The voice from the bush is the voice that whispers to you. It reminds you that God is not finished with you yet. Oh, you may think he is. You may think you’ve peaked. You may think he’s got someone else to do the job. If so, think again. – MAX LUCADO
Perhaps the most wonderful feature of epiphanies is their unpredictability. They seem to come at the oddest places to the most unlikely individuals. No person ever seeks and finds them; they seek and find the person. Though characteristically brief and intense, their effect lingers a lifetime and beyond. They literally transform their recipients, propelling them to deeds of greatness theretofore impossible.
Take Moses, for example. Born to Jews and raised by Egyptians, he leaves both groups after murdering an abusive Egyptian taskmaster and flees to the Sinai peninsula. Trading plush palace for rugged pasture, he seems resigned to tending his father-in-law's sheep the remainder of his life. No meaning, no purpose, no five-year plan, no hope of promotion or reassignment, no thoughts of ever returning to Egypt. As he traverses the slopes of Mount Horeb, he looks anything but a religious reformer and national hero.
That's the marvel of the burning bush. An unimaginable and unsought divine revelation comes to the most unsuspecting and reluctant person. Indeed, the epiphany that transforms Moses defies all logic and prognostication. Moses appears ill-suited for the task at hand. As he crouches before the warmth and brilliance of that fiery desert shrub, he feels woefully inadequate. Never mind that the Voice from the bush says otherwise; Moses is convinced he lacks the eloquence, religiosity, and charisma to be God's man. "Send someone else!" he cries. Forget divine guidance; he demands divine reconsideration.
Ever so patiently the Voice reaffirms His confidence in Moses and garners Moses' confidence in Him. He reveals to Moses who He is ("I AM") and what He can do (signs and wonders). Unrelenting, He calls the fugitive back to Egypt to lead the Hebrews to the land of their forefathers. Then He appoints Moses an assistant and spokesperson: his younger brother Aaron. Armed only with a shepherd's staff, the two unlikely revolutionaries head northwest in the name and power of Yahweh to confront mighty Pharaoh.
Such heavenly visions usually invoke passionate personal testimony. The apostle Paul, for example, recounted his epiphany on the Damascus Road to Roman procurators and consuls and to others. Likewise, the disciples of Jesus told and retold the glory of the Transfiguration. But, surprisingly, Moses never directly refers to the burning bush in any subsequent discussion with Pharaoh or the Israelites. Nevertheless, we must never underestimate its impact upon him. What happened on that mountain became the underlying story of his life, a reminder of God's sovereign grace and transforming power. All subsequent miracles—the plagues upon Egypt, the parting of the sea, the bread from heaven, the cloud by day and pillar of fire by night, the second epiphany on Horeb where the Law was given—were merely sequels. They were the evidence of God's call upon Moses' life. The burning bush was the call itself. It had to happen first.
Have you ever felt the call of God? Is He now summoning you from your circumstances into His will? Do you find yourself second-guessing His call on your life? Do you consider yourself unqualified for your appointed mission? Does the memory of past failures cloud the road before you?
God’s call to you stands firm. He will not accept any excuses. He will not relent until you agree with Him. Only then can you begin to walk in obedience to the call.
