We are in the heart of our 2026 Fast, on this 21-day journey that challenges us to look within, to silence the voice of the flesh, and to listen more to the voice of God.
Many ask me: Pastor, why fast, if food is good? Have you ever asked yourself that question?
Yes, food is a blessing from God, a gift for our strength, pleasure, and satisfaction. It was created to be good. But, as we will see today in the Word of God, even something good can become dangerous if we lack self-control over it.
I believe that, as Christians, we need to understand that there are people in the Bible who lost their health, their blessings, and even their lives because of food.
Food is good, but it can be a trap if we don’t govern it.
Prepare yourselves, because what you will hear today can change your perspective on fasting forever.
This battle we win on the plate is just the beginning of victory in every other area of our lives.
If we cannot control our stomachs, how can we expect to control the flesh—sexual desires, pornography, smoking addiction, alcohol—and even demonic forces?
Fasting is a powerful tool that helps us break addictions and bad habits, and empowers us with authority in the spiritual realm.
I will give you some biblical examples that show how hunger or food can destroy your life.
The First Temptation: Food!
What was the first sin that entered the world? Food temptation! The first sin on earth was caused by food!
God created thousands of trees and said: “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.” — Genesis 2:16-17 (NIV)
And then: “When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.” — Genesis 3:6 (NIV)
God told them to abstain, but they did not fast. They disobeyed and brought curses, death, and diseases upon themselves and future generations.
The first couple destroyed their lives due to a lack of self-control over food.
Esau and his Birthright
There is another example in Genesis 25, about Esau and Jacob. Esau returned home exhausted from a hunt. The Bible says he was so hungry that his brother Jacob offered him a bowl of lentil stew in exchange for his birthright.
“Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.” “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?”” — Genesis 25:31-32 (NIV)
In a moment of weakness and hunger, Esau did not think of God. He exchanged eternal spiritual blessings for a plate of food! That is why fasting is so important: it transforms carnal people into spiritual people.
God is telling us: “There are places you will never reach until you hunger for God and Fast.”
The Bible shows that Esau lost his birthright because he fed his hunger with physical food instead of seeking God’s spiritual sustenance.
The People of Israel in the Wilderness
Another example is the people of Israel, whom God sustained in the wilderness with daily manna. But they came to long for the place of slavery. Why? Because of food!
“The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, “If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we used to eat in Egypt at no cost—also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic.”” — Numbers 11:4-5 (NIV)
Jesus, the Victor over Food Temptation
The first temptation in history was food, and humanity failed. But Jesus’ first temptation, after a long period of fasting in the desert, was also food, and He overcame it!
Matthew 4:1-2 tells us that after fasting for forty days and forty nights, He was hungry and tempted by the devil. Verse 3 reveals how the devil’s first temptation was to challenge Jesus to turn stones into bread.
Jesus demonstrated that it is possible to overcome this temptation, and He empowers us to do the same through fasting and self-control. God wants us to have self-control over food consumption so that we can live a full life. If you truly fast, you will develop powerful self-control over this type of sin.
Why Fast? What Does Fasting Do in Our Lives?
- Fasting is a way to humble ourselves and draw closer to God.
“Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth and humbled myself with fasting.” — Psalm 35:13 (NIV)
God looks to the humble and contrite of heart. When you fast and repent in humility, you enter a position of total dependence that God loves. It is then that blessings and miracles manifest in your life, for “God opposes the proud but shows favour to the humble” (James 4:6 NIV). Fasting transforms you!
- When we fast, we remove a “god” from our lives.
The Bible says food is good, but it also warns that for many, food becomes a god!
“For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things.” — Philippians 3:18-19 (NIV)
Paul writes that some Christians in Philippi were enemies of the Cross because their god was their stomach. Food for some has become an idol. Just as some idolise money, others idolise their stomach. That’s why fasting is so important! You remove this “god” from your life!
“For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites.” — Romans 16:18 (NIV)
- Fasting, when practiced periodically, help us develop SELF-CONTROL.
Something many people lack! They lack self-control with food, with their eyes, with their thoughts, and with their words. When you fast and learn to control food, to say “no” to your desire to eat, you will develop self-control in all areas of your life. When you are fasting in obedience to God, the Holy Spirit will produce in you the fruit of the Spirit, which is self-control.
