Ash Wednesday

Fasting is not an American virtue, and so this biblical discipline can seem very foreign to us American Christians. We’ve been taught to indulge every desire, to scratch every itch, to sate ourselves with food and drink, pleasure and luxury. “Why wait for good things? Have them all now, with no payments or interest for ninety days.” This way of thinking makes for a strong consumer index, but it doesn’t make for strong Christians.

The Ten Commandments don’t specifically command fasting, but neither do they command brushing your teeth or getting dressed. Of course, you do these things, and Jesus simply assumes that Christians will be fasting as they have always done since the time of Moses. Jesus said to His disciples, “When you fast, do not be like the hypocrites…” (Mt 6:16). There’s no “if” here; it’s “when.” When you fast, don’t do it improperly like the hypocrites. Don’t make a big production of your fasting. Don’t do it for show. But certainly, do fast. It’s what our Lord expects. It’s what Christians do.

Perhaps you’ve heard people say, “This year, instead of giving up something for Lent, how about adding something?” I suppose this sounds clever, and it appeals to the part of us that doesn’t like giving things up. It’s very American. Why give anything up when I can simply have more. “Supersize my order, please, with a side of self-righteousness and extra piety. Not only do I get to have more, I get to feel good about it while I do it. Look at these poor, unenlightened Christians who still give things up for Lent. We’re way smarter than that now.” Except this is the opposite of what Jesus said. Did He say, “Instead of fasting, try adding something new”? No. He said, “When you fast…”

Some people might say, “This year, I’m giving up my favorite sin for Lent.” But this too is the wrong idea. You don’t fast from sins. You shouldn’t be doing those anyway. You fast from something good, something that God has given you to enjoy. Food and drink are good things, and they are necessary for earthly life. But we fast from these good and necessary things for a time in order to be reminded of what is most good and most necessary for eternal life. “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Mt 4:4).

This brings us to a final type of false fasting, one that, sadly, was promoted even by faithful pastors a few years back. During the height of the COVID lockdowns, when many pastors were holding six or more communion services back-to-back in order to give Holy Communion to all who desired it, some pastors chose an easier path. One of these wrote publicly of how he had declared a “Eucharistic fast” in his congregation. These words may sound pious, but they are utterly wrong. Never in the history of the Church has there been a time when the Church fasted from Jesus. No, we fast from things that distract us from Jesus, in order to receive more of Jesus. There is no such thing as a Christian virtue that fasts from Jesus. Fasting is a good thing. Receiving less of Jesus is bad thing. Let us never confuse the two with pious sounding weasel words.

So now, let’s talk about fasting itself. Why is it good? What does it do for us? Why have Christians practiced this discipline for thousands of years, and why should we endeavor to emulate them? Fasting is not, as some think, a hangover from the Roman Catholic Church. It’s true, the Roman Church is known for enforcing made up laws regarding fasting: “Thus saith the pope: ‘You cannot come to the Lord’s Supper unless you have fasted for twenty-four hours first!’ ” Then it became eight hours, later three, and now it’s down to a single hour. But there are no laws in Scripture concerning fasting. It’s not part of the Ten Commandments. And yet, we shouldn’t jettison fasting simply because Roman Catholics make a mess of it.

Fasting is spiritual training. We are the Church Militant, that is, we are soldiers. Soldiers train for battle. But our battle is not, as St. Paul writes, “against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rules of the darkness of this age…” (Eph 6:12). The three enemies of God and His Church are the world, the sinful nature, and the devil. And so, by practicing the discipline of resisting the desires of the sinful nature, we prepare ourselves to do battle against the wiles of the devil.

Soldiers engage in mock contests, in low stakes struggles, so that in the thick of battle, their training will take over. Soldiers don’t rise to the level of their situation; they fall to the level of their training. And the same is true for us. Don’t think that you’ll magically be able to resist great temptation when it comes if you haven’t resisted thousands of small temptations. Fasting, one might say, is the cultivation of spiritual muscles. With use, muscles grow stronger. With neglect, they shrivel and atrophy.

Have you practiced the spiritual disciple of saying “no” to the natural desires of the body? If not, it will be difficult, if not impossible, to say “no” to the sinful desires of the flesh. And that’s why we learn from the Christians of old to make fasting a regular part of our lives on earth. Teach the Old Adam (the sinful nature) to get used to not getting everything he wants when he wants it. Strengthen your ability to resist every urge and impulse that pops into your head. And if you practice when the stakes are small, such as with matters of food and drink, then you are better equipped to resist when the stakes are truly a matter of life and death, when your soul hangs in the balance.

Finally, discipline is not the only benefit of fasting. Fasting takes our eyes off of the things of this world, the things that are perishing, and directs them to heavenly things. When you fast you go without something good for a time in order to enjoy it more fully later. Such is our hope as Christians—hope not in this world, but in the world to come. Fasting reminds us of this: “Don’t get too comfortable here; this is not our home. Don’t invest all your time and energy chasing the fading joys and comforts of this life. These cannot compare to what God has prepared for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.” Fasting is an expression of faith in Christ and His promises. We can endure hardship now, not as an end in itself, not because we like being miserable, but because hardship causes us to hold on more tightly to Jesus and the hope of heaven.

So, when you fast, Jesus says, don’t be gloomy like the hypocrites. Fast in the hope of the glorious future that Christ has promised us. Fast so that you will not be so easily deceived by the wiles of Satan and the urgings of the sinful nature. Practice forgoing the instant pleasures of this broken world, in order to more fully enjoy them without the possibility of vice when they are reborn as true joys in heaven. May the Holy Spirit strengthen you throughout the days of this Lenten pilgrimage until the day of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus. Amen.