Hallelujah, hallelujah! Blessed be the Lord, and blessed be the presence of the Lord! Glory be to the name of the Lord Jesus. He is here, amen! We enjoy His presence, but you know what, church? Often we are actually just spectators of those things we enjoy—take soccer or any other sport, for example. Most of us are merely spectators, we aren't the ones participating, right? We just watch, and most of the time through a screen.

Take soccer, for example: we can often think of ourselves experts—we know everything about it! We know the teams, the players, the formations, the transfers, and the tactics; We know it all yet we don't participate in it; we simply know about it and enjoy it from the outside without actually playing the sport. Who here is like that? We’ve enjoyed it while sitting in an armchair, haven't we? We watch other people play a sport. And you know what? The church is no exception to this, many are merely spectators of what is happening.

I want to make a clarification before I go any further; What I am about to say isn't directed at newcomers, visitors, or those who have just begun in the faith. It is for those of us who have been around for a while—for those of us that have already spent time here together. That doesn't mean you can't learn from this if you are new, though. Instead, I pray that God's Word encourages each of us to walk the path of truth, to live and follow our Heavenly Father with an upright heart, and to truly encounter the Lord through this.

What does it mean that we can be spectators in church? A spectator isn't actually just someone sitting in a seat or coming to "warm the pews" as they say. It’s the person who knows all the verses, all the songs, and even the proper order of the service—and they may even appear to “participate”; they serve, they’re active here and there—but they don’t “practice” the truth. Do you see the difference?

What if I know all the verses, but I don’t put them into practice because to me it’s just information; Don’t get me wrong, we should know the Bible and so we can understand God’s word, but am I understanding if I know scripture but continue to live the same way? Knowing the verses, yet going home and having nothing change within me? Being able to quote the Word, but continuing to do my own will and make my own decisions—and worst of all, calling that God's will? What good is it to know all the verses if I do whatever I want and am not obedient to the Lord's voice? To have read it all, yet continuing to lie to my wife or hide things about my life?

This is a serious problem: knowing the songs but not worshipping the Father—singing at the top of your lungs yet failing to give glory to God. Do you understand the difference? We can be immersed in one while being completely far removed from the other—immersed in religiosity yet failing to hear the voice of God. Today, many claim to be Christians, but God is constantly presenting situations—or the world surrounds us with things—that reveal to us who our true “god” is: who we worship, who we follow, and what our idols are. It is constantly happening. We worship God, speak of Him, and call ourselves Christians, but where is Jesus? Where is the voice of God? Where are the ears that are still listening for the word that comes from heaven?

A man approached Jesus—he was a teacher of the law. He knew all the verses, better than you or I do. He knew all the songs, and he attended every gathering, was one of the leaders and probably even held the key to the temple. He was used to telling people what to do, yet he approached Jesus because he saw something different. Scripture tells us that this man came to Jesus in the cover of night; you need to understand that he was a leader, and his circle of friends consisted entirely of other teachers of the law—people who spent their days, twenty-four-seven, studying the Word, discussing the Word, and teaching the Word to others.

But then, one day, he saw Jesus. He called out to Him and said, "Teacher, Teacher, there is something different." He saw something different, and that is why he wanted to see Him. He said, "Teacher, I know You come from God. We know there is something—I can see it. God uses You. God moves You. God speaks to You and You listen to Him. You are not like us—we who spend all our time inside the church. You obey Him and God manifests Himself in You. What you do no one could do unless God were with him. I recognize that God is with You because You don’t do what “You” want. We hear You say that You do only what Your Father commands and that You obey Him.” Understand for a second why this incident is so striking; it is a man saying "I can see God in You."

At this moment, I ask the Lord to bring down every argument and every lie rising up in our minds that claims, "Only God knows my heart," or "Only God knows if I have the Holy Spirit." Let us not underestimate this: people can see whether God is with us or not. After all, He Himself said that one must test the spirits. People would approach Him, and this man—who knew every verse—said, "I see something different. I see that God is with You and that You are with God because You listen to Him and obey Him." That is different—completely different from me. There is evidence that God is with us, that God is with me, that God is in my family, that God is at work in my life!

