Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?”…So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief…However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” (Matthew 17:19-21)
As shown in the previous study, the original Greek rendering of the opening text quotes Jesus as saying, “however this type of demonic being does not go out except by prayer and fasting”. What does this reveal about faith, prayer and fasting?
Indeed, it takes faith in Jesus Christ alone to become a child of God (Ephesians 2:18; Romans 10:9). Even so, as per the Scriptures, we err when we think that we only need faith and nothing more to make it in the Christian life. In 2 Peter 1:4-9, we are told that unless we diligently add seven specific virtues to our faith we will fall, become blind, shortsighted as well as useless and unfruitful in the knowledge of Jesus Christ. In Hebrews, we are told that it takes both faith and patience (not faith alone) to inherit the promises of God (Hebrews 6:12), while James adds that “even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone (James 2:17). In our opening text as well, Jesus taught this profound truth in relation to faith: although Jesus has made His authority available to us and we may be people of faith, there is still a certain level of spiritual authority we are unable to walk in and exercise if we are not people who fast and pray. This also means that we should never equate having access to God’s power with practically walking in it when we fail to do what it takes to take hold of that power.
Jesus lived as a human being and modeled for us how we ought to live as Christians. He went through every situation we will ever encounter (cf. Hebrews 2:17, Hebrews 4:15). When He was faced with a demonic situation that required prayer and fasting, He did not walk away from the presence of the demon to fast and pray first but in that very moment, He cast out the demon and brought deliverance to a suffering child. This means that Jesus had been living a life of prayer and fasting (cf. Luke 5:16, Mark 1:35, Mathew 4:2; John 4:31-34), so that when He was faced with a dire situation that required these virtues, He was well prepared to handle it and prevail. Even so, what if we don’t give ourselves to prayer and fasting now, and are faced with situations that require prayer and fasting to triumph? If it is in the middle of such trouble that we have to make an attempt to fast and pray, we may already be too late. It’s not a question of “if trouble will come or not”. We are already warned that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God (Acts 14:22). It’s only a question of how prepared you are when those troubles and tribulations come (see Matthew 7:24-27).
Prayer is not an option but a command (1 Thessalonians 5:17, Luke 18:1). God said His house shall be a house prayer (Matthew 21:13). We who have come to God through faith in Jesus have become the house of God (1 Corinthians 3:16). If His house is a house of prayer, then we must be people of prayer. This is where a great deal of our power lies, for “the earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working]” (James 5:16, AMPC).
Fasting is not a bondage or a needless virtue. Jesus told His disciples that when He is taken away from the earth, His disciples will (not may) fast (cf. Luke 5:35). It is not necessarily the length of fasting or what is fasted that counts but the purity of heart with which we approach it. Daniel fasted by eating, except pleasant food and wine, and abstaining from applying ointment on himself for three weeks (Daniel 10:3) while Jesus fasted for forty days and forty nights without food (Matthew 4:1-2, Luke 4:1-2), and both encountered God powerfully afterwards (Luke 4:14, Daniel chapters 10-12). We may never fast as Jesus did, but we can start with what Daniel did. When we fast, we tell God, not just in word but in deed, that He is most valuable in our lives above our necessary food or anything we may hold dear. Why will those who give themselves to fasting not walk in the depths of God? The Bible also teaches that fasting is a godly way we humble ourselves before God (Psalm 69:10, Ezra 8:21, Isaiah 58:5; Psalm 35:13) while God teaches that He gives His grace (also divine power) to the humble (James 4:6). Why won’t those who fast, walk in a dimension of God’s power uncommon to those who do otherwise (e.g. Matthew 17:19-21)?
Jesus not only had faith, but fasted and prayed. The early apostles, who were men of faith followed Jesus’ example, not neglecting to fast and pray (e.g. Acts 13:1-3). Why should we think we have to do otherwise to walk in the demonstrations of God’s power and glory as they did? As Jesus taught, there is a certain level of the power of God we are unable to walk in and exercise till we learn not to be people of faith alone but of prayer and fasting.
Dr. K. Omari
December 22, 2019.
A Very Important Message
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16). For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:23). Therefore, If you do not know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour, I invite you to put your faith in Him. Pray the prayer below to accept Jesus Christ as your Saviour:
“I come to you God in Jesus’ name and surrender my life unto you. I repent of my sins and I ask You to forgive me all my sins. I confess with my mouth that Jesus is Lord, and I believe with my heart that God has raised Jesus from the dead. I thank you God for saving me, in Jesus name, Amen.
If you sincerely prayed this prayer, believe and be assured that you are saved, for the Bible says that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved (Romans 10:13, Romans 10:10, Acts 16:31). Find a Bible believing church to attend so that you can be discipled to grow in the ways of God. You can also email me ([email protected]) and I will be happy to grow together with you in Christ.