Text: Exodus 3:1-15, Isaiah 45:18-19, John 8:31-38
This is part of a 10-day series on the person of Christ in the 2016 Lent study. This introduction to the series is written by our friend, a local pastor, Russ Ramsey.
Who is Jesus Christ? God’s whole redemptive plan—along with our understanding of Easter’s significance—rests on the person of Christ.
During Jesus’ earthly ministry, people answered this question in a variety of ways. Some said He was demon-possessed (John 10:20). Some thought He was a narcissist with delusions of grandeur (John 6:42). Others thought He was the prophet Elijah come back from his celestial chariot ride (Matthew 16:14.)
When Jesus asked His disciples who they thought He was, Peter spoke up and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16).
We all need to answer this question. Who do we say Jesus is?
C.S. Lewis, in Mere Christianity, said we really only have three options: Jesus is either a liar, a lunatic, or the Lord. He either intentionally made claims about Himself He knew were false, He was delusional, or He really was the Christ.
The Gospel writers answer this question. They present Jesus as a man who is very human. He experiences human feelings like hunger (Mark 11:12), grief (John 11:35), anxiety (Mark 14:34), and the need for solitude (Luke 5:16).
The humanity of Jesus, after all, is what qualifies Him to be a suitable substitute for us.
But the Gospel writers also present Jesus as fully divine. John includes eight “I Am” sayings from Jesus: occasions where Jesus uses the divine name God revealed to Moses at the burning bush to describe Himself (Exodus 3). Who is this divine Word made flesh who dwells among us (John 1:14)? John lets Jesus answer for Himself.
The “I Am” sayings focus specifically on Jesus’ relationship to this world as our Savior.
He is the Bread of Life who satisfies our nagging hunger for contentment (John 6:22-59). He is the Light of the World who frees us from walking in darkness (John 8:12-20). He is the Good Shepherd who keeps us from getting lost (John 10:11-31), and He is the Door through which God’s sheep enter into the safety of His refuge (John 10:1-10). He is the Resurrection and the Life so that, even though we die, yet shall we live (John 11:25). He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life so that we might, through Him, have access to God (John 14:6). He is the True Vine so that, when we are grafted into Him, His life flows continually to us as God Himself prunes and trains us to bear fruit (John 15:1). And He is eternal in His authority—at work in a Covenant of redemption that predates Abraham (John 8:31-59).
In this section of our study during Lent, we will unpack these “I Am” sayings from Jesus and consider together who He claimed to be as He made His way to the Cross for our salvation.
Who do you say Jesus is?
Russ Ramsey is one of the local pastors who serves She Reads Truth & He Reads Truth by providing theological oversight and pastoral counsel. Russ is the author of Behold the Lamb of God: An Advent Narrative and Behold the King of Glory: A Narrative of the Life, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. He writes and pastors in Nashville, Tennessee. He and his wife Lisa have four amazing kids.
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64 thoughts on "The Person of Christ"
After an athiest upbringing, I’m just now beginning to learn about Christianity and who Jesus really is. Who God really is. She Reads Truth has been SO helpful to me! I feel like everything is beginning to make sense. This study has opened my eyes in so many ways. <3
That’s wonderful to hear, Penelope!
oh this plan is one of the best yet. i really feel and can look back and see all i have learnt from the Holy Spirit as he prepares me for Easter. So excited to dive into the person of Jesus!!!!
I say that Jesus is:
My Savior, the one who saved me and SAVES me from my fleshly, worldly ways.
The One who loves me the most, despite my flaws.
My Father, who has taken off my blindfold and has pointed my vision towards others rather than myself.
My God of second chances, because I mess up all too often and His mercy towards me is great.
My motivation to serve, love, give, and BE better, every day.
The King of my heart, for nothing or no one else can make me feel the way the Holy Spirit makes me feel.
That, and much more, is who Jesus is to me.
I had tears in my eyes reading this devo. Thank you SRT team!
All that I am is because of who He is – the GREAT I AM.
1 Corinthians 15:10a
I love those “I Am” statements, pointing to his divinity! I would disagree with the statement : “The humanity of Jesus, after all, is what qualifies Him to be a suitable substitute for us.” I don’t think his humanity is at all what qualifies him. Because, otherwise, anyone could be a suitable substitute. His perfection, that he was 100% God as well, was, I believe what qualified him. The one quality no one else had. And without being God, he never could have taken our sin upon himself.