This man’s name was Nicodemus. And it seems this teacher was an observer, realizing that the true gospel of God was vastly different from what he had seen and lived out all his life – that it was different from the religion he had practiced and the teachings he had learned, and the scriptures he had studied. Lets go back to this being a man who grew up in a religious environment—holding the truth in his hands, unlike many of us—with descendants who worshipped the Heavenly Father and were deeply involved in the synagogues and offered sacrifices in the temple. Yet, he realized that even that was not the true reality.

"When God enters a man, when God comes to dwell within a man—that is the gospel of God."

When he saw Jesus, he thought, "Wow, there is something here that looks nothing like what I am doing. This man isn't doing the same things I do. This man is different." He saw the move of God. He saw the power, he saw the authority, he saw the love, he saw humility: He saw God acting through a man! And that church is the gospel of Almighty God. When God enters a man, when God comes to dwell within a man—that is the gospel of God.

He realized, after so much time, that something in his life wasn't right, and that is why he went to Jesus. He needed something more! What a blessing to realize that! Despite having spent his whole life believing he was on the right track, he had finally seen the truth and the light, and said, "Hey, hey, hey! I need to stop for a moment! I am going to stop! And I am going to speak with this man because something here doesn't add up. The path I thought was straight doesn't look straight anymore—because this man's path looks different from mine.”

I don't know how old you are, but to reach whatever age you are and be able to realize that perhaps we haven't been on the right path—what a blessing! Many other scholars spent their time in the temple, preaching and teaching, believing they were fine, believing they didn't need anything else, and that they didn't need correction. Out of all of Nicodemus's friends only he himself went, because the others all thought they were right. They knew all the verses, they knew all the hymns, and they attended all the services. Yet no one else went to see Jesus—only the one who realized he needed something more, who realized his life might not be on the true path, and through this he saw the truth.

That is why the church must wake up today my friends. There must be an awakening, and the Holy Spirit must flood our lives. For Jesus told the disciples in Matthew 5:14, "You are the light of the world" And a light is not hidden; it is placed up high so that everyone can see it. And then, when all the people around us see the light of Jesus—not our own lights—they will say just as Nicodemus did, “Wow, there is something in my life that isn't quite right.” I could go around preaching, and let's assume the modern church still preaches in the streets and goes out to evangelize, but there is no better evangelism or preaching than the testimony of what God has done in a person—saying, "Brother, come here and see what God has done in my life."

Sometimes it isn't even necessary to tell people, "Look at what God has done"; instead, people will say, "Wow, look at this man..." Nicodemus didn't have a sermon preached to him, he saw Jesus and said, "There is something there—I want that," and he went to Him. That is why we need the Holy Spirit because it isn't necessary for us to go around talking, the testimony will speak for itself. Jesus revealed this to John in Revelation 12:11, "They have overcome by the power of the blood of the Lamb... and the testimony." Not just the spoken word—the testimony. My testimony is that He lives! He is still powerful! He is still moving and performing miracles!

"My testimony is that He lives! He is still powerful. He is still moving and performing miracles."

The Lord commanded us to be the light of the world. This man—a pharisee—approaches Jesus and says all this: "I know You are from God," and so on. And Nicodemus himself may have been surprised that his next question to Jesus was basically, "How can I have this? How can I attain this?" I don't know if he would have dared to ask Jesus outright—"Is it true You are with God? Is it true about Your life and all this?", but before that could happen, in John 3:1 Jesus tells him: "If you want to enter the Kingdom, you must be born again," and that man was left confused.

I wonder what Nicodemus thought, this man who knew so much. Perhaps he was completely baffled. What did it mean to be born again? In fact, he asked, "How is that possible? How can I go back into my mother's womb and be born again?" He didn't know; he couldn't grasp how one could be born again. But Jesus explains it to him—and to us—very clearly. Let’s turn to John 3:5.

In Nicodemus' shoes, He doesn't understand this concept of being born again. "What do you mean I have to be born again when I know all the verses? How can it be that I’m not a Christian when I never miss church?" Yet, he wasn't one. I want you to understand something, here was a man born into the church who knew the Law and Jesus still tells him: "You are nothing. You are not saved." You aren't a Christian simply because you say you are. Jesus tells us why: "I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit." That is when we begin to understand the importance of the Holy Spirit—and for anyone who has yet to receive the Spirit, now it should make sense why you need it. He isn't telling the person to go back into their mother's womb, He is speaking of something the Holy Spirit does when received—when a person becomes truly born again.

