do what Solomon said, turn back to God “with all of our heart and soul.”
For this reason many of us have agreed to join together in fasting and prayer to seek God. Let us confess our sins, recognize the flaws we have as individuals, as a nation and as a church.
Let us commit ourselves to repentance asking God to restore the church, His people, to a place of worship that honors the God who gave us life and blesses His people with liberty.
We have set aside this Sunday, January 17 to fast and pray. Thank you for joining with many brethren across the nation as we look to God for our salvation.
Warmest regards to each of you,
Here is a partial list of congregations and groups participating in this fast.
Atlanta Independent Church of God
Bible Home Fellowship Jonesboro, AR
Bible Sabbath Association
Cana Christian Fellowship Virginia
Celebration Church of God Idaho
Christian Church of God Jackson, MS
Christian Educational Ministries
Church of God Beth El Nashville
Church of God International
Church of God Kansas City
Church of God Parkersburg, WV
Church of God Rocky Mount NC
Church of God Southern California
Common Ground Christian Ministries
Fellowship of the Word Flatrock, NC
Hungry Hearts Fellowship Jackson, TN
Independent Church of God Fellowship Portsmouth, OH
Fairview Texas Church of God
Katy Christian Fellowship Katy Texas
Living God Ministries Montgomery
Our Father’s House Sacramento
Outreach Ministries Scotts Bluff, NE
Pleasant Hills Church of God
Seventh Day Christian Assembly—Knoxville, TN
Terre Haute Church of God
West Tennessee Sabbath Ministries
