It Takes A Village – Week 14
Esther. An orphan, she had spent her life among the Jewish exiles in Persia where she lived under the protection of her cousin Mordecai. When Cyrus the Great gave permission for the Israelite exiles to return to Jerusalem, she stayed with Mordecai under his care. Her story is one of greatness for Esther eventually became the Jewish queen of the Persian king who saved her people from slaughter.
The king was seeking a successor to his disobedient queen Vashti and Esther was chosen among many beautiful maidens to be primped and paraded before him. Esther’s story is one of intrigue and great risk as she put her life on the line in order to find favour in the kings eyes. Her cousin Mordecai uncovered a plan in motion to kill the king so, through Esther, the king was alerted to the plan and Mordecai was greatly rewarded.
So the king and Haman went to Queen Esther’s banquet, and as they were drinking wine on the second day, the king again asked, “Queen Esther, what is your petition? It will be given you. What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be granted.”
Then Queen Esther answered, “If I have found favour with you, Your Majesty, and if it pleases you, grant me my life—this is my petition. And spare my people—this is my request.
Esther 7:1-3
But the plan to kill the king was just the starting thread of a very tangled web. One in the kings inner courts, a man named Haman, takes issue against Mordecai when Mordecai refuses to bow in submission to him. Haman had devised a scheme to have all the Jews in Persia slaughtered. But Esther- the kings newly favoured wife- was of Jewish descent unknown to all including Haman and the king. Esther uses her charm to capture the kings attention and reveals her heritage asking him to spare her people from ruin revealing Haman as the mastermind behind the evil plot. He agrees to Esther’s request sending Haman and his ten sons to the gallows to suffer the consequences of his sin.
Life Application:
The community of which we see Esther align herself is complex. We have the ability to learn much from her alliances including the relationship between she and her cousin Mordecai, her relationship with the king, and the connection deeply rooted in her soul with the people of her heritage. Esther was loyal and brave willing to go to any length in order to honour her identity.
When we look at the community of which we belong, how do we honour our identity as Christ followers? Is our heritage as God’s children known to those around us or have we hidden the contents of our soul from the world? In a world growing more distant to God’s Word by the day, being brave standing upon the foundation of truth is difficult at best but necessary if we desire to behold a legacy of greatness to those who will follow in our footsteps.
Father, may the words of my mouth and the actions from my heart bring honour to the heritage I have been gifted in Jesus. I desire to be loyal to you- and only you- with bravery being my constant companion. In Jesus name, amen.
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