Overcoming Unbelief Through Fasting and Prayer

And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. (Matt.17:20)

Matthew 13:58
And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

Unbelief is an enemy to operating in the miraculous. Jesus could not operate in the power of God because of the unbelief of the people.
The disciples could not cast out a strong demon because of unbelief.

Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Howbeit, this kind goeth not out,…. The Vulgate Latin renders it, “is not cast out”; and so do the Arabic version, and Munster’s Hebrew Gospel; and which confirm the more commonly received sense of these words, that they are to be understood of that kind of devils, one of which was cast out of the lunatic, and was of the worst sort, of a fierce and obstinate kind; and having had long possession, was not easily ejected: and that there is a difference in devils, some are worse and more wicked than others, is clear from Matthew 12:45 and not of that kind of miracles, or kind of faith to the working of such miracles. Moreover, the above versions, as they fitly express the word here used; see Mark 9:17 compared with Matthew 15:17. So they pertinently set forth the dispossession of devils, who do not go out voluntarily, but by force; and this sort could not be ejected, but by fasting and prayer…

It is important to drive unbelief from your life. And one of the ways this is accomplished is through prayer and fasting. Prayer and fasting helps us clear obstacles to our faith and faith-filled actions.

In the Healing revival of 1948-57 many came into a Healing ministry this way. Franklin Hall wrote a key book: ‘The Atomic Power of Prayer and Fasting.’ He called Fasting: ‘Supercharged Prayer’. He said the flesh had 3 primary needs or desires (food, sex and status) and of these the need for food is dominant. These natural desires are valid but they can easily become too strong (inordinate desires = lusts) and dominate us. Thus fasting is the way to assert control on the flesh where it counts.

Franklin Hall States “In 1946 a group of saints came together in San Diego, from various denominations, to hear the teaching of Jesus Christ’s Gospel concerning prayer and fasting. Many of these Christians entered into consecration fasts. A real test was made as to the efficacy of fasting. Some of these fasts were from twenty-one to more than sixty days in continuous duration, without food. They were burdened to see the Lord move in a special spiritual way. These and many others wanted to see a world-wide revival for the salvation and healing of mankind and the restoration of the gifts of the Spirit.
The amazing results as these scores of Christians united in fasting and praying were stupendous! Many miracles of healing were performed by the Holy Spirit in the Name of Jesus. Demons were cast out, lunatics healed, cancers disappeared, the blind saw, the crippled walked, stomach ulcers disappeared, palsy was quieted, tuberculosis healed, asthma, bronchitis, the smoking and drinking habits were given up and many more sicknesses vanished. Scores of folk were baptized at the altars.” (http://www.shiloahbooks.com/download/Atomic.pdf)

This healing revival was one of the greatest periods of the miraculous in the history of our nation. Graet healing ministries were birthed, and thousands received miracles. One of the keys to this revival was fasting.

Keith Malcomson states, “As we read the history of the Church it is hard to find men greatly used of God who did not give themselves to “prayer and fasting.” Savonarola of Florence, Matthew Henry, Johnathan Edwards, John Wesley, Howell Harris, David Brainerd, Charles Finney, C.H. Spurgeon, Andrew Murray, Rees Howells, William Seymour, Smith Wigglesworth, B.H. Clendennen and many others bear witness to this. As we follow such lives we find great advances of the kingdom of God, revivals, miracles and powerful preaching. These men would all pinpoint specific times of prayer and fasting when God met with them. The history of great revivals can never be separated from prayer and fasting.
A great revival began in America through Johnathan Edwards preaching his sermon ‘Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.’ What most do not know is that he had preached this sermon a number of times before without much result. What made the difference? This time his preaching was preceded by 3 days of prayer and fasting during which he barely slept – then revival came. Before the power of God fell at Azusa Street, the small band of believers united in 10 days of prayer and fasting. William Seymour who led that 3 year revival which spread across the world spent weeks at a time in fasting in prayer. This was normal practice for him. What other great revivals will yet come to our lives, families, churches and nations as we prevail with God in prayer and fasting?” (http://www.pentecostalpioneers.org/fasting.html)

Fasting, coupled with prayer, is one of the most powerful weapons to breakthrough and overcome unbelief. Jesus preceded his ministry with fasting, and returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee. Jesus did not struggle with unbelief, and he operated in a faith throughout his ministry. When challenged with unbelief in any situation, I encourage you to fast and pray for breakthrough.