Opportunity is knocking...

"When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him.  He opened His mouth and began to teach them...-Matthew 5:1-2.  Here we find the opening to what has been called the greatest sermon ever preached, the Sermon on the Mount. This is the first recorded sermon we have from Jesus Himself.  At this point in His ministry, we find in Matthew 4:23-25 that Jesus was teaching and healing all kinds of diseases and ailments causing people from everywhere to follow Him.  Jesus uses this opportunity to teach the people and preach this great sermon. To put it simply Jesus took full advantage when opportunity came knocking.

Opportunity is knocking.  Look at the image below.  For those of us who are a little bit older, the scene in the image is probably a familiar one.  But in case you don't recognize it, the scene is from the movie Forrest Gump.  At this point in the movie, Forrest Gump played by Tom Hanks had gone for a run but he didn't stop. He just kept running and got to looking the way he does in the picture below.  But also notice the crowd in the background.  Some people for their own reasons looked up to what he was doing.  As Forrest puts it in the movie, he was just running and doing his thing but he developed a following until he stopped running and decides to finally return home.  So before I get too far in to this, please know that I am NOT by any means comparing Forrest Gump to Jesus but I am simply using this to show that sometimes we too will just be doing what we think we need to do and before we know it, people are following us.  If this happened to us, what would we do with the opportunity when it comes knocking?

Opportunity is knocking.  Jesus had developed quite the following because of what He was doing, accomplishing what He knew He needed to do in an effort to accomplish the will of the Father.  Also, I am willing to bet the crowd far exceeded the size of the crowd we see in the image.  As opposed to just going ahead of the crowd and moving on to the next town, Jesus stops.  He sits down on the mountain pictured below, the Mount of Beatitudes where Jesus is believed to have delivered this sermon, opens His mouth and begins to teach.  Jesus knew He had a following and was not about to let this opportunity escape Him.

Opportunity is knocking.  As a Christian, no doubt you have some pretty special relationships with a lot of people.  You may have people that look up to your example.  Whether you realize it or not, you do have a following.  You may not have a following like Jesus did in this passage.  You may not even have a following that is the size of the crowd that followed Forrest Gump but realize that you do have a following.  If there is one thing I have learned in my walk with Christ it is that whether I realize it or not, people are watching me. I am aware of some of these people but I always have in mind that there could be those that I am unaware of that are also watching me.  But something I ask myself and sometimes fail at is what will I do with this opportunity and the special relationship I have with these people?  One reason I know I have a following is because of you the reader.  This month alone almost 500 people or more have read this blog.  Since January, the number is nearing 3000.  This makes me realize that I have had the privilege and the opportunity to spread God's word and the gospel message to almost 3000 souls.  People have encouraged and critiqued me but one thing that keeps me going through it all is you, my wonderful readers because you are encouraging me and helping me do what the Lord has called us all to do, and that is to teach per Matthew 28:18-20.       

Opportunity is knocking.  Jesus was not about to neglect the crowds that were following Him.  Whether we realize it or not, we always have the opportunity to teach people.  Take a look at how many Facebook friends you have.  No matter what the number is those are souls that you can teach.  How many members are at your congregation?  No matter what the number, whether it's 15 like a crowd at a congregation I visited recently or 300 which is about the size of my home congregation here in Denver, the Bear Valley Church of Christ.  Whatever the number of your congregation, that number is the souls you have the God given power to reach.  

Opportunity is knocking.  So given that Christ took full advantage of the opportunity He had, we too must follow the example and make an effort to teach the crowds that surround us, whether it's at our church or the crowds we find ourselves in out there in the world.  Included in this could also be our own families.  You are blessed if your whole family are members of the the Lord's church but with most families including mine, this is not the case.  

Opportunity is knocking.  My encouragement to you tonight is this.  Take some time to think of the people that you know, whether they are Christians or not, go out of your way to teach them in some way if they are Christians and if they are not, talk to them about God in some form or fashion even if it means sitting down and studying the Bible with them.  Earlier this evening, me and my friend Rachel were talking about the fact that we as Christians tend to keep God's love to ourselves as opposed to sharing it with people that need it like Christ has called us to do.  Let's make it a point to be more proactive about teaching people about God both in word and deed.  And if you are reading this and need to come back to God or if you have been contemplating obeying the gospel, your opportunity is knocking.  Will you answer the door?  

DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! PRAY ABOUT IT! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS!