Why do you harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh did? When Israel's god dealt harshly with them, did they not send the Israelites out so they could go on their way? (1 Samuel 6:6 NIV)

I find it amazing that the Philistines seem to remember Israel's history of God's glorious miracles and deliverance better than Israel. God had commanded the generation of Israel coming out of Egypt to be sure to tell the generations after them about God's deliverance and also to teach them His laws, ordinances and commands. Yet, Israel had forgotten the greatness and exclusivity of their God, who commanded them, "You shall have no other gods before me...You shall not make any graven images...nor bow down to them,... for I am a jealous God" (cf. Exodus 20; Deuteronomy 5). As a result they were overcome by their enemies, and they failed to enjoy the blessings God intended for them in the land. 

I know a number of you are fasting during this Easter holiday, whether food, media, games, etc. But I wonder how many of you know why you are fasting? I hope you are not doing it simply as an annual ritual. I hope you are not doing it simply because the pastor asked you to do it. And I certainly hope you are not doing it to "lose weight" while giving the pretense of worship. I am reminded of Isaiah's warning:

Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,only a day for people to humble themselves? Is it only for bowing one's head like a reed and for lying in sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast,a day acceptable to the Lord? (Isaiah 58:5 NIV)

Don't fast if you don't have a good reason to do it, because you may inadvertantly be bringing judgment on yourselves. Just as Paul warns against taking the Lord's Supper in an unworthy manner, so fasting in the wrong way or for the wrong reasons can do more harm than good. Fasting counts for nothing without repentance and obedience. Consider the kinds of fasting God honors:

"Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed freeand break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? (Isaiah 58:6, 7 NIV)

In other words, don't simply deprive yourselves of food, give that food to feed someone else, who is hungry. Don't simply humble yourselves in form, really humble yourselves by repenting and resolving to make God your priority. This is what Israel did under Samuel's leadership (1 Samuel 7:2-6). Don't simply stop watching television or surfing the net. Read the Bible, and for some of you, catch up on all the days you failed to read so far this year. By this, you will be reminded of God's lesson from the wilderness, "Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God" (Deuteronomy 8:3). In other words, whatever you deprive yourselves of, be sure to replace it with what is acceptable and pleasing to God. Finally, when you fast, it is best if no one knows about it, for you are not doing this to gain attention or praise from others but from God (Matthew 6:16-18).

Remember, God desires obedience over sacrifice. And sacrifices that are merely ritual without substance are hated by God. If you fast, be sure to have a good and right reason for fasting. Are you doing it to remember the Lord's death and resurrection? That's fine, although the Lord's Supper was given specifically for this. Are you doing it to show how much God means to you? Don't do it this way, for you would be like the pagans, who flaggelate themselves and cut themselves for their gods. God does not require this kind of self-affliction. Instead, as I mentioned above, if you are to fast, let it be be to humble yourselves in repentance or obedience. In other words, don't simply fast for fasting sake.

When the people of Israel recognized and practiced a right kind of fasting, this was the blessings God promised for them:

Then your light will break forth like the dawn,and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you,and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I."If you do away with the yoke of oppression,with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness,and your night will become like the noonday. The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched landand will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings. (Isaiah 58:8-12 NIV)

While such material blessings are not something Christians can claim today, we can know that God is pleased when we fast rightly and will reward us with His favor in heaven. Let us, therefore, not be like the Israelites, who kept the ritual and forgot its meaning. They revered the ark of God but neglected the God of the ark. They worshipped God, but they did not worship Him exclusively. They fasted often enough, but God rejected their fast because it was not connected with repentance and obedience to His commands.

So, how can you keep from all these pitfalls in worship? Stay daily in God's Word, as those who are persevering with me through this website are seeking earnestly to do. 

When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as Israel’s leaders.^j]">[j] ² The name of his firstborn was Joel and the name of his second was Abijah, and they served at Beersheba. ³ But his sons did not follow his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice.
 ⁴ So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. ⁵ They said to him, “You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to lead^k]">[k] us, such as all the other nations have.”
 
I could see that they were frustrated and fed up with Samuel's sons corruption. The Israelites asked for a king even though Jehovah God was their king.  Not only that, but they demanded one like other nations around them as if they'd seen such a perfect kingdom among their wicked neighbors under a king.  Even after they were told about what a king would do to them, they were so persistent in getting what they wanted.  The root of the social and political problems they were facing was their disobedience, but they sought a solution in having a king among them.  They relied on their own wisdom which is nothing but foolishness.  Is there any difference between them and us living in modern days?  No, absolutely not!  The Gospel was preached to almost all corners of the earth that Jesus is the answer.  Do people listen to that proclamation and acknowledge that they need Jesus as their King?  Of course, not!  They concocted all kinds of social system to solve problems but to no avail.  The cross is foolishness to them because "although they knew God, they neither recognized Him as God nor gave thanks to Him but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.  Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools..."  The king was among them but they just did not like Him because of their own wickedness.  Even after all those years of experiences of their true King, they still couldn't recognize Him, except for only a few, who rules over everything in heaven and earth and who is the guarantor of justice and prosperity.  Even though they were God's chosen people, they were perishing from their own sins.  Do we recognize Jesus as "King of king and Lord of lords" today not only with our lips but also in our actions?