You are never born again as the same person you were. That would be boring—what a tragedy. No, the same person isn't born; a new one is. Paul said that anyone who is in Christ is a new creation, and now I understand: it doesn't matter what happened to me before, or all the excuses I make, or what I lacked, or what I couldn't do—"I can't do this, I can't do that, my dad did this to me, my mom did that, my uncle, my friend abandoned me, my partner betrayed me, my dad is always angry, I hold onto resentment," and so on.

And while it can be true, few people ever say that "I cannot love because I wasn't loved"—no one says that—even if it is evident that we can’t. No one says, "I want to be resentful." No, we simply are. We carry those things around in our lives. Why? Because of what was done to me here or there; because of how I was treated when I was little; because I was left in a dark room—and now I’m afraid of the dark. What does it sound like when I say all this? Damaged goods, right? Imagine trying to buy something that’s all damaged. But the Lord says, "You have to be born again—become someone new."

When you have a baby, does that baby lie? Is the baby resentful? Did they already learn how to do that? No, the baby arrives brand new. And Jesus says, "You must be born again." We have spent our whole lives making excuses, because the one who is born again—like that newborn—knows only the love of his father. He knows only that someone is looking after him and that his father is caring for him, that he is there because of his father's love. And all he can do is give glory and praise, and be grateful that he is safe.

Our memories must be erased, just like the movie Men in Black. As for what Paul said, “The old things are gone.” And our other pastor always likes to say that the Lord takes our sin and casts it into the depths of the sea. But so many of us in the church, instead of putting on the armor of God, put on a scuba suit, head to the sea, and dive in to search for our sins—to pick them back up and carry them again—only to come to church weeping, "Oh Father, look at the trouble I'm in!" Why? Because we are liars who hide things, do things in secret, and don’t say our thoughts out loud!

But for those who have been born again, do those old things matter? They no longer exist. They are gone. Nothing else remains but the love of God! Only love. We are here because of God’s love and mercy. It can be hard to forget our pasts, but the Lord has come and done something wonderful: birthed a new creation in us. That new creation was born of God’s love and mercy—that is what has been received.

"That new creation was born of God’s love and mercy—that is what has been received."

So, look at it this way: I cannot say that no one has ever loved me. My parents may not have, but I have been adopted and my Father in Heaven loves me. He loves me so much that He gave His only Son — everything — for me. The new has come! He who is born again lives in the new; not in the past, not in lies, hidden things, ignorance, or mere religiosity. Being born again, salvation, and receiving the Holy Spirit; these are concepts that all go hand in hand. There is no salvation without being born again, and there is no new birth without the Holy Spirit. We won’t fully get into every aspect of why or how right now, but Jesus is telling Nicodemus: "You know all the verses, and you are a religious man. But you are missing something. Do you want to enter the Kingdom? You are missing something: the Holy Spirit."

Why the Holy Spirit? Paul explains this in Ephesians 1:13. He states that when you hear the Gospel—when you hear the Word and believe it—you receive the Holy Spirit like a seal, guaranteeing our inheritance in the Kingdom of God. The Holy Spirit acts in the same way that ranchers mark their cattle; they apply a brand so that everyone knows, "This one is mine," or "That one belongs to the neighbor." When the Lord returns, He will look for those who belong to Him who bear His mark. The Holy Spirit is the One who identifies His own to the Father: "These are My property; these are Mine." Those who possess the Holy Spirit are the ones who truly belong to Him—not merely those who attend church.

Religion does not save anyone. Christ told the religious Nicodemus that “What you are doing will not save you. But if you receive the Holy Spirit today, you will be saved. If beyond just the verses you begin to hear My voice and obey it, then you will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” The Holy Spirit is the mark that separates those who belong to God from those who do not. Anyone can claim to belong to God or say that God is with them. Many people say it, but is it true? If God is with anyone, there must be evidence, and that evidence is the Holy Spirit, which shows not only that someone is with God but that God is with them.

