Evangelism is hard for most believers. Sometimes fear stops them from speaking the good news. Most believers have no strongly evangelistic role models. Many have never been trained in evangelism in the first place. Frankly, some Christians are also simply apathetic about the lost. In this post, though, I want to talk about another hindrance to evangelism we seldom consider: a supernatural enemy who fights against us.
Think about it this way. The Bible is clear about the condition of non-believers, and its writers often speak of lostness in terms of spiritual conflict. The apostle Paul particularly uses this imagery:
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- Ephesians 2:2 (NLT) – “You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God.”
- 2 Corinthians 4:3-4 – “If the Good News we preach is hidden behind a veil, it is hidden only from people who are perishing. Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe.”
- Colossians 1:13-14 – “For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins.”
- 2 Timothy 2:26 – “Then they will come to their senses and escape from the devil’s trap. For they have been held captive by him to do whatever he wants.”
- Acts 26:17b-18a – “Yes, I am sending you [the Apostle Paul] to the Gentiles to open their eyes, so they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God.”
Following the powers of the unseen world . . . blinded by Satan . . . living in the kingdom of darkness . . . held in the devil’s trap . . . under the power of Satan—these are the people we’re trying to reach, and it shouldn’t surprise us that the enemy fights back against us when we seek to introduce non-believers to Christ.
The enemy comes after us in so many ways. He wants us living in sin so our lifestyle contradicts our message. He promotes false teaching that keeps us from evangelizing in the first place. He delights in church division that distracts us from doing evangelism. He comes after us with discouragement when we actually do evangelism but see no results. You and I wear a bullseye on our back for the enemy when we evangelize because believers telling the good news to non-believers are the only plan God has given to get the gospel to the nations.
It’s spiritual warfare against the evangelist. That’s one reason—a reason we don’t often think about—that evangelism is hard.
That’s also not the final word, however. Jesus has already defeated the enemy through His cross (Col 2:15). The enemy will ultimately be bound (Rev 20:10). The gospel is still good news, and God is still drawing people to Himself (Rev 7:9).
You and I can still do the work of evangelism in the power of the Spirit. It’s really not that hard when we’re wearing the full armor of God (Eph 6:10-17) and proclaiming the good news that’s changed our lives!
*If you want to study spiritual warfare in more depth, check out my Church Answers video course, “Engaging in Spiritual Warfare.”
Posted on January 22, 2026
Dr. Chuck Lawless is a leading expert in spiritual consultation, discipleship and mentoring. As a former pastor, he understands the challenges ministry presents and works with Church Answers to provide advice and counsel for church leaders.
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