“Who Am I?” Exodus 3:11-12
Sermon by Don Emmitte
While we have been looking at the Ten Commandments the last few weeks today I want us to go back a bit and see the beginning of Moses’ journey.
Before God could use Moses to lead the people of Israel to their freedom, there were many things that would change in his life. Remember that he began as the favored son of the pharaoh. Because of the miraculous way God saved him from death at his birth, he was given the finest of education and physical training of the day. However, that would not change how he began to feel about himself.
As a result of his zeal to deliver the Israelites, he had misjudged God’s timing. He took matters into his own hands and suffered not from doing something wrong, but doing something right at the wrong time. He murdered one of the Egyptian slave masters. This began his long journey running from the pharaoh and from himself. He had nowhere to turn except the wilderness. During this time he led a quiet life as a shepherd. It was a time of healing and renewal. When the time was right, God spoke to him at the burning bush. Here he begins to a very important question: Who Am I?
TAKE YOUR BIBLES, PLEASE…
But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.” Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” (Exodus 3:11-13 ESV).
NOTE: Before we dig deeper in this passage, we need to understand the motivation for Moses’ first question, “Who am I?” It represents an inner need that many of us develop through the discouraging and difficult experiences of life. The traumatic experiences of all of our lives, including Moses, take their toll on our confidence and self-esteem. That shouldn’t be a surprise. Any form of failure or rejection wears away our ability to “bounce back.” We begin to second guess all of our decisions and feel as though we are not capable of success at all. This was Moses when God appeared to him. It may be you today.
MOSES OFFERS FOUR EXCUSES THAT ARE VERY REVEALING…
The First Excuse: “Who Am I?” (v. 11).
Picture the event with me. Moses, once second only to the great Pharaoh of Egypt, now tends his father-in-law’s sheep in Midian. As he leads them from one small area of grazing to another in this desolate place, he sees an unusual sight. A bush is engulfed in flames, but not burning. He is curious and approaches the bush. He must have thought it very odd that the bush was not being consumed by the flames as he had seen in that dry, arid region before; but, when he heard the voice of God from within the bush speaking his name, he must have been terrified. God calls him to go back to Egypt and be the instrument of Israel’s freedom.
Here he reveals his inferiority complex and feelings of inadequacy and asks, Who am I? “Who am I?” is the central question in life.
We do define ourselves with the answer to this question. Many times our answer reveals a truth about ourselves indicating our spiritual understanding. There are five typical answers:
We may answer the question by saying, “I am (my name).” - We may define ourselves with a simple label. A name is important, however, it is not completely who we are.
We may answer the question by saying, “I am (my work position, social status, or position).” For example, I might say something like, “I’m a pastor.” Certainly that’s an honorable position, but it doesn’t adequately define who I am. It’s merely the role I am playing at this time in life’s journey.
We may answer by saying, “I am (my life’s experience).” Some are so invested in their experiences they come to believe they are the sum of them. For example, some may come to believe that since they were abused as a child they are incapable of building a healthy relationship. They may believe their nationality, or culture, or heritage is the defining aspect of their life.
We may answer by saying, “I am (my thoughts, or intellect).” There are many people who have been deceived by this belief. It results in a denial of the soul.
Others, correctly, may answer, “I am the combination of all of these things and the presence of God within me.” That’s the right answer!
That’s what God wanted Moses to know! Patiently he answers Moses’ question. He promises that he would never be alone. God would always be with him.
The Second Excuse: “I Don’t Know Who You Are.” (v. 13).
The real question Moses asked was what, or who, would be his source of authority. God would give him His name, but he already answered the question in the preceding verses.
1. He is the covenantal God of the past (v. 6). “And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.” This was God’s way of telling Moses that the past had been dealt with in his promise. Isn’t that a message we need to hear and accept today? Think of those failures in your past. They do not limit or define you. They may all be used of God to enhance and improve your ability to live in this present moment if you will surrender them into his care and covenant.
2. He is the compassionate God of the present (v. 7). “Then the LORD said, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings.”
A construction crew was building a new road through a rural area, knocking down trees as it progressed. A superintendent noticed that one tree had a nest of birds that couldn't yet fly and he marked the tree so that it would not be cut down. Several weeks later the superintendent came back to the tree. He got into a bucket truck and was lifted up so that he could peer into the nest. The fledglings were gone. They had obviously learned to fly. The superintendent ordered the tree cut down. As the tree crashed to the ground, the nest fell clear and some of the material that the birds had gathered to make the nest was scattered about. Part of it was a scrap torn from a Sunday school pamphlet. On the scrap of paper were these words: “He careth for you.”
3. He is the Final Word of the future (v. 8). “I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.” I’m glad that God uses the past and cares for us in the present, but the great good news is that he secures the future! This truth has led me to develop a proverb of life that has been very helpful to me through the years:
NEVER LET PAST FAILURES OR FUTURE FEARS ROB YOU OF PRESENT JOY!
The Third Excuse: “What if I Fail Again?” (4:1-9).
Moses’ doubt must have gone very deep within his spirit. Remember, he was only trying to do the right thing, even though it was at the wrong time. In his mind it was still his failure. He had no hope in the future. That’s always at the root of our fear of the future. Just one of the many reassuring things about the Bible is that it is not reluctant to tell us about the failures of its heroes. That’s the difference between the stories of the Bible and many Christian biographies. Many biographies of well-known Christians don’t tell us about the person’s failures. You might get the impression that they never struggled. Let me make three simple suggestions to overcome the fear of failure:
1. Remember that everyone fails. A recent study showed that the failure rate of human beings is 100%. Nobody’s perfect. I like the story of Babe Ruth, once baseball’s all-time home run king. Did you know that he was also the all-time strikeout champion? He struck out almost twice as often as he hit home runs. He knew that he had to risk striking out in order to hit those home runs. When asked for the secret of his success, Ruth replied, “I just keep on swingin’ at ‘em!”
2. Realize that failure is not final. Moses once was a prince; now he’s a shepherd. He once was famous; now he’s forgotten. His life once was full of promise; now his life seems destined to end in failure. But Moses’ failure was not final. God had his future!
3. Recognize the benefits of failure. Moses may not have been chose to be Israel’s deliverer if he had never failed. We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose (cf. Romans 8:28). “All things” includes failures. That doesn’t mean that our failures are good. But God can take our failures and bring something good out of them. Failure both educates us and makes us less judgmental.
The Fourth Excuse: “I’m Not Able.” (v. 10).
But Moses said to the LORD, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.” (Exodus 4:10 ESV).
Moses had come to believe the most common lie within the Church. He believed he didn’t have the talent to do what God had called him to do! God’s answer to Moses is the same answer he has for us today. None of us have the talent or ability to accomplish God’s will in our lives. But, God does and through Him all things are not merely possible, they are assured!
WELL… LET’S COME TO SOME CONCLUSIONS:
Principle #1: God wants to use all of us in spite of our weaknesses. In fact, it is in our weakness that He is strong (cf. 2 Corinthians 12:10b).
Principle #2: God wants to balance self-confidence with God-confidence. The Apostle Paul wrote, “I can do all things through Christ” (Philippians 4:13).
Principle #3: God wants us to be able to overcome the negative results of rejection and become men and women He can use to achieve his purposes in the world (cf. 2 Timothy 1:7-8).
Principle #4: God wants to use our failures to prepare us to face greater challenges.
Are you ready to go back to your Egypt and set the captives free? It may be a family member, a co-worker, or neighbor. Whoever your pharaoh might be, God is bigger than any obstacle you may face!
