Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Foreign.
[00:00:06] Hey, everybody, this is Pastor Chuck Allen, and welcome to another weekday podcast. I'm so glad you're with me today. I want to ask you this question. Have you ever noticed that some of your greatest battles show up right after your biggest breakthroughs?
[00:00:22] Matthew 4 says that right after Jesus was baptized, right after heaven opened up and the Spirit descended, he was led by that same spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan.
[00:00:35] Now, that's how it goes sometimes, isn't it? The moment after your confirmation comes your confrontation.
[00:00:43] The moment after revelation often comes resistance.
[00:00:48] But here's the part that wrecks me.
[00:00:51] Before the temptation ever started, Jesus fasted 40 days and 40 nights.
[00:00:58] Now think about that. 40 days without food, the Son of God, hungry, weak, and tempted.
[00:01:06] Now, I don't know about you, but that is quite the challenging concept.
[00:01:13] I mean, literally, just fasting, it's not the most comfortable thing. It's not the most comfortable topic.
[00:01:21] I mean, it's not flashy. It's not fun. Fasting is about emptiness. It's about creating space for heaven to have room to move inside our soul.
[00:01:31] But hear me. Before Jesus ever preached his sermon, before he healed the sick or raised the dead, he fasted.
[00:01:38] Matthew 4 says, Then Jesus was led by the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil. For 40 days and 40 nights, he fasted and became hungry. Duh, right?
[00:01:49] And right there in that wilderness, while Jesus was physically empty, he was spiritually full.
[00:01:57] Sometimes God leads us into a wilderness so that the noise of the world fades and his voice becomes clearer.
[00:02:05] Or maybe for many of us, just clear for the first time.
[00:02:09] Jesus wasn't skipping meals. He was strengthening his spirit. He wasn't on a diet. Fasting was his preparation for the fight.
[00:02:17] The Son of God knew that before he faced temptation, he needed to be filled with power.
[00:02:24] You see, fasting doesn't twist God's arm.
[00:02:28] It's not like a bypass and a quick fix. It clears your own heart. It drains out the distractions, the dependence on the physical, and tunes you into the frequency of the Father.
[00:02:43] And when the devil showed up, Notice the timing. He didn't come on day one.
[00:02:47] He came when Jesus was hungry.
[00:02:50] He waited until the weakness showed up.
[00:02:53] That's the way the enemy works. He doesn't fight you where you're strongest. He comes after you where you're tired and hungry and alone.
[00:03:01] Satan said in Matthew 4. Three, if you're the son of God, hear that? If you're the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread. Oh, that's pretty slick, because the enemy always tempts you to prove what God has already proclaimed. Remember what God said at his baptism. This is my dearly loved son. And here comes Satan whispering, if you're really the son, prove it. Jesus didn't need to prove anything. He just needed to stay grounded in what his father had already said. And he answers in verse four. No. The scriptures say people do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. Oh, that's it right there, y'. All. Jesus used the Word as his weapon and fasting as his defense system.
[00:03:47] He was physically weak, but spiritually unstoppable. You see, fasting doesn't give you less, it makes room for more. When you empty yourself of comfort, you create capacity for clarity. Can I just say that one more time? When you empty yourself of comfort, you create capacity for clarity.
[00:04:09] When you silence your cravings, you strengthen your convictions.
[00:04:14] Some of us are losing battles not because we lack faith, but because we're spiritually cluttered. The fridge is full, but the soul is starving.
[00:04:24] Fasting reminds you that real power isn't found in what you consume. It's found in what you surrender.
[00:04:31] Let me break that down for somebody. It's not what's on your plate that sustains you. It's who's on the throne that keeps you standing.
[00:04:40] Jesus got that. That's why when Satan came again, tempting, with pride, with power, with shortcuts, Jesus kept answering with scripture. He didn't fight Satan with emotion, he fought him with the truth. He didn't argue, he declared, he didn't panic. He stood on the word of God.
[00:05:01] And that's what fasting does. It gives you spiritual backbone when everything else feels shaky in this world.
[00:05:08] Friend, maybe 20, 26 is your wilderness season.
[00:05:12] Maybe you're in that place where nothing feels easy and you're wondering where God is. Well, let me tell you, he's there in the quiet, in the empty and the stretch.
[00:05:21] Don't despise the wilderness. That's the place where the foundation of your strength is forged. Jesus came out of that 40 day fast ready to declare, the spirit of the Lord is upon me.
[00:05:33] He left that wilderness not with weakness, but with authority. And that same spirit that sustained Jesus is available to you right now.
[00:05:42] So here's your challenge this week. Whatever's been feeding your fears, fast from it. Whatever's been drowning out God's voice, set it aside.
[00:05:52] Maybe it's social media, maybe it's negativity, maybe it's food itself, but make space.
[00:05:58] Because spiritual power always flows through spiritual preparation.
[00:06:03] You don't have to face temptation alone. You don't have to fight battles in your own strength. You just need to step into the rhythm Jesus showed us. Make space. Stay grounded. Speak truth. Because when the enemy comes whispering lies, fasting ensures that heaven is the loudest voice in the room.
[00:06:21] So empty yourself. Fill up on the Word, and let the power that comes from empty carry through.
[00:06:28] This is Chuck Allen, and I'm so glad you joined me. Thanks for listening in, friend. Now go live in peace and power and make today count, because I promise you, the Lord is with you. Take care. Bye now.
