Discovering and Rediscovering Jesus (1) He’s the Bread We Need

Discovering and Rediscovering Jesus
Jesus is for everyone, and we want everyone to know it! He is the greatest gift God the Father has for us, and the one through whom we come to know God as our Father. In the discovery of Christ we become the Father’s children. But every true child of God also desires to rediscover Jesus time and again, for he is also the one by whom we mature our relationship to our heavenly Father.
To think of Jesus aright is to think of his person and his work. Those who have attended the church of late will know that we completed over the summer a series of sermons relating to Christ’s work on the cross. By his death, Christ takes away from us the sin which prevents God from relating to us. Sin is something we all have, and which renders God unable to look upon us other than as a Judge. Sin is any and every want of conformity to God’s law, whether in our thinking, our speech, or our actions. Yet, the effectiveness of Christ’s work on the cross in dealing with our sin depends on the person he was. He was not simply a good or an exceptional man, or even an impressive prophet. He claimed divinity with the unique power to save us from our sins.
This claim Jesus made on many occasions and in a variety of ways. Countless numbers down the centuries have trusted in his person and work for their salvation from sin and for their relationship to his Father. They have taken Jesus on his own terms. This is something we’ll be doing throughout our study of what are called his “I am” sayings.
Understanding “I am” sayings of Jesus
Jesus’ seven “I am” sayings are all found in the fourth Gospel of the New Testament: “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35, 48); “ . . . the light of the world” (John 8:12); “ . . . the door” (John 10:7, 9); “ . . . the good shepherd” (John 10:11); “ . . . the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25); “ . . . the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6); “ . . . the true vine” (John 15:1). These statements have three things in common.
First, each constitutes an amazing claim by which Jesus set himself apart from every other person who has walked on earth. He’s saying that he is not simply bread, but the bread of life; not simply light, but the light of the world; not simply a shepherd but the good shepherd; and so forth.
Secondly, each statement is an example of Jesus’ claim of divinity. The one-syllable words “I am” are not just the everyday way we claim something (e.g., “I am a man”). They refer to the sacred name by which God revealed himself of old to the Israelites. At the famous incident of the burning bush, God made himself known to Moses, giving as his name the awkward sounding “I AM WHO I AM” (Exodus 3:14). Thus, in each statement Jesus says in effect that he is the LORD God in human flesh.
Third, each statement implies that Jesus still is what he claimed to be two thousand years ago. He says not “I was” or “I will be,” but “I am.” His claim is both present and continuous. He therefore remains the bread, the light, the door, the good shepherd, the resurrection and the life, as well as the way, the truth, and the life, and the true vine. He makes known to us today that he is always and everywhere relevant to any and to all who want to know God as their Father.
We’ll look together over the next weeks at the meaning of each of these sayings in turn. Along the way, we’ll not only learn much of the book we call John’s Gospel, but of the good news embodied in Jesus. In fact, it’s Jesus we want to hear. John is but the inspired narrator, and I am but a mouthpiece of the Lord. Let’s listen for the voice of Jesus.
Applying the “I am” sayings of Jesus
Jesus’ “I am” sayings were not uttered in isolation from his Father. It was the Father who sent Jesus into the world to open up the way for us to relate to him. He honors his Son for making this possible, and would have us turn to Christ for such a relationship. Writes John the Evangelist early in his Gospel: “No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known” (John 1:18).
The series calls us, then, to look to Jesus in faith, for in discovering him we meet the Father. Apart from Jesus we can be aware of God—for we see him everywhere, are made in his image, and have his law written on our hearts—but we cannot know him personally. Those who know the Father, however, want to rediscover Jesus time and again, for he is also the means whereby our relationship to Father God is deepened. This, surely, is the yearning of every genuine child of God, and is also my hope for the series.
In Christ’s service, and for the knowledge of the Father, Dr. Tim