Exodus 3:1-10

August 6, 2014

Were back in Exodus, the gospel according to Moses, and now well look at his calling.
Weve already seen that he was hidden among the reeds by his mother when he was a
baby, discovered by Pharaoh's daughter and raised as her son with all the benefits of
Pharaohs household. When he was 40 years old he killed an Egyptian to save a
fellow-Israelite, and had to run for his life into the desert. There he met a family, married
in, and started a family of his own as a shepherd:

Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian:

One thing I want you to notice as we go through these verses is the similarities to Christ:
The prince of Egypt stooped to be a lowly shepherd, gave up everything to save one
Israelite, and spent 40 years in the desert waiting on God. Christ gave up everything in
heaven to become a lowly servant for his people, and he spent 40 days in the desert also
waiting on God. These comparisons arent accidental. Moses saved Israel from the land of
bondage to foreshadow the Prophet who saves all Gods people from spiritual bondage.

and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God,
even to Horeb.
2
And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of
the midst of a bush:

Before we say anything about this verse we need to read what the New Testament says
about it: And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of
mount Sina an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush (Acs 7:30)

So, after living in the desert for 40 years, Moses is somewhere near Sinai when he sees
this burning bush. I want you to pay close attention to the words. What exactly appeared
to him? It says the Angel of the Lord appeared in a flame. The Greek word for in is a
preposition that means just that: in. The Greek Septuagint translates Exodus 3:2 with
1
the same preposition. A literal English translation of the original Hebrew reads, and he
2
is appearing messenger of Yahweh to him in blaze of fire from midst of the thorn bush
3

In Acts 7:35 we read that the angel appeared to him in the bush and in Deuteronomy
33:16 we see that the Lord dwelt in the bush. In Exodus 3:16 he says, The Lord
God...appeared unto me. Im making a big deal out of this because it doesn't say the
Angel of the Lord appeared as a flame or as a bush; it says plainly that the Angel of
the Lord was in the flame which was in the bush. This is important because it helps us
understand what were seeing.

1
http://biblehub.com/text/acts/730.htm
2
http://www.ellopos.net/elpenor/greektexts/septuagint/chapter.asp?book=2&page=3
3
http://www.scripture4all.org/OnlineInterlinear/OTpdf/exo3.pdf
The word angel simply means messenger. This messenger, according to verse six, is
God himself! Now, if no man has ever seen the Father (Jn. 6:46), then who does Moses see
in the bush? Christ later says that he is I AM (Jn. 8:58). He is the Messenger or Apostle of
God who reveals the covenant of grace to Gods people. Its him we see standing in a bush
in the Old Testament talking to Moses.

Now, theres no good natural explanation for the burning bush. Some people have tried to
explain it away as being imagined or made up or misunderstood, but God is in the bush.
Isnt that enough for us? Its best to just take this for what it says and understand that
its supernatural.

Ive searched through the New Testament to find why Jesus appeared in a burning bush,
but there really isnt anything else said. Maybe the fire symbolizes the light and glory of
Gods presence. That makes sense to me, and it seems to fit the context, but maybe it
shows judgment and cleansing, and we see grace because the bush is covered in it but
doesnt burn up. Maybe the bush symbolizes the tender root of Jesse, or maybe its the
church, or maybe its something else. The truth is that we just dont know and any
meaning we assign is just subjective, so Im going to say that it is what it is.

and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
3
And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not
burnt.
4
And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of
the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
5
And he said,
Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou
standest is holy ground.

Apparently Moses more intrigued than he was afraid when he first saw the bush. I
picture him seeing it off in the distance. At first it just catches his attention, but then
after a little time passes he notices its not burning out. He keeps watching, and this fire
is still roaring. After he sees that its not going to change he decides to walk over and see
if he tell whats causing it, but once hes within earshot he hears someone hollering his
name. Imagine the shock and panic in his face. That bush is on fire, and someone inside it
is yelling my name!

Well, hes a savior, so I suppose hes ready to run over and help this poor person out of
the fire, but then hes commanded to stay back. Its not an emergency at all, and no one
needs help: he must remove his shoes because this ground is holy; in other words, God is
here!

6
Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac,
and the God of Jacob.

Jesus quotes this verse in the New Testament (Mk. 12:26; Lk. 20:37) to prove the
resurrection because God is Abrahams God presently. Hes Isaacs God right now. Hes
Jacobs God today. This is important in Exodus because it directly ties Mosess work into
Gods promise to Abraham. Everything in Genesis has been building up to this:

And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.
7
And the LORD said, I have
surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by
reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;
8
And I am come down to deliver
them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a
good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the
Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and
the Jebusites.

What Gods about to do is far more than just save one Israelite from a beating. Hes about
to initiate the next phase of his promise to give Abrahams seed all the land of Canaan.

Its comforting to know that he has surely seen their affliction and heard their cry. He
knows their sorrows, and thats why hes come down. Again we see more evidence that
this encounter is with Christ. He is the bread that came down from heaven, and the Word
that became flesh and dwelt among us; he is the one who dwelt in the bush; he is
Emmanuel who came down to save us and to guarantee all the blessings of the promise.

9
Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have
also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them.
10
Come now therefore,
and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children
of Israel out of Egypt.

God saves through Moses. Its interesting because Moses doesnt really do anything. He
goes at Gods command, he speaks Gods words, and God does the miracles through him.
Its actually not hard to see how this foreshadows Christ: he too was sent, he spoke Gods
words, and he did miracles by the power of God (Jn. 14:10).

Moses foreshadows Christ, and this story shows us how God delivers his people from
bondage through a sent savior.

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