Christ, the "I Am": — and What He Offers Us!

By Ken Lenz

The Apostle John recorded seven “I Am” statements made by Christ as He spoke metaphorically of who He is in relationship to mankind. The focus of this book begins, in Section One, with brief essays that explore each of these seven statements within the literary context of the texts themselves, and within the historical context of Jesus’ ministry in that time and place. "Discussion Questions" are included at the end for use in either individual or group readings.

During the research and study of these seven statements, it became clear that there are various interpretations particularly of the first and last of these statements, some of which stemmed from misinterpretations of the Scripture passages that contain those statements. The writer sensed a need for providing more extensive essays within this book, focused on those two statements in particular.
Therefore, Section One is followed by two sections that explore in more detail the first and seventh of the “I Am” statements, and the introductions to each of those sections will explain why we should consider them more extensively. Section Two, entitled “The Bread of Life: A Consistent Sense of John 6,” presents a more detailed commentary on John 6:26–69. Section Three, entitled “Branches of the Vine: A Fresh Look at John 15,” then presents a more detailed commentary on John 15:1–17.

Thank you for considering these metaphors of Christ’s character. This book is also now available in print (through Xlibris Publishing), and it is also being translated as e-books in Spanish, French, and German, as well as Hindi.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ken Lenz
• Release date: Oct 30, 2020
• ISBN: 9781005678838

Ken Lenz

Dr. Kenneth P. Lenz has served for over twenty-five years in church ministries and as a chaplain. He has also served on the religion faculty and Bible/theology faculty of several colleges. Courses Ken has taught include “Understandings of Religion,” “History of Christian Thought,” "Survey of the New Testament," and “New Testament Epistles,” among others. He has also taught “writing intensive” courses to help students in their writing skills. His earned Ph.D. included an emphasis in Eastern Orthodox Church history and liturgy, and he excels in the area of hermeneutics (biblical interpretation). Ken and his wife, Helen, have three grown children: Carrie, Evan, and Bryce.Books by this author include a trilogy published by Xlibris (offered in print and as e-books), which include:- Water Baptism and Spirit Baptism: As Taught in the Scriptures (398 pages)- Confession and Communion: As Taught in the Scriptures (108 pages)- God’s Son “Forsaken,” His Sacrifice “Finished!” (136 pages)E-books by this author published through Smashwords, include:- The Orthodox Church: An Evangelical Perspective- Water Baptism and Spirit Baptism: Expanded Edition- Branches of the Vine: A Fresh Look at John 15- The Bread of Life: A Consistent Sense of John 6- Christ, the "I Am" (in both English and Hindi)- Lordship Salvation: An Evangelical Perspective- Biblical SalvationFor more information, visit www.KenLenz.com

Book preview

The Apostle John recorded seven I Am statements made by Christ as He spoke metaphorically of who He is in relationship to mankind, and more specifically of His relationship to those who would trust in Him. The focus of this book begins, in Section One, with brief essays that explore each of these seven statements within the literary context of the texts themselves, and within the historical context of Jesus’ ministry. It also quotes other verses that relate to these figurative metaphors, and cites other verses that can be compared (noted with a cf.).

During the research and study of these seven statements, it became clear that there are various interpretations particularly of the first and last of these statements, some of which stemmed from misinterpretations of the Scripture passages that contain those statements. Therefore, the writer sensed a need for providing more extensive essays within this book, focused on those two statements in particular. Thus, Section One is followed by two sections that explore in more detail the first and seventh of the I Am statements, and the introductions to each of those sections will explain why we should consider them more extensively. Section Two, entitled "The Bread of Life: A Consistent Sense of John 6, presents a more detailed commentary on John 6:26–69. Section Three, entitled Branches of the Vine: A Fresh Look at John 15," then presents a more detailed commentary on John 15:1–17.

