April 27, 2024

This Week…I AM The Way, The Truth, and The Life (John 14)

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Recorded in the Gospel of John, our Lord made seven statements referring to Himself as I AM

I AM The Light of the World
I AM The Bread of Life
I AM The Door

I AM The Good Shepherd
I AM The True Vine

I AM The Way, The Truth, and The Life
I AM The Resurrection and The Life

Each week during this season of Lent, here on the Seeking Him blog, we will be focusing our devotionals on a different aspect of Jesus’ revelation of Himself as I AM.  The aim of Lent should be to prepare our hearts for the remembrance of Jesus’ sacrifice—His trial and torture, the Crucifixion and His death…and above all, the celebration of His Resurrection from the dead.  We pray that this will be a great encouragement to each of you who read them.  And that all of us will consider the significance of Jesus’ words and, through them, be helped as we remember and are thankful for all Jesus went through during the last few weeks of His life on this earth.

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 Jesus said to him,
I AM the Way and the Truth and the Life;
no one comes to the Father except by (through) Me.
John 14:6

This week, here on the Seeking Him devotional blog, we have listened to the words of our Lord recorded in John chapter 14.  Here Jesus made it clear that He is the only Way to the Father.   Jesus was direct in His words…it was ‘all or nothing’ (as Cynda so succintly put it)!  Our devotional writers have shared some insight on these words spoken by our Lord…specifically regarding the statement He made, “I AM the Way, the Truth, and the Life.”    Here are a few highlights from the devotionals that Tina, Laura, Cynda, Ann, and Ahmee wrote to encourage us.

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In One Path, Cynda encouraged us to believe Jesus’ statement in verse 6.

“In this verse, Jesus makes a very bold statement—one that forces us to make a decision.  It is an all-or-nothing deal.  There is simply no middle ground. Either Jesus is the only Way to the Father or Jesus is not telling the truth.  (That was so hard for me to type!)

Consider the following verses:

Jesus said to her, “I AM the Resurrection and the Life.
The one who believes in Me, even if he dies, will live.
Everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die—ever.
Do you believe this?”
John 11:25-26 HCSB

Do you believe this?”  That is the crux of the matter.  Those four words sum it up in a nutshell.   What do you believe?”

In Your Compass, Ahmee reminded us of the importance of knowing the Truth from the Scriptures.

“If ever we wonder what we should do, we have a Compass to point us in the right direction.  Jesus said that He is “…The Way, The Truth, and The Life.”  So, when we come across new teachings we need to be diligent in comparing this teaching to the Word of God that we know.

Anyone can look at the Bible and interpret it the way they want; but that doesn’t mean that you should blindly follow every interpretation of the Bible.  Go to it and read for yourself.  What does God say to you about what you are reading, and what does He say to you about the teaching you just heard?

There are concepts and things in the Bible that we KNOW for a fact.  We would know it immediately if we were to hear a teaching that contradicted what we KNOW to be true from our time spent in the Word.”

In Jesus IS The Way, The Truth, and The Life, Ann pointed out the dangers of being without The Way, The Truth, and The Life!

“Without The Way?  There is no going…where can you go if there is no way through?  We cannot go to the Father except through Jesus.  The way gives us access to wherever we want to go.  Therefore Jesus is the True Access to the many blessings the Lord has in store for us.

Without The Truth? Wow, just having Christ in us and us in Him we are assured of having knowledge of the truth of the great things—for Christ knows all.  For it means we know God, too!

Jesus is life.  Without The Life?  Well,  “no Jesus=no life”.  Accepting Him as the Lord and Savior gives us eternal life.  We thank God for giving us life through Christ Jesus.”

In The Map to Salvation, Laura reminded us of the practical application of being able to follow directions when we follow Jesus.

“Here on Earth, directions can be very confusing.  Directions can especially be confusing when landmarks are similar, or the person giving them can confuse me if they start describing landmarks or road names when I have never been in the area.  It is probably this way for a lot of people.

Yet, when it comes to eternal life, we have a great road map for directions!  Jesus gave us this road map when He spent His last moments before the Crucifixion with His disciples.  He told them that He is the Way to God.  He is the Truth from God.  Jesus brought God’s truth to us and gave us the life.”

And in Know The Father Through His Son Jesus, Tina pointed out how Jesus, being the very image of His Father, made Him known to the Apostles.

