The Great "I AM's" of Christ

While our Lord was upon the earth He referred to Himself as the "I Am." We have chosen to call His "I Am" statements the "Great I Am's" because they were spoken by our great God who left His throne above and through the virgin birth was born into this world assuming our likeness that we may be saved from sin. Moreover, they were spoken by and about the greatest and most unique person ever to place foot on this earth -- Jesus Christ the eternal, perfect God-man, Man of very man and God of very God. Truly, "Never man spoke like this man." (John 7:46b) Twelve distinct times our Lord Jesus said, "I Am," with reference to attributing to Himself some aspect of His redemptive work. In the Bible, numbers always have significance. The number twelve is the number of divine government. Christ had twelve Apostles who are to sit upon twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes (Matthew 19:28). In Revelation 21-22, where is described for us the Holy City of the New Jerusalem, there are twelve gates to the city and the tree of life that bears twelve kinds of fruit. Here is government by divine appointment. It is written concerning Christ, the divinely appointed Governor, that "the government shall be upon his shoulder...Of the increase of his government... there shall be no end... (Isaiah 9:6-7). In the twelve "Great I Am's" of Christ which we shall study with the aid of the Holy Spirit, I trust, we shall see the divinely appointed Governor and the government of God displayed in His glory..

It is significant that Christ used the same expression and language when referring to Himself as Jehovah did when He talked with Moses in the burning bush on Mount Horeb and gave Moses His name. It was at this place that Moses received his commission to go to Pharaoh and demand that he release the Israelites in order that they might return to their own land. Moses asked the Lord what he should answer when asked the name of the One Who had sent him. In Exodus 3:14, God gave the answer, "...I AM THAT I AM...Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you." Here God gave to Moses the name of Himself as "Elyeh Asher Elyeh," which is translated, I AM THAT I AM, and may be rendered, "I shall be what I shall be, and what I have been." The Jews have interpreted it, "I am He that was, I am He that is now, and I am He that is to come, or shall be." It appears to be of the same significance as "Yahweh" and derived from the same word. "Yahweh" is the personal name of God, which simply means "The eternal One." The personal name of God was written but never pronounced by the Jews. They considered the name too holy and sacred to be pronounced by human lips. When they read the Scriptures audibly they substituted "Adonai" (Lord) in its place. Keep in mind that Christ used and appropriated to Himself the same expression, or might we say name, as did Yahweh. The Jews of Christ's day became very enraged when He used the expression. In John 8:58, He said to them, "...Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am." There is no doubt that these Jews understood what Christ meant. In verse 59, we read, "Then took they up stones to cast at him..." Why did they desire to stone Him? He not only made Himself equal with God but made Himself God by using the same name as God. They considered this brazen claim blasphemy. The legal penalty of blasphemy or claiming to be God was death by stoning (Leviticus 24:11,16). Three times in the book of John they tried to stone Him, and each time it was connected with making Himself God by His claims, expressions, or miracles. The Jews realized something of the great depths of His astounding statements. In pure simple language He claimed to be God. It was not a mere claim to pre-existence, or He would have used the past tense in John 8:58. He would have said, "...Before Abraham was, I was." They knew all too well that He was claiming to be God. They later brought before Pilate the accusation, "...By our law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God." (John 19:7)

We who have been saved by His vicarious death at calvary all attest with one of old, "...Truly this was the Son of God." (Matthew 27:54) Only His enemies, yes, the enemies of His cross and redemption can refuse to believe that He was and is and ever shall be the eternal Son of the living God. The Bible says concerning such as refuse to believe that Christ is God of very God that they have not God and are evil (II John 9-11). In Revelation, where is found the unveiling of Jesus Christ, He is there found to be the eternal God. Listen to Revelation 1:8, "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty." Here again our Lord Jesus uses that mystic name communicated to Moses. Truly He is Jehovah-Jesus. As we are giving today some important preliminaries to our studies on the twelve "Great I Am's of Christ," I think it will aid us to note several things suggested by the statement, "I Am."

"I Am" suggests independent self-existence. This is an absolute attribute of Deity. In John I is found, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God... without him was not any thing made that was made." (verses 1,3). This passage proves that Christ is the beginningless One Who created time, space, and matter. Indeed He is the One Who from all eternity shared independent self-existence with the Father.

"I Am" suggests eternity. Christ is said to be the everlasting Father (Isaiah 9:6) Who inhabits eternity, "...having neither beginning of days, nor end of life..." (Hebrews 7:3) There was never a time throughout all eternity past that Christ could not say, "I Am." Too, there will never be a time in eternity future when He will be unable to say, "I Am."

"I Am" suggests immutability. Hebrews 13:8 says, "Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever." According to this verse His unchangeableness involves the past, present, and future. With Him there can be no graduation or retrogradation. The "I Am" implies continuous existence without variation. What Christ is today, He always has been and will be. He did not become the "I Am"; neither can He cease to be the "I Am".

"I Am" suggests omnipresence. Some flippantly and derogatorily refer to Him as the "man upstairs" or the "God out there," but He is the God Who is very much among us and all parts of His creation. Listen to David in Psalm 139:8-10, "If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me." There is no place where God is not present. This means that the great "I Am" is inescapable.

We all must face Him when we journey into eternity. How will it be? With sorrow, fear, and regret, or with joy, pleasure, and delight? God will not fail to bring everything into judgment whether it be good or bad (Ecclesiastes 12:14). Without the great "I Am" as your most precious Savior and personal Lord, you will be lost and forever cast away from His presence into the lake of fire. The Bible says, "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God," (Heb. 10:31) because our God is consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29).

Now, let's look at the first of the great "I Am's" of Christ. It is found in John 6:35, "...Jesus said...I am the bread of life..." The "I Am's" of Christ should be a very great study, and I hope you will not miss any. One of the very basic needs of man is bread. It is among the common and important necessities of life. In ancient times bread appears to have been a vital necessity of life, for life was closely associated with it. With bread and water it is possible for one to live indefinitely. After the miracle of multiplying the five loaves and two fishes which fed more than 5000, our Lord departed from the multitude. They began to seek Him and found Him on the other side of the sea. They became attached to Him because He provided for their hungry bodies. They desired a sign. They spoke of the miracle of the manna in the desert which they said Moses gave them. Our Lord corrected them stating, "...Moses gave you not that bread from heaven..." (John 6:32) At this proper occasion he told them that He was the bread of Heaven given by the Father for the life of the world. Note His words, "...I am the bread of life..." (v.35) Bread was what they were looking for and needed, so Christ said that He was what they needed. The "I Am" suggests adaptability. As the world needs physical bread, it also needs Christ, the spiritual bread. We shall make a few remarks about bread and apply them.

Bread is a prepared substance. The seed is planted; it springs up; and then the blade appears, then the ear and then the full corn in the ear. It is then cut, winnowed, and ground into flour. Finally, it is placed in an oven and subjected to its fiery process. Only after this process is it edible and fit to sustain life. Thus it is with Christ, the bread of life. He was provided by the Father in the silent and eternal counsels of eternity past and sent into this vast domain of human sin and woe. His body, spirit, and soul were winnowed by the determinate counsel of God and the wicked hands of the men who crucified Him. He was thrashed and ground in His suffering and death and baked in the fiery oven of the wrath of God in order that He become our living bread of life.

Bread is for the living and not the dead. It would be foolish to suggest that one go to the graveyard and feed those that are sleeping in the tombs. They could not benefit by the offers. Their condition would only be mocked. Jesus Christ the bread of life can only be enjoyed by men and women who are alive in Christ. Those who are dead in trespasses and sins do not eat and feast and receive nourishment from Him. Only the quickened into life have tasted this precious manna in their mouths. The Bible teaches that we all are totally dead spiritually. Not until we receive life from above do we hunger for that living bread and with transporting delight sit at God's table of grace feasting thereupon. I desire not to be misunderstood. What I am saying is that Christ the bread of life will only be eaten by faith by those who are spiritually alive, alert, and active. In this sense He is only for God's spiritually begotten children. Yet, in another sense He is for everyone -- even those dead in sin. They need Him and ought to possess Him by feeding upon Him, but they cannot, for they neither desire Him nor have their taste buds conditioned in order that the appetite may be toward Him. Prospectively, He is for the dead. Actually, He is for the living. Do you suppose the reason so many religious folk prefer feasting upon the "husks" of religious activity rather than the "living" bread of Christ is due to no principle of spiritual life within? Perhaps so! I think those who are spiritually alive neither desire nor permit any substitute. As the manna was available for the Israelites in the wilderness, so Christ, the heavenly manna, is for all His living people. They ate daily, and we eat daily.

Bread is a substance eaten by the hungry. The full stomach loathes the most choice bread. It is thus with sinners. No sinner will hunger for Christ, the living bread, as long as he is full of mere religion and pride and self-righteousness. No person will hunger after Him while his stomach is full of the dead bread of the sin and pleasures of this world. The prodigal in the "far country" away from his father's provisions spent all the means he had and encountered a mighty famine. When he had nothing to eat he became acutely aware of his perishing condition. Being plagued by hunger-pangs and body weakness he remembered the abundant provisions of his father's house. The account states, "And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father..." (Luke 15:17-18) This boy was so hungry that he went over all obstacles making his journey to his father's table. No individual ever feeds upon Christ until he wants Him more than anything else. The Holy Spirit places a hunger in the heart of every sinner who is ever saved which is so great that nothing can satisfy but Christ, the living bread. The hungry soul has a very high premium on Christ. Such a person, dying because of hunger and perishing without food, feels it and knows it. Everything is subjected to this insatiable hunger for Christ. When he finds Christ and his soul is filled with Him, he only then is able to say with one of old, "...I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste." (Song of Solomon 2:3)

Bread has a satisfying quality. To the hungry, bread has an indescribable, satisfying effect when eaten. One may soon tire of other articles of diet but not bread, as it is associated with our meals. Thus it is with Christ. When He is eaten by faith He is indeed satisfying bread that becomes a daily part of our spiritual diet. We never tire of feasting upon this bread of life. None but Christ can satisfy. Nought but Him can relieve our hunger pangs. "I am satisfied with Jesus, but the question comes to me, as I think of Calvary, is my Master satisfied with me?"

