Evangelist Franklin Graham spoke at the “Esperanza Lima” festival in Lima, Peru to a crowd of 90,000 over two days. The event took place over March 7^th and 8^th at the sold-out National Stadium of Peru. Thousands crowded outside the stadium to hear. Graham spent the first night preaching from Luke 15, referring to the passage of the Prodigal Son, one of Jesus’s most recognized parables of a son running away from his father in search of his own desires, only to return broken and begging forgiveness. “Have you ever wanted to run away from your problems? I think there’s some of you here tonight—you’ve been running. It’s time to come home to your Heavenly Father,” said Graham. “The entire world is infected with sin. Without Jesus you have no hope. You cannot save yourself. You cannot forgive yourself. The church cannot save you. Religion cannot save you. Only the blood of Jesus can save you,” he said. “He is the only way. He came from Heaven to this earth to take your sins. He died and shed His blood on the cross for you. Tonight, you can put your faith and trust in Him and be saved from your sins and have a new life.”

On the second night, Graham preached on the blind beggar Bartimaeus, who was healed by Jesus as described in Mark 10. Over 10,000 people responded to invitations to begin a new life in Christ. The Billy Graham Evangelical Association (BGEA) shared the story of cousins Renzo Sanchez Ortiz, 23, and his cousin John Sanchez Huaman, 20, who came forward to receive Christ and a Spanish language Bible. The pair had driven 2 hours to hear Graham preach. Miguel Ángel, 30, and his girlfriend also attended. Ángel had gotten away from God, but after hearing the sermon, he felt convicted. “It really struck me what he said about how we’re all called to repentance,” he said. He now plans to start attending church and pursue his relationship with God further.

The event is the fruit of BGEA and over 2,300 local churches working together to put it on. Graham had spoken in Lima exactly 28 years ago in the exact same stadium. He shared about the event on X. “It was such a privilege to preach the Gospel in Lima tonight at the National Stadium of Peru. It was packed with 41,000 people and more waiting outside!” he wrote. “I told the crowd that I had come to Lima for a reason—and that reason is to share the Truth! Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father, except through Me’ (John 14:6).” In a separate post, he shared that another 48,500 had attended the second night, writing., “We give God all the glory for the thousands who made the most important decision of their lives tonight—to turn from their sins and put their trust in Jesus Christ!”