“Through their training and living with Jesus, the Apostles may have just looked at him as just a man with an anointing from God.  Not as Who He truly is—Jesus being the image of God.  This thought is pretty cool though.  Just think of being around Jesus, who is the image of God, for three years.  I would imagine I might  just take for granted Jesus being with us everyday, not thinking He was going to ever leave.  I would, not intentionally, not listen as intently. I would hear, but not really.  Then once He was gone I would regret not having been more intentional in listening, as well as noting everything being said…watching the miracles being performed…wishing I had asked for God to anoint me in much the same way as His Son. ”

Have you had the opportunity to read through these blogposts this week?  If not, I would encourage you to do so!  Our bloggers have made these as well as some other wonderful points to direct us towards Jesus, Who IS The Way, The Truth, and The Life.  Through Him, and ONLY through Him, do we have access to God the Father.

Jesus is The WAY, The TRUTH, and The LIFE

SeekingHimLogo

Recorded in the Gospel of John, our Lord made seven statements referring to Himself as I AM

I AM The Light of the World
I AM The Bread of Life
I AM The Door

I AM The Good Shepherd
I AM The True Vine

I AM The Way, The Truth, and The Life
I AM The Resurrection and The Life

Each week during this season of Lent, here on the Seeking Him blog, we will be focusing our devotionals on a different aspect of Jesus’ revelation of Himself as I AM.  The aim of Lent should be to prepare our hearts for the remembrance of Jesus’ sacrifice—His trial and torture, the Crucifixion and His death…and above all, the celebration of His Resurrection from the dead.  We pray that this will be a great encouragement to each of you who read them.  And that all of us will consider the significance of Jesus’ words and, through them, be helped as we remember and are thankful for all Jesus went through during the last few weeks of His life on this earth.

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

Jesus answered, “I AM The Way and The Truth and The Life.
No one comes to the Father except through Me.
If you really know Me, you will know My Father as well.
From now on, you do know Him and have seen Him.”
John 14:6-7 NIV

The topic this week reminds me of a song we used to sing in my Sunday school days, here are the lyrics.

I am The Way and The Truth and The Life;
That’s what Jesus said

Without The Way there is no going,
Without The Truth there is no knowing,
Without The Life there is no growing,
I am The Way and The Truth and The Life;
That’s what Jesus said

Very true!  Without The Way?  There is no going…where can you go if there is no way through?  We cannot go to the Father except through Jesus.  The Way give access to wherever we want to go.  Therefore Jesus is the True Access to the many blessings the Lord has in store for us. We need to accept that Jesus is the only access and that sure way to everything.

Through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand
and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God
Romans 5:2

Without The Truth? Wow, just having Christ in us and us in Him we are assured of having knowledge of the truth of the great things—for Christ knows all.  For it means we know God, too!

If you really know Me, you will know My Father as well.
From now on, you do know Him and have seen Him.”
Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.
Jesus answered: “Don’t you know Me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time?
Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in Me?
The words I say to you I do not speak on My own authority.
Rather, it is the Father, living in Me, who is doing His work.
John 14: 7-10 NIV

Jesus is life.  Without The Life?  Well,  “no Jesus=no life”.  Accepting Him as the Lord and Savior gives us eternal life.  We thank God for giving us life through Christ Jesus.  Otherwise there was no one to pay for our sins if it was not for Christ.

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Lord, we thank You for giving us Christ Jesus to be our Way, our Truth, and our Life. We are able to access abundant blessings through Him. We are able to know Your Word through Him.  And we have life through Him.  He is a blessing to our lives.  We pray for the grace to remain in Him and Him in us!  We pray in Jesus’ name.  Amen.

The Map to Salvation

SeekingHimLogo

Recorded in the Gospel of John, our Lord made seven statements referring to Himself as I AM

I AM The Light of the World
I AM The Bread of Life
I AM The Door

I AM The Good Shepherd
I AM The True Vine

I AM The Way, The Truth, and The Life
I AM The Resurrection and The Life

Each week during this season of Lent, here on the Seeking Him blog, we will be focusing our devotionals on a different aspect of Jesus’ revelation of Himself as I AM.  The aim of Lent should be to prepare our hearts for the remembrance of Jesus’ sacrifice—His trial and torture, the Crucifixion and His death…and above all, the celebration of His Resurrection from the dead.  We pray that this will be a great encouragement to each of you who read them.  And that all of us will consider the significance of Jesus’ words and, through them, be helped as we remember and are thankful for all Jesus went through during the last few weeks of His life on this earth.

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we don’t know where You are going,
so how can we know the way?”
Jesus answered, “I AM the Way and the Truth and the Life.
No one comes to the Father except through Me.
If you really know Me, you will know My Father as well.
From now on, you do know Him and have seen Him.”
John 14:5-7

Have you ever been given directions on how to get somewhere?  I have, and sometimes they are hard to follow.  I get lost just trying to follow the GPS on my husband’s phone.  If I don’t know the area, I will get lost with the simplest of directions.  I have to have landmarks; they help me know exactly where I am going.  If you give me directions, make sure to give me landmarks, too, to look for while I am driving.

