January 11, 2023
3-Day Fast when you are in a crisis or trouble,
a 3-Day Fast to change your present situation.
Esther 4:6 “Go and gather together all the Jews of Susa and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will do the same. And then, though it is against the law, I will go in to see the king. If I must die, I must die.”
• In all the history of Israel, God’s people were never called to fast for fasting’s sake. They were called to forego food to deny all else but God. Most fast in ancient days was limited to daylight hours or certain foods and rarely included fasting from water. Why? The risk of dehydration was too dangerous.
• Difficult situations or a crisis calls for serious measures such as fasting everything for three days with total prayer and fasting – denying all else but God.
• Fasting indicates prayer, and prayer indicates God is the Book of Esther. You will not find the mention of God in Esther, but He is all over the book.
• Esther and the Jews of Susa went without food so they could wholeheartedly focus their petitions before God.
• Their refusal to receive sustenance demonstrated their desperation to receive something much more significant: DELIVERANCE!
(Joel 2:17) Describes an appeal of God’s people who came together for a holy fast.
• Let them say, ‘Spare your people, O Lord – do not make your inheritance an object of scorn, a by-word among nations.
• Look at how closely related Esther 4:6 and Joel 2:17 are related. For what reason were they fasting? Deliverance from their present situation.
(Acts 3:19-20) So repent (change your mind and purpose); turn around and return [to God], that your sins may be erased (blotted out, wiped clean). So, there will be times of refreshing (of recovering from the effects of heat, of reviving with fresh air). May you experience the presence of the Lord; and that He may send [to you] the Christ (the Messiah), who before was designated and appointed for you, even Jesus.
What were they instructed to do during this time? Fast!
Look at the parallel between Joel and Esther – whether Esther knew it or not, she blew the trumpet in Zion, commanding a fast for all the Jews of Susa to see if the Lord may relent from sending the calamity on the Jewish people of being wiped out. Joel did likewise.
C. In this crisis, there was no neutral position.
D. Failure to decide brings personal loss and misses the opportunity to fulfill God’s purposes.
E. These are generally Defining Moments
Saul fasted for three days when he was blind before he received his sight.
(Acts 9:7-9) The men with Saul stood speechless, for they heard the sound of someone’s voice but saw no one! Saul picked himself up off the ground, but when he opened his eyes, he was blind. So, his companions led him by the hand to Damascus. He remained there blind for three days and did not eat or drink.
IA 3-Day fast is for deliverance. Is the 3-Day Fast for you?
