The Bible presents prayer and fasting as ways of humbling ourselves before God, seeking Him sincerely, and bringing our desires into alignment with His will.
Fasting is not a way to force God to act.
It is a way of saying: “Lord, I desire You and Your will more than I desire even my ordinary comforts.”
Biblical Reference
Prayer.
Jesus taught His followers to pray personally, sincerely and with trust in the Father.
In Matthew 6:6, Jesus says:
“But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen.”
Prayer is relationship with God. It includes worship, thanksgiving, confession, asking for what we need, interceding for others and surrendering ourselves to God’s will.
Jesus gives the pattern in Matthew 6:9-13, beginning:
“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done.”
One of the deepest lessons of biblical prayer is therefore not simply “God, give me what I want,” but “Father, may Your will be done.”
Jesus Himself prayed this way before the cross:
“Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
Matthew 26:39.
Fasting.
Biblical fasting normally means voluntarily going without food for a period of time in order to focus more deeply on God.
Jesus clearly expected fasting to remain part of His followers’ lives.
He did not say “If you fast” He said:
“When you fast”
Matthew 6:16.
But Jesus warned against fasting to impress other people:
“When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do.”
Matthew 6:16.
Instead, fasting should primarily be between you and God.
Jesus also said that after He was no longer physically present with His disciples, there would be a time when:
“Then they will fast”
Matthew 9:15.
So fasting continued among Christians after Jesus’ resurrection.
For example, the early church prayed and fasted before important decisions:
“While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul.’”
Acts 13:2.
And again:
“So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off.”
Acts 13:3.
Why did people fast in the Bible?
Prayer and fasting frequently accompanied moments of deep dependence on God.
They fasted when seeking God’s guidance as in Acts 13.
They fasted during repentance as in Joel 2:12.
They fasted when seeking God’s protection as Ezra did:
“So we fasted and petitioned our God about this, and he answered our prayer.”
Ezra 8:23.
They fasted during grief and distress.
They fasted before major spiritual decisions.
Most importantly, fasting helped them turn their attention away from themselves and toward God.
But fasting itself does not impress God.
This is extremely important.
God condemned people who fasted religiously while continuing to mistreat others.
In Isaiah 58, God explains that the fasting He desires must be accompanied by justice, compassion, generosity and care for people in need.
So someone could technically fast and still completely miss the heart of God.
The biblical pattern is:
Fasting + prayer + humility + repentance + obedience + love.
Not merely hunger.
Jesus Himself fasted.
Before beginning His public ministry, Jesus fasted for 40 days and 40 nights in the wilderness.
Matthew 4:1-2.
During that period Satan tempted Him and Jesus repeatedly answered with Scripture.
One of His responses beautifully captures the heart behind fasting:
“Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
Matthew 4:4.
That is perhaps one of the most beautiful meanings of Christian fasting.
We are saying:
“Father, my body needs food, but my soul needs You even more.”
Present-Day Translation
Prayer and fasting together.
They can therefore be especially meaningful when you are seeking God about something important.
For example, you might fast while praying about:
- God’s direction for an important decision.
- Your marriage or future family.
- Someone you love.
- Repentance and spiritual renewal.
- Protection and guidance.
- Your calling and how God wants you to serve others.
- Greater closeness to Jesus.
- Freedom from something that is controlling your heart.
- Wisdom and discernment.
But the focus should not become “If I fast enough, God will give me what I ask.”
Instead:
“Lord, I am setting this time apart because I want to seek You with my whole heart. Please guide me, change me and let Your will be done.”
And this promise from Scripture beautifully captures that heart:
“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”
Jeremiah 29:13.
So in its healthiest biblical form, fasting does not make God closer to us because we earned His attention. It removes distractions so that we can give more of our attention to God.
And prayer is where we meet Him there.