The Condemnation of Jesus

We know that no matter what is happening in life, God is with us.

You know, if you trust Him and He's your Savior, that His Spirit dwells with you,

He'll never leave you, He'll never forsake you.

No matter how much the struggles or the trials,

He's always there as we walk through those things day by day.

And so, but if you found Mark chapter 14 here this morning,

Mark 14 · chapter mention

let's go ahead and stand together in honor of the reading of the Word of God here this morning.

For our text, we'll pick up here in verse 53 here this morning.

And the Word of God says this, it says,

They led Jesus away to the high priest, and with Him were assembled all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes.

And Peter followed Him afar off into the palace of the high priest.

And He sat with His servants and warmed Himself at the fire.

And the chief priests and all the council sought for witness against Jesus to put Him to death and found none.

But many bear false witness against Him, but their witness agreed not together.

And there arose certain and bear false witness against Him, saying,

We heard Him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands.

And within three days I will build another made without hands.

But neither did so.

So did their witness agree together.

And the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus, saying,

Answerest thou nothing?

What is it which these witnesses witness against thee?

But he held his peace and answered nothing.

Again the high priest asked Him and said unto Him,

Art thou the Christ, the Son of the blessed?

And Jesus said, I am.

And ye shall see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power

and coming in the clouds of heaven.

Then the high priest rent his clothes and saith,

What need we any further witnesses?

Ye have heard the blasphemy?

What think ye?

And they all condemned Him to be guilty of death.

And some began to spit on Him and to cover His face and to buffet Him

and to say unto Him,

Prophesy.

And the servants did strike Him with the palms of their hands.

Let's pray.

Heavenly Father, as we come before You this morning,

Lord, we're just thankful for who You are and what You've done for us.

Lord, even as we look this morning of them condemning You to death,

having done nothing, having been sinless.

Lord, as we look at this passage today,

Lord, just help us to be mindful of what You have accomplished for us.

Lord, that we might be set free,

but Lord, we also have a comforter

that walks with us through the times and seasons of life.

Lord, I pray just have Your hand upon each heart, each life here today,

that we might have those things settled within our heart and mind with You.

And Lord, we just call upon You to bless in a mighty way here.

Lord, we might go away rejoicing,

having realized and just emphasized the reality

of what You've done for us.

And Lord, we just give You all the praise in Jesus' name.

Amen.

May we be seated.

You know, as we think here, as we saw last week,

as they came and arrested Jesus,

you know, the sight of Jesus being led away bound

toward a trial that would be deemed really an illegal trial,

even in their own day.

You know, what was happening was not to be transpiring

because it was at night.

They weren't supposed to judge anybody at night.

It was supposed to be in the day

when everybody would be alert and available to be able to come.

But we see the chief priests put in this trial.

They had this plan that they had put together

with the scribes and the elders,

and they were seeking an opportunity to put them to death.

When they entered into this trial,

the outcome was already predetermined.

They were just looking,

how do we get to the determination that we want?

How do we get to the place?

Because we want to put Jesus to death,

and we're going to do whatever it takes to make that happen.

You know, we understand that that was exactly what they had done.

It tells us there in the first verse of Mark chapter 14,

Mark 14 · chapter mention

it tells us in there,

and the chief priests and the scribes

sought how they might take Him by craft

and put Him to death.

I mean, their whole purpose here was at a single outcome.

Their outcome was directed.

It was purposeful in what they did,

and they did it by whatever means they could.

You know, Mark chapter 12 talks a little earlier about them

Mark 12 · chapter mention

catching Him in His words,

and Matthew 22 records that they wanted to entangle Him in His talk.

Luke chapter 11 says that they wanted to accuse Him.

Luke 11 · chapter mention

In other words, they were looking for whatever they could

to leverage to get the outcome that they desired.

They were seeking it,

and the outcome was already predetermined,

and for more than one reason,

as we know from Scripture,

that the outcome was already determined,

because the Bible tells us that Jesus didn't get taken

and put on the cross.

He went.

He was a volunteer.

He knew what was going to happen

as He walked and the things that go forward from this.

It was not something that caught Him off guard.

The Old Testament we've looked and seen,

and we'll look some more at it in the future here,

but that it was prophesied all that was going to happen.

Everything that was going to come about was known,

and these religious men were going to take those things

that Jesus said,

because Jesus really revealed

what was really in their heart.

You know, these men were upset with Jesus

because Jesus became a mirror.

You know, the Word of God creates a mirror in our life

that reveals who we really are.

