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In our previous message, we had considered how God had called Moses from out of the midst of the burning bush. And interestingly, after God had spoken to Moses about His compassion for the children of Israel being oppressed by the Egyptians and how He had promised their forefather Abraham that He would deliver them, one may expect God to explain how He would deliver His people from the bondage. But instead, He sent Moses to be the deliverer. To be the deliverer, Moses would have to do two things: he had to go to Pharaoh to demand that he release the children of Israel, and he had to tell the children of Israel that he would be their deliverer.

The question is, how could Moses accomplish such an awesome task? Therefore, naturally, Moses would ask this question: "Who am I?" My friends, have you ever been called to do something, perhaps to be a leader, or a preacher, or a teacher, and you thought to yourself, "This is such an awesome task. Will the people accept me? Will they believe what I say? Will they reject me? Who am I?" This is what we want to learn from today’s passage. The title of our message is Who Am I?

There were several important things that Moses must learn and understand in order for him to be the deliverer of the children of Israel. The first thing is it involves God’s call. Let us begin with the statement: "Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt." This is where we see a clear demonstration of God’s sovereign grace, and the human instrument to deliver the children of Israel out of Egypt was all about God’s sovereign grace. But God chose to use sinful human beings to carry out His saving purposes.

Just like the salvation of souls, it is also all about God’s sovereign grace, but God chooses to use you and me as His instruments to bring forth the gospel message. Remember, previously Moses had tried to save the Israelites by himself when he killed the Egyptian. It was a complete disaster, and he had to flee for his life. It took Moses 40 years to learn this valuable lesson. What can we learn from this lesson? Whether we are preachers or teachers of God’s Word, it is important for us to learn that we are just instruments. Indeed, we are nobody. Based on our own strength, we cannot do the work. Even if we can do the work, we will not do the work well. We will not do the work to the glory of God. It must begin with God’s call. And if God has called us, then He will equip us with the necessary strengths and abilities.

But that does not mean that we do not put in our best efforts. We must be faithful to do whatever we can and then trust and believe that it is by God’s sovereign grace to bring about salvation and spiritual growth. If God is the one who has called us, and if He is the one who has equipped us to do the work, then there’s nothing for us to be proud of, right? Christians must never be proud of the services that they render to God. He used the 40 years in the desert to train and mould Moses to be the person He wanted him to be. Now the time had come, and God was commissioning Moses to lead His people out of slavery.

The first important lesson Moses had to learn was that God had called and commissioned him to do the work. Remember, we had learned in our previous message that having a good intention and motivation was not enough. Things must be done in the right way, and the right way must begin with God’s call.

Our second point is it involves a specific work. When God called Moses from out of the midst of the burning bush, He called him unto a specific work—a vocation, a task. The God who saves is the God who sends. This is true for every Christian. Every believer receives two callings, so to speak: first to salvation, and then to service. If we are true believers, firstly, we are called to salvation—at some point in our lives, we were saved. And secondly, we are called to serve. Whether we are called to be pastors, preachers, Sunday school teachers, elders, deacons, or parents taking care of their own children, we are given specific work to do.

Can you see? God said to Moses very clearly, "I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt." And after you have brought them out, I want you to serve me on this mountain. Today, we may not experience the same dramatic burning bush experience like Moses, but nonetheless, it is still the God of the burning bush who has called us, and we are still serving the God of the burning bush.

God may use church leaders to approach us to serve in particular areas, or He may burden our hearts for a particular work, or He may use the situations of life to direct us to a particular ministry. The way He calls each and every one of us may be different. But whatever be the work, it is a high calling because it is given to us by the Most High. Do you think it was not difficult for Moses to go to Pharaoh and then to tell the children of Israel that he would be their deliverer? Most certainly it was most difficult. Just like Moses, in most of our services, there will be troubles, problems, rejections, oppositions, and hostilities. But if we recognise that God has called us and He has given us this specific work, then we must do our work faithfully, joyfully, cheerfully, diligently, without murmuring or complaining, and we must not give up easily.

My friends, you may know, you may testify that God has called you to salvation, but do you know where God has called you to serve Him? Do you know the specific work that God has called you to do?

Our third point is it involves faith. When we read this passage about God calling Moses to deliver the children of Israel, we cannot help but remember those people who had played a part in Moses' life. Without them, there would be no Moses. Remember Moses’ parents, especially his mother, Jochebed, who decided to keep the baby secretly despite the king's order to kill all the male babies. Then, when the time came that she was no longer able to keep the baby secretly, she put him into a basket and left him by the riverside where Pharaoh’s daughter was bathing. It was Moses' sister who had arranged for the baby to be nursed by his own mother.

Can you see how every one of them had a part to play in God’s sovereign plan to raise up Moses to deliver the children of Israel out of Egypt? Without Moses’ parents, Amram and Jochebed, without Moses' sister, he would have been killed as an infant. Without his wife, Zipporah, and even his father-in-law, Jethro, Moses would not have survived in the desert of Midian. Isn’t it amazing that God would rescue His people as part of His sovereign plan through the faithfulness of common individuals? This is the way God always operates. His divine sovereignty involves human responsibility, and the key is faith—to know the right thing and to do the right thing.

A few days ago, I was speaking with a Christian couple in Singapore about our Myanmar mission work. This couple was very interested in mission work, so they asked me, "How was your church able to start the mission work in Myanmar? Of all the countries in this world, why was it Myanmar?"

As I began to share about the mission work in Myanmar, I had to start from the very beginning: how God had called Reverend Biak and then Hook to start a gospel work, and how they needed a place to pass. The Stephen Coup, having the burden to support this work, do the better lights, who had given cheerfully and also visited them on several occasions, to building the church in Nauti, to establishing the churches in Ancient and Dagon, to the Bible College.

