NO FASTING GOD
“My dad asked me what I was giving up for Lent this year. I told him I was giving up God for Lent so I wouldn’t have to feel guilty.” -A Catholic teen overheard on a bus.
Ash Wednesday is upon us, a day when Catholics gather to have their foreheads marked with ashes in the shape of a cross as a sign of penitence and dedication to Christ. It marks the beginning of the 40 days leading to Easter. The idea of community repentance and fasting is a good one, one that could bring much spiritual fruit in our churches if practiced with the right heart. The question is, how much of Lent becomes just another gotta-do religious act? If Christians from any denomination choose to take this time to seek God’s face in the days leading up to the celebration of our Lord’s death and resurrection, that is excellent. Prayer and fasting are still biblical, but they must be done carefully and in truth.
Many instances of fasting are found in the Old Testament; Moses fasted for 40 days when he went up to receive the Law from the LORD (Exo. 34:28 [show/hide]Exodus 34:28
[28]So he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights. He neither ate bread nor drank water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments. (ESV)
); Daniel entered into a three week partial fast which removed all delicacies (pleasant bread, meat and wine) from his diet (Dan 10:3 [show/hide]Daniel 10:3
[3]I ate no delicacies, no meat or wine entered my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all, for the full three weeks. (ESV)
); the people of Nehemiah’s time fasted and prayed and repented in sackcloth as the Law of the LORD was read to them (Neh. 9:1 [show/hide]Nehemiah 9:1
The People of Israel Confess Their Sin
[9:1]Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the people of Israel were assembled with fasting and in sackcloth, and with earth on their heads. (ESV)
); Esther and her maids fasted from both food and water for three days before she went in to speak to the King in order to save the life of her people (Est. 4:16 [show/hide]Esther 4:16
[16]"Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish." (ESV)
).
Fasting does not only belong in the Old Testament, though. Jesus fasted for 40 days in the desert before choosing his disciples (Luke 4 [show/hide]Luke 4
The Temptation of Jesus
[4:1]And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness [2]for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry. [3]The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread." [4]And Jesus answered him, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone.'" [5]And the devil took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, [6]and said to him, "To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. [7]If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours." [8]And Jesus answered him, "It is written,
"'You shall worship the Lord your God,
and him only shall you serve.'"
[9]And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, [10]for it is written,
"'He will command his angels concerning you,
to guard you,'
[11]and
"'On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.'"
[12]And Jesus answered him, "It is said, 'You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.'" [13]And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time.
Jesus Begins His Ministry
[14]And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and a report about him went out through all the surrounding country. [15]And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.
Jesus Rejected at Nazareth
[16]And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. [17]And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,
[18]"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
[19]to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."
[20]And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. [21]And he began to say to them, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." [22]And all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth. And they said, "Is not this Joseph's son?" [23]And he said to them, "Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, 'Physician, heal yourself.' What we have heard you did at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well." [24]And he said, "Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown. [25]But in truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heavens were shut up three years and six months, and a great famine came over all the land, [26]and Elijah was sent to none of them but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. [27]And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian." [28]When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath. [29]And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff. [30]But passing through their midst, he went away.
Jesus Heals a Man with an Unclean Demon
[31]And he went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee. And he was teaching them on the Sabbath, [32]and they were astonished at his teaching, for his word possessed authority. [33]And in the synagogue there was a man who had the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, [34]"Ha! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are--the Holy One of God." [35]But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent and come out of him!" And when the demon had thrown him down in their midst, he came out of him, having done him no harm. [36]And they were all amazed and said to one another, "What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out!" [37]And reports about him went out into every place in the surrounding region.
Jesus Heals Many
[38]And he arose and left the synagogue and entered Simon's house. Now Simon's mother-in-law was ill with a high fever, and they appealed to him on her behalf. [39]And he stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her, and immediately she rose and began to serve them.
[40]Now when the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to him, and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them. [41]And demons also came out of many, crying, "You are the Son of God!" But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the Christ.