Bread is suited to all kinds of people. The white, black, yellow, and red eat bread. The small and great eat bread. The king and the artisan eat bread. It is a food that all indiscriminately may eat. Thus it is with Christ. He is suited to all kinds of sinners. There is no distinction because of color, race, creed, background, or depth or degree or kind of sin.

Bread is no personal benefit unless it is eaten. Looking at a loaf or having it available will not save a person dying of starvation. He must eat the bread in order to personally benefit from its life sustaining qualities. There is no substitute for this act. Christ is the living bread that gives life to the world. But He will not benefit a person until He is taken in and becomes nourishment. He must be taken in by faith. He told the Jews, "I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world... Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you." (John 6:51, 53) This thought was repulsive to the Jews and made them so mad that they murmured or complained (v.61). A prominent point under the law of Moses was that any person who came with a sacrifice laid his hands upon it and said, "This is mine." The analogy holds good with reference to salvation. Christ must be received and owned by faith. The bread of life must be personally handled and eaten in order that you have Him within you.

Do you, my listener, want spiritual life? Then you must eat. Come and by faith receive this bread of life, and the benefits shall all be yours. Christ, the great I Am, promised that if any man eat thereof, he shall never die (John 6:50).

In John's Gospel, chapter 8, we find the second of the great "I Am's" of Christ. In verse 12, we read, "...I am the light of the world..." These words were spoken during one of the darkest scenes of Christ's ministry. He was located in the court of the Temple at Jerusalem. It was time for the feast of tabernacles to be commemorated, and the court was crowded with scores of people. The double-dealing, captiously critical religious Pharisees had just brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. They wanted to disprove His claim that God was His Father and that He was the Messiah. Moses' law taught that she should be stoned. They thought that if they could get Him to disobey Moses' law they could disprove His claims before the multitude of people. On the other hand, if He exacted the penalty of the law and had her stoned they could discredit His claims on the basis that He was not merciful and gracious but cruel and condemning. They imagined that they had Him between the horns of a hopeless dilemma. He knew how to put them to flight. He made one statement that convicted them of their sins, and they all departed from Him. Every one of these Pharisees was guilty of sin ever so black. Christ said, "...He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her." (John 8:7) It was amid this background of the night of sin and darkness of the adulterous woman's despair that Christ said, "...I am the light of the world..." (John 8:12) What divine audacity there is in such a saying! What a magnificent and stupendous statement! This language was by One Who was not a self-deluded egotist, but One Who was by divine appointment set far above all human criticism and judgment. These words are so extravagant and sublime no mere man could have truthfully uttered them. This "I Am" title of Christ is further proof that He was and is the Messiah. Jehovah said concerning the Messiah, as revealed by Isaiah 700 years previously, "I the Lord have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles." (Isaiah 42:6) Again we read, "...I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth." (Isaiah 49:6) Too, it is interesting to note that light is one of the three things that God is said to be. He is said to be Spirit (John 4:24), love (I John 4:8) and light (I John 1:5). He has many attributes, but He is said to be Spirit, love, and light. These comprise His nature. When Christ said, "I am the light of the world," (John 8:12) He affirmed His absolute Deity. Since Christ referred to Himself as being light, let's make some observations concerning natural or physical light and apply them to our Lord.

Light is a glorious object. There are kinds of light that are not glorious when compared to the chief source of light -- the sun. There is glowworm light, firelight, candlelight, starlight, moon-light, sparklight, and lightning bug light. None of these has a self-illuminating quality as does the sun. None is as glorious as the sun. Thus it is with Christ. There is no light that can compare with Christ -- God's glorious sunlight to a sin-darkened world. Who can compare with Him? None is worthy of comparison in earth, sea, or sky. We must say with one of old, "Thou art fairer than the children of men..." (Psalm 45:2) What is the most preeminent object in the sky? We all agree -- the sun! God exalted it to this position. God has given Him preeminence over everything and has given Him a name above every name at which every knee must bow and every tongue must confess that He is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11)

Light is essential to life. If there were no sun to produce light, the earth would be unable to yield her increase. There would be no fruits and vegetables. Soon we would all starve to death, and life would pass from the universe. The plant that is struggling for life in a dark place will turn toward the faintest ray of light for survival. Christ is no less essential to spiritual life than physical light is to natural life. He is the only God-ordained One Who has the right and power to forgive sin and energize us with spiritual life. He is absolutely and unquestionably essential to spiritual life. We may have anything and everything in or out of the church, but if we do not have Him we have not life. On the other hand, we may have nothing but Him in or out of the church, and have life. The Bible says, "He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." (I John 5:12) My friend, if you have not Christ as your living Lord and Savior, you have not the light and life of God. You are yet in your sins without real peace, joy, happiness, and contentment. The light this world needs is not in science, art, philosophy, sociology, psychology, or education, but in Christ.

Light illuminates the earth. This is one purpose for which the sun was created. Listen to Genesis 1:15, "And let them [sun and moon] be for lights...to give light upon the earth..." The sun does not have light for itself but for the earth. It is most sweet and useful, for it rises in the morning dispelling the darkness of the night, giving light for our labors of the day. God's Word teaches that this whole world is in spiritual darkness without one ray of light apart from Christ. Moreover, it is blind, so much so that it cannot sense the intensity of the darkness by which it is enveloped. Christ is the sunlight of God that illuminates the mind of the sinner in order that he may see and understand spiritual things (Ephesians 1:8, 4:18). Luke had this to say about Christ, "Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us, To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death..." (Luke 1:78-79) I note that Dr. Luke said "to give" light, not "to offer" light, or to have men work for light or to bestow it if men want it. Among the outstanding qualities or properties of the sunlight - perhaps the most noteworthy and praiseworthy - are its freedom and irresistibility. Light cannot be bought or worked for; neither can it be resisted. Thus it is with Christ and His light.

Light divides the darkness. Genesis 1:14 states, "And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night..." There was nothing but darkness upon the entire earth until God created the sun. The sun divided the darkness. The sun continues to divide the darkness. Right now the earth is divided with one part being illuminated by the sun and the other part in darkness. Why? Basically, for two reasons - the purpose of the Creator and the law of the Creator. Christ divides the darkness, for He is the spiritual light of the world. When this Sun of righteousness arises with healing in His wings (Malachi 4:2), He reveals Himself to His subjects and saves them. This results in dividing them from the darkness of this satanic world system. He does this in harmony with His eternal purpose and inexorable law. He saves us in pursuit of His eternal elective purpose and separates us in conjunction with His divine and spiritual law.

Light rules the day. (Genesis 1:16) Those of us who were in spiritual darkness remember that we were ruled and controlled by the tyrannical night of darkness. But now, since Christ has made the division by revealing Himself to us, we are ruled by Him. We are now light in the Lord and walk as children of light because Christ fills with beaming, dazzling, majestic light the horizon of our soul and the universe of our spirit. He rules over every area of our life, and we desire that everything be brought into complete subjection to Him.

The third of the great "I Am's" of Christ is found in John 8:23. "...I am from above..." As we study the "Great I Am's" of our Lord we are amazed at the precision with which they set forth the person and work of Christ. Each one of the "I Am's" of Christ reveals some particular, unique aspect of His infinitely beautiful and perfect character. There are three thoughts suggested by this "Great I Am" of Christ. His pre-existence, His deity, and His uniqueness.

First, let us consider His pre-existence. Toward the latter part of our Lord's earthly ministry, the Pharisees plotted to arrest Him and thus stop the rumors of His miracles and His being a prophet! They secretly dispatched officers to catch Him in His words and arraign Him before the Sanhedrin. However, instead of arresting our Lord as they were sent to do, the officers returned with the report, "...Never man spake like this man." (John 7:46) Truly no man before their time had ever spoken as did He. To this very day the same may be said, "Never man spake like this man." Have you ever seen anyone who told you he was from above? I never have, and neither have I heard of anyone other than Christ who has made such a bold claim and great assertion. In church history I have read of some who have claimed to be Christ, but even these did not come with the audacious claim of being from above. The burden of proof would have been theirs, and they could by no means authenticate such a claim or validate such an assertion. Church history records the names of those who have made outlandish and unbelievable claims, but no one who has claimed to be "from above," as far as I am aware. Anyone who might have made such a claim would have been a fool since he would have been unable to justify such a bold statement by miraculous powers and signs as did Christ. All of Christ's claims could be authenticated, even this one. John the Baptist, preaching by the River Jordan, declared that the One coming after him was preferred before him, because He was before him (John 1:15). There was absolutely no question in John's mind as to Who Christ was and where He came from. Listen to him again. "He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all." (John 3:31) Nicodemus testified to the effect that Christ was not of this world but from God in heaven. He said, "We know that thou art a teacher come from God..." (John 3:2) The testimony of the beloved disciple, John, by divine inspiration verifies that Christ came from above. He said, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God." (John 1:1,2) From these testimonies we cannot doubt that Christ came from heaven above where He had been with the Father for all of past eternity. Yes, He has always pre-existed. John's gospel begins with the same words as the first book of the Bible - "In the beginning..." Moses' subject was God. John's subject was Word (God). Note, "the beginning" in context in Genesis One refers to the original creation. Christ, the Word, was the Creator, Who in the beginning of this universe reached down His omnipotent hand into nowhere and stretched out the curtains of space across the horizon of future time and flung the worlds in place setting the planets in their orbits and hanging the stars in the chandeliers of heaven. Who did this? Christ, the eternal Word. Listen to John 1:2-3. "The same [Christ] was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him and without him was not any thing made that was made."

