Day 2 from Pastor Brian Flewelling's 24-Day Devotional Titled "Exodus."
“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…’The Lord, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob’...this is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation.” Exodus 3:14-15
Who is this God slipping in the doorway unexpectedly? He is like a hummingbird darting into your feeder. He has been gone for four hundred years, and now he springs into the picture. What’s with the timing? Maybe you’ve asked yourself this question: Where have you been all this time we’ve needed you? Why weren’t you here to defend us? These are difficult questions, but not for us to know the answers to at this moment. We simply must pounce on our opportunity to “seek the Lord while he may be found.”
Needless to say, God reintroduced himself to Moses in verse 6, “I Am the God of your father,” implying his continued faithfulness (present tense) to the relationship he started with Abraham four hundred years earlier. God then tells Moses, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people (v.7)...have heard (v.7)...have seen (v.9). Notice the prevailing past tense. Finally, in verse 12, he says, “I will be with you,” promising future fidelity. Present, past, and future are each expressed in God’s care for his people.
Moses is still worried. The “what ifs” plague his thoughts. Anxiety and self-doubt cripple his obedience. And what does God have to say about Moses’ fears? — “I AM WHO I AM” (v.14). He tells us we need not worry about our insufficiencies. He is the all-sufficient One. We need not worry that he won’t show up. He is the all-present One. We need not worry about a Red Sea in our front or hordes of cruel thugs at our back. He is the mighty One. God is implying that when he asks you to take a risk, you are not doing it on your own strength; you are doing it in his. So, learn to look at God’s profit margins and not your own red ink.
“I AM WHO I AM.” This beautiful name of God requires more than a description. He is someone you have to encounter, not simply define. It’s not enough to extrapolate about him; you have to experience him for yourself! You have to trust him, not dissect him. The barcode scanner doesn’t work for God. It is you who is being led by him, and you who must trust him, and not the other way around.
Find the full digital copy of "Exodus" here.
