This sermon features Brother Yun, a Chinese Christian leader who endured persecution, imprisonment, and miraculous interventions by Jesus. Despite challenges, he emphasizes the power of Jesus' love and the impact of prayer and faith in overcoming obstacles. The message highlights the transformational power of Jesus in setting people free from various forms of bondage and bringing healing and salvation to individuals and nations.

Now today we have a very special treat. Brother Yun is probably the most famous Chinese Christian leader in a nation of over 1 billion people. The story of his life was written in a book called The Heavenly Man and in the year 2003 it was the book of the year for 2003. This is a man who's been arrested over 30 times, spent years in prison, persecuted, suffering as a leader for Jesus Christ and has seen many, many miracles. If you want to read a good book, this has more drama than any novel you'll read this year and it's available out at the book table, The Heavenly Man. And I've asked him to come and speak this morning, but before he comes and speaks, when he comes give him a warm Saddleback welcome, but I want you to watch this video about his life. Amen! Amen! Jesus Christ is resurrected from the dead. Let us give our applause to Jesus. Hallelujah! Amen! Hallelujah! Jesus said, I am the resurrection and life. Those who believe in me and they will be alive even when they die. And now I'm going to teach you some Chinese. Let us say to one another in pure Chinese, Jesus loves you. That means Jesus loves you. Do that quickly to one another, otherwise this lesson will take half an hour. Jesus loves you. Jesus loves you. One, two, three. Jesus loves you. Wonderful. Hallelujah! Hallelujah! God has only one purpose and plan for you and me. That is that we will experience the fact that Jesus loves us. And we love the Lord because he first loved us so much. I'm so thankful to the Lord that the Western missionaries, more than 100 years ago, they brought this gospel into my nation of China. In 1940s, not longer after my mother had received the Lord as her savior, the communists took power in China. And the very best that the missionaries who were expelled out from China, they left my mother and all the other believers was these words, Jesus loves you. These missionaries in tears, their last words to the new believers were, Jesus loves you, he never forsake you, and we will pray for you. And all the missionaries were expelled from China, and the door for gospel was closed in China. We didn't have any pastors and ministers operating in China anymore. We didn't have any churches to go to, and we didn't have absolutely any Bibles. But not even for a fraction of a minute, Jesus' love left China. He was, he remained in China. Jesus knew that there's going to happen in certain places on this earth, that they will burn all the Bibles, they will destroy the church buildings, and they want to, they want to kill the believers. That's why Jesus did not say to his disciples, when he descended and went back to heaven, I will send down a book for you to read. He said, I will send the Holy Spirit to be with you every day. People may expel the missionaries and pastors and burn up the Bibles, but they cannot expel the Holy Spirit to work. When the missionaries were expelled from China, there was a little tiny church of Jesus Christ, with about 800,000 followers of Jesus in China. After 50 years, 55 years of persecution and many difficulties, the church has been mushrooming all over China, so much that we have more than 100 million believers of Jesus Christ in China every day. Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Amen! Jesus Christ is resurrected from the dead, and his mighty hand is stretched over the nation of China today. During the early years of revolution, Mao Zedong and his wife, they proclaimed that Christianity, we have moved it to the History Museum in Beijing. I have good news from China. Mao and his wife, they are in the history today, but Jesus is alive in China. Amen! Hallelujah! When I was 17 years old, the heavenly calling came to my life. And with my ears, I literally heard a voice calling me, Brother Yun, stand up and be my witness to West and South. My mother, who was an old believer, she came and said to me, My son, you must have problems in your head. I'm an old believer. I haven't heard anybody saying anything. But the whole night, the same voice was calling me to stand up and witness for the Lord. I didn't receive any education, any training. I haven't even met any pastor in my whole life, except when Jesus Christ appeared to me and he called me to ministry. I remember when I started my first ministry trip, I didn't know how to handle the Bible. I didn't know if you were supposed to keep it on your head or have it towards your chest. What do you do with this book? I didn't know how to explain it. But when I started to recite God's words to people, many people started to cry with me. Few months earlier, I had started to memorize. I had memorized all the Gospels. So my first preaching was just from my memory to speak out the whole book of Matthew. And as I was doing that, I saw how people's lives were touched by the Word of God. What had happened in my family a few months earlier was, my father was dying in terminal cancer. And as we one night started to call upon the name of Jesus, my father was miraculously healed and restored from cancer. After I had spoken out from my memory the whole book of Matthew, I said, in my family we have experienced that Jesus is alive. My father was dying in cancer and now he is healed. There is power in the name of Jesus. And I was quite brutal whenever I saw a sick person, I just draw them forward and I said, I'm going to pray for you in the name of Jesus. Jesus will heal you like he healed my father. And it doesn't mean that I had in my possession any supernatural healing power, but I did it in simplicity of my faith. Jesus is able, I lay my hands upon the sick people and they were instantly healed. And I didn't need to go and do any advertisement for Jesus anymore, because when these people who were sick were healed, these who were demon possessed when they were restored, they run all over the place and they were telling, it was Jesus who healed me. There was one man who had been demon possessed and he had totally gone crazy, so her family had to build a cell inside their house, and this man was in handcuffs and foot points for 18 years, they had to keep and feed that dangerous man inside that cell. And when I came to that village and I proclaimed, Jesus is the healer and Jesus will cast out all the demons who are in your life, that the head of the family, you can come to our house and test whether it works. And we started to go around that cell, those iron bars in the middle of the living room of the house, and as we were praising the Lord and started to pray, this demon possessed man, he started to shake and he was fighting with his hands. And his father was behind me and then I opened a little bit the cage, and I said, Satan, this is the door for you, get out! And I just pointed and walked out from him. Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Amen! And with a fraction of a second, this man came back to his senses and he said, Mother, Satan has left me, all the demons are gone, you can remove the handcuffs and points, I'm totally restored. But the mother said, no, we cannot do it, because the local police force, they have commanded that you have to be kept here rest of your life, we cannot set you free. This man, when he has been under the influence of the demons, he had killed many people, and he had really made a big mess in the whole village. And then I took authority over the situation, I said, I command you, bring the tools, and we will cut all the chains, and this man, he can go and report himself to the police station. Not long after these all miracles started to happen, the authorities, they started to try to catch me, and then they caught me and they throw me to the prison. And when I remember the first time when I was in the prison, I was complaining to the Lord, I said, Lord, you called me to go west and south, and now I'm stuck here in this prison, I cannot preach to anybody. So I made up my mind and I said to the Lord, Lord, I cannot preach the gospel, then I'd rather die. I want to die for your name. Those years, it was 100% sure, if you were a minister of the word, and you kept doing that, one day they will throw you into prison. And after I'd been going through a lot of torture in the prison, and I really lost my hope for survival, Jesus came to me and he said, my son, I know all suffering that you are going through, see, I'm going to open a door for you, nobody is able to shut. I had many moments of discouragement, I lost my heart so many times, but always Jesus came to me with encouragement, he said, I know, my child, what you are going through. And then one morning I saw a vision, I was awakened in that vision, I saw how the prison doors, one after the other, they were opened for me, and as I walked out from the prison, I saw multitudes of people outside, different skin colors, they were praising the Lord together. I saw this in the vision, but the reality was that I was in prison many times, and this miracle started to happen first, 13 years later. For the sake of the gospel, I have been 4 times in real prison. So 13 years after the vision, I was again captured and thrown to a top security prison, and from the human way of seeing, that was the most difficult, impossible situation. Together with some of the famous house church leaders, 8 of us, we were all captured and thrown to a top security prison. In 1997, when we were captured, many people wanted to rescue us, including President Clinton, and 107 congress members, they signed a letter and demanded China to release us, but nobody could help us. People trying to use money and authority to get us free, but it didn't work. And then in torture, they crushed my both legs from angles and said, you are never going to escape anymore. I am not a 24 hour, a super spiritual person. When I was going through the torture, I said, I was mad on God. I said, Lord, is this the meaning of your calling in my life, from going from suffering to next suffering? My friends outside, they lost their hope for my survival and my release. I was in one prison, my wife was in another prison, so they said, let's take care of his old mother and his children. They are not going to be coming to freedom. There were a couple of local believers in that city where we were captured in that secret location, and they said, we are not going to give up, let us go back to that ancient way of prayer. They launched a prayer and fasting at the church for my release. He is the God of Abraham and Jacob and he is our God. He is the God of Paul and Peter and Silas. There is nothing in this, no authority and power greater than a unified prayer of the believers of Jesus Christ. There are so many problems where money cannot help you, any authority influence cannot help you. In tears, they were crawling on the ground in that location, and the church was 24 hours non-stop praying, crying to the Lord on our behalf. And as they have been praying and fasting for 5 days, the Holy Spirit started to speak to them. And in the middle of the day, as they were praying together, they heard that I am standing outside and knocking the door and asking them, open the door for me. And then when they were outside and they opened the door and there was nobody outside. And they returned back to their prayer activity and again they heard my voice shouting from outside, open the door. And not only one, many of those people heard my voice. And one of the sisters, the leader of that group, she said, Lord is about to set brother in free, let's make some preparations, he will come to this location when he is set free. And that moment, I didn't know anything what was happening outside. God was preparing a safe house for me. I was complaining and I was blaming God for all my misery. And my situation was as bad as it was for Jesus' good friend Lazarus. They have buried the best friend of Jesus and thrown him into the cave. I am so thankful that Jesus loved me so much and He hadn't forsaken me. And likewise, He hasn't forsaken you. He knows you where you are right now. Who can call to life, back life, those who have died? It's only Jesus. And who can get the dead people to speak again? It's only Jesus. Because He is a resurrected Lord. Early that morning in May 1997, Jesus walked into my solitary cell and He said, Brother, stand up and walk out from this place. And when Jesus started to take action, it's quicker than our thoughts. When Jesus said to me this command to stand up and walk, my immediate reaction was, Jesus, this is a top security prison, you don't walk out from places like this. But immediately Jesus replied, your prison is real, but I am the truth and the truth will set you free. Your prison is real, but I am the truth and the truth will set you free. Let us all say, our Lord is alive. We may lose our heart and be discouraged, but He is faithful. And I felt I need some support, so