Saint Luke's United Methodist Church, Washington D.C.

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August 31, 2008

The Bush Was Burning

The Bush Was Burning
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Exodus 3:1-15
Rev. Douglas A. Todak

Moses is tending his father-in-law Jethro’s sheep as he had done year-in and year-out for going on four decades when he saw the bush was burning. He wasn’t expecting a startling revelation of the presence of the Creator of heaven and earth, the King of the universe, that morning, nor should he have. Nor would we have.

Suddenly, God had appeared to Moses in the form of a fire and spoke to him and gave him work to do. Fire is often portrayed as a sign of the purity or holiness of God, so it isn’t surprising that God goes this route in trying to get the attention of this particular shepherd he had kept his eye on over the years.

Moses thought he was alone out there, but he wasn’t. When we are physically alone, when there’s nobody nearby, alone like Moses was, we are not alone: the Father is with us. Whenever we feel emotionally alone, or psychologically alone, or any other kind of alone, we are not alone. That’s important to remember. Though we don’t seek after God, the reverse is not true. God is always seeking us. And the Word of God reminds us that those who diligently seek God will find him. “Draw near to God and he will draw near to you.” (James 4:8)

God told Moses to be cautious, to keep his distance, to draw near, but not too near, so as to hear clearly, but not so near as to overstep his bounds. Matthew Henry writes that “In all our approaches to God, we ought to be deeply affected with the infinite distance there is between us and God.”

See, God demands that Moses express his reverence and his readiness to obey before speaking further to him. God is holy, and where he is, is holy. Moses taking off his shoes was—then as now—a sign of respect and submission. And respect requires distance. God demands that we express our reverence and our readiness to obey before speaking to us. When we approach God, it is incumbent upon us to acknowledge his greatness, his holiness, his authority. We must never be slack, or casual, or flip. God takes this relationship seriously, and so should be.

God tells Moses why he has come to speak with him. God has work for Moses to do with his people, the Israelites. They were in bondage for over 400 years. Their prayers for deliverance must have seemed futile and unheard, and their hope for the land promised to Abraham grown dark and impossible.

And don’t we too easily despair, don’t we too easily feel dejected when our prayers are not answered immediately?

Over time Moses became one of the greatest leaders of God’s people. In this story of the burning bush, however, Moses—though afraid and humbled—is reluctant to follow God’s will. Getting his dramatic commission, he becomes unsettled, unhappy. He is fearful, perplexed, overwhelmed. He is uncertain of his own abilities and his possibilities for success. He doubts that he can really be a representative of God. I guess that even the wisest and most faithful people may at times be discouraged at the difficulties that lie before them.

But to all his hedging and complaining, God answers Moses by promising Moses his presence: "I will be with you” (Exodus 3:12). Though Moses might change and grow in faith, might succeed and disappoint, God is eternal and unchanging, all-sufficient, inexhaustible, always the same yesterday, today, and forever. God will be what he will be and what he is. Who or what Moses is is not as important as who and what God is. God will give us all the resources and strength we need to carry out his commands. In fact, it is God who does the work, through us. Moses didn’t free Israel, God did.

And here, in the heat of this burning bush, God wanted Moses to know beyond even a shadow of a doubt, that he was personally called by the living God, chosen to be the instrument God uses to deliver his people. In this strange and wonderful encounter in the desert we see God taking the initiative to reveal himself to Moses and to draw him into a personal and intimate relationship.

“He said further, ‘I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’" (Exodus 3:6) Notice the repetition of the word “God,” before each of Moses’ ancestors. A commentary on the Jewish prayerbook, Etz Yosef, explains this repetition: like the patriarchs each person should believe in God on the basis of personal investigation, not merely tradition. There’s a folk wisdom that runs along similar lines: God don’t have no grandchildren. We are each of us children of God, called to love and honor and obey our Father who art in Heaven.

In the same way, the purpose of Jesus’ incarnation in flesh and blood, is to draw each of us into a personal and intimate relationship with the living God. The Lord Almighty wants each of us to know, beyond even a shadow of a doubt, that we are personally called by God.

There are signs from God all around us every day if we are only aware of them. We can, if we are paying close attention, come across opportunities in our daily lives to be God’s chosen people by standing up for what is right, being kind, helpful, and thoughtful, being diligent in our prayers. What was standing in Moses’ way was the fact that he needed to focus on God, not on himself. Who or what we are is not as important as who and what God is.

