Jesus said, Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting (Matthew 17:21). What is it that only comes forth from you by prayer and fasting? Jesus gave the answer: But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me (Acts 1:8). “This kind” Jesus refers to is the power people receive when they are baptized in the Holy Ghost.

The Holy Ghost is a gift [Acts 2:38 and 10:45], and people can receive that gift freely. Jesus told His disciples, Freely ye have received, freely give (Matthew 10:8). However, to have that power flow through you and proceed out of you requires more than just being baptized in the Holy Ghost; it requires prayer and fasting.

It’s not enough to receive this power. What good is power if it never operates, manifests or is used to help others? The power of the Holy Ghost must operate through you by the person of the Holy Ghost. Jesus indicated that as you submit yourself to prayer and fasting, the flesh is brought under subjection. Then the Holy Ghost has liberty to work through you with His power that He brought with Him when He baptized you.

Submit to God’s Will

This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other (Galatians 5:16,17). While you live on this Earth, you will have a body of flesh; so you are responsible to bring it under subjection to the whole will of God. And don’t confuse your will with God’s will. That is self-deceit.

There will be times on this journey when you will not want to do the will of God; so either you will yield to self and disobey God, or you will submit to prayer and fasting and humble yourself to do His will. Even Jesus, the very Son of God, came to the point where He did not want to do His Father’s will. In the Garden of Gethsemane, He fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me (Matthew 26:39).

At that moment, Jesus’ flesh rebelled against His Father’s will; and don’t deceive yourself and think you won’t ever get to that point. If you truly want to do the whole will of God, Bible fasting is a necessity. That is why Jesus was able to go on to say, Nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt (Matthew 26:39).

Yield to God’s Will

In Bible fasting, you afflict your soul before God; and your body will feel the affliction as well. You die to self and yield to the Holy Ghost, and that gives the Spirit liberty and freedom to work in you and through you just as Jesus said He would. Then you can declare with the Apostle Paul, I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me (Galatians 2:20). Paul’s life was not about him; it was all about Jesus.

Paul sought to be like Jesus in word, in action, in power and in yielding to the whole will of his Heavenly Father. And in order for him to get to that place, he said he was in fastings often (II Corinthians 11:27). That is how his flesh stayed under submission, and the Holy Spirit continued to have complete liberty to work through him as a conduit between divinity and people in need.

In Bible fasting, the Holy Ghost teaches you that self must be brought under subjection to the whole Word and will of God; so if you desire the whole will of God for your life, Bible fasting is required. The Lord revealing His will to you is the easy part. The challenge is making self completely submit to it. You will never yield to the whole will of God unless you fast.

God said, For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts (Isaiah 55:8,9).

Jonah Rebelled

The book of Jonah teaches a great lesson of the power of Bible fasting and the results of a life that lacked in Bible fasting. Jonah was a prophet the Lord spoke to as one man to another, and He commanded Jonah to go to Nineveh. He wanted him to preach to the inhabitants of that city that their wickedness had come up before Him, but Jonah’s flesh rebelled against it.

Why did Jonah rebel? Nineveh was the capital of Assyria; and in Jonah’s day, it was a rapidly growing world power. However, history tells us that Assyria was brutal in its conquests and in its treatment of nations subject to them; so Jonah, no doubt, had many reservations about going to Nineveh and preaching against their wickedness. He probably struggled with fear and even resentment because of how evil, wicked and brutal the Assyrians were.

Instead of doing God’s will, Jonah boarded a ship to flee from His presence; so God caused a great storm on the sea. When those on board realized Jonah was the cause of the storm, they threw him overboard; and instantly, the storm ceased. Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights (Jonah 1:17).

If Jonah had lived a fasting life and remained humble before the Lord, he never would have found himself in that horrible predicament. If many Christians today would fast, remain humble before the Lord and keep flesh under subjection to God’s whole will, they wouldn’t find themselves in the belly of the whale either.

Ninevah Was Humbled

In the belly of the whale, Jonah had no choice but to stop running from God; and he humbled himself temporarily. Then God caused the whale to spit him up on shore. Jonah was finally ready to go forth to do God’s will and preach to the people in that wicked city.

The King heard God’s warning from Jonah and declared that the whole city would fast. So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not (Jonah 3:5,10). In Bible days, wearing sackcloth was a demonstration of humility before God. Those wicked people humbled themselves before God in fasting and sackcloth, and He honored their fast and their humility.

When Jonah realized that God was going to have mercy upon those people, He became angry. Jonah lacked divine love for those eternal souls, and he wanted them to die. Jonah was not as close to God as he thought he was; and in that pitiful, spiritual condition, he prayed to die. If God had answered that prayer, Jonah probably would have gone to hell.

After that, history tells us that the king of Assyria and the three kings that followed him made drastic reforms in the way their powerful kingdom operated. Assyria ceased invading and conquering other nations, and Israel recovered lost territory that Assyria had taken from them.

God had called Jonah to give the people of Nineveh an opportunity to turn from their wickedness and be converted, but that calling also revealed the great, spiritual lack in Jonah’s life and how strong self was within him.

Deny Self

Bible fasting produces powerful results with God by taking self out of the way and allowing the Holy Ghost to have liberty and freedom to work and produce the nine fruits of the Spirit in your life. You will never be everything God wants you to be or accomplish everything He desires of you without Bible fasting.

And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, Being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days he did eat nothing: and when they were ended, he afterward hungered (Luke 4:1,2). Jesus did not start His ministry on Earth until He was baptized in the Holy Ghost and had fasted. He then came forth declaring, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord (Luke 4:18,19). Jesus was anointed to work in the valley of human needs and to build the Kingdom of God.

