Jesus Lived up to His Full Potential

Key Verse to Read and Treasure

For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ’plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.’—Jeremiah 29:11

For Insight

When is the last time you recognized your potential? The last time you looked at your future with excitement and felt your goals within reach? When did you last know you were awesome? An amazing creation of God, wondrously and uniquely created by God. The last time you were confident about your gifts, abilities, and talents. Or, have you ever known that you were these and so much more? Someone who was created on purpose and purposed to accomplish powerful things on earth? Was it before sickness came and stayed? Before the abuse started? Before disappointments started piling up? Before people started telling you what you’d never amount to? Before you failed or made mistakes? Before life got hard and started chipping away at your hope and faith and happiness and expectations? Before…before?   

Can you imagine yourself in your mother’s womb growing, in touch with your greatness. Excited to get started and in touch with God’s goodness and potential growing in you. God told Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in your mother’s womb I knew you, I had plans for you…” My son/daughter you have so much potential!

How long did it take after you were born for you to lose touch with your potential From the time we are born the devil gets busy separating us from our greatness and potential. He knows that if he can drive a wedge between us and what God has made us to be he can hold us back and keep us from having the impact God intends. And far too often he’s successful because he’s such a convincing liar.

The definition of potential is, “Having or showing the capacity to become or develop into something in the future. Possessing talents or abilities that may be developed and lead to future success or usefulness.”    

Reading the Gospels, we discover Jesus was always sure of himself. Jesus knew his potential as the Savior of the world. He knew he was the “Bread of Life” (John 6:35); The “Light of the world” (John 8:12); The “Door to salvation” (John 10:9); the “Good Shepherd” (John 10:11); the “Resurrection and the Life” (John 11:25); the “Way the Truth and the Life” (John 14:6); the “Vine giving life to the branches” (John 15:5). Jesus knew he was the “Son of the living God and Savior” of the world (John 3:16-17), was never persuaded by his flesh, his environment,  the skeptics, the world or the devil that he was anyone other than that. Jesus knew his potential was achievable because he stayed connected to the Father and obeyed the Spirit. The Father assured him, and the Spirit empowered him.    

You have potential not because of what you do but because God put it in you from the very beginning before you were in the womb. And since potential is not an external acquisition but an internal quality from God who so carefully knit you together no matter what happens to you in your life he will make sure you live up to your potential as long as you stay connected to him.

Father, help me to recognize and operate in the truth of my potential. I will not be denied my future and nothing or no one will keep me from it as long as I stay connected to you.

Application:

Do you know your potential? Write it out. If you have lost sight of it ask God to refresh your memory and give you a glimpse.  

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