The Daily Guide. grow. pray. study. from The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, United States “I Am Who I Am”—the one Lord’s name for Wednesday, 24 August 2016
Exodus 3:13 Moshe said to God, “Look, when I appear before the people of Isra’el and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you’; and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what am I to tell them?” 14 God said to Moshe, “Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh [I am/will be what I am/will be],” and added, “Here is what to say to the people of Isra’el: ‘Ehyeh [I Am or I Will Be] has sent me to you.’” 15 God said further to Moshe, “Say this to the people of Isra’el: ‘Yud-Heh-Vav-Heh [Adonai], the God of your fathers, the God of Avraham, the God of Yitz’chak and the God of Ya‘akov, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever; this is how I am to be remembered generation after generation. (v) 16 Go, gather the leaders of Isra’el together, and say to them, ‘Adonai, the God of your fathers, the God of Avraham, Yitz’chak and Ya‘akov, has appeared to me and said, “I have been paying close attention to you and have seen what is being done to you in Egypt; 17 and I have said that I will lead you up out of the misery of Egypt to the land of the Kena‘ani, Hitti, Emori, P’rizi, Hivi and Y’vusi, to a land flowing with milk and honey.”’ 18 They will heed what you say. Then you will come, you and the leaders of Isra’el, before the king of Egypt; and you will tell him, ‘Adonai, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Now, please, let us go three days’ journey into the desert; so that we can sacrifice to Adonai our God.’ 19 I know that the king of Egypt will not let you leave unless he is forced to do so. 20 But I will reach out my hand and strike Egypt with all my wonders that I will do there. After that, he will let you go.
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Reflection Questions:
Like most ancient peoples, the Egyptians believed in many “gods,” including the Pharaoh. Moses initial question—“What’s this God’s name?”—had a “Which one of the many are you?” ring to it. But God’s reply (“I Am Who I Am”—Hebrew YHWH) identified the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as the source and ground of all life, as the only God, the sole reason that (as philosophers might say) there is “something instead of nothing.”
God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, in some ways those names seem so long ago, and almost too big to fit a regular person. But they were regular people, too—the “bigness” and enduring quality was in you. Thank you for including me in your eternal purpose. Amen.
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Insights from Kari Burgess
Kari Burgess is a Program Director for the ShareChurch team, handling promotion and marketing for all of the conferences held at Resurrection, as well as registration and coordinating hospitality volunteers.
Honestly, writing on today’s text and trying to give some insight into God as I AM is completely overwhelming to me. It feels impossible to wrap my brain around the idea of God as the creator of everything, all-powerful and all-knowing. When He says “I AM who I AM” it feels sort of heady and hard to grasp.
Then I got to thinking about a magician. I can’t comprehend or grasp the how a magician’s illusion works either. Now I recognize this metaphor is going to break down rather quickly. After all, God doesn’t use sleight of hand or trickery in his miraculous work in the world. But I think it might be worth exploring.
I remember as a young girl my playful father’s tricks. I would wonder: Where in the world did my nose (temporarily) disappear to? Or, How did that quarter magically appear from behind my ear? Surely it hadn’t been there all day! What in the world happened to my father’s thumb? How did he pull it off and put it right back on? I was awed and amazed by these simple tricks my father would play. (OK, maybe more confused than awed. And maybe after a dozen times my dad played these “magic” tricks I finally got it and then had to appease him all through my adolescence.) I would wonder and ponder, but ultimately I trusted that my “magician” dad was all-knowing and all-powerful.
Still today, when I watch a magician on TV or elsewhere, I am amazed and awed by the illusions. How in the world did they do that? Try as I might to figure out the underlying trick or illusion, I can’t figure out the magician’s secrets. After a while, I just accept I will never understand the trick behind it. I know there is something to this illusion, but I am content not to understand the “how.” I’ll just enjoy it for the entertainment that it is.
There is a parallel here with fully understanding the presence of God. I am frequently amazed and overwhelmed by God’s creation. I find it hard to comprehend how he can truly know everything happening in my life, when there are billions in this world calling on his name, billions who have come before me and billions who will come after me. How can He know and care what happens to little, insignificant me?
But the great and powerful I AM assures us throughout Scripture (and here in Exodus) that he does indeed see his people, hear their cries and know about their suffering. Even though he is the great I AM, we can trust he sees, hears and knows each one of us. One study Bible* translates/explains the I AM as: “I will always be who I have always been.” I love this phrasing. That means God is dependable. He is faithful. He is worthy of all of our trust. because the I AM is, was and will always be dependable, faithful and trustworthy. Even as our circumstances change and as our faith might strengthen or even wane, He will not change. He will always love us. So when everything around us starts to feel out of control, we can trust He IS in control.
