My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, peace be with you. In today’s first reading from Exodus, we find Moses standing before a burning bush—his sandals off, his heart pounding, face to the ground. He’s hearing the voice of God, and he asks a question that’s quite bold: “When I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me,’ and they ask, ‘What is his name?’—what should I say?”
It’s almost as if Moses is saying, “There are many so-called gods out there… who exactly are you?” It’s a question that comes from a world where gods had names, territories, and limits. Moses wants to be sure. And God’s answer is powerful. He says: “I AM WHO AM.” In other words: “I simply AM. I’m not one god among many—I’m the only one. Eternal. Without beginning or end. Dependable. Sovereign. Beyond all that you can imagine.”
This is the God who remembers His covenant—the same God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The God who sees His people’s suffering. The God who acts. He doesn’t just exist—He cares, He moves, and He leads.
And this same God speaks again in our Gospel today, through Jesus. And listen to how different His voice sounds here—gentle, comforting:
“Come to me, all you who labour and are burdened, and I will give you rest.”
What a contrast: in the Old Testament, God speaks through fire and mission; in the New, He speaks through tenderness and invitation. But it’s the same God. The same “I AM” who led Israel out of Egypt is now leading us out of sin and restlessness. And He offers something Pharaoh never could—rest for the soul.
Jesus says, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me.” You know, a yoke is something that binds two oxen together to share the weight. And in Jesus’ day, it was also a way of saying “follow my teachings.” But He reassures us: “My yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Why? Because He carries it with us. We are never pulling alone.
So how do these readings come together for us today?
They remind us that our God is not distant or confusing. He doesn’t hide behind many names. He is simply I AM. The one true God. The only one who can truly say: “I will be with you.”
In our world today, there are still many “gods” vying for our attention—success, wealth, status, comfort. But only one God can save. Only one can give peace. Only one calls us by name and says, “Come to me.”
So, if you’re tired today—tired from work, tired from family burdens, tired from trying to be perfect or from trying to hold it all together—Jesus has a word for you: “Come to me… I will give you rest.”
Just as God saw the pain of His people in Egypt and led them out with a mighty hand, so too He sees you now, and offers a way through: not through power and might, or the parting of a sea, but through humility, love, and rest in Him.
Let us then come to He Who Is, the great I AM—not just in awe, like Moses, but also in trust, like the disciples. Let us lay down our burdens, at the feet of Jesus because, even the heaviest load becomes light with his help. Amen
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