So, who is the Holy Spirit, and what does He do? In John 14:16-17 and throughout the Bible, we find descriptions of the Holy Spirit. In these verses, it says: "I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter to be with you always. The Spirit of truth—whom the world cannot accept because it neither sees nor knows Him—but you know Him, because He lives with you and will be in you.” Do you think it is important to know the Holy Spirit?

At this point, I keep thinking about Nicodemus; He wanted to enter the kingdom, then he just needed the Spirit. But that word "Comforter" in that phrase strikes me, because Jesus refers to Him that way in several other places. That Greek word written in our Bible doesn't just mean "Comforter" (though I think we more or less understand what a comforter entails) but it also means "Advocate." The Holy Spirit is an advocate, a defender, an intercessor. He is like a legal defender who makes the right decisions, not like some lawyers we know who twist the law. No, He is fully involved in the matter and knows how to make a good decision because He actually cares.

Many people embrace the title "Comforter" and can attest to having felt the Holy Spirit comforting them during times of hardship, extreme situations, crises, or any kind of trouble. They say, "I felt the Holy Spirit's comfort. He came into my life and comforted me." And indeed, that is what the Lord does, but what about the Advocate? The Holy Spirit’s role isn't merely to comfort or to pat me on the back when I’m upset or feeling down. He is also an Advocate—a Defender.

Why do we need an advocate and who needs one? A condemned person. A convict and a criminal; Someone who needs a legal defense. If I hadn't done anything wrong and lived in a country with a just legal system, I wouldn't need a lawyer to answer an accusation; the truth would prevail and justice would be served. But if I do need a lawyer—and perhaps a cunning, even deceitful one to get me off the hook—it implies guilt. So why is He called our Advocate or Defender? Because in the eyes of God’s law, we all stand condemned.

If you and I were to stand in God's presence today, how would He see us? The Bible says that when He comes, there will be a judgment, And guess who the accused are! You and I will both stand in front of His throne, so we need a good lawyer. But this lawyer is also actually like a prosecutor. He doesn't come to defend me but also to accuse me—to accuse you—and to point out your error.

This is a different kind of trial: this lawyer—this defender, this prosecutor—enters our lives not to defend us, but to accuse us. For the Word says that the Holy Spirit of truth comes to convict man of his error so that he might have the opportunity to repent, because no man who fails to repent in the Lord's presence has a chance of survival. So, the Holy Spirit comes with the truth to convict us of our sins and defends God's truth, His Word, and His commandments. We come full of lies, habits, customs, ideas, and useless reasoning so the Holy Spirit is necessary to convince us that we are wrong so that we may enter the Lord's presence.

In Psalms 24:3-4, it asks: “Who may ascend the hill of the Lord… He who has clean hands and a pure heart.” Where does that leave you and me? Someone might ask, "Then, Lord, how? It’s so hard. There are so many temptations. It’s so difficult because there are so many things in this world." True. But you forget that you have a defense attorney, an intercessor specifically because our hands get dirty, because we make mistakes, and yes, because we sin. If we are truly Christian, we do not live in sin, yet we do sin. Do you understand the difference? So when I do something, even a sin I myself didn’t even notice or that isn’t visible, the Holy Spirit comes at night and says, "Look at yourself: you did this, you said that, you looked at that. Let’s get clean; it’s time to be cleansed." Then I can ascend the Lord's hill; then I can say—with clean hands and a pure heart—"Lord, I am ascending into Your presence; I want to ascend it, Lord."

He comes to defend the truth because I have "my truth," Everyone has their own self-formed truth regarding their decisions, words, and what we believe the church or religion should be like. In fact, we even have ideas about what God Himself should be like, don't we? Sometimes, when you speak the Word of God plainly people will say, "But God isn't like that; God doesn't do that." You are free to believe whatever you want—it is your “truth”. Yet, the Holy Spirit comes to uphold God's real truth before me; He comes to speak the truth, and that truth is found only in His Word. The Spirit will never come to offer ideas on how to do things your own way, how to twist the Word, or how to carry out one's own will. Although many people do exactly that, using the Gospel and the Word to pursue their own desires. But we know what awaits them; The Bible itself speaks about the fate of such people.

