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“Before Abraham was I AM.”

᛭ INI ᛭

“ΙΗϹ Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” The Psalmist also says, “You are the same, And Your years will have no end.” (Ps 102) This is the great promise of Christ, when He says, “Before Abraham was I AM.” It is the great promise that the religious leaders rejected. They wanted to kill Christ for making this promise. But no matter how they tried they couldn’t stop Christ from preaching it and promising it.

The outcome of this promise, that Christ is I AM, as eternal consequence for you. It has everything to do with what Christ also promised today: “Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death.” Christ can fulfill such a promise because He is I AM. The proof that He is I AM, the proof that He really can make good on His promise, is the works that He did. “Believe Me for the sake of the works themselves.” (Jn 14) Chiefly that’s His Passion, His death, and His resurrection.

Based on what Christ has done, we have confidence in Him alone. We trust that

CHRIST IS “I AM” FOR YOU, BEFORE AND NOW AND FOREVER.

(I. Before Abraham was I AM.)

Christ’s claim to the religious leaders is that He has claim on them, that He is their God in the flesh. Christ claims not only to be God, but the God of the Old Testament. He claims to the One who spoke to Moses at the burning bush. “I AM WHO I AM” (Ex 3) He said.

The one who appeared to Moses is the One who appeared to Abraham. He called Abraham to move to Canaan. He preached a promised son, and then commanded “take your son, your only son, your beloved, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah and sacrifice him there for a whole-burnt offering.” Abraham rejoiced to see these days. For Abraham “believed that God was even able to raise the dead.” Abraham rejoiced to see what the Christ would do, that He would be the sacrificed, beloved, only Son, who would be raised. That He is the true Ram sacrificed in Isaac’s place, Abraham’s place, indeed, in the whole world’s place. For I AM also promised Abraham: “Through your Seed all nations will be blessed,” that is, redeemed.

Christians and modern Jews do NOT worship the same God. We believe that Christ is I AM, the Father is I AM, the Spirit is I AM, and yet there are not three I AMs, but only one I AM. As Moses proclaims: “Listen, O Israel, the LORD our God is one LORD.” (Dt 6) Rejecting Christ as Messiah and God, the biological descendants of Abraham “have forsaken their hope of steadfast love” and now “worship the vain idol” whom they call “HaShem” (“The Name”). There is a small remnant of Jews who do believe in Christ as Messiah and God, and they with us Gentiles are true descendants of “Abraham, the man of faith.” (Gal 3) “For they are not all Israel who are of Israel.” (Rom 9) Indeed, “the Gentiles are now fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ,” (Eph 3), for “all [are] sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Gal 3)

This Christ, without any change to His divinity, took up a human nature and was born of the Blesséd Virgin Mary. He who is Life itself, who is “the same yesterday, today, and forever” suffered by means of our nature and died, bearing the wood of His cross up the mountain, which we call Calvary but Abraham called Moriah, for “Moriah is Jerusalem.” (2-Chr 3) It must be so, for, most literally “Abraham called the name of the place, The–LORD–Will–Be-Seen; as it is said to this day, ‘On the Mountain the LORD shall be seen.’” (Gen 22) There He was slaughtered in your place, in my place, in Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob’s place. Indeed “Christ is the propitiation for our sins and the sins of the whole world.” (1-Jn 2) Christ’s claim was proved true by His resurrection on the Third Day.

(II. Right now I AM.)

“ΙΗϹ Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” CHRIST IS “I AM” FOR YOU, BEFORE AND NOW AND FOREVER. Not just before Abraham, or before you were born, or yesterday. CHRIST IS “I AM” FOR YOU…NOW!

This means Christ’s promise is true for you now: “Most assuredly I say to you, whoever keeps My Word, will never see death.” Most literally Christ says, “Most assuredly I say to you, whoever keeps My Word, will never see death forever.” You don’t have to worry like you do. You don’t have to worry about what’s going on around the world or our nation or even your own life. So what if you die? It’s only temporary. That’s Christ’s promise. “You won’t ever see death…[not] forever.”

Death looms his ugly head constantly. It’s really what causes fear. That economic uncertainty, a diagnosis, an election, a war will cause it all to come crumbling down on your head, that it’ll be the end of you. But that’s not true, and even if they “take [your] life, goods, fame, child, and wife, though these all be gone, our victory has been won! Thing kingdom ours remaineth.” (LSB 656) Christ, risen from the dead, is “with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Mt 28) That’s His baptismal promise. “I will never leave you, nor abandon you.” His baptismal promise is that “whoever is born of water and the Spirit will see and enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Jn 3)

(III. Forever I AM.)

His empty tomb Holy Baptism are the promise that CHRIST IS “I AM” FOR YOU, BEFORE AND NOW, but even “I AM” FOR YOU FOREVER. Christ won’t just keep you today or tomorrow. He will do it forever. “Most assuredly I say to you, whoever keeps My Word, will never see death forever.” You may see death, “for the last enemy to be destroyed is death.” (1-Cor) But one day you will see death destroyed. You’ll be raised by the Christ on the Last Day. You’ll tread death beneath your feet. In fact, John sees it in Revelation. “Death and Hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.” (Rev 20)

This promise BEFORE AND NOW AND FOREVER is for whoever keeps Christ’s Word, cherishes them, holds on for dear life to His promises, for Christ the I AM promises that whoever does that “will never see death forever.” “Whoever is born of water and the Spirit will see the Kingdom of God.” (Jn 3) “Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life and I will resurrect Him on the Last Day.” (Jn 6)

(Conclusion.)

“ΙΗϹ Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” The Psalmist also says, “You are the same, And Your years will have no end.” (Ps 102) This is the great promise of Christ, when He says, “Before Abraham was I AM.” The outcome of this promise, that Christ is I AM, is that “[whoever ] keeps My word he shall never see death.” The proof of that is what Abraham rejoiced to see, and saw it by faith, that Christ suffered, died, and rose. He has baptized you into that. He feeds you with the fruits of it. Why worry about yesterday or today or tomorrow or about forever? Based on what Christ has already done,

CHRIST IS “I AM” FOR YOU, BEFORE AND NOW AND FOREVER.

᛭ INI ᛭