- I think most of the people watching this video
would be familiar that fasting is in the Bible.
For example in Matthew 4 and Luke 4,
it says Jesus fasted 40 days and 40 nights
but now let's talk about how he quoted Scripture
to the devil.
So we notice that we sort of,
we sort of pass over it.
But it's a very important teaching
in Scripture, it's a very important spiritual discipline
not in the sense that it's a mechanistic way
of getting our prayers answered.
That if you will fast, that guarantees
that God will answer.
That's a theology of works there.
And even though our fasting doesn't manipulate God,
let's be reminded, fasting is God's idea.
The most important thing about fasting
when you actually try it
is to realize that fasting is to be done
for a purpose, a God-centered, biblical purpose.
Otherwise it becomes a miserable, self-centered experience.
So many people say, well, I've heard about fasting,
so I decided to try it, and boy I was so hungry
and all I could think about was the growling of my stomach
and I thought, well if I ever get through this,
I'll never do this again.
So they finish and their whole time,
whenever they're hungry, they think,
how much longer till this is over?
Their whole thought is how long till it's over.
That's just works, that's just legalism,
that's just endurance and self-inflicted suffering
in hopes that God will be impressed
by my self-inflicted suffering.
That's not what fasting is about.
The most important thing about fasting
is to practice fasting
for a God-centered, biblical purpose.
In my book, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life,
I summarize 10 purposes found in Scripture for fasting,
but most of them have to do, in one or another
with prayer, to strengthen prayer.
John Piper speaks of fasting as an intensifer.
Here's how it should work, for the motive to be right.
When your stomach growls, when your head aches
and you say, man, I'm hungry.
Your next thought's going to be oh, that's right,
I'm hungry because I'm fasting today.
If your next thought is, and how much longer till it's over,
wrong motive.
It's going to be just a bad experience.
But your next thought should be
oh and I'm fasting for this biblical purpose.
So for example, let's say you're fasting
for the purpose of praying for your spouse,
or for the salvation of your child,
and throughout the day your stomach aches and growls.
Your head hurts and you think, oh man, I'm really hungry.
Ope, that's right, I'm hungry because I'm fasting today.
Oh, that's right, I'm fasting for the purpose
of praying for my wife, for my child.
So what do you do all day long?
You're praying.
So actually you want to feel hunger, your hunger serves you,
your hunger serves your higher purpose
which is to pray all day for your spouse, or for your child.
So that's why hunger is a good thing
when it comes to fasting, because you've got to,
the goal is not to feel hungry.
The goal is not to suffer and think that God
will be impressed by your suffering.
The hunger serves your higher purpose
which is to pray for your spouse, to pray for your child
or whatever it might be.
So I think most people have a fear of fasting.
Of all the spiritual disciplines, it is the one
we feel in our bodies.
And it's an uncomfortable feeling.
No one likes to feel hungry, but when you remember
that your hunger serves you.
I mean, is there never a time you want a prayer answered
more than you want lunch?
Is there never a time you want someone to be saved
more than you want a Big Mac?
Well that's where fasting comes in,
when you say, I want this so much.
I want to pray about this all day
and I'm going to fast as a reminder
to use that hunger as a reminder for this all day long.
Some people say, I would like to serve others more.
I would like to have more money to give.
That's where fasting can come in.
Don't have lunch.
Use your lunch hour to serve someone.
Use your lunch money to give.
So we dare not miss the many benefits
there are fasting.
Don't be afraid of fasting.
Now I think it's important to add
this feature, because I see this a lot
with my students.
When I talk about fasting, some people,
a lot of people, in fact, will rule themselves out
because they're diabetic or maybe they're pregnant
or they have migraines if they fast.
Well certainly we would not want to be asking anyone
to do anything that would cause any harm to themselves
or certainly to their unborn child.
But in the Bible, Daniel, you'll remember,
in the first chapter and his 10 friends
had only vegetables to eat for a period of time
and water to drink instead of the food
that was offered to them.
And so historically we have looked at that
as a partial fast.
So I have found that in almost every case
where a person wants to fast
but they have some physical limitation,
by means of a partial fast, they can participate.
And traditionally, this has been one of two ways.
If they balanced nutrition, they have a balanced meal,
but much smaller portions.
Or maybe they just have one simple food,
like just rice, just bread.
And the point is to get the minimal nutritional intake
to keep them from having physical problems,
but yet they still feel a lack
of full satisfaction.
They still feel a little hungry, or they have something
that prompts them physically still to pray.
So I think where there's a will, there's a way.
Our flesh wants to excuse all of us.
We don't enjoy hunger, so we say,
well I can't fast for this reason,
or I can't fast for that reason.
Well we wouldn't to ask anyone to fast
in such a way that would cause them
any physical harm whatsoever.
However, where there's a will, there's a way.
So it may be through a limited meal
that we'd call a partial fast.
But usually where people want to do this,
they can find a way to do this
and I hope those who are watching this video,
if they've never done that before will give it a try.
You know, one meal can be a fast.
It doesn't have to be 24 hours.
Anyone planning on a longer fast of three days or more
maybe should get some medical advice before they do that.
But even one meal for spiritual purposes
can be a biblical fast.
- [Narrator] Thanks for watching Honest Answers.
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