(A “Feast of Fear?”… or) The Feast of Esther: Purim in 2020
As many already know, tonight began one of the most special and favorite “times of celebration” for God’s people. It is taken right out of the pages of our own Biblical text and history. The Feast of Esther is here!,” which is commonly known as The Feast of Purim in Jewish history…
This celebration commemorates a remarkable time in our faith history and is a story of love, true purpose, heroic courage, fortuitous timing, self-sacrifice, and the PROPHETIC DESTINY of all God’s people, which includes us! —What more can we ask for in a blockbuster story? Not even Holywood could create a plot as juicy as this one!
We’ve got a King named Ahasuerus who basically rules the entire known world – and who dismisses his cantankerous wife (the queen Vashti) for her sustained “indifference and insubordination.” This was done to the open shame of the entire nation and in front of the king’s enemies. We then have the entire kingdom, including their conquered citizens, enlisted to participate in a “heated contest ” to find and supply the kingdom with a new and “most suitable queen” for all to honor and respect as the new royal bride –fit for a King of course! …
And finally, last but not least, we have an ancient rivalry between two sworn enemies, to the death and annihilation of the other, that erupts behind the palace walls and spills over into an evil plot to bring about the genocide of an entire race of people… GOD’S PEOPLE! (YES, let’s all take a breath now! Okay, exhale… and breathe in again. Ahhh…) This is quite a story, yet it is God’s story. A story of His unfailing love and faithfulness, which prevails, this time, through the faithful hearts of His people. And through a certain special person, in particular, named Esther or “Hadassah,” which means compassion, who became a heroine and savior to her people!
Well, you can read the FULL story for yourself – I wouldn’t dare take that thrill away from our readers!! Still so much can and should be said here about the characters in this story and just how much FEAR or courage can change the course of one’s history when facing perilous times. Today God’s people live under very similar circumstances and conditions of peril, just as they did during the time of Esther. It was a time of heavy domination and oppression by seated government and sovereign rulers of power, as such was the case.
It was also a time when God’s people had lost the freedoms and autonomy they once knew as their own sovereign nation, just as Believers are losing their spiritual ground and rights of faith practice today. It was a time of “great uncertainty,” change, and no guarantees of “the quality of life.” Yet the test came for Esther and her people, as it has surely come for us. We must also choose, as Esther and her uncle Mordecai did – whether we will fold to the plots and schemes of this world OR will we decide to be “bold and courageous” and take it all to the king!
Esther faced no uncertain death as she had to make the decision to take up the mantle of the Lord – and pick up the burden, not just for her small family, but an entire nation. She was already in a position that God had created for her to do just that, but the choice still had to be hers.
When the wicked Haman manipulated the king with a diabolical plan to annihilate the Jewish people, no one but Esther was in a position to carry out the petition for the nation of Israel’s life – and use the favor given her by God to bring down a sworn enemy against His own people. There is no doubt that Esther was afraid, but her faith – and faithfulness – guided her decision to STAND. To make the call to her people to fast and pray for the stronghold and deceitful plot to be broken. We ALL have an opportunity to make that same decision of faithfulness right where we stand. We, in the midst of a foreign land,
“For this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come.” Hebrews 13:14
As a result, what was conspired and prepared by Haman to destroy God’s people became the very plot by which he would lose his own head. We can never forget that we have Esther’s willingness to sacrifice her own life to thank for this victory! God’s seal, like the seal of her King, was upon Esther’s life. He put the right ring on her finger and he will put His ring of approval and true covenant upon ours!
God will always put His people in the right positions to make the right decisions. Now more than ever may we make decisions that lead to deliverance for God’s people that is so desperately needed today!
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