John K. Jenkins Sr - The Abundant Life

The Gospel of John is a little bit different from the other Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. One of the things that is so unique about the Gospel of John is the fact that John focuses on declaring and reinforcing the deity of Jesus Christ. The deity of Jesus is a very important element of our faith. One of the things that separates Jesus from other religious leaders is that he claimed to be God. Not only did he claim to be God, but he proved to be God. Other religions don’t accept Jesus as God; they say he was a good man, a prophet, or a great teacher, but they deny that he was God. Our faith teaches us that Jesus is God wrapped up in human form. He is God coming to show us Himself through the person of Jesus Christ. So, I ask if there are any witnesses here today. That is an important thing and a core element of our faith: that Jesus is both fully God and fully man, and we embrace and accept that. Without believing in that, our faith is lost. Jesus conquered death; he rose from the grave. No other person, no other religious leader, was able to do that. He conquered death, which is why we follow Him. He rose from the grave and is now seated at the right hand of God the Father. John spends a great deal of time trying to make us understand, over and over again, that this is exactly who Jesus is. From the first chapter to the last, he focuses on declaring to us the personage and the Godhead of Jesus. In John chapter 1, the writer says, «In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.» He tells us right at the outset that the Word was God; the Word was with God; the Word was God. In John 1:14, he says, «And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.» God became human and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. Throughout the rest of John, he begins to show us, unveil to us, and pull back the covers so that we might see who Jesus is. In Chapter 2, he tells us that Jesus turned water into wine at the wedding in Cana of Galilee. In John Chapter 3, he met a religious leader named Nicodemus at night, and Nicodemus wanted to talk to him. Jesus said to him, «You must be born again.» In Chapter 4, he met the woman at the well and offered her living water so that she would never have to return to the well. In Chapter 5, he healed a man who had been paralyzed for 38 years. In Chapter 6, he fed 5,000 men with just five loaves of bread and two small fish. He must be God. In Chapter 8, he encountered a woman who was caught in the act of adultery, and he forgave her. I wish I had some help up in here! In Chapter 9, he healed a man who was born blind. In Chapter 11, he called Lazarus out of the grave after he had been dead for four days. He must be God! In Chapter 14, he said he was the way, the truth, and the life. In Chapter 15, he said he was the true vine. I’m just trying to tell you all with clarity that John spends time trying to teach us that Jesus is God! I don’t care what you believe; you better come to the final conclusion that Jesus is God. Somebody look at your neighbor and say, «He’s God!» Not only is He God, but He affirms His deity. Somebody once said that Jesus never claimed to be God, but He did claim to be God. He said it in multiple ways. One of the ways Jesus demonstrated, proved, and claimed to be God was when He declared who He was by using the term «I AM.» He said, «I AM.» The connection at that point is that when Moses once had an encounter with God on the backside of the mountain, and God said, «I want you to go to Pharaoh and tell Pharaoh to let my people go,» Moses asked God, «Who shall I say sent me?» God responded, «How can I tell you who I am? How can I reduce it down into a capacity that your little peanut brain can understand? Just tell them, 'I AM that I AM.'» I don’t know how to narrow it down; just say, «I AM that I AM.» How many of you know that God will be whatever you need Him to be? He’ll be bread if you’re hungry; He’ll be water if you’re thirsty. He is the great I AM! So Jesus said, on several occasions, «I AM.» In John, He lays out «I AMs» that convey to us an essence of His Godhead. He said, «I am the bread of life.» He said, «I am the light of the world.» He said, «I am the way, the truth, and the life.» He said, «I am the door. Nobody can get to God unless they come by way of me.» He said, «I am the good shepherd.» He said, «I am the resurrection and the life.» He said, «I am the true vine.» I can’t get any help up in this camp! I’m trying to get you all to understand .