Moses: Day 7

Tuesday, September 7

Here I AM

But Moses said to God, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on the mountain.” Exodus 3:11-12

Suggested reading: Exodus 3:11-15

In the next several passages and posts, we will see Moses in a rather fragile state. Yesterday, if you recall, right after God called him by name, Moses quickly said these three words:

Here I am.

But upon receiving the news that he was the designated leader of the deliverance plan concerning the enslaved Israelites in Egypt, he begins to back pedal. He changes his three willing words to three doubting ones:

Who am I?

Notice God does not answer Moses’ insecure question. Instead, the Lord says what really matters:

I will be with you.

The holy conversation continues:

Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, “The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?”

God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM’ has sent me to you” (v. 13-14).

After reading several different commentaries on the name I AM, the overall consensus is that God is explaining his name Yahweh, calling himself the self-existent One, the unchangeable One, the eternal One. There is no other god like him, in Egypt or elsewhere, and nor will there ever be. All life comes from him, and he keeps his promises to his people. God is saying to Moses, “I am the same God that was with your fathers many generations ago, and I have come to fulfill my promise to them. Just as I was with them, I will be with you.”

Thoughts:

Like Moses, all too often we ask the doubting question of “Who am I?” After much self-assessment, we come up with answers like:

I am unqualified; I am uncertain; I am flawed, and the list goes on.

God wants to interrupt our naval-gazing with the holy statement:

“Take hope, I AM WHO I AM.”

So, let’s try this little exercise of the “I am” and the “I AM” having a heart-to-Heart conversation. We are speaking first, and then God is responding:

I am unqualified, but… I AM filling you with my Spirit to do the work.

I am uncertain, but… I AM all knowing.

I am flawed, but… I AM the One who forgives and redeems.

(and the list goes on).

Which one of these are you living under: the small “I am” or the great “I AM”?

Concentrate on knowing GOD, all of who he is. The more we know of him, the stronger we grow in him. Do you believe that the all sufficient, unchangeable, eternal God is with you like he was with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Moses?

Moses needs to believe the I AM is wrapped all around him so that he can move forward in confidence. It’s that simple for him and it’s that simple for us. (But we humans like to complicate things. Moses has more to teach us in the days ahead.)

Going Deeper and Sweeter: Isaiah 45:6; John 8:58; 1 Corinthians 8:6

Dear Lord,

Keep our eyes on who you are rather than who we are not. Grow our perspective of you so that we can be confident in what you have for each one of us to do for your kingdom. Amen.