“I AM!” – There’s More! Part 2
Thank you, Father, for a productive day on many fronts. I am making good progress on preparation for Sunday and a few other things done as well. May I continue to yield to Your guiding hand. Amen.
John 8:58 (<<click here to read the passage)
I pray the Lord spoke to you in yesterday’s post (“I AM!” – There’s More! Part 1). I will pick up right where I left off! (Once again lines in blue are from crosswalk.com)
“I am the gate for the sheep…Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved. John 10:7, 9b NLT
In ancient times, shepherds would lead their flock into an enclosure, often made of stone. There was just one opening to get both in and out. The shepherd would sit or lie right in that spot all night protecting them. To get to the sheep you would have to go through the shepherd. Jesus straight out is the only way into the “fold” (the family of God); thus, He is the gate. This “I AM” statement connects to the next one.
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep.” John 10:11 NLT
He cares for us and protects us. He loves us so much that He did sacrifice His life for us. There was no other way to save us from eternal separation from Him. No one forced Him, but He gave up Himself willingly to die in our place. (John 10:18)
“I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying.” John 11:25 NLT
The real-life setting for this statement was when Jesus was speaking to His grieving friend, Martha, after her brother, Lazarus, had died. Nothing has changed, still today death brings a sense of despair, hopelessness, and finality. Jesus raised Lazarus back to life. Then within a few short days, Jesus showed the world that He had conquered the grave when He, Himself, rose to life three days after His death for the sins of all who would believe.
“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. John 14:6 NLT
Jesus was preparing His disciples for His eventual return to heaven, and one of them, Thomas, verbalized their confusion, “We have no idea where you are going, so how can we know the way?” v5 And this “I AM” statement was Jesus’ reply. We who are spiritually dead are offered spiritual life in Him…again, there is no other way. There is no other gate. We cannot earn or buy entrance. Jesus is our one and only hope!
“Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5 NLT
The Old Testament is replete with references to Israel being God’s vine (Psalm 80:8; Isaiah 5:1-7; Ezekiel 15; Hosea 10:1) but they had dropped the ball time and time again, and hence were unfruitful. Jesus was God’s answer to the dilemma. By abiding in or dwelling with or attaching ourselves to Christ, we enable His life to flow in and through us. Then we cannot help but bear fruit that will honor the Father.
Lord Jesus, every time we see an “I AM” statement may we think of who You are and why You came! May our hearts leap with joy within us as we acknowledge Your unsurpassable love for us! Amen.
July 12th, 2021, Mon, 10:03 pm
“I AM!” – There’s More! Part 1
As another week begins, Father, right up front I would ask for Your fortitude and grace. I am weak, You are strong. May I seek out Your face at every opportunity! Amen!
John 8:58 (<<click here to read the passage)
I can’t leave this verse without addressing one more thing. The Apostle John’s Gospel is the only one to point out Jesus’ repeated discourse entailing the “I AM” phrase. Here in verse 58 Jesus clearly, unequivocally, states “I AM!” He has said as much twice already and will do so five additional times throughout John’s account of Jesus’ life – seven times altogether!
We can know without a doubt that the Pharisees and teachers of the Law heard every one of them loud and clear. And in their darkened hearts, each was a bell tolling Jesus’ ultimate demise…they would make sure of it!
Each time Jesus uttered those two words, they were intertwined, often with the mundane normalcy of life, but His association with every one of them cemented His deity with them all, as well. Immanuel, God with us – the young prophet, Jesus of Nazareth – showed undoubtedly that the Creator was not disjointed from His creation. Yes, we chose separation, but that had never been God’s idea. From the very beginning, he had diligently, unswervingly pursued us. And His “I AM” statements show that we are near and dear to His heart and His ultimate goal – ultimately fulfilled in his death and resurrection – is our reunification with Him.
Here are some very short synopses for each of them and we would all be so much the better for studying them to a greater extent. [emphasis is mine]
“I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. John 6:35 NLT
He had fed the five thousand and they pursued Him for more. But His goal was not a temporary meeting of physical need. His goal was to meet our need of spiritual hunger and thirst, not just here and now but for eternity!
“I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.” John 8:12 NLT
I’ve looked at several things to flesh out my thoughts but had to share this point from crosswalk.com
Jesus made this statement just after forgiving, rather than condemning, a woman caught in adultery whom the Pharisees had brought before Jesus in the middle of His teaching.
