“I AM the WAY”…Just four words spoken by Jesus, but words of such incredible power, boldness and authority that they can’t be ignored. They leave no room for misinterpretation.
Jesus has just informed His disciples that He is only going to be with them a little while longer, that He’s going away and “where I go, you cannot follow Me now; but you will follow Me later. I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way where I am going.” Thomas says to Him, “Lord we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?”…and then Jesus responds. (John 13:33-14:6)
We’ve all asked someone for directions at one time or another. Sometimes those directions are good, other times, not so much. Today, Google Maps is our go to source for travel directions, but even that misdirects us at times. So, a couple of things are very important when seeking direction. 1) That we trust the one giving them, and that he’s creditable and knowledgeable. 2) That he’s been where we want to go and has no doubt about how to get there.
So, who is this Jesus that He can make such a dogmatic statement?
This is not the first time we see “I AM’ in Scripture. In Exodus, Chapter 3, Moses is sent by God to the Pharoah of Egypt demanding that Pharoah allow the enslaved Sons of Israel to leave Egypt so they can worship their God. Moses, however, is concerned that his fellow Israelites will doubt his authority or that God has actually chosen him as the instrument of their release “What is the name of Him who sent you?” they ask. Moses said to them, God told me to tell you “I AM WHO I AM.”
When Jesus uses these words to describe Himself, He is declaring Himself as the eternal God…the first and the last, the beginning and the end. “This is My name forever, and this is My memorial name to all generations.” (Exodus 3:15)
Jesus also declares Himself as THE Way, not A way, but THE WAY. The world hates this exclusivity because it refuses to submit to God. Man wants to be God, so inclusion is very appealing to his sinful nature. Inclusion is the word of our day. All roads lead to God is Satan’s big lie.
Further proof that Jesus is the Way and knows the Way to heaven and eternal life is that He is the incarnate Son of God. He came from there, gave His life as a sacrifice for sinners, was crucified, died, was buried, and was resurrected…later ascending to sit at the right hand of His Father in heaven, reigning with Him as King and Priest..
Finally, He is alive. He overcame spiritual death for all those that entrust themselves to Him. All others that claim to know the way, think they know the way, are pretenders, only deceiving themselves and all that follow them. They will be eternally disappointed.
