Whenever I hear someone say, "The Bible clearly states...," I perk up and watch out and I would suggest you do the same. After twenty years of some pretty serious study of that sacred book, one of the things I have come to realize is that if the Bible is anything it is certainly not clear. This should not be a shock to any of you who have ever engaged in or listened to an argument between two folk quoting Bible passages. It's like watching an old western on television. This is the gunfight at the O.K. Corral set to scripture. "Bam! John 3:16!" "Boing! Luke 13:5!" "Kerplooy! Revelations 6:66!" You've all heard such foolishness and it only goes to underscore how often the Bible is certainly not clear. Luther said the devil could quote scripture to his own ends and all of us have heard him do it. Making generalizations based on particular scriptural texts is a very risky endeavor. What it often boils down to is faith. One carefully studies the Bible, considers the evidence, wrestles with the contradictions and confusions, and then makes a decision or takes a position based on faith. This is what I shall believe...even if the Bible isn't stating it all that clearly.

This is not a new dilemma. It emanates from the very beginning of our religious history and it certainly can be found in the ancient story of God calling Moses to lead his people out of bondage. After the excuses, after Moses' attempts to try and weasel his way out, after he realizes there is no other way, Moses asks for a little surety, a little evidence that he's got the right God, a little something he can take to the Hebrews to convince them that this is the God they should be following.

"How about your name, God? How about giving me something that will really wow the folk down in Egypt into letting your people go?"

And God obliges...sort of. "Tell them, 'I am who I am', has sent you."

"Oh, great. I'm sure that will really convince them."

Moses' problem is our problem as well for here we begin to discover one of the difficult truths of our religious tradition. Here we begin to discover that our God is always greater than we can ever imagine. Our God is beyond complete understanding. Our God is and will always be a little elusive, a little difficult to pin down. Indeed, perhaps a better translation of the name of God from the Hebrew would be "I will be who I will be". This is God more as verb than noun. More a process of revelation than total revealing. This is the beginning of a struggle we who are followers have engaged in for thousands of years. It has been the source of frustration for millions. It can be summed up by saying, "You can't put God in a box. She keeps finding a way out."