A while ago I watched an old video called The Prince of Egypt. It’s the story of Moses and the exodus of the Hebrews out of Egypt. Although it is a cartoon version made in Hollywood, the creators kept it fairly close to the Biblical account. I have seen this movie several times, and there is one scene that never fails to move me — the point where Moses encounters God in the burning bush. When he asks that wonderful question, “Who are you?” God’s answer is at once mysterious and absolute. He says: “I am that I am.” (Exodus 3:14, KJV)

We know from the Biblical story told in Exodus that Moses responded to God’s call and obeyed His command to return to Egypt and confront Pharaoh. Though he was reluctant and believed himself to be inadequate for the job, he obeyed. I believe his obedience was in direct relation to his understanding of who this God was. He had been seeking God for some time, and when God called, drawing him to a place where he could hear, the overwhelming effect of that encounter impressed upon Moses that this was the God of the universe — one not to be trifled with. Moses did not have an opportunity to create God in his own image. His perception of God had come from the source.

Unfortunately, most of us do not have that same opportunity. Burning bushes aren’t a common occurrence, even for those who are deeply spiritual. Perhaps that is why we tend so easily to distort the image of God. We see the evil and pain in the world, and call God cruel and unjust. We don’t get what we want in life and believe God does not love us. We desperately want to live our lives on our own terms, so we create a God who will go along with our plan. We want to live in a world without pain or suffering, so we insist God must be a magician, there to perform miracles at our command. We want to live comfortably, so we espouse a prosperity theology that justifies the accumulation of wealth. We want to justify our actions, so we assign God to be on our side.

Without the miracle of a burning bush that is not destroyed, and the very voice of God in our ears, we will create all kinds of gods who are nothing like the real thing. These gods made in our own image may make us feel better for a time, but they are idols. Idols never fully satisfy our longing for truth. So how do we guard against this? How do we get to know the real God?

We do what Moses did. We take off our sandals and acknowledge the holy ground. In humility, we admit we don’t know Him very well. We ask Him who He really is, and when we hear His answer we fall on our faces. We study His word, the Bible, seeking His face in every verse. Then, when we hear Him command, like Moses, we obey. None of us may ever see a burning bush, but if we humble ourselves and truly seek Him, we will find the true God.

“I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving … When the humble see it they will be glad; you who seek God, let your hearts revive (Psalm 69:30 & 32, ESV).

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