what did jesus say about fasting

The Lord did not condemn fasting as a practice. He instructed His disciples that it should be undertaken in secret, as before God, rather than before men (Matt. 6:16-18). It was to be united with prayer for the effectual expulsion of unclean spirits in certain cases (Mark 9:29). There was a season of prayer and fasting in the early church when Paul and Barnabas went forth on their first missionary tour (Acts 13:3). Nothing in scripture appears to warrant the present general abandonment of the practice by Christians, though indeed there is a sense in which we may say the Lord is still with us (Matt. 28:20). Self-denial in the spirit of Nazariteship, of which food-fasting is but a single phase, should, however, be practised by the believer habitually and not only on special occasions.

As already mentioned, the Lord Jesus neither gives a commandment to fast, nor does He forbid it here. He leaves fasting as a personal exercise of the heart but gives the warning not to do it in a hypocritical manner (as with giving alms and praying). The hypocrites are of sad countenance in order to appear as pious as possible (cp. Luke 24:17), and to make people see how earnest they are. But as we have already seen in verses 2 and 5, our God and Father won't give us any reward if we seek to obtain it through the mere appearance of piety, and recognition by men.

"And when ye fast, be not gloomy-faced as the hypocrites; for they disguise their faces, so that they may appear to men fasting. Verily, I say to you, They have their reward. But thou while fasting anoint thy head, and wash thy face, so that thou mayest not appear to men fasting, but to thy Father that [is] in secret; and thy Father that seeth in secret will recompense thee."

The Lord does not so much enjoin fasting as bring it like prayer under the Christian principle of having to do with our Father in secret. It falls under the individual life of faith. Yet He undoubtedly sanctions and approves of it when so practised; and this independently of the more open and united aim, such as we find in Acts 13:2-3, Acts 14:23. He also intimates its value for spiritual power. Pious men have ever felt and must feel its appropriateness in chastening the soul before God, where public or private need called for humiliation. But even in Mark 9:29 it is well to note that the two most ancient copies ignore "and fasting," as they with other authorities also the entire verse 21 of Matt. 17, nor is there a word corresponding in Luke 9. The apostle however who more than others was given to stand for liberty in Christ speaks (in 2 Cor. 6:5, 2 Cor. 11:27) simply and piously of "fastings" and "fastings often" in his service, to the rebuke of that levity which the Corinthian assembly betrayed, and which characterises modern Christianity, save where superstition and self-righteousness give it an artificial moment in very different eyes.

Now I will say a little on fasting. Levi made a feast for the Lord, and the Scribes and Pharisees murmured. There are always murmurers when Christ is made much of. Even the disciples themselves murmured when Mary would lavish her all upon the blessed Lord. Well she had the luxury of being defended by Him. In the case before us the Pharisees asked, “Why do the disciples of John fast often, and make prayers, and likewise the disciples of the Pharisees; but thine eat and drink?’ The Lord replied to them, “Can ye make the children of the bridechamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days.”

Now that we have been told of the Lord eating with publicans and sinners, the question arises as to why the disciples of John and also the followers of the Pharisees often practiced fasting, and "making prayers," yet the disciples of the Lord Jesus ate and drank rather than fasting. The Lord had spoken of calling sinners to repentance (v.32), and the Jews considered fasting as being repentance, for it was an outward act intended to signify self-sacrifice or repentance, and often accompanied true repentance. But fasting itself was not repentance. John the Baptist had preached repentance to prepare Israel to face the Lord Jesus, but when repentance had done its work in turning people to the Lord Himself, they now had an Object to lift their hearts above their former state. To be occupied with one's own state after having the Lord Jesus revealed to the heart, is not faith. To choose the mere sign of repentance in preference to Christ Himself only proved that true repentance was lacking. The disciples of the Pharisees considered fasting a work of merit, while refusing the Lord Jesus. The Lord answers that the children of the bride chamber would not fast while the Bridegroom was with them. The presence of their Lord Himself was cause for rejoicing, but when He would be taken away from them by way of death, and later ascend to heaven, then they would fast (v.35), not merely physically, but in soul and spirit, in sorrow and self discipline because of His absence.

