The Disciplines of Fasting and Chastity
Fasting in the World Today
Mardi Gras celebrations are over and the season of Lent has begun for Catholics around the world. During this season they will modify their normal diet for religious reasons. Many religions and spiritual philosophies practice fasting in some form (including Judaism, Catholicism, Buddhism, Isalm, Taoism, Jainism, Hinduism, and Christianity). Fasting is often associated with the season of Lent for Catholics or the season of Ramadan for Muslims; however, many other cultures and religions around the world fast throughout the year. While the duration, practice, and specific reasons differ, all fasts have similar goals of showing sacrifice and cleansing oneself. Fasting can last for just a few hours or even a few weeks, usually with practitioners eating at night. Interestingly, even within a religion, different denominations or sects may fast differently or at different times. For example, within Christianity, there are several different denominations that fast at different times. Catholics do not eat meat on Fridays during Lent, while Coptic Christians, the main form of Christianity in Egypt, fast for different durations for a total of 210 days throughout the year with eight main fasts each differing in duration and dietary restriction.
In modern society, fasting has even been used as a means of political protest to put pressure on government authorities in order to attain the benefits or claims of the people involved. Mahatma Gandhi of India during his fight against British rule, Young Sam Kim of Korea in his protest against the military dictatorship and the comedian Dick Gregory in his struggle against the violation of the civil rights of Native Americans are some examples.
Fasting in the Scriptures
In the biblical context, however, fasting carries a different meaning. It is not a way of asserting one’s will or trying to strong-arm God but a means of opening oneself to the work and Word of God, expressing profound grief over sin or loss, and pointing to one’s ultimate dependence on God for all forms of sustenance. In the Bible fasting is the act of abstaining from food and drink for spiritual reasons and is primarily a posture of openness to God and humility. It involves prayer, grief, repentance, seeking guidance and piety. The main idea is to deny a fleshly appetite and utilize the time and energy to instead pursue God’s presence and His Word.
One of the most familiar examples of fasting in the Bible is Jesus’ fasting for forty days in the wilderness in order to prepare for his ministry (Matthew 4:2). Moses’ fasting for forty days on Mount Sinai in order to receive the law and guidance in the wilderness (Exodus 34:28; Deuteronomy 9:9) was the foreshadowing of Jesus’ fast in the wilderness. Jehoshaphat proclaims a fast throughout all Judah to seek the Lord when the sons of Moab and Ammon come to make war against him (2 Chronicles 20:3). While the church of Antioch fasts and prays (Acts 13:3–4), they are commanded by the Holy Spirit to send Paul and Barnabas as missionaries. Fasting and prayer are frequently associated with people seeking and preparing themselves for divine communications. Through fasting, they can devote themselves to communion with God.
Fasting also bears the imagery of grief. When Saul and Jonathan are killed on the battlefield, the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead bury their bones and fast seven days (1 Samuel 31:13). David mourns and weeps and fasts when he hears of the deaths of Saul, Jonathan, and Abner (2 Samuel 1:12; 3:36). Nehemiah fasts at the news of the fall of Jerusalem (Nehemiah 1:4). When Haman issues the edict to kill the people of Mordecai, the Jews fast, weep and wail for their destiny (Esther 4:3). Fasting is associated with sincere grief and mourning, particularly with the death of the beloved, a sudden calamity, and the threat of death. It is an expression of deep sorrow and anger.
Fasting also carries the imagery of repentance. For example, Ahab, the king of Israel, fasts at Elijah’s threat to destroy his household for having taken Naboth’s vineyard (1 Kings 21:27-29). He tears his clothes, puts on sackcloth and goes about despondently. Ahab humbles himself before the Lord and seeks his mercy. The Lord sees this and withdraws the evil he had proclaimed against him.
Israel as a corporate group also fasts for repentance as a nation. Particularly on the Day of Atonement, the people of Israel are commanded to fast in repentance (Leviticus 16:29, 31; 23:27, 29, 32). At the time of Nehemiah, the people of Israel assembled in sackcloth with dirt on them and fast, they confess their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers (Nehemiah 9:1–3; 1 Samuel 7:6; 2 Samuel 12:16). Fasting is practiced during the course of repentance of sins as a symbol of humility and as a means of seeking the mercy of the Lord.
Fasting is also used as a means of seeking piety. The psalmist confesses that he humbled his soul with fasting (Psalm 35:13) and that when he wept in his soul with fasting, he was publicly insulted (Psalm 69:10). In the New Testament, Anna, a prophetess and a widow, to the age of eighty-four, never leaves the temple, serving night and day with fasting and prayer (Luke 2:37). The disciples of John the Baptist and the Pharisees fast regularly. Particularly, the Pharisees are reported to fast twice a week (Luke 18:12). Fasting is conducted for the sake of personal piety and spiritual discipline.
The imagery of piety goes together with fasting, however, fasting also bears the opposite imagery, that of hypocrisy. Isaiah 58:3–6 shows that the fasting of the Israelites as a religious devotion does not match their behavior toward their neighbors. They do evil in the sight of the Lord even during the period of fasting. They only fast to display their godliness to men and gain their admiration. They do not do it for the glory of God. Therefore the Lord proclaims that he will not accept them (Jeremiah 14:2). The same phenomenon can be observed in the New Testament where the Pharisees disfigure their faces in order that their fasting may be seen by men and are exposed for their hypocrisy by Jesus, who advises them to anoint their heads and wash their faces so that their piety and devotion might be directed only to God (Matthew 6:16–17). Jesus was not condemning fasting, but if it is conducted as a means of seeking self-glory, it is an image of hypocrisy.
The Discipline of Fasting
The spiritual discipline of fasting is abstention from satisfying a physical or emotional appetite for the sole purpose of pursuing spiritual nourishment. This difficult discipline requires practice before it can be effective because it is unnatural for us to deny oneself and the cravings can be so loud as to interfere with our goals. There are different methods and degrees of fasting, but all of them promote self-control and reveal how much we are controlled by our own fleshly appetites. Fasting can also include abstinence from things other than food and drink like media, recreation, and forms of entertainment.
An example of a fasting program that many Christians have used successfully is the Daniel Fast. It is a method of spiritual fasting used by millions of Christians throughout the world. It’s a partial fast, where some foods are eaten and others are restricted. The fast is most often practiced for 21 consecutive days and its purpose is to draw nearer to God and grow in your relationship with Him. Many people use the Daniel Fast for their 40 days of fasting during Lent. For more information check out – https://www.daniel-fast.com/ .
The Discipline of Chasity
Chasity is a type of fasting that is relevant to all adult believers, whether they are single or married. This discipline recognizes that our sexual appetite is a legitimate part of our human nature but it encourages us to resist its sinful exercise and avoid the painful and lasting consequences of its misuse. That includes not only acts of sinful relationship but also harboring improper feelings, sexual fantasies, and obsessions which are all so frequently exposed to in our society. Chasity elevates obedience to God’s Word and our created purpose, and loving concern for others above our own need for personal gratification.
Questions to Ponder
- Have you ever fasted as a spiritual discipline? What were the results? Is it still a regular practice? If not, why not?
- If you have never fasted before would you be open to utilizing an established plan like the Daniel Fast? If so, why not sign up?
- What appetites consume your time, your thought life, your entertainment choices, and your dreams? Are they out of control? If you were to fast in that area what benefit might accrue for your relationship with God? How might that fast help you take control back of your life?
- If you are married or have a family, would they support you in your effort to fast? Might they join you (it is easier to do it together)?
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