While we are considering the seven "I Am" statements of Christ––with a more detailed exploration of two of those statements––it is interesting to note that Christ also made seven statements while on the cross, and two of those statements are explored in this author’s book entitled God’s Son Forsaken, His Sacrifice Finished! Based on the quotation marks in that title, perhaps you recognize which two statements that book focuses on. (One was expressed as a question, the other as an exclamation.) In fact, the seven I Am statements that we will be considering here are related to those two cries and what Christ truly accomplished on the cross. Therefore, that book is somewhat of a sequel to this book on Christ, the I Am!

Please keep in mind that the seven I Am statements we will be considering, directly relate to who Christ is. However, they also reveal what He offers to us! Thank you for considering these metaphors of Christ’s character and how they can apply to you. It has been my prayer that these essays (offered now in e-book form) will be helpful to you in your understanding of God’s inspired Word, and an encouragement to both your faith and your faithful walk with Christ.

In His grace,

Ken Lenz

Note: This e-book is also available in print through Xlibris publishing house (visit www.KenLenz.com).

Section One

The Seven I Am Statements of Christ

Metaphors of Christ’s Character:

Who He Is

"I am the resurrection and the life.

Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live;

and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die."

(John 11:25–26)

1. Introduction to Section One

The inspired Word of God includes four historical Gospel accounts that tell us of events and teachings in the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ, and of His sacrificial death and resurrection as our Savior. These accounts are each based on eyewitness testimony, but ultimately on God having breathed His words into the hearts and minds of the inspired writers: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The first three Gospel accounts are referred to as the Synoptic Gospels, since they mirror many of the same events and teachings, though allowing for some differences (based on individual writing styles, emphases, and the particular target audience of each). While we can see those differences, we should also understand that ultimately each writer was inspired of God to write the particular Greek words he used.

The Gospel According to John, however, includes many other events and teachings not included in the other three (earlier) Gospel accounts. The unique aspects of John’s Gospel account are, to a large degree, based on his primary purpose in writing, as he concluded: "Now Jesus did many other signs [Gk.: sēmeia] in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name" (John 20:30–31; ESV ). Notice that spiritual life is granted on the basis of one’s belief––specifically a belief that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. Many Christians (particularly Evangelicals) consider John 3:16 to be the gospel in a nutshell as Jesus is quoted as having said: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life (see 3:14–18). Throughout his Gospel account, John used various tenses of the word believe" (Gk.: pisteuō ) ninety-four times, emphasizing the need for one to believe in Jesus Christ as the Son of God.

A growing number of Evangelicals, however, are teaching that belief is not the only requirement for salvation (i.e., receiving eternal life). They add to faith the requirement of discipleship––to one degree or another (though the level of discipleship is unclear, along with the length of time required as a disciple). For example, such teachers interpret the parallel passages of Matthew 16:24–26; Mark 8:34–37; and Luke 9:23–25 as if those verses are teaching of the means of salvation for us: taking up one’s own cross and following Jesus. While the issue of salvation is of paramount importance and directly related to the Apostle John’s purpose in writing his Gospel account, it is beyond the scope of this book; therefore, we will not explore such perspectives (beyond how they relate to the passages we will be considering). For those readers who are interested in a further consideration of those perspectives, the e-book entitled Lordship Salvation: An Evangelical Perspective (by this author) is recommended.

The focus, however, of this book will be on the seven I Am metaphors that Jesus taught in regard to Himself, as revealed in John’s Gospel account––and only in his account. It would (again) be a forced interpretation, however, to try to make each of these metaphors only an analogy of aspects of salvation, though they are certainly analogies of the character of our Savior, and relate to our walk with the Savior. These seven metaphors include the following:

I am the bread of life (6:35, 48)

I am the light of the world (8:12; 9:5)

I am the door (10:7, 9)

I am the good shepherd (10:11, 14)

I am the resurrection and the life (11:25)

I am the way, the truth, and the life (14:6)

I am the true vine (15:1, 5)

As we consider these seven statements individually, we will look at the context of events that led to Jesus relating these teachings. Very often in Scripture we find that the literary context helps us to understand particular verses, and it should not be ignored.

