I became a Christian following what I can only describe as a mystical experience. Seemingly overnight, my life went from an undisciplined mess to a long, slow march toward Christ.
Around that time, I found fasting, abstaining from all food and drink except water and black coffee every Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday for about 18 months. Far from being a boast, I believe this was a unique grace, and I was only capable of it through the strength of the Holy Spirit. (I have not been able to replicate this since that time.) Nevertheless, I feel I can speak confidently about why Christians should fast and what happens when they do.
If you are unsure whether this represents a kind of Pharisaic legalism, I would respond with the words of Jesus. Lutheran pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in “The Cost of Discipleship,” made the point that Jesus does not say “if you fast,” but rather “when you fast” (Matthew 6:16–18). It is assumed. Jesus says elsewhere that there will come a time when the bridegroom is not with the church; then His disciples will fast (Matthew 9:15).
I would go so far as to say that Christians need to fast as much as they need to pray because we need to recognize our dependence on God. When we fast, we walk around all day with a painful reminder that we need something. If we do not eat, we will die. Likewise, if we do not have God, we are spiritually dead.
Fasting, and then breaking the fast, also reminds us that food is good. Food will never taste as good as it does after we have gone without for 24+ hours. Likewise, thanking God for our food will never feel as sincere as that prayer before breakfast. I still remember many of those meals, and when I think back, I am reminded that God is a good Father and that the whole world, all things, are for me (1 Corinthians 3:21–23).
I believe the reason fasting has a spiritual effect is that it forces us into a posture of humility, repentance, receptivity, and gratitude. I think this is why fasting makes prayer more effective. And this is why fasting will save the world.
There is a strange episode in the Gospels where the apostles struggle to exorcise a demon. They ask Jesus why they are unable to cast it out, and Christ replies, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting” (Mark 9:29).
Perhaps many of our culture’s most entrenched demons – the pride of self-sufficiency, the scourge of abortion, the lunacy of transgender ideology – only come out with much prayer and fasting. Can you imagine the effects if every American Christian dedicated themselves to prayer and fasting? I think we would see total cultural transformation.
It is entirely possible that it is both true that fasting is effective for exorcising real demons and that it forces the Christian to recognize his dependence on God and thank Him for even the smallest gifts, like food. I think it is even possible that fasting defeats demons because it puts Christians in a posture of humility, repentance, receptivity, and gratitude. I can think of little that demons would hate more.
One final note: one of the most abused and misapplied verses in Scripture is Philippians 4:13. We can indeed do all things through Christ who strengthens us, but I think this verse has a tendency to provide cover for when we want to assert our own abilities and rubber-stamp our pride as piety. But that becomes much harder to do when you also include verse 12, which is, I think, why people seldom do:
I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength. [Emphasis added.]
Elijah Newcomb is a graduate of Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, Alabama. He aspires to advance and defend religious liberty in public life.
This culture article was made possible by The Fred & Rheta Skelton Center for Cultural Renewal, a project of 1819 News. To comment on this article, please email [email protected]. The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of 1819 News.
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