I must know the way if I am going to get where I am going.  Here on Earth, directions can be very confusing.  Directions can especially be confusing when landmarks are similar, or the person giving them can confuse me if they start describing landmarks or road names when I have never been in the area.  It is probably this way for a lot of people.

Yet, when it comes to eternal life, we have a great road map for directions!  Jesus gave us this road map when He spent His last moments before the Crucifixion with His disciples.  He told them that He is the way to God.  He is the truth from God.  Jesus brought God’s truth to us and gave us life.

And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.
It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive;
he was lost, and is found.
Luke 15:31-32

Remember the parable of the prodigal son?  We are the prodigal sons and daughters of God.  Just like the prodigal son in Jesus’s parable, we have wandered away…thinking that we know what is best for ourselves.  And we mess up.  We sin.  We get away from God.

When we finally hit rock bottom, we come back.  We are like the prodigal son who goes looking for his father’s help.  We seek our Father’s (God’s) help in turning our life around.  Jesus told us that He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  By accepting Him, we are reconciled with God and given a new life.  God rejoices when we come back to the True Way.  We were once lost, but now we are found.

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Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for the way back to You.  Thank You for the truth and the eternal life that became ours when Jesus sacrificed Himself on the Cross.  Without it we would be forever lost.  We rejoice when we find you again and You rejoice as well.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

You Are The Shepherd

SeekingHimLogo

 

Recorded in the Gospel of John, our Lord made seven statements referring to Himself as I AM

I AM The Light of the World
I AM The Bread of Life
I AM The Door

I AM The Good Shepherd
I AM The True Vine

I AM The Way, The Truth, and The Life
I AM The Resurrection and The Life

Each week during this season of Lent, here on the Seeking Him blog, we will be focusing our devotionals on a different aspect of Jesus’ revelation of Himself as I AM.  The aim of Lent should be to prepare our hearts for the remembrance of Jesus’ sacrifice—His trial and torture, the Crucifixion and His death…and above all, the celebration of His Resurrection from the dead.  We pray that this will be a great encouragement to each of you who read them.  And that all of us will consider the significance of Jesus’ words and, through them, be helped as we remember and are thankful for all Jesus went through during the last few weeks of His life on this earth.

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

 Jesus said to him,
I AM the Way and the Truth and the Life;
no one comes to the Father except by (through) Me.


You are the Shepherd, I belong to You
When I walk on rough ground, You will guide me through
You know my name, You know my voice
Before I was born I was Your choice
Show me how to follow, Lord, keep me close to You
You are the Shepherd, I belong to You

Open eyes to see You are the Way
Open ears to hear You are the Truth
Open hearts to know You are the Lord of Life
For every one You hold a special plan

Love Gives

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This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.
And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.
If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need
but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?
Dear children, let us not love with words or speech
but with actions and in truth.
1 John 3:16-18 NIV

What made God give us Christ Jesus?—It is Love
What made Christ give us the Holy Spirit?—It is Love
What makes Holy Spirit give us gifts?—It is Love

For God gave us Jesus Christ (John 3:16) and Christ (as He was ascending into Heaven) said that He must go but gave the Holy Spirit who would be with us always (John 14), and the Holy Spirit is the one who gives us gifts (1 Corinthians 12).

So in our focus Scripture this week, we are commanded to act in love the same way we were loved and given the free gift of Christ as well as gifts of the spirit. Brethren, we are in this physical world and so our love can also be expressed by sincerely helping persons in need.

  • We can do this by sharing our earthly possessions with them (James 2:14-17)
  • If we refuse to give of our food, clothing, or money to help others in real need it is to close our hearts to them (Deuteronomy 15:7-11)
  • This also includes giving our money to help bring the gospel to those who have not heard (through evangelism) (James 4:9-10)

May the good Lord help us as we decide to express love
by giving with all our hearts without murmuring.

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Dear Heavenly Father, we thank You and we bless You because You are God. We honor You because You are the I AM who I AM, the omnipresent God. Blessed be Your Holy name in all the earth. Immortal God, invisible God, You are so great. Thank You for Your love for us. The free gifts to us are so precious that we glorify Your name because of such wonderful gifts. Teach us to love one another as You loved us, as Christ loved us, and as Holy Spirit loves us. Thank You for hearing our prayer and granting us the desire of our heart. It is in Jesus’ name that we have prayed. AMEN!!

