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Eastern Christians view fasting as one part of repentance and supporting a spiritual change of heart. Eastern Christians observe two major times of fasting, the "Great Fast" before Easter, and "Phillip's Fast" before the Nativity. The fast period before Christmas is called Philip's Fast because it begins after the feast day of St. Philip.
After being baptized by John the Baptist, Jesus was tempted by the devil after 40 days and nights of fasting in the Judaean Desert. At the time, Satan came to Jesus and tried to tempt him. Jesus having refused each temptation, Satan then departed and Jesus returned to Galilee to begin his ministry. During this entire time of spiritual battle ...
Fasting (verses 16–18) is Jesus' third example of 'pious deeds', [1] after almsgiving (verses 2–4) and prayer (verses 5–6). [2] The previous verse attacked how the hypocrites made a show of fasting and made everyone around them aware of their pious suffering. In this verse Jesus counsels his followers to hide any discomfort.
In this verse Jesus moves on the third important form of Jewish worship: fasting. Fasting was an important part of piety in this period. All Jews were expected to fast on major holidays, such as the Day of Atonement, but some far more often, sometimes twice a week. Jesus' views on fasting parallels his views of other forms of worship.
The previous verse stated that, unlike the hypocrites, Jesus' followers should present a clean and normal appearance even when fasting. This verse closely parallels Matthew 6:4 and Matthew 6:6 , and as in those verses, the message is that even if your piety is kept secret from those around you, God will still know about it and reward you. [ 3 ]
[29] In the New Testament, Jesus went into the desert to fast and pray for forty days and forty nights; it was during this time that Satan tried to tempt him (cf. Matthew 4:1–3). [27] The forty day and night fasts of Moses, Elijah, and Jesus prepared them for their work, and their examples were foundational to the establishment of Lent. [26] [28]
Lent (Latin: Quadragesima, [1] 'Fortieth') is the solemn Christian religious observance in the liturgical year commemorating the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring temptation by Satan, according to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, before beginning his public ministry.
In Matthew 6, Jesus condemns doing what would normally be "good works" simply for recognition and not from the heart, such as those of alms (6:1–4), prayer (6:5–15), and fasting (6:16–18). The discourse goes on to condemn the superficiality of materialism and calls the disciples not to worry about material needs or fret about the future ...