Who do you want Jesus to be? What shapes your view of who he is? Is it a Facebook algorithm that loops on repeat? Is it family history passed down without question? Is it painful life experiences that you can’t move past?
We wonder if many of us have taken the time to stop, reflect and try to articulate the Jesus we worship and if we do, whether we have the courage to admit that we have done a pretty great job of shaping Jesus to look a lot like we want him to look. It’s much easier for us that way, much more comfortable – until we see the damage left in our wake.
In steps the Gospel according to John and the wonderful and challenging ‘I am’ statements of Jesus. As we read John, we are invited to let the scripture reveal Jesus to us in his own words and then left to ask if we have the courage to wrestle with the disruption this might cause?
‘John reveals several divisions of the people over who Jesus is. The same is still true today. Some want to make him simply a good man, model, teacher, prophet or preacher. But the ‘I am’ statements continually force us to ask, “Is Jesus who he says he is?”.
Is he the bread of my life?
Do I live by his light?
Do I enter through him as the Gate to salvation, or do I keep trying to rescue myself?
Do I trust him to Shepherd me?
Do I depend on his Resurrection, or do I keep trying to lift myself up?
Do I let him be the Way for me or do I keep asking for directions?
Is he the Truth by which I judge all other lesser truths?
Is he my Life, or do I employ entertainments to bring me life?
Do I abide in him, cling to him as a branch to a Vine, and draw all my spiritual nourishment from him?’
(Expert from Marva J. Dawn’s introduction to ‘The Gospel according to John’ Life with God Bible – NRSV)
We invite you this Lent to come on a journey through the Gospel according to John and dive deeper into the ‘I am’ statements from Jesus with us and who knows you might just meet Jesus a new along the way!
