For i am jesus christ your3/27/2023 ![]() He is the one and only way to enter the fold. Jesus’ words in this passage are couched in the imagery of a sheepfold. This “I am” statement stresses that no one can enter the kingdom of heaven by any other means than Christ Himself. Jesus’ words and actions echo Genesis 1:3, “And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” Jesus not only says He is the light He proves it. This second of Jesus’ “I am” statements in John’s gospel comes right before He heals a man born blind. “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12 9:5). But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die” (verses 49–50). At the same time, He contrasts what He can do with what Moses had done for their ancestors: “Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. In this case, Jesus states that He is the bread of life just after He had fed the 5,000 in the wilderness. In this chapter, Jesus establishes a pattern that continues through John’s gospel-Jesus makes a statement about who He is, and He backs it up with something He does. ![]() Here are the seven metaphorical “I am” statements found in John’s gospel: Whenever Jesus made an “I am” statement in which He claimed attributes of deity, He was identifying Himself as God. Thus, in Judaism, “ I AM” is unquestionably understood as a name for God. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you’” (Exodus 3:14). In the Old Testament, God revealed His name to Moses: “I AM WHO I AM. They also link Jesus to the Old Testament revelation of God. Each of these “I am” proclamations furthers our understanding of Jesus’ ministry in the world. Jesus cannot properly be described as a Christian, but He is the Christ from whom Christians get their name.In the Gospel of John, Jesus makes seven statements beginning with the words I am. Christians today should obey the voice of their Master and still consider themselves “little Christs” in the sense that they imitate the Lord Jesus. The term means “little Christs.” It was originally used in a derogatory way, but believers came to embrace it as a badge of honor. Believers were first called Christians in the city of Antioch in Syria (Acts 11:22). The coming of Jesus was the fulfillment of that promise.Īnother reason that Jesus cannot be called a Christian is that the term Christian was not coined until after His resurrection and ascension into heaven. For centuries God had promised that He would send His Messiah to rescue His people and reign over them forever. Christianity is the culmination of God’s plan, the completion of what God instigated when He set apart the Hebrew people for Himself (Deuteronomy 7:6–8). He lived perfectly under the law in order to present Himself as a sacrifice without blemish, acceptable under that law (Leviticus 9:3 1 Peter 1:18–19 Hebrews 9:13–14). ![]() Jesus followed the Jewish law God had given to Moses (Matthew 5:17–18). Jesus was not a Christian He was a Jewish rabbi. The Son of God, the second Person of the Trinity, took on human flesh and, during His time on earth, was literally God reaching out to us (John 1:14 3:16–18). ![]() Christianity is not a religion in this sense: religion is man’s attempt to reach up to God, but Christianity teaches that God has reached down to man. Christianity is the result of Christ’s finished work of salvation, and He now builds His church (Matthew 16:18). He came “to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good” (Titus 2:14). He came to establish a new covenant between God and mankind (Mark 14:24). He came to fulfill the righteous requirements of the law (Matthew 5:17). He came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10). ![]() He came to defeat our enemy, Satan (Genesis 3:15 John 12:31). He came to complete the work of God in redeeming sinful mankind (Galatians 4:4). The world has more than enough religions. Jesus did not come into the world to start another religion. Christianity is built upon His identity as the Son of God (John 19:7), His perfect life (Hebrews 4:15), and His substitutionary death and resurrection for the forgiveness of sins (2 Corinthians 5:21). Jesus is the foundation for the Christian faith, but, based on the definition of the word, He could not Himself be called a Christian. It may sound strange to say, but no, Jesus was not a Christian.Ī Christian is a person who has faith in Jesus Christ as his or her Lord and Savior (Romans 10:9–10). ![]()
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