I knocked the door on my cell, and that was a signal to another brother, and he was able to come and he confirmed what I was feeling in my spirit. And through a miracle, my doors of my prison were opened for me. Truly, obedience is to receive and obey something which is totally impossible. I know that you all have been taught about what happened to Jesus' good friend Lazarus, how Jesus called him to walk, come out from the cave. When Jesus called Lazarus to come out, he would say, Jesus, they treated me so bad, they locked me in here, I am going to stay here unless they come and apologize. I tell you brother, it doesn't matter, don't care who has thrown you into prison where you are dwelling today, the most important is the fact that Jesus is alive and He is calling you to come out. If I had started to argue with Jesus in that morning, Jesus, they have treated me so bad, I am going anywhere, I am going to stay here, I would still rattle in that solitary cell. But as I stood up in obedience, heavenly healing hit my body, my legs were restored, and as I started to walk towards the doors, they were opened for me. I didn't have any secret remote control in my pocket to open from inside, top security door, Lord opened the doors for me to walk out. And I was so hurry, I didn't even have time to go to the prison office to tell that I am going to take a walkabout. And the first one who ever asked me anything was the taxi driver outside the main gate, he opened the door and said, you seem to be in hurry, where do you want to go, I jumped into that taxi. Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Amen. I didn't know where to go, the taxi driver was pushing, where are you in a hurry, and then I said, go straight forward as quickly as you can. And then I recognized the high-rise building, oh there are believers living in this house, I said to taxi driver, stop here, and I rushed upstairs because I needed money to pay for the taxi. So I knocked the door, and the daughters inside, they are not open the door because they were frightened that the police is coming to raid their house again. The Lord is able to open any gates, any doors for you. I recognized that your prison may be totally different to that real prison where I was in China. There are many people in this nation who are living a hell-like life with drugs, pornography, and many many other things that are keeping them away from real life. And maybe some of you are still sitting in a prison of unbelief, you cannot believe, but today Jesus will set you free. Jesus is alive, and there is no one who is a hopeless person for Jesus. I believe firmly that wherever Jesus appears, the situation will be totally changed and transformed. Let us say in English this time to one another, Jesus loves you, and He will set you free. Only Jesus is the one who can set you truly free from the jail where you have been living. And only Jesus can transform our nation. In the same way that Jesus was able to change the griefing home of Martha, Mary, and Lazarus to become a home filled with joy, He can do the same transformation in your family. Maybe there is somebody, some member in your family, and you totally have lost hope for his salvation, and a life changed for him. But Jesus is faithful for you, and He has a plan for salvation for all the members of your family. The only thing that Lord wants you to do is to remove that big stone of unbelief that you have built up at the opening of the cave. How many of you really desire and want that all unbelieving family members will be changed? Hallelujah! Jesus said, Martha, even though you are sad, you still have to remove that big stone of unbelief, and let your family members come out of the cave. And that's what Jesus said to the people at the grave, remove that obstacle of unbelief, and allow your brother to come out. Maybe you said, it doesn't help me to do anything. The people in my family, they are totally gone away from the Lord, and they will never be changed. Maybe you have been wounded, and you are really hurting in your heart, and that has become that obstacle that you have to remove. And we also have to change our thinking and attitude towards the entire Islamic world. We have to remove the obstacle so that all the people will walk freedom from that prison of religion. Amen. And the Lord has a mission for his church. Every Muslim who is living in this nation, they have to have an encounter with the living Jesus, and be raised from the dead. Amen. The Lord has never said that America will be filled with people who are still worshipping mammon and idols. He said, this country will be filled with my glory and my presence. Amen. If Jesus was able to raise from the dead a person who has been dead for four days, he can do anything. Amen. It doesn't matter how big the troubles and problems are of your life, they are never greater than the power of salvation of Jesus Christ. Amen. And the Lord is calling you, walk out from your jail today. Let us all stand up in the name of Jesus. Let us repent in our hearts on behalf of our nation, our families and our own lives. I believe that there is resurrection power in the name of Jesus, so that our lives, our families and our churches will be transformed. It doesn't matter how big are the bindings, they have bound you. Jesus is calling you, he will set you free. Maybe a religion has become your jail, or something else has become something that holds you back. Jesus will set you free. Jesus loves you and he will cut away all those ropes and set you free. Let us now pray together. How about, you've never done this before, three or four people together, join hands and let's pray a short while together in small groups, three to four people. And let's say again to one another, Jesus loves you brother and sister and he will set us free. Let us all pray aloud together. Thank you Lord Jesus that you will bring many people to freedom and light from darkness right now. Lord Jesus thank you that you will heal many people right now as they are joining hands and praying for one another. Lord you see some people who have cancer in their body, thank you Jesus that all things are possible for you. Thank you Lord that you are resurrected Lord and your blood is able to cleanse us and set us free. It's only the blood of Jesus that can set us free this morning. In the name of Jesus I pull away that obstacle that is holding back the chains of your life. All those who are still dwelling in darkness, they will see the light and they will enter into the light. In the name of Lord Jesus I pray, let us give all the glory to Jesus. Amen.