Who Is Jesus? The 7 I Am Statements of Christಮಾದರಿ

THE WAY

When putting a destination in the SatNav, often there are different routes to get to a desired destination. We pick the quickest route, or sometimes the toll-free route, to get to where we need to go. New Age spirituality supports the notion that there are many routes to God and therefore, we are free to choose the way that suits us best. However, the 6th “I am” statement of Christ completely opposes this. When it comes to the Father, there is only one route to him and it is Christ. Our access to God is only through Christ. The question is why?

“I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy” (Leviticus 11:44). When the Bible speaks of God’s holiness, it refers to Him being completely separate, transcendent, and superior from who we are and all that has been created. In God’s very essence and nature, He is different. Out of His holiness flows His perfect and sinless nature. God is totally and completely good. This is very different from when we call a person “good” because they seem to be law-abiding citizens; they may tell a white lie sometimes or act out of character occasionally, however, they haven’t murdered anyone or stolen anything. Therefore, they are “good” people, based on a subjective measure by which we judge others and ourselves. It’s different with God - He’s pure in every way. He is good.

God’s holy nature also means that He is sinless and doesn’t associate with it. This is displayed in scripture with Adam and Eve being sent out of the Garden of Eden for their disobedience or when Satan was thrown out of heaven because of a prideful heart. Psalm 24:3-4 reads “Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart”. To access God, we need to be holy - spotless and without blemish. Since we are imperfect, in and of ourselves we cannot access God. Now, the Bible states that when there is sin, there needs to be shedding of blood through death to cover or atone for sin. In the Old Testament, the temporal solution was animal sacrifice; then, Christ was - and to this day is - the permanent solution. Being fully God and fully man, through total obedience to the Father, He overcame all temptations of life and through his resurrection, also overcame death, Hell, and the grave. In His crucifixion, He exchanges our imperfections for His perfection, our impurity for His purity, and our sinfulness for His sinlessness. He was the perfect human sacrifice, the one who is spotless and without blemish.

This is why Christ is the way, the truth, and the life. Anything or anyone other than Christ would never be enough. He is the way to the Father, giving us access to the fullness of God, His power, and His presence. He is the truth, with no other truth outside of Him. He is life, and the life-giver Himself, allowing us to live as God had intended, and He is the way. Jesus doesn’t just point us in the right direction, it’s Him. He is the way.