The Holy Spirit is here not just to accompany us on Sundays, or only during worship or solely when we pray, but to be with us always. This truth has taken root in my heart: the Holy Spirit is here to walk with me constantly. Yet, at times, I try to run ahead of the Holy Spirit. He might say, "Let's do this here," but I rush off in another direction. "I'm going to meet up with my friends right now", ignoring the Holy Spirit. Why don't you stay here at the house? “I'm about to meet someone—I'm at work right now.” The Holy Spirit is supposed to always be with us but we run away because God's plan doesn’t look like ours.

Perhaps we hear the Holy Spirit saying “No, don’t do that." but it's faint. He will say, "Not that." and instead we hear just noise. We’ll say, “But I want to do this.” instead because there is so much distraction in our lives. The Holy Spirit is the One who lives within us, and. he isn't just here among us in church. He goes where we go, hears what we say, and knows our thoughts. The Holy Spirit comes to help us. But to receive that help, which I know many of us have asked God for, we need to be able to listen and actually want it. Otherwise, how can we even ask for advice?

What do we do when we need advice or have to pour our hearts out? I feel like the trend is to go out, get coffee with someone, and talk. You’ll end up sitting there for hours and the coffee will get cold (Side note: when you go to a coffee shop to talk, you should wipe down the table; you probably got your tears and snot on it). We go to someone when we need advice or just need to let it all out. What do we do? We meet each other. You sit face-to-face with that person; you pour out your story, and they speak to you. That’s why the Lord says (Revelation 3:20), "Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone opens the door I will come in and dine with him; I will sit with him." He uses the same imagery, talking about an intimate moment and a time for conversation.

It’s awful when you want to ask for advice but the other person doesn't really engage—you’re thinking about how you care for them and you're waiting for your turn to share your side or give your point of view, but it doesn't come. I see so many people who can testify about this; people in the church enter God’s presence just to hear themselves talk, talk, talk, talk, talk. Do we ask for help without being able to hear Him? How can someone obey if they do not hear the command? But today I have come to tell you that God is still speaking; I have come to tell you that God remains the same as He was yesterday and will continue to be the same. He continues to speak to those who lend Him their ear, to all those who recognize that—even though they may have spent a lifetime on a path—it is not the path of Truth. He speaks to the one who recognizes, like Nicodemus, that he needs something more—and that "more" is the Holy Spirit of God.

"But today I have come to tell you that God is still speaking; I have come to tell you that God remains the same as He was yesterday and will continue to be the same."

The first thing the Holy Spirit does is convict man of his error and lead him to Christ. The first time He went to preach He said, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has arrived." You and I have the gift of repentance, yet people believe that repenting happens only when a church issues an altar call asking, "Do you want to accept Christ?" But who can accept Christ? He says, in John 6:37, "All those the Father gives me will come to me," and we are to come to Him not just on that day we received salvation and the Holy Spirit; but every single day!

We aren't going to wear it out, so use it! Don't be like me who bought a new pair of shoes but liked them so much I didn’t wear them? They just sat there, brand new. You look at them and think, "Wow, I'd look great in these tomorrow," but you don't put them on because you don't want to wear them out. Well, something happened to me—let me tell you my shoe testimony. Some time ago, I had a pair of sneakers—very comfortable ones. I wore them every day and they were my favorite, even though I didn't actually like them at first (they were a gift). I wore them non-stop, day after day, until they broke down. They didn't just wear out; they fell to pieces. A while later, I saw the same type for sale and thought about just buying them again. Then I stopped and realized I had never in my life bought the same thing twice. I don't know if that's ever happened to you—buying a pair of shoes, having them get ruined or stop fitting, and then buying the exact same pair again. Why did I do this? Because it’s what I needed.

Sometimes we think about moving on to something else in life, but what about repentance? Often the Holy Spirit is knocking, yet His church isn't listening; people keep soiling their hands and hearts to the point where they drift too far from God—feeling nothing, thinking nothing, with their hearts no longer in the Kingdom. We tend to say, "I'm fine; God is with me," yet we don't listen to or seek Him. The Word says, "My sheep hear My voice and follow Me." Where are God's sheep? I might claim to be a sheep but if I'm willingly walking in the filth, am I?

