What is the Christian view of asceticism?

from the old testament

• God created the physical realm (Genesis 1) and declared it “very good” (Genesis 1:31). Inherently, then, there is nothing unspiritual about physical goods or foods, and any treatment of them as evil or needing to be shunned to be more holy is contrary to why God gave us this world in the first place.
• However, there is a danger that we become overreliant and satisfied with the physical world and forget our Creator who gave it to us. One way we can refocus is through a temporary fast. This is not asceticism because it’s not an attempt to earn favor by practicing a reduced lifestyle. Rather, fasting displays our dependence on God and is generally used when there is a particular need (e.g., Ezra 8:21). Its temporariness implies it’s practiced for a short, defined period before life returns to normal.
• While fasting is good, Scripture also teaches that making it our “habit” to appear godly is condemned. For example, in Isaiah 58:3–7, God is answering Israel’s question, “Why have we fasted, and you see it not?” by pointing out that “in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure.” Thus, the abstaining part of fasting isn’t the point of the fast. By temporarily giving up what one needs to survive, fasting expresses that one’s existence ultimately depends on God.
• While the Old Testament did have many commands for the Israelites, obedience to those commands did not make them holy any more than asceticism makes a Christian more holy. The Law set a structure for the Israelites to know what pleased God, but it is one’s heart posture to God that demonstrated holiness. Psalm 51:16–17 explained: “For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.” God desires hearts that love Him.

from the new testament

• In the book of Colossians, the Colossians were being tempted away from Christianity by false ideas and false religions. Paul wrote to correct and warn them away. Regarding asceticism and the like, Paul said, “If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations—'Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch’ (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh” (Colossians 2:20–23).
• The reason Christians throughout history have been drawn toward asceticism is that it feels holy to deny oneself. However, Paul was saying that denying pleasures did not stop one’s sinfulness. There’s a difference between being unable to sin because the opportunity isn’t there and being spiritually mature enough not to sin even when the temptation is present. Asceticism may remove many temptations, but starving the heart of sin doesn’t kill the desires. They will direct themselves elsewhere or lie in wait for the first opportunity to sin.
• Actual spiritual growth comes through repentance and faith. It starts with a true belief in Jesus’ work on the cross as the only work that saves (Acts 2:38; Ephesians 2:8). Then, once saved, Christians grow in spiritual maturity as they deal head on with their sin by acknowledging it in their life (1 John 1:8), repenting of it (1 John 1:9), and replacing the sinful habits with righteous ones.
• Of replacing sin with righteousness, Paul said, “put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:22–24). Being holy is not simply “not sinning,” but is actively engaging in righteous deeds.
• Scripture does teach a form of self-denial, but it’s not asceticism. Of His followers, Jesus said, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23). What He meant was that just like He denied Himself, doing the Father’s will, not His (Luke 22:42), His followers are also to prioritize God’s will over their own. One does that by being “transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:2). The point of self-denial is not external obedience but internal transformation.
• Sometimes that internal transformation will require external transformation. For example, the Bible teaches against gluttony (cf. Proverbs 23:20–21). One may have to restrain oneself from eating too much. However, it’s not that eating less is more holy; it’s that, for that individual, they are sinfully eating too much, with eating less showing heart-level submission to God despite one’s love of food. Because external things can tempt toward sin, believers are to “put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires” (Romans 13:14). Notice the focus is not on ascetic practices of prescribing a minimalistic, even unhealthy lifestyle, but on putting on Jesus. That is living a life where He is Lord and defines the rest of our lives.

implications for today

Asceticism has appealed to Christians throughout church history because it appears spiritual. The idea is that if one can deny themselves all but the bare minimum needed to survive, they will not be entrapped by worldly desires and can focus on more holy things.

However, as Paul said, such practices “have no value” (Colossians 2:23). This is because sin is not found in the world, attaching Christians from the outside. Though there are certainly temptations in the world, our sinful hearts (Jeremiah 17:9) are allies of temptation, desiring to sin (James 1:14). Cutting off temptations is like a fish that has learned to ignore a particular lure. When a different lure is presented, the fish strikes without thinking, just as our hearts do when a new temptation presents itself.

Rather than asceticism, what the heart needs is to be changed and then corrected. Before anyone can truly fight sin, they must first be saved. Part of what God does is to change their hearts (Ezekiel 36:26–27) so that they desire to fight their sin (Romans 6:17–18). Then, the believer is given the Holy Spirit who, for the rest of their life, transforms them (Romans 12:2) through profitable spiritual practices, such as reading the Bible (2 Timothy 3:16–17), attending church (Hebrews 10:24–25), and fellowshipping with believers (Hebrews 3:13).

The solution to sin is not to avoid temptation but to realize that the issue is that one’s heart loves sin, surrender it to God, and to train it in righteousness. As one grows in holiness and Christlikeness, temptations become easier to resist because the heart won’t want to strike at them when they pass.