I AM He

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The rabble, stirred up by the priests and the elders and led by Judas, comes to Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Seeing them coming, the Lord steps between them and the drowsy disciples. He asks them, “Whom do you seek?” “Jesus of Nazareth,” they say. A simple answer to a simple question. But the problem is: Is Christ it? Is He, the Son of God, what they seek?

Yes, He is, but He is much more than a simple carpenter's son from a Galilean backwater. To the horde's query, Jesus responds, “I AM.” Not simply “ya, that's me.” Jesus identifies Himself with the holy Name of God, the name above all names, the name too sacred for the Jews even to utter. And the reaction of the horde: “they drew back and fell to the ground.” What else can one do when you come face to face with God Himself. No one else could even begin to assert that he is the Lord God of Israel. They were thrown to the ground with the realization that they were getting much more than they bargained for. This is not just some looney heretic from Nazareth – this is the Son of God!

Fast forward a bit, to Peter standing in the courtyard of the high priest's house. Three times he was accused of being a disciple of Jesus, and three times he vehemently asserted, “I am not!” When pressed, Peter denies his Lord. Fear makes him back away from what he knows is true, even after he had just sworn to Jesus that he would never fall away. Peter is well-meaning, but quicker to speak than to think.

But you are not so different. When pressed, how often will you deny your Lord? Of course, your denial may not be as blatant as Peter's, but then you may never have someone threatening your life for the sake of your confession. Rather, perhaps, your denial will come about as a result of ignorance. Think about the question: “Whom do you seek?” Do you know whom you seek? I seek Jesus, you say. But why? Do you know what He came to give to you? Do you know how He delivers His gifts to you? Do you know where to find the One you seek? You, as good, church-going folks, might take these things for granted. But, if pressed, you are just as likely to draw a blank when asked to give a reason for the hope that is within you.

Peter's denial of Jesus sprang out of fear – the fear of death, the fear of rejection, the fear of public humiliation. While no one is waiting to crucify you for your confession of Christ, you probably have felt and will feel the fear of rejection and humiliation on account of your faith. After all, Christians are different than other people. You do not live as the world lives. You do not hope as the world hopes, and so the world seeks to bring you down, to expose you, to shame you. And so, sometimes it seems easier, more expedient, to simply keep your mouth shut, or to go along to get along.

Then, of course, there is the fact that you are a poor, miserable sinner, and you have sinned against God in thought, word, and deed. You may not have denied your Lord with your lips, but you deny Him myriad times every single day by your thoughts and actions. You deny Him when you sin against His holy Law, when you forsake His gifts, when you profane His Name and ignore His Word. A failure to love your neighbor as yourself is a failure to fear, love, and trust in God above all things. Whatever you did not do to one of the least of your brethren, you failed to do for your Lord. Willful disobedience can be a more powerful, and more deadly, form of rejection than the words of your lips.

Now move forward to Jesus' audience with Pontius Pilate. After questioning, Pilate brings Jesus out of the palace, presents Him to the crowd and says, “Behold the Man!” This is the Man. Jesus is, in fact, the true, complete, perfect man. He is the perfection of all that it means to be human, all that it means to be a man. Pilate presents to the world what Jesus had been preaching throughout the land: He is God become man. He is the Word made flesh – the flesh of a man.

Therefore, behold the man. Behold the man who dies for you. Look upon Him who has suffered for you, for your sins, for your guilt and shame. On this day, it is good to contemplate the sufferings of Christ in His holy Passion. But do not simply think on all the terrible things Jesus endured that day. Good Friday is no funeral for a sad, pathetic, broken man. Rather, contemplate the fact that you sent Him there, you brought Him to the cross by your sins and trespasses. Yes, Jesus suffered, was crucified, died, and was buried. But He undertook all those things for you. Jesus was crucified to take away your sins. His death brought an end to your death. His suffering prevented your suffering. His glory is in giving Himself up in your place, for the sake of your life and salvation. He suffered for your sins, but He also suffered for your salvation.

When the cup of wrath comes to be drunk for sins, Jesus steps forward and says, “I am he.” He takes the cup that should have been yours. He drinks down the wrath of God poured out upon your sins. Though He had no sin, He became sin, and He stepped forth to take the cup from your hands and drank it Himself. The wrath is now gone. Jesus has consumed it all. The cup is empty.

On the cross, our Lord drank the sour wine, the poison offered to Him. He drank, then cried, “It is finished!” and gave up the Spirit. It is finished. The wrath has been poured out for sin. The judgment has been accomplished. The Law has been satisfied. Death and hell have been defeated, because they have been swallowed up by Life. Wrath is finished, and so is salvation. Your salvation is accomplished, once for all.

The cup of wrath is empty. The cup of blessing is full. Upon the cross extended, our Lord gives up His body and blood for you, for the forgiveness of your sins. The cup is filled with the rivers of His life flowing from His pierced side for you. Drink deeply of the cup of blessing. Drink down the cup of salvation. It is finished. He has accomplished your salvation. He is the man for you.

What language shall I borrow

To thank Thee, dearest friend,

For this Thy dying sorrow,

Thy pity without end?

O make me Thine forever!

And should I fainting be,

Lord, let me never, never,

Outlive my love for Thee (LSB 450.5).

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.