Exodus 3:1-22
1 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”
4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!”
And Moses said, “Here I am.”
5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.
7 The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. 9 And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. 10 So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.”
11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”
12 And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.”
13 Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?”
14 God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’”
15 God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’
“This is my name forever,
the name you shall call me
from generation to generation.
16 “Go, assemble the elders of Israel and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob—appeared to me and said: I have watched over you and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt. 17 And I have promised to bring you up out of your misery in Egypt into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites—a land flowing with milk and honey.’
18 “The elders of Israel will listen to you. Then you and the elders are to go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God.’ 19 But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand compels him. 20 So I will stretch out my hand and strike the Egyptians with all the wonders that I will perform among them. After that, he will let you go.
21 “And I will make the Egyptians favorably disposed toward this people, so that when you leave you will not go empty-handed. 22 Every woman is to ask her neighbor and any woman living in her house for articles of silver and gold and for clothing, which you will put on your sons and daughters. And so you will plunder the Egyptians.”
John 1:1-18
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.
9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
15 (John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’”) 16 Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.
Luke 16:19-31
Believing in Moses and the Prophets
19 “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’
25 “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’
27 “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’
29 “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’
30 “‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
31 “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”
There is this curious mystery in us that searches...We seek things, and man are seekers of knowledge and Truth...Believers believe that God has given this great mystery, and in this mystery we are searching for a purpose in life, most likely for the One who Created us, our Creator...
When I think that God and Jesus are hiding from me, I can think and read of the story of the Burning Bush and St. John, one of the original disciples Disciples...Also one who personally knows Jesus and wrote the fourth gospel...And in the introduction to St. John's gospel, we learn much about God and the One He sent...But God wants to be known...With the Story of the Burning Bush, and St. John's eyewitness account, we see that God is a God who has made Him self known...The Burning Bush is a sign that He wanted to talk to Moses...The Burning Bush is a symbol of Light and that He wants to be made known to us...For me, the sign of the Burning Bush was an invitation from God to Moses, to visit Him on the Sacred Mountain...God gives Moses His name...God says His name is I AM WHO I AM...And Moses is to tell the Hebrews (and I think all people) that God's name is I AM WHO I AM...God directed Moses to tell the Israelites: "I AM has sent me to you."...So God is telling us that He has sent Moses to help the Israelites, and out of their bondage in Israel...So it is I AM WHO I AM who has sent Moses to not only the Israelites, but to all of us...We know know His Great Name...
God has offered His Name to us...And this is very important, because God is Almighty, and All Powerful, and All Knowing...If God did not want us to know Him with His Wisdom, and Knowledge and being a Spirit, He would not have to tell us about Himself or give us His Name...God could if He wanted to remain hidden forever...
Later and at the right time, because our Father is always right, He sends us His Son...And John, who has known Jesus for three years and knows Him personally, tells us that all things were made through the Son of God...St. John tells us that Jesus is the Word, or the Logos...And those who believe in Jesus and that God sent Him, and believe in His Name, then He has given us the right to join His Family and become children of God...This right is a Divine Right from God, and comes through His Grace...The Logos is the principle of reason and judgement...Jesus is the Word, and the Word is the Logos, the Divine Word of Life, the very Purpose of Life...And through all His infinite wisdom and His infinite knowledge, there is this great and fantastic mystery...But in all this God has made Himself known to Abraham and His Patriarchs...And God also gave us the Prophets to know Him...And then God sent us His Son and His Son has lived on the earth to interact with man for thirty some years, to learn about His Father...Jesus would minister and help restate the Scriptures that His Father, had others inspired to write about Him...And by listening to Jesus and watching how Jesus lived, we learn very, very much...
So God has given us His Name, and He has sent His Son to us, so that we may know about Him...And isn't this really a revolutionary concept for a Living, Loving God?...God wants us to know about Him, and in His humility...He allowed a man named Moses to walk near to Him on the Sacred Mountain, so we could know His Name...And over a period of forty years with Moses we could know more about Him...He would send us Prophets to know more about Him...And then He would send His Son, so we can better interpret the Old Testament Scriptures, and learn about His Father...The Great Mystery is still there, even though we know that God and Jesus are near to us...