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NASB | Nehemiah 1:4 ¶ When I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned for days; and I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Nehemiah 1:4 ¶ Now it came about when I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned for days; and I was fasting and praying [constantly] before the God of heaven. |
Subject: Role of fasting in a Christian's walk? |
Bible Note: I've been studying out fasting in the Bible since last year and fasting periodically. There are no biblical laws that command regular fasting for the Christian. Freedom does not mean license, but opportunity. Abstaining from food is an opportunity to gain humility while crying out to God. We are commanded to deny ourselves as Christians and that is the term used for fasting in Leviticus 16:29. When Jesus was asked why his disciples did not fast, Jesus replied "Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with the? The days will come, when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast." (Matt 9:15) It seems clear that we are expected to fast, for after His ascension, we read of the disciples fasting (Acts 13:2, 3). Motives are extremely important in fasting, as we are shown that fasting to impress is not worthy of eternal reward. Fasting must center on God. We must do it to worship Him first. In Zechariah 7:5, God asks the people ‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months for the past seventy years, was it really for me that you fasted?' There are secondary purposes as well, but first and foremost we must not fast for the benefits but to worship. The secondary purposes are important too, tho. Fasting will reveal pride, anger, bitterness, jealousy, strife, fear, etc. if they are within us. In all the secondary values of fating, such as increased effectiveness in prayer, decision-making, deliverance from bondage, physical well-being, revelations, we can expect God to reward those who diligently seek him. A wonderful source (that I have been drawing from for this particular message) for practicals in fasting is Celebration of Discipline by Richard J. Foster. Amazon.com has some of the pages from the book that you can browse. The pages don't deal with fasting, but with meditation, the first of the spiritual disciplines he discusses. To summarize, I have come to the conviction through the vast number of instances of fasting throughout scripture and through Matt 9 that fasting is expected. It's role is to increase our reliance and personal worship of God. It will serve to reveal those acts of our sinful nature that have not been submitted to God, and give us the strength to fully submit to God and gain the fruit of the Spirit. Sandra |