In one of the strangest and most debated stories in Scripture, God meets Moses on the road to Egypt—not to bless him, but to kill him. In Exodus 4:18–26, we see both the terrifying wrath and the steadfast love of God collide in one moment of blood and mercy. Moses, the chosen deliverer, had neglected the covenant sign; and yet through the blood of his son, the wrath of God was turned away. This strange encounter is not a detour from the gospel—it reveals it. In the blood that spared Moses, we glimpse the blood that would one day save us all: the Son cut off so that we might live.

The whole Bible points to Jesus, and in this story of Moses receiving three signs from Yahweh, we get to witness not merely parallels to Jesus' story but rather the establishment of a pattern which Jesus would fulfill perfectly. Moses is chosen to be the shepherd-messenger, and one thousand years later, Jesus would be the Good Shepherd. Moses brought a message of being freed from slavery to Egypt, while Jesus brought a message of being freed from sin. Moses was given three signs to help the Israelites believe his message, but these three signs were not magic tricks; they were signs of transformation and hope, pointing to the hope we have in Christ, who became sin in our place and was struck that we might be spared.

This sermon contrasts the despair of praying to an unknown god with the hope of knowing Yahweh by name. When Moses asks, “What is his name?” God reveals himself as “I Am Who I Am." He is existence itself — absolute personality, freedom, and eternality. Yet this revelation alone could remain distant and even terrifying. The good news is that Yahweh also names himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob — a covenantal God who binds himself to his people in love and faithfulness. He is not simply God in the abstract but God-for-us, inviting all who believe to share in the promises made to Abraham. This covenant commitment finds its deepest fulfillment in the incarnation: Yahweh takes on flesh in Jesus, “Yahweh saves.” In Christ, the eternal “I Am” becomes vulnerable, even killable, for our sake. The New Testament bears witness that Jesus is Yahweh, doing the works and receiving the honors due only to God. Thus the call is clear: confess Jesus as Lord, believe in his resurrection, and find deliverance. Unlike a vague prayer “to every god,” prayer to Jesus rests on the sure name of the God who is, who was, and who is to come — the God who saves.