The Power of Prayer & Fasting, Part 2
History demonstrates that nearly every significant revival and awakening was initiated by individuals and ministries that earnestly sought God through prayer and fasting. Frequently, these movements of God were accompanied by signs, wonders, and the gifts of the Spirit.
We are currently experiencing a history-making move among the nations! Fasting is an essential part of the process of seeing God’s glory released through us and for the Church to be released in apostolic power.
What is fasting? According to Biblical examples, fasting involves abstaining from food or drink for a period of time to seek God through earnest prayer. It is a way to draw near to God and search for Him with all our hearts.
Jeremiah 29:13 states, “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” (NKJV)
Is fasting optional for Jesus’ disciples? Absolutely not!
It was understood that the disciples of Jesus would fast, not if, but when! It is a normal part of their spiritual journey with Christ. In Matthew 6, the acts of giving to the poor, praying, and fasting—all use the term “when” (see Matt. 6:1-18).
Jesus never eliminated the option of practicing spiritual disciplines, including fasting! “But when you fast…” Matt. 6:17 NKJV
The Pharisees questioned Jesus about why John’s disciples fasted while His did not.
Jesus replied, “But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them; then they will fast in those days.” Luke 5:35 NKJV.
Once again, Jesus suggests that fasting is an expected practice for His disciples.
In Matthew’s Gospel, some disciples tried to heal a boy possessed by a demon. They couldn’t manage it and asked Jesus why they were unable to cast out the demon.
Jesus replied, “However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” Matt. 17:21 NKJV
Jesus’ answer demonstrates that certain problems and demons cannot be effectively addressed without fasting and prayer. I have personally observed that times of prayer and fasting release greater authority and power to heal the sick and deliver the oppressed.
A lifestyle of prayer and fasting keeps our hearts humble and receptive to God. Furthermore, our prayers hold greater kingdom authority and power!
Prayer and Fasting, NT pattern for the release of apostolic power.
Jesus as Our Model: Jesus serves as our ultimate model in life, faith, and ministry.
Before beginning His earthly ministry, Jesus prayed and fasted. In Luke 4, the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness for 40 days and nights of prayer and fasting. After overcoming the devil’s temptations, He left the desert in the power of the Spirit.
“Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry. Luke 4:1-2 NKJV
Notice: “… being filled with the Holy Spirit…” “Filled” means to be full or complete.
Yet, during His wilderness experience, Jesus faced temptation from Satan and His own flesh.
On the evening before His betrayal, He told the disciples, “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Our carnal nature opposes the things of the Spirit of God. When we fast, we submit our carnal nature to our spirit, gaining mastery over the flesh.
Jesus resisted not only His own flesh but also Satan’s schemes, emerging victorious over the temptations in the wilderness.
Gordon Lindsay, co-founder of Christ for the Nations, believed that fasting empowers us to overcome the temptations of the flesh.
“We see from the experience of Christ that one of the purposes of fasting is to give men power over the temptations of the flesh. Through those days of fasting in the wilderness, Christ overcame every temptation, whether it affected His body, spirit, or soul. And we must remember that Christ was both divine and human, and “was in all points tempted as we are” (Heb. 4:15). Therefore, we too can master temptations of body, soul, or spirit through prayer and fasting.” 1
Luke continues his record of Jesus in the wilderness:
“Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time. Then Jesus returned in the power (dunamis) of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.” Luke 4:13-14 NKJV
Notice that now Jesus returns in the “power” of the Spirit. There is a difference between being filled or full of the Spirit and walking in the miraculous power of the Spirit! Prayer, fasting, and obedience caused Jesus to emerge in power.
Gordon Lindsay: “… prayer and fasting was the master key that Christ used to make the impossible possible.” 2
Dr. Yonggi Cho, a 20th-century pastor and revival leader, said the following about this passage:
“We can deduce this: being full of the Holy Spirit does not necessarily cause one to walk in the power of the Spirit! I believe the way into power, especially in prayer, is to fast & pray.” 3
From this point forward, Jesus moved in “dunamis” power! He was “anointed” with power!
Jesus performed the “works” through the anointing of the Holy Spirit as the Son of Man, rather than as the Son of God. He was entirely dependent on the Father and the power of the Holy Spirit.
Paul and Barnabas were released by the Holy Spirit and empowered by the Spirit during a season of fasting and ministering to the Lord.
2 As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away. Acts 13:2-3 NKJV
Paul’s apostolic ministry was now established, and from that point on, we see Paul and Barnabas acting with the power of the Spirit.
Like Jesus, as they waited upon the Holy Spirit during a season of fasting and prayer, they were commissioned to go forth in the power of the Spirit to affect the world in which they lived.
Jesus serves as our model for ministry—available to any who follows Him!
John 14:12 indicates that we can perform the works Jesus performed, as we believe in Him and stay yielded to the Holy Spirit:
“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. NKJV
The term “works” is translated from the Greek word “erga” and refers to works of the same type and quality. What works did Jesus do? Heal the sick, cast out demons, raise the dead, and perform other miracles.
If we aim to carry out those works, it only makes sense to start with what He prioritized—prayer & fasting!
