In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Welcome to Purify the Heart. I’m Pastor Zachary Courie, and today we continue our Lenten journey through Exodus. So far, we’ve seen Israel’s suffering in Egypt and God’s providence in preserving Moses. Now, in Exodus 3, God calls Moses to be the deliverer of His people through a bush that burns but is not consumed. Here we go!
3 Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. 3 And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” 4 When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” 5 Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” 6 And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
7 Then the Lord said, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, 8 and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 9 And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” 12 He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”
13 Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I am has sent me to you.’ ” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations. 16 Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt, 17 and I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.” ’ 18 And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’ 19 But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand. 20 So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all the wonders that I will do in it; after that he will let you go. 21 And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and when you go, you shall not go empty, 22 but each woman shall ask of her neighbor, and any woman who lives in her house, for silver and gold jewelry, and for clothing. You shall put them on your sons and on your daughters. So you shall plunder the Egyptians.” (Exodus 3:1–22, ESV)
This is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Exodus 3 is a transition in the story. Moses, who is now an 80-year-old shepherd, is in the wilderness when he encounters on a mountain a strange sight: a bush that burns yet isn’t consumed. That moment marks the beginning of God’s direct intervention to rescue Israel.
Let’s lay it out:
* God appears as fire. Fire often signifies God’s presence (as in the pillar of fire later in Exodus 13, or the tongues of fire at Pentecost in Acts 2). The bush on fire points us to God’s power, like how Hebrews 12:29 describes God as “a consuming fire”, or how back in Genesis 19 He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah by raining down fire from heaven. Yet because here the bush is burning without being consumed, He reveals His sustaining presence, that He will preserve those who are united to Him, refining and purifying them by His holiness.
* Moses responds by hiding his face in fear, knowing he stands on holy ground. God’s presence is so overwhelming that Moses recognizes his unworthiness.
* God reveals His name – In verse 14, God declares, “I AM WHO I AM.” This is the divine name, Yahweh, sometimes mistranslated to Jehovah, nevertheless His name signifying His self-existence, His unchanging nature, and His faithfulness.
* Also, God calls Moses to confront Pharaoh and lead His people out of Egypt, but Moses resists, giving excuses. Yet, God doesn’t send Moses alone. He promises, “I will be with you.”
How does this chapter point us to Christ?
* First, we see here God’s presence in Christ. God promised Moses, “I will be with you.” The Church Fathers saw the burning bush as a picture of Christ Himself: His divine nature (the fire) and His human nature (the bush) united in one person without division or destruction. Just as the bush was not consumed, so too Christ’s humanity was not overwhelmed by His divinity. This reminds us that in Christ, God is truly with us, not just appearing in fire, but taking on our very flesh to redeem us.
* Jesus is the ultimate deliverer. Just as God sent Moses to rescue Israel from slavery in Egypt, God the Father sent His Son to rescue us from slavery to sin, as Jesus Himself talks about in John 8:34-36.
* Jesus is the great “I AM”. In John 8:58, Jesus told the Jews, “Before Abraham was, I AM.” He claims the divine name, identifying Himself as God 14 times in John’s Gospel (7 times by saying “I AM” alone, and 7 other times attaching His divine name to a description, like when He says in John 10, “I AM the Good Shepherd…” So also, this is where we begin to see how the name of God is more than a word; His name is who He is. That means to pray in Jesus’ name is not just a formula to conclude our prayers. To pray in Jesus’ name is to pray according to His person and work for us.
Exodus 3 reminds us that:
* The Lord calls the unlikely. Moses was hesitant and weak, but the Lord equipped him to do what He called him to.
* The Lord knows our suffering and sees our affliction. Our cries to Him are not only heard, but bring His fatherly heart of compassion to us and into our situation.
* Wherever God’s name is, there He is. Jesus says in Matthew 18, in the context of dealing with conflict within the Church, that where two or three are gathered in His name, there He is among them. His name brings His blessings, most especially the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation.
Let us pray. Almighty and everlasting God, You despise nothing You have made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent. Create in us new and contrite hearts that lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness we may receive from You full pardon and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Thanks for joining me to Purify the Heart! Join me again tomorrow as we continue with Exodus 4 where Moses struggles with God’s call. Until then, grace be with you. Amen.
