Can We Tell Others We Are Fasting?

“And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
Matthew 6:16-18

One of the stigmas about fasting revolves around the question, can we tell others that we are fasting? This is a worthy question to consider as Jesus addresses the subject in the sermon on the mount. In that sermon, Jesus addresses the three spiritual disciplines of a believer - prayer, fasting and giving.

In each situation Jesus has an underlining theme - don’t perform these spiritual disciplines to be noticed by others. In other words, what Jesus is getting at is the heart issues surrounding our spiritual acts. When we pray and so sound trumpets so that others see us praying, we have lost the true reward that comes with praying, which is that God hears us.

The same can be said for giving. When we give, if we make a big show of it, so that everyone sees it, we have already received our reward, Jesus says. The same is said for fasting. When we fast, the point is not whether we tell others about fasting or not, the point is our heart intent. Are you telling someone you are fasting in order to look spiritual? Then you have your reward, you look spiritual.

The point in the matter wasn’t that you couldn’t talk about fasting, praying or giving. In fact, in order for other people to have an understanding of those things, you will likely need to teach them, so that will require you to talk about it. But when you do, Jesus is saying that you need to be very careful as to the intentions of your heart.

All of us, especially myself, we really want other people to like us. We want people to think well of us. That’s a human desire. It’s a corrupted desire, but it’s a desire all of us share nonetheless. None of us start out in life thinking, I really want everyone to hate me. No, the core desire is that we want to be loved. That desire becomes corrupted when we desire to be loved by others more than we desire to be loved by God. In other words, we seek the love of others over the love of God.

The Lord is clear that we must first seek his love and his righteousness before anything else. We should desire to love him and to be loved by him above all other things. Too often though, we trade the invisible love of God in exchange for the visible love or adoration here of others here on earth.

This is the heart of what Jesus is addressing, our need to be seen and loved by others. Too often I know I have struggled with this. Something in my heart just wants to be seen. I want others to know about me and to love me. When I do that, I’m chasing their affections rather than resting in the love that the Father has for me.

The answer to all of this is of course to repent. I have to change my mind to line up with what God says. I have to realize that God is love and that all love flows from him and to him. And anytime we seek to pervert that love we are missing out on true love and accepting a cheap substitute.

Fasting is something we most certainly should discuss with others though, especially in today’s culture. But we don’t do it to say, “look how spiritual I am,” but rather to inform them of the joys of fasting and pursuing the love of God through it.

Prayer - Father, I know I often care too much about what others think about me. I have a tendency to seek the love of others over your eternal life-giving love. Help me to put these things in their proper places. Help me to love you more and share that love with others. Lord, I want to be seen by you, not by my neighbors. Help me to follow your path of love today. Amen.