Exodus 3:1-12. Moses, tending his father-in-law Jethro's flock on Mount Horeb (Sinai), saw a thorny desert bush blazing with fire yet not consumed. When he turned aside to look, God spoke from the bush: "Moses, Moses! ... Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground." God identified Himself as "the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob" and revealed the divine name — "I AM WHO I AM" / ehyeh asher ehyeh — commissioning Moses to deliver Israel from Egypt.
The burning bush is one of Scripture's most iconic theophanies. Four lessons. (1) God takes the initiative. Moses was not seeking God; he was herding sheep. "When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him" (3:4). God broke into ordinary work with extraordinary fire. Many conversions follow this pattern — God pursues, not the other way around. (2) Fire that does not consume. An ordinary thorn bush set on fire burns to ash in minutes. This bush burned and was not consumed. Some church fathers read this as an icon of Mary bearing Christ (the divine fire indwelling mortal flesh without destroying it); others see it as the glory of God capable of dwelling with sinful humanity without annihilating it — a foreshadowing of the incarnation and the indwelling Spirit. Either way: God's presence is not automatically destructive. (3) The divine name revealed. "I AM WHO I AM" is the Name — Yahweh, the self-existent one, utterly dependent on no one, eternal, sovereign. Jesus' "Before Abraham was, I AM" (John 8:58) directly claims this Name for Himself. (4) Commissioning a reluctant servant. Moses offered excuse after excuse (3:11, 3:13, 4:1, 4:10, 4:13). God answered each one, and eventually sent him. The pattern is universal: God's call rarely comes when we feel ready, and He often calls precisely the person who does not feel qualified — so that the glory goes to Him.