Michael Youssef - Hope Ireland Celebration, Dublin
I came across the pond on my steam for one reason, and that is to tell you that every one of us must be born again. Every person at the sound of my voice must be born again. That's what Jesus said. I don't make the stuff up. Born again is the term that is filled with power and significance and meaning. It is filled with joy and peace for those who have experienced that rebirth which many of you will experience tonight. It is filled with power for living. It is filled with hope, not just in this life, for all of eternity, of all forever. In fact, Jesus used that imperative, "You must be born again," because it represents the only possibility for radical transformation in our lives.
The only possibility for true purpose and meaning in this life and for all of eternity, for only victory over sin and guilt and addiction and pain and suffering, for only hope for our eternity in heaven with Jesus. You must be born again. And John's Gospel, chapter 3, that's where the text is if you want to follow it, Jesus tells this man named Nicodemus... can you say "Nicodemus"? Well, now you're speaking Hebrew. Listen carefully. This man was an extremely religious man. This man was a powerful man. This man was high up in the religious hierarchy, in the religious establishment. He occupied a high position in the Supreme Court and as a member of the Sanhedrin.
In fact, that Sanhedrin was made of 70 men, a council of 70 men, who ran all of the religious affairs and all the judicial and the legal affairs of their nation at the time. I want you to hear me right please. If there were a group of people who could be labeled as religious fanatics, it would be that group of 70 men. They observed meticulously all the religious rituals. They took religious rituals to the max. They took the observation of religiosity to an extreme. They were zealous. They were not flexible. They were rigid and, listen to this, like all obsessive religious ritualistic systems, it produced hypocrisy. Hypocrisy, are you familiar with that?
Listen, this is the environment that produced this man, Nicodemus. So, Nicodemus come to Jesus at night, nighttime. Yet, this man was filled with sincerity and humility, all at the same time. I'm gonna show you now. Nicodemus said to Jesus, "We know", uh-oh, I thought he would say, "I know". No, he says, "We know". Who is this "we"? Who's this "we"? Obviously, there were so many in that council, on that Sanhedrin, on that Supreme Court, the High Court, who were all deep, knee-deep into dead religion and yet they believed the truth about Jesus and the truth that Jesus claimed about himself. You see, Nicodemus and the other religious leaders recognized that Jesus had God the Father, Elohim, seal of approval, that Jesus is God's Messiah, that Jesus is God's anointed one that has been promised in every book of the Old Testament.
See, Jesus did not appear in a vacuum. I have to chuckle when people say, "Founders of religions, they're all the same". No, they're not. Only Jesus rose from the dead. Only Jesus rose from the dead. Only Jesus rose from the dead. They knew that he could not have performed these miracles because all of their hocus pocus of religious rituals could not have healed the sick, it could not raise the dead. They could perform no miracles. They could perform no transformation in one's life. They come in and they leave the same. They could not offer spiritual freedom from sin, guilt, and addiction. Ah, but Jesus does. Jesus does. Jesus does. Say it with me: "Jesus does". And that same Jesus can and will perform miracles tonight.
There are so many people around the world praying there'll be miracles tonight. You may have come here carrying sorrow and carrying regret and carrying burdens. You may have come here feeling lots of guilt, even when you might be partying but then when you're all alone, you feel that burden of guilt, you may have come here feeling powerless and helpless to overcome any addiction. But Jesus can set you free. Jesus can set you free. Say that with me: "Jesus can set you free". Can you say that with me? Jesus's answer to Nicodemus's troubles sounded very strange to him. And it sounds strange to a lot of people. I've preached the gospel all over the world, I know that term "born again" is such...sounds strange. But Jesus's answer to Nicodemus's trouble was the only answer that I have received and many of you have received and some of you will receive tonight: being born again. Being born again.
What is that? That is the only answer. There is inner turmoil, and that's the only answer to any turmoil any of you might be experiencing today. It's the answer to all of guilt and all of suffering and all of pain and all of religious hypocrisy. It's the only answer to all of the powerlessness of life that you must be born again. "Unless you become born again you will never see the kingdom of God," said Jesus to this amazing man, Nicodemus. You know, in the last few decades, we have been hearing big fat lies coming out of the pit of hell. That lie says that everyone when they die they'll go to heaven. Everyone when they die they go to a nice place. But Jesus said, "Unless you're born again you will not go to heaven".
Unless you're born again. Nicodemus was taught that if he goes through some religious rituals he will be all right with God. But he knew deep down that that won't cut it, that won't work. And that is why Jesus said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, truly I tell you the truth. I am about to reveal to you the absolute reality about life and eternity. I am gonna tell you that this new birth is absolute necessity, is absolutely essential for salvation. I'm telling you that this rebirth is non-negotiable for life and for all of eternity". What does "born again" mean? What's that mean? Ah, the word again communicates, of course, shades of meaning, meaning that something has to be done a second time or differently. Something radical or you have to do something totally new, totally different.
