Fasting

Chapter 3: Fasting

When it comes to the doctrine of fasting there is some mystery surrounding it. When a Christian is asked why they are fasting the answers we receive are seldom the same. The most common responses are repentance, understanding, atonement, obedience, devotion and to reestablish worldly and eternal purposes. So now we have to ask ourselves, are there multiple reasons for fasting? Or is there one reason?

The first declared fast we find in the bible at Judges 20:24-26 “So the children of Israel approached the children of Benjamin on the second day. And Benjamin went out against them from Gibeah on the second day, and cut down to the ground eighteen thousand more of the children of Israel; all these drew the sword. Then all the children of Israel, that is, all the people, went up and came to the house of God and wept. They sat there before the Lord and fasted that day until evening; and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord.” Let us try to put ourselves in the mindset of the Israelites. Under the direction of the Lord they went to war with Benjamin and on the first day they lost 22,000 men. On the second day of war under the direction of the Lord they fought with Benjamin and lost 18,000 men for a total of 40,000 men thus far. At this point in time the Israelites were in the grips of despair, hopelessness and sorrow. They must have been second guessing their discernment of God’s will because they are following the Lord’s instructions and all that came of it was peril. At this point they fasted. Instead of succumbing to the despair, hopelessness, sorrow and confusion, they turned a blind eye to doubt and followed their faith. Instead of succumbing to the despair, hopelessness, sorrow and confusion, they turned a blind eye to doubt and followed their faith. How many of us would have kept our faith in these circumstances? Would we have blamed our leadership and accused them of misinterpretation? Would we have blamed God for abandoning us? The children of Israel were seeking understanding of God’s will for them. As a whole they were in the house of God bearing their most intimate feelings, weeping and at the same time refused to eat. One could interpret that food presented some kind of distraction from their expressions and petitions to God or perhaps in order to eat, it would mean they would have had to leave the house of God thus interrupting their expressions and petitions to God. The Israelites were trying to ascertain from God an understanding as to why they are seeing negative results from following His instructions, to receive the strength to remain obedient until His will is revealed and to obtain a sign to know that He has heard their petitions. In these verses fasting was for the Israelites themselves, so they could keep distractions and interruptions at bay while they prayed to God during a time of great distress. Fasting did not increase the power or validity of their prayers, it provided focus.

It reads in 1Samuel 7:3-6 “Then Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, ‘If you return to the Lord with all your hearts, then put away foreign gods and the Ashoreths from among you, and prepare your hearts for the Lord, and serve Him only; and He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.’ So the children of Israel put away the Baals and the Ashoreths, and served the Lord only. And Samuel said, ‘Gather all Israel to Mizpah, and I will pray to the Lord for you.’ So gathered together at Mizpah, drew water, and poured it out before the Lord. And they fasted that day, and said there, ‘We have sinned against the Lord.’ And Samuel judged the children of Israel at Mizpah.” Here the children of Israel were being oppressed by the Philistines and had strayed from God’s commandments in their worship. The people were in the grip of despair resulting from their desperation. Samuel instructed them according to the commandments of God and they listened. As a whole, a fast was declared and they made their petitions to God. This was a petition of repentance; an acknowledgement of their disregard for God’s commandments. Here the fast was used in preparation for their prayer to God. It can be interpreted as both an expression of obedience and to bring focus to their prayer. In this scripture fasting was not used to bring increased validity to their repentance rather to assist their focus and give depth to their obedience. This fast was for the benefit of Israel and not for God, used in a time for prayer in the midst of distress.

