There are always parts or passages of the bible to me that I never fully grasp. Like I can’t wrap my head around. A lot of it has to do with not knowing the cultural context – what life was like at the time of Jesus. For example, at the end of Luke 5 when he calls upon Levi (later called Matthew) to be His disciple. I get the call, I get that he is the Great Physician, I get why he sits and dines with sinners, but then he goes into this Bridegroom reference when asked why he doesn’t fast.
They said to him, “John’s disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking.”
Jesus answered, “Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while he is with them?
Excuse me, what?
Well, today I read a little more about it from the commentating of David Guzik.
“Jesus answered their question (on fasting) with an allusion to the wedding practices of His day. A wedding feast was the most vivid picture of joy and happiness in that culture. During the week long wedding feast it is understood that joy was more important than conformity to religious rituals, if any ceremonial observances would detract from the joy of the wedding feast, it was not required. Jesus said that his followers should have this kind of happiness.
Basically, they thought Jesus was too happy!
Then he goes to reference a guy named Pate. Probably some super famous theologian who I have no idea who he is. But I bet he had a wig… (or was that just our forefathers?)
According to Pate, there was popular rabbinic text called the Scroll of Fasting and in it was a custom that said that fasting was forbidden on certain specified days devoted to joyous celebration of Israel’s blessing from God. Jesus appealed to this kind of thinking.
And that my friend is why I read the words of smart people. So much more light shed now on that verse. At the time of Jesus, he just wanted to commune, dine, and do life with his people. Teach and lead. He didn’t care about fasting. He didn’t care about offering sacrifices. He didn’t care about the to-dos. He just wanted to be. And he wanted his friends to enjoy him. He was the reasons for the party! And in this case, the dinner party.
But He follows up his statement,
“The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and they will fast in those days.”
But the day will come… we are in those days. When fasting is appropriate for us. Our bridegroom was taken away. But it was at that present time when Jesus was among them, it was not that day.
Praying this little post helps you understand the word of God just a little bit more. May we dive in together and get to know the One we worship more and more each day.