Exodus 2:11-3:9
We have no stories from the boyhood of Moses. The storyteller moves us quickly from infancy to adulthood. We read a summary of his childhood under Pharaoh’s daughter and are moved immediately to this statement: “One day, after Moses had grown up” in 2:11.
Moses was forced into exile from Egypt. Having been observed in the act of striking and killing an Egyptian taskmaster, he traveled to the land of Midian. There Moses assumed the life of a shepherd. He married and had several children. Moses’ life was comfortable and relaxed. He grew old in this land, and eventually attained the traditional age of retirement. Old age apparently felt good to Moses. He retained good health and vigor as he approached his ninth decade of life. Moses said to himself, “My life has been good. I am satisfied.”
A settled comfortable life with children and grandchildren was pleasing. However, God had another plan. God intruded with a theophany. A theophany is an experience where God unexpectedly interrupts or encroaches upon the ordinary affairs of life. The intrusion is absolutely unsought. This unsolicited incursion of God into the flow of life is exactly what happened to Moses.
One day Moses was tending his sheep near the foot of a sacred mountain. As he looked into the distance, he saw something burning. The fire did not seem to spread. Neither did it go out. And it did not consume that which was burning. The fire simply burned. Moses decided that he must go and check out this strange sight and his life was radically transformed by that decision. Have you ever made a quick decision that significantly reset the flow of your life?
As he approached the bush, he heard his name being called: “Moses, Moses!” in Exodus 3:4. Right away Moses no doubt assumed he was in some trouble. Bushes do not call out our names, even burning bushes. “Remove the sandals from your feet,” the voice commanded. “The place on which you are standing is holy ground,” it continued in Verse 5. We can safely assume that Moses kicked off his shoes rather quickly. Moses’ name was called. The command was given. Off came his shoes.
I read that going shoeless on a regular basis increases your life expectancy of up to three years. Perhaps kicking off your shoes under your desk during the day or under the pew in Sunday worship has longevity benefits!
Slowly Moses became aware of who spoke to him. There is no evidence in scripture to suggest that Moses was a particularly religious man up to this point in time. He was not irreligious, nor could he even be considered agnostic. He was probably a passively religious person in his shepherd’s lifestyle.
Gradually Moses recalled the name of the God that his mother whispered in his ear as a small child in the palace of the Pharaoh. Moses thought to himself, “This must be the God of my mother and of my people.” Childhood stories and sacred memories came flooding back. Moses fell to his knees. In a theophany, in an unexpected interruption of life by God, we kneel!
Verse 7 says, “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings.”
Moses listened and remembered images of the pitifully wretched conditions of slavery that he had seen so many years ago,
God said, “I know their sufferings. I have heard their cry.” These words affirm the single most dominant part of God’s nature: God does hear the cry, the hurt, and the pain of God’s people. God has a special “ear” for the oppressed. God knows the aching heart of every human being. God knows your occasional fear of dying, the times of emptiness or loneliness, the uncertain sexuality, the hidden abuse in a marriage or a family, or the bouts with depression. God knows. Is not the nature of the God revealed in Jesus Christ right here? Is not the word from the burning bush an anticipation of the very nature of Jesus Christ?
At this point the real measure and impact of the theophany becomes clear in the story: God offered a startling observation: “It is not what am I going to do about it; rather, I am calling you. I’m sending you to confront the oppressor, to speak strong words to Pharaoh, to lead my children out of Egypt.”
Moses began to comprehend the radical dimensions of this theophany. Have you ever thought that God has put you thru what you've been thru to get you ready for something extraordinary? You just might be the next Moses God is calling to lead His people out of personal bondage!
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