Humility Precedes Honor

Esther 4:7-17

7 Mordecai told him the whole story, including the exact amount of money Haman had promised to pay into the royal treasury for the destruction of the Jews. 8 Mordecai gave Hathach a copy of the decree issued in Susa that called for the death of all Jews. He asked Hathach to show it to Esther and explain the situation to her. He also asked Hathach to direct her to go to the king to beg for mercy and plead for her people. 9 So Hathach returned to Esther with Mordecai’s message.

10 Then Esther told Hathach to go back and relay this message to Mordecai: 11 “All the king’s officials and even the people in the provinces know that anyone who appears before the king in his inner court without being invited is doomed to die unless the king holds out his gold scepter. And the king has not called for me to come to him for thirty days.” 12 So Hathach gave Esther’s message to Mordecai.

13 Mordecai sent this reply to Esther: “Don’t think for a moment that because you’re in the palace you will escape when all other Jews are killed. 14 If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?”

15 Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: 16 “Go and gather together all the Jews of Susa and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will do the same. And then, though it is against the law, I will go in to see the king. If I must die, I must die.” 17 So Mordecai went away and did everything as Esther had ordered him.

Here is an example of someone who had to humble herself and the position she held to bring deliverance to her people. This is another story about a Kinsman Redeemer that I have looked at previously.

Apparently news must not get to the queen's chambers very quickly. I would have expected her to be one of the first people to hear about it since she lives in the palace and the guards or her servants would have talked about it. I know it wouldn't have been that quick for the whole kingdom to have heard about it like it would be today with TV, radio and the internet spilling forth "news" 24/7. I wonder if they were normally this insulated from the outside world as well as what was going on in their own home?

Either way Esther found out about the plan put together by Haman. She now has to make a decision. Do I speak up for my people as a Jew or do I be quiet and stay safe? I noticed in Mordecai's reply to her that he had some large faith in action. In verse 14 it says, "If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die." He knew that it wasn't only dependant upon her to act in order to save the Jewish people. If she chose not to then she would be dealt with by God and He would raise up someone else to deliver the Jews out from under this threat. That's faith! He was calling something that wasn't as if it was. Praise God for faith like that!

His last sentence is one that I have found very appropriate to apply to my life a number of times lately. " Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?” I know that I am not a queen, but I substitute the word king in there for myself. I was made to be a king at such a time as this. Let me tell you how I know.

I had always wondered why God made me the way that I was. When I was around 30 years old I heard someone preach a message that I thought was written just for me. She was preaching about what she called "Red People". God had given her a dream and in that dream He explained who Red People were. The example He used for her to understand was one of a pile of dirty laundry. He asked her what do you do with dirty laundry. Her reply was wash it. He asked her if she separated the laundry first into like colors, i.e. whites, delicates, light colors, dark colors, etc. She said of course. He then asked her about the red clothes. She said she would wash those separately so they wouldn't bleed into the other clothes. He then told her that He created people to be like the clothes that were being separated before they were washed. He created Red People so that when they would be washed by the Holy Spirit that they would bleed onto anyone who was around them. Red People are gifted to be doers of the Word. When they see a need they go and do as the Word as instructed. They don't form committees or prayer chains or seek 40 confirmations before they do what they know God has instructed them to do. They just go and do. They are also called to be kings in the marketplace and to be major funding channels for God's plans here on earth to get accomplished. The whole time she was describing this I thought she was talking about me.

It didn't still hit me very hard until a year later when I was at a service in a different church and was communicating with some friends who were there afterwards. One of the guys who was there said he saw "Erik the Red" at the meeting last night. That phrase hit me between the eyes. I thought about it and had to call my mom. I asked her where she got the name of Erik for me. She told me that she named me after her favorite Norwegian explorer Erik the Red. The words in Jeremiah 1:5 came rushing into my remembrance, “I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb." God was telling me that He knew before I was born that He had created me to be who I was and to be alive when I was so that I was alive for such a time as this to be who He created me to be. That was an awesome revelation to receive from Him. Praise God!

I am alive at this time in history doing what God tells me to do when He tells me to do it. I am called to be a king who channels his finances for God's plans here on earth. That is what I am called and created to do so I will do it with every last breath I have. Just as we will see tomorrow that Ether did what she was created to do I too will be obedient to God's plan for my life.

Father I thank You for knowing me before I was born. I thank You for creating me to be who You have created me to be. I thank You for revealing Your will for me through Your Word and for confirming it through Your Word. I thank You that I am alive at such a time as this and that You will continue to use me as You see fit. I will go when You say go and do what You say to do. I thank You that Your plans for me are to prosper me and not to harm me. My spirit soars when I think of You and Your love for me. I thank You that You first loved me and through the revelation of Your love for me that I accepted the gift of salvation You gave to me. I thank You also for the Holy Spirit who guides me through Your plans for me. I praise You and honor You today and every day. In Jesus name, Amen.

Published by Erik L. Vakula
Daily Bread From the Word
Copyright © 2009 Erik Vakula, All Rights Reserved