MISSED OPPORTUNITY. ANOTHER CHANCE.

“You missed your opportunity. There’s just no way around it. But here’s the good news. Your chances are not done.” - Pastor Matthew

This message closes the long running series called Following Jesus. Pastor Matthew explains that every message in the series has carried a similar purpose. Each teaching has invited people to examine their lives and consider what it truly means to follow the example and commands of Jesus. As he begins this final sermon in the series, he wants listeners to reflect on a simple but important question. How do you hear the voice of Jesus.

He describes how Jesus voice is both challenging and loving. When Jesus speaks, He reveals truth that confronts unhealthy patterns, false security, and misplaced trust. At the same time, His words carry love because His challenge is always meant to draw people into a deeper and healthier relationship with Him. Pastor Matthew teaches that the way a person hears the voice of Jesus affects the way they process it in their hearts and minds. The response that follows is shaped by how the challenge is received.

From Luke nineteen and Matthew twenty three, Pastor Matthew focuses on a moment near the end of Jesus ministry on earth. Jesus approaches the city of Jerusalem and sees more than buildings and walls. The city represents the nation of Israel and the longing of the world as a whole. It represents people who were searching for peace but missing the source of that peace. When Jesus sees this, He weeps.

Pastor Matthew points out that Jesus response reveals His heart. Jesus desired for the people to understand what He offered. He longed for them to recognize that He alone could bring the peace their hearts were aching for. Even though Jesus knew His arrest and crucifixion were only days away, His concern was not for Himself. His heart broke for people who settled for less than the life He came to give.

Pastor Matthew explains that the desire for something more lives in every generation. People look for security in many directions. They chase comfort, control, relationships, resources, or recognition. They feel a sense of emptiness and assume something else will finally satisfy. Jesus came to bring peace but they believed they needed more.

This same pattern continues today. Pastor Matthew teaches that when people mix Jesus with something else, it leads to frustration. Jesus plus something leaves people empty. Jesus plus something leaves them broken. True peace is found in Jesus alone. When Jesus becomes the foundation, everything else in life becomes a blessing rather than a replacement.

Pastor Matthew reminds the church of the heart of Jesus. Jesus did not come to condemn. Although He could have confronted every person with a complete list of their sins and failures, He chose compassion. He came to save. He came to serve. He came to rescue those who were wandering and vulnerable.

Pastor Matthew uses a story from his childhood to illustrate this point. He remembers watching his mother follow his older brothers on their walk to school. She followed them at a distance to make sure they were safe. Jesus follows people in the same way. He comes toward those who are lost so that He can protect and rescue them. He does not come with a posture of control. He comes with a posture of compassion.

When Jesus speaks in Matthew twenty three, He describes the history of the nation of Israel. God sent prophets throughout the ages to guide, correct, and encourage His people. Many of those prophets were rejected. Some were even harmed or killed. Jesus points out that the religious leaders in His time claimed they would have responded differently, yet they were rejecting Him in the same way.

Pastor Matthew connects this history to the experience of believers today. When God speaks through scripture or through a sermon, listeners have a choice. They can receive the challenge and respond with obedience or they can become hardened and resistant. Pastor Matthew has seen this pattern as a pastor. People may be convicted at first, but if they continue resisting what God is asking them to address, their hearts grow calloused.

He reminds the church that scripture often says the same truth. Today if you hear God’s voice, do not harden your heart. Each time God speaks, people choose either soft obedience or a hardened response. Pastor Matthew encourages listeners to consider how they personally react when God challenges them.

Jesus follows His difficult statement with a picture of tenderness. He describes His longing to gather the people the same way a hen gathers her chicks. Pastor Matthew explains that this image communicates closeness, comfort, and protection. Jesus desire is relationship. His commands are meant to bring life, not to take something away.

Pastor Matthew teaches that God calls people to stop destructive behaviors and begin life giving habits because His goal is always blessing. He challenges so that He can bring people closer. Even after generations of rejection, His posture continues to be compassion.

Jesus goes on to say that the house is left desolate. Pastor Matthew explains that Jesus is referring to the temple. It was a large and impressive structure, carefully built and admired by many. Yet the people did not consider whether God’s presence was actually there. They built something grand but ignored the condition of their hearts.

Pastor Matthew brings this truth into the present day. He reminds listeners that believers are now the temple of God. The Holy Spirit dwells in those who place their faith in Jesus. Even so, people can fill their lives with distractions, priorities, and pursuits that push out God’s presence. A person can appear successful on the outside while remaining empty on the inside.

Jesus words are not spoken to shame but to reveal the truth. Pastor Matthew explains that God sometimes gives people the desires of their hearts. If they push Him out through their choices, He allows them to have what they are chasing, even though it will not satisfy.

Despite the missed opportunity, Jesus offers hope. He tells the people they will see Him again when they declare that He comes in the name of the Lord. Pastor Matthew explains that this statement comes from Psalm one hundred eighteen. Jesus is saying there is still another chance. The people missed what they could have experienced, but God is not finished with them.

Pastor Matthew emphasizes that Jesus does not limit mercy. He does not offer only a second chance or a third chance. He offers another chance. He waits for people to cry out to Him with honesty and surrender. When they do, He responds with love.

To help the church reflect, Pastor Matthew reads Psalm one hundred eighteen in full. He encourages listeners to hear it as both a challenge and an invitation. The psalm describes a person calling out to God for rescue, strength, protection, and salvation. It also celebrates God’s faithfulness.

Pastor Matthew invites the congregation to let the words of the psalm become their own. He encourages them to express their need for God, trust His character, and return to a posture of worship. The psalm points to a God whose steadfast love endures forever.

At the end of the message, Pastor Matthew asks the church to reflect quietly. He encourages them to ask the Holy Spirit two questions. What do I need to stop. What do I need to start. Pastor Matthew teaches that the Holy Spirit never ignores an open heart. When someone seeks God with honesty, God responds.

He invites the church to confess where they have wandered, release what has been holding them back, and step into obedience. As people walk in renewed faithfulness, their confidence in God grows. They begin to see the goodness of His ways and the peace found in surrender.