God bless you! It’s good to be in the Lord’s house, amen? Even better if He is here! Even better if He is with us. That is why we come to the Lord’s house—to meet Him. What would become of us if we came here, worshiped Him, and He wasn't there? God is where He is invoked. He is where there are hearts that want Him—hearts that are thirsty for Him. That’s why I was a little upset, a little restless this past Thursday. We were singing, “I’m hungry for You,” and I told the Lord, “Lord, we are truly hungry for You. Your church comes with desire, Lord, we’re hungry for You.”

The Word of the Lord has been talking to us about a new creation, a new humanity, and being a "new man." Scripture tells us that He has come to create us into something new—a new man, a new woman. This is a common concept in the New Testament: being born again, being a new creation, God making all things new, and God bringing us from death to life.

That is the Good News of the Gospel! God gave His Son out of love for us to bring us from death to eternal life. Christ paid the price that condemned us! But today, I want to ask you something, my brothers: Do you believe we’re alive? He paid the price to rescue us from death so that you and I may have life—eternal life, life in abundance. We are alive in Christ! There is life in Christ within us! Ask the person next to you, “Are you alive?” They might say, “What do you mean? I’m right here! How can I not be alive?”

The question is: Are you alive in Christ? Just because we come to church, does that mean we are alive in Christ? No. Anyone can say they are alive because they don't do as many "bad things" as before, or because they don't hang out with the same crowd. But true life is different. We are alive when we are attentive to His voice—even when the enemy is attacking, even when there are problems, even when things get difficult. We are alive when we are able to listen to the voice of our Beloved! He has resurrected everything that was dead and cleared the darkness that surrounded us.

Church, the Lord is still calling His people to get up! He is the God of the living; He is the God of the resurrection! He raised His Son from the grave, and He has promised that He will raise us up too. That is the Gospel of Christ—the power to raise a person up and bring them out of whatever condition they are in. That is what it means to be alive in Christ.

"One way or another, God calls you. But it is you and I who must decide to respond."

Think about the person who comes out of darkness, who is rescued from death. How many of those are here today? Or are we still "alive" only for the world? Do we only listen to the call of the world? Do we only care about our own dreams and desires, while remaining dead to the Lord and His call? God always calls. One way or another, God calls you. But it is you and I who must decide to respond. Everything we see in the Word today is God talking to His Body, but we have to decide: will we respond, or will we stay the same?

The children of God are full of a new life. It is a hope that lifts us up and leads us to serve God and abandon the world. But we must understand a hard truth: many times, these are just concepts. Just theories. Knowing the scriptures and living the scriptures are never the same thing. My prayer is that these things do not remain only as knowledge in your mind, that they don’t stay theories. You can live in a dead religion, or you can decide to have a relationship with the living God! Knowing concepts without a relationship is just dead religion.

In the time of Jesus, there were studious people who knew everything about the Bible. But let’s see if they had a relationship with God or just a dead religion. Matthew 22:23 says: “That same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question.” Let’s stop there. We usually talk about the Pharisees, but the Sadducees were different. They were the social elite—rich, influential, and highly educated in the Word. However, they mixed heavily with the Roman culture of their time. They adopted the worldly, Hellenistic cultures of the day and didn't say "no" to anything. They approached Jesus to pose a theological problem, trying to set a trap because they knew the Bible so well. But look at the irony: they studied the Bible, yet they didn’t believe in the supernatural. They didn’t believe in the resurrection or life after death. They believed you had to do what you had to do in this life because everything ended in this life.

They were a religious group completely mixed with the world. Brothers, that is no different from what we see today. It is no different from a modern Christianity mixed with the world that tells people, “It doesn’t matter; you can belong to God and stay in the world too. You can be in the church and do exactly what the world does. It doesn’t matter, we belong to God.” That kind of religion says: “Don’t worry about controlling the flesh.” “Don’t worry about obeying.” “Don’t be a fanatic.” “You only live once, so just live it!” Of course, they forget the part where we will be judged for everything. Every person will stand before God and be judged for their actions. But dead religion says, “Don’t worry, just live your life.” That was the religion of the Sadducees, and it is the same religion that exists today.

"The true Gospel is about submitting the flesh to obedience and to the will of God."

That’s religion, it’s religion. Sitting there and feeling good about what you’re doing with your life—that’s just religion. Why? Because the true Gospel of God is power. It is the power of God to transform the life of man. The true Gospel is about submitting the flesh to obedience and to the will of God. It is that moment when a person finally sees their desperate need to be transformed. It isn’t about feeling "okay" staying the same; it’s about enlightenment. It’s when the Lord opens your eyes and you cry out, “Holy God, I need to be transformed!” It’s the realization within that you must be filled with the Holy Spirit every single day, because if you aren't, the darkness will overtake you. Every day you need to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

Christianity is not just about reading the Bible, attending church, or knowing a few verses. When the Holy Spirit reaches a man—it is the Holy Spirit of God—there is a war. There is a constant "discomfort" with sin. He doesn't force Himself on you; He invites you. As the Apostle Paul says, “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit.” Do not make Him sad. He won’t force you; you have to decide to submit your flesh. You have to decide to give Him something.

In Matthew 22, and you can read it more at home, the Sadducees—who didn't believe in the resurrection—brought Jesus a hypothetical problem. They told a story: “Jesus, you know that the law of Moses says, that if a man dies without leaving offspring, if a man dies without having any children, that man's brother has to marry his wife to leave offspring for the one who passed away.” We understand that, right? “A man has a brother and this man dies without leaving children, then the law says that the brother who follows him gets married and has children with his wife. But these children will be considered the offspring of the one who died.” But they say, there is a story, “In the village, there were seven brothers, seven. And the first married his wife and died without leaving offspring. Then the second married her and also died. Then the third, the fourth, the fifth, until the seven got married, and all the seven died. Until the wife died too.” It seems to me that there is a common factor there, right? The seven men died without leaving offspring. And the question is, whose wife is this woman going to be in the resurrection?

Look at the Lord’s answer in verse 29: “Jesus answered them, ‘You are wrong because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God. At the resurrection, people will neither marry nor be given in marriage.’” Jesus tells them plainly: "You are wrong!" You don’t know the Word, and you don’t know the power of God. The resurrection isn't about earthly marriage. The new life is not about your wedding, your job, your university, or your diplomas. That is your kingdom. That is your own mind and your own desires. Life is not that. People think the "new life" means going to church, claiming to be a Christian, and then continuing with their business as usual. That is so wrong!

The new life is not about that. The resurrection is not about that. And I want to tell you something; it's literal when Jesus says, “the resurrection.” Yes, when we die, when you close your eyes, every man and woman who dies will be resurrected - who dies in Christ. Not for something else, but I tell you today, everyone who has the Holy Spirit is resurrected, for a new life here. The Lord is telling you that you’re wrong, that new life you say you have is not about your things. Some people come to church thinking, “Now that I’m a Christian, the Lord is going to bless me! Let’s go to that conference on 'financial activation' because that’s the new life, right?” They think God promised them a better job, a bigger house, or a physical blessing.

No, God promised to raise you from the dead! That is the Gospel. That is life. That is the biggest promise; that God is going to raise you from the dead. That’s why we’re here! Make no mistake, God knows your requests and your needs. But His priority is to give you new life. You are wrong if you think you can chase the things of the world and call it "new life." John the Baptist said it best: “He must increase, but I must decrease.” New life is about the Kingdom of God, not your kingdom. We seek first the Kingdom, and everything else is added. But if you are trying to build your own kingdom, you have missed it.

In verse 31, Jesus says: “But about the resurrection of the dead—have you not read what God said to you, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.” Even though those men physically died long ago, they are alive to Him. He says, “I am their God.” He is the God of the living.

