Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM

"He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God." Then the Jews answered and said to Him, "Do we not say rightly that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?" Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me. And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges. Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death."

Then the Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon! Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, 'If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.' Are you greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the Prophets are dead. Who do You make Yourself out to be?" Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing. It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say He is your God. Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say, 'I do not know Him,' I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad." Then the Jews said to Him, "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 8:47-59

Over the course of the past week (beginning with last Friday's reading), we have been reading about the many events that take place during the Feast of Tabernacles at the temple in Jerusalem. In the recent readings, Jesus has been in a dialogue with the leadership, after they tried to trap Him. In yesterday's reading, He told the them, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free." They answered Him, "We are Abraham's descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, 'You will be made free'?" Jesus said that if they were truly children of Abraham, they would do as Abraham did. He told them, "You do the deeds of your father." Then they said to Him, "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father--God." Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me. Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. . . . Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God."

"He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God." Then the Jews answered and said to Him, "Do we not say rightly that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?" We remember that the term "the Jews" is used in John's Gospel to refer to the leadership that is against Jesus (some in the leadership are believers). My study bible notes that Samaritans were viewed as demon-possessed heretics. (See Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman beginning here.)

Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me. And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges. Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death." Here the promise of everlasting life is once again heard in John's Gospel, and it is a promise made real through faith, which Jesus has called the work of God. (In His discourse on the Bread of Life, Jesus said, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.") Here, He elaborates for us what faith is and does. It is a relationship of true depth within us, as He has taught in His relationship to the Father, and the failure of some of the leadership to truly "hear." (See yesterday's reading.)

Then the Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon! Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, 'If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.' Are you greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the Prophets are dead. Who do You make Yourself out to be?" John's Gospel once again will use conventional understanding -- in this case of time and the eternal -- to open up our understanding. The leadership fails to understand Him at all, and so they ask the obvious.

Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing. It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say He is your God. Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say, 'I do not know Him,' I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad." Here Jesus comes closer to fully expressing His identity. But all along He has been teaching that He is sent, He is the Son. His emphasis is on this relationship, but more powerfully He will express Himself in His replies. Again, His emphasis is also on the relationship to Abraham, and how they are not like the one they claim as their father.

Then the Jews said to Him, "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. Again, they fail to understand what He's talking about, when Jesus' statements reflect an eternal nature. But in His teaching, "Before Abraham was, I AM," there is no mistaking what He is getting at. This I AM is a name of God in the Old Testament, the one given to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:13-15). My study bible says, "To the Jews this pronouncement was a direct, explicit, and unmistakeable claim to perfect equality with God. John places special emphasis on the use of the expression for the purpose of revealing Christ as God. In context, this statement illuminates what He began saying in verse 51, that those who keep His word will neither see nor taste death. Only God has power over death, and Jesus is claiming such power." But Jesus, we can see, is powerfully and clearly revealing Himself, although it is not yet "His time" (the hour of His Passion, Crucifixion, and death). Though they seek to stone Him, He eludes them and leaves the temple through the crowds.

It's interesting to consider Jesus' actions. Although it is not yet "His time," He has fully revealed Himself to the leadership, in ways that will make many of them angered, and give those who seek to trap Him the "evidence" they need. But everything proceeds in stages. And there are those, we have been told, who believe in Him, even among the leadership. John's Gospel has built for us a pattern of crescending conflict and controversy surrounding Jesus, and this tension continues to build as He continues to reveal His word, His teaching, the things given to Him from above, from the Father. He will not stop, but will continue. This is His mission, to reveal this truth that He is given, so that those who do believe may remain with Him through an eternal life. Ultimately the message is about love and relationship, through faith. When Jesus teaches, "I honor My Father" and "I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges," He is speaking more to us than only about His personal identity. In context, the message to us is also clear, that we too must seek this relationship in order to judge righteous judgment. If we are to discern what is of God, then we need also to meet that place of discernment in faith, to seek the glory and honor of God, not merely of ourselves. In this reflected light of God's glory, we take our dignity, light, honor, and this is relationship. This is love and faith. How do you seek this glory and honor for yourself? How do you find the truth of faith? How do we seek discernment for our lives? It begins in the heart, the place of spiritual eyes and ears. Can we hear, who profess this faith? Jesus' teaching tells us that this for all time, the eternal mingling with the temporal; the I AM is for Moses, for Abraham, for his audience at the temple, and for we who hear this word. Therefore, this gospel, His teaching and what we learn from it today, lives for us today. What do you learn from it for yourself and for your own faith?