I may not understand the “how” in what God does. I may not be able to wrap my head entirely around “who” God is. But I can believe in Him and His promises with confidence because I can trust that He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. And that is enough for me.
*From the NASB Charles Stanley Life Principles Bible Notes
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Join us for worship today - click here for information on worship times and locations. If you are not in the Kansas City area, you can take part in our worship via live Web stream at rezonline.org.
Download a printable version of this week's GPS.
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Reflection Questions:
Like most ancient peoples, the Egyptians believed in many “gods,” including the Pharaoh. Moses initial question—“What’s this God’s name?”—had a “Which one of the many are you?” ring to it. But God’s reply (“I Am Who I Am”—Hebrew YHWH) identified the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as the source and ground of all life, as the only God, the sole reason that (as philosophers might say) there is “something instead of nothing.”
- Most modern English translations (e.g. the Common English Bible, New International Version and New Revised Standard Version) print the Hebrew YHWH as Lord, using the capital letters to signal the divine name’s uniqueness. The other common term, Elohim, was more generic, and is usually translated “God.” Learn how your preferred English Bible handles this—it will deepen and enrich your understanding of many Old Testament stories.
- For people who’d been slaves for many years, it was important to remember their heritage—“the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob.” It’s your heritage, too. The apostle Paul wrote that “if you belong to Christ, then indeed you are Abraham’s descendants” (Galatians 3:29). Re-read this dramatic passage, focusing on what it tells you about the Lord you serve, the Lord who redeemed and guides you.
God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, in some ways those names seem so long ago, and almost too big to fit a regular person. But they were regular people, too—the “bigness” and enduring quality was in you. Thank you for including me in your eternal purpose. Amen.
-------
Insights from Kari Burgess
Kari Burgess is a Program Director for the ShareChurch team, handling promotion and marketing for all of the conferences held at Resurrection, as well as registration and coordinating hospitality volunteers.Honestly, writing on today’s text and trying to give some insight into God as I AM is completely overwhelming to me. It feels impossible to wrap my brain around the idea of God as the creator of everything, all-powerful and all-knowing. When He says “I AM who I AM” it feels sort of heady and hard to grasp.
Then I got to thinking about a magician. I can’t comprehend or grasp the how a magician’s illusion works either. Now I recognize this metaphor is going to break down rather quickly. After all, God doesn’t use sleight of hand or trickery in his miraculous work in the world. But I think it might be worth exploring.
I remember as a young girl my playful father’s tricks. I would wonder: Where in the world did my nose (temporarily) disappear to? Or, How did that quarter magically appear from behind my ear? Surely it hadn’t been there all day! What in the world happened to my father’s thumb? How did he pull it off and put it right back on? I was awed and amazed by these simple tricks my father would play. (OK, maybe more confused than awed. And maybe after a dozen times my dad played these “magic” tricks I finally got it and then had to appease him all through my adolescence.) I would wonder and ponder, but ultimately I trusted that my “magician” dad was all-knowing and all-powerful.
Still today, when I watch a magician on TV or elsewhere, I am amazed and awed by the illusions. How in the world did they do that? Try as I might to figure out the underlying trick or illusion, I can’t figure out the magician’s secrets. After a while, I just accept I will never understand the trick behind it. I know there is something to this illusion, but I am content not to understand the “how.” I’ll just enjoy it for the entertainment that it is.
There is a parallel here with fully understanding the presence of God. I am frequently amazed and overwhelmed by God’s creation. I find it hard to comprehend how he can truly know everything happening in my life, when there are billions in this world calling on his name, billions who have come before me and billions who will come after me. How can He know and care what happens to little, insignificant me?
But the great and powerful I AM assures us throughout Scripture (and here in Exodus) that he does indeed see his people, hear their cries and know about their suffering. Even though he is the great I AM, we can trust he sees, hears and knows each one of us. One study Bible* translates/explains the I AM as: “I will always be who I have always been.” I love this phrasing. That means God is dependable. He is faithful. He is worthy of all of our trust. because the I AM is, was and will always be dependable, faithful and trustworthy. Even as our circumstances change and as our faith might strengthen or even wane, He will not change. He will always love us. So when everything around us starts to feel out of control, we can trust He IS in control.
I may not understand the “how” in what God does. I may not be able to wrap my head entirely around “who” God is. But I can believe in Him and His promises with confidence because I can trust that He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. And that is enough for me.
*From the NASB Charles Stanley Life Principles Bible Notes
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Join us for worship today - click here for information on worship times and locations. If you are not in the Kansas City area, you can take part in our worship via live Web stream at rezonline.org.
Download a printable version of this week's GPS.
-------
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