The Word God Spells

Matthew 9: 14-17
Gn 27:1-5.15-29 / Ps 135

The days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then, they will fast.
(Matthew 9:15)

Death on the cross was the price
That Jesus paid for our sins . . .
Now that we’re renewed in Christ
Why put ‘old wine’ into ‘new wineskins’?

The disciples of John came and asked Jesus, “How is it that we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast. “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. Neither do men pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.” (Matthew 9: 14-17)

Reflection

Jesus was not disparaging the Jews’ sacred tradition, but it was not the appropriate time for fasting. Fasting was usually practiced during a time of mourning, or for the repentance of sins, for asking divine guidance or protection, or combined with prayers, to ask for healing or casting out evil spirits. At this time, Jesus was breaking bread with sinners and celebrating the deliverance of His new apostle, Matthew.

Fasting can be a powerful practice for self-denial. Together with abstinence, this discipline of conquering the desire to eat develops our will power to resist the many lures that the devil employs to entrap us. But fasting should not be an end in itself. God does not encourage fasting solely for discipline or self-denial reasons. It is not a Biblical reason for fasting. God has a higher purpose in mind.

The sacrifice involved in fasting is for the purpose of “afflicting one’s soul.” It is not merely inflicting one’s body with hunger, but conditioning one’s spirit to turn in prayer more intimately to the Provider of all things. Fasting must always occur with prayer. “You can pray without fasting, but you cannot fast without praying.” The deliberate abstention from food happens for a spiritual reason: to communicate with the Father on a higher plane. God said, “When you seek me with all your heart, you will find me” (Jer. 29:13,14). When we set aside the cravings of the body to concentrate on praying, we are seeking God with all our heart. And without sustenance, we weaken ourselves before the Lord in order to depend on His strength. To fast therefore is “to humble oneself before the Lord” (Ps.35:13)

It is as “new wineskins” that we accept this “new wine” – this fresh perspective on the essence of fasting. For those of us who are overweight, this is the best time to ask our Lord to give us the willpower to restrain our appetites — but not only to lose weight, but to gain a deeper understanding of His cross.

Help me, O Lord to be able to sacrifice a little, by fasting and abstinence, as my offering to You. Strengthen my will, I humbly pray. Amen.