Before Abraham Was, I AM: Jesus' Bold Claim to Divinity | 23/3/25

In this powerful sermon, Pastor Seb unpacks Jesus' confrontation with religious leaders in John 8:31-59. With striking boxing metaphors, Seb reveals how Jesus delivers three powerful "punches" that challenge religious self-deception and false security. First, Jesus exposes how the Jews were slaves to sin despite their denial; second, he challenges their claim to spiritual paternity with Abraham; and finally, he delivers the knockout blow with his divine claim: "Before Abraham was, I AM." Seb shows how this explicit declaration of divinity—using God's sacred name from Exodus—provoked such outrage that the crowd attempted to stone Jesus. Throughout the message, Seb emphasises that true freedom comes not from religious heritage but from abiding in Jesus and his teaching. He concludes with a practical challenge to remain in Christ's words and pray to him daily, embracing the transformative freedom that only Jesus can provide. flbc.org.au