At the outset of our study, it should be noted that Jesus had gone so far as to say to the skeptics, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am [Gk.: egō eimi ] (John 8:58). Jesus referred to Himself as the I Am––similar to the way God had spoken of Himself to Moses (as recorded in Exodus 3:14). Those skeptics understood that Jesus was claiming to be eternal God, and the text tells us of their response: So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple (8:59). The seven metaphorical I Am statements of Christ build upon this foundational understanding that Christ is the infinitely great I Am"; and each reveals aspects of His divinity!

It may also be of interest to the reader to know that we can identify other series of seven aspects throughout John’s Gospel account. For example, John recorded seven miracles (referred to as signs) that Jesus performed, including the following:

1. changing water into wine at a wedding in Cana (2:1–11)

2. healing a royal official’s son in Capernaum (4:46–54)

3. healing a paralytic man at Bethesda (5:1–18)

4. feeding over five thousand with five loaves and two fish (6:4–14)

5. walking on water on the Sea of Galilee (6:16–21)

6. healing a man who was blind from birth (9:1–11)

7. raising Lazarus from the dead (11:1–46)

Of these miracles, only the fourth and fifth (which occurred in succession) are also recorded in the other inspired Gospels (i.e., Matt. 14:15–33; Mark 6:35–52; Luke 9:12–17). In regard to the first miracle, John 2:11 states: "This, the first of his signs [Gk.: sēmeiōn], Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him. Of course, signs are intended to inform us and direct us, and John’s Gospel is intended to inform us of who Jesus is and direct us to believe in Him. (Note that a form of the same word for signs" was used by John in his key verses, 20:30–31, as quoted earlier.)

Another series of seven aspects is found in the first chapter, revealing unique titles for Jesus, including His being the incarnate Word (1:1–3, 14), the true Light (1:4–13), the Christ / Messiah (1:15–28, 40–42), the Lamb of God (1:29, 35–39), the Son of God (1:30–34, 49), the King of Israel (1:43–49), and the Son of Man (1:50–51). Read John 1 and notice how the gospel is expressed in verses 11 through 13, speaking of receiving Him as believing in His name. John chapter 1 reveals seven signposts in the form of titles uniquely attributed to Jesus, and it offers a narrative that leads you to "believe [Gk.: pisteuēte] that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing [Gk.: pisteuontes] you may have life in his name" (John 20:31).

May God guide and bless us in our understanding and application of His inspired Word. Discussion questions are listed near the end of this e-book, which correspond to each of the chapters in this Section. Those questions could be used within a group discussion or simply to encourage the reader to make a personal application of the Scriptures to one’s own life. (Please note that this author capitalizes pronouns and titles in reference to God, including some uses of the metaphorical titles of Christ as proper nouns, but the lower case is retained as this book quotes consistently from the English Standard Version.) ¹

2. The Bread of Life

In John 6:35, Jesus is quoted as having said, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. What an amazing statement, and how arrogant it would be––if not for the fact that it is true! Rather than being prideful and arrogant, it was a loving and gracious offer of eternal, spiritual life to whoever comes to Christ and believes in Him, stated in typical Hebrew parallelism. (We come in faith and demonstrate our belief by coming to Him.) This statement is a metaphor Jesus used in response to what the crowd had requested. Jesus had said that He was from God and required that they believe in him whom he [God] has sent. The crowd then asked Jesus to perform a miracle (a sign) such as when God gave them bread from heaven to eat in the wilderness (6:26–34; cf. Exod. 16; Ps. 78:24). Jesus used the metaphor of Him being the bread of life and the true bread from heaven (v. 32) in response to the crowd having introduced the topic of bread from heaven." This also came on the heels of Jesus miraculously feeding bread to that same crowd on the previous day (6:1–15).

Jesus expanded on this metaphor and then reiterated: Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life (6:47–48; cf. 6:41–51). Jesus was declaring that without Him they

Reviews for Christ, the "I Am"

[agape.book.ministries · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I've read a number of books on the "I Am" statements, and this book is the most insightful and helpful. It's an easy read, yet challenges our faith.