In the gospel of John, Jesus makes seven “I am…” statements that connect Him to Old Testament concepts about God and the promise of the coming Messiah. The Jewish people living at the time of Jesus would have been fully aware of the significance of the terms used in these statements. With these statements, Jesus was declaring that He was the One they had been waiting for, the Messiah, the One whom God had promised to send.

The Seven “I Am…” Statements

1. I am the Bread of Life.
2. I am the Light of the World.
3. I am the Door (or Gate).
4. I am the Good Shepherd.
5. I am the Resurrection and the Life.
6. I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
7. I am the Vine.

In part 1, we examined the first 2 statements: I am the Bread of Life and I am the Light of the World. Now, in part 2, we’ll look at the next 2 statements: I am the Door (or Gate) and I am the Good Shepherd.

I Am the Door/Gate

Then Jesus said to them again, “Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.  John 10:7, 9 (NKJV)

So He said to them again, “Truly, truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. I am the gate. If anyone enters through Me, he will be saved. He will come in and go out and find pasture.  John 10:7, 9 (BSB)

Two different Bible versions have been included as most English translations use the word “door” but some use the word “gate.” A door was the entrance into a house or a building whereas a gate was the entrance into a walled city. An open door or gate was the way to enter into the safety of the house or the city. A closed door or gate provided protection from anything or anyone outside. Essentially, the concept for both “door” and “gate” is the same.

Once again, the people would have been very familiar with the significance of Jesus using the term “door” or “gate” due to the association with important aspects of their history.

At the first Passover, when God was preparing for the final plague of the death of the firstborn, He instructed the Israelites to sacrifice a Passover lamb and put the blood on the door of every house as protection. In a previous blog post, we examined how the Passover lamb pointed forward to Jesus. The door also points to Jesus. 

Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Pick out and take lambs for yourselves according to your families, and kill the Passover lamb. And you shall take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and strike the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. And none of you shall go out of the door of his house until morning. For the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to strike you.  Exodus 12:21-23

God protected the Israelites as long as they stayed behind the closed door with the lamb’s blood on it. The door with blood protected the people from death just as Jesus, the Door, with the sacrifice of His blood, protects believers from the consequences of sin which is death (Rom. 6:23).

Later, when the Israelites were in the wilderness, God gave Moses instructions for building the tabernacle where He would dwell with the people. Again, the door played a significant role.

This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the Lord, where I will meet you to speak with you. And there I will meet with the children of Israel, and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by My glory.  Exodus 29:42-43

God specified that it was at the door where He would meet with the people. God also instructed that certain sacrifices were to be brought before Him at the door of the tabernacle (Lev. 1:3, 3:2, 4:4, 12:6, 14:11, 15:14, and more) and that priests were to be consecrated by remaining within the door of the tabernacle for seven days (Lev. 8:33-35). The door was the connection between God and His people. Jesus, the Door, is the connection or mediator between God the Father and believers (1 Tim. 2:5).

Many years later, after the first temple had been built and destroyed, God gave Ezekiel a vision of a new temple. The gate was identified many times in this vision.

Thus says the Lord God: “The gateway of the inner court that faces toward the east shall be shut the six working days; but on the Sabbath it shall be opened, and on the day of the New Moon it shall be opened. The prince shall enter by way of the vestibule of the gateway from the outside, and stand by the gatepost. The priests shall prepare his burnt offering and his peace offerings. He shall worship at the threshold of the gate. Then he shall go out, but the gate shall not be shut until evening. Likewise the people of the land shall worship at the entrance to this gateway before the Lord on the Sabbaths and the New Moons.”  Ezekiel 46:1-3

God showed Ezekiel when the gate should be closed and when it should be open. Similar to the instructions for sacrifice at the door of the tabernacle, God commanded that the people were to worship Him at the entrance of the gate.

This is the gate of the Lord, through which the righteous shall enter. Psalm 118:20

Only the righteous may enter the gate of the Lord. We are made righteous through Jesus (Rom. 3:21-22, 2 Cor. 5:21) and it is through Him, the Gate, that we may enter to the safety of the Shepherd’s care.

I Am the Good Shepherd

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own.” John 10:11, 14

This statement of Jesus was especially significant as the concept of shepherds was predominant throughout the history of the Israelites. Abel, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Jacob’s 12 sons, Moses, and David had all been shepherds. Besides some of the great patriarchs being shepherds, God was often referred to as a shepherd in many of the Psalms and the books of the prophets. 

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters.  Psalm 23:1-2

Save Your people, and bless Your inheritance; shepherd them also, and bear them up forever.  Psalm 28:9

Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, You who lead Joseph like a flock; You who dwell between the cherubim, shine forth!  Psalm 80:1

Know that the LORD, He is God; it is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people and the sheep of His pasture.  Psalm 100:3

Behold, the Lord God shall come with a strong hand, and His arm shall rule for Him; behold, His reward is with Him, and His work before Him. He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and gently lead those who are with young.  Isaiah 40:10-11

‘For thus says the Lord God: “Indeed I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock on the day he is among his scattered sheep, so will I seek out My sheep and deliver them from all the places where they were scattered on a cloudy and dark day. I will feed them in good pasture, and their fold shall be on the high mountains of Israel. There they shall lie down in a good fold and feed in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. I will feed My flock, and I will make them lie down,” says the Lord God.”  Ezekiel 34:11-12, 14-15

Shepherd Your people with Your staff, the flock of Your heritage.  Micah 7:14a

When Jesus stated that He is the Good Shepherd, the people immediately would have known that He was declaring Himself to be God. Not only that, but Jesus said that “the good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.” This was something that had been prophesied long beforehand about the coming Messiah.

“Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, against the Man who is My Companion,” says the LORD of hosts. “Strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; then I will turn My hand against the little ones. They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘This is My people’; and each one will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’”  Zechariah 13:7, 9b

God told the prophet Zechariah that His Shepherd would be killed, the sheep would be scattered and call out to Him, and they would be His people. Jesus quoted this passage during the last supper as He knew that He would be killed the next day.

Then Jesus said to them, “All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written: ‘I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’”  Matthew 26:31

Jesus fulfilled this prophecy. He is the Good Shepherd, the One who gave His life for His sheep so that we can call out to Him and be His people.

Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.  Hebrews 13:20-21

We’ll continue looking at the remaining “I am…” statements in another upcoming blog post.

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