Happy New Year 2025!

We are about to head into a week of prayer and fasting starting on the 2nd 7pm on Zoom. During our first prayer gathering we will be announcing the goals we are believing God for around our three vision words – gather, grow and go.

Last Sunday I mentioned some of the types of fasts in the Bible, asking which one is the Lord wanting you to do?

The Disciple’s Fast

Part of being a disciple is throwing off the things holding us back, which includes putting to dead sin in our lives. A Bible example of that is Colossians 3:5–6: “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming”

Hebrews 12 challenges us “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

How does this relate to fasting? Isaiah 58:6 helps us see… “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?“

Sometime we need to fast to see breakthrough of deliverance. There was an occasion when the disciples were unable to set a boy free. Of course Jesus could do it instantly.

Matt 17:14 -18 When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him. ¹⁵ “Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. ¹⁶ I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him.”

“You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.” ¹⁸ Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed at that moment.

The disciples were unbelieving and unable to throw off the perverse spirits tormenting the boy. When the disciples were with Jesus in private, they asked why they couldn’t free the boy.

Matt 14:19-21 Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”

He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

Firstly they need to have faith that Jesus can do it, then there is the issue of the missing v21! Modern translations don’t generally have verse 21, because it comes from later manuscripts – it says “However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” (NKJV). The parallel passage is Mark 9:29 which has the prayer quote.

The sense is that Jesus had power because of his lifestyle of prayer ad fasting – and some spirits will only come out because of the anointing that comes from prayer and fasting.

As we head into a week of prayer and fasting – do you need to see deliverance from sin, addiction, bondage to sin in you or those you love. Maybe the Lord is calling you to fast that way!

God I’m not going into 2025 with the same habits, addictions and things that take me away from you!