1.YAHWEH IS PERSONAL

Exodus 3:4-6 “When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called out to him from the bush, “Moses, Moses!” “Here I am,” he answered. “Do not come closer,” he said. “Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” Then he continued, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look at God.”

Right off the bat, notice how God reveals Himself to Moses: "LORD" – notice it’s in all capital letters.

We’re not very familiar with this name and don’t use it very often because
a. Jewish people held this name in such honor and esteem that when they’d come to it in their reading of the scriptures, they’d not even say it
b. This name was so revered that it was only whispered aloud once a year, on the Day of Atonement, and only by the High Priest in the Holy Place of the Temple
c. The name was considered so scared that scribes would take a bath before and after they wrote it
d. It was set apart from any other name when it was written by the scribes as they removed the vowels and left only consonants so that people would not inadvertently speak it and take it in vain
e. As scholars worked to bring the scriptures from the Hebrew language and into our own – the they translated it Jehovah (and later, all caps LORD)

YAHWEH wasn’t a new or unknown name that He was revealing to Moses
- Appears 6,800 times in the scripture
- 160 times in the book of Genesis alone
- Jochabed means “YAHWEH is my glory”

Of all the names the Lord used to identify Himself with, why did the Lord chose to reveal Himself to Moses as YAHWEH...to remind Moses that He is Personal

Notice: “Moses, Moses…” – God calls Him by name

Moses had gone from an Egyptian Prince living in the lap of luxury and opulence to an obscure and known by everyone far and near to an unknown, obscure shepherd who lived just south of nowhere…God knew who he was.

He tells Moses to do two things
Keep at distance & remove shoes (culturally, you remove shoes when you come into someone’s house)

The Lord is saying, "Moses, I’ve invited you into relationship with Me but you approach me on my terms, not your own. You worship me on my terms."

The Lord identifying Himself as YAHWEH is a reminder that He invites us into a personal relationship with Him, just as He did with Moses BUT this relationship cannot be treated in a casual, lukewarm, hit or miss manner.
We must understand and respond with awe and reverence that we have an intimate union not with a benevolent grandfatherly figure or cosmic Santa Claus but with the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob…we’ve been invited into the presence of the One who spoke the universe into existence, parts seas, opens blind eyes, and raises the dead to life!

AND HE CARES – Look at Exodus 3:7

“Then the Lord said, “I have observed the misery of my people in Egypt, and have heard them crying out because of their oppressors. I know about their sufferings”

This great God is not unconcerned about the suffering of His people. He sees and cares!

YAWEH tells Moses…I personally see the suffering of My people. I’m personally moved by it AND He goes on to tell Moses that He will personally act on their behalf!

I’d be willing to bet that Moses was thinking: Yes! Go get them, Lord!
Then Verse 10 had to put a instant knot in Moses stomach and lump in his throat
“Therefore, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh so that you may lead my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.”

2.YAWEH IS PRESENT

Exodus 3:11 “But Moses asked God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and that I should bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”

Consider the realities Moses is dealing with:
- He’s a fugitive
- He’s been tending sheep for 40 years
- He’s 80 years old at this point
- He’s been instructed to return to the place where there’s still a bounty on his head and make demands before the most powerful man in the world at that time

Exodus 3:12 “He answered, “I will certainly be with you”

YAWEH is not only a God who is personal…but a God who is present!
He was saying to Moses: You are right, my dude. YOU CAN’T. But with ME, all things are possible and I will be with you!

God is with us and that changes everything. Saints, YAHWEH is with you!

3.YAHWEH IS POWERFUL

Moses asks another question in Exodus 3:13 “Then Moses asked God, “If I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what should I tell them?”
When God revealed Himself to man in the days of the Patriarchs, it was most often in a way that would be exactly what that person or group of people needed to know about God

- When they needed to be reminded of His power - He revealed Himself as Elohim – creator
- When they needed to be assured of His sovereignty - He identified Himself as El Elyon – God the most high
- When they had great needs - He described Himself as Jehovah Jireh – The Lord who provides
- Needed a miracle - Jehovah Rapha – The Lord our healer....had anxious hearts - Jehovah Shalom – The Lord who is our peace

IT’S UNDERSTANDABLE THAT THE ELDERS OF ISRAEL WOULD ASK: How did God identify Himself?

Here, the Lord reveals Himself is an extraordinarily powerful way

Exodus 3:14-15 “God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you.” God also said to Moses, “Say this to the Israelites: The LORD, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is my name forever; this is how I am to be remembered in every generation.”

Great I AM shows infinite power because God is the last and the first. He is the beginning and end. He is Alpha and Omega. He is the name before every name. He is the one true living God and will have no other god before Him. He is the source of spiritual power

Finally, YAHWEH…the great I AM who is personal, present and powerful…has another name, one we’re most familiar with…the sweetest name we know...
John 8:58 “Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, before Abraham was, I am.”