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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Iwal of Papua New Guinea

The Iwal of Papua New Guinea, numbering approximately 3,500 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are an indigenous ethnic group of Papua New Guinea They are an Indigenous people, in the New Guinea people cluster of the Pacific Islander Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Christianity - Protestantism. They primarily speak Iwal.

Photo courtesy of Joshua Project. Photo Source: Anonymous

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
Country: Papua New Guinea
People Cluster: New Guinea
Primary Language(s): Iwal (kbm)
Primary Religion(s): Christianity - Protestantism
Population: 3,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 10% or Greater Evangelical
People Group ID: PG009998
View on Joshua Project

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Pray for the Iwal of Papua New Guinea

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Christianity - Protestantism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

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Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Iwal
Language Family: Austronesian

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Media Resources in Iwal:

Films:

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Bible Resources in Iwal:

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Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Iwal bible resources at Bible.com

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Next steps for the Iwal

The Iwal are Unengaged and Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations among which there are no known efforts focused on establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Begin signifcant prayer and fasting for this group
Send cross-cultural teams to discover and research this people group
Begin gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group

Next steps for the Iwal

The Iwal are Engaged yet Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations but there are sustained efforts at establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Continue prayer and fasting for this group
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Begin training up local leaders to lead and develop strategies to reach their own people

Next steps for the Iwal

The Iwal are No Longer Unreached, which means there are more than 2% evangelical Christian populations and there are churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. There is still more to be done among them.

Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Iwal of Papua New Guinea

"I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world."
readJohn 16:33

Pray that those who don't have peace with God will find peace in Christ, even amid the troubles of this world.

But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.
readMark 4:20

Pray that those who have never encountered the gospel will have the opportunity to receive it, and that it will fall on good soil and bear much fruit.

And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
readMatthew 28:18-20

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will have confidence because Jesus has all authority and is with them as they make disciples and teach others about Him.

And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you.
readLuke 10:6

Pray that, as people come to faith in Christ and want to share it with others, they will be welcomed into homes and received well so that they can share message of hope with many people.

Iwal (ROP3 - 104126) reported in the following countries:

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

Peoplegroups.org relies on updates from the field and other organizations for much of our data, so if you have any updates, please contact us. We use various international naming standards. For a list of these standards and fields, visit our Definitions page.

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