In the Fire

Our Scripture is Exodus 3:7-8a

The Lord said, "I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So, I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians… (Exodus 3:7-8a).

When Elijah traveled to Mount Horeb, he discovered that "the Lord was not in the fire." Years earlier, Moses also traveled to Mount Horeb, and that's exactly where God was!

It was on Mt. Horeb, this mountain of God, that Moses encountered the burning bush—ever aflame, but never consumed. It's out of that bush, which stood in the wilderness, on a deserted desert mountain, that Moses first met the God of his ancestors.

God had been active in Moses' life, but there is no record of Moses paying any attention to him. He certainly had not experienced standing in God's presence. But now in the wilderness, Moses had his sandals off and his face hidden, because God had shown up!

But God was not there for Moses. He had come because of the misery and the suffering of his people. They were crying out to God, and he was concerned for them. He set out to rescue them from their slavery. God stopped Moses in his tracks because Moses was God's chosen agent to bring his people out of Egypt. Thus, God in the fire.

This story is echoed in Romans 8. When Paul writes that "we cry Abba, Father" he's echoing the cries of God's enslaved people in Egypt. And as Moses discovered in the desert: those are cries that God listens to; cries that he responds to when, like a good Father, he comes down and scoops us up in his arms to comfort us in our suffering.

Noticing Israel's suffering was not a chance moment for God. Jesus launches him ministry with these words, "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour" (Luke 4:18-19).

There is much suffering around us, locally and globally. Its easy for us to become immune to it. As such, we may think God becomes immune to it as well. But that would not be true. It is for the suffering ones that Jesus came and comes. We must cry out, "Abba, Father".

It's in wilderness places that God suddenly shows up in a burning bush to say: "I've seen the misery of my people and heard their cries, so I have come…" Jesus is present in our suffering even when we are not aware of it.

Paul takes this a step farther. God comforts us so that we can comfort others. As Jesus is present with us, he wants us to be present with other sufferers. Which sufferer will you approach?

As you journey on, go with the blessing of God:

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm. May your day end with rejoicing at the wonders he has shown you. May you rest in his provision as he brings night, and then new dawn.