“But the days will come when the bridegroom shallbe taken away from them, and then they shall

fast in those days.”

ChurchLiving

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This series of lessons has been designed for private study or classroompresentation. The purpose of this foreword is to explain certain conventionsutilized throughout the program. The overall concept is to begin with the basicconcepts necessary for the new convert to understand and progress towardmore complex doctrine. The lessons are numbered in order to maintain theproper sequence of study.

When Scripture references are encountered in the text, various actions arerecommended. When in parenthetical bold (Genesis 1:1) the verse is to belooked up and read right away. Frequently, the next textual statement willcomment on that verse. Reading verse and text in proper order will enhanceone’s understanding of the verse. Direct quotes from Scripture will be “bolditalicized and contained in quotation marks” and, unless otherwise noted,will be from the King James Bible. When the reference is in parentheticalnon-bold (Genesis 1:1) it is to provide the Scriptural basis for the statement ifconfirmation is desired. References in blue Genesis 1:1 will be listed in thelesson section entitled FURTHER STUDY.

FURTHER STUDY is the “homework” section. Its purpose is to encourageBible study at home. The referenced verses have a short summation to assistthe student desiring more knowledge about a subject to find what they arelooking for.

The DISCUSSION QUESTIONS section is primarily for classroom use.Open discussion with the exchange of ideas produces growth for all involved.Most of the time the answer is contained in the referenced Scripture butsometimes the question is offered for open discussion. Even in private Biblestudy, analysis of the question and the search for its answer can be rewarding.

This work is offered to anyone with a desire to better understand God’s Word.It is our hope and prayer that the person studying these lessons will come awaywith a better understanding of God’s will and a closer walk with our Lord,Jesus Christ.

With Loving Concern for all those seeking God’s MessageThe Church of God Rocky Mount

Rocky Mount, Virginia

“But the days will come when the bridegroom shallbe taken away from them, and then they shall fast

in those days.”

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Fasting is probably the mostunused tool the Christian has.The Christian has a tool box fullof valuable tools, prayer is onetool, another tool is Bible study,another is fellowship with peo-ple of like mind. The Sabbathday and all the feast days aretools the Christian uses to fine-tune his relationship with God.The one tool that is seldom usedis fasting, the reason for this issimple, it’s an unpleasant expe-rience, no one likes to experi-ence hunger pain. In ourculture, we have become so ac-customed to eating three mealsa day that if we miss a meal wefeel something is dreadfullywrong. Since we’re using the

analogy of the tool box let’sconsider the mechanic thatworks on your vehicle. Thereare some things that cannot befixed on your vehicle unless theproper tool is used. Could thesame be true about your per-sonal relationship with God thatthere are some things that can-not be fixed unless we use allthe tools in the Christians toolbox?

Most people gloss over the factof how much fasting was usedthroughout the Bible. Fastingwas used when praying for thesick. David even used fastingwhen praying for his enemy(Psalm 35:13). Fasting wasused when a king and hisson were killed in combat(2 Samuel 1:12). In today’ssociety fasting would be usedwhen calamity strikes Americasuch as the terrorist attack on

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Fastingthe World Trade Center. Fastingwas used when David thoughthis infant son may die(2 Samuel 12:16). Fasting wasused as a tool when a criticaldecision had to be made, a deci-sion where the consequencecould mean death (Esther4:16). Fasting was used as atool to gain direction from theLord (Acts 13:2). Fasting wasa tool to reveal the humility ofthe heart (Joel 2:12). Fastingwas used as a tool for seekingGod (Daniel 9:3).

We see, through scriptures, that

fasting was a commonly usedtool, much like prayer and Biblestudy. Jesus was specificallyasked about fasting. Noticewhat He said (Luke 5:33-35).With this passage it is obviousthat Jesus, after His departing,would expect His disciples touse the tool of fasting. If you’veencountered a tough problemthat won’t go away, if you’reseeking answers from God thenyou may want to take anotherlook at your toolbox and pick upthat dreaded unused tool calledfasting.

1. What is fasting? Exodus 34:28__________________________________________________

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2. Is Fasting commanded?Leviticus 23:27, 29__________________________________________________

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3. Are there other times, besides the Day of Atonement, whenwe need to fast? Matthew 17:21__________________________________________________

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