And Jesus had spoken to those men's lives

and revealed who they really were.

And they were upset about it

because when you're confronted with your sin,

there's only two reactions you can have.

You can either continue to rebel,

or you can repent.

This morning, you have a choice.

You're either going to rebel

against the truth of God's Word,

or you're going to repent.

That word repent means turn the opposite direction

and turn to God,

recognizing what He's done for you.

It's a change of direction,

a change of mind,

a change of reality

of who God is and what God has done.

But Jesus, as He had dealt with these individuals,

and these are men that knew the precepts

and commands of God,

and they worked very hard.

Jesus pointed out they worked very hard

to impose all those things on other people.

You know, it's always easier

to cast judgment on somebody else

rather than look at ourselves.

You know, by nature,

it's not hard to look at somebody else.

Well, look at what they did bad.

Look at how they sinned.

Look at the choices they're making.

You know, it's a lot harder for us

to look at ourselves.

Say, look at the choices I'm making

compared to God's Word.

Because that's a reality as it sets in.

And these men had been confronted by Jesus

of the things that they were doing.

You know, think about some of the things

that Jesus had revealed to them.

He revealed to them their insincerity.

You know, He called them hypocrites

in Matthew chapter 23.

Matthew 23 · chapter mention

Their uncleanness that dwelled within.

He called them whitewashed tombs

filled with dead men's bones.

You know, you think about them.

He revealed their self-righteous presentation.

And finally, He reveals the intent of their heart.

They were children that had killed the prophets

and they were sent,

that had been sent by God

to direct them back to Him.

And their disdain for truth

would bring them to kill the righteous

of this generation.

You know, their forefathers

had killed the prophets that God sent.

And Jesus said, you're going to do the same

because it's amazing that Jesus told them beforehand

what they were going to do.

He revealed the very thoughts

and intents of their heart.

You know, the reality is God knows

the thoughts and intents of my heart

and your heart.

There's no hiding those things before Him.

And we're going to find here

these men were very uncomfortable

with what was revealed.

They were very uncomfortable with it

because it came to the point

where they made a choice

where they say, I'm going to rebel.

I have a hatred for what God has said.

It's okay for me to impose it on somebody else,

but don't put it to me.

You know, it's something that happens a lot today.

That people like imposing standard

and righteousness on somebody else.

They don't want to put upon themselves

and hold themselves accountable.

But we find here this group

had sent armed officers,

armed men to arrest Jesus

and bring Him before the council.

Those that were collaborating about His death.

They wanted to put Him to death.

These collaborators together here,

we find Mark condenses the trial

and the condemnation of Jesus.

They condemned Him to death.

You know, the other passages

in John and Luke and Matthew,

sometimes they add a little more detail

in some things.

But I think Mark here

was kind of skipping through some things

and kind of condensing some things together

because of the audience

that Mark was written to.

Because you've got to remember,

Mark was written to a Greek audience

who wouldn't have understood

all the little nuances

of Jewish law and Jewish tradition

and the things that were involved in it

and how those things interacted

with one another.

Because they were important, yes,

but they aren't, you might say,

they weren't critical

to understanding what was happening.

So Mark, we see,

gives a shortened account

of these things.

And we see here,

he draws the attention

towards the method

and the outcome of the trials.

His call,

the call had gone out in the night

for the council to assemble.

I mean, you can imagine

as Judas went

and betrayed Jesus from the supper,

he goes to the high priest

and he says,

guys, I've got him for you

if you want him.

Remember, Judas had already sold out

for 30 pieces of silver.

Judas leaves the dinner

and he goes and gathers,

goes to the high priest.

He says, hey, I got him.

This is where he's going to be.

The call goes out.

They gather up the men.

They gather up all

that they're going to need.

They send the call out

to the rest of the council,

the scribes and the elders

and say, hey,

we're going to be gathering

in the middle of the night.

These men got up

and they prepared

and they were headed

that direction

to go to the high priest's house here.

It's called,

Mark refers to it

as a palace.

You know,

it was an entire,

a large structure

where they could meet together.

It was a large home

and we find here

as they put out the call

in the night to assemble,

Jesus was first brought

to the home of Annas,

the father-in-law of Caiaphas,

the high priest.

That year,

John chapter 18,

John 18:13

verse 13,

tells us that

they led him away

to Annas first

for he was the father-in-law

of Caiaphas,

which is a high priest

that same year

and we're not going to get,

take time this morning

to talk about

what's all involved in that.

