Meanwhile, Moses was shepherding the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. Then the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire within a bush. As Moses looked, he saw that the bush was on fire but was not consumed. So Moses thought, “I must go over and look at this remarkable sight. Why isn’t the bush burning up?”
When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called out to him from the bush, “Moses, Moses!”
“Here I am,” he answered.
“Do not come closer,” he said. “Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” Then he continued, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look at God.
Then the LORD said, “I have observed the misery of my people in Egypt, and have heard them crying out because of their oppressors. I know about their sufferings, and I have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and to bring them from that land to a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the territory of the Canaanites, Hethites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. So because the Israelites’ cry for help has come to me, and I have also seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them, therefore, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh so that you may lead my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.”
But Moses asked God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and that I should bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”
He answered, “I will certainly be with you, and this will be the sign to you that I am the one who sent you: when you bring the people out of Egypt, you will all worship God at this mountain.”
Then Moses asked God, “If I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what should I tell them?”
God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you.” God also said to Moses, “Say this to the Israelites: The LORD, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is my name forever; this is how I am to be remembered in every generation.
“Go and assemble the elders of Israel and say to them: The LORD, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, has appeared to me and said: I have paid close attention to you and to what has been done to you in Egypt. And I have promised you that I will bring you up from the misery of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, Hethites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—a land flowing with milk and honey. They will listen to what you say. Then you, along with the elders of Israel, must go to the king of Egypt and say to him: The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Now please let us go on a three-day trip into the wilderness so that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God.
“However, I know that the king of Egypt will not allow you to go, even under force from a strong hand. But when I stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all my miracles that I will perform in it, after that, he will let you go. And I will give these people such favor with the Egyptians that when you go, you will not go empty-handed. Each woman will ask her neighbor and any woman staying in her house for silver and gold jewelry, and clothing, and you will put them on your sons and daughters. So you will plunder the Egyptians.”
Click here to listen to the Scripture in ESV.
In Exodus chapter three, what do you notice about God’s character as revealed here? How does God’s presence and character change Moses’ perspective of the task God gives him?
When the term behold is used in Scripture it means to fix the eyes upon, to see with attention, to observe with care, as when John the Baptist saw Jesus, he said “Behold.”
View or behold this work of art, titled Be Lifted Up, O Ancient Doors, by Grace Carol Boomer, connected to Sunday’s sermon passage.
Visio Divina, or “divine seeing”, is a way of praying and reflecting through art. As you look at this week’s piece, take a few quiet moments to go through a three-step process. First, observe what you see in the image, from colors to composition to recognizable elements, without trying to understand what it is supposed to mean. Then read about the work, using these details to help you interpret the work of art. Ask God what he might be saying through the image, and listen for his insight in your thoughts, feelings, or prayers. Finally, take a moment to respond, through prayer or journaling, to what God showed you in this image.
Commentary:
Artist Grace Carol Bomer lives and works in Asheville, NC, and has spent her career exploring the tension between word and image, creating many luminescent and complex works of art. Be Lifted Up, O Ancient Doors was an art installation first displayed in 1998. In Bomer’s own words:
This installation deals with the mystery of Christ, the incarnate God, the King of Glory, and the doorway to eternity. His sacrifice is foretold when the captive Israelites were instructed to put blood on the doorjams of their Egyptian homes. Each doorjamb in the installation is lifted higher as one approaches the end panels. So too the King of Glory was lifted up on a cross. The experience of walking through six blood-smeared doorjambs as one walks toward heavenly glory is meant to help viewers imagine a God of purity who dwells in inaccessible light but who made it possible for his created ones in all their fallen uncleanness and unholiness to approach Him through His blood.
A print of Grace’s painting, The Return of the Prodigal, can be viewed in the permanent collection at the Downtown Campus. If you’ve never visited our Downtown Campus or taken an opportunity to see the art on display, we invite you to visit and explore!
Art Source: Be Lifted Up, O Ancient Doors, Grace Carol Bomer, 1998. Used by permission. gracecarolbomer.com
O Lord, you see that all hearts are empty unless filled by you, and all desires are frustrated unless they point to you. So give us light and grace to seek and find you, that we may be yours, and you may be ours, forever.
-Christina G. Rossetti, from Prayers Ancient and Modern
Throughout this year-long series in theFormed.life, the daily Scripture reading will take you through the whole story of Scripture in manageable chunks, allowing time for other study, reflection, and prayer, rather than including every verse and chapter in the Bible. If you would like to go deeper and read through the entire Bible, use this whole Bible reading plan from the BibleProject. Print it off and use it as a checklist to track your progress!