Think about the contempt for life in this world today—the violence, the laws that legalise taking life, the disappointment and frustration that fill people's minds. It’s understandable to feel that pain. We see it with Mary and Martha, weeping over their brother Lazarus. They were heart-broken. Certain difficulties and certain things that have happened make life hard. And those women were crying and crying until he was resurrected and they told him, “Lord if you had been here!” But when Jesus arrived, He asked: “Do you believe?”

Is there anything impossible for God? If you believe, you will see the glory of God. My prayer today is that God will call you. There are many people sitting in church whom God hasn't truly "called" yet. Lazarus was in the grave for three days, but when he heard the voice of God, he came out of the darkness. You need to know the Scriptures and the power of God to step out of your grave. He said to the Sadducees, “You are failing because you don't know the scriptures. You don't know the Word.”

What does the Word of God bring? If it’s life, everyone who is filled with his Word, what are they filled with? Life and the power of God! Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the Word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword. It penetrates the soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

The Word of God knows you. That’s why when you read it, it feels like it’s speaking directly to you. Of course it knows you, because it’s alive! It was written thousands of years ago by more than 40 authors in several languages on three different continents. But the main author is one, alone. And that author is alive today! If you are in darkness, drink from this water. There is nothing else out there; only here is the fountain of eternal life. It says that it is sharp as a sword; it can cut through anything, anything that is tormenting you, any darkness that is there, any thought, anything that is disturbing you. The word of God can cut through it, but you have to draw near to it, you have to invite it to the word of God. Invite it, fill yourself with it, eat that word, fill yourself so that that darkness leaves, so that all those things go away.

Some people say, “Only God can judge me.” And they are right—God will judge them. But a true Christian isn’t afraid of that, because the Christian is judged every day by the Word. We reflect on our ways and anchor our steps in His truth. You have to be judged every day by the Word. As the psalmist said, “Lord, I consider your ways at night.” I reflect on my own ways, and the truth is, I need to anchor my steps in His Word. Because no matter how old you are or how much you do in the church, it doesn’t mean that we have to stop. We must continue to be judged by the Word of God. There is nothing the word can't see, judge, or cut out of our lives. The enemy will always come with his traps and his lies, he will always come with thoughts, there will always be difficult situations. In fact, in Psalms three-quarters of the Psalms almost petitions, for tribulations, for difficult things that the Psalmists are going through. The different Psalmists who wrote, for the difficulties, for the hard things, “for my enemies they pursue me, Lord my thoughts, I'm troubled, I'm distressed.” The psalms are full of that, but they are also full of God's answer to those petitions.

Do you know what happens when God's answer comes? The man receives counsel, and then, suddenly, the psalm seems different, it seems like someone else is writing it, “I went to your house, Father, and I met you. Lord, my enemies keep chasing me. But my soul praises you and now I will adore you. I will bring sacrifices before you, Lord.” It looks like something came, that man was down and was being consumed. But something happened. That breath of life came in and suddenly he got up and said, “You know what I'll do, Lord? I will adore you, I will adore you.” That's why the psalms are so incredible, because dejected men rise up when they are filled with the Spirit of God and say, "But now I will worship you, Lord, now I will worship you.” That's what happens to a man when he is filled with the Holy Spirit of God.

Romans 8:11 is the promise the Lord has made to us. Romans 8:11 It's right here in front of you if you don't have it, it says, “And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.” And why will He give you life? What is that spirit for? Why will He resurrect you? To go and seek His kingdom? To go and seek your own things? The Spirit of God seeks what is of God, don't be deceived.

The Bible says to test the spirits. The Spirit of God seeks the things that are of God. Some people ask me - imagine, and we don't even have that many meetings - "Why so many meetings, brother?” So many? And yet you eat twice a week, you see your child twice a week, once a week, if they live in your house, nobody has to tell you to eat unless you're sick. It's something that a person seeks when they are filled with the Spirit of God, they seek what is of God without excuse. Amen, without excuse they seek what is of God, because they want God, and then we can truly sing, "I hunger for you, Lord, I need you, Lord," the Holy Spirit comes to convince man.

