Spiritual fasting and the demolition of strongholds
For thousands of years, religions around the world have used the discipline of spiritual fasting as a means of knocking on the gates of heaven in search of a breakthrough. The concept is that fasting weakens the body and allows the spirit to be more awake and in control, allowing it to receive God’s power and direction.
Domination of the flesh
In general, spiritual fasting focuses on putting aside the dominion of the flesh in favor of the spirit, which, in essence, is the true source of power that can solve the problem or situation for which you are fasting. Christ Himself, the Scriptures say, was filled with the Holy Spirit at the Jordan River and was then taken into the desert where he fasted for 40 days and came face to face with Satan (Matthew chapters 3 and 4).
Whether you think this is literal or not is irrelevant. I respect whatever your belief and wish to use this passage primarily as an example of spiritual fasting and its results.
Bible scholars indicate that Christ had to face every human weakness first BEFORE He was ready for His ministry, before He became the proper representative for the entire human race. It can only be done through fasting … imagine that! During the desert fast, Satan offered Christ food, wealth, and divinity (Matthew 4).
Reality is the invisible
In all cases, Christ alluded to the Word of God, indicating by his rejection that there was, in essence, a reality higher and “more real” than the three-dimensional longings and desires that we experience as human beings. This required fasting. We are not told of Christ drinking water during his time in the desert. If he didn’t, then that particular fast was supernatural and well beyond the scope of this discussion.
It is said that Moses in the Old Testament (Exodus 34:28) spent 40 days on Mount Sinai collecting the Ten Commandments, during which he neither drank nor ate. These are supernatural examples of fasting, both with great spiritual and physical revelation.
In one case, the Ten Commandments. In the other case, the willingness of Christ to begin his earthly ministry.
An “absolute” fast without food or water, in human terms, can only last a maximum of three to five days before death is due to dehydration. The New Testament Apostle Paul converted to Christianity after being knocked off a horse by what the scriptures say was the risen Christ himself (Acts 9: 3-22). Paul, the scriptures say, then left without food or water for three days. When the three days were up, what looked like scales fell from his eyes.
Transformation
It was after this experience of spiritual fasting that he went from hating and persecuting Christians to becoming one of the most powerful apostles in history, writing almost single-handedly the entire New Testament. We can speculate exactly what Christ and Paul went through during their fast. However, in both cases we can see that the end result was transformation and enhanced spiritual revelation.
What are the “scales” in your particular eyes? What are the behavioral, mental, or physical barriers that stand in your way? From the examples we have discussed, and from the first-hand experience of many others, it can be said that spiritual fasting is indeed mysterious.
Demonic opposition
In another portion of Scripture, this in the Old Testament, the prophet Daniel fasts for 21 days and does not receive a response until the last day (Daniel 10). At that moment, the scriptures say, Archangel Michael appeared to Daniel and told him that they had listened to him from the first day he began fasting. But those demonic powers got in the way and a battle ensued.
I have read comments that say that this points to the never-ending struggle between good and evil that translates, in our case, into the struggle between the flesh and the spirit. The apostle Paul in the New Testament calls himself a “miserable man” (Romans 7) because he says that he did what he did not want to do and that he often did not do what he knew to be right.
We’re not going to get into any kind of theological debate here, but it seems that whatever Paul was fighting for had no obvious “human” solution.
Biblical examples of fasting
In the Old Testament, Jews fasted to seek God’s help in threats or times of war (nation in general), when their loved ones were sick (David), to seek God’s forgiveness for themselves and their nation (Ahab , Daniel) and in seeking God’s protection and His will (Ezra).
Simply look up the term Fasting in a concordance and note the abundance of references (Leviticus 16: 29-31; 23: 26-32; Numbers 29: 7; Psalm 69:10; Acts 27: 9).
Moses, Elijah, and Jesus fasted for 40 days. The Bible records that spiritual fasting was not only for the super leaders, but was practiced by the majority, as during the Judges (Deut. 9: 15-18; Jug. 20:26; 1 Kings 21:27). (The absolute fasts of Moses and Elijah had divine help Deut. 9: 9; 1 Kings 19: 8).
Israel fasted at Bethel, in the war against the Benjamites at Mizpah, and in the war with the Philistines (Judges 20:26; 1 Sam 7: 6). In the book of Ruth, the Jews fasted when they heard that Haman had tricked the king into erasing them (Esther 4: 3-16).
David fasted for Saul and his friend Jonathan, and wept both for his dying son and for his enemies (2 Sam. 1:12; 2 Sam. 12: 16-23; Psalm 35: 11-13).
Daniel fasted for Israel (Dan. 9: 3-5). Fasting accompanied prayer, devotion to God (Psalm 35:13), penance (1 Kings 21:27), and earnestly seeking God (2 Sam. 1:12).
The effects of prayerful spiritual fasting, when real and sincere, is that it humbles (Psalm 35:13), disciplines, and corrects wrong behaviors and thoughts (Psalm 69:10), and God is more likely to answer our prayers. . (Ezra 8: 21-23)
In the New Testament, fasting was practiced when one faced temptations (Jesus), when serving God and starting a new ministry (Antioch), and when selecting and appointing elders (Matthew 4: 1-2).
John the Baptist regularly performed spiritual fasts as a testimony of real, sincere piety that pointed to God, not himself (Matt. 3:11). Paul listed spiritual fasting among other things that proved he was a minister of Christ (1 Cor. 11: 1; 2 Cor. 11: 23-28). The early church practiced spiritual fasting while further seeking God’s Will, drawing them more deeply into His presence (Acts 13: 2-3; 14: 21-23).
Physical impact
Observing the physical benefits of spiritual fasting, the prophet Daniel at one point challenged the king of Babylon to allow him to eat only water and vegetables for ten days and, at the end of that period, compare his appearance to that of others who ate meat and other foods. fatty foods (Daniel 1:12). The scriptures indicate that at the end of the ten days the king was amazed to see that Daniel and his friends looked younger and healthier than everyone else.
So remarkable was the difference that the king decided at that point to change the menu entirely and put everyone on water and vegetables. Juice fasting is just that: water, fruits, and vegetables. In summary, there is ample evidence in Scripture that fasting can place a believer in a position to effect profound changes in his life.
What are some of the emotional or behavioral obstacles that limit your intimacy with God? How much better would your fellowship with Him be if these patterns were broken? While in this world we are constantly asked to seek external material gratification, as a believer one must be convinced that the only true source of freedom and satisfaction in this world lies in daily intimate communion with God.
Fasting can be the hammer at your disposal to break down the walls of opposition and bring you into a broader spectrum of spiritual experience.