God’s message brought a mission

The story of Moses and the burning bush is one I’ve had many different feelings about over the years. As a kid, I thought it was an entertaining story. As a teenager and young adult, I honestly thought it was a bit silly. As I’m moving into middle age, I’m having a new feeling: I’m jealous. Moses is experiencing a supernatural event—of course he’s going to feel motivated to do what God says. When I hear God, it’s often in the words on a page or a nudge in my head—nothing so dramatic as what Moses saw.

The story that God lays out for Moses is one that’s covered extensively in the Bible, though: people are oppressed by a larger group of people, and Moses is called to be an instrumental part of breaking down that oppression. So many parts of that story are relevant to us today. Moses, who was born into a position of great authority and influence, finds himself working a menial job that’s not what he thought he’d be doing with his life. God calls him to challenge not only injustice as a vague concept, but the governing body who is enacting this oppression. Moses gives excuses for why he could never possibly do something that bold, and God gives him what he needs to do the job anyway. This is basically a blueprint for how we’re supposed to handle oppression when we see it in the world around us.

The Bible is full of stories like this that are not only memorable, but show us a little microcosm of how we should interact with the world around us. I may never have my burning bush moment, but I see enough of myself in Moses that I’m able to imagine the awe and wonder that he had when the bush lit up, the trepidation and anxiety that he had when hearing a request, and the bravery he had when carrying out that task. If it’s faith that carries me through when I don’t have evidence that God exists, it’s the emotion and pathos in stories like this that give me the clarity to do the things I really should be doing.

Don’t get me wrong—I would still love to have a burning bush clearly tell me what I should be doing. That would make things so much easier. I would also love a literal angel to show up at my door and give me some pointers or just tell me who to talk to so I can stop all this oppression. But sometimes the burning bushes or the angels we experience today are the ones we read about in ancient texts. There may be times when we encounter literal angels, but there are many times we encounter them symbolically. If we pay attention, these stories and texts could have as much to tell us today in our modern lives as they did the people in the stories and passages. God used angels in the Bible to tell people to stand up to oppression, to help the powerless and fight injustice. Speaking through the words on the page, what are these Biblical angels saying to you today?