I want to turn to the book of Esther.
Perhaps when we talk about Esther, the most well known passage in the book is found in
chapter four verse fourteen.
Where Esther's cousin and guardian Mordecai says
to her: Who knows but that you have come to the
kingdom for such a time as this? Of course we all know that verse.
And I've heard lot's of great messages based on
this scripture for years. But I've found that most of those messages, most of those
sermons miss the point completely.
Because they miss the context of Mordecai's words.
Let's take a closer look at the circumstances surrounding this passage.
And then we'll see something. Mordecai's message to Esther was not some
feel good motivational speech. But rather it was a sobering and alarming ultimatum.
Esther was a young Jewish woman.
She was born into a broken family. She was a minority in an oppressive society.
The odds were against her right from the start.
But almost over night, Esther went from rags to riches.
From poverty to the palace. And she became the wife of King Xerxes the
first. Making her one of the most powerful women
in history. Irony seems to fill the pages of the book
of Esther.
Just as Persia has unknowingly crowned a Jewish queen, the king's advisor, a man named
Haman is plotting a diabolical scheme to exterminate the Jewish race through a bloody massacre.
There's only one Jew in the land who is in a
position to intervene on behalf of her people. It's Esther.
But it seems as though the pleasures of the palace
had begun to intoxicate her. She begins to struggle with what course of
action to take.
As Esther looked around at the beautiful palace that was now her home.
With its luxuries, pleasures, conveniences and
the wealth she had come to enjoy. It must have been difficult for her to imagine
throwing it all away. In some misguided attempt at heroism.
She knew that taking this matter to the king would force her to risk everything she had
including her very life. Perhaps a more subtle approach would be
best. Maybe she should just lie low for a while
and wait to see how things would play out.
Perhaps at some point she would have an opportunity to put in a good word for the Jews without
jeopardizing herself. After all what good would she be to anyone
if she were dead?
But Mordecai, Esther's cousin, sensing her internal struggle, sent her this message:
Do not flatter yourself that you shall escape the
king's palace any more than all the other Jews.
For if you keep silent at this time, relief and
deliverance will arise for the Jews from elsewhere, but you are your father's house will perish.
And who knows, but that you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this.
Let's look at those words that Mordecai sent
to Esther once again. He said Don't flatter yourself, isn't that
interesting? Don’t' flatter yourself that you will escape
in the king's palace any more than all the other
Jews. For if you keep silent at this time, relief
and deliverance shall arise for the Jews from elsewhere.
But you and your father's house will perish. And who knows but that you have come to the
kingdom for such a time as this. In other words Mordecai said Esther don't
flatter yourself.
You're not in the palace because you are so beautiful of special or wonderful.
You have been placed by the hand of God in the position you are in because you are part
of a strategic plan that's much bigger than you
are. So Esther for you to stand up and speak on
behalf of you and your people is not something over and above the call of duty.
It's actually the very reason that God put you
in the palace in the first place. And then Mordecai went on to emphasize the
severity of the situation. He said essentially Esther if you try to protect
yourself and your position at the expense of the
divine purpose, God will replace you and you will be the one that's destroyed.
Now maybe you might think that I don't have any
right to speculate as to what's going on in Esther's
heart and mind. But I do it because of two things:
Number one because of what I see plainly implied there in the text.
But also because of what I see happening every day in the Western world.
Our comforts and conveniences have often made us complacent and indifferent to a dying world.
We're often afraid to do anything that might disturb our pampered, cozy little lives.
One man told me, he said I can't talk about Jesus at work because if I do, I'll lose my
job. I've heard others say that there are two topics
they won't discuss at work: politics and religion. Well my friend the gospel was not some side
issue. Have you ever thought that maybe the very
reason you have that job in the first place is
because you are a strategic part of a divine purpose.
God put you there, God gave you your job and he gave it to you for a reason.
My friend if you're not willing to be a witness in your workplace, don't be surprised if God
takes that job from you and gives it somebody else who isn't ashamed of the gospel.
You know I've seen people drop hundred of dollars
at restaurants or at football games. Or on unnecessary luxuries at the mall.
Ladies, another pair of shoes, another purse, but
when the offering plate goes around in church they immediately begin to complain.
All they ever do in this church is ask for money,
they say. And then if they do drop a couple measly dollars
into the plate, they feel like they've been very
generous. My friend the money in our bank accounts is
not ours. It all belongs to God in the first place.
He is not only the source of all our provision, but
he is also the one that has given us the very ability
to create the wealth that we have. And God hasn't blessed us just so we could
consume those resources on our own selfish whims.
He has blessed us so that we can be a blessing. That's the reason that you have those resources
in the first place. So my friend if you aren't willing to bless
God's kingdom with a cheerful heart, don’t be
surprised if he takes the means and resources and gives
them to somebody else who will be a good steward. If God's entrusted you with money, if he's
entrusted you with other resources.
You need to realize that he didn't give those to you because he likes you more than other
people. He gave them to you because he expects you
to be a channel through which those resources can flow.
Yes it's true that when water flows through a pipe
the pipe also gets wet. And when God's blessings flow through you,
you will also be blessed personally. But don't make the mistake of thinking that
you're being blessed because you're so special or wonderful or intelligent or talented.
Think about what Mordecai said to Esther. Don't flatter yourself, you're not any better
than the poorest beggar in the loneliest gutter.
God hasn't blessed you because he loves you more than others.
He has blessed you for a purpose, and your fulfilling of that purpose is not a side issue.
It's the very reason that he gave you those blessings in the first place.
If you won't do what God's called you to do, he'll
find somebody else who will do it with joy.