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The Spiritual Warfare Aspect of Evangelism

by | May 8, 2015 | Missions Articles

“The seed is the word of God. The ones along the path” where the seeds were scattered “are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.” — Jesus Christ

The reality of this passage underscores the fact that when one chooses to evangelize, that person is entering the fray of spiritual warfare. That makes prayer an indispensable weapon in the battle to help souls who are on the path to damnation find redemption. When we evangelize, we are speaking to people who mostly have not studied Scripture with depth. To them, the claims of the Bible regarding history, redemption and eternity are no more compelling than any other faith system. Convincing people that they have no basis for denying the supremacy of the Gospel largely depends on intercepting Satan through prayers so that the power of the Gospel is fully felt.

Evangelists, at times, will encounter those who are ripe to believe and submit to Christ. Some people are reared in a Christian context, but have never gotten clarity about the message of the Gospel. Once they receive an articulate explanation about what Jesus requires of them, they quickly understand and embrace the Truth. Others will have been earnestly studying the claims of Christ in search of answers regarding the meaning of life. Such people might be difficult for Satan to prevent from believing the Truth, even if the evangelist failed to pray before meeting that person. Most people, however, will have erected their own spiritual barriers to the Gospel. The evangelist must use the truth of Scripture to expose the porous nature of people’s spiritual barriers, but when combined with the satanic reinforcement people receive to justify their unbelief, it becomes virtually impossible for them to be saved in the absence of prayer.

Satan tells people whatever they want to hear — namely that they can be lord over their own lives while still having an amicable relationship with God. He also convinces people that we aren’t liable for lacking faith in the Gospel Truth because eternal truth is something that can only be grasped postmortem. Our prayers can neutralize the efforts of Satan so that the power of the Gospel sinks in.

Pray for Raven, a young man in his 20s who I met while evangelizing on Palani Road here in Kona, Hawaii. His life seemed to be in disarray. He listened intently while I shared the Gospel, but did not repent.

  • Pray for Bob, who works for a local burger restaurant in Kona. He’s a professed atheist, but admitted he’d never investigated the claims of the Gospel. I gave him a Bible and he said he’d read the Gospel of John.
  • Pray for “Castle,” a man in his late 20s from Virginia. He moved to Kona less than a year ago on a spiritual pilgrimage that has led him, circuitously, to Jesus. He’s now moving back to the East Coast. Pray that he continues seeking Jesus and finds a good discipleship community.
  • Pray for the five young men who prayed to make Christ the Lord of their lives last month in the Target parking lot. Pray that they find a good church where they can be discipled. I invited them to my church, but so far they haven’t shown up.

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