Things are heating up so take off your shoes!

Exodus 3 & 4

- Moses meets the angel of the Lord in a burning bush. Angel means messenger that is the job title, it is what they do not what they are. What the writers refer to as an Elohim is a disembodied spirit and more specifically this Elohim is the LORD. As we have already covered there are many Elohim, but there is no other Elohim like GOD, GOD is one of a kind.

- GOD tells Moses that “I Am” is the God of his father, the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob. Notice GOD says he is, not he was, past tense because to GOD they are all still very much alive. They are separated from their bodies, but they are not separated from GOD.

- GOD tells Moses not to come any closer and to remove his footwear for the place where he is standing is holy ground. Why? because Moses has just entered sacred space. Wherever GOD is, his kingdom is present, and the kingdom is wherever GOD is and chooses to be.

- Another question should be how this murderer was standing before a Holy GOD. Although you could ask that question of several people Cain, King David, Saul (Paul) just to name a few.

- First GOD’s great mercy is unfathomable, time is another factor we catch a hint of this in the book of Revelations 13:8 the book of Life written before the foundation of the world that belongs to the Lamb (Jesus) who was slaughtered. From GOD’s perspective this event will, is, and did occur. (Yeah, it hurts my head too.)

- GOD looks past Moses’ sins and sees the potential, that’s also how GOD looks at you and me.

- GOD reveals the ‘I Am That I AM’ to Moses to tell the children of Israel who sent him when they ask.

- GOD tells Moses the plan and tells him what to say to Pharaoh, notice in verse 21 that Israel will have favor in the eyes of the Egyptians, and they will leave Egypt with jewels, silver, gold, and clothing, which no doubt the Egyptians had taken previously from Israel when they forced them into bondage. 

- Moses makes excuses for why GOD should not pick him, and GOD gets angry at him and uses Aaron Moses’ brother to help and speak for him to Pharaoh.

- We see in verse 24 of Chapter 4 Moses leaves something unfinished, Moses is being disobedient and whether that is him not being circumcised or their son or both. Either way he has angered the LORD again, but Zipporah steps up, does the deed and GOD lets him go. Zipporah is not happy with Moses at all and calls him a bloody husband because of the circumcision. 

- You do not hear about Zipporah again until Exodus chapter 18 when Jethro the Priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law comes out to greet him and GOD’s people Israel that have been brought out of Egypt.  Jethro brings Zipporah and Moses’ two sons. They had been living with Jethro since Moses had sent them home. The incident at the Inn may have been the final straw in their relationship. We do not hear of her again and the only other woman that is mentioned with Moses in the wilderness wanderings is the Cushite woman that he marries, and both his sister and brother do not approve. Numbers chapter 12

Notice what Jesus had to say in Matthew 19:8 “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.” Moses permitted it because whether it was his choice or Zipporah’s he was living it in the sight of all of Israel.

A wonderful take away in all of this, is GOD can use anyone, GOD used an old (approx. 80-year-old) tongue tied murderer/divorcee with anger management problems. So he can use me and you, it is all about GOD and not about us. (I have the utmost respect for Moses in case it does not look like it, GOD was for him and that settles it for me.)

Next – Signs and Wonders