God is
by Jordan Moore
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God said to Moses, ‘I am who I am’ (Exodus 3:14a).
Read Exodus 3:9–17a
Is there a story behind your name? Perhaps you were named after a family member, or maybe your parents just loved the meaning or sound of the name they chose? Have you ever looked up what your name means, and has that meaning shaped how you see yourself?
God is known by many names in the Bible. Some of the earliest reveal how God relates to us – or how we relate to him – such as ‘Adonai’ (Lord, Master) and ‘El Roi’ (the God who sees me). Later, Scripture tells us that God is ‘Immanuel’: God with us.
We also speak of God through his attributes. God is our creator. God is love. God is truth. God is holy. If someone asked you who God is, what word would you use to fill in the blank? And would your answer have been different during another season of your life?
In some Christian traditions, theologians are cautious about these positive descriptions (known as cataphatic theology). Our understanding of love, goodness and holiness is shaped by our limited and sinful experience. When we project those definitions onto God, we risk shrinking him to something we can manage. As St Augustine wrote, ‘If you can grasp it, it isn’t God.’
Others take a different approach, describing God ‘negatively’ (apophatic theology): God is not bound by time. God is not finite. This guards against limiting him – yet it can leave us knowing only what God is not, rather than who he is.
When Moses asked for God’s name, the answer was simple: ‘I am who I am.’ Sit with that for a moment. I am. God is. Perhaps we do not always need to add more. Today, it may be enough to remember that God simply is.
God, you have revealed yourself to us as ‘I am’. Keep us from believing we have fully comprehended you. Teach us instead to trust you – the One who is more than we could ever imagine. Amen.
Jordan Moore lives in the northern suburbs of Brisbane with her husband Thomas and two young children. She is a stay-at-home mum and part-time pastoral studies student at Australian Lutheran College. In her spare time, she enjoys solving variant sudokus and doing Irish dancing.
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