Moses and the Burning Bush

In the opening passage of her book Dakota, writer Kathleen Norris described its “spiritual geography”: “The high plains, the beginning of the desert West, often act as a crucible for those who inhabit them. Like Jacob’s angel, the region requires that you wrestle with it before it bestows a blessing. . . . Nature, in Dakota, can indeed be an experience of the holy.”

In all stories, whether historical or fictional, setting matters—and thus geography matters. It should be no surprise that creation evokes the Creator. As we consider mountains and valleys in Scripture this month, we will often find that mountains are special places to meet God.

In today’s narrative, Moses neither anticipated nor desired an encounter with the Lord. Having fled from Egypt, he was living a quiet shepherd’s life in Midian with his wife and family. But God had heard His people’s cries for help, and had chosen Moses as the man who would deliver them from slavery. So He initiated this meeting on Mount Horeb, which is another name for Mount Sinai.

The meeting had three key aspects. First, Moses needed to show respect and reverence for God’s holiness, demonstrated by taking off his sandals (v. 5). Second, God identified Himself to Moses as the God of his ancestors, a reminder of His covenant-keeping nature (v. 6; Ex. 2:24). And third, God commissioned Moses to deliver the Israelites from their bondage (vv. 7–10). When Moses resisted, God promised, “I will be with you,” and added that the people would one day worship Him at this very mountain (v. 12).

The next time he stood on Mount Horeb, Moses would be a transformed man. As it always does, meeting God launched him on an incredible journey!

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BY Brad Baurain

Dr. Bradley Baurain is Professor and Program Head of TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) at Moody Bible Institute. Bradley has the unique privilege of holding a degree from four different universities (including Moody). He is the author of On Waiting Well. Bradley taught in China, Vietnam, the United States, and Canada. Bradley and his wife, Julia, have four children and reside in Northwest Indiana.