Fasting in the Bible Day 16: The New Fast

Then the disciples of John came to Him, asking, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “The attendants of the bridegroom cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. But no one puts a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and a worse tear results. Nor do people put new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wineskins burst, the wine pours out, and the wineskins are ruined; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved. Matthew 9: 14 – 17

Jesus was not known for following all of the religious ways of the Jews. He healed on the Sabbath. He allowed His disciples to eat grain from the fields on the Sabbath. He ate with Gentiles. He drank with sinners. And He was often questioned about these things. His answers taught that His law went even deeper than the re-interpreted Law of Moses that the Pharisees followed. Jesus said that lust wasn’t just an act but a thought and anger was as bad as murder. The true Law was not about rules, but about the heart. And He was there to make all things new, including the heart.

So when the religious practice of fasting was brought up, Jesus used it as an opportunity to explain that in the kingdom of God everything was going to be new.

He specifically answered the question from the disciples of John by saying that since He, the bridegroom, was still there, they could enjoy His presence and fasting and mourning was not needed. But when He was gone, they would then want to participate in the new fast while they mourn.

The illustration about the garment patch and the old wineskins represented that the new ways of the kingdom would supersede the old ways. Jesus explained His new way of giving, praying, and fasting in secret (Matt 6: 2-18).

We are in the days after the bridegroom was taken away. Jesus was crucified but resurrected. We won’t see Him again until we are in heaven, or, we are here on earth for His second coming. So fasting is a spiritual discipline that Jesus approves.

A right motivation for fasting for you might be that in your current circumstances you are not feeling that He is really with you. Mourning for a time when He felt more present in your life, and fasting, could be a right response. Consider how He might call you to fast, and just do it! Connect with Him now!

Jesus, You are here in my life through Your Holy Spirit. I commit to empty myself of food for a time and ask that You fill me with Your satisfying presence. Amen.