Why do the disciples of John the Baptist and the Pharisees offer prayers and fast while your disciples eat and drink? As one begins reading about the beginning of Jesus’ ministry in Galilee, one is afforded a peek into what the entire life and ministry of Jesus would be all about. In addition to Jesus’ sympathy to the marginalized and vulnerable, one is also struck by the apathy shown by the religious leadership led by the Scribes and the Pharisees. Every time Jesus performs a healing action or does something, there is always a possibility of disapproval from the religious leaders. The discussion on fasting and prayer which we read in today’s Gospel passage should thus be understood in the context of this misgiving of Jesus by the religious leaders.  
The discussion about fasting is a follow up to a previous discussion that took place in the house of Levi who had treated Jesus to a dinner in his house even though he was a known sinner (cf. Luke 5:29-32). And immediately prior to that, Jesus had supposedly blasphemed by forgiving a paralytic his sins (cf. Luke 5:17-26). To “justify” his communing with a sinner (eating was a sacred act, a sign of fellowship and approval), Jesus made a reference to the Scriptures (cf. Hosea 6:6). “I am just fulfilling the Scriptures,” Jesus appears to have told them. Determined not to give up, they continued, “If you are such an observer of our traditions and customs, then why is it that your disciples neither offer prayers nor fast?” If Jesus was a genuine teacher, he would have known the central place that prayer and fasting held in the life of their society. “They will indeed fast and pray, but not just yet,” Jesus tells them, “For I am still with them. I am the fulfillment of the longings and yearnings that are expressed in acts of prayer and fasting.”
While Jesus’ answer might not have meant a lot to the religious leaders, it nonetheless speaks volumes to us today as it attempts to address our understanding of prayer and fasting. When we raise ourselves to God in prayer and fasting, what is our disposition? Do we pray and fast as a means of thanksgiving to God in knowledge that God has already fulfilled our deepest longings and desires, or do we offer prayers in desperation?