I am

Many people have heard of the ‘I am’ sayings of Jesus. These include ‘I am the good shepherd’ and ‘I am the way, the truth and the life’.  Obviously, those descriptions are very important for appreciating who Jesus is and what he has done and is doing.

Sometimes Jesus used the words ‘I am’ by themselves without going on to say an additional explanation. Here are two of those statements. On one occasion he said, ‘Before Abraham was, I am’ (John 8:58). If I wanted to say I existed before someone, I would say, ‘Before he came, I was.’ I would not use the present tense to describe my past. But Jesus did. He was claiming to be different when he used the description ‘I am’ of himself. He said on that occasion that he was the self-existent God whom Israel worshipped. One of their names of God was ‘I am that I am.’ Jesus said of himself when he used that word that he was the eternal God.

The other occasion when he used the words ‘I am’ of himself occurred at the entrance to the garden of Gethsemane. Soldiers had been sent to arrest Jesus, but they were not sure how to identify him. So they indicated that the only individual they wanted to arrest was Jesus. He said to them, ‘I am he.’ When Jesus said to them, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground. It is likely that what he said was ‘I am’, which would explain why the soldiers fell on the ground before him. On his way to the cross, his opponents caught a temporary glimpse of the greatness of Jesus.

Who was in charge of events at the entrance to the Garden? Who was giving instructions to the soldiers as to what they should do? Who interrogated Judas as to his actions? Who forbade Peter to use his sword? Who healed a man who lost his ear? Who was determined to go to the cross? The one who is ‘I am.’