An Extended Fast: Luke 4:1-2
“1) Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led around by the Spirit in the wilderness 2) for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days, and when they had ended, He became hungry.” Luke 4:1-2
During His baptism by John the Baptist, the Holy Spirit descended from heaven as a dove and rested upon Jesus. (See Mathew 3:16) Water Baptism was the moment the Holy Spirit came upon Jesus.
I see this as more of a description than a prescription in the Bible. Baptism of the Holy Spirit can be associated with water baptism with proper teaching and preparation, but it did occur at other times in the New Testament as well. For example, there was no water baptism taking place on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was initially poured out.
Notice from the text that Jesus was immediately led about by the Spirit in the wilderness. Learning to walk in the Spirit is essential to the Christian life. (See Galatians 5:16-26) Apart from walking in the Spirit, we are carnal and in bondage to the flesh.
At this point it is essential to ask a few questions. First, “If Jesus was sinless, what did He have to repent from?” And second, “If Jesus did not have a sin nature, how could the devil tempt Him?” These are good questions. Let’s briefly look at each of them.
First, according to Matthew 3:13-15, repentance wasn’t a precondition for Jesus being baptized. In fact John wanted to exempt Him from baptism. Jesus was baptized to “fulfill all righteousness.” He did it as an adult to be an example for all believers. It marked a significant event in His life.
Second, the temptations of the devil on Jesus were not aimed at His sin nature, they were aimed at basic appetites common to all humans. The timing was after a prolonged fast of forty days and nights. The temptations were crafted to appeal to the human appetites of physical hunger, power and self promotion, and pride and self glory.
In a sense, these same temptations were involved when the serpent tempted Eve in the garden. Though the serpent can package them differently, these three daggers are very effective against people.
One more observation from the text, Jesus began His ministry with a prolonged fast. I am an advocate of fasting for both spiritual and physical benefits. I have several friends who have completed forty day fasts. It is very manageable, with preparation, guidance and some precautions.
An extended fast does not prove you are spiritual, rather it forces you to confront your flesh and mental weaknesses at every level. During a prolonged fast, you will battle the enemy, other people, ignorance, cultural norms, baseless emotions and yourself!
I consider an extended fast as seven days or longer. For some reason the numbers 7, 14, 21, 30 and 40 days are good targets for extended fasting. I highly encourage you to do research before launching into an extended fast and seek guidance from knowledgeable people.
God designed the human body, soul and spirit to regenerate, detoxify, repair, heal, reprogram and restart during an extended fast. Isaiah 58:5-12 provides amazing insights.
The web is full of great information the medical community is learning about the health benefits of prolonged fasting. It is now being used to treat many chronic health conditions including some forms of cancer. I will let you do your own research in this area.
Dr Eric Berg is a great starting point on YouTube for medical benefits of fasting. He does a great job of explaining the complex in simple terms.
Surprisingly, the spiritual benefits do not come easily during an extended fast. Your mind will wonder. You will face hidden skeletons you have locked away. You will experience everything from euphoria to times of fatigue. You will wrestle with doubt, deception and many psychological behaviors stemming from cultural conditioning.
You might even have weird dreams that expose hidden things in your heart. Fasting is a time of both physical and spiritual cleansing. In a sense, during an extended fast, your spirit is detoxing. Be ready to have many sins and weaknesses exposed. Extended fasting is a time for personal revival. It is not easy, but it is very beneficial and rewarding on every level.
I do not wrestle with separating physical or spiritual benefits as my motivation for fasting. I welcome them both! The Bible lays out both as reasons for extended fasting. I embrace everything God has for me!
Daily Bible Commentary By Terry Baxter: Cofounder of GoServ Global
Sent from my iPhone
“1) Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led around by the Spirit in the wilderness 2) for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days, and when they had ended, He became hungry.” Luke 4:1-2
During His baptism by John the Baptist, the Holy Spirit descended from heaven as a dove and rested upon Jesus. (See Mathew 3:16) Water Baptism was the moment the Holy Spirit came upon Jesus.
I see this as more of a description than a prescription in the Bible. Baptism of the Holy Spirit can be associated with water baptism with proper teaching and preparation, but it did occur at other times in the New Testament as well. For example, there was no water baptism taking place on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was initially poured out.
Notice from the text that Jesus was immediately led about by the Spirit in the wilderness. Learning to walk in the Spirit is essential to the Christian life. (See Galatians 5:16-26) Apart from walking in the Spirit, we are carnal and in bondage to the flesh.
At this point it is essential to ask a few questions. First, “If Jesus was sinless, what did He have to repent from?” And second, “If Jesus did not have a sin nature, how could the devil tempt Him?” These are good questions. Let’s briefly look at each of them.
First, according to Matthew 3:13-15, repentance wasn’t a precondition for Jesus being baptized. In fact John wanted to exempt Him from baptism. Jesus was baptized to “fulfill all righteousness.” He did it as an adult to be an example for all believers. It marked a significant event in His life.
Second, the temptations of the devil on Jesus were not aimed at His sin nature, they were aimed at basic appetites common to all humans. The timing was after a prolonged fast of forty days and nights. The temptations were crafted to appeal to the human appetites of physical hunger, power and self promotion, and pride and self glory.
In a sense, these same temptations were involved when the serpent tempted Eve in the garden. Though the serpent can package them differently, these three daggers are very effective against people.
One more observation from the text, Jesus began His ministry with a prolonged fast. I am an advocate of fasting for both spiritual and physical benefits. I have several friends who have completed forty day fasts. It is very manageable, with preparation, guidance and some precautions.
An extended fast does not prove you are spiritual, rather it forces you to confront your flesh and mental weaknesses at every level. During a prolonged fast, you will battle the enemy, other people, ignorance, cultural norms, baseless emotions and yourself!
I consider an extended fast as seven days or longer. For some reason the numbers 7, 14, 21, 30 and 40 days are good targets for extended fasting. I highly encourage you to do research before launching into an extended fast and seek guidance from knowledgeable people.
God designed the human body, soul and spirit to regenerate, detoxify, repair, heal, reprogram and restart during an extended fast. Isaiah 58:5-12 provides amazing insights.
The web is full of great information the medical community is learning about the health benefits of prolonged fasting. It is now being used to treat many chronic health conditions including some forms of cancer. I will let you do your own research in this area.
Dr Eric Berg is a great starting point on YouTube for medical benefits of fasting. He does a great job of explaining the complex in simple terms.
Surprisingly, the spiritual benefits do not come easily during an extended fast. Your mind will wonder. You will face hidden skeletons you have locked away. You will experience everything from euphoria to times of fatigue. You will wrestle with doubt, deception and many psychological behaviors stemming from cultural conditioning.
You might even have weird dreams that expose hidden things in your heart. Fasting is a time of both physical and spiritual cleansing. In a sense, during an extended fast, your spirit is detoxing. Be ready to have many sins and weaknesses exposed. Extended fasting is a time for personal revival. It is not easy, but it is very beneficial and rewarding on every level.
I do not wrestle with separating physical or spiritual benefits as my motivation for fasting. I welcome them both! The Bible lays out both as reasons for extended fasting. I embrace everything God has for me!
Daily Bible Commentary By Terry Baxter: Cofounder of GoServ Global
Sent from my iPhone
