Myles Munroe Transcript
For what happens in your life has to be paid. This, I wanted to just show you this, our entire church is on a fast. We’re fasting for 21 days from January 9th to January 30th. 21 days. This is how you look when you haven’t eaten any food at all for 21 days. No food, my wife no food. You just drink water, herbal tea. Complete fast. You don’t die.
So, you wonder why I’m so anointed, you wonder why there’s such power when I get up to speak. There’s a price you pay. You wonder why I have such an understanding of the kingdom. How bad do you want to know God?
I heard Americans going to fast and they say “I fasted for a day.” You didn’t fast, you missed a meal. Christ fasted 40 days, Moses fasted 40 days in the mountain, Elijah fasted 40 days. You can’t get some things done without fasting. There’s some things you cannot get done without fasting, I’m telling you.
The disciples loved God, they followed Jesus, they believed his teaching, and they ran into a little demon-possessed boy and they couldn’t cast a demon out. They loved God, they followed Jesus, and they obeyed the Scriptures, his words, but they still couldn’t cast the demon out. They pray, just like you pray, “Come out in Jesus’ name.” All that stuff. The demon says, “No I’m not coming out, because I’m a different kind of spirit I need more than what you’re doing, prayer can’t get me out.” And the demon never left.
Christ leaving the mountain, coming down the mountain after fasting, met them and he says, “What’s going on?” The whole city was confused, and a man came to Christ and said, “I brought my boy to you, to your disciples, and they couldn’t cast the demon out. And Christ didn’t cast the demon out. First he first turned to them and he said, “How long must I be with you?” He rebuked them. There’s some things you want God to do, but you must be willing to pay a price.
I’m not telling you I’m fasting because I want you to think I’m impressing you. I wanted to show you what 21 days of food looks like because most of the people I meet in the church, when they fast for two days they think they’re gonna die. That’s a lie. If you can’t overcome the power of your belly how can you overcome the power of a demon?
So Jesus turned to the man and said “Bring the boy to me,” and then he cast the demon out in one word and he gave the boy back to his father. The disciples were shamed and quiet, because they were publicly embarrassed. The Bible said later that day they were at a meal eating, and they were so afraid to talk to him and one of them built up the courage. His name was Peter, and Peter said, “Master, that incident today, why couldn’t we cast the demon out?” And Christ quickly answered him, he said, “Oh son that kind doesn’t come out except by prayer, which you guys did, and fasting, which you didn’t do.”
There’s some things you’re trying to change in your situation, in your life you’ve been praying for weeks, and months, and years. And God is saying this kind doesn’t change without pushing away the plate, because the spirit world is a spiritual world, and fasting increases your capacity to receive spiritual power. It’s like a pipe. Food is like gunk in a pipe, the more you eat the smaller the hole gets. The spirit still flows through you, but very restricted. Fasting is like, it’s like Drano, flushing out all the distractions and all the inhibitions, it makes you solely and completely open to God. That’s why the first act of Jesus was fasting.
Make a decision this year to pay a price. That’s why God could trust me with a whole government. He could trust me to change and train prime ministers, because when I sit with them I need to have direct access from God. So, I have to be completely spiritually in tune, because I’m about to advise someone who’s gonna make policy for a country. Perhaps the church in the Western world is eating itself to death. Powerless church. Tonight, right now, tonight right now, at this moment we got over 500 people praying under fast. Some of them are 80 years old, 70 years old, some of them are sixteen years old. My son, 27, is fasting with us right now.
When your teenagers fast, can you imagine the power in the youth department? Our youth ministry is the most powerful youth ministry in our country. To pay a price. By the way, fasting keeps you healthy doesn’t it, yes? A benefit, you know, you keep your weight off, and you keep your heart right, and you keep your blood clean. Just side benefits of obeying God, and Christ never said, “If you fast,” he said, “When you fast.” You must do it before God. When, not if, when.
In other words, he expects you to do it. Some of you have never fasted, and it’s a command from the King, to fast. Praise God. So I challenge you this year, start, do it. Get to know God, know in a way you never can on a full stomach. Sacrifice