Teaching Series

Plain, Simple, Powerful — First Jesus

I deliberately kept it plain and simple: first Jesus and who He is; then Jesus and what He did—Jesus crucified. 1 Corinthians 2:2 (MSG)

“I AM” Changes Who I Am

“I AM” The Resurrection And The Life

The reason my Father loves Me is that I lay down My life—only to take it up again… I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. John 10:17–18 (NIV)

If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. 1 Corinthians 15:19 (NIV)

The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 1 Corinthians 15:26 (NIV)

I Am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I Am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades. Revelation 1:18 (NIV)

Grace Delayed

Lord, the one You love is sick. John 11:3 (NIV)

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when He heard that Lazarus was sick, He stayed where He was two more days. John 11:5–6 (NIV)

On His arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. John 11:17 (NIV)

“Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if You had been here, my brother would not have died. John 11:21 (NIV)

But some of them said, “Could not He who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?” John 11:37 (NIV)

Grace Missed

“Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if You had been here, my brother would not have died.” John 11:21 (NIV)

Martha = Dominant one: feminine form of the word meaning lord, master.

See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. Hebrews 12:15 (NIV) 

I AM the resurrection and the life. John 11:25 (NIV)

Grace Activated

She went back and called her sister Mary aside. “The Teacher is here,” she said, “and is asking for you.” …quickly she got up and went out. John 11:28, 31 (NIV)

Mary = Bitterness: rebellious, obstinate, sorrow.

When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.” John 11:32 (NIV)

The act of surrender transforms her lament into worship. When bitterness bows, sorrow worships, and rebellion surrenders; Jesus responds with life-giving power.

When Jesus saw her weeping… He was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. “Where have you laid him?” He asked. John 11:33-34 (NIV)

Grace Speaks

For what the law was powerless to do... God did by sending His own Son. Romans 8:3 (NIV)

Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. “Take away the stone,” He said. John 11:38-39 (NIV)

Jesus does not approach the grave as a spectator; He approaches it as a conqueror who is enraged by the havoc death has wrought on His friends. — B.B. Warfield

“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.” John 11:39 (NIV)

So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard Me… When He had said these things, He cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” The man who had died came out. John 11:41-44 (ESV)

Jesus must come to the tomb of Lazarus, and His voice must cry ‘Lazarus, come forth,’ or else the corpse shall remain inanimate… In His omnipotent voice lies the power. — Charles H. Spurgeon

For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first… Therefore encourage one another with these words. 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 18 (NIV)

‘I AM’ changes who I am

The Way, The Truth, The Life

FROM GENESIS TO EXODUS

God doesn’t just want to get them out of Egypt; He wants to get Egypt out of them.

John 14:1-7

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God;believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”

Jesus the Way to the Father

5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” 6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

Jesus brings all of that together and centres it in Himself. He is not pointing to something beyond Him. He is identifying Himself as the fulfilment of what people have been searching for.

1. THE WAY

2. THE TRUTH

3. THE LIFE

THE DECISION

6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

THE NEW EXODUS FULFILLED

Matthew 5:17 (NIV)
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”

Plain, Simple, Powerful — First Jesus

I deliberately kept it plain and simple: first Jesus and who He is; then Jesus and what He did—Jesus crucified. 1 Corinthians 2:2 (MSG)

“I AM” Changes Who I Am

Encountering Jesus as “I AM” changes who I am!

“I AM” The DOOR and the Good Shepherd

We are His people, the sheep of His pasture. Psalm 100:3 (NIV)

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. Psalm 23:1 (NIV)

Our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep. Hebrews 13:20 (NIV)

Carrying His own cross, He went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). There they crucified Him. John 19:17–18 (NIV)

Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals. Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralysed. One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, He asked him, “Do you want to get well?” “Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.” Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked. The day on which this took place was a Sabbath. John 5:1–9 (NIV)

Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the Gate for the sheep. All who have come before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the Gate; whoever enters through Me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. “I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.” John 10:7–11 (NIV)

The House of Mercy

Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda. John 5:2 (NIV)

1.         The Locked Door

2.         The Open Door

For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all people. 1 Timothy 2:5–6 (NIV)

Do you want to get well?”John 5:6 (NIV)

Sir, I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.”John 5:7 (NIV)

Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” John 5:8 (ESV)

And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked.  Now that day was the Sabbath. John 5:9 (ESV)

“I AM” the Door

I AM the Door. To enter through Me is to experience life, freedom, and satisfaction. John 10:9 (TPT)

A thief has only one thing in mind—he wants to steal, slaughter, and destroy. John 10:10 (TPT)

I AM the Door… They will come and go freely and will find good pastures. John 10:9 (NLT)I have come to give you everything in abundance, more than you expect —life in its fullness until you overflow!

Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. Revelation 3:8 (ESV)

“I AM” The Good Shepherd

I AM the Good Shepherd. John 10:11 (ESV)

1.         He Knows Your Name

He calls His own sheep by name. John 10:3 (NIV).

Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are Mine. Isaiah 43:1 (NIV)

2.         He Leads You

When He has brought out all His own, He goes on ahead of them, and His sheep follow Him because they know His voice. John 10:4 (NIV)

To follow the Shepherd is to walk on ground He has already conquered. Philip Keller

I will go before you and level the mountains; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. Isaiah 45:2 (NIV)

3.         He Protects You

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd… sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees… He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. John 10:11–13 (NIV)

Put on the full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes… We are not ignorant of his devices Ephesians 6:11; 2 Corinthians 2:11 (NIV)

4.         He Lays Down His Life

I AM the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. John 10:11 (NIV)

No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. John 10:18 (NIV)

We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. Isaiah 53:6 (NIV)

He who was the Shepherd of the sheep became a Lamb in the midst of the wolves, that He might by His death deliver the sheep from the jaws of the lion. — Charles H. Spurgeon

I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father. Jn 10:18 (NIV)

He stripped all the spiritual tyrants in the universe of their sham authority at the Cross and marched them naked through the streets. Col 2:15 (MSG).

By His death, He destroyed death. — Athanasius

I AM Changes Who I am 

“Don’t come any closer,” God told him.  “Take off your shoes, for you are standing on holy ground. I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” 

Exodus 3:5 (LB) 

But Moses protested, “If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ they will ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what should I tell them?” God replied to Moses, “I Am Who I Am. Say this to the people of Israel: I Am has sent me to you.” God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: Yahweh, the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you. This is my eternal name, my name to remember for all generations. 

Exodus 3:13-15 (NLT) 

I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. 

John 8:12 (NKJ)   

I am the Light of the world. So if you follow me, you won’t be stumbling through the darkness, for living light will flood your path. 

John 8:12 (LB) 

The one who is the true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.  

John 1:9 (NLT) 

Your words are a flashlight to light the path ahead of me and keep me from stumbling. 

Psalm 119:105 (LB) 

People loved darkness better than light, because their deeds were evil.  

John 3:19 (LB) 

The Lord is my light and my salvation; He protects me from danger — whom shall I fear? 

Psalm 27:1 (LB)   

1.  JESUS DOESN’T REFLECT LIGHT — HE IS THE LIGHT 

Life came into being because of him, for His life is light for all humanity. And this Living Expression is the Light that bursts through gloom— the Light that darkness could not diminish! 

Isaiah 9:2 (TPT)   

The LORD is my light and my salvation. 

Psalm 27:1 (NLT)   

The LORD will be your everlasting light. 

Isaiah 60:19 (NLT)   

In Him was life, and that life was the LIGHT of all mankind. 

John 1:4–5 (NCV)   

The true LIGHT that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 

John 1:9 (NCV) 

Light Does More Than Inform — It Transforms. 

For God, who said, “Let there be light in the darkness,” has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. 

2 Corinthians 4:6 (NLT) 

Light exposes what is hidden. 

There is no eternal doom awaiting those who trust him to save them. But those who don’t trust him have already been tried and condemned for not believing in the only Son of God. Their sentence is based on this fact: that the Light from heaven came into the world, but they loved the darkness more than the Light, for their deeds were evil. They hated the heavenly Light because they wanted to sin in the darkness. They stayed away from that Light for fear their sins would be exposed and they would be punished. 

John 3:18-19 (LB) 

Jesus doesn’t just change what we believe - He changes who we are. 

2.  LIGHT (JESUS) HELPS US WITH LIVING. 

HEALING & WHOLENESS. 

The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for He has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the LORD’s favour has come.  

Luke 4:18-19 (NLT)    

The Lord is close to those whose hearts are breaking; He rescues those who are humbly sorry for their sins. 

Psalm 34:18 (TLB) 

 
The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. 

Psalm 34:18 (ESV)   

HOPE. 

Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. 