In verse 18 the Lord Jesus is now questioned by some of the people as to why the disciples of John the Baptist and of the Pharisees practiced fasting while His disciples did not do so. This illustrates the fact that people may have diverse reasons for fasting The disciples of John no doubt did so out of motives of self-judgment, for they were taught to judge the sin of the flesh. The motives of the disciples of the Pharisees were likely those of self-righteousness, a matter for boasting, as in Luke 18:11-12. This kind of thing was only an offense to God, while the former was honest and honorable.

Still, even this does not approach the preciousness of fasting simply for Christ's sake, as He intimates in His answer. While He, the Bridegroom, was present, His disciples, the children of the bride chamber, had cause for rejoicing, not fasting; but He would be taken away from them, as of course He has been now for nearly two thousand years. Believers therefore have very real reason to fast, out of motives of true affection for Christ. While He is rejected, self indulgence is unbecoming to His disciples. Their fasting too involves more than literally abstaining from food at certain times, but self-denial in many other ways. But the motive should always be that of love for the Lord, with no drawing attention to ourselves.

Fasting means to abstain from eating and drinking for a certain time. It is mentioned several times in Scripture and is known until now in many parts of Christendom. Yet when we open our Bibles we will not find a commandment for it either in the Old or in the New Testament. Nor does the Lord Jesus command His disciples to fast in Matthew 6:16-18, just as He did not command the giving of alms in verses 2-4. But He presupposes simply that His disciples are doing it.

Then our Lord speaks in connection with prayer of the spirit of forgiveness which every one who is in relationship with God as Father should exercise. If such a spirit of love and patience towards those who have done evil against us is not practiced, it means that we cannot enjoy full communion with Him. Therefore, "let all bitterness, and heat of passion, and wrath, and clamor and injurious language be removed from you, with all malice; and be to one another kind, compassionate, forgiving one another, so as God also in Christ has forgiven you" (Eph. 4:32). That which relates to ourself follows next: "And when ye fast be not as the hypocrites, downcast in countenance, for they disfigure their faces so that they may appear fasting to men; verily I say to you, they have their reward. But thou when fasting anoint thy head and wash thy face, so that thou mayest not appear fasting unto men, but to thy Father, who sees in secret; and thy Father who sees in secret shall render it to thee." Here once more we have the wrong motive and the true. It was done by the hypocrites in just the way spoken of here. It was an attitude of humiliation of the body, denying self, but only as to be seen of men. What else has been and is all the fasting and asceticism as it has been fostered in Christendom? If one does fast, let the fasting be done in secret as unto the Father and not to appear before men.

(3) We now come to the subject of fasting. I believe there is a real value in fasting that few of us know much about. If, on particular occasions which call for special individual prayer, one were to unite fasting with it, I have no doubt the blessing of it would be felt. There is humbling of spirit expressed in it. There are prayers which are most suitably accompanied by standing, others by kneeling. Fasting is one of those things in which the body shows its sympathy with what the spirit is passing through; it is a means of expressing our desire to be low before God, and in the attitude of humiliation. But lest the flesh should take advantage of even what is for the mortifying of the body, the Lord enjoins that means be taken rather not to appear unto men to fast than to permit any display. For although a true Christian would shrink from putting on false appearances, the devil would cheat him into doing it unless he is very jealous in self-watchfulness before God. "Thou, when thou fastest, anoint thy head and wash thy face; that thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly" (vers. 17, 18).

"And when ye fast, be not as the hypocrites, downcast in countenance; for they disfigure their faces that they may appear fasting to men. Verily I say to you, They do get their reward. But thou, when fasting, anoint thy head and wash thy face, that thou mayest not appear fasting to men, but to thy Father that is in secret; and thy Father that seeth in secret shall repay thee" (16-18).

In fasting there is even more sedulous care to guard from any display of that self-humiliation before God which forms so great a part of it. The Lord would form in His own a spirit of living faith in having to do with their Father. Fasting is for His eyes, just like their prayer and their alms. Faith in Him that is in secret is thus in each way exercised. What a contrast with all that hitherto characterised a Jew!