Samuel D. High
sdhigh@aristotle.net
-----Original Message-----
From: Apostle Tom <pressingon@hotmail.com>
Sent: Tue, 19 Feb 2008 17:38:34 -0600
To: <pressingon@hotmail.com>
Subject: Morning Manna (Feb. 20); BP: Mk. 9:14-29; RBTTY: Mk. 2; Lev. 26-27
February 20 “On Prayer and Fasting”
“And when He was come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, ‘Why couldn’t we cast him out?’ And He said unto them, ‘This kind can come forth by nothing but by prayer and fasting’.”
Mark 9:28-29
Effectual “lifting up” and “calling down” are usually accompanied by an “emptying out.”
Desperation and deprivation so often go hand-in-hand. That’s really the essence of Jesus’ words in today’s Manna. Our Lord and the Apostles had just encountered a man whose son was demon-possessed (v.17). And, before bringing him to Christ he’d already asked the disciples to help him “and they could not” (v.18).
Matthew’s account of Jesus’ response—“O faithless and perverse (Grk. ‘diastrepho’—‘distorted, corrupt, quickly turned away, twisted, to turn back again, etc.’) generation! How long shall I be with you? How long shall I suffer (Grk. ‘anechomai’—‘to hold one’s self up against, put up with, endure, etc.’) you?” (17:17)—is more strongly-worded than Mark’s version (v.19). But, the meaning was/is still the same:
Jesus was exasperated with them. He’d taught them about the Kingdom Life. He’d demonstrated the Father’s great power by performing many miracles. He’d already “given unto them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out and the ability to heal all manner of sickness and disease” (Mt. 10:1) and sent them out to do so—which they’d done successfully (Mt. 10:5-42; Mk. 6:7-13).
Yet, here they were. . .right on the heels of His time on the Mount of Transfiguration (Mk. 9:1-13). . .unable to help this desperate man and his demonic son. No wonder they waited until they were alone with Him in the house to ask “Why couldn’t we cast Him out?” Shame always prefers to be away from searching eyes (Jn. 4:1-7, 16-18).
Even so, the Master told them their powerlessness was “because of their unbelief” (Mt. 17:20a). He then reminded them of the importance of having “mustard seed faith” (Mt. 17:20b) and engaging in “prayer and fasting.”
Now, fasting was a much more common and well-known practice in Jesus’ day than it is today. In fact, the law of Moses required fasting on the annual Day of Atonement (Lev. 16:29; 23:27, 31; Num. 29:7), which continued even unto Jesus’ day (Acts 27:9). And, the Pharisees began practicing fasting for various other reasons—primarily to show how “spiritual” they were. No wonder Jesus condemned such outward shows of religiosity and called them to sincere repentance, accompanied by “turning to Him with their heart, fasting, weeping and mourning” (Mt. 23:13-36; cf. Joel 2:12).
But, this doesn’t mean we shouldn’t fast—for depriving ourselves of something (e.g., food, drink, favorite activity, etc.) for the purpose of drawing near to the Father helps us better hear and receive. Although there’s no special merit in fasting, our Lord does take note of the reason for our doing so. . .and is more apt to grant what we desire when we “pray and fast” than when our request costs us nothing.
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