I said to this couple that at every step of the way, it was God who had opened the gospel doors, and the people simply responded by faith. Everyone has a part to play. When you connect the dots and consider all the people who have involved themselves in the Myanmar mission work, everyone had a part to play, and the key was faith. Just as when we reflect upon our lives, we remember those Bible teachers who had taught us God's Word, those people who had helped us in our spiritual walk with God, so much so that today we, in turn, are serving to help others in their spiritual walk. It is all about faith, isn't it true?

Our fourth point is it involves humility. Let us look at verse 11:

"And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?" (Exodus 3:11).

When God first appeared to Moses and called him from out of the midst of the burning bush, Moses responded, "Here am I" (Exodus 3:4). Those three words, "Here am I," do not mean Moses was letting God know where he was, but that he was placing himself at God's disposal. In other words, he was saying, "Here am I at your service." It was similar to the way the young Samuel had responded to God's call in the middle of the night: "Here am I" (1 Samuel 3:4). Or the prophet Isaiah, who responded when God asked, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Isaiah said, "Here am I; send me" (Isaiah 6:8).

We know that Moses was availing himself when he said, "Here am I," because he also expressed his readiness to obey God by taking off his sandals. But why did Moses now say, "Who am I?" A moment ago, he said, "Here am I," and now, all of a sudden, he changed to "Who am I?"

Well, when he realised what God wanted him to do, that he would have to go to Pharaoh and that he would be the one to bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt, as soon as he found out what God had wanted him to do, he started to have his doubts. Basically, Moses asked two vital questions. The first question was, "Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?" (Exodus 3:11). And the second question was, "Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' Then what shall I say unto them?" (Exodus 3:13, paraphrased).

Do you realise that these are the two most fundamental questions a person can ever ask: Who am I, and who is God? Theologians used to say, once we know how to answer these two questions—once we know who we are and who God is—then we can begin to live for God's glory.

John Calvin, when he wrote his famous Institutes, began by saying, "Nearly all the wisdom we possess, that is to say, true and sound wisdom, consists of two parts: the knowledge of God and the knowledge of ourselves." Firstly, Moses asked for knowledge of himself: "Who am I?" This was not a question about his identity, but rather it was a question about his ability. Moses knew very well who he was; he just wasn't sure he had what it took to get the job done.

The Egyptians were the most powerful people on the face of this earth at that time. The Egyptians depended upon the Israelites, who were slaves, to do all the work. How could a mere shepherd possibly be able to deliver their entire workforce out from slavery? To Moses, it was impossible. Besides, who among the Israelites would even remember who he was, let alone follow him? And if anyone did remember Moses, most likely they would remember him as a convicted murderer—the one who killed the Egyptian many years ago.

In other words, God's call to him was clear: Moses understood the specific work he had to do—to go to Pharaoh, to bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt. It was not as if he did not have faith, but he knew in his heart that to deliver the children of Israel was an awesome job that only God alone could do. Yet, God was asking him to do it. He knew in his heart that this task was beyond his abilities because salvation belonged to God alone. Therefore, when he looked at himself, he could not help but ask, "Who am I?"

Several years ago, when I was preaching at Sydney BP Church, a young man said to me, "I always wonder how pastors and preachers would feel, knowing that they are dealing with the souls of men. It is such an awesome responsibility." That was a most sobering statement: dealing with the souls of men. But do you realise that it is not only the pastor who preaches on the pulpit who is dealing with the souls of men? All of us, in one way or another—the Sunday school teacher, the DHW facilitator, the Bible teacher, the parents, the home care group leader, the sisters who are involved in the Monash Gardens Ministry, brethren who support the mission works—whether directly or indirectly, we are all involved in the souls of men. All of us are dealing with the souls of men. Isn't that a most sobering statement? Therefore, we cannot help but ask ourselves, "Who am I that God would call me to deal with the souls of men?"

Remember, these are the two most fundamental questions a person can ever ask: Who am I, and who is God? Once we know the answers to these two questions—once we know who we are and who God is—then you and I can begin to live for God's glory. Indeed, we are nobody; we are just sinners saved by grace. And the God who has saved us is the same God who has sent us to do a specific work for His glory. We know that we must respond in faith, but when we consider the awesome task set before us, we humble ourselves before Him and ask, "Who am I, Lord, that you call me to do this most awesome work? Who am I, Lord, that you will call me to serve you?"

And God will reveal to us: it is not about you; it is about Me. It is about who I am. I am the Great I AM. And if I am the one who has called you, will I not be with you? Will I not empower you to do my work?

When we return next week, we will learn how God would assure Moses by revealing to him who He really was. Our God—the God whom Moses believed in, the God who called Moses from out of the midst of the burning bush, the Great I AM—is the same God who has called you and me to salvation. He is the same God who has called you and me to service as well. When we return, we will learn what God would say to Moses and what He would do in and through the life of Moses.

May each and every one of us be found faithful in the sight of God. May we understand that it is all because God has called us, and if God has called us, He will also equip us with the necessary strength and abilities. And we must also understand that His calling involves a specific work. We must know what God has called us to do, and if God has called us to do a particular work, then we must be faithful, as Moses would have to be faithful to go to Pharaoh, to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt, and then to bring them to that mountain where they would serve Him.

It also involves faith—it is all about faith—that when God has called us, we must respond by faith. And it also involves humility—when we consider this awesome task of dealing with the souls of men, how can we not but ask, "Who am I?" May the Lord teach us.