This is the last of the 7 I AM statements; I AM the Vine. This is my favorite. This might be due to when I in school working on my degree, there was a class I took, Biblical Interpretation, that taught us how to go deeper into the words of the bible. I actually learned …
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We are up to the sixth “I AM” statement; I am the Way is found in John 14:6, but I am including verses 1 – 11, as we need to know the context around this statement. The thought of death troubles human beings and always has. Jesus had spoke to the disciples about his death …
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This week is the fifth I AM statement; I am the Resurrection and the life. This is found in John 11:25, but to understand this better it would be wise to know what is happening. This begins in verse 17 with Jesus arriving 4 days after the death of Lazarus. In the Jewish culture funerals, …
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Last week we discussed in verses John 10:7-10 how Jesus is the Doorway. In the next verses (John 10:11-18) Jesus is now stating that He is the good shepherd. This is a continuation of Jesus speaking. God is often described as the shepherd of Israel, and similarly, the patriarchs, Moses and David were shepherds. Leadership …
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In chapter 10 of the Book of John, Jesus criticizes the Jewish leaders for failing to give Israel proper spiritual guidance. By contrast, Jesus is the good shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep. Chapter 10 provides a commentary on chapter 9, which revealed the Jewish leadership’s legal pettiness, rigidity, and hardness toward …
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Jesus as the “light of the world” is His second I am statement. Jesus was “the light of men” and that “the light shines in the darkness” (John 1:4-5). Jesus told His hearers to put their trust in the light while they had Him with them, so they might become “son of light” (John 12:35-36). …
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This week we begin a new series, the seven “I am” statements in John’s Gospel. John’s gospel often operates at the level of metaphor and symbols. Jesus is identified as the “Word,” a metaphor for God’s communicative presence. John the Baptist calls him the “Lamb of God,” a symbol for sacrificial death. These seven “I …
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This week is part three of this three-part sign. I have broken up this final sign into three parts; The Death of Lazarus (John 11:1-16 –- two weeks ago); Jesus is our Life (John 11:17-37 –- last week); and Jesus is our Power (John 11:38-44 –- this week). Each week I will have the entire …
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This week is part two of this three-part sign. I have broken up this final sign into three parts; The Death of Lazarus (John 11:1-16 –- last week); Jesus is our Life (John 11:17-37 –- this week); and Jesus is our Power (John 11:38-44 –- next week). Each week I will have the entire seventh …
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As we get ready to study the seventh sign, which is the raising of Lazarus from the dead. This is Jesus’ seventh and climactic messianic sign in John’s Gospel. Resurrections are rare in the Old Testament (by Elijah, 1 Kings 17:17-24; by Elisha, 2 Kings 4:32-37) and in the Gospels (Jairus’s daughter, Mark 5:22-24, 38-42; …
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