But it was the fact that yes he was 100% God and perfect but he did lower himself and took on the form of a human to step in our place as a sacralise so it does have some meaning that in that sense him being a human made him out subsitute
I agree…he took our place as a substitute and had to be man to do so. I just think the sentence is a bit off point. It wasn’t humanity that ‘qualified’ him, but his Godship. How else could he have taken on the weight of sin? I think the writer had right intentions, I just think the sentence may have come out wrong. :) Esp. when making such a huge and bolded statement about Jesus’ sacrifice, I think it’s important to be supremely clear, because who knows who is reading the devotions. Someone may come from a background of thinking Jesus was just a man, and, that could be a rather misleading statement. :) Not saying this to argue…just to hopefully clarify!
i thought it was well said. if jesus was only God he couldn’t have carried our sin. in our age we do well do remember his divinity but we forget his humanity. if he hadn’t lowered himself as a man he would not be like us and therefore qualified to bear our sin. thankful for his huge sacrifice! blessings :)
What spoke to me the most today was the first of the ‘I Am’ statements- ” He is the bread of life that satisfies our nagging hunger for contentment.” I make the mistake so often of trying to fill my life with everything except Jesus, thinking that it will fill me up. Doing this always leaves me exhausted and discouraged. And I see this all around me too. People are so hungry for something to fill them up. How beautiful is it that Jesus is the only one who can truly and completely fill this void.
Thank you SRT for a great study! <3
It is like you took the words out of my mouth! I had to do a double take because my name is Elizabeth too. :) Nothing will fill us except Jesus. Fill us, Lord. Give us our portion. In your name, Amen!
Super excited for this part of the study! Let’s dig deep, y’all, and focus on the reason we observe Le Len in the first place!
So comforting to know that Jesus has felt everything I feel. He truly knows and understands even when I don’t. Even understanding me, he saves me.
“Even understanding me, he saves me.” I love that! Despite ME, he still saved me. loDespitthatDeposits
Disregard that last gibberish…my phone went crazy. ;)
“If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
who do I say Jesus is; my deliverer! free from the chains of sin he daily wipes away the guilt and blesses me in spite of my past xx
Yes. This is exciting, to study WHO Jesus is! My church did a series on some of the I AM statements of Jesus so if anyone wants more commentary, my church website is wchurch.ca
My eyes unexpectedly welled with tears reading this list of “I AM” statements… So many thoughts struck me: first, how wonderful Jesus is. How thoroughly he provides for us, for me. How it is all His effort – it’s not something I have to attain, or conjure up, or strive for. It’s there already, because He is there – he has been, he is, he will be – because of his steadfast love. All strivings cease in the light of His love.
Incredible introduction. Excited for the days to come in this part of the study.
Thanks for joining us today, Keiana! We love having you in our community!
xoxo-Kaitlin
yes!! Jesus thank you that you are healer, provider, deliverer, restorer, redeemer, and forgiver! amen!
http://www.in-due-time.com
I’m reminded of the Michael W Smith song, “Prince of Peace”. There’s something so powerful about singing the different names of God!
In addition to knowing Christ, I also love to have the reminder of who WE are in Christ. Here is a video from Jeff Bethke and a list of traits that we are in Christ: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=gp3hP-k5JNk
http://www.storylineblog.com/Storyline-Identity-in-Jesus.pdf
Jesus, You are my savior, my friend, my confidant, my helper, my leader, my mentor. You are my God, my King the answer to all my prayers. You ar the King of kings, the Lord of Lords, the Lamb of God. ou are my hope, my help, my teacher and counselor. You are there for me always. You are my lover, my husband, my best friend. You are my all in all. Lord, I pray that I may live my life as a reflection of this declaration. In Your precious name, Jesus. Amen. Have a blessed day today, ladies.
Praying alongside you, Debbie! Thanks for joining us today!
xoxo-Kaitlin
Having grown up in the church, it can be hard to imagine life without Christ as my Savior and Lord. There have been too many times in my life where I simply take Him for granted… thinking that of course I’m forgiven, of course I’m saved, of course He is with me. I’m not proud of these moments. Today was a great reminder to press into Jesus, the great I AM. He is my rock, the foundation of my soul. And without Him, my life would be crumbling. Something our pastor said this weekend was that we should always be striving to move from one degree of glory to the next in our relationship with Christ. It struck me this morning what this truly means…I shouldn’t get caught up in only looking to Jesus in the big things and take Him for granted every other day of the year. Rather, I pray that I might be one degree closer to Him today than I was yesterday. That I would trust Him a little more, lean into Him a little more, and let Him guide me through my day a little more than I did yesterday.
Thank you for your thoughts! I often get so overwhelmed with where I am in my relationship with God that I forget that concept of being one degree closer to Him today than I was yesterday. This is where I will dwell today. “That I would trust Him a little more, lean into Him a little more, and let Him guide me through my day a little more than I did yesterday.”