But I want you to understand

what they were doing

was already against God's law.

They were violating

the very same thing

they were trying to say

they were upholding.

We find here

that they come

and the trial led by Caiaphas

with the Sanhedrin

sitting in their capacity

of judges of the people

is brought into focus.

You know,

take a look here

in our text here this morning.

Look down at verse 53.

It says,

and they led Jesus away

to the high priest

and with him were assembled

all the chief priests

and the elders

and the scribes.

We see as they gathered together

their focus here,

the trial was there.

They gathered

because they were responsible

for something.

Nobody was to be judged

without these men present.

But the problem was

is when they were doing it

and why they were doing it.

Consider when the elders

were established in Israel

back in Deuteronomy chapter 16,

Deuteronomy 16 · chapter mention

you'll find that this

what gave them their authority

to do what they were doing.

Their authority came by God.

You know,

I want you to understand

God is the ultimate authority

and he's the one

that establishes authority.

And these men

were taking authority

that were given them

but using it wrongly.

Look at what it tells us here

in verse 18.

It says,

Judging and officers

shalt thou make thee

in all thy gates

which the Lord thy God

giveth thee

throughout thy tribes

and they shall judge the people.

Notice this next term.

Judge them with what?

Just judgment.

Right judgment.

Proper judgment.

Using the right means

and the right constraints

of responsibility

contained therein.

And notice it says,

Thou shalt not rest judgment.

Thou shalt not respect persons

neither take a gift

for the gift

that blind the eyes of the wise

and pervert the words

of the righteous.

Now I want you to understand

exactly the warning

God gave in Deuteronomy

is exactly what happens.

These men were about power

and money and position

because if they were

for just judgment

as we're going to see here

Jesus should have been

let go.

But they had a predetermined outcome.

They were placed there

by the people.

You know,

they were selected

by the people

this group of individuals

that are supposed to be

for their maturity

and their wisdom

with the expectation

of fair and impartial rulings.

But you know,

it's ironic

in that they were

meeting against the law.

They were to uphold

a trial was not

to be held at night

or under false pretenses.

The trial was not about,

this trial was not about

guilt or innocence

because the outcome

was already predetermined.

The verdict

could only be guilty

with a sentence of death.

That was their objective.

You know,

they entered into an outcome

and then built backwards.

That's not justice.

Justice doesn't determine

an outcome

and then build backwards.

Justice says,

this is the facts

and this is what needs to be.

That balance that is there.

The verdict

had already been predetermined,

you know,

when we understand

in verse 55,

here look what it tells us

in the chief priests

and all the council

sought for witnesses

against Jesus,

notice this,

to put him to death

and found none.

You know,

what was their purpose?

They're saying,

we're going to find something

somehow

to manipulate this

to get the sentence

that we want.

But they were struggling.

Remember,

Jesus had revealed

their heart earlier

to which they're now

putting on full display.

Jesus has told them

who they were,

what was going on,

and now it's on full display.

They're violating everything

that they should not have done.

Everything they said

they stood against,

they're now participating.

You know,

he revealed those things,

you know.

Psalm 56,

it tells us this.

In verse 5,

it says,

every day they rest my words

and all the thoughts

are against me for evil.

They gather themselves together,

they hide themselves,

they mark my steps

when they wait for my soul.

That's exactly

what these men were doing.

They were marking

the steps of Jesus

looking for any misstep,

any,

anything they could manipulate

to get the outcome

that they wanted.

You know,

it's interesting

what people do

as a group.

Have you ever noticed

that when people get together

they can be drawn

in to do evil in a crowd?

Because sometimes

you can look

out of all these people,

this group would have been

somewhere between

80 to 90 people

that was there gathered

if they were all there.

Amongst all that,

how can you get somebody

that doesn't stand up

and say,

what we're doing is wrong?

But you know what?

You can follow a crowd

into evil

and just sit by.

You know,

it's amazing.

3 John tells us this

in verse 11.

It says,

Beloved,

follow not that which is evil

but that which is good.

He that doeth good is of God

and he that doeth evil

hath not seen God.

You know,

I want you to understand

you can follow

and get in trouble

when we understand

that they had this

predetermined outcome

but then they had the problem

of the conflicting witnesses.

You know,

they were struggling

after they got him there.

You know,

you think about here

they put all the effort,

all the things

into preparation for this.

They finally get Jesus arrested.

They get him there

before the council

and then they're struggling

to find the witnesses.

