Why Fast II? part 4

I found Jesus’ response to their question about whom she will be married to in heaven quite intriguing. Luke 20:34-35 “Jesus said, ‘Marriage is a major preoccupation here, but not there. Those who are included in the resurrection of the dead will no longer be concerned with marriage nor, of course, with death. They will have better things to think about, if you can believe it. All ecstasies and intimacies then will be with God”  The Message.
 

What Jesus was basically saying is that we are too carnal in our thinking. The flesh is a preoccupation to us. One day all intimacies will be directed toward God, because we will be (we are), the children of God. We really are preoccupied with the flesh aren’t we? Since my mom and dad have passed to the next life, and since they were Christians, I have found myself saying many times, “Well now they are together.” According to Jesus that’s not true. They are both there but they are not taken up with each other – they are fully taken up with Jesus, and He is sufficient.   

We keep thinking in terms of our humanness, don’t we? That would be our ideal, wouldn’t it, that we will have all of our family together, the way a hen gathers her chicks, and we will all be happy. It’s true we will all be happy in heaven and we will love each other, but there really will be no need for those kinds of relationships in heaven. Jesus alone will suffice. 
 

Let me share a dream one of my pastor friends had, not long after his mom passed away. He told me, “I dreamt I died and went to heaven. When my mom met me, I expected her to dote over me and help me tuck in my shirt and comb my hair, you know, mom stuff – but it wasn’t like that at all. It’s not that she didn’t care that I was there; instead, she was preoccupied with me meeting Jesus face to face. I was kind of like, “Ok mom, I’m here, make a big fuss over me – instead she took my hand and said, ‘You must come and see Jesus.’” 

We can’t think of heaven any other way because that would be bringing the thinking of this carnal world into the heavenly realm. The Lord’s Prayer does not say, “Thy will be done in heaven, as it is on earth,” but rather, “Thy Will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.” Jesus was continually trying to get us to set our affections on things above, not on things of the earth.   
 

If you struggle with fleshly desires, just fast. Fasting burns away carnal desires and that is what pleases the Lord. If a week later you are still struggling, just fast again. Sometimes I wonder if some of the great men of God we read about fasted on a regular basis just to keep themselves in check. When you read about Charles Finney or George Mueller, you find that they, and many others, fasted on a weekly basis. The Apostle Paul even gave a warning about making his body his slave so that after he preached to others, he would not be disqualified for the prize. 
 

I just know this: There is something about fasting that literally kills carnal desires. Not necessarily our hunger, but our carnal desires. I believe that’s part of what Jesus was getting at when He said, “You guys are too preoccupied with marriage.” In other words, unless you learn to deny yourself periodically you will be absorbed with this world's perspectives.

Continued tomorrow