Matthew 9:14-17
Jesus
Explains Fasting To Religious
Leaders
9:14
Then the disciples of John came to Him, asking,
"Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but Your
disciples do not fast?"
15 And Jesus said to them,
"The attendants of the bridegroom cannot mourn as
long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? But
the days will come when the bridegroom is taken
away from them, and then they will fast.
16 "But no one puts a
patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the
patch pulls away from the garment, and a worse tear
results.
17 "Nor do people put new
wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wineskins
burst, and the wine pours out and the wineskins are
ruined; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins,
and both are preserved."
This
is the Word of the Lord ... It is meant to change
the way that we think, and the way that we live.
Commentary
by Bob Pardue
What Is
Fasting?
Many people are not
completely sure what fasting means. Wikipedia
tm
explains fasting as ...
"primarily the act of
willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink,
or both, for a period of time. A fast may be total
or partial concerning that from which one fasts,
and may be prolonged or intermittent as to the
period of fasting.
Fasting practices may
preclude sexual activity as well as food, in
addition to refraining from eating certain types or
groups of foods; for example, one might refrain
from eating meat. A complete fast in its
traditional definition is abstinence of all food
and liquids except for water.
Fasting for religious and
spiritual reasons has been a part of human custom
since pre-history. It is mentioned in the Bible, in
both the Old Testament (the Tanach) and New
Testament, the Qur'an, the Mahabharata, and the
Upanishads. Fasting is also practiced in many other
religious traditions and spiritual
practices."
Who Were John's
Disciples?
In this passage, the
disciples of John mentioned here are the followers
of John the Baptist.
When reading about the
ministry of John the Baptist we find that his
message was one of the law and repentance. As with
us, people of this time period found it impossible
to live up to every single letter of the law so
were very curious as to why Jesus' disciples were
not fasting according to the law.
It is fairly clear that
John's disciples did not completely understand the
ministry of Jesus which was one of life which is
the second step after repentance. They had not yet
taken that step.
Mourning And
Fasting
Jesus relates the kingdom of
heaven as a bridal feast. He is the bridegroom and
the disciples are the bride. Weddings are happy
occasions and fasting and deprival is more in tune
with mourning. A bride does not feel sadness when
she is with the groom so fasting is not called
for.
So, this passage is not so
much about fasting as it's about giving up the old
ways of tradition and law. Jesus brought a new
ministry of forgiveness and the promise of
everlasting life to those who believe.
So, should we fast and mourn
because of the past or should we share the joy and
future that is in Jesus Christ?
- Love in
Christ
- Bob
If you have never made the
commitment to receive the love and life-changing
experience of Jesus Christ, please take a moment to
go
here and take the
first
steps to salvation.
Another
Bible Story For Living ...
Matthew
9:1-8 - Baptist Bible Study Shows Jesus Healing the
Paralyzed Man
- In this lesson Jesus teaches there is more to
healing than just relieving pain or illness. There
is also a need to heal and forgive sins.
Verses about what Jesus says about fasting
are from New American Standard Bible
Comments are welcome. Please email
me with any questions or comments you
may have.
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