Romans 5:5 (NKJ) 

Jeremiah 29:11 (LB) For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.  

PEACE. 

Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful. 

John 14:27 (NASB) 

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all He has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. 

Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT) 

3.  LIGHT (JESUS) REVEALS THE WAY FORWARD 

The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day. But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble. 

Proverbs 4:18 (NIV) 

Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. The man who walks in the dark does not know where he is going. 

John 12:35 (NIV) 

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. 

John 1:1 (NIV) 

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. 

John 1:14 (NIV)   

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path. 

Psalm 119:105 (NIV) 

 
Since the Lord is directing our steps, why try to understand everything that happens along the way? 

Proverbs 20:24 (LB) 

4.  THOSE WHO FOLLOW THE LIGHT, CARRY IT! 
 

Once your life was full of sin’s darkness, but now you have the very light of our Lord shining through you because of your union with him. Your mission is to live as children flooded with his revelation-light! 

EPHESIANS 5:8 (TPT)   

Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 

Ephesians 5:15-16 (NIV) 

You are the world’s light - a city on a hill, glowing in the night for all to see. Don’t hide your light! Let it shine for all; let your good deeds glow for all to see, so that they will praise your heavenly Father. 

Matthew 5:14–16 (LB) 

I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. 

John 8:12 (NKJ)

PLAIN, SIMPLE, POWERFUL — FIRST JESUS

“I deliberately kept it plain and simple: first Jesus and who He is; then Jesus and what He did—Jesus crucified.” 1 Corinthians 2:2 (MSG)

“I AM” CHANGES WHO I AM

“The angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, "I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” Exodus 3:2–3 (NIV)

“Moses said to God, ‘Who am I that I should go?” Exodus 3:11 (NIV)

“Moses said to God, ‘Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is His name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” Exodus 3:13 (NIV)

“The essential qualifications for encountering God are unshod feet and a hidden face.” — THEODORE EPP

“I AM” THE BREAD OF LIFE

“‘I AM’ the bread of life. Whoever comes to Me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in Me will never be thirsty.” John 6:35 (NLT)

”Yes, I am the Bread of Life! Your ancestors ate manna in the wilderness, but they all died. Anyone who eats the Bread from heaven, however, will never die. John 6:48–50 (NLT)

“I am the Living Bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this Bread will live forever; and this bread, which I will offer so the world may live, is My flesh.” John 6:51 (NLT)

A NEW EXODUS — OUT OF CHAOS AND DARKNESS

“If our age is marked by the cross, it is because the cross is shorthand for the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ—the centrepiece of redemptive history. But before the cross, there was the Exodus.” — DON CARSON

1. THE FICKLE CROWD — PROVISION WITHOUT PRESENCE

“Very truly I tell you, you are looking for Me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.” John 6:26 (NIV)

“Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.” John 6:27 (NIV)

“We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” — C. S. LEWIS

AM I PURSUING JESUS FOR WHAT HE CAN DO FOR ME, FOR TEMPORARY BENEFITS, OR FOR WHO HE IS?

2. THE MIGHTY DELIVERER — THE “I AM” IN THE STORM

“I am the LORD… I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment.” Exodus 6:6 (NIV)

“They saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water; and they were frightened. But He said to them, “It is I; don’t be afraid.” John 6:19–20 (NIV)

“He who made the sea can certainly walk upon it. There is no water so deep that it can drown the ‘I AM,’ and no storm so fierce that it does not provide a pavement for His feet.” — CHARLES H. SPURGEON

WHAT STORM ARE YOU EXPERIENCING? LISTEN FOR THE EGŌ EIMI. YOU'RE NOT AWAITING RESCUE, BUT A PERSON.

3. THE ETERNAL PROVIDER — I AM THE BREAD OF LIFE

“Then Jesus declared, “I am the Bread of Life. Whoever comes to Me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in Me will never be thirsty.” John 6:35 (NIV)

AUDIT YOUR APPETITE: WHAT KIND OF ‘BREAD' ARE YOU PURSUING THAT LEAVES YOU HUNGRY A FEW HOURS LATER?

THE GRACE-FILLED INVITATION

“There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of each person which cannot be satisfied by any created thing but only by God the Creator, made known through Jesus Christ.” — BLAISE PASCAL

“From this time many of His disciples turned back and no longer followed Him.” John 6:66 (NIV)

”Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that You are the Holy One of God.” John 6:68–69 (NIV)