What’s in a Name?

Coming on the heels of God reassuring Moses of His presence and the sign of deliverance from Egypt, Moses, for the first time, voices his protest of being used by God. He has already noted his disbelief that God would have him in such a central role but now his uncertainty shows itself a bit more.

Verse 13 points us to the first attribute of God revealed here.

There is Only One God

It should be noted that Moses has enough information about who God is based on what has already been said out of the burning bush to describe the Lord as just one God. Moses poses a question about the situation if he is indeed goes to Egypt to deliver God’s people. They will have questions about his legitimacy. The main question they will ask is, “what is His name?” it is in that question that we know that Moses believes there is one God. Otherwise the question would have been posed as “what is their name” or “what are their names?”

The truth is that the people of Israel had been in a pagan land for quite some time by now and they would have been exposed to the polytheism of the Egyptians. While they might not have fully turned to other gods, it is possible that idol worship had taken over.

Because of this, it is possible that “God of your fathers” might have meant something different to these exiled people with the possibility of mixing religions.

Moses simply asks the question for clarification from God, but in that we learn that He is the one and only. What a reminder for God’s people who resided in a land where there were gods for fertility, agriculture, kingship, and so much more.

The reminder for you and I is that our God is over all things not just one or two various subjects. And we learn this just from the question that Moses poses. But when we turn our attention to God’s answer we see He simply says, “I am who I am.” This is a reference the name of the Lord, yahweh.

He reigns over all things which points to the next point.

God is Creator of All Things

Simply understanding that God is and exists is a wonderful thing but there is much more involved in this statement. For God to be “I am” is for him to be the causation of all things. We can go back to the very beginning in Genesis to understand that He spoke all of creation into existence. From the dust of the ground He created man. He formed the seas out of nothing.

This reminds us of the fact that God’s power. The infinite power that He has to create all matter. But beyond that, this power would reassure the people of Israel that the Lord has instilled Moses with the power to deliver them from the oppression of the Egyptian people. It is also the Lord orchestrating situations according to His will which is exactly what was going to happen for Israel.

The same can be said for our lives. When we consider the Lord and all of His power, we must then believe in what situations He is able to work in. We must realize that even in the most difficult of situations, He is able to move in a mighty way that brings Him glory.

God is the Sustainer

If God has created all things, this also means that He is sustainer. Included in “I am” is the fact that God has created His people but also sustains them. Therefore, He is sending Moses to do His bidding in Egypt and sustaining His people toward the promised land. You see, God being the Creator is not enough in a world where things eventually rot away. Without the Lord’s provision, we would surely perish. We would rot away and fail into sin. In the case of Israel, they would have remained in Egypt if it had not been for the sustaining power of the Lord.

But I want to focus this on the individual as well. Remember that it was Moses who asked, “who am I?” The response here from God is to say, “You are Moses but I am your God and will guide your steps.” I am the God who has created you and will be the God who will sustain both you and the people you are to lead out of Egypt.

The sustaining power of God also extends to the salvation that was made possible by Jesus on the Cross. It is because His blood atoned for our sins that we might have eternity to spend with Him.

If God has created you and me to give Him glory and sent us to be his ambassadors, would he not equip us for that job? He has. He has given each of you spiritual gifts. He has given us talents to use for the kingdom. So we ought to use them.

But there might be the skeptic that says, “well that was God then.” In verse 15 we see see that

God is Eternal

He reminds the people the He was the God of their fathers but goes on to say that all the peoples will remember Him. To say that God is eternal is to say that there has never been a time when He did not exist and will never be a time when He will not exist.

This also points to His consistency. He is the same today as he was from the very beginning of time. And will be the same thousands of year from this very moment. It means that He can be trusted. It means that salvation is always legitimate.

So, who is this God that we serve? He is the only true God. He is creator. He is sustainer. He is I am.

As you go, remember that “I am” has sent you.