Review of the Significance of the Phrase “I Am.”
The phrase “I Am” is the name God used to identify Himself to Moses in the book of Exodus. When God revealed himself to Moses in the burning bush encounter, the Lord gave Moses his assignment to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt. Moses protested at first because he looked at his own insignificance and imagined how he would look in the eyes of his fellow Israelites. It is then the Lord promised He would be with Moses and that the Israelites would believe that Moses was sent by God. Exodus 3:14, “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.” Show More
When the Lord said to Moses, “I am,” He was saying, “I am” the ever-existent one, meaning the Lord has no beginning and no end, but He was also saying, “I am present with you!” The Israelites knew that Yahweh existed, but now they knew He was also with His chosen people. In like manner, when Jesus said that “I am the bread of life,” He was indicating that He was the Christ, Messiah, God in the flesh and that He is with us!
The Seven “I Am” Statements in the Gospel of John.
It is helpful to know that the Seven “I Am” statements found in the Gospel of John are metaphors, which I will explain in a moment, but first, here are the seven statements.
- “I am the bread of life.” (John 6:35, 41, 48, 51) As bread sustains physical life, so Christ offers and sustains spiritual life. Post 139 The Gospel: I am the Bread of Life
- “I am the light of the world.” (John 8:12) To a world lost in darkness, Christ offers Himself as a guide.
- “I am the door of the sheep.” (John 10:7,9) Jesus protects His followers as shepherds watch over their flocks from predators.
- “I am the resurrection and the life.” (John 11:25) Death is not the final word for those in Christ.
- “I am the good shepherd.” (John 10:11, 14) Jesus is committed to caring and watching over those who are His.
- “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6) Jesus is the source of all truth and knowledge about God.
- “I am the true vine.” (John 15:1, 5) We enable His life to flow in and through us by attaching ourselves to Christ. Then we cannot help but bear fruit that will honor the Father.
Parables and Metaphors
As you know, Jesus taught many moral and spiritual principles using Parables. A parable can be defined as a metaphor in narrative form. Let’s define a metaphor first:
- A Metaphor is a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally used. For instance, the term “you are the apple of my eye” is not meant to be literal but gives the impression of a person being “beautiful or endearing.” The word apple is regarded as representative or symbolic of something else, especially something abstract or, in our case, spiritual.
- A Parable is a metaphor in narrative form; in other words, the story is symbolic of something else, something abstract or spiritual.
Jesus used practical terms and images to help people relate to his message to bring out spiritual truths. For example, in the Parable of the Sower, found in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Jesus used farming terms to engage with those He was speaking to. We understand that Jesus was using the word “Seed” to represent the Word of God, which is the Gospel or Good News, and the “Soils” represent the different conditions of people’s hearts.
The Parable of the Sower.
In the Parable of the Sower, the seed or the Gospel falls on four distinct “soils” or souls:
- The seed or the Gospel that is sown on the wayside (on ground that has not been prepared); the birds (Satan) come and snatches away the truth with lies. The seed is unfruitful.
- The seed or the Gospel that is sown on the stony places (hard-hearted) this is when the Sun scorches the ground producing a hostile environment (trials and tribulations); the roots of the seed dry up, and the seed is unfruitful and dies.
- The seed or the Gospel that is sown among the thorns, the thorns are the “cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches” they crowd out the Gospel, and the seed is unfruitful.
- The seed or the Gospel that is sown in the good ground, this is the ground that has been prepared and open for the incoming seed, and it produces a harvest 100, 60, and 30-fold.
Hopefully, you can see that:
- The seed is a metaphor for the Gospel,
- The wayside is a metaphor for the ground that is not ready to receive the Gospel,
- The stony place is a metaphor for the legalistic or religious mind unwilling to see the truth,
- The thorns is a metaphor for a worldview that is not based upon the Word of God.
- Finally, the good ground is a metaphor for a heart that is open to the truth, accepts the Gospel seed, and commits to its growth.