It is not enough to receive the Holy Ghost and His power. That power must manifest and serve its purpose in your life, and that requires Bible fasting. It takes fasting to keep you from quenching the Spirit and to keep His hands untied in your life. It takes Bible fasting to purge you of all wrinkles and blemishes and to usher you into a state of total obedience.

Jesus said, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me (Matthew 16:24). Bible fasting is a great tool to use to deny self. Then came to him [Jesus] the disciples of John, saying, Why do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy disciples fast not? And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast (Matthew 9:14,15). Until the Bridegroom makes His appearance, we must fast.

The Disciples Needed to Fast

Examine the lives of the twelve disciples before and after Pentecost. They were spiritually weak without the Holy Ghost and His power that comes from Bible fasting. For over three years, the twelve walked and talked with Jesus. They ate with Him, listened to every sermon He preached and witnessed all the fantastic miracles He performed, including walking on the water and raising the dead; yet they were still bound in self.

At one point, the disciples were contending with one another about who would be the greatest in the Kingdom of God. James and John even requested to sit beside Jesus in His heavenly Kingdom. Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory (Mark 10:37).

When Jesus and the disciples were unwelcome in a town in Samaria, the disciples asked Jesus, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did (Luke 9:53,54)? Doesn’t that sound like the spirit of Jonah? Later, when Jesus needed the disciples to pray with Him in His darkest hour in the Garden of Gethsemane, all they could do was yield to the flesh and fall asleep. It took Holy Ghost power and Bible fasting to finally get them in step with Jesus and keep them there.

Seek Humility

Bible fasting brings the spirit of divine humility. Jesus displayed that humility in His most trying circumstances. At His trial, Jesus was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth (Isaiah 53:7). The Lord of Lords said nothing.

When Pilate asked Jesus, Art thou the King of the Jews? And he answering said unto him, Thou sayest it (Mark 15:2). When Jesus was hanging on the Cross in agony, He prayed for the forgiveness of those who crucified Him saying, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do (Luke 23:34).

Bible fasting leads you into the valley of human needs and prepares you to serve the people you find there. Bible fasting is power for service. It’s divine love, divine faith and the fruits of the Spirit in operation under the most extreme circumstances. Fasting brings deliverance from bondages for soul, mind and body.

Depend Completely on God

Bible fasting helps you put life into proper perspective and gives you clear vision of this final hour. The Bible says, Where there is no vision, the people perish (Proverbs 29:18). Members of the Bride of Christ are not on Earth to make it easy for themselves. They are ever laboring in the vineyard of the Lord, sowing and reaping a harvest of souls for His Kingdom.

When Bible fasting, you live in the presence of God and dine on His Word. You truly begin to understand what Jesus meant when He said, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God (Matthew 4:4). You must draw closer to God day by day and moment by moment until you become a part of Him, and He and His Word become a part of you. You take on the life of the Word of God, and that brings more answers to your prayers. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you (John 15:7).

On a Bible fast, you learn to depend on God for your strength. Sometimes, you need Him to help you get through even the next hour; but moment by moment, you’re winning victory. You begin to understand what the Lord told Paul: My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness [of body] (II Corinthians 12:9). The longer you fast, the more of a sacrifice it is and the more the Spirit can manifest His power through you.

Let Divine Power Work

Bible fasting is not easy. There is a price to pay for the power of the Holy Ghost to work through your life and for you to be a Jesus witness. Jesus said, But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth (Acts 1:8).

The next time you venture out on a fast, consider what it means to have that kind of power working in your life. Paul wrote, Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us (Ephesians 3:20). Such power can only work and manifest through Bible fasting. Don’t quench the Holy Ghost power within you. Don’t let it lie dormant when it could be operating through you to bless others and to build God’s Kingdom.

This final hour is a time to deny self and carry your cross. To do that, you must be born again, be baptized in the Holy Ghost and then become full of the Holy Ghost through prayer, fasting and living in the Word of God.

The Lord Saves and Heals

Friend, if you are drawing on people or things more than Jesus and His Word, it’s time to make things right and surrender all to Jesus. Pray with me now and ask Jesus into your heart. Oh, God, I confess all of my sins before you. Forgive me, Lord, and I will serve you for the rest of my life. I believe there is power in the divine blood of Jesus to wash away all of my sins and all disobedience. Come into my heart, Jesus. Come into my heart. Amen. If you meant that prayer, Jesus abides in you. Now, you must abide in Him from this day forward.

Now that you have Jesus abiding within, you can draw on His healing power. And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up (James 1:5). It doesn’t matter what your sickness or disease is or how much pain you are in; Jesus can set you free. Lord, in the name of Jesus, I bring before you all those who are sick in body or in great pain. Let your healing virtue flow into their bodies now. In the name of Jesus, heal! Lord, make them whole for your honor and glory. Amen.

Friend, we would love to hear about how God has healed you and delivered you today. You can send us your testimony by email, through social media or however you choose. We will rejoice in the Lord with you.

Receive the Holy Ghost

Now, Friend, you need the Holy Ghost because salvation is not enough to take you to Heaven when Jesus comes. The Holy Ghost is power for service and the power you need to do God’s will. Lord, in the name of Jesus, I call your anointing down upon the people. Lord, anoint them to receive the baptism of the Holy Ghost. In the name of Jesus, receive ye the Holy Ghost!

Friend, keep on praising the Lord with all of your heart and don’t stop until the Holy Ghost comes in.