Derek Prince, in his book Fasting, comments on this passage in John:
“I want to point out that the works Jesus did began with fasting. If we want to follow in the other works He did, it seems logical to me that we must begin where Jesus began – with fasting.” 4
Cho comments on this passage:
God has no favorite children. What has worked for me will also work for you. What brought power to the lives of men like Luther, Wesley, Finney, and Moody can also bring you power. It does not matter if you are an ordained minister or a housewife. Your level of education or your station in life is of no consequence when it comes to prayer. If God has worked through men and women in the past, He can work through you. 5
Church History
Throughout Church history, many who were mightily used by God had an experience with the Holy Spirit that propelled them into a new dimension of His power in ministry. A significant number of these experiences resulted from fasting combined with prayer!
In the early history of the Church, Christians began fasting twice a week, choosing Wednesdays and Fridays to distinguish themselves from the Pharisees, who fasted on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Epiphanius, the bishop of Salamis, born in A.D. 315, confirms this and asks, “Who does not know that the fasts of the fourth and sixth days of the week are observed by Christians throughout the world?” 6
The roll call of other great Christian leaders who chose to incorporate prayer with fasting into their lives resembles a hall of fame: Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Knox, Jonathan Edwards, Matthew Henry, Charles Finney, Andrew Murray, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, and many others.
Martin Luther fasted for days at a time while translating the Bible. Fasting and prayer were the secret to the translation’s success and helped fuel the Reformation revival.
John Wesley (Charles and George Whitfield) believed in this power so much that he urged early Methodists to fast every Wednesday and Friday.
Healing minister John Lake was determined to fast and pray for the first nine months of 1907, crying out for more of God’s power in his life and ministry. In the tenth month, he was endowed with power from on high!
Lake wrote of the experience,
“I found that my life began to manifest in the varied range of the gifts of the Spirit. Healings were of a more powerful order. My nature became so sensitized that I could lay my hands on any man or woman and tell what organ was diseased, and to what extent.” 7
Resistance to Prayer and Fasting
Our modern culture breeds opposition to discipline and hard work. We look for shortcuts in nearly everything we do, including our Christian faith. Formulas, programs, and other methods to grow the Church, rather than through spiritual disciplines of prayer, fasting, the study of God’s Word, service, and evangelism.
Dr. Elmer Towns, in his book Fasting for Spiritual Breakthrough, comments that:
“Perhaps we are currently so into “feel-good religion” that we don’t want to be bothered with any thought of hunger or self-denial. Perhaps our confidence in activism, such as splashy evangelistic programs, to virtually bring in the kingdom of God has made us forget the spiritual factors in church growth. Perhaps the widespread promise that “You can have it all” has blocked all thought of sacrifice from our minds.”
The powerful spiritual weapon of prayer and fasting has largely been lost in the modern church. Yet, it is perhaps the most important key!
There is no substitute for prayer and fasting if we truly want to bring the victory of Christ into our lives, families, churches, and nations. Fasting and prayer are like nuclear fusion—uniting and releasing God’s power!
Franklin Hall, in his book Atomic Power with God through Fasting and Prayer, wrote,
“To see our loved ones saved, souls converted, and a sweeping revival come in our midst; to have God work miracles, and heal our diseases, and pour out His Holy Spirit, we must start a fast and prayer in the home.” 8
Mahesh Chavda, in his book The Hidden Power of Prayer & Fasting, calls fasting “one of the greatest weapons God has given to His end-time army.” 9
God wants to bring revival to our cities and nations. He longs to use His supernatural power to heal and restore the broken in our lives, families, and society!
When we fast, we humble our flesh and rely on God and His power. We become more sensitive to the Lord, releasing more power into our lives. Fasting shows desperation and determination to touch the Lord!
Remember the story of Esther and how she and the Jews were on the verge of annihilation. What did she do?
“Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king, which is against the law; and if I perish, I perish!” Esther 4:16 NKJV
God then moved in power, and a great deliverance for the Jewish people occurred!
We have been commissioned, given a “deputy badge”, and asked to go forth and liberate a dying world.
Prayer and fasting are spiritual disciplines Jesus has given His Church to grow in faith and release His authority and power to deliver others! Let’s contend for the faith and reach a desperate world!
FootNotes
1 Gordon Lindsay, Prayer & Fasting (Dallas: Christ for the Nations, Inc. reprint 1997), 41-42.
2 Ibid., 3.
3 Paul Y. Cho, Prayer: Key to Revival (Dallas, London, Sydney, Singapore: Word Publishing, 1984), 113.
4 Derek Prince, Fasting (New Kensington, PA: Whitaker House, 1986), 19.
5 Paul Y. Cho, Prayer: Key to Revival (Dallas, London, Sydney, Singapore: Word Publishing, 1984), 12.
6 Elmer L. Towns, Fasting For Spiritual Breakthrough (Ventura, CA: Regal Books, 1996), 26.
7 Gloria Copeland, John G. Lake, His Life, His Sermons, His Boldness of Faith (Ft. Worth: Kenneth Copeland Publications reprint 1995), xxi.
8 Franklin Hall, Atomic Power With God Through Fasting And Prayer (Voices from the Healing Revival Book 86). Revival Library. Kindle Edition.
9 Mahesh Chavda, The Hidden Power of Prayer and Fasting (Shippensburg, PA: Destiny Image Publishers, 1998), 12.
