Our misunderstanding of and difficulty with fasting should surprise us considering how clear God is about it in His Word. The fact is, fasting is mentioned almost twice more than baptism. Even though the Old Covenant law only commanded fasting once a year on the Day of Atonement (Lev. 16), fasting is described as an assumed spiritual activity; it is not a matter of if the Christian will fast, but when. In Matthew 6:16, Jesus gives instructions on what to do and what not to do when we fast, assuming we will do so. As unnatural and as uncultivated a discipline as fasting is for many, it is referred to in God’s Word as something quite natural for the Christian and common. Fasting is designed to feed our souls, and yet for many of us, the abundance of food, surplus of material goods and crowded agendas keep us from knowing our true need for God.

Christian fasting is the *voluntary abstinence from *food paired with a unique commitment to prayer regarding a particular spiritual desire or need – either personally or corporately (Neh. 9:1, Joel 2:15-16, Acts 13:3). There is, however, a broader and often overlooked view of fasting in which, for spiritual purposes, a person abstains from or denies himself the enjoyment of something other than food. It is technically appropriate to speak of fasting from any legitimate freedom. Even those who, for medical reasons, do not fast from food entirely for a period can enjoy many applications of this enriching discipline.

Few people reject the biblical doctrine (teaching) of hell outright. Some consciously minimize it. The rest of us would rather just not think too long or hard about it. In either case, there is serious risk of losing the doctrine and along with it, some very meaningful implications all Christians enjoy. In no particular order, here are five (good) things we lose, if we lose the doctrine of hell?

Some of us don’t know what we’ll do if this isn’t over soon. Others would be just fine if this lasted a while longer. Regardless of our preferences created by things like our introverted tendencies or perhaps our financial situation, how should we think about gathering during this season as a socially distanced church.

Imagine that first Saturday after Christ’s death. Despite His clear and repeated promises that He’d rise again the next day, doubt sets in. Darkness rolls in. And it’s hard to imagine anything less than dark grey skies that bring a slow rain.

After all the drama of yesterday, there’s no movement. All is still. For those who feared Him, the threat was extinguished. But for those who knew Him, it wasn’t as simple. A mixture of fear and grief was veiled in half-hearted anticipation and as much faith as they could muster.

We have all heard a lot of bad news lately, a whole lot of bad news. I am referring to the global spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) and how within just the past week, it has officially been labeled a global pandemic by the WHO, virtually all schools have closed for at least a week and our President has issued a national state of emergency. We have seen stats and trends that give us real cause for concern. We have heard stories of people whose lives have been negatively impacted in every way from the radical inconvenience of quarantine to death…

These words from the 18th century hymn, “Come, Thy Fount of Every Blessing” capture beautifully what it means to think spiritually and to consider eternity. But these are not just beautiful words. This no mere poem. And it does not just help us get by. Such consideration of heaven and of Christ Himself is the very operating system of the Christian, without which we are sure to suffer unnecessary distraction, frustration, inconvenience, worry, temptation and sin.