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Verse:Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief... This kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” —Matthew 17:19–21
A true missionary is an instrument used by the Holy Spirit in the sacred task of leading sinners from the kingdom of Satan into the kingdom of Jesus Christ (Colossians 1:13, 14). Many skilled missionaries and preachers have used their impressive talents and the best resources available and yet have failed.
How can we explain that? On June 11, 1883, Ellen White wrote a letter to her son Willie, highlighting evangelistic challenges that the church in California was facing. With the framework of the great controversy between God and Satan in mind, she stressed that such missionary endeavors could be truly successful only through unceasing prayer. She wrote, We talk to the workers that they must do their missionary work with a spirit of prayer, and that they must come close to the people and not feel that after giving a paper or securing names their work is done.
They have Satan and his angels close at their elbows to counteract every effort they may make. As they walk the streets, they must pray for grace and for the angels of God to be round about them. Unless they do, the craft of the devils will turn aside the efforts made, and the truth [will] not find access to hearts, and thus the whole city may be warned in vain. . . . One man [John Knox], when the church in Scotland was making some resolutions to compromise the faith, to concede their staunch principles, was determined never to yield a jot or tittle. He went upon his knees before God and thus pleaded, “Give me Scotland or I die.” His importunate prayer was heard.
Oh, that the earnest prayer of faith may arise everywhere, “Give me souls buried now in the rubbish of error, or I die! Bring them to the knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus.”24 There is a tendency today to rely more on our sophisticated outreach strategies than on the power of the Holy Spirit. Some charismatic Pentecostal preachers even try to manipulate the work of the Holy Spirit. Instead of trying to use the Holy Spirit, why not allow Him to use us? Working with humility in a spirit of prayer, like John Knox, will generate eternal results!