Esther 4

Scripture

Esther 4:15-16
Then Esther sent this reply 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 attendants 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.”

Observation

After discovering Haman’s evil plan for the annihilation of the Jews, Mordecai sends word to Esther and appeals for her to seek mercy from the king. Esther is initially reluctant to appear before the king without being summoned by him, as the penalty for doing so is death. Mordecai reminds Esther that, should the edict be carried out, her position in the palace would not protect her from suffering the same fate as her fellow Jews. Esther informs Mordecai to assemble intercessors on behalf of her mission and agrees to petition the king for deliverance, even if it costs her life.

Understanding

Only someone who has placed their life totally in the sovereign plan of Almighty God could make the statement of absolute trust and surrender that Esther makes - “If I perish, I perish.” The apparent flippancy with which she says this only serves to further accentuate her total submission to whatever the will of God would determine the result of her obedience to be. This episode from the Old Testament is not merely past history, but is a current event that is being played out in the lives of countless believers throughout the world as Christians are being made to choose between a bold confession of Christ or martyrdom. Even as Esther sought out the mourning, prayers and fasting of her kinsmen for deliverance in the face of possible death, the Spirit calls the church to pray and intercede on behalf of our brothers and sisters whose lives hang in the balance for their testimony of faith; as surely as did Esther’s and that of the entire Jewish race.

Life Application

I thank God that I live in a country that, for now, allows me to exercise my religious freedom without fear of death. Yet God still calls me to the boldness exhibited by Esther - not from fear of losing my life because of my faith but, perhaps, from fear of losing other things that I cherish. May I be able to say, in the context of my life, that I am going to live boldly and obediently for Christ and put my trust in God no matter what the ramifications of that commitment might bring. Like Esther, may I so trust in God’s protection and provision that I can fearlessly live a life of faith, obedience and integrity regardless of the circumstances or the cost. And in doing so, if I lose that promotion, then I lose that promotion; if I lose those relationships, then I lose those relationships; If I lose the profit of dishonest gain, then I lose the profit of dishonest gain and if I am mocked and persecuted for His name’s sake, then so be it. And, knowing that what I stand to lose for my faith pales in comparison to the imprisonment, torture and death that others throughout the world are facing for their testimony, may I often petition the Lord on their behalf for courage, strength and faith in the face of their trials and tribulations and for deliverance from their persecutors. 

 

Revelation 12:11
They triumphed over [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.

 

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-Gary Parker