"5 They answered him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said to them, “I am he.” Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them. 6 When Jesus said to them, “I am he”, they drew back and fell to the ground. 7 So he asked them again, “Whom do you seek?” And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.” 8 Jesus answered, “I told you that I am he."
John 18:5-8a
What was said at the end of yesterday's Note is further demonstrated in 6. Jesus openly revealed Himself to the soldiers, but at the words 'I am He' they fell back, stunned by something in His manner. The situation is really extraordinary; it is as if He were almost playing with them, demonstrating to them - and to us - how utterly helpless they were to lay hands on Him until He should, by some inner, hidden control, give them leave. But there is a deeper significance still. What made the soldiers fall back as if they had been struck? It can, we submit, only have been a supernatural manifestation, showing forth the glory of Christ, uncovering for a moment what was always there but hidden from the eyes of men. We recall Wesley's famous lines,
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see, Hail! the Incarnate Deity.
And now, for a moment, the veil was drawn aside, and the glory that shone forth brought them down to the dust, as it did on a later occasion on the Damascus Road with Saul of Tarsus. This, some commentators think, is the force of the words 'I am' - for these were the words that described the name of Jehovah, the great I AM. This is important from the point of view of John's presentation of his message, for it has the effect of showing us Who it was Who was thus going forth to die, and entering into human sin and woe to deal with it, the Lord of glory Himself. Such is the force of John's record here: it is a Mighty One going forth to do battle for us men and for our salvation. And, writing from the standpoint of the resurrection as he was, John is hinting at its possibility - for with such an One going into death, the outcome could not but be victory. As Peter said on the day of Pentecost, 'It was not possible that He should be holden of it' (Acts 2: 24). Viewed in this light we see how mistaken it is to think of Christ's death as a tragedy or martyrdom of the failure of a mission. He was on the initiative, on the offensive against sin and death.