Jesus was letting them know that in a world darkened by sin, He is holy (His light contrasts the darkness) and He offers the light and guidance to those stumbling in sin. The people knew the Old Testament Scripture “For the Lord God is our sun and our shield. He gives us grace and glory.…” (Psalm 84:11 NLT). In that instance, Jesus was epitomizing the character of God as a sun (which provides light), a shield (which protects), and grace (which forgives) for the glory of God.
We’re just getting started but there is far too much ground to cover in one post, so join me tomorrow for part two of “I AM!” There’s More!
July 11th, 2021, Sun, 7:50 pm
I AM!
What a beautiful day, Father! We’ve had rain but we’ve also had sun. I’ve seen no rainbows from my vantage point but blessings all around! Praise You, O glorious Creator!
John 8:48-59 (<<click here to read the passage)
The concept of holding something so sacred as to not dare even speak its name is beyond our culture’s mentality. Some would probably say it is behind our mentality but that is only because we place ourselves too high upon the pedestal.
Early on mankind had known of God. Many had interacted with Him, but no one until Moses had asked His name. And reading the story of how the question came about, shows that it was by no means bravado on the part of Moses, for he was just grasping for anything that would get him out of the situation in which he found himself.
Nothing is haphazard or a coincidence when it comes to God, but Moses found himself on Mt. Horeb in the care of his flock and when he came upon a burning bush, his life was forever changed!
God called to him and commissioned him to be his point man in bringing the nation of Israel out of Egyptian bondage. Upon God’s appointment, Moses felt super inadequate for the task and said as much with trembling knees. Regardless of God’s assurances Moses still protested,
“If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ they will ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what should I tell them?”
God replied to Moses, “I AM Who I AM. Say this to the people of Israel: I AM has sent me to you.” God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: Yahweh, the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.” Exodus 3:14-15 NLT
A rabbi answering a question on the avoidance of using God’s name even yet today said, “We Jews have an absolute obsession with avoiding uttering G‑d’s name. (Notice that we don’t even spell it out fully when writing the English word for G‑d.) Actually, we are careful not to pronounce G‑d’s names except when reading the Torah or prayers.”
Jews did and still do take the third commandment (which I spoke of yesterday) very seriously. Here it is again,
“You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain [that is, irreverently, in false affirmations or in ways that impugn the character of God]; for the Lord will not hold guiltless nor leave unpunished the one who takes His name in vain [disregarding its reverence and its power].” Exodus 20:7 AMP
So, when we read today’s passage and see this huge back-and-forth between Jesus and the Jews, we see the reaction Jesus gets when he proclaims,
“I tell you the truth, before Abraham was even born, I AM!” v58 NLT
Knowing the significance of the acclamation, and though I have read it many times before, nonetheless it was a thrill reading those words once again! Jesus left no doubt whatsoever regarding who He was! And instead of falling on their faces and begging for mercy, the Jews instead picked up rocks to stone Him for what they determined to be blasphemy!
Oh, Lord Jesus, open our blind eyes and our deaf ears! You stand before each of us, Your magnificence displayed in all we see – our world, our very lives – and we do not acknowledge You. “I AM” is broadcast 24/7/365 and we go our delusional merry little way. Forgive us for our stupidity! May we bow at Your feet proclaiming Your sovereignty over our world and our lives! Amen!
July 8th, 2021, Thurs, 3:13 pm
Don’t Dishonor
A young boy being bullied at school
The godly will rejoice in the Lord
….and find shelter in him.
And those who do what is right
….will praise him. Psalm 64:10 NLT
John 8:48-59 (<<click here to read the passage)
From experience, I can tell you that name-calling starts at a very early age. Now for the most part the names young children are called are pretty tame. But it doesn’t take too many years for name-calling to grow from tame to profane.
A big one that the younger kids on my bus complain about, is when someone calls them a baby. Usually, my response is, “Well, are you a baby?” and after they tell me they are not, I say, “If it’s not true then just ignore them.” …easier said than done, though I hope some of them take my words to heart.
In today’s text, the Jews’ reply to Jesus’ proclamation regarding Himself was by no means tame but staked solidly in profane territory. In their stubborn arrogance, they literally called the Son of God a Samaritan devil. In their minds, the Samaritan part was very slanderous in that you couldn’t get much lower than Samaritans. They were considered half-breed Jews, having intermarried with people of other nationalities sent to live amongst them centuries before by conquering kingdoms.
