What is World Evangelism?
Evangelism is a way to gain unbelievers to God. We cannot evangelize without prayer. Prayer is the key ingredient in evangelism; we must pray before, during and after we tell others about Christ (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Fasting is choosing to remove the distractions, giving the Lord God our full attention and asking him to be at work as we evangelize. Combining prayer with fasting connects the natural to the supernatural.
World evangelism is the war between light and darkness. It is the war between Christ and antichrist. In the Bible Satan is described as the prince of this world. World evangelism is an attack on Satan’s kingdom; it is releasing people from his kingdom into the kingdom of God. To combat supernatural evil forces we need both prayer and fasting. Although regular prayer has power, fasting brings added power which shines the light on Satan and his activities. We need both in certain cases: “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting” (Mark 9:29).
When believers seek God by praying and fasting, they are acknowledging that this is God’s world and his battle. It will be his hand that moves the world to accomplish his plan. Prayer and fasting in world evangelism is prayer evangelism. The outcome will be seeing the world evangelized. Victories in the spiritual battlefield and success in the spiritual harvest can only be accomplished by God. Jesus’ task on earth was to preach the kingdom of God (Mark 1:14-15). It is critical to note that he began his earthly ministry of spreading the kingdom of God with prayer and fasting.
When believers pray faithfully and fervently (James 5:16) for those outside the kingdom, wonderful things happen. Evangelistic praying births in the heart of the intercessor a Christ-like and Christ-engendered love that motivates the believer to reach out to lost persons and look for faith-sharing opportunities.
Benefits of Prayer and Fasting
- Fasting and prayer helps to focus your heart on God who alone can release his supernatural power in your life. He will give you wisdom and direction.
- Jesus encourages fasting and prayer for deliverance from evil spirits.
- Fasting and prayer breaks the darkness that overwhelms and hinders the nations and defeats the territorial spirit that hinders word evangelism (Daniel 10:13).
- God will take our problems as we fast and pray in humility. Our battle becomes God’s battle (2 Chronicles 20:15).
Types of Fasting
(Always consult your doctor before taking part in any fast.)
- The complete or absolute fast (a.k.a. the total fast) allows for no food or drink. The maximum time for a total fast is three days and three nights. See Ezra 10:6, Esther 4:16 and Acts 9:9. – The supernatural fast, lasting forty days and forty nights, does not allow for food or water. Moses took part in this type of fast, as did Jesus. It requires supernatural power. Only God can help you keep this fast.
- The normal fast consists of fasting from sunset to sunset. Only liquids can be consumed.
- The partial fast consists of refraining from eating certain foods such as desserts. See Daniel 2:3 and 10:2-3.
How to Observe Times of Prayer and Fasting
Fasting and prayer are commands of God with eternal promises. There are many ways to go about prayer and fasting:
- Fast a normal fast or a partial fast.
- Fast one day or two days a week, or whenever you can.
- Spend more time in prayer and memorize special portions of scripture. Think upon John 6:25, where Jesus said, “I am the bread of life.”
- Read through the four Gospels.
Recommendations to Accelerate Prayer and Fasting for Evangelism
- Set a national day of prayer and fasting in the country for which you are praying.
- Make the first Friday of each month a fast day for the Muslim world and for Christians living in Muslim-dominated countries.
- Select a time as a group to commit to pray silently for two minutes. Pray the same requests simultaneously to God through Jesus our Lord. This is united and persistent prayer.
- Pray for four homes in your neighborhood. This is called “neighborhood praying.” Pray specifically for those people to come to know Jesus Christ.
God is opening the doors for world evangelism as we engage in prayer evangelism on our knees with fasting and prayer. Look to the Bible. It is constantly challenging us to pray.
