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{bib=Matt 6:16-18} “And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.(ESV)

• What is “fasting”?
Simply – it is not eating. Check out BREAK FAST> Dictionary.com says fasting is…
1. To abstain from food.
2. To eat very little or abstain from certain foods, especially as a religious discipline.
• Biblical Examples of fasting
• Fasting is done to emphasize our reliance on God,

After Jesus was baptized and was about to be tempted, Jesus fasted and prayed.
Matthew 4:1-3 says, “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry. “ The fasting heightened Jesus’ awareness of His dependence on the Father.

In 2 Chronicles 20, King Jehosophat called a fast of all the people because they were seeking the Lord’s deliverance from their enemies – and they got it without even fighting.

In the book of Esther, when the plan of Haman is learned, Mordecai and the whole nation of Israel begin fasting and praying. God delivered them.

• Often fasting is done out of sadness or mourning. Nehemiah 1:1-4

The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. It came to pass in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan£ the citadel, 2that Hanani one of my brethren came with men from Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped, who had survived the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. 3And they said to me, “The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.” So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.

• Fasting can be part of repentance.

Daniel 9: 1-5 we see Daniel in repentance over the sin of Israel.

In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans—in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the LORD through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.
Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. 4And I prayed to the LORD my God, and made confession, and said, “O Lord, great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and mercy with those who love Him, and with those who keep His commandments, 5we have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments.

• Heart Fasting vs Show Fasting
So, in Matthew, here, Jesus is not at all saying that fasting is bad. The point is that fasting needs to be done for the right reasons. Fasting is going without food in order to spend time in prayer. It gives us time to pray, teaches self-discipline, reminds us that we can live with a lot less, and helps us appreciate God's gifts. Jesus was not condemning fasting, but hypocrisy – fasting in order to gain public approval.

The Pharisee from the parable of “The Pharisee and the Publican” boasts specifically that he fasted twice a week. But, he was obviously doing it to impress others or perhaps even to impress God with his “holiness.” Jesus commended acts of self-sacrifice done quietly and sincerely. He wanted people to adopt spiritual disciplines for the right reasons, not from a selfish desire for praise.

Fasting is not mandated in the Bible, as is prayer. But, fasting is a spiritual discipline that can help us humble ourselves and renew minds to be totally reliant on God.

It is not to be something used to get attention. It is not to be for dieting and loosing weight. It is to exercise a spiritual discipline, which is completely up to you whether you do it or not, to grow closer to God. If you do it, or any other good works to be seen of men, you are acting a hypocrite. What is a hypocrite?

• Hypocrite. The people listening to Jesus teaching would have understood who he was talking about “don’t be like the hypocrites” as “actors.” What do actors do? They play a role – sometimes they put on a mask – they are pretending to be something or someone they are not.

Jesus called the Pharisee’s hypocrites because they pretended to be righteous, but their hearts were far from God and they were unrepentant for their sin. Today, we Christians might think of Pharisees automatically when we hear the word “hypocrite” from the Bible, but that was not what Jesus was originally talking about. He’s not talking about not being like Pharisees – he’s saying don’t be a hypocrite about your good works – worship God sincerely.

Sincerity – or being true – is the opposite of being a hypocrite.

In John chapter 4, Jesus talks to a Samaritan woman at a well and she is surprised that he is talking to her because Jews felt they were too good to even talk to Samaritans. Turn there:

John 4:20 – 24
Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.” Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
That is what this passage is about. Look what he says back since v1 of ch 6.

• CHART (if you use the contact page to request it, I'll email you the color-coded chart in Microsoft Word&tm; format

He’s talking to Christians about worshiping God with sincerity – from the Heart – in truth. Not that we should not do good deeds anywhere they can be seen (or we would have a hard time getting things done in the church), but BE AWARE of your motivation and BE On Guard against self or prideful motives.

So – do good works – works of righteousness. Be generous, Pray, and fast – give of your time to volunteer at church however you can and God has given you a desire to serve. But – Be AWARE of why you are doing it and if you are unable to serve out of pure motives and overcome prideful desires – quit.