They're getting the witnesses list

and the first one steps up

and it's not recorded

any place what they said

and then the next one

steps up

and says something

totally opposite.

You know?

I mean,

it's one of those moments

you can just see

as we watch sometimes

the courtroom,

you can just probably see

the people just going,

oh,

this is not working out.

You know?

How can you have two things

that are totally opposed

of what they're trying

to accuse Jesus

and they don't agree

with one another?

It says they sought

for witnesses

that would bring

an accusation

worthy of death.

You know,

it was vital

that they had something

by which to condemn him.

Likewise,

they needed something

more than just one

because their problem was

they couldn't condemn

Jesus to death

on one witness.

Because you've got to remember

when they wanted

to put Jesus to death,

one thing it was,

they were concerned about

how was the crowd

going to respond.

When they come out

the next morning,

you better have something

of some substance

saying it's backed up.

We've got a couple

of witnesses here

that this is what

they're saying,

this is what we're basing it on

because the people

would have been judging

by that.

That would have put a flag

for all the people

because they were expecting

the Bible makes it clear

in the Old Testament.

Deuteronomy chapter 19

Deuteronomy 19:15

verse 15

tells us this,

it says,

one witness shall not

rise up against a man

for any iniquity

or for any sin

in any sin

that he sinneth

at the mouth

of two witnesses

or the mouth

of three witnesses

shall the matter

be established.

You know,

it needed more than one.

You know,

we see that today.

Have you ever noticed

it's easy for one person

to make an accusation?

I mean,

anybody can throw

anything out.

But when you're judging

that,

what do you use

to judge that?

Do you always just

take one person's

word for it?

No,

most of the time

we look for what?

We want multiple people

that can back up

the information.

We want some validity

behind it.

In Deuteronomy 17

6

says this,

it says specifically

at the mouth

of two witnesses

or three witnesses

shall he that is worthy

of death

be put to death

but at the mouth

of one witness

he shall not be

put to death.

I can imagine

here as the hours

began to pass

and the witnesses

came forward

but none

agreed together.

Eventually two witnesses

came forward

accusing Jesus

of threatening

to destroy the temple

and rebuild it again

in three days.

Look here

at our text.

Notice what it says

in verse 57.

And there rose certain

and bear witness

against him saying

we heard him say

I will destroy

this temple

that is made

with hands

and within three days

I will build another

without hands

but neither so

did their witness

agree together.

In other words

even when they

agreed on what

Jesus had proclaimed

they didn't agree

together on the details.

They had some problems

in their witnesses

because what they were

referring to

is an event

that happened

three years earlier.

Jesus had spoken

these words

against the scribes

and the Pharisees

words used here

we're going to find

that he had ordered

he had just

cleansed the temple

and of those

that bought

and sold

you know

you think about Jesus

the first time

Jesus cleaned the temple

is when this event

happened

when Jesus had made

the scourge

of small cords

and he drove them

out of the temple

in John chapter 2

John 2 · chapter mention

that's the first time

he cleansed the temple

it was quite a scene

and they came

and asked

by what authority

do you do this?

John chapter 2

John 2 · chapter mention

in verse 19

Jesus answered

and said

to destroy this temple

and in three days

I will raise it up.