- Fasting will bring health to your body, and you will live many years to fulfil your life’s purpose.
What happens to your body during fasting? (By “fasting,” I refer to abstaining from solid food for a period, with water intake permitted – this is the most common form of fasting for health purposes, and the studies I will mention refer to it).
I will share what doctors and scientists say what happens to your body when you fast:
- Stored Glucose Use and Ketosis: In the first hours, the body uses glycogen. Afterwards, it begins to burn fat for energy, entering ketosis, a process that promotes weight loss and reduces body fat.
- Autophagy: Fasting triggers autophagy, a cellular “cleansing” process where cells degrade and recycle damaged components. This is crucial for cellular maintenance, renewal, increased stress resistance, and can have protective effects against ageing and some neurodegenerative diseases, and even contribute to immune health.
- Improved metabolic health: Enhances insulin sensitivity and reduces blood sugar levels, helping to prevent and combat type 2 diabetes.
- Brain health: Increases the production of BDNF (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor), which is beneficial for neuronal health. Fasting acts like fertiliser for the brain, nourishing and strengthening it.
- Longevity: Studies suggest it can increase life expectancy.
- Inflammation Reduction: Fasting reduce markers of inflammation, linked to various chronic diseases.
Centuries before modern medicine, God already instructed us to fast. Today, science, doctors and scientists validates this, showing that controlling what we eat and fasting can lead to a longer, healthier life.
“After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church” — Ephesians 5:29 (NIV)
“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honour God with your bodies.” — 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (NIV)
The Bible teaches us that we must feed and care for our bodies, for they are temples of the Holy Spirit! When we consider all the issues that come from obesity and our struggles with food, it is striking to realise that everything goes back to the first sin.
I believe that many Christians could have lived much longer, and died not by God’s will but by the lifestyle they led: eating and drinking too much, and consuming what they shouldn’t, destroying their bodies.
Did you know you can die prematurely?
“Do not be overwicked, and do not be a fool—why die before your time?” — Ecclesiastes 7:17 (NIV)
The Bible says that if we are “fools,” we can die before our time! Today, many Christians are sick due to poor eating habits – what they eat and what they drink.
Doctors and nutritionists say: “You are what you eat!” The health you have is a direct result of your diet.
Unfortunately, many Christians are harming themselves through food and drink.
I have had dear friends, faithful Christians, and even pastors who did not take care of their health and died at 40 years old as a consequence to poor health related to food consumption. Others are sick, and suffering with the consequences of an unhealthy body because they cannot control what they eat, or how much.
Today we have a lot of information at our disposal. We all know what is good and what is not for our health. If I ask you: what are healthy foods? What are the foods that are rubbish and not good for your health?
Here is a list of the worst foods for your health – which need to be reconsidered in your life if you want to live a full and healthy life:
- Sugar, sweets, soft drinks (diet or regular), sugary juices.
- Ultra-processed foods, fried foods, processed meats.
- Fast food, white flour bread, margarine and hydrogenated fats.
- Overprocessed fast food, energy drinks.
You all know what is good and what is bad, but the question is having the self-control to say “no” to what you eat!
Challenge and Conclusion
The Bible says your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit and you need to take good care of it. The health you have is a result of what you eat and drink! You are what you eat!
Eat healthy food, and after these 21 days of fasting, stop eating what is destroying your body. Many are destroying their lives because they eat a lot of rubbish, and when you fast, you purify yourself and break these bad habits.
If you wish to have physical and spiritual health, cultivate the habit of fasting! Not just once a year for 21 days, but fast every week, at least once a week (a 24-hour fast, for example).
I challenge you, after this period of fasting, to continue on fasting, abandoning bad eating habits, eating healthy, taking vitamins, and exercising. You will live many years for the Glory of God!
Fasting brings intimacy with God. My desire is to build in you a love for fasting, because it makes intimacy with God a priority.
Fasting opens the doors to the Supernatural!
When you begin to govern your body well, this attracts the presence of the Holy Spirit. When you fast, you are telling God: “You are more important than barbecue, chocolate, bread or potatoes.”
May God bless you and help you care for the temple of the Holy Spirit.