In Exodus we read – “And God said, ‘I will be with you (don’t miss that). And this will be the sign to you, that it is I, who have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain’” (Exodus 3:12).
Consider for a moment. God came to Moses through a burning bush, and He says to him (Moses), “So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh, to bring My people, the Israelites, out of slavery – out of Egypt.”
Moses says to God, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” And to this, God might give us, one of the most beautiful, most powerful statements in this whole encounter – “I will be with you…”
Now watch this, God didn’t tell Moses WHY he was selected for the mission. God doesn’t say a single word about Moses qualifications, or lack thereof. God doesn’t even attempt to give him a pep-talk, or build him up. The answer simply is – “I will be with you…”
Think about this? The God of the cosmos, makes an appearance through a burning bush, on the far-side of the wilderness, to a man named Moses, and He says to him (Moses), I am sending you to rescue and deliver my people – a whole bunch of them – from this guy named Pharaoh, who just happens to be the most powerful person in the known world.
In the face of this impossible, insurmountable, moment in time, God doesn’t ask Moses to go develop first a strategy, but to embrace a simple promise – “I will be with you.”
Now, let’s face forward from that moment, about 1,500 years, to another ‘burning bush’ moment. It too was on a mountain. This time, with a risen Jesus and His disciples.
We read this encounter from Matthew’s gospel – “Then Jesus came to His disciples and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore (meaning in light of that truth), go and make disciples, everywhere, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. (And here it comes) And I will be with you…always” (Matthew 28:18-20).
Talk about déjà vu – “I will be with you.” And the same is true right NOW – as it was back then.
My friends, we are facing an unprecedented moment in time, but that same promise applies to right here, right now – “I will be with you.” We are not alone. And in that promise, we will not only get through this, but thrive amidst it – because ‘greater is He that is within us’ than anything that we are facing right now.”
But now, here’s what I find interesting, in this whole above story. God said to Moses, “And this will be the sign to you, that it is I, who have sent you.” Are you ready for this? “When you have brought the people out.” In other words, the confirmation comes AFTER our obedience to His what He asked. When we walk in the promise that He is with us – we will see Him.
So, here’s what I want you to do, close your eyes, and say in your heart, “Father, I want to be that person. Here am I. Fill me with the fullness of who you are. Here am I. Give me the audacity of Moses. Here am I. Please come Holy Spirit, and in such a time as this, I believe. I will walk in that promise – you are with me. Whom shall if fear. Here am I. In Jesus name, Amen.”