In John 16, it says that the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth, and He comes to convict man of his sin. Pay attention to this word, "conviction." Are you convinced? Are you convinced? Ask the person next to you, "Are you convinced?" They answered you, or they asked you, and they have no answer. To be convinced, when you are convinced, nobody has to tell you. You don't need to store up treasures on this earth because you are convinced that you are going to heaven. Are you convinced? If you are convinced, the Word says, store up treasures in heaven. Are you convinced? Many people have many skills in everything, in the world, in their work, in school, in all things, but when they come to the house of God, they are alive for the world.

I've told you on other occasions, many years ago I was doing a market study for a company, so I was there with my nice clothes, my tie and everything, with my notes, doing a supposedly very important job, and I was in an office, I was in a place where I could see what was happening outside on the street because there was a very large door, and on the street in front of me there was a man preaching on the street, with a small speaker and a microphone there, and nobody was paying attention to him, and people were passing by from one side to the other, and nobody was listening to him, and I stood there in front of that and I looked at myself, I looked at my notes and I said, "That's important, that is truly important."

I want to finish with Romans 12:1, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.” How should that sacrifice be? Do you remember that in the old testament sacrifices had to be made. How should those offerings that were taken to the Lord be? Alive! Remember in the Old Testament when they had to bring sacrifices? All the animals were taken alive to the altar. Every sacrifice that is brought to the altar was a living sacrifice. Now, Paul says although those things have passed, the sacrifice that God accepts is still a living sacrifice; now it is your body. How are we going to offer our bodies, right? You can imagine, we wouldn't fit in this pulpit. But the truth is, we sacrifice what we want, and we obey. If you want more money you sacrifice more. If you work more, more weekends, more hours, you sacrifice your time, your body. The time you spend with your family, hours of rest, you sacrifice it, right?

The Morazán holiday is coming. If you want to go to the beach, you are already making sacrifices for that. You've already given up pork rinds, you get up early to run, now you're in fitness mode, again a sacrifice of the body, everything like that. The Lord says, “You bring sacrifices to the world, but I want sacrifices too, living sacrifices.” So don't tell me, church, that you’re tired from work, that this and that. You still go to play soccer, you still sit down to watch soap operas, you still sit down to watch movies for hours. “I want living sacrifices, alive, burnt flesh on the altar!” says the Lord.

"True worship is holiness before the Lord."

That is the true worship of God, not singing, not jumping. It’s good that we do those things, praise God. But true worship is burnt offerings, flesh offered. When you have opportunities to do what you shouldn't do and you say no, when temptation comes, when the opportunity arises, and you say no. A living sacrifice! Remaining blameless, a living sacrifice, that is true worship. It's not just raising your hands, it's not singing. True worship is holiness before the Lord. “Offer me a living sacrifice,” and that happens when the Holy Spirit fills a person, because we can't do it alone. What kind of sacrifice have we been bringing to the Lord?

It's not about reading the Bible, going to church, or doing things. It's about waking up and hearing the voice of the Lord. That someone today can see, that someone today can feel the call of the Lord and say, “Lord, I want to! Of course I want to, Lord! I want to wake up, I want to turn away from the darkness, Lord! I want you to resurrect me with your power, Holy Father. I want to follow you, Lord. I want to leave this life. I can't do it alone, but I want to follow you, Lord! I want to follow you, Lord, until the end of my days! I want to follow you, Lord, give me your Holy Spirit. Give it to me, give it to me.” That's what that song is about, “I'm hungry, I need you,” it's not like, "Oh well, give it to me, I need it.” It’s, “Give it to me today, because if you don't give it to me today, it's another day I'm in darkness. Another day I'm in the grave, Lord.” The Lord is here and He is the God of the living and He is the God of resurrection. You are the God of the living, the God who continues to call His children, Hallelujah.