“I AM” Chapter 4 – Day 4: Jesus is The LIGHT

John15_11

 

This time last week I sat in the dark.  There were no lamps, no overhead lights on; I couldn’t turn them on if I wanted to.  It was a Monday, a typical Monday if you know what I mean.  My power had been turned off and there was nothing I could do about it.  Can you relate?

On day one of this week, Teresa asked us which verse in John chapter 1 could we relate to the most, right now, where we are.  I chose verse 5, not even realizing that it was my topic for this week.  God is funny like that, right?  John 1: 4-5 says this: “The word gave life to everything that was created, and His life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot extinguish it!”

Do you understand what that means? The darkness of evil never can and never will overcome God’s Light.  Jesus Christ is the Creator of life, and we are dead people walking until He comes into our lives and breathes life into us.  His life brings light to us and in His light we see ourselves as we really are—sinners in need of a Savior, a Redeemer.

When we choose to follow Jesus, He becomes our true Light and we no longer have to walk blindly and fall into our old sinful ways.  He lights the path ahead of us so that we can see the way we need to live.  He removes the darkness of sin in our lives.  He shows us how to walk along the way to freedom from sin and darkness.  See, all who welcome Jesus as Lord of their lives will never have to live in darkness.  Now, that doesn’t mean we will not have trouble or trials; and that doesn’t mean that we won’t sin.  It just means that no matter how dark your world may feel, He is there, giving you hope, peace, and joy.  And remember, He became human Himself and experienced some of the same sufferings and hardships that we go through.  He is your beacon in this sometimes dark world.

Our verse for today is John 8:12. “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life!”  Here, Jesus was talking to the people again, in the part of the Temple called the treasury.  It was where offerings were put and where candles burned to symbolize the pillar of fire that led the people of Israel through the wilderness.  The pillar of fire represented God’s presence, His guidance, and His protection.  In this context, Jesus Himself calls Himself the Light of the world.  He is God’s Presence in our lives.  He is God’s protection over us and He is God’s guidance.  God sent His own Son!  Is that not amazing that He loves us that much?

The last verses I found in the Bible that talk about Jesus being the Light are in 2 Corinthians 4:6-7.  “For God, who said, ‘Let there be light in the darkness,’ has made us understand that this light is the brightness of the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. But this precious treasure, this light and power that now shines within us, is held in perishable containers, that is, our weak bodies, so everyone can see that our glorious power is from God and is not our own.” We are perishable containers yet God entrusted us with His precious treasure, Jesus Christ, His Son; that this Light shines brighter than any darkness we could possibly have in our lives.

I did a little research on the sunflower (it is my favorite flower) and it actually bends toward the sun so that it can catch as much light as it possibly can.  In the early morning, it actually tilts to the east, and by twilight it tilts to the west.  If you take the flower and place it in a dark closet, it will still continue to bend everyday, just as it did when it was outside.  Even the sunflower knows that the ones that are most likely to survive are the ones that catch the most light.

Friends, I don’t want to just survive; I want to really thrive both physically and spiritually!  The only way to do that is to stay bending toward the Light—the light of our Lord Jesus Christ.

What about you today?  Where does He need to shine in your life?  What darkness is threatening to suck the life out of you?  It is simple, really.  Just ask and He will come rescue you and fill you with His Light.

And back to my story about the power outage…God came through as He always does and performed another miracle and the lights came back on.  I praised Him the rest of the day!

Let’s Pray:

Dear Heavenly Daddy, thank You for sending Jesus, Your only Son, as a Light for all who believe and receive Him into their hearts and lives.  For once we were in darkness, and now we have the Light of the Lord.  May we live as people of the Light.  May we produce only what is good, with a heavy reliance on You.  Oh Lord, we love You, we praise You, and we want only You to be the Light of our lives.  Nothing of this world will satisfy and fulfill us.  May we seek You and may our lights shine so that others will want what we have. For it is in Your Son’s precious Name, we pray.

Amen

“I AM” Chapter 4 – Day 3: I AM The Way

John15_11

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“I AM THE WAY”  is a bold statement.  It’s an exclusive statement and an inclusive statement.

 These three words have powerful meanings:

Bold ~  assured, confident

Exclusive ~ the only one

Inclusive ~ covers all cost

 The definition of “The Way” ~ “an opening for passage”

Do you see it?

We have a definite and planned path to get to the “I AM.”

John 14:6  Jesus answered, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

The Bible does not teach, “For God so loved the world that He gave the world many ways to himself.”  What does John 3:16 say?

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever (that’s the INCLUSIVE PART)  believes in Him (that’s the EXCLUSIVE part) should not perish but have everlasting life.

When Jesus uses the phrase, “I AM,” in Exodus 3:14 He is claiming the name for Himself. He is announcing Himself to us as the One who has come to fulfill His covenant and keep His promise.

When Jesus uses the word “I” in John 14:6,  He declares Himself to be the embodiment of “The Way.”  His planned path is wrapped up in a person.

Without the way there is no going

Without the truth there is no knowing

Without the life there is no living

People are always challenging this verse from the Bible, but this verse will help us to see God has bridged the gap between man and God and Jesus is the one who succeeded in making this bridge the reality for each of us.   Let’s look a little carefully at the statements in this verse:

  •  I Am The Way ~ this statement is not saying He is showing us the way, but that He is the way, He is the journey, He is the opening of the passage, He is the way for us to God, He spans the distance between sinners and God.  When we are all alone, or lost in our daily path we walk, we must remember Jesus is the path. Jesus spells it out so that there can be no mistake of how we get to Him. No one comes to the Father except through Him. No matter how important we think we are. No matter how religious or spiritual we are. No matter how many followers or friends we have, or how many people we have influenced. No matter how good or kind we are.  No matter how devoted we are. No matter how genuine we are.  Everyone who rejects Jesus Christ cannot come to God.
  • I Am The Truth ~ the Bible teaches that truth is not just something that is simply intellectual; it also has a moral dimension to it. John 3:21a refers to doing the truth: “But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light…” Jesus reveals God and exposes guilty people. Hebrews 13:8 states: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever”.

Do you remember that scene from “A Few Good Men” when Jack Nicholson said to Tom Cruise, “You can’t handle the truth?” Well what about it? Can we handle the truth?  Let’s not run away from what is right in front of us!

Pilate voiced the question on many minds today. Even though Jesus was standing right in front of Him, he asked in John 18:38: “What is truth?” He didn’t take the time to find out.  We will find what we are looking for in Christ as John 8:32 declares: “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

  • I Am The Life ~ the Bible describes life in Genesis 2:7 as “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life.”  God Himself gave life when He formed man and breathed life into him and He gave us life again when He gave us His Son to die for our sins.   In simple words God gave us His Life, then and today. We would be dead without His Life. We become alive when we surrender ourselves to Him. John 5:24 says : “I tell you the truth, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.”  Since Jesus is life, we will only find meaning when we commit to His Lordship. John 1:4 says: “In Him was life, and that life was the light of men.”

BOLD ~ Acts 4:12: “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”

Jesus is bold all throughout Scripture that He is the only way to the Father, to heaven.  Are we being bold enough with others in our daily walk to teach them the same, or are we holding back from telling others of this truth and giving them the same opportunity to knowing who “The Way” is?

EXCLUSIVE ~ 1 Timothy 2:5-6: “For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all to be testified in due time”

Jesus is exclusive all throughout Scripture sharing truths of Him being the only One, the only Way to Him.  He is the only God who is not still in a tomb! He arose and is waiting for us.  Have we shared these truths with others or are we allowing them to somehow think there are other ways to heaven?

INCLUSIVE ~ John 6:37 states: “All those the Father gives me, will come to me and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.”

Jesus is inclusive all throughout Scripture describing to us that He covered the cost of salvation for us and all we have to do is say “yes”.

Dr. David Jeremiah stated in one of his devotions: How did Jesus provide the way, truth, and life? Did He just say the words and walk away to do something else? No. He backed up what He said, He made good on His words by acting on them. He gave His own life on the Cross.  He died on Calvary’s tree to provide us the way, the truth, and the life. To not accept Jesus on this very point is to declare (I’m afraid), “Jesus, you can’t be trusted,” or even worse, “Jesus, you’re not telling the truth.” By God’s grace and goodness, we know better than that.

With the answer to this verse now explained you may be asking “How do I get to “the way, the truth and the life?”   It’s simple:  Romans 10:9-10 says, “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.  So confess, believe and receive today!

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Let’s Pray:

Dear Lord, I pray for every person who has read Your Word and this lesson and I lift them to You right now asking You to speak boldly to the hearts of the ones who may have never received You as Savior and open their eyes to this new truth they just learned today; that You are “The Way, The Truth and The Life” and the only way to You is through You.   Help them to say yes to You today, Lord, and receive the best gift ever given.  Help the ones who are already believers in You to share this same truth with the world and bring new souls to Your kingdom.  We know better —so let’s show it better, in Your name I pray.

AMEN!