Bible Studies: Jesus: I Am the Bread of Life-Part 1

I Am

It all begins in Exodus. The Israelites had been slaves in Egypt for four hundred years. However, through a series of miraculous events, Moses was raised by Pharaoh’s daughter. After he killed an Egyptian who was abusing an Israelite, Moses fled to the wilderness, where he lived for another forty years, marrying and raising a family.

One day when Moses was tending his father-in-law’s flock of sheep, he was attracted to an amazing sight – a burning bush that did not extinguish. God called to him from the bush.

When Moses approached the bush, the Lord told him:

The Scripture: Exodus 3:6

“I Am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” At this Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.”

1. What did God say to Moses?

2. What was Moses’ reaction?

3. Why?

God told Moses that He had seen the misery of His people and He was going to rescue them from the Egyptians and bring them to a good land.

The Scripture: Exodus 3:9

“God said’… to Moses, ‘I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring My people the Israelites out of Egypt.’”

4. What did God say to Moses?

Even when God promised to go with him, Moses was still reluctant.

The Scripture: Exodus 3:13

“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?’”

5. What did Moses ask God?

The Scripture: Exodus 3:14-15

“God said to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM’: This is what you are to say to the Israelites, ‘I AM has sent me to you… This is My name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generations to generation.”

6. How did God answer him?

The Amplified Bible translates God’s name as “I AM WHO I AM and I AM WHAT I AM and I WILL BE WHAT I WILL BE.”

According to Andrew Jakes in his wonderful little book The Names of God, God used the name Jehovah in this instance. Jehovah is formed from two tenses of the Hebrew (Havah) to be, which means One who is what He is. It is the exact import of the name Jehovah, the expression of God’s being. Most of us know how Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt to the Promised Land, by demonstrating the power of I AM.

Now we go to the New Testament where we see that it is this same name Jesus used several times to show who He was. In a debate with Jesus, the Pharisees claimed that Jesus was demon-possessed. This is how Jesus answered them.

The Scripture: John 8:56-57

“Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing My day; he saw it and was glad.” “You are not yet fifty years old,” the Jews said to him, “and you have seen Abraham!”

7. What did Jesus say?

8. How did the Jews answer Him?

The Scripture: John 8:58

“I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I AM!” At this, they picked up stones to stone Him, but Jesus hid Himself.”

9. What did Jesus say?

10. What did the Jews do?

The Jews knew the name I AM. When Jesus used that name, they knew He was claiming to be God. To the Jews, this claim was blasphemy. This is why they wanted to stone Him. But, because it wasn’t His time to die, Jesus was able to escape.

How much their disbelief must have distressed Jesus. As the Apostle John writes:

The Scripture: John 1:10-11

“He (Jesus) was in the world and though the world was made through Him, the world did not recognize Him. He came to that which was His own, but His own did not receive Him.”

11. How was the world created?

12. Even though He came to His own, what was their attitude toward Him?

Jesus had created these people. They lived in a world He had created, and yet they would not recognize their Creator.

The religious leaders began to plot how they could kill Jesus. They eventually found a willing ally in Judas, one of His disciples.

Look back to the night before Jesus died. After Judas betrayed Him, he guided a detachment of soldiers and some officials to where he knew Jesus would be.

The Scripture: John 18:4-5

“Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to Him, went out and asked them, ‘Who is it you want?’ ‘Jesus of Nazareth,’ they replied. ‘I AM [He]’, Jesus said.”

13. What did Jesus ask the soldiers?

14. What was their reply?

15. What did Jesus say?

The Scripture: John 18:6

“When Jesus said, ‘I AM [He]’ they drew back and fell to the ground.”

16. What did the soldiers do when Jesus said, “I Am He”?

Many authorities agree that this translation is inaccurate, stating that the translators added the “He” for the sake of grammar. That name, indicating that Jesus was God, had the power to knock the soldiers off their feet.

I AM is the name that expresses the nature of God – His truth, His justice, and His holiness – the One who “loves righteousness and hates iniquity.”

In the second part of this study, we will look at another name Jesus called Himself, the Bread of Life, and show the significance of bread in His culture