Why do Christians view fasting as an unusual habit? Why does the Chinese Methodist church seldom speak of fasting? Why do pastors rarely preach on fasting and prayer from the pulpit? Why does the western church not emphasize fasting? Why of John Wesley’s five means of grace (prayer, Bible reading, communion, fasting, fellowship), is fasting the one most often neglected?
John Piper, in his book A Hunger For God, mentioned that the western church does not emphasize fasting and prayer, because food has taken God’s place. People no longer put God first, rather food is first.
Chinese people also put food first, as a Chinese proverb says, food is the god of the people (民以食为天). But why do the Chinese, after becoming Christians, also emphasize food in the same way? Is it food or God? When will God replace food?
Last December 6-8, a few hundred pastors and members of SCAC joined as one to fast for three days in the second annual Esther’s fasting and prayer. On the last day, the Holy Spirit inspired me to write “God is the food of the people” (民以天为食). God allowed me to see how as we learned to seek God together, we experienced Jesus’ words, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty…I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” (John 6:35, 51)
Why do we need to fast and pray?
Fasting and prayer is for reaching the goals of unity in spirit, singleness of mind, and pleasing God. It is also because we need to honour God first, to hunger and thirst for him, receive God’s rewards and long for His coming.
Honour God first: Fasting is to see the Lord Jesus as more important than anything including food, as the apostle Paul said:
“What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ” (Phil 3:8)
Hunger and thirst for God: Fasting is to hunger and thirst for God Himself, to seek him, as the psalmist said:
“You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water.” (Psa 63:1)
Receive God’s rewards: Fasting is the normal Christian life, and also a good deed that God rewards, as Jesus said:
“When you fast, do not look somber 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.” (Matt 6:16-18)
Long for Lord’s return: Fasting is longing for the bridegroom Jesus to come again, because the bridegroom has left us.
“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.” (Matt 9:15)
“But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast.” (Mark 2:20, Luke 5:35)
Besides the annual 3-day Esther’s fast, all of us, both pastors and church members, need to be of one heart and mind in doing the weekly Wesleyan fasting and prayer. It starts after Thursday dinner until Friday afternoon at 3pm. Let us live the normal Christian life together. Let us honour God first, hunger and thirst for Him, receive His rewards, and long for His second coming.