We have no doubt established that Christ was present at creation and was the Creator. But, perhaps someone says, "You have not yet given proof that Christ has eternally existed with the Father." Just stay with us a few more moments, and we will - for those who have ears to hear and hearts to perceive spiritual things. In John 1:1, we do not have a reference to creation as we do in Genesis 1:1. Note carefully what John 1:1 does say and does not say. It says, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God..." It does not say, "in the beginning of space, time, or creation," but simply, "In the beginning." When was the beginning? We have to go back aeons upon aeons, even whole eternities, in order to search for it. Our imagination will die away wearying itself as it traverses into an area as far beyond the human mind as infinity is from finitude. We go back, back to a time when universal silence reigned, and there was no voice to shock the gravity of silence, when the unnavigated ether was yet unmoved by an angel's wing, when there was no being, no motion, no time, no space, and yet we have not reached the beginning. Even if we go back trillions upon trillions of years, we have not reached the beginning, for it never came into existence. Thus it is with Christ, the eternally pre-existent Son of God. He is the beginningless Son of God - the "Great I Am" from above.

Now consider His Deity. The Deity of Christ is one of the great cornerstones of Christianity. It has been attacked throughout the ages, perhaps more than any other doctrine of God's Word. Jesus Christ is God. He is God of very God and always has been. This claim is what so enraged the Jews and motivated them many times to try to kill Him. The Jews were so very religious. They were religiously lost. Christ was to them a stumbling block just as He is to so many religious people today. Anyone who rejects the Deity of Christ is as blind and lost as those Jews of Christ's day who rejected His revelation of Himself. The Deity of Christ is a clear truth taught in God's Word throughout its entirety as the illuminating sun shining in its meridian splendor. If we only had one passage, that's all the proof we should need. There are thousands, but let's read only one. Isaiah 9:6 "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called... The mighty God, The everlasting Father..." This is the Bible doctrine of the Deity of Christ. Now, concerning those who refuse to believe it, the Bible has a word of solemn warning. Listen! "Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God..." (II John 9)

Now consider His uniqueness. Of all the greats who have planted their feet upon the shores of time, it may not be said of them that they were from above. The only One "from above" is Christ. In this fact and experience our Lord is singularly unique. Everything about our Lord is unique - His virgin birth, His immaculate life, His vicarious death, His bodily resurrection, His veritable ascension, His present session at the Father's right hand mediating for His people, His second appearing for His church at the end of this age. This unique One is the only One Whom God has sent forth to rescue us perishing ones from our sins. Glory be to His precious name, He is fully qualified and capable and willing to save the vilest offender. Do you want Him to rescue you? Are you sincerely seeking the forgiveness of your sins? Christ is willing and able - doubt no more. Come to Him! Rest your soul with Him! Commit your case to Him! Roll yourself upon His mercy! He can become to you right now what you so desperately need and do not have and cannot produce. Listen to His words, "I am..." (John 14:6) I need not finish the verse, for He says "...I am..." These words identify our Lord as the ever-becoming One. He right now can become your Savior and Lord; trust Him; only trust Him now; take Him; claim Him. "Only trust Him, only trust Him, only trust Him now; He will save you, He will save you, He will save you now."

For the fourth of the great "I Am's" of Christ, we turn to John 10:9 and read, "I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture." Among the many metaphors by which our blessed Lord is expressed in the Scriptures, this one is perhaps the most simple and common. He did not want to be misunderstood. Who wouldn't know what a door is? Who has not seen a door? Everyone has, for they are used by all of mankind daily. One day He would refer to Himself as water, and another day as bread, and now as the door. He didn't use the language of lofty imagery or metaphors that were far-fetched. When He said, "I am the door...," He intended to convey the thought that He was the door into His fold - the church. As we pass into a house by the door, we pass into His salvation, His church, and ultimately His Heaven when we pass through Christ, the living door, by faith. Who would deny there are plenty of doors? No one. Everywhere we go there are doors. We arise in the morning and face the door from our room. We go to the kitchen, and again we face a door. We go outside, and before we can get out we must pass through another door. We go to work and face another door as we approach the building. Think of the number of doors in your house and at the place of your employment. May these all preach to us that Christ is the door of salvation. But may we be exceedingly cautious that they not teach us too much. We must be careful not to get the idea that there are many doors to salvation and Heaven. Christ did not say there are numerous doors or even that He is a door. He said, "I am the door...". "The" is definite and restricts the number to only one. Let's think about some doors by which people attempt to be saved.

The door of good deeds. There are honest and sincere people who try to have enough good deeds to merit for them the opening of Heaven's door. Such is impossible inasmuch as God will not open Heaven's door by anything we do. God has ordained Christ as the only door. Perhaps I am talking to someone who has had the mistaken idea that your good deeds will get you to heaven or at least help you get there. Suppose you could begin at this point and never sin again but have the rest of your life filled with perfectly good deeds. How much goodness could you possibly accumulate? Could you accumulate enough to put over against the sins of your past to entirely wipe out all the sins you have committed? No, for it is absolutely impossible to gain a surplus of goodness to overbalance the evil of the past.

The door of good character is another door by which people attempt to be saved. Character is important, but it is not attainment. Character is what one is rather than what one does. We all really have a bad character until we have Christ's righteous robe put around us and His righteous nature placed within us. Then and only then can we have that kind of character which is acceptable to God. The story has been told of a Confucian who challenged a Christian missionary when he claimed salvation. The Confucian said, "I would consider it egotistical to claim that I had already attained salvation." The missionary replied, "So would I consider it egotistical to claim the attainment of salvation, but since my salvation is an obtainment, not an attainment, I do not consider it egotistical to claim I have it. What has been given me, I know I have. My salvation is a gift from Christ."

The door of sincerity is another door by which people attempt to be saved. There are indeed too many well-meaning, devoted people who think that if one is sincere in what he believes or practices, he will be accepted by God. This is a false view and one completely foreign to the Bible. Sincerity alone is not accepted or approved by God whether it is in heathenism or Christianity. The heathen individual who sincerely worships the sun or the jungles or some animal or some unseen, angry deity by throwing his children to the crocodiles or offering them as a sacrifice by pitching them into the fire is surely to be rejected by God. Sincerity did not make him right. It did not lead him to the door, nor open it for him. Moreover, it was not God's only ordained door. Christ said, "I am the door..." We surely pity the heathen, and we ought to. We ought also to pity those who are part of Christendom who are as sincere as the heathen and likewise as lost and condemned. Those who are a part of the Christian religion at least are exposed to more light and, hence, are more responsible to know the truth as it is in Christ as revealed in the Word of God. These shall surely have the greater condemnation. It is a great privilege to live in a land where there are so many Bibles, churches, and Christian radio programs and TV programs, but it is also a great responsibility. We have no excuse for our ignorance of what the Bible says about the way of salvation. We have every reason to know that sincerity is insufficient to save us. Really, those who are associated with Christianity who believe that if they are sincere they are all right in God's sight are in worse condition than the heathen in the darkest and remotest jungles who have never heard the Gospel of Christ.

Have you, my friend, been trusting your sincerity to save you? Have you thought that everything will turn out well for you if you are sincere? Now, you know better. What will you do with the light you have received today? May you turn to the Lord and enter into the real family of God by going through the Lord Jesus Christ, the true and living door. Christ not only said, "I am the door...," He also said, "...He that entereth not by the door...but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber." (John 10:1)

The door of law-keeping or commandment-obeying is another door by which people attempt to be saved. Baptism, keeping the Sabbath, tithing, abstaining from alcohol, refraining from pork or any other meat will not save us. Prayers, ablutions, ritualistic observances, religious ceremonies will not any or all earn for us Christ's smile of grace or God's favor of love. "These for sin could not atone, Thou must save, and Thou alone." Yes, there's nothing that we can do by way of our personal works or obedience that will achieve for us a good and gracious state. The Bible says, "...by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight..." (Romans 3:20). All works, despite whatever form they take, are only dead works before we meet Christ and are saved by faith in Him. Keeping the law and obeying the commandments do not, after all, prove to be the living door. They are only a dead door. A door not only admits some but keeps out others. The door of law-keeping and commandment-obeying only bars from the mercy, favor, grace, and salvation of Christ. Before Christ, the living and only door of salvation, may many of you stand, realizing your lost condition and condemnation, sighing, and saying, "No more, my God, I boast no more of all the duties I have done: I quit the hopes I held before, to trust the merits of thy Son."

The door of reformation is another door by which people attempt to be saved. Reformation means the re-forming of the life - its practices or conduct. It is possible for one to become dissatisfied with his life and reform it and not be saved. Alcoholics have seen the poverty and degradation that alcohol has brought upon them and have become so disgusted they have quit it. The drug victim, the prostitute, the thief have all reformed their lives because of the distasteful effects of such a life, but such may be done by those who are not saved and do not know Christ. Reformation may produce a better civilization but not salvation. It has been said that Elizabeth Frye, under conviction of sin, looking at herself in the mirror, said, "Elizabeth Frye, you are a contemptible small lady - all outside, no inside." What she meant was that she looked good on the outside, but on the inside she did not have God's life in Christ. Reformation is not Christ. Reformation is a garment one may wear. Christ is a life God gives. Reformation is chaff - Christ is the corn. Reformation is the smoke - Christ is the fire. Reformation is the shuck - Christ is the corn.

The door of local church membership is another door by which people attempt to be saved. So many people either equate being saved with joining the church or at least think joining the church is a part of being saved. Of course, so few nowadays think in terms of being saved. They think rather in terms of being Christian. Nowhere in the Bible did anyone ask what he must do to become a Christian. We can find where it was asked, "...What must I do to be saved?" (Acts 16:30) Christianity is a way of life. Salvation involves being aware of being lost in sin and condemned because of sin and delivered from sin - its power and penalty - by the Lord Jesus Christ. Salvation is the experience in which we receive life. No one is ever saved until he knows for sure that he is lost. One who has never experientially taken his stand as a lost sinner is not saved (Luke 19:10). Joining the church does not save us any more than putting a parrot in a canary cage causes the parrot to sing like the canary; any more than putting a leper in a physician's office cures his leprosy; any more than placing a wheelbarrow in an automobile factory makes it an automobile. It is one thing to have the name written on a church register and quite another to have it in the Lamb's book of life. Everyone who is now saved ought to go into the fellowship of a local church, provided it is a Bible-believing, Christ exalting one.

All such doors are false. Christ is the only true door. Remember, He said, "I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved..." (John 10:9) Now, for our remaining time today let's notice the kind of door Christ is.

