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What does the Bible teach about fasting?

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Biblical fasting involves abstaining from eating (and/or drinking) for spiritual purposes.

In the Old Testament, Israel celebrated certain annual fasts, the most prominent being the Day of Atonement.

There were also occasional fasts tied to specific historical events, sometimes individual and sometimes corporate. Here are a few of the occasions for fasting: at a time of grief (I Sam. 31:13; Nehemiah 1:4), at a time of repentance (I Sam 7:6; I Kings 21:27), as an expression of humility (Ezra 8:21; Psalm 69:10) and as an expression of a need for God’s guidance and help. What all of these fasts share in common is that they were an expression of dependence on God.

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Several New Testament passages give us insight about fasting.

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Fasting teaches us to that God’s Word nourishes us:

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Matthew 4:1-4 records the only example of Jesus fasting, just prior to His being tempted in the wilderness. He faced temptation with these words,

 

“Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.”

 

Jesus is quoting Deuteronomy 8:3-5 which talks about the 40 years Israel spent in the wilderness, depending daily on manna to sustain them. He says that God humbled them and let them be hungry in order to teach them to depend on God’s Word to sustain them. By His example of fasting, Jesus reminds us that food alone can’t sustain us. We need to be nourished by God’s Word.

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Fasting teaches us that doing the will of God sustains us:

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John 4:31-35 records Jesus’ encounter with the woman at the well. When the disciples return, they encourage Jesus to eat. He responds by saying,

 

“I have food to eat that you know not of.” Then He adds, “My food is to do the will of the Father.”

 

Again, Jesus reminds us that food alone is not enough. We are sustained by doing God’s will.

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Fasting teaches us that Jesus Himself sustains us:
 

In John 6:48-50 Jesus says,

 

“I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread which comes down out of heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die.”

 

We see this pictured symbolically in the bread and the cup of the Lord’s supper. Jesus is the source of eternal life. Fasting is feasting on Jesus.

Jesus assumed that fasting would be a part of His disciple’s spiritual life. In Matthew 6:16-18, He says, “when you fast,” not “if you fast.” He warns us not to fast to impress people, but to be near to the heart of God.

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