ETERNITY STOPPED FOR YOU. 091

“Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad. Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham? Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.” {LHU 17.2}

Here Christ shows them that, although they might reckon His life to be less than 50 years, yet His divine life could not be reckoned by human computation. The existence of Christ before His incarnation is not measured by figures (The Signs of the Times, May 3, 1899). {LHU 17.3}

“Before Abraham was, I am.” Christ is the preexistent, self-existent Son of God. The message He gave to Moses to give to the children of Israel was, “Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.” {LHU 17.4}

The prophet Micah writes of Him, “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” {LHU 17.5}

Through Solomon Christ declared: “The Lord possessed me in the beginning of his way, before his works of old.... When he gave to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed the foundations of the earth: then I was by him, as one brought up with him: and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him.” {LHU 17.6}

In speaking of His preexistence, Christ carries the mind back through dateless ages. He assures us that there never was a time when He was not in close fellowship with the eternal God. He to whose voice the Jews were then listening had been with God as one brought up with Him. {LHU 17.7}

Christ’s words were spoken with a quiet dignity and with an assurance and power that sent conviction to the hearts of the scribes and Pharisees. They felt the power of the message sent from heaven. God was knocking at the door of their hearts, entreating entrance (The Signs of the Times, August 29, 1900). {LHU 17.8}

Jesus, eternal and immortal in His nature, chose to “put on” that is to say he chose to become mortal, so that we could see, that there is nothing that could be done that was not done for His love to be demonstrated to it us.

Father we receive this love!

IJN,

amen

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