Christ is the door of the sheep. In John 10:7, He said, "...I am the door of the sheep." Christ is the door by which His sheep enter into His sheepfold. He knows and calls His own by name. They know His voice, and they follow Him. From the foundation of the world God chose Christ's sheep and sent Him into the world to die for them and sent the Holy Spirit to call them to Christ. Those in time who trust in Him may be assured that they are His sheep. When they go in at the door, they are the redeemed of Christ.

Christ is the door of provision. I well remember the days I spent on the farm out in the country as a lad. During the Second World War and the days following, there would be many raps at our farmhouse door by bums, hobos, and travelers, who were walking, asking for only a piece of bread. Many were the testimonies that they did not have money to buy any bread and were starving. Mother would always go and get some bread and feed them. When a poor sinner knocks at Christ's door of mercy for the Bread of life He is never turned away. Christ always has abundant provisions and never refuses to give them to the needy souls.

Christ is the door of safety. In oriental times sheep were the prey of wild animals. They were helpless to fight the lion or wolf. Often, they were helplessly devoured. The sure place of refuge and safety was in the presence of the shepherd. Thus it is with Christ. Christ is the only place of refuge and safety for sinners. In Him they are safe from the law of God, the justice of God and the judgment of God. In that day when the world's on fire, the only place of safety will be the bosom of Christ. Thank God for such a sure place of protection and safety - especially in these days when in the distance the drumbeats of God's wrath are heard and are getting louder as the day of judgment draws nearer. The stormclouds of His judgment are gathering around us. Blessed is he who is sheltered by Christ. Lost sinner, are you sheltered, happy, peaceful, and secure as those in Christ? No, you aren't! You ought to be, and you can be by coming to Him and trusting Him as your Savior and Lord. Those of us who are in Christ's sheepfold should have no fears of being devoured by our enemies. Christ keeps us safe with the utmost care. The Oriental shepherd, after corralling his sheep, would ensure their safety by lying down in the gate or door. There was only one. This guaranteed that any intruder must go over him in order to get to the sheep. Thus it is with Christ. He is the door of the sheep, and before the devil gets us he must get Christ (Ephesians 5:30). Our preservation and safety are His to ensure, and this He does with absolute power and certainty.

Christ is the door of plenty. Christ said, "...By me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture." (John 10:9) For sure, Christ's sheep may not always have all they want, but they have all they need. We can trust the Lord for pasture. David of old, thinking about the plenitude of the blessings and leadership of the Lord, said, "The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures..." Psalm 23:1-2. But in order to have the plenitude of God's spiritual blessings, one must be in Christ. Christ is the door. "Only one door, and yet its sides are two. Outside or inside - on which side are you?"

The fifth of the great "I Am's" of Christ is found in John 10:11. "I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep." In the Greek, the fact that He is the good Shepherd is more emphatic. It literally reads, "I am the Shepherd, the good..." The Greek word translated "good" is "KALOS," which means fair, choice, excellent, worthy - the meaning depending upon the context. Exactly what meaning is intended here may be determined by observing the law of first mention in John's Gospel. It is found in John 2:10, where there is found a reference to the water which our Lord had turned to wine. The Governor of the feast, after tasting it, said, "...Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good [Kalos] wine until now." Here the meaning is choice or excellent because it is contrasted with the poorer or inferior grade. In this light our Lord intended to convey the idea that He is the pre-eminently choice and excellent Shepherd in every way, transcending those shepherds who had gone before Him. Further strength is given to this idea when we consider the background in which these words are couched. In John 9, we find the Pharisees, the shepherds of Israel, casting out a poor sheep (who had been born blind) from the synagogue for confessing Christ. These shepherds were inferior or low grade shepherds, we may even say bad shepherds, when compared with Christ the choice, excellent, and good Shepherd Who came not to scatter or cast away but to gather and receive. Let's now note what the good Shepherd does for His sheep.

The good Shepherd knows His sheep. In John 10:14, Christ said, "I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep..." The word translated "know" here is "GINOSKO" in the Greek. Sometimes when the word is used, it carries the idea not only of cognizance but of affection and approval. This we believe to be the meaning here. Those of Christ's sheep whom He says He knows are contrasted with those who are rejected when He returns. Listen to what He will say to those religious people who will have vain hopes of heaven. "...I never knew you: depart from me..." (Matthew 7:23). Surely He did not convey that He did not know they existed. He meant that He had no affection for and approval of them. He did not know them in His benign purpose with intention of blessing them in a saving way. They lived despising His blood, government, and grace, and now at the end they are rejected in clear language they understand, "...I never knew you..." The Bible refers to this class of people as "goats" who shall be cast into outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth. But the sheep of Christ are not thus treated and rejected. On the other hand they are graciously received at the end and with loving invitation are told, "...Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world," (Matthew 25:34). Note carefully these are said to be the blessed of the Father. When God blesses people He bestows special favors upon them. This separates them and makes them distinct from the rest of the human family. Paul enlarges somewhat upon this thought in Ephesians 1:3-5. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will." We see that Christ knew His sheep in the eternal ages of past eternity, for both were involved in the Father's purpose. Christ had His heart set upon them, for as the executor of the Father's purpose of redemption He entered into covenant with the Father over them to die for them, thus delivering them from their sins. Hence, Christ in knowledge pursued their deliverance and safety.

The good Shepherd calls his sheep. Listen to John 10:3, "...he calleth his own sheep by name...," and in v. 27, "My sheep hear my voice..." Christ not only has known His sheep with an affectionate, benign purpose to bring to them spiritual blessings and benefits, but He in time gathers them into His fold by His divine and effectual call. The Scriptures represent us all as sheep having gone astray and having each one turned to his own way. (Isaiah 53:6). We have been scattered into an alien country by the fall of Adam. Christ comes to us in time and woos us unto Himself. He affectionately and tenderly calls us by His Spirit through His Word. What a sweet, charming, quickening, powerful voice He has to draw us to Him. You see, we are as dumb as sheep who when wandering away from the fold cannot find their way back but are dependent upon the initiative and effective efforts of the shepherd. The Bible says that Christ came to seek and save that which has been lost. When He finds us He calls us with such a penetrating and energizing voice as that which Lazarus experienced when Christ called him from the grave. This experience also unites us with the Shepherd and gives us a sure and special knowledge of Him. The sheep as surely know the Shepherd as the Shepherd knows them. Listen to John 10:14, "I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine." I joined the church two or three times as a young boy, sincerely making my decision for Jesus, only to find out that nothing had really happened on the inside to give me victory over sin and self. I could not follow Christ, the good Shepherd, for I did not know Him. Later, when I was truly saved I came into a real life-changing knowledge of the person of Christ which enabled me to follow Him at any cost. Now, I see quite well the difference that knowing Christ makes.

The good Shepherd dies for His sheep. John 10:15, "...I lay down my life for the sheep." The good Shepherd died in the place , room, and stead of His sheep in order that they be spared from the pursuing dangers. He actually sacrificed His life that they might have life. When they are called and come into His fold by faith in His sacrifice at Calvary, they can never be removed and go to hell. Christ paid their total sin debt, and they will never pay for it, and surely God will not be so unjust and disrespectful to the death of His Son as to demand the payment for their sins at the hands of the bleeding, suffering, Substitute and Surety and again at their hands in hell. Praise the Lord, His offering has been accepted once and for all.

The Shepherd identifies His sheep. John 10:27, "My sheep hear my voice...and they follow me." They have two brands, one on the foot and one on the ear. They are familiar with His voice, and they will not follow the voice of a stranger (10:4,5). They do walk where He leads and supremely love to follow Him. He leads them into pastures green and by the waters still.

The good Shepherd protects and secures his sheep. John 10:28, "...I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish..." Not one of Christ's sheep shall ever be torn from His fold. He absolutely guarantees their safety. No truly saved person is ever lost. Hallelujah, what a Savior!

In John 11:25, we find the sixth of the great "I Am's" of Christ. "...I am the resurrection, and the life..." Lazarus, the brother of Mary and Martha, had died. They had dispatched a company to Bethabara to solicit the aid of Christ in keeping him from dying. They thought that He could prevent his decease, for no person had ever died in Christ's presence. It was a two day journey to Bethany where Lazarus was. Christ did not immediately begin His journey, for He waited two days. By the time He got to Bethany, Lazarus had been dead four days. Probably when Christ received the news of Lazarus' sickness he was already dead. There was no need for an immediate departure, so He remained where He was for two days. Too, it may be surmised that He remained in Bethabara in order for Lazarus to have been dead four days. Among the Jews was a false idea that the spirit of a dead person hovered around the body for three days for re-entry. If He had gone and brought him back to life within those three days, the people could have claimed that it was no miracle at all. When Christ arrived He saw some sorrowing and said to Martha, "...I am the resurrection, and the life..." There are several great facts established by this statement of our Lord.

First, the immortality of our existence is established. Here is positive proof that there is life after death. Lazarus had died and was raised by Christ. Everyone who has lived will one day be resurrected. There is immortality stamped upon each one of us, and we shall live forever somewhere. Proof of immortality is seen all around us. Grass that hides beneath the winter's snows gives place to a new sprig in the coming spring. It has been reported that a bottle of peas found in the grave of an Egyptian monarch, three thousand years later, planted, sprang to life and bore fruit. The butterfly is a good lesson on immortality. It may be adorning the meadow, but it once was an ugly worm, then a cocoon, and finally it emerged into a beautiful butterfly. The beetle leaves its hollow shell of an old house, for the new. The snake even sheds its skin and continues to live. The bird comes forth from its shell and chirps gleefully in its new dimension of life. The tadpole today breathes in water through gills; tomorrow it will breathe air through lungs as a frog. Job, in the long ago, asked, "If a man die, shall he live again?" (Job 14:14a) He answered his query when he said, "...Though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God." (Job 19:26) We also have the proof of immortality within us. A reputable translation translates a phrase in Ecclesiastes 3:11 to read, He (God) "planted eternity in men's hearts and minds." The belief in life beyond the grave is universal because it is our instinct which desires and demands immortality. Do you know that nature never betrays the instinct of the future within the birds and beasts? The unborn chick instinctively longs to break its shell environment and thus find the fullest expression of life. As autumn dawns, the swallows gather from every quarter and take their flight to a warmer climate and thus escape the cold winter. A mysterious inner voice calls them away from a winter of cold and frost to a sunnier and warmer land. Surely, man is not less endowed than the lower brute animals. He instinctively longs for life beyond the grave and is certain that it shall exist. In every culture and civilization known to man there has been a dominant and almost unanimous belief in life beyond the grave. Would you honestly want the grave to end all? No one listening to me just now would truthfully say "yes." Well, whether you desire to live does not alter the fact that you will live somewhere. The Bible teaches that there are only two places where we may go after death: heaven or hell. Heaven will be occupied by the saved washed in Jesus' blood, and hell will be occupied by those who die in their sins.

