God Revealed – A New Testament JourneySample

John: Life to the Full

John emphasizes “believing” (98 times), or faith is in order to attain “life” (36 times). He plays around these themes mentioning various dimensions of faith impacting life in different ways.

Christ’s seven “I am's” of Jesus cover the essence of these themes providing the secrets of a “full” or “abundant” life in this world and eternal life in the next.

I am The Bread of Life (ch 6)

Soon after Jesus miraculously feeds 5,000 people using 5 loaves and 2 fish, he talks of “Living Bread.” A while before he had assured the Samaritan woman that he can give her “Living Water.”
In both cases we see a faith that multiplies providing ever satisfying life. “Those who eat/ drink will never hunger/ thirst.”

I am The Light of the World (ch 8)

Christ gives sight to the blind man, warns of the worse illness – spiritual blindness. Christ exhorts both the blind man and adulteress (same chapter) to “sin no more.”
The adulteress who is forgiven (ch 8) per history records obeys Jesus’ command, starts a church named after the forgiving Savior, internationalizes Damascus and enables Thomas to have safe passage to India. [1]

Faith that “sees” should result in freedom from sin as a result of the new spiritual perspective - light of life.

I am The Good Shepherd (ch 10)

In Chapter 5, Jesus heals a paralytic near the sheep gate. This is the gate where sheep enter for sacrifice and sick people are cast off from society, most of whom never return. [3]

The sheep must have a faith that obeys by hearing the shepherd’s voice to gain “abundant life” or “life to the full.”

I am The Resurrection and The Life (ch 11)

On news of Lazarus’s death, Jesus asks Martha and bystanders to believe, to “see God’s glory” - faith in death and distress.

In ch 3 he talks to Nicodemus of being “born again” into this spiritual life with the promise of eternal life in the future.

I am The Way, The Truth and The Life (ch 14)

Christ says that those who believe in His absolute divinity can do greater works than Him in His name. They have an empowered life.

I am The Vine (ch 15)

“Apart from Christ, we can do nothing” - dependent faith results in fruitful life, obtained by being connected to vine.

Is our faith transforming our lives?