Most of us have seen the Mission Impossible movies and some of us are old enough to have seen the television series. There is one significant scene in almost every movie and many TV episodes where a fake, rubber mask is used to disguise the good guys to look like one of the bad guys. In other words, you did not always know who the real enemy was. That’s what we are going to talk about today. Who is the real enemy when it comes to spiritual warfare in fasting and prayer? We encourage you to email us with your personal testimonies on fasting. We will give details on how to contact us and how to access past episodes referenced in today’s presentation. My name is Stephanie Wright and this is Episode 5, “Unmasking the Enemy” in our series Empowered Through Fasting.
Before we get started, if you have not already listened to Episode 1, in this series entitled, “Nothing is Impossible with God,” please do so. It provides scriptures, some basic foundational principles, contemporary examples of fasting with prayer, and caveats on how to fast.
So, who is the real enemy when we talk about being empowered to wage spiritual warfare through fasting and prayer. Well, of course, we all know the enemy from the beginning of time was the devil. It started in the garden of Eden with the temptation of Adam and Eve.
But, today, well, we are going to talk about another enemy. That enemy is us. We can sometimes be our own worst enemy when it comes to submitting to a fast. We sabotage our fast by not being obedient when the Spirit says fast; we sabotage our fast when we compromise with the Spirit on the fast; and we sabotage our fast when we are not sincere (we fast for the wrong reasons). Now, you may not do any of these things but listen anyway so you can be a help to someone else.
So, be empowered through the Holy Spirit and do not be your worst enemy. Obey the call to fast, don’t compromise, and remember the purpose is to do the will of God and in so doing, we will destroy the works of the devil.
Now, let’s listen as Apostle Charles gives details on how to contact us and listen to past episodes. And please send an email to cgmpresents@gmail.com with your accounts of how fasting has helped you. God bless.
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Most of us have seen the Mission Impossible movies and some of us are old enough to have seen the television series. There is one significant scene in almost every movie and many TV episodes where a fake, rubber mask is used to disguise the good guys to look like one of the bad guys. In other words, you did not always know who the real enemy was. That’s what we are going to talk about today. Who is the real enemy when it comes to spiritual warfare in fasting and prayer? We encourage you to email us with your personal testimonies on fasting. We will give details on how to contact us and how to access past episodes referenced in today’s presentation. My name is Stephanie Wright and this is Episode 5, “Unmasking the Enemy” in our series Empowered Through Fasting.
Before we get started, if you have not already listened to Episode 1, in this series entitled, “Nothing is Impossible with God,” please do so. It provides scriptures, some basic foundational principles, contemporary examples of fasting with prayer, and caveats on how to fast.
So, who is the real enemy when we talk about being empowered to wage spiritual warfare through fasting and prayer. Well, of course, we all know the enemy from the beginning of time was the devil. It started in the garden of Eden with the temptation of Adam and Eve. That was when the gauntlet was thrown down and God delivered the ultimate sentence of defeat to Satan, that although he (Satan) would bruise the heel of Jesus, Jesus was going to crush his head. Genesis 3:15. Never forget that when you are going through a test, Satan is already defeated because Jesus has Him under His foot and that’s where we should keep him, under our foot. Jesus also said, he came to destroy the works of the devil. That’s what we are supposed to do as well and we can through fasting and prayer and most of all through the power of the Holy Ghost.
But, today, well, we are going to talk about another enemy. That enemy is us. We can sometimes be our own worst enemy when it comes to submitting to a fast. We sabotage our fast by not being obedient when the Spirit says fast; we sabotage our fast when we compromise with the Spirit on the fast; and we sabotage our fast when we are not sincere (we fast for the wrong reasons). Now, you may not do any of these things but listen anyway so you can be a help to someone else.
When it comes to fasting, we must be obedient to the voice of God. Not always easy because the flesh is weak even though, in our heart we are willing to fast. Matthew 26:41. Here is a scenario. God will tell us to fast, say four hours, until noon and we ignore that still small voice of the Holy Spirit because we simply do not want to fast. What is it with our flesh? Why is it so difficult to let something go that will be there tomorrow or even after the four-hour fast? It’s called temptation. But remember, the Spirit is not going to lead you to do something you don’t have the power to do. Acts 1:8. We are overcomers and fasting with prayer helps us to overcome.
As an aside, I do not want to appear to be insensitive because I do realize, that for some people, there may not be food on the table tomorrow. That is why we should support food banks and similar causes. But, as far as obedience goes, yes, we can be our own worst enemy because we ignore the call to fast. Let’s look at someone else who almost disregarded the call to fast but was reminded by her cousin Mordecai, for such a time as this were you born. Esther 4:14. If Queen Esther had not been obedient to the call to fast, the Jews in Persia would have all been murdered under an edict King Ahasuerus was manipulated into signing through a man named Haman who hated the Jews. As we discuss in Episode 4, of our Queen Esther series, only the Jews in Persia were affected because other Jews had already returned to Jerusalem. We should be obedient to the voice of the Holy Spirit when we are told to fast because the spirit knows. 1 Corinthians 2:11, tells us, “. . . the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.”