Our Lord's statement establishes another great fact: The priority of resurrection before life. Christ said, "...I am the resurrection, and the life..." (John 11:25). Note that He placed resurrection before life. The order here is doctrinally perfect. Spiritually, we are all "dead in trespasses and sins" in the grave of corruption, separated from God. We are as dead spiritually as Lazarus was physically. Likewise, we are as helpless. The whole world indeed dwells among the tombs. The depraved sinner can no more raise himself to a new life in Christ than a dead corpse can lift the lid of his casket and get up and walk out of the cemetery. When he is "born again" by the Spirit of Christ, he passes from death unto life (John 5:24). The call of Christ by the Word of Christ can place a spiritually dead soul on resurrection ground as the call of Christ did Lazarus physically. Paul, describing the operation of God in raising the dead sinner to life in Christ, said, "But God, who is rich in mercy...Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ...And hath raised us up together..." (Ephesians 2:4-6).

Another great fact established by our Lord's statement is the certainty of our Lord's return. In conjunction with this "I am" of Christ, He said, "...he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live." (John 11:25)When Christ spoke these words to Martha she knew that there was to be a resurrection at the last day, for she knew this from the Old Testament. But, she did not know of two resurrections, for only the New Testament teaches this great truth. There is the first resurrection for the saved and the second resurrection for the unsaved, and the two are 1,000 years apart (Revelation 20:1-6). In order for the saved to be resurrected Christ must come back the second time. Listen to God's Word, "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout...and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air..." (I Thessalonians 4:16-17). "...We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." (I Corinthians 15:51-52). From these passages we see that the resurrection of dead believers and the translation of living believers will take place at the same time - the second Advent of Christ.

 Oh, how near that event must be! As I see the conditions of this world worsening, I ask, "O, Lord Jesus, how long, how long ere we shout the glad song, Christ returneth, hallelujah, Amen." These world conditions cannot get much worse. We now are living in a day that would embarrass the antediluvians of Noah's time or the sodomites of Abraham's time. If God doesn't soon bring judgment upon this God-dishonoring, God-denying, God-defying, self-centered, humanistic, materialistic, pleasuristic, and secularistic race, He will consistently need to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah, for our evils have now exceeded theirs. During the awful days of tribulation the judgments of God will fall upon all Christ-haters and rejectors.

Friend, if you are living unsaved during this time, you will bow down to the Antichrist - only to meet the terrible wrath of God during the last part of the tribulation. I cannot describe to you the agonies and torment and pain that await you if you are unsaved. Then after the tribulation you will be destroyed at the return of Christ and suffer the worst form of punishment in the lake of fire forever. It just simply cannot be described! At the second resurrection, after the 1,000 years of perfect peace, when Christ and His people reign here on this earth, you as lost, sinful creatures will be brought from the grave and judged and cast into Gehenna. Why not turn to Him now and be prepared for the future?

Christ is now the resurrection and the life. He said, "I Am!" That means presently He is. Furthermore, He said, "...Whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die [or be cast away from His presence and mercy]" John 11:26. You are living right at the present time, aren't you? Then listen! He will raise you into spiritual life. He raises joy out of sorrow, peace out of pain, song out of suffering, praise out of pressure, triumph out of trial, and life out of death. Come to Him and throw yourself upon His mercy and great ability. He will save you - He will save you now!

The next of the great "I Am's" of Christ is found in John's Gospel, chapter 14. "...I am the way..." (v.6) When Christ was nearing the time when He was going to leave His disciples and return to the Father, He told them of the Father's house and the place He was going to prepare for them. One complained that the disciples did not know the way. This occasion gave our Lord the opportunity to point out the way, and He did with the words, "...I am the way..." He did not say that He was "a way" but "the way." He is the only way. With reference to approaching the Father and going to Heaven, Christ is the only way - all other possibilities and proposals are excluded.

Christ is the way to the Father. Many people go to God for help who have not a fatherly relationship with Him. They imagine they are approaching Him, when in reality they are not, because they come not by the way, Jesus Christ. Some feignly worship God as Creator or Pro- vider or Sustainer who do not know Him as Savior and Father. God, apart from Christ, is a consuming fire and is unapproachable. It is suspected that indeed many religious folk inadvertently go to God for help apart from Christ, the only and true way to God. It is possible to have a reverential feeling for God, have much outward devotion to His laws, make extensive sacrifices for His work, and yet not know Him as Father. Such was the case of my wife. She was very religious when we married and was a devoted member of a church. From time to time she doubted whether she was truly saved. She counseled with a goodly number of preachers, all of whom assured her that she was saved and simply doubting. Her life was so spotless that the Lord used it to convict me of my sins. She was so dedicated to religious ideals that I saw how far short I had fallen from the same, and how deeply steeped I was in sin. Later, while I was in my third year of seminary, she was really saved. The thing that was used of the Lord in finally convicting her that she was lost was that she looked to God as God and not through Christ. John 14:6 was the verse that not only shook, but destroyed all her false hope and vain confidence. She had never come as a poor, lost sinner to God through Christ and, consequently, did not know Christ as Savior and Lord or God as her Father. What a fatal mistake that so very, very many religious people make today. How plainly Christ spoke when He said, "...I am the way...no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14:6)

Christ is the way from the depths of Adam's fall. The Bible instructs us that we are all in the lowland of the pits of depravity, degradation, and ruin as a result of Adam's sin. We have fallen so low in Adam that no one but Christ can rescue us. Christ spans the distance between the sinner and God. He is the way of escape. Before sin entered the world, Adam enjoyed communion with God, and this was the way of life for him. After the fall he no longer enjoyed this kind of life. He hid himself from his Maker, thus demonstrating that he wanted his own way and no longer the way of God. Christ is the only way of escape from our old self-way. This self-way dominates and characterizes our life until Christ by His power and life lifts us from these shameful and destructive depths.

Christ is the way of salvation. There are many ways men have tried and failed. Christ is the true way. There is no other name under heaven whereby we may be saved (Acts 4:12). Human pride is so keen and great that men are inspired by it to do something which will secure for them the favor, mercy, and salvation of God. With human nature being what it is, there is something we feel we must do for our salvation. We simply do not want to receive it as a free gift. But that's the only way and terms on which it can be had - a gift from Christ. Works, prayers, penance, reforms, confessions, ceremonies, and the like will not save us or help us. Christ is salvation! Those who have Him are saved, and those who do not have Him are not saved.

Christ is the way to Heaven. Some people say that there is more than one road to heaven. Emphatically, we declare the truth of the Bible that it just simply is not so. This is another of the ipse dixit's (he himself says it) of men. This may appear to be narrow, but remember the way is called "the narrow way." When our Lord was leaving His disciples He described His occupation until His Second Advent by saying, "...I go to prepare a place for you." (John 14:2). Since this place He's preparing for His people is the result of His own efforts and achievements, He, of necessity, is the only way to it. Different religions and faiths are not taking different ways to heaven. All men, even though religious, are not going there. Those only who know Christ are going to Heaven, for He is God's only ordained way. The merits of Christ alone can give us a title to heaven. The keys of Heaven are committed into His hand, and all who will go to Heaven must go to Him and through Him.

Christ is the way of happiness. It appears that the pursuit of happiness is the chief pursuit of man. Few seem to find its formula or source. Some try pleasure. Some try wealth. Some try power. Some try prestige. Some try drugs. The Bible says, "...happy is that people, whose God is the LORD" (Ps. 144:15). True happiness is found only in the Lord Jesus Christ, Who is the God of all His people.

Christ is the way of peace. There seems to be little peace in this world. Our increasing use of drugs; our increasing number of mental patients; our spiraling crime rate; our increasing disregard for law, order, and decency - all attest the tremendous lack of peace in the human heart. Peace is something everyone seems to desire, but few seem to find. Entertainment has been tried. Pleasure has been tried. Pursuit of knowledge has been tried. Wealth has been tried. Drink and drugs have been tried. None of these has given peace. Christ is peace, and there is no other true peace to be found. He said, "...my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth..." (John 14:27). I have heard sung a little chorus that goes something like this, "If you want peace, real peace, let Jesus come into your heart; if you want joy, wonderful joy, let Jesus come into your heart..."

Christ is the way out of bewilderment and confusion. Someone asked an Oriental about his religion, and he replied, "Confucianism, but misspelled it, "confusionism." That's just what's in the religious and secular world today. Many people are confused, asking which religion is right. Our reply is that Christ is right. When Christ is known, then truth - liberating truth - is known; even the living embodiment of truth is known. Religion is incidental; Christ is vital. Religion is peripheral; Christ is central. Religion is confusing; Christ is enlightening. If your life is bewildered and confused and you need real direction through this intense darkness, and maybe even despair, turn to Christ. Christ is the way out. Turn to Him now; rest upon Him and His sweet promises, and your burden will roll away. Remember, He said, "I AM THE WAY."