These witnesses

were proclaiming

what Jesus had said

at that moment

but I want you to understand

they were trying

to twist it

and say Jesus

was going to tear down

the physical temple

that was there

he was going to

desecrate a holy place

that's the basis

of this

witness testimony

we heard Jesus say

he was going to

desecrate the temple

that was the accusation

now we know

when we understand

you know

the most important thing

we can understand

today is context

you know

I love people

with their sound bites

sound bites

and headlines

are probably

two of the most

dangerous things

that come about

because the problem

is people only

read that

and they make

assumptions

based on that

but you know

what

oftentimes

you'll find

that it's

not accurate

it may be

partially accurate

but it doesn't

give you context

to what was being

said

same thing today

people take things

out of context

they'll take a little

clip that somebody

said

see they're saying

that

it's like

well listen to

the whole clip

and you're going

no they didn't

you know

they were using it

as illustration

or a metaphor

you know

they're using

figures of speech

or they're using

other things involved

it's like yeah

the words came out

of their mouth

but that was not

the context

just like here

we're going to see

that the context

they were trying

to use

was not what

Jesus said

these witnesses

didn't agree enough

to be useful

in the desired outcome

their desire

to resist

the Lord

was manifest

he had clearly

declared himself

to be the one

that had been

promised from the

beginning

the heart was

set against him

I want you to see

these people's minds

and hearts

Jesus revealed himself

to them

and they still

rejected him

from the very beginning

of his ministry

they were against him

think about

the reality of this

John chapter 3

John 3 · chapter mention

in verse 19

says this

and this is the

condemnation

that light

has come into the world

and men love

darkness

rather than light

because their deeds

were evil

for everyone

that doeth evil

hateth the light

neither cometh

to the light

lest his deeds

should be

reproved

the problem

with the men

this day

that were dealing

with Jesus

is the problem

is Jesus

is the light

of the world

Jesus revealed

to them

who they were

Jesus revealed

to them

that they needed

to head

a different

direction

towards God

they need

to have

a different

response

but we find

here

as the trial

continues

this creates

a real problem

for Caiaphas

because Caiaphas

as a high priest

was the one

that was

kind of like

you might

say

he was

the chief

prosecutor

the chief

he was judge

and prosecutor

put together

interesting methodology

because he stepped up

and started to become

the prosecutor

he definitely

wasn't

having

just

judgment

he's like

I'm going to

step right

into it

if I can't

get the evidence

any other way

I'm going to

get it myself

and he steps

in here

and it's

impossible

to convict

Jesus

with conflicting

accounts

and frustrated

he goes

on the attack

notice in verse

60

and the high priest

stood up in the midst

and asked Jesus

saying

answerest thou

nothing

what is it

which these

witness

against thee

you know

here he is

as he's

frustrated

because he's like

Jesus is sitting

there

and he hasn't

said a word

he has a problem

with that's happening

he says

man we've prodded

him

we've poked

him

we've made

false accusation

and Jesus

hasn't said

anything

you know

probably irritating

because you know

what our human

nature is

when somebody

makes a false

accusation

when somebody

accuses you

of something

you didn't do

what's your

first response

you know

sometimes we

can learn a lot

from Jesus

even in this

of how we

respond to people

sometimes

and how we

respond to things

that people do

sometimes no

response is a

good response

especially if

somebody speaks

falsehood

let it stand

on its own

merit

let it stand

where it is

Jesus wasn't

worried about

the falsehoods

Jesus is the

truth

it's simple

the reality

he had nothing

to worry about

falsehoods

falsehoods

will be identified

when the truth

comes to light

but Jesus

hears quiet

and Caiaphas

begins to prod

him

and begins

to even

ask him

in John

18

he tells

us that

John reveals

to us

that he

asked him

about his

disciples

you know

as I was

thinking through

that when it

comes to his

disciples

it brought

an interesting

thing to mind

of what would

Jesus have been

thinking when he

asked him about

his disciples

but you know

Jesus didn't

sell his

disciples down

the river

even though

all the things

they did

because you know

the other thing

we have a tendency

to like to do

when something

like that goes

on is to start

sparking off

about somebody

else

think about

all the things

Jesus could

have said

that day

well let me

tell you about

my disciples

that I put

three years

of effort

into

you don't

see any

of them

here do

you

matter of

fact

one of

them

you guys

sold him

out for

30 pieces

of silver

but I want

you to

understand

Jesus

didn't

do that

if you

read

John

16

17

and 18

you'll

find

that

he said

they're

mine

yeah I want

you to

understand

when you're

saved

Jesus

is not

an accuser

Jesus

doesn't

accuse us

of things

the devil

is the

accuser

you need