You have to do something that comes from above. It is supernatural. It's not natural to do something that can only come from God. Why? For only God can produce radical results in your life and mine. Only God can bring about that radical transformation in your life tonight. Only God can give you the supernatural power to overcome sin, addiction, depression, and all the meaninglessness of life. Here's the absolute reality. Listen carefully please. You and I can never bring about this power that transforms our lives. We cannot do it. We cannot do it if we work 24/7 for a million years. We cannot do it. To be in the kingdom of God means to belong to God. To be in the kingdom of God means that he must rule supreme over your life. To be in the kingdom of God means that you are to be rescued from the kingdom of darkness, from the kingdom of Satan, from the kingdom of self, into the kingdom of God. To be in the kingdom of God means that Jesus becomes the King of your life.
Many of you here who are seeking after the truth, that's wonderful, that's great. I thank God for that. You might be here looking for real answers to life's dilemmas, and that's a wonderful thing. Some of you are not discontented and dissatisfied with life, with all the spiritual band-aids that people have given you through the years, they're not working, and you feel powerless over your circumstances. Many of you have tried all of the other remedies, and Jesus said those remedies is like a thirsty man who keeps on drinking saltwater and the more he drinks saltwater, the more he thirsts. That's what the world will give you, salty water. Only Jesus can give you the water of life, and he can do it tonight. I know deep down you know it's not working because I've been there.
Tonight, you can know without a shadow of doubt that God loves you. He really loves you. And that he knows you by name. And God has a plan for your life, and part of it is you responding to his invitation tonight. And that is why he brought you here. Here is the good news. But actually, this is the most fantastic news of all. You can become born again tonight. In all of my experience, in all of speaking with people one on one or in large crowds, everywhere I go, I've found that there are lots of barrier that will stop people from being born again. They'll stop people from allowing the Holy Spirit of God to come on the inside of you and radically transform you. And the biggest barrier of becoming born again is your own unwillingness to admit that you need to be born again. Most people don't want to admit that they're sinful.
Oh, you hear them say, "Well, none of us are perfect". But that's just a washout. Nobody wants to admit they're sinful and they're helpless and they can't save themselves, they need a Savior. Most people allow their own pride to control them and that pride blinds them to their real need, to the fact that they need the only one who can save them, the only one who can redeem them, the only one who truly loves them. Most people cling to the idea there is some good in them, and somehow, in the by and by when they close their eyes in death, they hope that this good will outdo the bad. That's bad news. It's not gonna happen that way.
Jesus said, "No, that is not working. That will not work. You need a total renovation. You need to repent. You need to receive the Savior. You need to receive the gift from his hand that he came from heaven, died on a cross, rose again, so he can give you that gift". Why else would Jesus lay down the glory and the splendor of heaven that he had with the Father before all worlds. Why would he do that and come to Earth, live as the poorest of the poor, then hang on a cross, a criminal cross, death of a criminal, and yet he was the only perfect human being that ever lived. The only sinless human being that ever lived. Think about this.
Think about this. He and he alone will be the judge. You know why? Because he personally paid for the judgment of everyone who would come to him. He paid the price. He alone is the one who paid for your judgment, every repentant sinner. Only those who come to Jesus will get to heaven because of Jesus. Not denominations, not religion, not any of that stuff. Only because of Jesus, because he's the perfect one. Will you confess and acknowledge that only the perfect sinless Son of God who loved you and died for you and rose again on the third day to demonstrate his omnipotent power can forgive you all of your sins, past, present, and future, and for all of eternity? He can transform your life tonight. It's a moment. In a twinkling of an eye you can be assured of heaven even here.
Will you stand up with me please? Let's have everybody stand. I want you to come down, wherever you are, we're gonna be waiting right here. I want you to come and say, "Lord, I wanna be born again. I want to surrender my life to you". So come down. Come down. Don't be embarrassed. Don't be ashamed. Jesus said, "If you're ashamed of me before men, I'll be ashamed of you before my Father in heaven". So I want you to come down. Make your way down here. We're gonna be praying for you as you make your way down. Come down from the balcony up there in the gallery. Come on down, c'mon. Come down. As you begin a new life in Christ tonight, life will never be the same, and you will never regret it. You will be thankful every single day. Amen. In a moment I'm gonna pray with you and I'm gonna pray for you. And I may not know your name but I'll be praying for you every single day and I know there are countless millions of people who are watching or praying for you.
Father God, what an incredible sight. These precious children of yours, you said you have known them not before they were born, not before their grandparents were born, but before the creation of the world. You knew them by name, you loved them by name, you care for them by name, and now, tonight, you have their names written in the book of Life, and not with a pencil but with the blood of Jesus Christ so that they are saved eternally. And Lord, I thank you for everyone who's standing right here. Lord, I pray that you bless them, that you encourage them, that you give them your Holy Spirit in abundance, that they'll walk not in fear but in courage, that they'll walk in the fullness and the strength of the Lord Jesus Christ who conquered the grave, who conquered death. Father, I pray that you set eternity in their hearts tonight and I praise you and I thank you because I pray these things in the matchless name of Jesus, the Savior and the Lord. In his name we pray, amen.