… Moses said to God, “If I come 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 shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” He said further, “Thus you shall say to the Israelites, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” (Exodus 3: 13-14 NRSV)
Great volumes and tomes have been written about this conversation between God and Moses. One fabulous Cecil B. deMille movie gave us visuals that bring to life the Biblical accounts we learned in Sunday School.
Moses was minding his own business, watching over the flocks of Jethro, his father-in-law. The Bible says “… he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God,” which is also called Sinai.
It was there that Moses encountered what appeared to be a “flame of fire out of a bush” (Exodus 3:2), except the bush was not burning up. Once God had Moses’ attention, God called to him by name, “Moses, Moses!”
Moses to his great credit, responded, “Here I am.”
God instructed him to remove his sandals because he was standing on holy ground.
God introduced Himself. “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Then, the Bible says, Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
The footnote in my Bible says, “The vision of God veiled in fire aroused dread, for divine holiness was experienced as a mysterious power that threatened human existence.”
It behooves us to remember that we will all stand in front of God in our last day, and face His holiness. Let us be ready!