IMAGES and SYMBOLS [pgs 123-125]:
[John’s Gospel is a story of the light of God’s love encountering darkness]
1. “In the beginning”-these words of John echo the opening words in Genesis
2. Word translated to Greek is “logos”-logos represented God’s presence dwelling within all of creation
3. Throughout the Gospel of John we see heavy emphasis on Jesus Christ’s divinity; John’s Gospel is the only Gospel to show Jesus’ preexistence before his life on Earth is told of
4. John shows us the divinity of Christ through “I am” statements, which are for the purpose of illuminating who Jesus is and what his mission is.
A. “I am” Statements
1. allegories- an expression of truths or generalizations of human experiences through use of symbolic fictional figures or actions
2. Theses I am Statements come in four general forms
a. Jesus identifies himself with something already known to his listeners: ex. “I am the bread”, “I am the light”
b. Three statements emphasize on the relationship between Jesus and his followers: ex. “I am the good shepherd”, “I am the gate”, “I am the true vine”
c. Two statements are straightforward declarations of Jesus as the life-giver: ex. “I am the resurrection and the life”, “I am the way, the truth, and the life”
d. Other statements are of Jesus responding to questions of self-identification: ex. Jesus to Soldiers: “Who are you looking for?” They answer, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus replies, “I am he.”
3. These I am statements also remind us of Moses’ encounter with God at the burning bush, where God was shown as “I am Who I am!”
LIST OF “I AM” STATEMENTS ON PG. 125
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