Have you ever been in a huge, noisy crowd, but the second your parent or best friend called your name, you instantly recognized their voice? How did you pick their voice out of hundreds of others?
Jesus used everyday images — like bread, light, and a door — to paint a picture of His identity. He is the great "I AM" from the Old Testament, holding the exact answer to every need we will ever have.
Thousands of years before Jesus was born, God spoke to Moses from a burning bush. Moses asked, "What is your name?" God replied, "I AM WHO I AM" (- Ex 3:14). When Jesus was speaking to the religious leaders, He looked right at them and said, "Before Abraham was, I AM" (- John 8:58). They immediately picked up rocks to kill Him because they knew exactly what He was saying: He was claiming to be the eternal God.
Jesus then used seven brilliant images to help us understand what "I AM" looks like in our everyday lives.
People were desperate for physical food, but Jesus said, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me shall never hunger" (- John 6:35). He wasn't talking about physical bread; He was talking about spiritual satisfaction. He also declared, "I am the light of the world" (- John 8:12). Before we know Jesus, we are like the "walking dead" stuck in darkness. Independence from God is death, but Jesus brings us into the light of life.
Jesus called Himself the Door of the sheep. The thief (Satan) did not come through the door of a natural birth; he snuck in to steal, kill, and destroy. But Jesus was born into this earth legally, making Him the Door to safety (- John 10:9-10). He is the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep (- John 10:11).
Because you belong to the Shepherd, you are wired to hear His voice! Just like a dog knows its owner's call in a crowded park, your spirit knows God's voice. We just need to stop tuning in to the "voice of strangers" (the world, anxiety, and the enemy).
Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life (- John 11:25). If you believe in Him, even when your physical body eventually stops, your spirit will never actually die. You just step right into eternity! He is also the Way, the Truth, and the Life. People say "all roads lead to God," and in one sense, they do (everyone will stand before God). But Jesus is the *only* road that leads to eternal Life with the Father (- John 14:6).
Jesus said, "I am the true vine... every branch in me that does not bear fruit He takes away" (- John 15:1-2). For centuries, religion taught that if you mess up and stop producing fruit, God chops you off and throws you in the fire. But that is not what the original Greek says!
The Greek word for "takes away" is airo, which actually means "to lift up." When a grapevine gets heavy and falls into the dirt, it gets cut off from the sun and stops growing fruit. A good gardener doesn't chop it off; he lifts it back up onto the trellis into the sunlight! When you fail, God’s grace doesn't chop you off — He lifts you back up into the Light so you can grow again!
Everything I need — whether it is direction, life, or grace — is found in the great "I AM" of Jesus.
This week, I will ask God to tune my ears to His voice over the noise of social media, friends, and anxiety, because I am wired to hear my Shepherd.