“Then Moses said to God, ‘If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ What shall I say to them?’ God said to Moses, ‘I am who I am.’ And he said, ‘Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I am has sent me to you.’ God also said to Moses, ‘Say this to the people of Israel: ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.”
– Exodus 3:13–15
Oh, there is so much we could talk about here in Exodus 3:13–15, and pray in light of here. But I really want to camp out. The reason I wanted to go all the way to verse 15 is because of the last thing that God says to Moses in this passage. When he says to him, “This is my name forever. And thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.”, that just immediately brings you and me into this story. Because we’re part of the all generations that’s being referred to here.
We are in the New Testament, and the Bible constantly points to this, we’re in the lineage of faith that began with Abraham, and was passed on to Jacob. Our God is the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob. And the God of Moses, and the God of David, and the God of Isaiah, and the God of Daniel. So over, and over, and over again, when we read these stories in the Old Testament, this is the lineage of our faith.
Who God Is
And specifically, here, God is saying, “This is my name. That in every single generation, my people are to know me as I am who I am.” Now, that’s where we could spend a ton of time talking about what this name of God reveals about God. Just to give almost a list for God to say, “I am who I am.” He’s pointing to his utter uniqueness, his holiness, how he is perfectly unique, and completely separate.
He’s pointing to his mercy, as we’re going to see unfold as we read through the book of Exodus, and specifically, a few chapters from now, in chapter six, God’s mercy, to deliver his people out of slavery. In saying, “I am who I am.”, God is pointing to his omnipresence. How he always is everywhere. His omnipotence. How he is all-powerful. His self-existence. How he is in a way that is not dependent on anyone else.
Exodus 3:13–15 Thanks God for His Existence
That’s very different from you and me. We are not self-existent today. We are dependent on God for our every single breath. We’re dependent on food that God provides for our nourishment. We’re dependent on lungs that are working, a heart that is beating. God is not dependent on anyone else. He is who he is. He is self-existent. He’s self-sufficient. He has no needs. And he will always be. God is eternal. He always has been. He is. And he always will be. He’s never changing. This name points to his immutability. How God does not change. This name of God points to his faithfulness, to his promises, always. His sovereignty over all things. His justice and his mercy. Basically, this name points to the reality that he alone is God.
So we pray to God today together, in this moment, centuries, after you spoke these words to Moses, we say together, “You are our God.” And we know you this way. We remember this name in our generation. God, we praise you as the I am. We praise you for your holiness. We praise you for your mercy. God, we praise you for your omnipresence, for your omnipotence. We praise you, oh God, for your self-existence, your self-sufficiency. Even as I’m listing out these attributes, qualities in you, oh God, I am in awe.
Exodus 3:13–15 Praises God for His Name
We are in awe in a fresh way, as we consider your greatness, your glory, your supremacy, you are eternal. You always have been. You are, you always will be. God, you are immutable, never changing. You are faithful to your promises at all times. You are sovereign over all things. God you are just. You are merciful. We praise you. You are God. We praise you that we know you. We praise you that we have the privilege of communion with you, that we have the privilege of being in relationship with you, the great I am.
Jesus, we praise you for your revelation of the I am in the flesh. How you came and specifically, thinking about the book of John, over, and over, and over again. Using these words to refer to yourself to say, “Before Abraham was born, I am. I am the light of the world, I am the Good Shepherd. I am the way, the truth, and the life and I am the resurrection and the life.”
You are God. Jesus, we exalt you as the I am. We exalt you as God. God, we glorify. We praise your name. We pray that you’d help us to pass your name on to the next generation after us. That our children, and their children, and their children, might know you as the I am. We worship you. We praise you. God, we stand in awe of you. We love you, oh God. The great I am. We praise you for the privilege of knowing you in this way. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