Jesus Preaches in Synagogues
[42]And when it was day, he departed and went into a desolate place. And the people sought him and came to him, and would have kept him from leaving them, [43]but he said to them, "I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose." [44]And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea. (ESV)
). In Acts 13 [show/hide]Acts 13
Barnabas and Saul Sent Off
[13:1]Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a member of the court of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. [2]While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." [3]Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.
Barnabas and Saul on Cyprus
[4]So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. [5]When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. And they had John to assist them. [6]When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they came upon a certain magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus. [7]He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. [8]But Elymas the magician (for that is the meaning of his name) opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. [9]But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him [10]and said, "You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? [11]And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time." Immediately mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking people to lead him by the hand. [12]Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at the teaching of the Lord.
Paul and Barnabas at Antioch in Pisidia
[13]Now Paul and his companions set sail from Paphos and came to Perga in Pamphylia. And John left them and returned to Jerusalem, [14]but they went on from Perga and came to Antioch in Pisidia. And on the Sabbath day they went into the synagogue and sat down. [15]After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent a message to them, saying, "Brothers, if you have any word of encouragement for the people, say it." [16]So Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand said:
"Men of Israel and you who fear God, listen. [17]The God of this people Israel chose our fathers and made the people great during their stay in the land of Egypt, and with uplifted arm he led them out of it. [18]And for about forty years he put up with them in the wilderness. [19]And after destroying seven nations in the land of Canaan, he gave them their land as an inheritance. [20]All this took about 450 years. And after that he gave them judges until Samuel the prophet. [21]Then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. [22]And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and said, 'I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.' [23]Of this man's offspring God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised. [24]Before his coming, John had proclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. [25]And as John was finishing his course, he said, 'What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. No, but behold, after me one is coming, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie.'
[26]"Brothers, sons of the family of Abraham, and those among you who fear God, to us has been sent the message of this salvation. [27]For those who live in Jerusalem and their rulers, because they did not recognize him nor understand the utterances of the prophets, which are read every Sabbath, fulfilled them by condemning him. [28]And though they found in him no guilt worthy of death, they asked Pilate to have him executed. [29]And when they had carried out all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree and laid him in a tomb. [30]But God raised him from the dead, [31]and for many days he appeared to those who had come up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now his witnesses to the people. [32]And we bring you the good news that what God promised to the fathers, [33]this he has fulfilled to us their children by raising Jesus, as also it is written in the second Psalm,
"'You are my Son,
today I have begotten you.'
[34]And as for the fact that he raised him from the dead, no more to return to corruption, he has spoken in this way,
"'I will give you the holy and sure blessings of David.'
[35]Therefore he says also in another psalm,
"'You will not let your Holy One see corruption.'
[36]For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid with his fathers and saw corruption, [37]but he whom God raised up did not see corruption. [38]Let it be known to you therefore, brothers, that through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, [39]and by him everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses. [40]Beware, therefore, lest what is said in the Prophets should come about:
[41]"'Look, you scoffers,
be astounded and perish;
for I am doing a work in your days,
a work that you will not believe, even if one tells it to you.'"
[42]As they went out, the people begged that these things might be told them the next Sabbath. [43]And after the meeting of the synagogue broke up, many Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who, as they spoke with them, urged them to continue in the grace of God.
[44]The next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. [45]But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began to contradict what was spoken by Paul, reviling him. [46]And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, "It was necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you. Since you thrust it aside and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles. [47]For so the Lord has commanded us, saying,
"'I have made you a light for the Gentiles,
that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.'"
[48]And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed. [49]And the word of the Lord was spreading throughout the whole region. [50]But the Jews incited the devout women of high standing and the leading men of the city, stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their district. [51]But they shook off the dust from their feet against them and went to Iconium. [52]And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit. (ESV)
, the church at Antioch was fasting and praying when the Holy Spirit told them to separate out Barnabas and Saul (Paul) for the work He had for them. Jesus never said, “If you fast…” he said, “When you fast….” (Matt. 6:16 [show/hide]Matthew 6:16
Fasting
[16]"And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. (ESV)
) and prayer and fasting can still be a valuable practice for the Church today. In fact, Jesus indicated that certain evil spiritual forces are only driven out by fasting and prayer (Mark 9:29 [show/hide]Mark 9:29
[29]And he said to them, "This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer." (ESV)
).
