I Am...The Way, The Truth, And The Life

Intro:

A reminder of the significance of the “I AM” statements of Jesus:

I am – In the Greek language, “I am” is a very intense way of referring to oneself. It would be comparable to saying, “I myself, and only I, am.” Several other times in the Gospels we find Jesus using these words. In Matthew 22:32 Jesus quotes Exodus 3:6,

‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.”

God uses the same intensive form to say, “I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” In John 8:58, Jesus said,

“Truly, truly I say unto you, before Abraham was, I am.”

The Jews clearly understood Jesus to be calling Himself God because they took up stones to stone Him for committing blasphemy in equating Himself with God. In Matthew 28:20, as Jesus gave the Great Commission, He gave it emphasis by saying,

“I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

When the soldiers came seeking Jesus in the garden the night before His crucifixion, He told them, “I am he,” and His words were so powerful that the soldiers fell to the ground (John 18:4–6).

These words reflect the very name of God in Hebrew, Yahweh, which means “to be” or “the self-existing one.” It is the name of power and authority, and Jesus claimed it as His own

Background to this portion of the text:

The continued plot to kill Jesus by the Jews

This is the week before Passover

The anointing of Jesus by Mary

We read of the Triumphal entry; the popularity of Jesus on the rise as they were expecting a different type of Messiah

All along Jesus predicting and warning them of his death

The Last Supper; Passover meal with the disciples including the betrayal of Judas

Now Jesus seems free to talk in a different way with his disciples

A greater sense of urgency in his tone and message to them

John 13:31–14:7 NIVUK84

31 When he was gone, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him. 32 If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once. 33 “My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come. 34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” 36 Simon Peter asked him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.” 37 Peter asked, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” 38 Then Jesus answered, “Will you really lay down your life for me? I tell you the truth, before the cock crows, you will disown me three times! 1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.” 5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” 6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

Jesus Announces His Leaving…Again

Jesus announces his departure in John13:33,36, but also states that the disciples would be unable to follow him to the place he is going.

Jesus’s statement creates several reactions among the eleven (Judas has already departed).

First, Peter boldly proclaims he will follow Jesus no matter what (John 13:37).

Second, Thomas vocalizes the disciples’ deep concern over Jesus’s comments (John 14:5). Jesus senses their emotions and states, “Do not let your hearts be troubled” (John 14:1).

The Greek word for “troubled” means “to agitate, disturb; agitation, confusion, panic, uprising”

The disciples were in great emotional distress: their hearts were confused, disturbed, worried, and scared.

Interestingly, the word for “troubled” is the same verb used to describe Jesus’s state in John 11:33 (at Lazarus’s tomb), 12:27 (preparing for his crucifixion), and 13:21 (talking about his eventual betrayal).

Does this mean that Jesus did not take his own advice?

Not at all. In this world, we will all experience tribulations (John 16:33).

Being a follower of Jesus does not exempt our lives from troubles, hardships, and sufferings.

Being a person under the grace of God does not keep the storms of life from beating against us.

However, we can choose either to let our hearts dwell in fear and stress or in the peace of God by trusting him.

Jesus is not teaching believers’ hearts will never encounter emotional distress. Instead, when our heart, souls, and minds become troubled, disturbed, and agitated, we can choose to entrust ourselves to God, just as Jesus did in his darkest hours.

So, on the eve of his crucifixion, Jesus seeks to respond to his disciples’ perplexed and troubled hearts in several ways.

First, Jesus encourages them to continue to have faith: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me” (John 14:1).

Rather than allowing our minds to focus on the terrible situations that communicate hopelessness to our hearts, we need to realign our thinking by choosing to put our hope, confidence, and assurance in God.

Faith is a journey, not a one-time act. We must continue to remember that “faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (Hebrews 11:1).

Second, Jesus comforts the disciples. There is hope!

“My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?” (John 14:2).

His departure has a purpose: to prepare a place for them, where they will dwell together forever.

When we encounter trials, disappointments, and loss, we can turn to God and his words to us to find comfort and healing.

Third, Jesus strengthens them through his promise.

Though he is about to leave them on a journey that they cannot accompany him on, he promises to return (v. 3). Their stressful situation is only temporary. The promises of God will be fulfilled. Jesus will restore their circumstances and bring joy and celebration from their temporary pain, loss, and sorrow.

Even after all these words of encouragement, the disciples are still somewhat distressed.

Thomas expresses his confusion by saying,

“Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” (John 14:5).

In response, Jesus declares,

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

Once again, Jesus declares himself to be “I AM” (God).

The Way...

When he says, “I am the Way,” Jesus affirms that he is the only road to the only God.

The way – Jesus used the definite article to distinguish Himself as “the only way.”

A way is a path or route, and the disciples had expressed their confusion about where He was going and how they could follow.

As He had told them from the beginning, Jesus was again telling them (and us) “follow me.” There is no other path to heaven, no other way to the Father.

Peter reiterated this same truth years later to the rulers in Jerusalem, saying about Jesus, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

The exclusive nature of the only path to salvation is expressed in the words “I am the way.”

The Truth...

When Jesus says, “I am the Truth”: Jesus is the revelation and the embodiment of the truth to the world.

The truth – Again Jesus used the definite article to emphasize Himself as “the only truth.”

Psalm 119:142 says, “Your law is the truth.”

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus reminded His listeners of several points of the Law, then said, “But I say unto you . . .” (Matthew 5:22, 28, 32, 34, 39, 44), thereby equating Himself with the Law of God as the authoritative standard of righteousness.

In fact, Jesus said that He came to fulfill the Law and the prophets

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them. (Matthew 5:17).

Jesus, as the incarnate Word of God is the source of all truth.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1)

The Life...

When Jesus says, “I am the Life”: He brings authentic and abundant life to those who follow him.

The life – Jesus had just been telling His disciples about His impending death, and now He was claiming to be the source of all life.

In John 10:17–18, Jesus declared that He was going to lay down His life for His sheep, and then take it back again.

The Holy Bible: New International Version—Anglicised (1984) The Shepherd and His Flock

17 The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. 18 No-one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”

He spoke of His authority over life and death as being granted to Him by the Father.

In John 14:19, He gave the promise that “because I live, you also will live.” The deliverance He was about to provide was not a political or social deliverance (which most of the Jews were seeking), but a true deliverance from a life of bondage to sin and death to a life of freedom in eternity.

Application:

In these words, Jesus was declaring Himself the great “I Am,”

the only path to heaven,

the only true measure of righteousness,

and the source of both physical and spiritual life.

He was staking His claim as the very God of Creation, the Lord who blessed Abraham, and the Holy One who inhabits eternity.

He did this so the disciples would be able to face the dark days ahead and carry on the mission of declaring the gospel to the world.

Of course, we know from Scripture that they still didn’t understand, and it took several visits from their risen Lord to shake them out of their disbelief.

Once they understood the truth of His words, they became changed people, and the world has never been the same.

So how do we follow Him today?

The same way the disciples did long ago.

They heard the words of Jesus and believed them.

They took His words and obeyed them.

They confessed their sins to Jesus as their Lord and God.

They believed that He died to take the punishment of their sins and rose from the dead to give them new life.

They followed His example and command to tell others the truth about sin, righteousness, and judgment.

They allowed their lives to be forever changed by the indwelling of the transformative power of the Holy Spirit

When we follow Him in “the way,” we can be assured of following Him all the way to heaven.