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1 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” 4 When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.” 5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God. 7 The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. 9 And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. 10 So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” 12 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 this mountain.” 13 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?” 14 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.’ ” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘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, the name you shall call me from generation to generation. (Exodus 15:1-15 NIV Bible)
Friend, what kind of call have you had from God? Years ago, a friend and I were talking and he said, "Man some people have these awesome calls from God; they were drug dealers, or drug addicts and they were rescued from there, and what kind of call do we have?" I chuckled and said, "I'm glad we were called in a way that found me where I was and called me to where I needed to be." Moses had one of those dramatic calls, and not to say that my nor your call was not dynamic - it was! For the record, Moses was a murderer on the run. He was raised in the palace of Pharaoh, but his Hebrew roots ran deep and when he saw a Hebrew man being abused, he killed the oppressor. He thought he was not seen, but soon his own countrymen asked him if he was going to kill them as he had killed the Egyptian? Oops, gotta run! And run he did. To another country where he married into a ranching family, who had livestock. One day while working for his father-in-law, who was also a priest, Moses led the flock to Mount Horeb, known as the mountain of God. There Mo sees an angel of God who appeared to Mo while inside a bush that was on fire, but the fire was not consuming the bush. Reminds me of some barbecues I have been invited to! This fire caught Mo's interest and he walks up to it, God calls him. By name. Twice. "Moses! Moses!" Gulp, yes, Lord? "Stay where you are, but do take off your shoes, for the place where you are standing is holy ground." Gulp again. God then says, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob." Triple gulp. I would hide my face, as Moses did, as he heard God say that He had seen the misery of His people in Egypt and heard their cries, and shared His concern with Moses. And so, God says, "I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey - the home of the Canaanites, et al, and now, I am sending you (fourth gulp!) to Pharaoh to bring my people out of Egypt."
God reviews His plan with Moses and Mo has to ask, "What's Your name?" Mo knew the key to success in business and life; know the name of the person who makes decisions and use that name to get into the door! God replies, "I AM WHO I AM." You can shorten that to "I AM," as in "I AM has sent me to you." And in case the Israellites happen to ask, tell them, "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, the name you shall call me from generation to generation."
Regardless of our call, every counter is special and sacred, just like the ground on which Moses stood when he was called. God knows us by name and called us by name. I was in the eleventh grade when I was called into ministry. And like most people I said no. I truly believed that of all people, God could have done better. I was shy and shared the top fear of most humans, public speaking. And the idea of the material that God was calling on me to share frightened me. I did feel like Moses. But still God persisted as He might be with you. I heard from many that said true happiness would not be mine until I said yes to what God asked of me. They were right.
This passage also shares with us a foundational text for understanding God's call to ministry. It highlights the importance of our recognizing God's presence in our lives, our approaching ministry with humility and reverence, our need of addressing human suffering, of our relying on God's equipping, proclaiming God's eternal truth, and our embracing a multi-generational calling. Those who sense a calling to ordained ministry can find encouragement and guidance in these principles as they seek to serve God and His people.
We need to remember that not all of us are being called into ordained or professional ministry, but as baptized believers into the Body of Christ, we have a calling into the ministry of all believers. We have the permission of God to serve, to reach out, and to help in the healing of those hurting hearts. It could be a child in your Sunday school class, or a fellow choir member, or a fellow usher. It could be a visitor fearful of even being in your church, or it could be your neighbor who is hurting. Pray and listen, pray and speak.
PRAYER: God of Moses and God of all people, including me, use me how you will; let me serve all people with boldness and Your blessing; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! YOUR CALL TO ACTION: Pray about your call from God and how to best serve Him.
Receive my blessing of love and peace,
Pastor Eradio Valverde, Jr.
