Digging Deeper | Week of April 24th

I AM | Week 5 | “I Am The Way, I Am The Door”
Pastor Dave Pretlove, Lead Pastor

1. “I am the way” and “I am the door” are invitations to immediate and eternal flourishing.
John 10:7-10; 14:1-6 

2. “I am the way” and “I am the door” are declarations of unique exclusivity.
John 14:6; Acts 4:12; 1 Timothy 2:5-6

2A. Many object to this exclusivity, saying “all religions lead to God”.
2B. Many object to this exclusivity, saying “all religions teach the same thing”.
2C. Many object to this exclusivity, saying “Christians seem narrow-minded and arrogant”
1 Peter 3:15-16

3. “I am the way” and “I am the door” are motivations for a clear decision.
Joshua 24:15

"So Jesus again said to them, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.'"
John 10:7-10

“'Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.' Thomas said to him, 'Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?' Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'”
John 14:1-6

"And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
Acts 4:12

"For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time."
I Timothy 2:5-6

"And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
Joshua 24:15

1.  What part of Pastor Dave’s message challenged you this week?

2.  Jesus' statement of being the way, the truth, and the life is not only for the moment of salvation but a continual process of his salvation being made known in our lives in new and fresh ways. In what ways has Jesus continued to reveal himself as the way, the truth, and the life at different moments in your life?

3. Read Acts 4:12. Does Jesus claim to be the exclusive way and door by which we attain salvation ever bother you or feel unfair? Have you ever had this issue come up when you are witnessing to unbelievers?

4. What ways have you found to present the gospel as exclusive to others around you? How can we do this without being a jerk for Jesus in our presentation of the gospel?

5. Read Joshua 24:15. As we look at our own lives, we all are tempted to serve false idols (money, success, etc.). Does grounding yourself back into the statements of Jesus help to dislodge these idols in your life?

Spend some time this week praying through these statements of Jesus. As Pastor Dave mentioned this weekend, the statements of Jesus are a call of action. They push us to evaluate our lives. We all have the propensity to wander away from the gospel when our focus becomes clouded with idols. We can lose sight of the goodness of Jesus. Make it your focus this week to notice the areas in your life that tend to pull you away from Jesus. Jesus is always presenting us with the ability to walk through the door that is his grace. Lay those idols at the door of Jesus this week as you spend time in prayer.