Before beginning a time of prayer and fasting, though, it is important to keep some things in mind:
1) Fasting is not an obligation.
The purpose of fasting is to seek God’s face, to examine oneself and get any unconfessed sin out in the open. It’s a time to put other things aside and remember that nothing is more important than Jesus – a time to remember our “first Love.” It’s a time to once again present ourselves as living sacrifices before God, humbling ourselves before Him in love and worship, saying, “Here I am, Father. I’m Yours.” There is little value in fasting as merely a religious act, out of guilt, or because everybody else is doing it.
2) Don’t be a self-denial hero.
Fasting is not about the simple act of going without. It is not a battle of self-control or willpower. We should save willpower for dieting. Fasting is about putting God first in our lives, setting aside other things that are just not as important as our relationship with Him.
3) Fasting requires care and prudence.
While Moses survived 40 days without food and water, his circumstances were especially unique. People have died through imprudent fasting. Both entering into a fast and getting off a fast should be done slowly and gradually, so as to give they body time to adjust, and it can be wise to get a medical examination before starting a major fast.
For some people, fasting can be harmful. Certain people should never fast all food, especially people with a history of eating disorders, those with heart conditions, diabetes, hypoglycemia, or pregnant or nursing women.
4) Fasting food is optional.
There are many ways to fast. A 40-day food-free fast is possible and can be spiritually beneficial, but it can also be life-threatening if not done properly. There are partial fasts, like when Daniel avoided meat and wine for three weeks. There are short food-free fasts like Esther’s three days. Some people fast only one day or one meal - or one day each week. Many people go on juice-only fasts, which can also be cleansing for the body.
There are many things that can be fasted without starving oneself, however. Some people give up chocolate and sweets, and others give up watching television. Any things that could come between us and God are good candidates for fasting, especially our time wasters, like computer games or endless texting on the phone.
5) Don’t let Satan get you down.
God can use our fasting and prayer times to win powerful spiritual battles, and, because of that, Satan is guaranteed to try to discourage us. We need to be ready for opposition and distraction, determined to keep our commitment to the end, but we also need to remember our artillery against the Enemy is prayer and worship. Any time we get discouraged and aggravated or distracted, we need to quickly take the matter before the Throne of God. As James 4:7 [show/hide]James 4:7
[7]Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (ESV)
says, “…Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
6) Focus On God.
The purpose of fasting is not simply the act of self-denial; it is a time to come before the Lord. If we give up watching our favorite show, it should be because we are putting that time toward the purpose of seeking God. Setting aside our golf clubs for a month is fairly useless if, instead of playing golf, we just go bowling.
When we fast, we need to set aside specific time to dedicate ourselves to going before God. He is the whole point of the fast, after all. And beyond our special quiet time with our King, we should enjoy worship and prayer throughout the day, taking every opportunity to enter His presence. Bill Bright writes:
“Read His Word and pray during what were mealtimes. Meditate on Him when you awake in the night. Sing praises to Him whenever you please. Focus on your Heavenly Father and make every act one of praise and worship. God will enable you to experience His command to “pray without ceasing” as you seek His presence.”
7) Any time can be good for a fast.
It may be the season of Lent, a popular time for fasting and prayer. However, fasting is not limited to set times on a calendar. Community fasting and prayer can be a powerful weapon and an excellent way for a church body to get on track with the Spirit of God. However, the most important time to fast is when the Spirit leads us.
May God bless us all as we come before Him and prepare our hearts to serve Him now and every day throughout this year.
Related Links:
• A Personal Guide to Fasting and Prayer - Campus Crusade For Christ
• Knowing God’s Will Personally: Part 2 - Koinonia House
