The I Am’s of John — “I AM WHO I AM”

“Then Moses said to God, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?” And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” Exodus 3:13-14 (NKJV)

I have been covering the metaphorical “I Am’s” in John’s Gospel. Now it is time to cover those moments where Jesus comes close to saying, “I AM WHO I AM”. Now we need to go back to when He called Moses and cover a small bit of ground. There were two names YHVH used while speaking to Moses during that moment while the bush was on fire. “I AM WHO I AM” denotes what He is in Himself and comes in four different facets.

1. That He is self-existent: He has His being of Himself.

2. That He is eternal, unchangeable, always the same, yesterday, today and forever.

3. That He is incomprehensible; we cannot by searching find Him out: this name checks all bold and curious inquiries concerning God.

4. That He is faithful and true to all His promises, unchangeable in His word as well as in His nature.

Then YHVH simply says to Moses to tell the Nation of Israel, “I AM has sent me to you.” I AM…here is a name that denotes what God is to his people. He wants them to know that He is the same Lord God of their fathers and Moses was sent to revive among them the religion of their fathers, which was almost lost. Then, once delivered, they might expect the speedy performance of the promises made unto their fathers. Travel forward down our Deuteronomical road and come to Jesus.

Eight times in John’s Gospel Jesus says, “I AM”. To the woman at the well, after the woman accused of adultery, after He washed the disciple’s feet and three times during His arrest in Gethsemane Jesus would say “I am He”. It was when He said to The Jews, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.” that He steps over the line with the Pharisees, Sadducees and just about anyone else that had an “ees” at the end of their title. They all get really mad at Him and they pick up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the Temple.

The thing that got the best of these religious leaders was anytime they would try to catch the Savior in one of their traps where they could find Jesus being self-contradictory, like in the case of the woman accused of adultery; Jesus would be the One who would snare them in their own trap. So it is with us in those times where we think we are smarter than I AM and try to go on with our Christian walk under our own strength. Like it really matters to those around that we can really do it anyway. On the contrary, we need to show those around us that without I AM we are nothing and apart from I AM we remain nothing. Then, and only then, does that Christian walk really matter!! – Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and a regular Freedom Fighter blogger

Team YOU: Isaiah 19-20; Proverbs 26; Galatians 5

Motivations: “God felt no different toward us after Christ had died for us, for in the mind of God Christ had already died before the foundation of the world. God never saw us except through atonement…All God’s dealings with man have been conditioned upon the Cross.”—A.W.Tozer

Practice to Remember: Level 1:James 1:2-3; Level 2: James 1:1-8

Powered Up:  Our highest calling in life is not in serving Jesus, but in being with Him. – Hope MacDonald