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.
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