to keep

that mind

in life

even if you

struggle

you ever

notice that

sometimes

in your

mind

you feel

like you're

being accused

I want

you to

understand

the word

of God

doesn't

accuse

it reveals

the devil

likes to

accuse

you of

things

to keep

you distracted

and keep

you away

from God

well God's

not going

to love

you because

of that

you know

what

he's the

father of

lies

God says

I want

to deal

with that

I want

to correct

that

I want

to get

that right

that's a

whole different

perspective

but we

see here

when he

asked about

his disciples

Jesus

didn't

respond

and all

the things

he could

have said

but it

says he

held his

peace

you know

Jesus

if you

read

John

18

we don't

have time

to go

there

this

morning

but you

can make

a note

to read

through

that

a little

bit

more

but Jesus

begins

speaking

in regard

to what

was taught

you know

I just

imagine

before

ask this

last question

that we're

going to

look at

here

Jesus

responds

to him

and says

hey

if you

want to

know

what

I

taught

you

were

there

in the

temple

just a

couple

days

ago

accusing

me

trying

to

inquire

of

things

and I

answered

every

question

that

you

put

forth

why

are

you

guys

trying

to

do

this

now

when

you

just

did

it

you

should

have

no

doubt

what

I

taught

because

I

taught

it

openly

in

the

temple

he

said

I've

done

nothing

secretly

Jesus

said

I'm

not

trying

I'm

not

some

person

trying

to

secretly

overthrow

things

I'm

here

to

proclaim

the

truth

of

the

truth

of

what

has

been

set

forth

the

purpose

for

which

he

came

Jesus

basically

here's

rebuking

him

like

hey

you

were

there

you

were

standing

in the

background

I

saw

you

listening

to

things

and now

you're

asking

me

what

I

taught

you've

already

heard

it

with

all

that

they

couldn't

produce

two

witnesses

that

could

honestly

make

any

charge

and so

now

Caiaphas

directs

a question

that's

very

key

because

he

asked

Jesus

directly

he

gets

right

to the

heart

of the

matter

he

now

asks

a

question

that's

right

at the

heart

the

very

center

of

everything

because

he

looks

at

Jesus

Caiaphas

I

imagine

here

is

getting

a

little

upset

he

asked

Jesus

a

point

blank

question

dealing

with

really

the

core

issue

when

it

comes

to

Jesus

look

in

verse

61

it

says

but

he

held

his

peace

and

answered

nothing

again

the

high

priest

asked

him

he

said

to him

now

notice

this

art

thou

the

Christ

the

son

of

the

blessed

art

thou

the

Christ

the

son

of

the

blessed

basically

he

saying

art

thou

Christ

the

son

of

God

as

Matthew

!

himself

he

is

like

Jesus

I

want

you

to

make

it

clear

are

you

God

or

are

you

not

you

know

that's

really

the

question

we

have

today

when

it

comes

to

Jesus

is

he

who

he

says

he

is

or

is

he

not

because

if

he's

not

you

don't

have

anything

to

worry

about

but

if

he

is

you

have

a

lot

to

be

concerned

about

he

didn't

like

the

fact

the

reality

of

who

Jesus

is

because

he

wanted

to

understand

and

the

reality

is

he

said

if

I

could

get

Jesus

to

say

he's

God

it's

blasphemous

it

equates

himself

with

God

and

Jesus

now

makes

a

clear

response

the

confirmation

of

his

statement

the

power

behind

Jesus

statement

here

is

very

simple

Jesus

makes

a

clear

response

about

who

he

is

every

now

and

then

I'll

come

across

people

who

Jesus

never

said

he

was

God

well

now

I

just

said

you

haven't

read

your

Bible

because

right

here

Caiaphas

the

rest

of

the

scribes

the

rest

of

the

priests

the

rest

of

the

elders

well

how

Jesus

responded

here

left

no

question

in

their

mind

what

he

said

it

was

as

clear

as

it

could

be

there

was

no

question

in

their

mind

what

Jesus

responded

!

are you

the

Messiah

are you

the

one

of

God

are you

God

Jesus

opens

his

mouth

and

just

utters

two

words

look in

verse 62

and Jesus

said

I am

now

if

you're

not

familiar

with

the

Bible

that's

like

one

of

those

phrases

it's

like

well

what

does

that

mean

why

was

it

so

clear

to

them

I

don't

understand

how

that

made

it

so

clear

well

you

got

to

go

back

in

the

Old

Testament

a

little

bit

because

I

am

though

simple

when it

stated

that

way

it

was

very

clear

who

Jesus

what

he

was

referring

to

because

I

am

is

the

covenant

name

of

God

with

the

children

of

Israel

look

over

to

Exodus

Exodus 3 · chapter mention

chapter

3

Exodus

Exodus 3 · chapter mention

chapter

3

and

verse

14

here

God

is

talking

to

Moses

and

Moses

saying

God

they're

not

going

to

believe

me

and

look

how

God

responds

he

says

I

am

that

I

am

thus

shalt

they

say

unto

the

children

of

Israel

I

am

!

have

sent

me

unto

you

when

Jesus

responded

I

am

all

those

sitting

there

that

day

were

very

familiar

with

this

passage

they

understood

clearly

what

Jesus

was

declaring

Jesus

said

I

am

God

I

am

it

was

a

clear

claim

by

Jesus

to

be

God

in

the

flesh

it

was

a

clear

statement

to

the

Jews

that

he

was

God

he

went

on

to

tell

them

something

even

more

that

was

left

to