That they would associate Him with the devil or being filled with a demon, is in itself blasphemous! The Holy Son of God a devil? Ludicrous! I would think that if any time a lightning bolt from heaven should have come blazing on the scene it was then! But Jesus calmly, but sternly, replied,
“I do not have a demon. On the contrary, I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.” v49 AMP
And if you think about it, they broke one of the commandments given to Moses that was one of the founding pillars of their Law. The fourth commandment states,
“You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain [that is, irreverently, in false affirmations or in ways that impugn the character of God]; for the Lord will not hold guiltless nor leave unpunished the one who takes His name in vain [disregarding its reverence and its power].” Exodus 20:7 AMP
Moses also said in Deuteronomy 6:4-5,
“Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one [the only God]! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and mind and with all your soul and with all your strength [your entire being]. AMP
Do you see even a trace of love in anything they said?
But once again, we can’t point a finger at them without four pointing back at ourselves. How do we dishonor Jesus? We may not call him names, but we seem to be pretty good at not doing what He says. When we think of the Law’s commands in the light that Jesus sets them in, we’re all pretty guilty.
In Jesus’ eyes, murder isn’t just taking someone’s life, it’s just as heinous to be angry with them, to call them an idiot, or curse them (Matthew 5:21-22)! Adultery isn’t just a physical act; it’s looking at someone in a lustful way (Matthew 5:27-28).
I won’t ask for a show of hands of the guilty, because in this line of thought mine would often have to go up, too.
Lord Jesus, forgive us for dishonoring You in so many ways. Help us to acknowledge our blatant disobedience. Strengthen us to follow you by loving You, the Lord our God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. And while we’re at it enable us to love our neighbors as ourselves. Amen.
July 7th, 2021, Wed, 8:02 pm
To Hear or Not To Hear
Father, thank You for the focus to get through so much today in preparation for Sunday’s services. I would humbly ask that You would continue to direct my thoughts. Make this time together what You would have it to be. Amen.
John 8:33-47(<<click here to read the passage)
There has been a joke circulating for a little while. Maybe you’ve heard it?
An elderly gentleman had serious hearing problems for several years. He went to the doctor and the doctor was able to have him fitted for a set of hearing aids that allowed the gentleman to hear 100 %.
The elderly gentleman went back in a month to the doctor and the doctor said, “Your hearing is perfect. Your family must be really pleased that you can hear again.” The gentleman replied, “Oh, I haven`t told my family yet. I just sit around and listen to the conversations. I’ve changed my will three times!”
In our home, a common banter back and forth consists of, “I think you need hearing aids!” and the response is, “What?”
In reality, hearing loss is no laughing matter. As we get older many of us need help. Without our hearing, we miss out on so much of life. With the help of hearing aids, life is greatly enhanced.
My mom’s hearing aids are Bluetooth. When I call her, her smartphone automatically links my call directly to her hearing aids and she can hear me loud and clear. On occasion, I have called earlier in the morning and when she answers, she asks me to hold on for a moment. When she comes back, I usually find out that she was washing her hair and had taken her hearing aids out. If they are on the counter and not in her ears, they are just useless pieces of plastic and hardware.
Throughout this discourse between Jesus and his Israeli listeners – they listened to Him to a degree but didn’t really hear Him.
In verse 43, Jesus said,
“Why do you misunderstand what I am saying? It is because [your spiritual ears are deaf and] you are unable to hear [the truth of] My word.”
Jesus plainly points out that they were spiritually deaf. Though they claimed to be followers of God, the heavenly Father, in reality, they were followers of their father, the devil. Jesus said, “You are of your father the devil…” v44
He continues by saying that the devil is a liar and the father of lies and half-truths. They did not believe Jesus [and continued in their unbelief] even though He spoke the truth. (v45)
Jesus’ final statement in this passage is,
Whoever is of God and belongs to Him hears [the truth of] God’s words; for this reason you do not hear them: because you are not of God and you are not in fellowship with Him.” v47 AMP
As creations of God, we have physical ears and we have spiritual ears. With the aid of the Holy Spirit, we can hear His guidance loud and clear, if we are really striving to hear Him speak. It is another one of those “free will” things. He will not force us to listen. He wants us to. And we are so much better off when we do. But it is our choice. If we are of God, we belong to Him and we will hear the truth of His words. To hear or not to hear, that is the question.
July 6th, 2021, Tues, 10:09 pm