The other day, someone gave an example that really made me think—and I believe many of us who were present kept it in our hearts. The Holy Spirit is active today, showing mercy and passing by—much like when Jesus walked amongst people. Someone would be walking along, then suddenly cry out, "Jesus, help!" and Jesus would come, touch them, and heal them. They received something because they cried out that day. But I ask you: how many of those who were healed that day were actually saved? Of the five thousand Jesus fed, how many followed Him to the death?

Didn’t they receive something? Yes, they did receive something; but for them it may have been a fleeting feeling. Sometimes I feel those little stirrings too on Sundays, maybe depending on what song is playing. Sometimes those little feelings we have in church are just like the feelings we get when we’re in a taxi listening to Los Temerarios or some other sentimental band and we remember a past love; The point is that the Lord comes by, touches us, performs miracles, and so on—but that doesn't necessarily mean the Holy Spirit is still in me. He keeps knocking on the door, but He asks: "Who is going to open up so that I might live in them, not just so they feel those little stirrings on Sundays.” We are to make a dwelling place for Him.

I was thinking about this notion once, and then someone spoke up and said, "You know? There is something strange about this. If I—or anyone—starts having trouble with their body, like an internal organ failing, you realize it's failing." She used to give examples like that: "If my heart fails, I’ll know it." And if it fails, that’s the end of the line. We all notice when our knees start giving out, or when the liver or kidneys start to fail, and that we are starting to lose the body that God has given us.

There are two diseases sticking out to me right now: fibromyalgia and anything dealing with hypersensitivity; anything and everything hurts you. You feel intense pain—pain far greater than a normal person would feel. The pain in the bones and skin increases and manifests differently. It is a serious issue, and there is another nervous system condition that causes a loss of tactile sensation in the skin—do you get the implications of that? Someone might be standing near a pot of tamales, place their hand on it, and not realise it. You can get seriously burnt without noticing. It’s almost worse than the other because they do not sense the danger. What have they lost? Sensation.

When we gather at home for a party, we see that some people now opt for juice or water instead of soda, because of how it may have messed with their kidneys; there is clear evidence of this and they take steps to address it. But when a person lacks sensation, what can they do? Many of us have lost sensitivity; our hearts have grown hard, because we are capable of entering the House of the Lord, feeling nothing, and leaving the same way—without ever asking ourselves what is wrong with us! If God was there speaking, I didn't hear Him! if God was there touching, I didn't feel it! Why? Who has this problem? We have become insensitive.

I want to conclude with this: Many claim to be Christians, but even if you forget most of what I said today, remember this: You are supposed to be a follower of Christ Jesus, the One who died on the cross but rose again, the One who promised He would return for us. He said to those who followed Him, "Do you want to be My disciple? Take up your cross and follow Me; leave everything behind and follow Me." So they believed—"He is coming back for me"—and they cast everything else aside because they believed it.

I want you to ask yourself, “Do I believe?” Do you believe that Jesus is coming back? When He returns, what will He do? Live knowing that He is coming back only for those marked by His Holy Spirit. May indifference be cast out today; may it be cut off. Let those who have ears hear the voice of the Lord and begin to open their hearts to the truth, for everyone who calls themselves a Christian must be a follower of Christ. And Christ said, "Those who are Mine—those who are My sheep—hear My voice and follow Me."

So I say to Him, "Lord, I want to follow You." And He replies, "Then listen to My voice and obey it." He continues to speak to this day. Do you want to prepare your heart today to hear Him? Do you want to close your ears today to the outside noise and distractions so that you can hear the voice of God? He requires attention!

The other day, I was at home with my wife in the kitchen; we were talking while standing by the stove. We had a boiling pot on top, and when my daughter came over I couldn't hear what she was saying, even though she was right next to me. There was just that much going on around me. I understand what it’s like when we go to God’s house and there are problems, debts, and memories flooding in, but I have to want to hear Him; I need to put myself in a position where I force myself to listen to God, to understand His Word, and to receive revelation for my life—that is what the Holy Spirit does. So, I want to invite you today to listen to the Holy Spirit. "How can I enter the Kingdom of Heaven?" "You must be born again; you must be born again."