Esther, a young Jewish girl, was chosen by King Xerxes as his new queen. But Esther’s Uncle Mordecai irked Haman who went to the king and asked for a decree to wipe out all the Jews. The king, completely unaware that Esther was Jewish, listened to Haman and issued the decree. Mordecai, learning of it, “tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the city, wailing loudly and bitterly” (Esther 4:1, NIV).
Hearing what Mordecai was doing, Esther sent someone to see what was wrong. She found out that her people were about to be annihilated. Mordecai then tells Esther: “Who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14b). It was up to Esther to speak to King Xerxes and save the Jews.
Only one problem with that: “For any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned the king has but one law: that he be put to death. The only exception to this is for the king to extend the gold scepter to him and spare his life” (Esther 4:11b.
So if Esther went in uninvited to talk to the king, she would be killed. Her only hope was for him to “extend the gold scepter,” which would mean he’d let her live.
With the lives of her entire race on the line, what did Esther do? Rush into the king’s presence and hope for the best? No, she had a much better plan. She sent this message to Mordecai: “Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish” (Esther 4:16).
Esther didn’t sit back and expect her royal position to keep her safe while the rest of her people were in peril. Esther didn’t weigh the odds and decide she wasn’t going to put herself in such danger. What she did do was fast and pray; and she had the rest of the Jews fast and pray with her.
A dire situation and yet she let three days tick by while she and the rest of the Jews called on God to guide and intervene. Did she know what God would do? No. She trusted Him no matter the outcome: “If I perish, I perish.”
What was the result? “On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the palace, in front of the king’s hall. The king was sitting on his royal throne in the hall, facing the entrance. When he saw Queen Esther standing in the court, he was pleased with her and held out to her the gold scepter that was in his hand” (Esther 5:1-2).
The king spared her life and listened to what she had to say: “If it pleases the king,… let an order be written overruling the dispatches that Haman… devised and wrote to destroy the Jews in all the king’s provinces” (Esther 8:5). And the king honored Esther’s request.
No matter how desperate things may seem, pray before you take action. God’s plan may be entirely different from the one you have in mind; and you won’t know His plan if you don’t seek it.
“And now I will show you the best way of all” (I Corinthians 12:31b, ISV).
No comments:
Post a Comment