Why Parables?
As you can see, the Parable of the Sower is made up of several metaphors. You may ask why did Jesus speak spiritual truths in parables? Why didn’t He use plain language? Jesus explains why He speaks in metaphors and parables in Matthew 13:10-17. Jesus explains that the hidden things of the Kingdom are mysteries. Mysteries, in this sense, means something that can only be understood with “spiritual eyes and ears.” The Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2:9-16 that those who believe Jesus have spiritual eyes and ears because they have the mind of Christ; they can understand spiritual truths. He then goes on to say that the “natural mind” or the unredeemed mind cannot comprehend the spiritual things of God. You see, the unredeemed mind will not keep asking, seeking, and knocking for personal revelation from the Lord. Luke 11:9, “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks, it will be opened.”
When the seeds of the Gospel are sowed into hearts (the good ground) that are open and willing to believe, a miracle occurs. The miracle is the miracle of the new birth, and with the new birth comes the faith to believe and understand the Kingdom of God, which is a spiritual Kingdom. Hebrews 11:6, “But without faith, it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”
“I Am the light of the world.” John 8:12
Sometimes a metaphor is as simple as a statement like “I am the light of the world.” So, you must ask yourself what does Jesus mean by that statement, how is He the Light, and what does light mean? In the Bible, most would take light as being good and the opposite darkness as evil. While that is true, there is much more to fully appreciate the difference between light and darkness. The concept of light and darkness is an essential spiritual concept to understand because it helps us to understand the deeper spiritual truths of the Kingdom.
Light and the Glory of the Lord!
In the Gospels, the word “light” is used 58 times, in the Epistles 29 times, and in Revelations 6 times. When Jesus is described as light, it is much more than a comparison to the light of the Sun or the light of a candle. From the first book of the Bible in Genesis, the very first thing the Lord did in creation was to create light! Genesis 1:1-3, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.” However, the Sun is not created until the fourth day. So, the light that God created was not light in the usual sense, but a light of the glory of God!
Then let’s go to the last book of the Bible, the book of Revelation, and listen to what it says about Jesus and Heaven. Revelation 21:22, “But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. 23 The city had no need of the Sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light. 24 And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it.”
Revelation 22:5, “There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the Sun, for Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever.” Again, the light of heaven is Jesus and is the glory of God!
Jesus is the light of the world.
Therefore, when Jesus says, “I am the light of the world.” He is saying that He is the manifest presence of the glory of God! The Hebrew word for glory is “kabod,” which is defined as weight or heaviness. This ties in with the following definition of glory: “The glory of God is the invisible qualities, character, or attributes of God displayed in a visible (or knowable) way.”
Habakkuk 2:14, “For the earth will be filled With the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, As the waters cover the sea.” Isn’t this what the “Great Commission” is about, “to know Jesus and to make Him known, throughout the world.” We are to be lights in the world, demonstrating the glory of the Lord in our words and deeds.
When Moses wanted to see the LORD’s glory in Exodus 33:13, “Then he said to Him, “If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here. 16 For how then will it be known that Your people and I have found grace in Your sight, except You go with us? So we shall be separate, Your people and I, from all the people who are upon the face of the earth.” 17 So the LORD said to Moses, “I will also do this thing that you have spoken; for you have found grace in My sight, and I know you by name.” 18 And he said, “Please, show me Your glory.” 19 Then He said, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.” 20 But He said, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live.”
One day you and I will face our God face to face, and we will experience the full weight of His glory, and what a glorious day that will be. I am reminded of the chorus of a Christian song called “I can only Imagine” by MercyMe. This song speaks of what it may be like when we get to see Jesus face to face.
- Surrounded by Your glory.
- What will my heart feel?
- Will I dance for You, Jesus?
- Or in awe of You be still?
- Will I stand in Your presence?
- Or to my knees, will I fall?
- Will I sing hallelujah?
- Will I be able to speak at all?
- I can only imagine
- I can only imagine