‘I Am that I Am’, Genesis 3:14, is the most important name in the Bible. It is the name of God and signifies His total self-existence, for He has no origin, bring the uncaused Cause of all things.

He was not I Was, or I Will Be, but I Am that I Am, now and forever more. I Am that I Am is the original, uncreated essence. A holy, unsupported, independent existence.

God exists in total unity, and One with Himself, just as a diamond is self-existent. Everything said about God is the same for all three Persons of the Trinity. I Am refers to God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.

Hebrews names reflected the character of who a person was. Jacob, meaning usurper, trickster, supplanter. This w was changed to Israel, the perseverer, fighter with God, and God will prevail, Genesis 33:28.

Abram, exalted father, became Abraham, father of a great number. This pointed to Abraham as a man of faith in God, entering into an everlasting covenantal relationship with I Am, Genesis 17:5.

At Calvary God the Father entered a covenantal relationship with God the Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit. Believers in Christ partake of this everlasting covenantal relationship, that is with the great I Am that I Am.

Yahweh

The Israelites knew God as Yahweh, YHWH, the ever-present God. The name Yahweh expressed His unique love and care for His people. During the recent trauma in Israel, thousands turned to the Wailing Wall to plead for the release of the hostages, in one of the largest gatherings seen there.

Yahweh is a covenantal name. It indicates God’s authority and personal presence in relation to His chosen people. This is a special relationship with Israel that will continue into eternity.

I Am That I Am

When Moses asked God for His name, Exodus 3:14, God answered, ‘I Am that I Am’. This was a declaration of ‘I exist’. He is the source of all existence and life and all-sufficient in Himself.

I Am that I Am expresses the eternal, self-existent, non-changing nature of God and His divine sovereignty. He alone has the power to save, redeem, sanctify and justify fallen humanity. He will also be the ultimate Judge, Isaiah 33:22.

The Awesome Power of I Am

A beautiful demonstration of the awesome power of I Am is seen in the Garden of Gethsemane. Judas Iscariot came with scribes, elders and chief priests to arrest Jesus. They were accompanied with between 300-600 armed Roman soldiers. When they said they were looking for Him, He answered simply, “I Am”.

These weapon-brandishing men and pompous Temple authorities fell backwards onto the ground, John 18:1-11, at just the spoken Word. The Great I Am, Christ will slay the Antichrist with just the breath of His mouth, 2 Thessalonians 2:8.

The I Am’s of Jesus

Jesus used the term ‘I Am’, revealing His divine identity and authority. He declared ‘I Am from above, I Am not of this world. If you don’t believe that I Am you shall die in your sins, John 8:23. Before Abraham was, I Am’, John 8:58.

Jesus also made seven statements that declared His divine mission. They revealed His authority and unique place in the redemption and salvation of humanity.

I Am the bread of life, John 6:35, I Am the light of the world, John 8:12. Then there is, I Am the door, John 10:9, I Am the good shepherd, John 10:10, I Am the way, the truth and the life, John 14:6. and I Am the true vine, John 15:1. Most wonderfully of all, I Am the resurrection and the life, John 22:25.

I Am that I Am is Outside Time and Space

That God called Himself I Am that I Am is of great comfort to those who have accepted the efficacy of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ on Calvary. God lives outside time, where He is ‘I was, I am and I will be’ are all at the same time. This is a difficult concept to comprehend as we live in time and space.

The Apostle Paul wrote, ‘We are seated in heavenly places,’ Ephesians 2:6. God desires to live eternally in a personal covenant relationship with us, through the shed blood of His son, Jesus Christ. His death gives us direct contact with God the Father, John 16;23.24, and makes us joint heirs with the Son, Romans 8:17.

One day you will know the Great I Am that I Am face to face. What a day that will be for those who believe in Him. What a terrible day it will be for those who reject Him.

Spiritual Blessings

I Am has given to those who will believe, access to all the spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus, Ephesians 1:3. In Him the believer is loved, chosen, redeemed, forgiven, freed, sanctified, and justified.

We are promised an eternal inheritance with all the riches, glories and character of our Saviour. God’s love, patience and mercy is forever, as He casts sin, that is repented of, into His ocean of forgetfulness, Psalm 103:12.

Great Counterfeiter

God gave His angels the gift of free will, just as He gave man a free will to do as he chooses. A third of the angels, Revelation 12:4, were led astray by the most beautiful angel of all, Lucifer, light bearer, Isaiah 14:12. He became known as Satan, accuser, adversary, prince of the power of the air. At Calvary Jesus did battle with the arch enemy of man, Colossians 2:15. Satan knows that he and his cohorts will have eternal damnation, Revelation 20:10. Unlike fallen man, angels will not be redeemed, 2 Peter 2:4.

Lucifer/Satan does not have the power of the great I Am. He could only use the term ‘I will’, Isaiah 14:13-15, as portrayed through the King of Tyre. Satan is merely a counterfeiter with the desire to take God’s place and to usurp God’s rightful place in the heart of the created.

Prophecy

The prophet Isaiah revealed more of the meaning of the name I Am that I Am in the titles given to Jesus. ‘The government shall be upon his shoulder. His name shall be called, Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father. The Prince of Peace. The increase of His government and peace, there shall be no end’, Isaiah 9:6.7.

I Am has and does have an everlasting plan that is Alpha to Omega, the beginning and the end. God knows the end from the beginning, Isaiah 46:10. That is the reason He didn’t throw Adam away and create another being.

God never gives up on the sinner but offers the way of redemption, John 14:6, with names written in the Book of Life before the foundation of the world, Revelation 17:8. Overcomes hold a special place in the Kingdom of God for all eternity because of I Am. Lift up your head for your redemption draws nigh, Luke 21;28. This world of utter chaos is in the Last Days. Jesus Christ alone is your answer.

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Wendy Tendys is a freelance writer who enjoys in researching a topic and sharing words of encouragement.

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