There is much to learn about people who experience the fall of their nation to the hands of a more powerful and ruthless empire. One such example is detailed in the book of Esther of the Bible. Here you will find an historical account of a Queen who defended her people, putting her own life in peril to save them from destruction.
Esther was not born into a royal family. In fact, she was a Jewish orphan who was then raised by her older cousin, Mordecai, as his own daughter. In those days the Persian king ruled the whole known world. He was looking for a new wife as the previous one, Vashti, had displeased him and had been deposed. He made a decree that all the beautiful young virgins of all the provinces in the kingdom be brought to him, and Esther was one of them (Esther 2). After a grueling process through which she was able to keep her heritage a secret as advised by Mordecai, Esther found herself favored in the sight of all who saw her due to her beauty and grace. As a result, the king loved Esther above all the others, and by setting the royal crown upon her head he made her his Queen. But, that is only the beginning of the story.
In all kingdoms and governments, evil advisers always seem to arise. It was no different for this kingdom and his name was Haman. Haman hated the Jews and wanted the king to issue a decree to have them all killed. Once the king had commanded it to be so, Mordecai brought the issue to Esther through Hatach, a chamberlain appointed by the king to attend her. Mordecai sent her a copy of the decree and charged her to go in unto the king to make a request for her people. Esther replied that if she were not called into the king's presence, and he doesn't hold out the golden sceptre, she will be killed! Mordecai replied that she needed to realize that she too would be killed by this law, and who knows whether she has come to this position for such a time as this...
Realizing the truth of what Mordecai told her, she requested him to gather all the Jews present in Shushan, the city of the palace, to fast – no food or drink – for three days and three nights to humble themselves and seek the Lord as she and her maidens would also do. Then she would go into the king and if she perished, then she perished! She knew the desperate need of her people and was willing to sacrifice herself if her attempt to save them failed.
Because of Esther's willingness to help her fellow Israelites, calling her people to humble themselves through prayer and fasting along with her, and turning to the Lord God in faith, God did a miraculous work in her and in His people to be remembered and honored throughout time. He used this threat of annihilation to rise up so He could do a mighty work in His people, blow the dust off of their faith, and bring them back to Him so they could receive His blessings.
Regardless of our bloodline all who are alive in Christ are of the true vine, making us spiritual Israelites and partakers of the promise (John 15:1,4-5). Currently we are living in tumultuous times with survival becoming a challenge worldwide. Everything around us is marked with frustration-breeding trouble and turbulence on such a scale as never seen before. As the time of Christ's return gets yet closer, we need to be aware that we are living for 'such a time as this'! God chose us to live in these times and none of the tasks and purposes He has for us to accomplish will be easily fulfilled. They will all require the most difficult decisions we can even imagine having to make; decisions that we may feel will practically kill us! But, God is doing a great work in us as we follow Him in preparing for what is ahead. We will become something we never thought we could be, in Him and through His strength. We are called to a purposeful life, and that is not an easy life.
We are already seeing fellow Christians being threatened and disrespected, with our rights being trampled in favor of the rights of others who reject the Truth of God's Word. People around the world are being imprisoned and martyred for their refusal to accept the new Christianity which is against what Jesus teaches us. This is just the beginning, will we step up when the opportunity arises to speak for the Truth? Will we support and encourage fellow Christians who live by the Bible, or turn our back in favor of the counterfeit because it looks good on the outside? Now is the time to decide and to spiritually and physically prepare!
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