For the next of the great "I Am's" of Christ, we turn to John 14:6. Christ said, "...I am...the truth..." At the last supper of our Lord, He was in the most intimate relationship with His disciples. For a little more than three years He had instructed His disciples that He would be put to death, and after that He would rise again and return to the Father. How little they understood. The time of His departure was at hand. Now was the time He was emphasizing His return to the Father. They wanted to know the way and the truth. Christ told them that He was both the Way and Truth. He was the Way, the Truth, and the Life personified before their very eyes. They were not given a system of facts, because He was the living, personified, walking truth in corporeity. Someone has said, "Without the way there is no going, without the truth there is no knowing, and without the life there is no showing." Pilate, in the long ago, voiced the perplexity of multitudes when he said, "...What is truth?..." (John 18:38) The ancient question of Pilate is one asked by so many today. Many people may not voice the question, but it is a silent one which occupies the thoughts and exercises the mind and disturbs the peace of the heart. The truth for which there should be a real quest is not in philosophy, psychology, sociology, biology, or modern science but in Christ - the person of Christ. In Him are hid "...all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." (Col. 2:3)

Christ is the Truth relative to the fulfillment of the Old Testament types. The manna, round and white, which came down from heaven every morning for the Israelites for forty years was a type of Christ, the true Bread of life from Heaven (John 6:32). Christ is the fulfillment of the brazen serpent in the wilderness which Moses put on a pole for the healing and life of the bitten people of Israel. He is the true brazen serpent (John 3:14-15). When Israel needed water to drink it was brought from the flinty rock, and they drank, quenching their thirst. Paul tells us that Rock was Christ (I Cor. 10:4). To the woman at Jacob's well, Christ became the Water of life. She drank and was promised that she would never thirst again. Jacob in a dream saw a ladder whose top reached to Heaven from the earth. Christ answers to that ladder. He was the God-man Who came from Heaven and lived on the earth in order to take men of the earth to Heaven to live with God. When Abraham was going to slay his son - offering him as a sacrifice - he saw a ram, caught in the thicket, which was brought to him to sacrifice instead of Isaac. Christ was the fulfillment of the type. Christ has been sacrificed in our room, stead, and place. When Israel was coming out of Egypt, the blood of a lamb protected those who applied it from the judgment of instant death. The destroying angel passed over those houses where the blood was sprinkled. I Cor. 5:7 says, "...Christ our passover is sacrificed for us." Truly, Christ could say, "...I am the truth...," for He was the truth of the fulfillment of the Old Testament types.

Christ is the Truth about God. When Christ mentioned going to the Father, Philip wanted our Lord to show the disciples the Father. Do you know what His reply was? Here it is in John 14:9. "...Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip?..." Here is Christ's clear teaching that He was the Father in bodily form. Christ came into this world to reveal the Father. He is unmistakenly and undeniably the Father. Listen to more of His words to Philip. "...he that hath seen me hath seen the Father." (John 14:9) The greatest and most majestic way of revealing the Father was through a personality. Christ - the Way of salvation - provided that revelation. The Hebrew writer had this to say about the Son revealing the Father. "God ... hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son...Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person..." (Heb. 1:1-3)

Christ is the Truth about knowledge. Man in his sinful state before the Lord thinks he is smart and wise. But the truth of the matter is that man is groping in ignorance and error. The Bible says, "The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble."(Prov. 4:19) In fallen man there is blindness and a lack of understanding (Eph. 4:18, Rom. 3:11). Spiritually blind and ignorant men have made a "god" out of modern science. Modern science is purported and projected as the panacea for all the ills of a degraded society. Such is not at all the case. From modern science have evolved philosophies, attitudes, and practices that lead men to eternal doom. Knowledge is not necessarily wisdom or truth; Christ is true wisdom and knowledge personified. What tremendous folly to ignore Him. One may master all that modern science offers, be acquainted with all the historical events of western civilization, be well-versed in dozens of languages, be completely acquainted with the politics of our day, and yet not possess the truth about knowledge. We should bow to Him Who is absolute truth and knowledge. Do you know Christ? I'm happy to say that I do. And I can say, no knowledge compares with Him for He is true, liberating knowledge. Speaking of Himself, our Lord said, "And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." (John 8:32)

Christ is the Truth about salvation. The Scriptures inform us that there is salvation in none other. There is absolutely no other way of salvation than Christ. To be technical, Christ - His person and His work - is salvation, and of course the two may not be divided. Some people try to. Many would have His work and think they have it apart from His person. If a person does not know Christ as a living person he does not savingly know His work. We can't have His benefits of peace, forgiveness, and restoration to the divine favor without knowing and having Him in the totality of His person. To be sure that His person and work may not be divided, we quote for you I Cor. 2:2, "For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified." Experiencing the truth about salvation is expressed in different ways in God's Word. John 8:32 expresses it as knowing Christ, the Truth. When one knows Christ he has eternal life (John 17:3). Only then is there a freedom from bondage, misery, fear, and dread of the tomb and judgment. Prov. 23:23 expresses it as buying the truth and selling it not. In one sense He cannot be bought, and in another He must. Neither He nor His mercy can be purchased with money, good works, human acheivments, or anything else. He bestows and communicates the gift of Himself freely - without money and without price. Yet when He, the Truth, is found or communicated, there must be a selling of our old prejudices and sins and way of life. It is in this sense that the truth is bought. John 1:12 expressed it as receiving the truth. Christ is received into the affections, intellect, emotions, and will. It is in this manner that the bride receives her husband when united in holy matrimony. II Thess. 2:10 expresses it as a loving the truth. When a lost, condemned, guilty, unlovely sinner meets Christ, he immediately falls in love with Him Who is the Truth. The soul is charmed and won by Him and His love. Then Christ is loved more than any earthly object. Col. 2:6 expresses it as a walking in the truth. We will walk through this howling, thick, and sometimes dark wilderness relying wholly and solely upon Him Who is our Beloved (Song of Sol. 2:16). Yes, Christ is the Truth. To know Him Who is God's Truth is to be saved and His child. Do you know Him? If not, come to Him today, for He has promised to receive you as you come surrendering yourself to Him.

The next great "I Am" of Christ which we shall study is found in John 14:6. "...I am...the life..." These words are in the context of Christ describing the way to the Father's house. Not only did He point out the way but also the life by which and through which one would live in the Father's house. Have you ever thought that without Christ's life indwelling the people in Heaven, they would be miserable there? Christ is the life of Heaven. There are several senses in which Christ is life. We shall discuss these.

Christ is the origin of natural life. Natural life is the life of the body due to its union with the soul. When these two are together there is life; when they part there is instant death. Gen. 1:26 verifies the beginning of life. There, God said, "...Let us make man..." Note the personal plural pronoun "us." A single person cannot be spoken of or said to be "us." More than one is demanded. The "us" here includes our blessed Lord Jesus Christ. He was present and assisted in the creation of man and not only in his creation but in the creation of the world. Listen to Col. 1:16, "For by him were all things created..." The silly, unwarranted, unprovable, devilish propaganda of some of the schools and educators and scientists of our day is that man evolved from an original, invisible speck of protoplasm, and that this earth is the product of trillions of years of evolving of a little primordial cell. How ridiculous! How foolish! What nonsense! This is primitive thinking and guesswork. We Christians do not have to accept an unprovable, untenable theory based upon sheer ignorance and gross presumption. We have the scientifically accurate Word of God for the ground of our faith. Christ spoke the worlds into existence. He flung the stars into space. He created all plant and animal life. John says, "...Without him was not anything made that was made" (John 1:3).

Christ is the sustainer of natural life. Listen to Col. 1:17, "...by him all things consist,"and Heb. 1:3, "...upholding all things by the word of his power..." Apart from the life of Christ nothing would continue its existence. All worlds, stars, constellations - even every bit of matter would disintegrate without Christ's powerful life. This means immediately our bodies would fall back to dust, and the dust would be reduced to nothing. All space would immediately cease to exist and would go back into the nothingness state from which God called it on creation's morn. How dependent every living creature is upon Christ! Even those atheists and religions who deny His existence are dependent upon Him for their continued subsistence on this earth. He makes it possible for them to have food which they must have in order to live. Paul said concerning Christ, "For in him we live, and move, and have our being..."(Acts 17:28).

Christ is the consummator of natural life. The life of all animate life is in His hands and at His disposal. Wicked men should thankfully realize that it is the free and pure goodness of the Lord that keeps their hearts beating, their lungs breathing, and their blood flowing. At any moment these may be terminated by Christ. Christ has no debt of obligation to keep such men living. Why should He, since they hate Him and disregard Him and disesteem Him? They hold Him in contempt. Wisely the Bible speaks to puny, fickle man whose breath is in his nostrils, "Boast not thyself of tomorrow..." (Prov. 27:1). Now, concerning the people of God, they are immortal until their mission is done on the earth. There is no disease or bullet or knife or sword or any means of death that can take us in death until Christ is ready for our homegoing. Satan had much power over Job, but no power over his life. He could not kill Job. Neither can he kill us. However, he surely tries. But the angel of the Lord camps about us to deliver us. Now, perhaps someone is thinking that I have not from Scripture proved my point that Christ is the terminator of natural life. Job said in the long ago, "...his [man's] days are determined, the number of his months are with thee, thou hast appointed his bounds that he cannot pass" (Job. 14:5). The Psalmist said concerning man, "He [God] hath also prepared for him the instruments of death..." (Ps. 7:13).

Christ is the origin of spiritual life. The Word of God paints a bad picture of man. From its pages we find that all are sinners who are incorrigibly wicked, totally depraved, inveterately selfish and stubborn, and spiritually dead and utterly incapable and unable to help themselves to get out of this state. Christ has to quicken us into a new life (Eph. 2:1) before the picture will be changed. As we are born, we have no faith. Christ must give it to us, and in free mercy and in an act of sovereign grace He does. Hebrews 12:2 says that He is the author of our faith. As we are born, we have not any repentance. Christ also gives us this repentance, since He is exalted to give repentance (Acts. 5:31). Romans 6:23 declares, "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

Christ is the secret of the spiritual life. The world doesn't understand the joy, happiness, peace, and pleasures of the child of God the reason being that they do not know the source. We love to pray, read, and study the Word and witness about what our blessed Lord has done for us, and fellowship with those who are saved. The world sees no joy or pleasure in this. It delights not in such things because it has no spiritual life. The secret to loving divine things and following hard after them is a loving, living and lasting union with Christ.