Next, we turn to a discussion of compromise. Ah, yes, the great compromise. The Spirit says fast for a certain number of hours and we compromise by whittling it down to what works for us. I have to laugh because I have been guilty of this too, but again, I have gotten a lot better about not compromising with the Holy Spirit when I am instructed to fast in a certain way. But, what if you’re not sure it’s the Spirit telling you to fast a certain way? First of all, the Spirit is not going to tell you to do something that is going to be harmful to you. Second, the devil is never going to tell you to fast unless he is trying to do something harmful to you. So, wisdom is the order of the day and the Holy Spirit is always wise. We compromise because again, we don’t want to afflict our flesh, if you can call it that. Do we really know what it means to be afflicted in the flesh when we have a fast food restaurant every which way we turn, food markets, etc., There simply is no lack of food at least in most countries. Don’t compromise with the Spirit. When you are instructed by the Holy spirit to fast do it – with wisdom of course.
Another reason we might compromise is because we don’t always see the manifestation or the results of the fast. This can be frustrating because we are such an, “I want to see it now!” society. We want microwave results when we fast and pray. But it doesn’t work that way with God. You may never see the results of that week-long consecration that you just know God told you to go on. The Spirit led you to sacrifice your favorite food, beverage, or form of entertainment for a month and you have nothing concrete to show for it. Well, that is where your faith kicks in. 2 Corinthians 5:7, says we walk by faith not sight. You have to believe that your fast was not in vain but it blessed someone or maybe it was just for you. Maybe God does not want you to see the results because you may get lifted up behind it. I don’t know. I just know that a truly, dedicated to God, directed by the Holy Spirit fast, is never in vain. There is fruit somewhere and just because we don’t see it doesn’t mean some good did not come from it. Also, if you listened to Episode 3, in this series on Empowerment Through Fasting, we discussed the consistent, committed fast and the importance of fasting in some way on a regular basis to build yourself up. I hope you find time to listen to that episode as well. ***
Before we move to the last topic, let me say this. If you are not obedient to voice of God when He says fast or you compromise, don’t beat up on yourself. I will share this story because there is nothing like telling on yourself to help others. One day I was on a fast. I was walking into work and the man who fills the candy machine had just arrived and got out of his truck with a tray of candy for the machines. Believe it or not, I thought to myself, “He’s going to drop one of those bars of candy.” And that is just what happened. I brought it to his attention and instead of taking the candy bar he gave it to me. I accepted and to my shame . . . I ate the candy bar. I still remember that even though it was years ago. I really felt bad for breaking my fast, but guess what? I didn’t give up fasting. No, I repented and moved on to the next fast.
If you fall, get up. Proverbs 24:16, says, “For a just man falls seven times, and rises up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief.” The devil wants you to feel like a failure because then you might give up. He is the father of lies and there is no truth in him. John 8:44. Don’t buy his lies. Revelation 12:10, says “for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.” So, don’t give up, just pick up where you left off with the fast and determine to do better and you can, through the power of the Holy Spirit, your helper. John 4:16, 26; Acts 1:8. And remember that Satan is subject to us through Jesus Christ. Ephesians 1:22. So, do what Jesus did, and keep that devil under your foot. Romans 16:20. As a friend of mine once said, if you keep the devil under your foot, he will stay out of your head. Let me share this story with you before begin to close.
Finally, we can be our own worst enemies in fasting because we fast for the wrong reasons, or we fast in strife. James 4:3, says, “3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.” This applies to fasting as well because prayer and fasting are so intertwined with each other, they are inextricably intertwined, they cannot be separated. Never fast for the wrong reason. We do not fast to get even with someone or see hurt come to someone. We do not fast to bribe God to do things our way. We do not fast with a spirit of strife. Philippians 2:3. We fast for godly purposes. We need go no further than the list that God gave us in Isaiah 58:6‑7, to know what to fast for: loose the bands of wickedness, undo the heavy burdens, let the oppressed go free, break every yoke, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, be reconciled to others. We need to remember that we are continuing the work of Christ in the earth thus, I reiterate what was said at the beginning of this presentation, 1 John 3:8, says Christ came to destroy the works of the devil. Make no mistake about it, fasting is one of the spiritual warfare weapons that destroys the works of the devil.
So, be empowered through the Holy Spirit and do not be your worst enemy. Obey the call to fast, don’t compromise, and remember the purpose is to do the will of God and in so doing, we will destroy the works of the devil.
Now, let’s listen as Apostle Charles gives details on how to contact us and listen to past episodes. And please send an email to cgmpresents@gmail.com with your accounts of how fasting has helped you. God bless.