It says in 2Samuel 1:10-12 “So I stood over him and killed him, because I was sure that he could not live after he had fallen. And I took the crown that was on his head and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them here to my lord.’ Therefore David took hold of his own clothes and tore them, and so did all the men who were with him. And they mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul and for Jonathan his son, for the people of the Lord and for the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword.” Once again we find in the midst of despair, distress and sorrow a fast is declared. King Saul who was the chosen one of God to rule Israel had fallen in battle. Saul was the first king of Israel and no doubt there was confusion as to how to proceed, even for David who had been anointed by Samuel to be Saul’s successor earlier in his life. In this scripture the fast was assigned a purpose. The fast accompanied the mourning and weeping to assist the people of the Lord and the house of Israel. We can draw from our own experiences of how grieving releases emotions that assist in our healing. So we can presume that this fast assisted in the grieving process, most likely to provide a focus or clarity amidst the emotions being felt and attentiveness in the prayers being offered to the Lord on behalf of the losses Israel received. In these 3 scriptures we have discussed thus far, there is a significant similarity that we should not overlook. The timeframe we have been given for the declared fasts has been one day. This brings us to the first declared fast that had exceeded one day.

It reads in 1Samuel 31:11-13 “Now when the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, all the valiant men arose and traveled all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth Shan; and they came to Jabesh and burned them there. Then they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and fasted seven days.” When we examine these scriptures from Samuel surrounding the death of Saul we find the differences in the fasting time between David and the men of Jabesh Gilead. We can assume that the events at Jabesh Gilead happened after David learned of Saul’s death. Perhaps the difference in the 2 fasts is the citizens of Jabesh Gilead had a stronger connection with Saul from when he aided them in their time of great distress caused by the Philistines or more likely it was because of the atrocities committed on Saul’s remains who was a hero to them. Also the state of Saul’s remains may have been unknown by David when their fast was declared. This could lead to the interpretation that since David already fasted for Saul and once he learned of the remains of Saul, a second fast was not declared. I do not believe that David had any less loyalty to Saul then the men of Jabesh Gilead because of his words and behavior in the cave. Plus Jonathan who David thought of as a brother was killed as well, so I do not believe that the length of the fasts had anything to do with loyalty but rather personal choice.

Now we are brought to our next 7 day fast. It says in 2Samuel 12:16-23 “David therefore pleaded with God for the child, and David fasted and went in and lay all night on the ground. So the elders of his house arose and went to him, to raise him up from the ground. But he would not, nor did he eat food with them. Then on the seventh day it came to pass that the child died. And the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead. For they said, ‘Indeed, while the child was alive, we spoke to him, and he would not heed our voice. How can we tell him that the child is dead? He may do some harm!’ When David saw that his servants were whispering, David perceived that the child was dead. Therefore David said to his servants, ‘Is the child dead?’ And they said, ‘He is dead.’ So David arose from the ground, washed and anointed himself, and changed his clothes; and he went into the house of the Lord and worshipped. Then he went to his own house; and when he requested, they set food before him, and he ate. Then his servants said to him, ‘What is this that you have done? You fasted and wept for the child while he was alive, but when the child died, you arose and ate food.’ And he said, ‘While the child was alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, ‘Who can tell whether the Lord will be gracious to me, that the child may live? But now he is dead; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.” This fast of David is perhaps the most intricate fasting we find in the bible. Nathan tells David because of his sins of lying with a married woman and murdering her husband to hide his adultery, that his child born out of adultery will die and David will be spared. David then fasts to express his repentance in an attempt to appeal to God’s mercies for the life of his son. What David may or may not have been aware of, was that his faith and trust in God’s word had him mourning, weeping and fasting his son’s death at the moment the Lord condemned his son to death and not when his son’s spirit left his body. Traditionally mourning, weeping and fasting did not take place until the spirit left the body, but in this break from tradition, the elders learned and David accepted that his son was dead the moment God spoke it into His will.

What the Israelites in the passage from Judges didn’t realize is that the significant losses they received the first two days allowed for the over-confidence of the Benjamites, which in turn lead to their defeat on the third day. What David did not realize is that were his son to live, he would be a reminder to David and all of Israel of David’s sin, he would be a living blaspheme against God and perhaps a source of dissention for Israel. The deaths of the 40,000 Israelites and David’s son although tragic were in the service to God’s will. David’s fast which appeared unorthodox in all actuality was an expression of repentance, within the tradition of mourning, in an effort to focus and obtain understanding.