Christ is the sustainer of the spiritual life. He sustains our spiritual life by His mighty power. Do you suppose He has less power to sustain our spiritual life than He does our natural life or this universe? Surely not! Those who are saved have been made partakers of the divine nature by the new birth, and they shall never lose it. Our Christ is not an Indian giver. He gives us eternal life (John 5:24). How long is that? It is from the moment of beginning to the remotest part of a never- ending, unceasing eternity.

Christ is the feeder of the spiritual life. He is the bread of life and living manna upon which we feed. We continue to receive nourishment from Him because He is our daily food. Our growth is in proportion to our food. When we feed upon Him and His promises we grow and mature rapidly. Surely we concur with the hymn writer who said, "Bread of Heaven...feed me till I want no more..."

Christ is the origin of eternal life. This life and the spiritual life already discussed are the same in
substance. They differ, however, in degree. Spiritual life is the divine life begun, while eternal life is the divine life perfected. There is a sense in which Christ is the origin of the eternal life of the wicked. When their bodies are resurrected at the last day, it will be by the power and life of Christ. I Cor. 15:22 says that in Christ all shall be made alive. This must refer even to the unsaved in the sense of their bodies being immortalized by Christ. Those in the lake of fire will have eternal life in quantity while the saved in Heaven will have eternal life both in quantity and quality. The saved have the more abundant life Christ spoke about. Now a word to those of you who may yet be unsaved. Christ can now give you eternal life both in quantity and quality. He can give you the life you need to be free of the power, penalty, and finally the presence of sin. Turn to Him now. He waits to receive you and free you from your great bondage.

As we proceed studying the great "I Am's" of Christ, let's look at John 15:1, where Christ said, "I am the true vine..." These words of our blessed Lord were spoken to His eleven Apostles while he was in the midst of His farewell address to them. It is uncertain as to the exact location of Christ and His group at this time. We do know that He had just left the upper room after having finished eating the last supper with His disciples. Whether the analogy of the vine was a continuation of His table conversation with the disciples or was suggested by the many vines He passed on the way to the garden of Gethsemane is uncertain. It even may well have been that the allegory of the vine arose as our Lord and His disciples passed near the Temple of Herod and saw the golden vine thereupon. Remember, it is now the day before the Passover. The gates of the Temple were always left open the night before the annual Jewish feast of the Passover. Really it does not matter what occasioned the analogy. The figure of the vine was one that the eleven surely were familiar with. Again and again in the Old Testament, Israel had been likened to a vine. The vine was a symbol of Jewish national life which God Himself had planted. Ps. 80:8
says, "Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt: thou hast cast out the heathen, and planted it." The chief value of a vine is the fruit it produces. Israel had brought forth some fruit to God but became degenerate and unproductive. Listen to Hosea 10:1 "Israel is an empty vine..." With this background we can perhaps understand somewhat the meaning of our Lord's words, "I am the true vine..." The adjective "true" is surely significant. At other times it was used to describe some aspect of the character or ministry of Christ. John 1:9 refers to Him as the "true Light." John 6:32 refers to Him as the "true bread." "True" is not to be understood in the sense of being in opposition to that which is false. The light of John the Baptist who prepared the way for Christ was not false. The "manna" which fell in the wilderness was not false. These were helpful and essential but not perfect. Christ is the perfect light and bread. He is also the eternal Jehovah planted on the earth to bring forth the fruit of souls to Heaven and to enable men to bring forth spiritual fruit. He is the perfect God-man. He is also the perfect vine. Perhaps it would be a worthwhile project for us to point out and discuss some things that are associated with the vine.

Life is associated with the vine. Christ not only referred to Himself as the vine, but to His disciples as the branches. Listen to John 15:5, "I am the vine, ye are the branches..." All of us know that every branch is dependent upon the vine for its life. Thus it is with God's people. No one would have spiritual life were it not for Christ. Israel of old failed to bring life to the world, but Christ did not. He came that we might have life, and that more abundantly. Christ, by living on this earth for more than thirty-three years, merited for us eternal life; He completely kept the holy law of God that we have broken times without number. In His death he took the punishment due our sins. Upon the basis of His active and passive obedience we may be given spiritual and eternal life by God the Father. As the vine has life in itself, so Christ has life in Himself. The woman with an issue of blood for 12 long years thought if she could press through the crowd and just touch the hem of His garment she would be healed. Lo and behold, that's exactly what happened. The moment she touched His garment she was made well. You see, He has life in Himself. When He stood at the grave of Lazarus, He said, "...Lazarus, come forth," (John 11:43) and immediately he came forth. Christ has life to call men from their graves of spiritual death. As the life of the vine is a gift to the branch, so it is that Christ's life is a gift to the Christian. It cannot be worked for, merited, or earned. It is entirely a free gift of grace.

Fruit is associated with the vine. What value is the vine without the grape? Those who own vineyards do so for the grapes they produce. They are not concerned primarily with vines, branches, leaves, and shoots. They are concerned with the fruit. Christ is concerned with the fruit the branches bear. He said, "I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing." (John 15:5) Those of us who have a vital union with Christ must bear some fruit. Some have been so foolish as to say that some believers for a time may bear absolutely no fruit. Such thinking is quite contrary to the Bible and accommodating to unrenewed minds. Those who have no spiritual fruit are none of Christ's (Rom. 6:22). Listen to what Christ said to His disciples. "Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain..." (John 15:16) Does that sound as though some genuine disciples of the Lord may not have any spiritual fruit? Certainly not! According to this verse we have been ordained to bring forth fruit and that incessantly. The Greek word translated "ordained" is "Ethaka," meaning "to make or cause to be." If we admit that we are saved by faith, then surely as long as we are saved we have faith. Since we are saved with an eternal salvation (Heb. 5:9), we continue to have faith throughout the remainder of this life. Now, the Bible teaches that faith is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22). Remember, the branch only bears the clusters of fruit; it never produces them. It bears only what the vine produces, but it always bears what the vine produces. The union itself guarantees this fruit. There are three categories of fruit-bearing mentioned in Chapter 15, and these apply to the Lord's people. Some bear "fruit" (v. 2). Some bear "more fruit" (v. 2). Some bear "much fruit" (v. 8).

Dead branches are associated with the vine. Christ refers to them in v. 2. "Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away..." Christ did not mean that some of His people who are genuinely and truly in Him by a living, hypostatical union may cease to bear fruit and be removed from the vine. That is certainly not the teaching, for the Bible in many places clearly teaches that none savingly joined to Christ may be removed from Him and be lost. The analogy cannot be perfect between the branches and the vine as it applies to Christ and His church. It is possible for a dead branch to be connected to a vine or trunk. The connection is not vital and life-giving. From all appearance it looks like other branches for a while, but alas the time for fruit arrives, and the branch is shriveled and fruitless. Our Lord here is speaking relative to the appearance of things and not as they actually and really were. This He often did. When the lawyer asked Christ what he must do to inherit eternal life, our Lord climaxed His advice by stating to him "...this do, and thou shalt live." (Lu. 10:28) Surely, no one could keep the law and gain eternal life, and our Lord did not tell him he could. He dealt with him on the basis of his interest, inquiry, and the appearance of things. It will help us to remember some of the events leading up to this verse. At our Lord's triumphant entry into Jerusalem, it appeared that the nation of Israel had received Him, but they hadn't. Too, Judas had just gone out at the close of the last supper to conspire with the Jewish leaders to help put Him to death. Think, who was Judas? He was one of the Apostles who appeared to be a friend and real disciple of Christ, but he was not. Each of these persons had a close association with Christ and appeared to be in Him, but neither one was. What a solemn beacon for us! We may be near Christ, but not in Christ. We may be closely associated with Him and be lost. We may appear to be one of His living branches and actually be dead branches not savingly joined to Him only to be taken away and burned. Are you in the church or in Christ? Are you just a religious lost church member? Realize your condition, and admit it if you are lost. Join yourself to Him in faith, and thou shalt be saved and have life evermore, Amen!

The next of the great "I Am's" of Christ is found in Matt. 16:13. "...Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?" Here Christ referred to Himself as the "Son of man." It seems that our Lord was fond of the title, the "Son of man." He used it quite often, especially in Luke's Gospel. If He had so desired He might have always spoken of Himself as the Son of God or the everlasting Father, or the mighty God, or the Wonderful, or the Counselor, or the Prince of Peace. Of all the thousands of titles, resplendent as the throne of Heaven, He chose to use freely, the "Son of man." He employed the expression about eighty times The "Son of man" is our Lord's racial title, as the "Son of David" is His Jewish title, and the "Son of God" is His divine title. During today's study, let us attempt to point out the significance of this expression.

The expression identifies our Lord with sinners. At His baptism, when John indicated that he should not baptize Him, our Lord said, "... Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness..." (Matt. 3:15) Our Lord indicates by this statement that this act was part of the predestined mission His Father had sent Him on. It was the Father's will and good pleasure that He be identified with sinners. Christ was no sinner, but He was identified with them by baptism as well as in many other ways. John the Baptist had been baptizing those who brought forth fruits meet for repentance, and those were sinners. Now, Christ is thus identified with them in His baptism. In I Cor. 15:45, He is called the "last Adam," thus identifying Him with this fallen, sinful race who are fallen in Adam. In order for Christ to redeem fallen man He had to become identified with him. He had actually to become one with him. This He did by His virgin birth and in His humanity. He became one with us and was tempted in all points as we - yet without sin. He was not a mere man. No mere man could have saved us. He was the God-man. No angel could have saved us, because he would lack our humanity, and consequently could not be one with us. Too, he would lack Deity and would have been disqualified on this score. One of our hymns says, "There was no other good enough to pay the price of sin, He only could unlock the gate of Heaven and let us in."

