Eight Reasons To Fast
Jan 19, 2023Why do you take the easier route when it comes to fasting? You say, “Oh, I’ll just skip breakfast,” but, let’s be real, you don’t actually even eat breakfast. (P.S. I can say it because I have done it.)
Before you move on, selah--pause and ponder what’s true for you. Invite the Lord’s gaze to search your heart, helping you discern your resistance to fasting. Invite His Spirit to prepare your heart to engage thoughtfully in these eight reasons Christians have fasted throughout the ages.
Reason 1: Personal Transformation
One of the doctrines we don’t talk about enough is the doctrine of mortification. This doctrine is descriptive of the daily work of a Christian dying to their flesh and the ways of the world to live by the Spirit in congruence with God’s Word. It’s the work Paul speaks of in Romans 12:2, where we, as an act of worship, seek to no longer “be conformed to the ways of the world” and instead “transformed by the renewing of our mind.” However, as Jesus has warned us, sometimes, some of those old ways only come out through prayer and fasting (Matthew 17:21). Sometimes, we need to couple our Bible reading, counseling sessions, and wise counsel with intentional prayer and fasting, learning how to deny ourselves the basic need for food in order to deny the passions of our flesh.
Reason 2: Mourning
When Nehemiah got word that his country lay in ruin, vulnerable to outside threats, He “mourned for a number of days, fasting and praying before the God of heaven” (Nehemiah 1:4). Many of us have experienced the inability to eat or sleep in the midst of heartbreak and feelings of hopelessness. However, for many of us, these feelings don’t lead us to take our mourning to God intentionally. We may take it to alcohol, scrolling endlessly on IG, somebody’s body, or just staring restlessly at the four walls of our bedroom. Here, Nehemiah models for us a different option, revealing to us that we can bring our grief to God through fasting and prayer.
Reason 3: Spiritual Preparation
The most powerful example of fasting for spiritual preparation is Jesus’ forty days of fasting in the wilderness. Check back next week for a further dive into how Jesus’ fast prepared Him for ministry.
Reason 4: Repentance
My favorite example of fasting as an act of repentance is in Jonah. Here it is, Jonah is salty because God has commanded Him to go preach to Nineveh. Jonah doesn’t want to go. He thinks that Nineveh is too wicked and, therefore, undeserving of God’s grace. But he also knows that if they repent, God will be gracious, forgiving them for all of their wrongs. I can see Jonah begrudgingly following God’s command, preaching to the people of Ninevah while also hoping they won’t repent. Well, wouldn’t you know it? They repent not only with their words but also through a national fast. Everyone from the King to the farmer’s rooster fasted in hopes of turning God’s wrath from consuming them.
Though Christ has turned God’s wrath from us, fasting as an act of repentance is still of value to us today. However, we do it knowing that God’s wrath has already been satisfied through Christ. We fast as an act of remorse for our sins and -an opportunity to invite the Spirit to search our hearts and lead us to paths of life. This leads us to the next reason…
Reason 5: Break Sinful Strongholds
I love the way Pastor Manny puts this in session eleven of this course, “Fasting to Break Sinful Strongholds.” He says:
“One of the things that begin to happen in fasting is that God begins to change what you’re hungry for.”
In fasting, not only are we actively weaning ourselves off temporal pleasures, but we are also actively rewiring our desire for eternal ones. Thomas Chalmers refers to this as “The Expulsive Power of a New Affection,” where a sinful stronghold is expelled and replaced by a more powerful one.
Reason 6: Divine Direction
Often in Scripture, we see men and women, in the midst of uncertainty, stop to fast and hear from the Lord. In Judges 19-20, when the Israelites are unsure of how to respond to a devastating incident of rape in their community, they fast and seek the Lord for direction. After weeping and fasting all night long, in the morning, the Lord gives them their next step, sending them to execute His justice on the perpetrators through war.
Reason 7: Miracles
We’ll double back and reflect on this reason later this month. Y’all, come back now, ya hear?
Reason 8: Unity
The Bible has just as many examples of people fasting individually as it does people fasting in community. Fasting in community is not only a great means for accountability and encouragement, but it is also a unifying event as a community of people trusting God together as one. Though those of us who have grown up in an individualistic society, often pursue spiritual growth as lone rangers, God loves it when His people petition Him together. Remember these famous words: “If my people, who are called by my name, would humble themselves (fast) and pray, then I will hear from heaven and heal their land (2 Chronicles 7:14). ”
Identify Your Reason
As you consider fasting, I invite you to sit with these eight reasons. Which one stands out to you the most? Are you in need of spiritual direction? Freedom from a sinful stronghold? A miracle? Is your church suffering because of unresolved conflict?
Before you push back the plate, get really clear on your reason for fasting.
