Out of Bondage

  The reason for hoping is because the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is not like other gods: ‘’They have mouths, but they cannot speak; they have eyes like but they cannot see; they have ears but they cannot hear’’ (Psalm 115:5-6). Other gods are dumb, blind and deaf to what is happening our God, on the other hand, is capable of being reached because he is capable of being moved. He is not simply an onlooker, one who gazes but keeps his distance. That is why the all-seeing eye of God is a radically incomplete image of God: God is more than an unblinking onlooker who spends an eternity staring at people’s mistakes and misfortunes. 

The revelation to Moses shows a God of action who is moved to act on what he sees: ‘’I mean to deliver them out of the hands of the Egyptians and bring them… to a land…. where milk and honey flow’’ That revelation is central to the whole tradition of the Old Testament. God is not the unmoved mover; our Lord is moved to act on what he sees. He cares deeply about what happens to his people, and in this instance his care takes the shape of historical liberation. He is a God who is openly against oppression; he is a God who frankly oppose what Pharaoh is doing. So, Moses is chosen as a leader to give voice to God’s care for his oppressed people; to give voice to God’s opposition against the manufactured suffering of his people; to take the lead in organizing the liberation of his own people. Moses is the care of God in motion. 

Through Moses we know that God sees and is moved to act on it. But the question is whether God will stay awake to human suffering. Will God keep on caring for people or will the day come when God will run out of mercy? Will the time ever come when God will be dismissed in the same way as some people who are past their best: ‘’Who, him? Isn’t he just an old has-been now?’’

The answer to that question is given in the revelation to Moses. The answer is in the name of God, ‘’I Am who I Am’’ The very name of God affirms God’s fidelity and staying power. God will never be a ‘’has-been'’ God for he will always be ‘’I Am’’ Our Lord’s name is an assurance of his presence: ‘’I’ll be there.’’ So there is the good news that God does not take people on and then drop them at the first sign of trouble. God does not flirt with people. Over against our infidelity the name of God affirms God’s unchanging fidelity to us. 

As you can see, there’s a lot in that revelation to Moses! We have an insight into the ministry of God: the one who pays attention, who is moved to save his people, and who stays constant in his love. In Jesus we can see those three truths written large. But what about in ourselves? How do we pay attention to people’s misery? Do we act on what we see? Are we faithful to our name of Christian? To answer those questions, we would have to give ourselves away like God did.