The expression identifies His true nature. Our blessed Lord was indeed a man. He was conceived of the Holy Ghost in the womb of a virgin by the name of Mary. He had no earthly father. He possessed all the qualities of manhood. We should beware lest we fall into the trap of thinking that Christ was merely a divine man, or into another error of thinking that He was a human God. Neither is true! He was, and is, absolute Deity and absolute humanity. The humanity and Deity of Christ are both taught in the same verses in several places of Holy Writ. Listen to Isa.9:6, "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given..." Listen also to Gal. 4:4, "...When the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his son...made under the law." And in Rom. 1:3-4, we read, "...Jesus Christ our Lord...was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power..." From these passages we see that Christ as the "Son of man" was made and born. As the "Son of God," He was given, sent, and declared. Yes, our Lord was truly man. He also was a proud man. What I mean is that He was delighted and pleased to be a man. He loved manhood so much that He desired to honor it by the use of the title, "Son of man." I cannot picture our Lord as an effeminate-looking, long-haired sissy, for He was not such. Such a travesty is this invention of the fallen, human nature of man. Christ honored manhood and brought great dignity to it by becoming the "Son of man." He was also a humble man. Can you conceive of God stepping into human form? It is a grand thought beyond my comprehension. It was a great stoop for Him to come from the bliss of Heaven to the sorrows of this earth. It was a mighty act of condescension when He left the Father's bosom to come into a world of sin and shame. What humiliation in leaving the golden harps of the angels and the melodious songs of the cherubim to become one with us in our humanity and mingle with a group of sinful creatures who mocked Him and called Him all kinds of vile and foul names. What humility we see when we observe His life. His birth was of a woman who was a peasant who lived in an obscure village. The place of His birth was in a stable. He was born a babe. He was reared in poverty. He never owned houses or lands, and as far as we know He never possessed a donkey or mule. He even borrowed one to ride into Jerusalem on one occasion. His entire life is marked with humility. He was also a tempted man. For forty days and nights He was tempted of the devil. He was attacked in exactly the three ways that Eve was in Eden and that all men have been since the fall. As the "Son of God," He was not able to sin; and as the "Son of man," He was able not to sin. He overcame this temptation.

The expression identifies His mission. His mission is connected with the expression, "Son of man," in Luke 19:10, where His mission is seen. There we read, "For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost." The purpose for which Christ was manifested in the flesh was to seek and save guilty sinners who had become lost through the fall of Adam. Note carefully the description of the persons He came to seek and to save. The verse says the "lost." Those whom Christ "seeks" and "saves" are the lost ones who realize the truth about their condition before God. Christ never saves any others than those who are sensitively lost and on their way to judgment. The individual who has never found himself lost has never found himself saved. He may think he's saved, but he isn't. Now, my friend, those of us who have been lost before God know what a terrible experience it is. During this time the Holy Spirit teaches us our sinfulness, helplessness, and hopelessness. Note something else about this verse. It tells us what is involved in Christ's mission. It says He came to "seek" and "save" that which has been lost. The Bible describes us as having gone astray like sheep, turning each one to his own way. We are as dumb as sheep and cannot find our way to the Shepherd of our souls. If left to ourselves we would never come into His fold. By nature we have an aversion to Christ. We are hostile to Him because our deeds are evil. He must seek us in order that we be saved, for we surely cannot seek Him. This He came to do. When we seek and find Him, He has already sought and found us, for without His having sought and found us, we never would have sought and found Him. We are spiritually dead having no life nor desire for life; hence, we are spiritually inalert and inactive. Also, He not only seeks us but saves us. We do all the sinning, and He does all the saving. The Bible says that salvation is of the LORD (Jonah 2:9). We have not any part to play in our salvation. It is all of Christ, and none of us. Praise His holy, wonderful, and matchless name. Has He sought and found you as a lost sinner? He has me, and I will praise Him for it as long as life in me is.

The expression identifies Him as the consummator of this age. I Cor. 15:47 says, "...the second man is the Lord from heaven." The Bible teaches that His coming from Heaven is twice - once in the incarnation and again in the consummation. He is soon coming to bring an end to this present age of grace. When the Son of man descends next time from Heaven, it will be to catch away His bride and to bring judgment upon all Christ haters and rejectors. The day of mercy will be over.

For the last of the great "I Am's," we look at John 18:37, "...I am a king..." When our Lord was brought before Pilate to be tried, Pilate's great concern was the charge of the Jewish leaders that Christ had made Himself a king. The Governor asked our Lord, "...Art thou a king then?" Christ responded saying, "...Thou sayest that I am a king..." To paraphrase Christ's words in the frame- work of the modern way of expressing it, the phrase would read, "You said it; I am a king." Our Lord affirmed that He was a king, for He said, "...To this end was I born..." It was this event that the Holy Spirit affirmed when He through Paul stated that Christ "...before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession" (I Tim. 6:13). This good confession was that He was a king.

Jesus Christ was a past king. While our Lord was on the earth for more than thirty-three years He was a king. He was a divine king. The divine right of kings is assumed by earthly royalty, but in the case of Christ it was heavenly truth. Of course, He was from the beginning the reigning King of Heaven. This King of heaven left the glorious bosom of the Father and became a man that He might make us kings and take us to heaven to dwell near the bosom of the Father. Our blessed Lord was divine in every way. No one could truthfully say that he could find fault with Him. He was a mocked king. Evil men at the cross mocked His glorious person. Many who passed by Him while He was on the cross reviled Him, wagging their heads, saying, "...If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross." (Matt. 27:40) This not only was a challenge to his claim that He was the "Son of God" but was a mocking gesture of shame and hatred. They also mocked His blessed offices. His prophetic office was mocked. When they had blindfolded Him they struck Him on the face and asked Him who it was that smote Him. His kingly office was mocked. Since a king should have a scepter, they gave Him one, but alas it was a reed. They gave Him a reed thus mocking His kingly office. Too, a king should have a crown, and they gave Him one, not of gold, but of thorns. What wicked mockery. His priestly office was mocked. With sarcastic mockery they said, "He saved others; himself he cannot save..." (Matt. 27:42). Also, He was a despised king. Truly, the Prophet of old said of Him about 700 years before He was born that He would be "...despised of men..." (Isaiah 53:3) There was everything about Christ that was worthy of the love of men, but as you very well know, those who came in contact with Him and His ministry did not love Him, but rather despised Him. He had no large following of true disciples. His small band of true followers he called "little flock." This group loved Him while the multitudes despised Him. He was so vehemently despised of men that with one great consensus the people cried out "...Crucify him, crucify him." (Lk. 23:21) Also, He was a rejected king. Isaiah, the Prophet, also had said, "He is...rejected of men..." (Isa. 53:3) Christ came as King of the Jews, but they would not receive Him. They had their own blind prejudices and notions as to the character of the Messiah and the nature of His work when He came. They thought that He would come with royal splendor and regal power and destroy the power of Rome and thus free them from tyranny and oppression. When Christ, the true Messiah, appeared they were so blind that they rejected Him. At the cross the multitude even preferred a criminal to Him. They cried, "...Away with this man, and release unto us Barabbas." (Lk. 23:18) Barabbas was a malefactor. They had such determined hatred and rejection of Him that they would not stop short of putting Him to death in order to get completely rid of Him. Now, had you or I been living, and at the cross we would have been as against Him as were those wicked men who put Him to death, for we are as blind by nature as they were. That's a sobering thought, isn't it? Praise the Lord for His distinguishing grace! His grace makes a real difference.

Jesus Christ is a present king. Even though the Jews rejected their king and the Jewish and Roman authorities consented to put Him to death and did so, that was not the end of Christ Who is God's King. The prison of the grave, nor the bands of death could hold Him prey. On the third day He marvelously and mightily conquered all of the powers of darkness by rising again. After forty days on the earth He ascended back to the Father's throne and sat down. There He sits today. He's the Father's living, reigning, and mediating King. Jesus Christ is not only going to reign as king, but He now reigns as king. Surely, I believe the Bible teaches that Christ is one day coming back to establish His spiritual kingdom right here on this earth, but I also believe that He has a spiritual kingdom presently on this earth. What I mean by this is Christ is the king of the lives of all his redeemed people and indwells them by His Spirit. He sits upon the throne of their hearts and controls their lives by His scepter of authority. He imposes His laws upon them and in the main, their lives are in submission to them. Of course, He does not force His laws upon His people and make them keep His laws against their will. They will to keep His laws and delight to obey Him. They love to walk in His ways and keep His commandments. Napoleon once said, "I have founded an empire by force, and it has melted away; Jesus Christ founded his kingdom by love, and it stands to this day, and will stand." Yes, when the King of Heaven comes in to dwell, He breaks the natural rebellion, changes the will, and lifts up the affections all by shedding abroad His love in our hearts. It is by this love that we are constrained to give up ourselves completely and unreservedly to His kingly rights over our entire being. Obedience is not forced but spontaneous. Before we are saved we attempt to rule our own lives, after we are saved we give our lives over to Him for Him to rule in every area. Time will not permit us to point out that Christ is king over nature, providence, and grace. We would be thrilled if we had more time to permit us to do this.

Jesus Christ will be a future king. When He came the first time, only a few knew Him and bowed to Him as king. When He comes the second time, He will rule over all without exception. The whole earth will bow to him as king. John, the revelator, saw Him coming in judgment to smite the nations and rule them with a rod of iron and described Him as the KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS (Rev. 19:16). He is now absolute King, but He has not taken full control of all affairs of men as He will do when He comes the second time. At the time of His coming the Antichrist will be a leading king of this earth along with kings of the north, south, east and west. These will all be great and terrible kings of the end time. The Lord Jesus, the coming KING OF KINGS shall utterly destroy all of these by the brightness of His coming. They shall be devoured as a vapor before a mighty gust of wind or as the morning dew before the rising summer sun. When this great and mighty king comes to shake the earth with judgment and establish His kingdom and rule in righteousness, the unsaved, unprepared ones will cry for the rocks and mountains to hide them from His presence, but it will be too late. The day of mercy will be past and over. Yes, it will be over and gone. What a frightful and fearful day for the unsaved. Now, while you can turn to Him as the King of mercy and salvation, do it, and don't wait until it is too late. Receive Him and thou shalt be saved. (John 1:11-12) Surrender to Him as King, and place the reigns of control of your life into His gracious hands. Will you do it today?