Lent and the case for fasting

Lent is here and now is a good time to consider fasting.

Forty days may seem excessive and unnecessary. But it’s hard to make an informed decision without understanding what fasting is.

It is still practised in many Christian denominations across the world and I believe it is a practice that needs be reclaimed. Why? Here’s the simple answer: because the Bible commends it.

Fasting in the Bible

According to the law given to Moses, the whole of Israel was commanded to fast as preparation for the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). That’s the day on which the High Priest enters the Holy of Holies. You’ll find that in Leviticus 16v29-30, “This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month you must deny yourselves and not do any work – whether native-born or a foreigner residing among you – because on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. Then, before the Lord, you will be clean from all your sins."

While receiving the law, Moses himself miraculously fasted for 40 days and nights – abstaining from food and water - before receiving the Ten Commandments in Exodus 34v28: “Moses was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights without eating bread or drinking water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant—the Ten Commandments.”

Moses is fasting before hearing from the Lord. Fasting seems to make us open to wisdom and instruction. No wonder the Early Church fasted when praying for clarity on decision making (Acts 13-15).

We are not Moses. Nor are we Apostles living in the shadow of the Temple which was destroyed in AD70. This is the age of the Spirit. So why were these early Christians continuing to fast? Was it their cultural heritage talking?

Jesus' words on fasting

No. Jesus Himself assumes Christians will continue the practice of fasting. He does so in the Sermon on the Mount.

Having just explained how to pray, encapsulating the instruction in the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus says: “When you fast, do not look sombre as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” (Matthew 6v16-18)

Jesus gives a clear warning: don’t show off. Don’t disfigure your face to show how much you are suffering. I imagine Jesus contorting His face at this point, possibly impersonating a pious Pharisee. And the crowd would have known exactly what Jesus was talking about. Fasting should be done in secret. Why? Because your Father will reward you.

Reward for fasting? Oh dear. That’s a problem for a Protestant evangelical like me who believes we are saved by grace through faith; not by devotional works, fasting, giving money, kissing relics or going on pilgrimages. For this reason, the practice of fasting for Lent was mostly abandoned by continental Reformers although the Lenten Fast was retained in England, partly to support the fishing industry. Seriously.

But why fast when Jesus’ disciples don’t? In fact, Jesus is challenged on this exact point later in Matthew’s Gospel: "Then John’s disciples came and asked him, 'How is it that we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?' Jesus answered, 'How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.'" (Matthew 9v14-15)

Why fast?

There’s a common theme emerging here. Fasting is about seeking the presence of the Lord. The disciples don’t fast because they are already in His presence! When Christ has ascended to heaven, the Apostles need to revert to fasting, as Jesus assumes they will.

What does it mean to enter the presence of a holy Lord? It requires repentance. Preparation for Lent begins with Shrove Tuesday when we shrive: that is, confess our sins. And how can we seek the Lord’s forgiveness so that we can present our prayers and requests to God? By seeking His presence. How can we do that better? By fasting, which brings all kinds of spiritual blessings.

But we don’t really believe this. As I often say on my blog, Cary’s Almanac, we have been blinded by the Enlightenment. No-one is more prone to this way of thinking than the well-educated conservative evangelical (like me). This tribe tends to see the physical world as solely physical as they were taught at the academy. The spiritual realm is seen as completely separate.

So if we think human beings are essentially body-bags of chemicals, the idea of fasting is dead on arrival. How could the act of stopping physical food from entering your digestive system bring real spiritual blessings?

The Lord commanded Israel to fast for Yom Kippur. The Lord Jesus says that fasting will bring rewards. We can infer these rewards are contrition and a closeness to the Lord that will enhance our prayers and bring us wisdom so that we can serve Him more faithfully. And maybe more.

What’s not to like?