Finding I Amનમૂનો

Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

The Way, the Truth, and the Life. This I AM statement is the clearest example in Scripture of the certainty of Jesus being the only way to eternal life. 

Some people in this world think they have the way figured out. But unless the way is Jesus, they are deceived. Jesus is stating very clearly that He is the Way. There is an exclusivity to this phrase, similar to John 10:7-9 where Jesus refers to Himself as the Sheep Gate. Jesus doesn’t come to show a “better” way. There is no other way. There is one way, and that way is simply and solely through Christ. 

As a society we can sometimes think truth and freedom are opposites. That freedom is all about whatever you might believe. That truth is restricting. But in this verse, we learn the opposite. Only in the truth can we be free. 

Read Genesis 2:15-16. What are the first words God uses in His command to Adam?

Now read Genesis 3:1 and notice how the enemy twists God’s command. 

God’s words were full of freedom, “you are free,” with one protective command to not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. But the enemy wanted Eve’s focus to be on the one thing she couldn’t have. And the enemy wants our focus to be there as well. Satan wants us to feel God is restrictive, unrealistic, and secretly holding out on us.

I have three dogs. But my two outside dogs, Champ and Chelsea, are sometimes delinquent. I love them. They love me. But they love running away more. Even though we don’t have a fence, we have other systems in place to keep them safely at home. But, after several mishaps where they ran away we decided it was time to do something else.

I used to think invisible fences were cruel. But we live in the country and installing a regular fence was simply out of the question. An invisible fence it would have to be. After all, a shock to keep them inside the safe boundary is a lot better than what might happen outside the boundary.

Boundaries aren’t cruel barriers meant to keep my dogs from freedom. They are protective restrictions meant to define where safe freedom can be found.

My dogs aren’t the only ones who need to remember this lesson. I need to remember this and apply it to the protective restrictions God has for me.

Are there protections God has put in your life that you view as restrictions? How might you change your perspective on those things?