One of the most revealing things about a person is their answer to the statement: Tell me about yourself. The answer to this shows what we believe is most important about us for others to know. Most people start with their name, then perhaps a job title and place of employment, where they’re from, if they’re married or have kids, and depending on the person you may get a few other facts thrown in. These statements describe who we are and how we view ourselves
Now imagine you’re meeting God and you open with your go-to question: Tell me about yourself.
God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you.” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say this to the Israelites: Yahweh, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever; this is how I am to be remembered in every generation.
Exodus 3:14-15
God’s reply to who He is, is simply His name. First He identifies Himself in first person with the Hebrew word: “Ehyeh” or “I will be” and then provides Moses with how we can refer to Him by using the same root word for “to be” by changing it to “Yahweh” or “He will be” God provided us with His sacred and personal name to remember who He is. Within just one word He communicates to us He is: omnipotent (deity, unlimited power), omniscient (knows everything), and omnipresent (present everywhere at same time). He told Moses that He has always been and always will be, He created all, He is the God of the Israelites, He is the one true God, and He is the God of the covenants.
The story of God’s name doesn’t end with Moses, it continues to Jesus who gave seven “I AM” statements within the Gospel of John. In the New Testament, this phrase is now the Greek word “ego eimi” and used in the Gospel of John 76 of 153 total times. Jesus making this claim is Him telling us His deity (John 17:6-9; John 18:4-6) and of His triune (John 20:19-22, John 14:23-25) existence with the Father and Holy Spirit. He’s pointing us to the truth that He is the Messiah.
Jesus said to them, I assure you: Before Abraham was, I am.
John 8:58
As you can imagine, this was quite a controversial statement that caused a lot of questions among the Jews and Jewish leaders. They asked among themselves, how is this the Son of God when this is the son of Joseph? Throughout the Gospel of John, we see the constant theme to show that Jesus is Messiah and the disbelief of the Jews. John lays out for us 7 signs that Jesus performed showing His divinity and tells us that many more were performed (John 20:30-31). There are also seven “I AM” statements that we will dig into more, as they each reveal a truth about Yahweh. The signs performed by Jesus were to show others that He is the Son of God and give testimony to His statements, John 18:37-38 “If I am not doing my Fathers works, don’t believe Me. But if I am doing them and you don’t believe Me, believe the works”
These 7 statements, accompanied by recorded works help paint the picture for us on who God is, why He sent His Son incarnate, and why He sent the Holy Spirit to reside within us.
The statements of I AM in John are these: the bread of life; the light of the world; the door; the good Shepard; the resurrection and the life; the way, the truth, and the life; and the true vine. Each of these statements should challenge us in how we view God and if there are any areas, where like the those who saw Jesus’s miracles, we don’t fully believe and submit to who God says He is.
I always love how God bring to light His attributes to us at different times and how when you see the message in one place, you see it everywhere. After finishing the first draft for this post, I went to read a wonderful book titled “21 Servants of Sovereign Joy” by John Piper and wouldn’t you know, the chapter I’m starting to cover is John Calvin’s biography begins with understanding “I AM.” So, to conclude this is to conclude with a quote that encompasses God’s sovereignty.
“God never had a beginning! “I AM” has sent me to you. And one who never had a beginning, but always was and is and will be, defines all things. Whether we want him to be there or not, he is there. We do not negotiate what we want to be reality. God defines reality. When we come into existence, we stand before a God who made and owns us. We have absolutely no choice in this matter. We do not choose to be and are, we do not choose that God be. No ranting and raving, no sophisticated doubt or skepticism, has nay effect on the existence of God. He simply and absolutely is. “Tell them ‘I AM’ has sent you.”
21 Servant of Sovereign Joy: Faith Flawed and Fruitful by John Piper, p 152 co 2018 by Desiring God Foundations