Ex-Atheist Among Hundreds Saying Yes to Jesus as 20,000 Hear Gospel in Madrid Bullfighting Ring

The gospel of Jesus Christ was proclaimed this weekend in a country that has historically been known as a "graveyard for missionaries." Evangelical Christians in Spain are calling it a big answer to prayer after massive crowds showed up to hear Franklin Graham preach about God's gift of salvation.

Large crowds overflowed from the Palacio Vistalegre, which was once a bullfighting arena, for the two-night Festival of Hope evangelistic outreach. Evangelical churches in Spain have been praying for many years for a powerful moment like this, believing God for a spiritual breakthrough in their country. Those prayers were answered as hundreds of Spanish citizens committed their lives to Christ.
 
"God made you, He loves you, and He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, from heaven to this earth to save you from your sins," Franklin Graham, president and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, told the crowds. "If you can't remember anything else tonight, remember this—God loves you. And He will forgive your sins if you come to Jesus Christ by faith."

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A 36-year-old man named Marcos Badell was among those who said "yes" to Jesus. He had never attended an evangelical event before, and he felt the power of God's love for him, choking back tears as he explained, "I'm an atheist—well, I was an atheist—and I see that despite that, He has sought me out. That's what impacts me the most."

People who responded to the gospel are being connected to local churches so they can grow in their newfound faith. Nearly 900 evangelical churches across 15 denominations in the Madrid area partnered with Franklin Graham and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) for the Festival. 

"I was so happy to watch people respond to the Gospel and see what the Lord is doing in many lives," said Madrid-based Pastor Manuel Cerezo. "We feel that the Lord is moving. He is doing something that we have never seen before in Madrid."

Evangelical Christians are just a small minority of the population in Spain. Less than 2 percent of the country is evangelical, and most people are either Catholic or not religious.

Pastor Cerezo said the local churches have faced opposition as they seek to fulfill the Great Commission. "We are facing a strong movement against the evangelical churches in the media. It has been like a hurricane and we feel their attacks." 

He says Protestants and evangelical Christians have faced persecution in Spain for hundreds of years, since the days of the Spanish Inquisition. He says the news media target evangelicals these days, mistreating them like they're a cult. "But God says in the Bible that you are blessed when people speak against you on the account of Jesus Christ, so we are blessed," Pastor Cerezo said.
 
BGEA reports that national newspapers and television networks have expressed surprise that the evangelical church has been growing recently in Spain. When journalists asked Franklin Graham about the trend, he replied, "Religion can't save you. The church can't save you. Only the blood of Jesus Christ has the power to save us from our sins, and that's the Good News that evangelical churches proclaim and the message that I am sharing with the people of Madrid."