Possible Potential

Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God." Mark 10:27

 

It’s amazing how many gifted people there are who just sit on the sidelines of life and do nothing. They never take a step forward to use the gifts God has given them because they don’t believe they’re gifted in the first place. Are you one of them?

The truth is, God has given each one of us gifts, talents and abilities. He has a great plan for you and has equipped you to do great things for His Kingdom. But until you see yourself the way He sees you and trust Him to enable you to use your gifts, you won’t live up to your God-given potential.

If you’re struggling with low self-esteem, a poor self-image and lacking confidence, I want you to know that God created you with amazing potential. And when you trust God and believe you can do whatever He says you can do, you will fulfill His destiny for your life.

Remember, "all things are possible with God." When you put your confidence in Him, you will be free to live up to your potential.

 

by joyce meyer youversion devotional

Two Healings

Mark 5:21-28 21Once again Jesus got into the boat and crossed Lake Galilee. ^[d] Then as he stood on the shore, a large crowd gathered around him. 22The person in charge of the Jewish meeting place was also there. His name was Jairus, and when he saw Jesus, he went over to him. He knelt at Jesus’ feet 23and started begging him for help. He said, “My daughter is about to die! Please come and touch her, so she will get well and live.” 24Jesus went with Jairus. Many people followed along and kept crowding around.

25In the crowd was a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years. 26She had gone to many doctors, and they had not done anything except cause her a lot of pain. She had paid them all the money she had. But instead of getting better, she only got worse.

27The woman had heard about Jesus, so she came up behind him in the crowd and barely touched his clothes. 28She had said to herself, “If I can just touch his clothes, I will get well.” 29As soon as she touched them, her bleeding stopped, and she knew she was well.

There was a crowd waiting for Jesus on the shore. A crowd of desperate seeking people. What made these two people in the above passage stand out and be healed:

1. A man bold enough to talk to Jesus and beg

2. A woman bold enough to touch Jesus’ clothes

Jarius had a daughter who was dying. He made his way through the crowd and DESPITE his position (maybe people moved out of his way for him to get through…. But he still humbled himself and begged).

The woman was very ill and dying and was considered unclean. No one made a way for her to get to Jesus, she made a way her self and pressed through the crowd and got her breakthrough.

They both had the same goal. Healing. The power of God. Help. Hope.

They both faced insurmountable odds and had to overcome things to get to Jesus – position and pride and inferiority and fear.

What matters is we connect with Jesus.

The First Missionary

Mark 5:18-20 18When Jesus was getting into the boat, the man begged to go with him. 19But Jesus would not let him. Instead, he said, “Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you and how good he has been to you.”

    20The man went away into the region near the ten cities known as Decapolis ^[c] and began telling everyone how much Jesus had done for him. Everyone who heard what had happened was amazed.

 

The man begged to go with Jesus, but Jesus told him instead to “go” – as his messenger of good news and the power of God – this man was sent as a missionary and living demonstration of the power and grace of God through Jesus Christ.  And he obeyed and he went and preached and proclaimed!  Looking again at verse 19 Jesus told the man to go home to his family and tell them – the man did this and did not stop!  He told EVERYONE!  He told them of the wonderful kindness of God!

Terrified!

Mark 5:2-7, 15 2When he was getting out of the boat, a man with an evil spirit quickly ran to him 3from the graveyard where he had been living. No one was able to tie the man up anymore, not even with a chain. 4He had often been put in chains and leg irons, but he broke the chains and smashed the leg irons. No one could control him. 5Night and day he was in the graveyard or on the hills, yelling and cutting himself with stones.

    6When the man saw Jesus in the distance, he ran up to him and knelt down. 7He shouted, “Jesus, Son of God in heaven, what do you want with me? Promise me in God’s name that you won’t torture me!”

15When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had once been full of demons. He was sitting there with his clothes on and in his right mind, and they were terrified.

 

What terrified the people?  NOT the mass suicide of the pigs into the sea but the freed man, clothed, calm and restored, sitting with Jesus.  The man who had being terrifying and dangerous and possessed was now terrifying because he was delivered.  The power that set him free scared the people.  They had witnessed the mans possession and tried to help or at least contain him to no avail, but here he was – whole and healed.  This was power they had not encountered before and it terrified them.  That power demonstrated the reality of God – that God was real and almighty.  It demands a response – right living, relationship, repentance.

Discerning Evil Spirits….

Mark 3:10-12 10After Jesus had healed many people, the other sick people begged him to let them touch him. 11And whenever any evil spirits saw Jesus, they would fall to the ground and shout, “You are the Son of God!” 12But Jesus warned the spirits not to tell who he was.