This is my prayer, that I would hear the voice of God in the little daily things as well as the big things. There’s been times when I’ve felt guilty for being unsatisfied and for believing that I should hear God for EVERYthing in my life, big or little…but at a prayer/worship meeting this weekend, something said struck me deeply – we can’t live on yesterday’s encounters or last weeks encounters. We live by DAILY encounters with God. We live and go deeper with DAILY bread. That’s the way we keep the fire burning within us. That’s the way we go from glory to glory. Daily encounters with our Daddy God. Big AND little. And, oh God! I want that
Amen!!
Thank you for your thoughts which describe where I want to be everyday so beautifully.
Love love love all of the descriptions of who God is to us in this Devi!! He is more than enough!!
devo^^ :)
Jesus is my Savior, but as I’m getting to know Him more; my friend. Someone with human emotions just like mine, who cares deeply about everyone and never judges them. He is patient, gentle, and beautiful. He is the light when I am scared of the dark and He is the promise of a new morning. He is the man who fills my heart when I feel it’s empty. He is strong when I am not. He is compassionate when I am angry. Who is Jesus to me? Jesus is everything.
Beautiful
Who do I say Jesus is? He is Saving Grace. In the late 80’s I was married to a man who abused me physically and through adultery, for six years. At times the physical abuse was choking and smothering. Through God’s divine intervention He placed just the right people in my daily path, who led me to church, who led me to Christ, Who led me to salvation. When I speak of my Savior, He is not just my Eternal Savior, but I believe without a doubt that when He saved me that day in November 1989, he also saved my physical life from the hands of my husband. Jesus, the Savior, saves me still.
Oh my, Susan, your testimony is so powerful. So so sorry you experienced such abuse but so so grateful Christ saved you, then and for all time!
Praise him, indeed!
Thanks for all your thoughts this morning. So many times I think “who am I”. Lacking trust. .. lacking faith. Every time i think that from now on I will remember “I Am who” enables. Perspective shift. Thank you Jesus for that. For all in all, You Are.
Be blessed today.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Cindy! We love having you in our community!
xoxo-Kaitlin
I love all of these, but today’s reading is my favorite one so far
And that’s only the introduction? Wow!!! So much to learn and think about it!!!
Grateful to spend time in God’s Word with you today, Karen!
xoxo-Kaitlin
I loved the overview about the meanings of the “I-Am-Sayings”. That really sums it up! I’m really looking forward to dig deeper during the next 10 days.
I loved that too! Looking forward to “unpacking them” ;)
*stand
There is no power in hell or any who can before the power and the presence of the great I AM!!!!
One of my all-time favorite songs! So much power in those words… Jesus is the Great I Am! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGv5d8EE34k
Wow SRT, you are so timely! I woke up at 5am feeling compelled to pray for my nation and the upcoming election. And I open to today’s lesson from you! Which brought to my mind Psalm 9: 10. “Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.” I AM. This morning I find my rest and peace in Him. Come what may in November, I AM is all I need . I AM is sovereign. He is indeed exactly who He says He is. (so grateful we will be studying this together… Blessings to you all…)
Amen! Praying for our nation and election with you, and trusting The Lord to give me the vote He desires.
Amen
When Moses hears God’s call, his first response is to look at his own weakness and inadequacy and to ask, “Who am I to do this?” I love how God answers: “I am. I will be with you,” and takes the focus away from Moses and onto his character and power.
I tend to respond like Moses, but this reminds me that, in everything, my focus should be on God. When we were really understand who he is, everything else will fall into place, and we can do whatever he is asking us to do.
It brought to mind the song “Who am I” by Casting Crowns https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mBcqria2wmg
Praying that our focus would be on him today.
Oh yes Carly! And after God tells Moses I AM will be with him, Moses still is not convinced. Moses says “if I go…” It seems Moses ponders if ‘God with him’ is enough. Am I not like Moses when I fret and worry? Is not ‘God with me’ enough? … Sitting with these thoughts this morning and having some honest conversation with my Lord…
Yes, Carly! You have put words to my faltering faith. I make it about me and not about the I AM. Praying for proper focus today, too!
Love your thoughts here Carly. Prayerful that my focus be go from self to “I am”.
Love this! Thank you for sharing!
Love this! So true
Amen!
thank you fot your words Carly!
37 , ……because you have no room for my word.
Dear Father, please help me to never become so lost that I have no room in my heart for Your word. Please let me always turn to Your word for solace, comfort, peace, joy and gratitude. I pray that my heart, and eyes and ears remain alert to You and the messages You send to me daily. In Your name I pray for wisdom, discernment and courage in every decision that I make so that You are given the glory through my words, actions and thoughts. Amen.
I pray that each of you have Blessed week.
Amen..x
AMEN!!!
Yes and amen!