Kingdom Alignment Part 6

At Keys Vineyard Church, we are presenting a series called ‘Kingdom Alignment,’ which we post here on Online Bible Institute.

This week in our Kingdom Alignment series, we turn to another spiritual practice that helps us examine our hearts as we ask a very important question: What do you truly hunger for?

Matthew 6:16–18 (NIV)
16 “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

When many people hear the word fasting, they immediately think about giving up food. While fasting often includes abstaining from meals, Jesus points us to something much deeper. Fasting is ultimately not about skipping meals. It is about understanding our desires. It is about discovering what shapes us from the inside. It is about identifying what has become the master of our appetites.

This weekend our nation celebrates 250 years since Congress approved the final text of the Declaration of Independence. It is appropriate for us to be grateful. Grateful for the freedoms we enjoy. Grateful for those who sacrificed for those freedoms. Grateful for the opportunities we have been given as citizens of this nation.

As followers of Jesus, we also recognize that there is another kind of freedom we celebrate, not just on Independence Day, but every day. Christ came to set us free from the power of sin and from everything that seeks to take His rightful place in our hearts. It is possible to live in a free nation and still be captive on the inside. We can have political freedom while still being controlled by fear, anger, greed, pride, anxiety, comfort, approval, or unhealthy desires.

That is why Jesus includes fasting in the Sermon on the Mount. Fasting has a way of exposing what we depend on most. It reveals the things we instinctively turn to for comfort, security, and satisfaction. It uncovers the places where our appetites have quietly become our masters.

As we continue on in Matthew Chapter 6, we will discover that fasting is not about proving our spirituality or earning God’s favor. Instead, it is an invitation to greater freedom. As we willingly set aside something we desire, we create space for God to reshape our hearts, deepen our dependence on Him, and remind us that our greatest hunger can only be satisfied in His presence.

This weekend at Keys Vineyard Church, we will discuss all this and more, so be sure to join us in person or online.

Steve Lawes is a pastor at Keys Vineyard Church and also the founder of the Online Bible Institute Network.