Moses didn’t seem to have much faith—in himself or in God—at the beginning of this call, but it grew as he continued to do God’s will and to remember that God was with him helping him. The same is true for us, as well. God is always at work, even when we cannot see things clearly. “The Lord watches over you…He will not let your foot slip—he who watches over you will not slumber.” (Psalm 121:5,3) God always goes with us. We can encounter God any time, anywhere. To Moses, it looked like he was in the middle of nowhere, but to God, Moses was exactly where he needed to be, and God was with him. The same is true of us, too.

What are our burning bushes? blazing on before us, perplexing us, but doing their job of getting our attention?

Elizabeth Barrett Browning, in her epic poem Aurora Leigh, wrote this:
“Earth’s crammed with heaven,
And every common bush afire with God:
But only he who sees, takes off his shoes,
The rest sit around, and pluck blackberries.”

The only requirement God has of you is your availability. Are you willing? That is the real question, not Are you able? or Are you ready? But, Are you willing? Paul reminds us “Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer.” (Romans 12:11-12)

Moses had been herding sheep in the desert regions around Sinai for forty years. Forty years. That’s a long time. And what exactly were his qualifications for saving a nation of two million? He was willing. He answered God immediately: “Here I am.”

There is an old saying “God doesn’t call the equipped; He equips the called.” That means God doesn’t choose people who can do great things. God makes those he chooses able to do great things. Moses is living proof of this. Moses didn’t feel able or ready, but God made him both. And so may it be with us.

Are you willing? Are you willing to make changes in your life to accommodate to new realities revealed to you? Are you willing to believe what Jesus Christ has to tell you? Even if it means things have to change in your life? Even if it means letting go of something that means a great deal to you? Even if it means leaving the comfort of the familiar? Are you willing?

In our Gospel lesson this morning, Peter was not willing. He hated what Jesus said—it scared him—and he didn’t take time to think, he just reacted to what he heard. He was not willing to believe that what they had worked so hard for could end. He was not willing to listen to what Jesus had to tell him. “Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. ‘Never, Lord!’ he said. ‘This shall never happen to you!’ Jesus turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.’" (Matthew 16:22-23)

Peter did not have the “things of God” in his head, but rather the things of mortals: anxiety, insecurity, possessiveness, jealousy, selfishness. He was not willing to let God be God.

The uncertain future of this particular church has many grieving and feeling quite lost. It’s only natural and it will take time, surely. But the work of the Lord goes on, whether here in this place or in another Christian community. Who or what St. Luke’s United Methodist Church is (or was), is not as important was who and what God is. For the body of Christ is not to be found in one building alone, one congregation solely, but in the prayers, the love, and the generosity of believers spread across churches throughout the world.

We’ve got to let God be God. We may long to drag things out, and we might even tell ourselves it’s for the best, it must be God’s will—it has to be. It’s important to consider the alternative. It’s vital to listen for the breath of God. Jesus himself said that “unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.” (John 12:24) Sometimes fires make the forest stronger and healthier. God’s will is never identical with our own. And God’s ways are not our ways.

Facing such bleak prospects, there will be the temptation to give up and stay home; to give up on “church,” on “organized religion” and to seek our own definition of “spirituality,” time willing, all other things being equal. The word of God, however, is bright and sharp, level-headed, fresh and invigorating:

“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” (Hebrews 10:24-25)

Moses thought he was alone out there near Mount Sinai, but he wasn’t. This morning, as I step down from this pulpit for the last time, thankful that God goes before me, I want you to remember that you are not alone and that God hears your cries, as sure as God heard the Israelites. The future did not belong to them and it does not belong to us, you understand, it belongs to God and God alone.

Deuteronomy 31:8 reassures us that “The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."

“Earth’s crammed with heaven,
And every common bush afire with God.”

Pray with me:

Lord Jesus, you have called us by name and we are yours. Help us draw near to you and be receptive to your voice. Calm our fears. Lift our sunken spirits. Free us from selfishness, indifference, and our own stubbornness that we may do Your will eagerly and whole-heartedly and follow wherever You lead us. We ask this in the name of the One who alone is worthy to be praised, your Son Jesus the Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen.