Home   |   Sermons   |   Articles   |   Beliefs   |   Our Namesake   |   Photos

Revelations from the Mountaintop

Preached at St. Barnabas Church, Bellville, TX

Epiphany 1, 2009

by The Rev. Stephen E. Stults

Exodus 3:14 Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.

This passage is the answer that Moses receives from God when he asks, “Who shall I say sent me, when I go to the elders of Israel and tell that You have sent me to free them from the land of Egypt?”

This is one of the momentous events in the Bible, for at least two reasons. First, God gives Moses his commission to lead the exodus of the Israelites from their bondage in Egypt. That is, God has heard the cries of His People and is accomplishing their miraculous deliverance. We see the God of Israel showing His mercy and love towards His People, when they were unable to do anything for themselves, except suffer. God is keeping His covenant with Israel, in working towards their exit from the bondage of Egypt to their eventual possession of the Promised Land. God thus shows His Nature, that of utmost faithfulness and steadfastness to His Word. We see then, that God always keeps His Promises. On the other hand, it is we that often have a hard time keeping our covenant with Him….

The second reason for the significance of this passage is that it is the first time in the Bible that God gives His Holy Name to Man. Recall that in Old Testament times, knowing someone’s name was considered a form of power. That is, Old Testament names were both denotative and connotative. They were denotative in that they told who the person was objectively, i.e. Abraham, Sarah, Jacob, Issac. They were also connotative in that they also told us about who the person was, subjectively. A name wasn’t just a “handle”, it was also a description. For example, Abraham means “father of a multitude” or “father of many nations”. His son, Jacob, is one of more complex and interesting figures in the Old Testament His name, “Yak-ak-obe”, means literally “heel catcher” or supplanter. This of course refers to the manner of his birth, when he came from his mother’s womb clutching the heel of his brother, Esau. Isaac’s name, the long-expected son of Abraham and Sarah, means laughter, actually mocking laughter, because Sarah laughed at the notion that she and Abraham could have children in their 90’s, as they heard from the three mysterious strangers who visited them.

We could go on and on, but I think these examples should suffice to illustrate just how powerful names are. Thus, when God tells Moses, “Tell them that I AM THAT I AM sent you”, it was indeed an earth shaking event. It is even more important to look at what God is telling us about Himself in His Name. Strong tells us that I AM comes from a Hebrew root hayah (haw yaw) that means “to become, to come to pass.” THAT, as in (I AM THAT) in this Hebrew usage, asher, is an enabling pronoun that means who, which, that. It is an enabling pronoun because it indicates causality, i.e. that which follows. Of course, what follows is I AM, so we have “Haw Yaw-asher-Haw Yaw” for the name of God. Over time and various translations, this became known as Jehovah. Again, literally it means “I am come to pass (or become) what I am come to pass.” The KJV has termed this I AM THAT I AM which is probably about as close as one can get to this impossible and ungraspable idea of an eternal Being.

Also, while I am, in general, NOT a fan of German theologians, simply because a great deal of their work, in my humble opinion, was not generated from faith, but from other motives, among them a desire to make an academic name for themselves, there is a notable book by Rudolph Otto called The Idea of the Other. A lot of it is German theological rhetoric; however, one idea struck me, that of God as the “ground of being.” Although God is invisible, intangible, and unintelligible to we humans except through faith in Jesus Christ, we do know one thing: HE IS. From His “is-ness”, if you will, His ground of being, comes all being. Not to be ridiculous, but God IS the IS that IS. This may be, in some fashion, what God was communicating to Moses by telling him His Holy and Blessed Name.

You see, what Moses was ultimately looking for by asking who it was that sent him was Authority. For example, how many times have you, as a parent, sent one child to give instructions to another child and included the tag line, “Tell so-and-so that DAD SAID to…” In this case, Moses has just been told to go to one of the world’s most powerful monarchs and demand that he release his slave people to sacrifice in the wilderness. If that wasn’t enough, before that happens, Moses must convince the elders of Israel that he is not some nut-case, some “whack-job” who has just wandered in and said, “God told me…..” Put yourself in their position, or rather, imagine what it feels like when some person comes up to you and says, “God told me to….” Most of us feel a bit odd when this happens. We might even begin to start looking for the exits, if you know what I mean.

Yet, this was exactly what Moses had to do. He had to approach the elders of Israel and convince them that God had indeed spoken to him and that God was preparing their departure from Egypt, their salvation from slavery. Of course, Moses had two things working in his favor. First, he actually had seen the theophany, the manifestation of God in something physical, in the Burning Bush and had actually heard the voice of God speaking to Him. He had been in the presence of the Almighty God and had heard the words of God. Thus, he had the undeniable reality of being present with God and living to tell about it. This reality in Moses would have been inescapable of notice. Moses would have been indeed a changed man, and it would have been evident. Second, the people of Israel were in a state of expectation for deliverance. That is, they had been crying out to God for almost four hundred years. In short, they were ready. They had prayed, wept, and fasted for just this deliverance for a long, long time. Thus, these two factors had the power to move the nation of Israel to follow Moses.

Matthew Henry, an English clergyman of the latter 17^th and early 18^th century and a noted Biblical commentator, asked his readers to pay particular attention to vs. 17-18 of this passage. First, he notes how in the 17^th verse, God tells Moses that “I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt ….”, thus making it a fait accompli because God has spoken it. Now In vs. 18, Henry tells us that God told Moses that “his success will be good” because the elders will indeed “hearken to thy voice”. So despite Moses’ trepidation, God has already decreed his success. Moses just had to follow through with faith, which he did.

So far, we’ve seen an incredibly important revelation given to Man in the all holy and blessed Name of God. But what is also very important about this passage is not just what has happened, but also where it happens. Because the Holy Scriptures, we believe, are inerrant and infallible, everything in the Bible happens for a reason or has significance in some way. In this case, the locale, on a mountaintop, is particularly important. This is because in virtually all cases, God gives revelation from a mountain. Let’s briefly examine some important examples. In Moses’ ministry, where does he receive the two tablets of the Law? On Mount Sinai. Another hugely important Old Testament figure, the prophet Elijah, receives instructions from God in I Kings 19 on a mountain.

As important as these two occasions were, the most important mountaintop experience occurs in Mk 9:2-12. This is where the greatest of all revelations to mankind, Jesus Christ, is Himself transfigured before three favored disciples, James, John and Peter, again on a mountaintop.

You’ll recall from that passage, that while Jesus became glistening white before them, two other figures appear with him on the mountain…Moses and Elijah. They are seen by the disciples talking with Jesus, presumably about His upcoming Passion and Resurrection.

The reason that this occurrence is so important to we Christians is that Moses, who represents the Law, and Elijah, who represents the Prophets, are both seen together talking or as it were, testifying to Jesus. As momentous and important as the Law was, and as important as Prophecy was in giving us God’s Word, both are still inferior to Jesus, who is the ultimate revelation for all ages and for all times. The Old Testament Law was holy, just and good, as St. Paul tells us in Romans, but it pales in comparison with the New Testament in Jesus Christ. Thus, the Transfiguration was designed to give testimony to Jesus, the New Adam, the Greater David, even when in the company of the Old Testament “greats,” Moses and Elijah. This is very evident when a Voice comes out of the cloud that suddenly overshadows them and says, “This is my beloved Son. Hear Him.” God Himself has testified to the Greatness of His Son, even over and above the greatness of Moses and Elijah.

The New Testament is thus shown as a superior and more blessed revelation, as accomplished through Jesus Christ’s three-fold role as Prophet, Priest and King.

So, the question may arise, how do “mere mortals” like you and I receive such mountaintop experiences? How do we receive the authority that we seek, to go boldly and bravely into the world, bearing Christ? You see, just like Moses, who was given a commission to free the slaves from Egypt, you and I have been given a commission, the Great Commission, to free the world from the bondage of death and sin by spreading the Gospel. Jesus told us in Mat 28:19 “Therefore go and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…” But, we ask, how can we receive power for such a task?

The answer is the same as the one given to Moses. The same I AM THAT I AM that was with Moses is with you and me through the Holy Spirit, who come to us through the Word of God and the Sacraments. As you seek to grow in your own private devotional life through private prayer and Scripture reading, He is there. When you assemble in His Church to hear His Word and to be fed at His Holy Table, He is there. When you walk down the street, blessing the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ in your heart, He is there. He is always there, as you continue to answer His Call throughout your earthly life.

Thus, it’s our job as Christians to let Him out of our hearts and into the hearts of others. It’s our job to be “walking billboards for Christ.” It’s our job to fill the cups of others, so that in turn, our own cup will be full. When people see our joy and want to share in it too, they may ask, “Who sent you to me?”

Then, you can reply, “I AM THAT I AM” sent me.

Glory be to God!

(Mat 5:16) Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in Heaven.    AMEN

Return to Top

All material on this site is copyright © 2011 St. Barnabas Anglican Church, except where an author is named. In such cases, the author retains all rights.