We read in 1Kings 21:25-27 “But there was no one like Ahab who sold himself to do wickedness in the sight of the Lord, because Jezebel his wife stirred him up. And he behaved abominably in following idols, according to all that the Amorites had done, whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel. So it was, when Ahab heard those words, that he tore his clothes and put sackcloth on his body, and fasted and lay in sackcloth, and when about mourning.” Then in Jonah 3:4 “And Jonah began to enter the city on the first day’s walk. Then he cried out and said, ‘Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be over thrown!’ So the people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them.” And in Nehemiah 9:1 “Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, in sackcloth, and with dust on their heads.” In these scriptures we have arguably one of the most evil kings of Israel in Ahab, in Nineveh one of the most vile cities of that time and the descendants of perhaps the most defiant group of Israelites. In all of these examples we see desperate needs for repentance and in each instance a mercy is needed that only God is capable of providing. These examples start out in a similar fashion of becoming aware of their transgressions. We have Ahab and his abominations, Nineveh and their atrocities and Israel with their rebelliousness. They all enter in to their fasting with the mindset of desperation, knowing that God would be just, if He were to destroy them. Their actions however represent their hope, in the mercies of God. After awareness, came the fast. The fasting in these instances were performed in an act of obedience. It was as if they were telling God, I get it and I know what I must do! I am expressing commitment to change. Then came the donning of sackcloth. This was symbolic of their denial of worldly comforts, their expressions to the Lord that He is their only need and an act of humility that represents their acknowledgement that all they have is from Him. Fasting in these scriptures was used to prepare for repentance by eliminating distraction and enhancing focus. Fasting coupled with sackcloth provided added significance to the level of commitment toward their repentance. It may appear that the purpose of these fastings were to please God, however they prepared these individuals’ mind, body and soul for the petitions of repentance they were to make and to make these petitions worthy.

It reads in 2Chronicles 20:2-4 “Then some came and told Jehoshaphat, saying, ‘A great multitude is coming against you from beyond the sea, from Syria; and they are in Hazazon Tamar’ (which is En Gedi). And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout Judah. So Judah gathered together to ask help from the Lord; and from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord; and from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord.” Then in Esther 3:13 “And the letters were sent by couriers into all the kings provinces, to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate all the Jews, both young and old, little children and women, in one day, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar, and to plunder their possessions.” Also in Esther 4:1 “When Mordecai learned all that happened, he tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the midst of the city. He cried out with a loud and bitter cry.” And in Esther 4:15-16 “Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai: ‘Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king, which is against the law; and if I perish, I perish!” In these scriptures we have Jehoshaphat facing overwhelming odds in a potential war, Mordecai was facing potential annihilation and Esther was facing the potential wrath of a king. There is a verse in the 2Chronicles scripture that encompasses our study thus far when it comes to fasting and that was “Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord.” Setting ourselves to seek the Lord; how clearly stated is this? When tribulation was closing in and these 3 individuals were overcome with worldly fear what did they do? They sought out the Lord and prepared themselves to do this with a fast. They not only did this as individuals but as a people, saying in one voice, we trust in God in the face of our tribulation. The fast once again provided focus so their petition to God is offered up with clarity in obedience.

It reads in Ezra 8:21 “Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahara, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from Him the right way for us and our little ones and all our possessions.” Then in Psalm 35:13 “But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth; I humbled myself with fasting; and my prayer would return to my own heart.” And in Isaiah 58:3-7 “Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and You have not seen? Why have we afflicted our souls, and You take no notice?’ ‘In fact, in the day of your fast you find pleasure and exploit all your laborers. Indeed you fast for strife and debate, and to strike with a fist of wickedness. You will not fast as you do this day, to make your voice heard on high. Is it a fast I have chosen, a day for a man to afflict his soul? Is it to bow down his head like a bulrush, and to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Would you call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the Lord? Is this not the fast I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out; when you see the naked that you cover him, and not hide yourself from your own flesh?” These scriptures have spoken to us in a profound way regarding fasting. Humility is to be the centerpiece of our fast. Our individual wants and needs have no place in our reasoning when it comes to fasting. Our fast is a vehicle to be used to open our eyes to the needs of others, to honor others in their passing, to loosen the grips of worldly fear, to seek wisdom in order to guide others and to seek humility with an obedient heart. A fast can help remove our worldly blinders and open our eyes to the purpose God has for us. The verses in Isaiah give us a contrast in the reasoning for a fast and what we should take away from it. Verses 6-7 should give added meaning to the words ‘Thy will be done.’ This is what God wants from us and when we stray from our purpose, a fast can take the focus off ourselves and back on to the needs of others. Isaiah is portraying the concept of worldly vs. eternal, temporary vs. permanent and death vs. life.

We are given additional insight in Matthew 6:16-21 “Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” And in Zechariah 7:4-7 “Then the word of the Lord of hosts came to me, saying, ‘Say to all the people of the land, and to the priests: when you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months during those seventy years, did you really fast for Me—for Me? When you eat and when you drink, do you not eat and drink for yourselves? Should you not have obeyed the words which the Lord proclaimed through the former prophets when Jerusalem and the cities around it were inhabited and prosperous, and the south and the lowland were inhabited?” Both Jesus and Zechariah confirm what Isaiah was saying that God wants us to use fasting to align or realign our choices to further the purpose that God has for us. Our fast needs to help us meditate on the instructions that God has given us through His prophets and His word. The Pharisees, that Jesus was referring to in Matthew, had the written word of Isaiah and Zechariah, but chose not to seek eternal approval while fasting, rather they sought to be noticed by the men of the world, and perhaps in an effort to maintain credibility and approval. Zechariah tells us of priests that ignored the prophets which led to the anger of the Lord, resulting in their captivity in Babylon for 70 years. Zechariah expands by telling us that during that time period when the priests declared fasts they were purposed to petition God for freedom and were not fasts of repentance. They did this in order realign themselves with the purposes of God and to express their obedience to His instructions however their reasons were not for God’s glory. These scriptures stress how important it is to focus our thoughts and choices on the eternal and not the worldly; also to reflect the glory of God in our daily lives and to refrain from seeking glory for ourselves in the world.

It reads in Joel 2:12-13 “Now, therefore, says the Lord ‘Turn to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.’ So rend your heart, and not your garments; return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness; and He relents from doing harm.” God is concerned about what is weighing on our hearts and is of great significance to Him therefore we can use a fast to seek Him. Joel uses an analogy here that reminds us that we need to be aware of why we are approaching God. Is it for the purposes of the Lord, or our own? When we fast our heart needs to be hungry for the instructions, qualities and purposes of God. It is not a coincidence that both Isaiah and Joel tell us to seek out and reflect the awesome qualities of God. Joel lists some of these qualities and Isaiah tells us how we can reflect some of them. Given this insight we learn that in fasting we need to seek God with all our heart, so we can learn to be more like Him; we must also seek Him with the desire for the good things of God so we may receive the good things from God. Jesus also told us in Matthew that the good things from God are found in the permanent, lasting heaven and not in the temporary, perishing world. Therefore our endurance is tested, because we can only see our treasure in heaven with faith and not with our worldly eyes. So it is possible to lead our own hearts astray from the purposes given us by God. However we can remind ourselves through fasting and prayer, of our purpose and to reflect the amazing qualities of God.