 

The evil spirits saw Jesus as he was, plain as day.  They saw him not as a carpenter or a good man or a rabbi but as the Son of the Living God.  Humbled in human frame he still was the messiah and the son of God.  The evil spirits KNEW his power and his authority.  They had more discernment than most people around him…. ;o)

The Crippled Man

Mark 3:1-6  1The next time that Jesus went into the meeting place, a man with a crippled hand was there. 2The Pharisees wanted to accuse Jesus of doing something wrong, and they kept watching to see if Jesus would heal him on the Sabbath.

    3Jesus told the man to stand up where everyone could see him. 4Then he asked, “On the Sabbath should we do good deeds or evil deeds? Should we save someone’s life or destroy it?” But no one said a word.

    5Jesus was angry as he looked around at the people. Yet he felt sorry for them because they were so stubborn. Then he told the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He did, and his bad hand was healed.

    6The Pharisees left. And right away they started making plans with Herod’s followers to kill Jesus.

 

I read this and immediately get suspicious… 

-          Was the crippled man paid to be there?

-          Was he forced to be there by the Pharisees to trap Jesus?

-          Did the Pharisees try to set Jesus up?

-          Was the crippled man a plant?

-          Did the crippled man usually go to temple?

-          Was he there to hear Jesus?

-          Was he there as his usual practice of worshipping God?

In any such way what was the crippled man thinking as things unfolded?  Did he hear about the miracles of Jesus and hope that Jesus would heal him?  Did he imagine what his life would be like with two good hands?  Did he have hopes and dreams that could only be lived with two good arms?  Did he imagine a life free from pain, worry and uncertainty?  Did he put his faith in Jesus?  He may have been there as a plant but I bet even if he is that deep in his heart he hoped and prayed for healing…

Have You Cast Your Cloak Aside?

Mark 10:46-52 Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (that is, the Son of Timaeus), was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.” Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.

“What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him.
The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.”

“Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.

Bartimaeus was a blind man.  He had a liscence to beg.  This was in the shape of his cloak.  This gave him permission to beg on the side of the road.  He was a full time professional begger.  This was how he made money to eat and survive.  Without the cloak he could not beg legally.

However when Bartimaeus heard Jesus passing by he cast aside his cloak and encountered God.

Jesus came to Jerico.  There is no mention of what he did between coming and going.  But it was enough to give Bartimaeus hope and faith that Jesus could heal him and change his life.  As Jesus passed by Bartimaeus called out to him – “Son of David, have mercy on me!”  Bartimaeus though he was blind and could not see Jesus with his physical eyes SAW plain enough WHO Jesus really was.  the blind man saw what many others failed to see.  Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of David, the Saviour of the World.

Jesus called him over.   This was all Bartimaeus needed to hear.   He was going to meet Jesus.  His life was going to change.  He would be healed.  There was no doubt or reservation with him.   He was called over and so the natural conclusion of that encounter would be healing and transformation.

He cast aside his beggers liscence.  He cast aside his cloak.  He threw it down.  He no longer would need it.  NOTE:  He cast it aside BEFORE he was healed.  He was not yet healed but knew he was about to meet with Jesus when he cast aside his beggers liscence, that which brought in provision for himself.  His livelihood was wrapped up and symbolised in that cloak.  He had faith however that with encountering Jesus would come healing.   A healed man doesnt need to beg no more, he can go and work.  His life would be totally changed.

Are we approaching Jesus while still wearing a beggers cloak???

Are we coming to Jesus with the faith and expectation that Bartimaeus demonstrated?

Are we coming to Jesus filled with hope and faith that Jesus will transform us and meet our need and that in Him we find all answers?

Are we responding to Jesus in faith?

Or are we holding onto our beggers cloak – one foot in both camps and sitting on the wall – to use and mix my metaphors…

Ephesisans 3:16-21 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.     Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

The Rich Young Ruler

mark 10:21 Then Jesus, beholding him, loved him and said to him, One thing you lack. Go, sell whatever you have and give it to the poor, and you shall have treasure in Heaven. And come, take up the cross and follow Me. 22 And he was sad at that saying and went away grieved, for he had great possessions. 23 And Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, How hardly those having riches will enter into the kingdom of God!

I don’t think it was about the money in this case. I think it was about the heart commitment of the young man. Jesus told him to “follow him.” He gave him the same opportunity to follow him as he gave his disciples. Jesus asks us to put him and his kingdom first.

Riches in his day and ours can distract from that. Riches can consume the heart. BUT it doesn’t necessarily need to be. Jesus had rich women that followed him and provided for their needs. Other Christians in the book of acts were business people and they used their resources for the kingdom – they opened their homes to the apostles and believers, hosting house churches and other things.

In today’s world we have so many opportunties to use our money for the glory of God. We can use it to finance the work of God in our own churches, or send money to missionaries in africa. We can anonomyously give money and goods to poorer families in our community, blessing them. We can facilitate the work of our youth ministry with the money we have. Money can be used and SHOULD be used for the glory of God.

The young man by his heart attitude missed out been part of the group that followed Jesus and so much more.

What holds us back???