In a contest for famous bits of the Bible, Exodus 3 would be right up there with the parting of the Red Sea, David and Goliath, Jonah and the fish. Jesus can say simply “the passage about the bush” (Mark 12:26) and everyone knew immediately what he was talking about.
As a story it’s just crying out to be preached. A burning bush calling your name. It grabbed the attention of Moses so surely it’ll grab the attention of the congregation this Sunday.
But what’s it all about? Why is it so important? Is it about finding God in your wilderness experience? Is it about guidance? Is it about meeting God in the everyday of life? Is it a masterclass in leadership formation? Is it about managing midlife transitions?
A few reasons why the people of Jesus’ day would have prized the passage about the bush:
- This is the birth of a people – Exodus 3 is the first time we get God saying “my people”, “my people”, “my people”. It’s no longer just about one or two individuals. This is where we really start hearing about God’s people, the holy nation, God’s inheritance, the kingdom of priests. “What god ever attempted to take a nation out of another nation?” And this is where it starts.
- This is the activating of the promise made to Abraham and Isaac and Jacob – of a land of their own – and particularly the promise that after 400 years in a land that is not theirs, as slaves, suffering afflictions, they would come out. By the beginning of Exodus it’s been hundreds of years since those promises but God’s not like us – he doesn’t forget or change his mind or quietly shelve his promises – he keeps his word. And this is the moment when it finally happens: “God remembered his covenant” (Ex. 2:24). You don’t get a turning point quite this momentous for another 1800 years until “at just the right time” God decides to fulfil all his promises through the prophets about another, greater Exodus (Gal. 4:4-5).
- This is the calling of the great prophet Moses – superstar of the Old Testament, towering figure of Jewish history. The passage is foundational for the biblical concept of prophecy (Ex. 4:15-16; 1 Sam. 3). And it’s vital that we get this account of the calling of Moses (Ex. 3-4) because it shows us so clearly that he is not actually such a superstar after all. He didn’t get up one day and think, ‘I’ll go and have a word with Pharaoh and tell him to let the people go and if he doesn’t I’ll whack the land with my stick and send plagues’. We see that Moses is a weak man called and equipped and empowered by God. And so the real superstar of the story is…
- God – the burning bush story is a theophany for crying out loud! It’s a blazing revelation of God – possibly the most important in the Old Testament – where Israel’s God gives his people his personal name. The burning bush incident reverberates through the rest of the Bible – echoed in the theophanies to Joshua (Joshua 5:13-15), Gideon (Judges 6:11-24), Samson’s parents (Judges 13), shepherds (Luke 2:8-14), Saul (Acts 9:3-4), John (Rev. 1). The ‘big idea’ of Exodus 3 is God has turned up and he’s saying, “I AM – this is who I am.” It’s a sad indication of our hearts that we so easily jump to make a theophany all about us…
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