There are many names for God, but my favorite is “I Am” When Moses was standing at the bush that was burning but not truly burning up, he was confused. God was calling him to lead his people and confront his past. Moses had a ton of excuses. Well God, you know I don’t speak very well. Who am I to lead a people? And by the way, who should I tell them sent me? What is your name? God’s response was, “I am Who I Am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites, I am has sent me to you (Exodus 3: 14 NIV).”
The thing is, God was with Moses all along, but Moses did not know it. Prior to this verse, God revealed, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob (Exodus 3: 6).” Not only had God been with Moses, he had been with Moses ancestors to sustain them throughout history.
Prior to Moses, Jacob had an encounter with the angel of the Lord. Jacob, too, asked God, “What is your name?” God basically replied, “You don’t need to know my name (Genesis 32: 22-32),” but God did bless Jacob in that holy place.
When Jesus steps on the scene in the New Testament to begin his earthly ministry, he declares, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, and to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor (Luke 4: 18-19).”
As he continued to teach, Jesus revealed, “I am the gate for the sheep and whoever enters through me will be saved…I am the good shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep (John 10: 7-17).”
So we see that throughout the Bible God continues to reveal himself to us and he can most fully be known through Jesus. When Jacob was afraid that his brother Esau would take his life, he stayed up all night and wrestled with a God whose name he did not know. When Moses stood at the burning bush with his heart of fear, trembling, and uncertainty, God provided calm and confidence with a Do not worry, I am. Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, before Abraham was born, I am (John 8: 58)!” When Jesus was born as a little baby in a manger in a small town, he was called “Immanuel, God with us (Matthew 1: 23).”
This is the reality, the good news is God the father is I AM, Jesus is I AM, the Holy Spirit within us is I AM. I AM means that Jesus proclaims good news, freedom, recovery, release, and the time of God’s favor. I AM means God the father is anything and everything that we need him to be and so much more. The good news is if we have faith in Christ, the I AM which is the Holy Spirit is in us and through us. “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come (2 Corin 5: 17)!”
Christ, the I AM, makes all things new! Therefore, I expect great things from God everyday but especially at this time. The start of a New Year is a great opportunity to remind ourselves of who God is and who we are in him.
How has God revealed himself as I AM in your life? What great things do you expect from God this year?
© Natasha S. Robinson 2011
A SISTA'S JOURNEY 