The LORD, "I Am"

Introduction

This Sunday at Momentum Church, the series on John 8 reaches its climax. The text: John 8:48-59. The subject: the very person of Jesus. The title of the message says it all: the LORD, "I Am". In these few verses, Jesus reveals who he is in the clearest, and most scandalous, way possible for his Jewish listeners. Facing accusations, insults, and soon stones, he does not back down: he claims to be greater than Abraham, greater than the prophets, and finally he takes for himself the very Name of the God who spoke to Moses from the burning bush. This message puts you in front of an unavoidable question: what will you do with this Jesus?

Outline of the message

1. A Savior who offers life to those who want him dead

• In John 8:48, the Jews call Jesus a Samaritan and say he has a demon, an open display of contempt. Jesus does not take revenge: he keeps honoring the Father.
• In verse 51, he makes a stunning promise to the very people who want to kill him: "If anyone keeps my word, he will never see death."
• "Keeping the word" is not earning salvation through works. It is the fruit of a living faith: whoever has been born again loves Christ and remains in his words.
• The death he is talking about is not physical death, Hebrews 9:27 reminds us that "people are destined to die once." He is speaking of eternal death, separation from God.

2. A Christ greater than Abraham and the prophets

• The Jews take Jesus at his literal word and accuse him of being out of his mind: "Abraham died, and the prophets too... Who do you claim to be?" (v. 52-53).
• Jesus points back to the one who gives him all his glory: the Father. He knows the Father, he keeps his word, and he says so plainly to the religious leaders who, unlike him, do not know the Father.
• Then he makes an astonishing statement: "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day; he saw it and was glad" (v. 56). The patriarch caught a glimpse, by faith, of the coming of the Messiah.
• Far from being a mere teacher or a prophet, Jesus is the one toward whom the whole story of salvation was converging.

3. The great "I Am": Jesus takes the divine Name for himself

• The Jews scoff: "You are not yet fifty years old, and you have seen Abraham!" (v. 57). Fifty years old marked, in Judaism (see Numbers 4:3), the age at which a Levite left his service, a way of saying: you are nothing but a young man.
• Jesus' answer is solemn: "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am" (v. 58). He does not say "I was" but "I am," an eternal present.
• This is precisely the Name God gave himself to Moses: "I am who I am" (Exodus 3:14). The Name of YHWH, the LORD.
• The Jews understand exactly what is at stake: they pick up stones to stone him as a blasphemer (v. 59). Even his enemies knew that Jesus was claiming to be God.

Key takeaways

• Jesus is the great "I Am": pre-existent, eternal, fully God. He never became God, and he will never stop being God.
• The deity of Christ is not a late doctrine imposed by the church: it is what Jesus himself claimed, and what his opponents refused to accept.
• Saving faith is not a mere confession of the lips: it produces an obedience that remains in the Word.
• Whoever keeps Jesus' word receives eternal life, not because he avoids physical death, but because nothing will ever be able to separate him from God.
• Before this Christ, there is no neutral position: either you pick up the stones, or you fall down and worship.

Personal application

1. When you read "before Abraham was, I am," does it stay a religious sentence, or does it change the way you worship Jesus this week?
2. Is there, in your life, a word from Jesus that you have heard for a long time but still refuse to keep?
3. How do you react when someone insults you or holds you in contempt because of Christ? Can you, like him, keep honoring the Father instead of defending yourself?
4. Does your faith look more like a Sunday confession, or an obedience that "keeps the word" on the other days of the week?
5. If Jesus really is the eternal "I Am," what would your next day look like if you actually lived as though he were present, right beside you, listening?

Verses cited

• John 8:48-59 · The LORD, "I Am"
• Exodus 3:14 · "I am who I am"
• John 5:24 · Passing from death to life
• John 6:47-51 · The bread of life
• Hebrews 9:27 · It is appointed for people to die once

Frequently asked questions

What does "Before Abraham was, I am" mean in John 8:58?

Jesus takes for himself the very name God revealed to Moses in the burning bush in Exodus 3:14: "I am who I am." He is claiming his eternal pre-existence and his full deity. The Jews understood it so well that they immediately picked up stones to stone him as a blasphemer.

What does "never see death" mean in John 8:51?

Jesus is not promising to escape physical death, Scripture reminds us that "people are destined to die once" (Hebrews 9:27). He is speaking of eternal death, separation from God. Whoever keeps his word enters, from this very day, into a communion with God that death will never be able to break.

Did Jesus really claim to be God?

Yes. In John 8:58, he uses the divine name "I Am" in an absolute sense. The immediate reaction of his listeners (picking up stones to execute him) confirms it: they understood that he was claiming to be God. The whole Gospel of John was written so that you would believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God (John 20:31).