The Great I AM

...in all the little corners of the world.

Do you remember the name God gave Moses when he asked his name?

I AM.

In John’s gospel, Jesus utters this name twenty-three times to describe who he is and what he has come to do. Our passage yesterday ended with the first occurrence and we’ll pick up from there today.

So, we’ve seen John resonate deeply with the book of Genesis and now, with the book of Exodus. In 3:14, God tells Moses that he is “I AM who I AM.” It is a definitive statement about who God is and who God will be.

For Jesus to show up and use the name is striking, bold, and exacting.

When we remember the context of this conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan as described yesterday, it’s all the more intriguing. Jesus is first declaring he is sent by God not at the temple, in synagogue, in a crowd, or even to the disciples he’s chosen.

He’s simply sitting there in the middle of a journey, talking to an unknown outsider, with no one else listening. And this is the story of Jesus Christ - he is all of who God is, for the normalcy of all the corners and peoples of the world.

Today, we go to great lengths to tell each other we should be doing great, noticeable things.

Go and change the world!
Make a difference!
Cure cancer!
Shoot for the moon!

But maybe what John’s gospel sets for us is a world in which we do what’s in front of us, all the while knowing God is present in it. That is, the greatness we experience isn’t found in the great things we do, but in the presence of a great God who works through us in all we do.

John 4:26-42

Jesus said to her, “I Am—the one who speaks with you.”

Just then, Jesus’ disciples arrived and were shocked that he was talking with a woman. But no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking with her?” The woman put down her water jar and went into the city. She said to the people, “Come and see a man who has told me everything I’ve done! Could this man be the Christ?” They left the city and were on their way to see Jesus.

In the meantime the disciples spoke to Jesus, saying, “Rabbi, eat.”

Jesus said to them, “I have food to eat that you don’t know about.”

The disciples asked each other, “Has someone brought him food?”

Jesus said to them, “I am fed by doing the will of the one who sent me and by completing his work. Don’t you have a saying, ‘Four more months and then it’s time for harvest’? Look, I tell you: open your eyes and notice that the fields are already ripe for the harvest. Those who harvest are receiving their pay and gathering fruit for eternal life so that those who sow and those who harvest can celebrate together. This is a true saying, that one sows and another harvests. I have sent you to harvest what you didn’t work hard for; others worked hard, and you will share in their hard work.”

Many Samaritans in that city believed in Jesus because of the woman’s word when she testified, “He told me everything I’ve ever done.” So when the Samaritans came to Jesus, they asked him to stay with them, and he stayed there two days. Many more believed because of his word, and they said to the woman, “We no longer believe because of what you said, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this one is truly the savior of the world.”

Psalm 46:1-3, 8-11

God is our refuge and strength, a help always near in times of great trouble.
That’s why we won’t be afraid when the world falls apart, when the mountains crumble into the center of the sea, when its waters roar and rage, when the mountains shake because of its surging waves. …

Come, see the Lord’s deeds, what devastation he has imposed on the earth— bringing wars to an end in every corner of the world, breaking the bow and shattering the spear, burning chariots with fire.

“That’s enough! Now know that I am God! I am exalted among all nations; I am exalted throughout the world!”

The Lord of heavenly forces is with us! The God of Jacob is our place of safety.

Prayer

God,

Thank you for revealing yourself through Jesus, the great I AM. In his humility and humanity, we see your divinity—the fullness of who you are, meeting us in the ordinary moments of life.

Help me to recognize your presence in the small, seemingly insignificant tasks of my day. Remind me that just as you revealed your name to a Samaritan woman by a well, or to some nondescript fishermen, or to children who just wanted a lap…you are present in the places otherwise overlooked and unconsidered.

May I carry this truth with me: that you are the God of all, for all, in all places. Let this encourage me to live with purpose and to reflect your love, even in the simplest interactions.

By your spirit & in Christ,
Amen.