Preached at St Alphege, Solihull, UK by Patrick Gerard on 20th August 2006 at 6.30pm
Year B – Trinity 10 (Proper 15) - Evensong
Readings: Exod 2:23-3:10, Heb 13:1-15
Today’s first reading came from the book of Exodus. We listened to the story of Moses and the burning bush. In our family, when we are gardening, the more horticultural minded people in the family are always telling me, “It is not a bush. It’s a shrub!” Obviously this message has not got through to the translators of Exodus.
Anyway, this story marks God’s calling of Moses. It is the beginning of Moses’ ministry as a prophet. In his early life Moses had killed an Egyptian slave master, and because of this Moses was living in exile in Midian. In the story Moses is looking after a flock of sheep in the desert when he sees a bush burning in the distance. Eventually he realises that this is no ordinary fire, because the bush is not being burnt up. He goes over to have a better look and then God starts speaking to him from the heart of the burning bush. God tells him not to approach, and to take off his sandals because he is standing in a holy place. God then introduces himself as the God of his ancestors, of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Moses is afraid and hides his face. God explains that he wants to bring the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt and bring them to the promised land, and “So,” God says, “Now I am sending you, Moses, to Pharaoh, to bring my people out of Egypt.”
This is an important moment. God shows himself to Moses, as a burning bush. These moments when God shows himself in visible form to a human being and rare and important. There is a special word for it; theophany, which means God shows himself. I say that the moments are rare, but they are perhaps not quite as rare as we might sometimes think. The former bishop of Birmingham, Hugh Montefiore began his Christian life after seeing a vision of Jesus and being told, “Follow me”. In the course of my theological training I met two other people who had had experiences of this kind. Both were characterised by a very deep and unshakable faith. Moses is something of a grandmaster of the theophany experience. He has this experience with the burning bush. He has several encounters with God on Mount Sania and in the tent of meeting. Elsewhere in the book of Exodus, we are told that the Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend (Exod 33: 11). At one point (Exod 24: 9-11) Moses leads 70 elders of Israel up the mountain to gaze on God, and yet to live. At another point Moses’ face shines because he has been talking with God (Exod 34:29) He has to wear a veil because the Israelites are too scared to speak to his shining face. This characteristic of Moses talking to God even extends into the New Testament. During the transfiguration of our Lord on Mount Tabor the divine nature of Christ becomes suddenly becomes viable, and Christ, revealed as God talks to Moses and Elijah (e.g. Mk 9:4).
But for all these extraordinary experiences we must not loose sight of the fundamental thing which is going on here. This is God’s call to Moses. What matters is what God wants Moses to do. God want Moses to go to Pharaoh and to bring the Israelites out of Egypt. Well, from a human perspective, that is rather easier said than done. Moses, very understandably, needed a great deal of reassurance. He was worried, quiet rightly, that the Israelites might not follow him. He was worried, quite rightly, that that Pharaoh might not let the Israelites go. God gives Moses lots reassurance. He gives him signs like a stick that turns into a snake. At one point Moses still says, “O my Lord, please send someone else.” (Exod 4:13). But in the end Moses is obedient. In great faith and humility he sets out to attempt the impossible; to persuade the Israelites to leave Egypt for the desert, and to persuade Pharaoh to let them go. And through this obedience of Moses, God does great things. There are of course huge problems and terrible sufferings have to be endured, but in the end great things happen; things of such great importance that we still talk about them today. Moses does lead the Israelites out of Egypt. The covenant of the Old Testament is established. God gives the Israelites the Law. He promises to give them the promised land (Exod 34:10-16) and to make them a kingdom of priests, a holy nation (Exod 19:5). The religion of the Jews therefore comes into being and the context for the birth of Christ is established.
So great things were done though God’s call to Moses, and through Moses’ obedience. On a much more humble scale let us now pause to consider God’s call to us, and our own obedience to God’s call. Probably none of us have experienced theophany. Probably none of us are called to the dramatic and decisive actions to which Moses was called. And yet, in each present moment God does call each one of us. In each present moment we need to be attentive to his call, and obedient to what he asks of us. Let’s ask ourselves, “What is God asking of me in this present moment?” Perhaps he is asking me listen with love to the person who I have just met. Perhaps he is asking me to help my wife with the shopping. Perhaps he is asking me to drive the car with care and with respect for other road users. Perhaps he is asking me to speak charitably about that person who I am tempted to ridicule. Perhaps now I must wash up? Perhaps now I must do that job I have promised to do? This might seem all very simple, but if we practise discernment of God’s will in the small and simple things of our everyday lives we will find that we have prepared ourselves well for the more difficult situations that can sometimes arise. Also, by living in this way, we can make the whole of our life a prayer, because everything we do is a response to God. Everything is done out of love for God. Everything is an expression of the love of God.
But how do we know what God is asking of us? Well, discerning God’s will for us is a skill that we learn over time. Sometimes it is clear because of the laws of the land. Sometimes a boss or superior makes it clear to us. It might become clear to us through a conversation with our husband or wife. All the time we need to listen to the call of God which resonates deep in our hearts.
The scriptures also provide us with plenty of guidance. Our reading today from Hebrews reminded us of the importance of love in God’s will for us. “Let mutual love continue” it reminded us. “Show hospitality to strangers.” This is one of the great characteristics of Christian love. It is a love that reaches out to strangers, people we do not know, people who are different from us. “Remember those who are in prison, as though you were in prison with them”, “Remember those who are tortured, as if you yourselves were being tortured.” This again is one of the characteristics of Christian love. It empathises with other people, walking in their shoes. Surely God’s call to us is always a call to love?
So let us give thanks for Moses, for God’s call to Moses, and Moses’ obedience. Let us trust the God who calls. He loves us and has a great destiny planned for us. Let us seek to hear his call in each present moment, so as to carry it out and to work towards that destiny. If we do this we can be confident that we are making precisely the contribution that God wants us towards the building of the Kingdom of God.