It reads in Matthew 4:1-4 “Then Jesus wasted up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, ‘If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.’ But He answered and said, ‘It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” Then in Matthew 17:14-21 “And when they had come to the multitude, a man came to Him, kneeling down to Him and saying, ‘Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure him.’ Then Jesus answered and said, ‘O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.’ And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour. Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, ‘Why could we not cast it out?’ So Jesus said to them, ‘Because of your unbelief; assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, move from here to there, and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” And in Acts 14:21-23 “And when they had preached the gospel to that city and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in faith saying, ‘We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.’ So when they had appointed elders in every church, and prayed with fasting, they commanded them to the Lord in whom they had believed.” Jesus spent 40 days and 40 nights in the wilderness fasting and praying. Many of us after reading this scripture ask ourselves, why did He need do this as the Son of God and sinless? We know the wilderness in itself is a trial and that God has used this tribulation to grow the faith and trust of His people. In the times of Moses the Israelites entered the wilderness in unrighteousness and here we have Jesus entering the wilderness in righteousness. There is a definite redemptive connection when we compare the above scriptures, but in this study we will focus on the connection with fasting. In the wilderness God was forging the character of His people. When Jesus entered the wilderness God was confirming His character and Christ was seeking God in preparation for what was to come. Much like Jehoshaphat, Christ set Himself to seek the Lord. Jesus subjected Himself to the trials of the wilderness and with fasting strengthened His Spirit and weakened the flesh. His fast was performed with a faithful heart and all the while He was preparing for the purpose God had given Him. Then the tempter came erroneously thinking that Jesus was vulnerable to attack. Jesus undoubtedly strengthened in spirit and prepared for what He had to do, was still plagued by fleshly hunger. The devil being aware of this tried to thwart Christ’s purpose by suggesting sin through pride. Trying to manipulate Jesus into relying on Himself to provide instead of God. Christ answered temptation with scripture thus establishing His faith in God to provide. Do these events feel familiar to anyone? How many of us have been in a wilderness (figuratively) and have been rendered vulnerable? In this state how many of us have been tempted by Satan in our vulnerability? What was the result? We can look to Jesus’ example and find the hope and strength we need when we are vulnerable to attack. Let us ask ourselves what did Jesus do in trial that we have not? With a faithful heart, Christ prepared for temptation by seeking God through prayer and fasting. We can emulate His example because like Christ we know Satan is coming. Does this mean we have to fast 40 days and 40 nights to prepare? No, the bible does not state this, although it is good to practice fasting and praying for clarity ahead and in the midst of our vulnerabilities to better serve the purpose God has for us.

Now let’s discuss the miracle Jesus was able to perform that the disciples were not. When the disciples inquired of Christ as to why they were unable to cast out the demon, Jesus gave them the analogy of a mustard seed. As we learned in Matthew 13:31-32 that a mustard seed “is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.” In the scripture of study Jesus compares one’s faith to a mustard seed. So what we know is our faith starts out small, can continue to grow and have limitless potential. Now we can ascertain that with the faith of a seed we may not be able to move mountains, but Jesus says we are able as the seed grows. First however we all have to have the seed of faith in order to grow it. Now we may be asking ourselves how do we grow our faith? Jesus answers us in Matthew 17:21 “However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” Preparing for our temptations, trusting God in the midst of our tribulations and following God’s instructions with prayer and fasting are ways to grow our faith. In time we may come to realize our eternal purpose and not be faithful in our self-imposed worldly purpose. In the Acts 14 scripture cited earlier we read that Paul and Barnabas had emulated the example of Christ and followed the instructions of God, by using prayer and fasting to strengthen the faith of the disciples, appoint elders of the church and the commend those who believed. Now it is our turn!

We have heard the common reasons why Christians fast and these are repentance, understanding, atonement, obedience, devotion and re-establish their awareness of worldly and eternal purposes. We must remember in fasting we are to seek God with a faithful heart for His purposes and not our own. We must seek God to be more like God. Let us end this segment with the prayer that Nehemiah made while fasting before God. It reads in Nehemiah 1:5-11 “And I said: ‘I pray, Lord God of heaven, O great and awesome God, You who keep Your covenant and mercy with those who love You and observe Your commandments, please let Your ear be attentive and Your eyes open that You may hear the prayer of Your servant which I pray before You now, day and night, for the children of Israel You servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel which we have sinned against You. Both my father’s house and I have sinned. We have acted very corruptly against You, and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses. Remember, I pray, the word that you commanded Your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations; but if you return to Me, and keep My commandments and do them, though some of you were cast out the farthest part of the heavens, yet I will gather them from there, and bring them to the place which I have chosen as a dwelling for My name. Now these are Your servants and Your people, whom You have redeemed by Your great power, and by Your strong hand. O Lord, I pray, please let Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant, and to the prayer of Your servants who desire to fear Your name; and let Your servant prosper this day, I pray and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.” Amen