Before Abraham Was

Then the Jews said, You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham? Jesus said to them, Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM. Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.

John 8:57-59

Christ made definitive statements at critical junctures. Our text is one of those occasions. The conversation between Him and the religionists grew progressively more heated as the narrative of the eighth chapter of John communicates. The Pharisees touted their relationship to Abraham. Christ pointed out that he had anticipated Christ’s coming with joy. They countered with another of many insults they employed by saying, ‘You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?’ Christ responded with, ‘before Abraham was I AM.’ Thus, He used the ancient name of God in identifying Himself. This was no an accident. He was well aware of the full implication of what He was asserting. As steeped as they were in the Old Testament, they understood exactly what He was claiming. They collectively flew into outrage. Their reaction was so violent they were prepared to execute Him on the spot. They took up stones to throw at Him. Christ never retracted His statement. This is significant. He stood by every claim He ever made. It is left for us to embrace those claims and Him with them or reject them and Him as well. That is the crux issue of faith. The question becomes, ‘What do you think of Christ? Whose Son is He?

Our Gracious Master and our God,
we rejoice at how You have revealed Yourself.
We praise You that You are
the I AM.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning