For Such a Time as This (Esther 4:7-17) To me, this is a very personal and a very touching moment, because twenty-nine years ago when I first arrived at the United States I had never dreamed that one day I would be standing here to preach in a language that is not my mother tongue. I am very thankful for having this opportunity. And thank you for bearing with me. 1 Introduction The Book of Esther is a very peculiar book in the Bible. So eccentric is the book that there are many debates among Bible scholars on whether this book should have been included in the old testament in the first place. After all, the keyword “God” or “Lord” which should be of such paramount significance has never occurred even once in the entire writing, not to mention the absence of other spiritual activities such as “worshiping,” “praying,” or “offering.” It has been argued that the form of the story seems closer to that of a romance than a work of history, that the chronicle is a charming love story indeed, with exciting plots, but of few true spiritual values. Maybe those scholars do have their points which cannot easily be com- prehended by lay-persons such as you and me. But if we put ourselves in the story and think about it for a moment, then it is not difficult to dis- cover that it is precisely under such an environment of “Godlessness” that this book brings forth a powerful message. The message is this — Yes, darkness is around us! Yes, enemies are amassing and prevailing! Yes, the surroundings of us are full of dangers and evils. Yes, we are often beaten, even defeated, and are about to be overwhelmed by the worldly tides and ebbs. Even so, “The Lord sits enthroned over the flood; yea, the Lord is enthroned as King forever” (Psalms 29:10). The story of Esther tells us that while we endeavor to fight with our fate, just likes those Jews exiled on foreign lands with no guarantee of tomorrow, while we look around and are so scared and so frustrated, we cry out, “The seas have lifted up, O Lord, the seas have lifted up their voice; the seas lift up their pounding waves” (Psalms 93:3). Even so, remember that the Lord we trust today is the Lord in Esther’s time. Though He seems to be silent and invisible, yet He is “Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea — the Lord on high is mighty” (Psalms 93:3-4). Thus, we walk this life forward, but not into a lightless territory reigned by Satan, not into a murky water full of chaos, not into a tempest where we are tossed up and down helplessly with no sense of direction, or into a wide heaving sea with no mercy. In all darkness of the night, in all cruelty of the enemies, in all waves of stress and violence, God sees and God is in control. Although we see no reference of God in the Book of Esther, we do see His actions here and there throughout the entire de- velopment of Esther’s life. The so many happenings, which make the story 1 climax after climax, seem to happen coincidentally, but they are actually God’s intricate interventions. Though God was not mentioned explicitly, by reading the story we all agree that God was there. Let us apply this lesson to ourselves. Look around. Don’t we often feel that our eyes cannot see God’s hand, neither can our prayers touch His heart? Don’t we often feel that he is concealed, indifferent, and remote, just like the God in the Book of Esther when we need him most? Take these words with you. “O LORD, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my own tongue you know it completely, O Lord. You hem me in — behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain” (Psalms 139:1-6). He is here, right beside us. At the darkest hour, in the coldest corner, the only light that can guide our steps and warm our hearts is our faith in God. With this introduction to encourage my brothers and sisters, I really want to bring out another point. I want you to be aware that, yes, we know all about this, “How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!” (Psalms 139:17), but how then should you and I respond to His grace, His keeping, and His precious thoughts? In this world full of kaleidoscopic events, in this society full of diverse opinions, what is the role of our mere existence? The wheel of time keeps turning. Ages come and pass. How can my life, and your life, which occupy such a short span, cause even a tiny spark that eventually can light the torch of eternal fire? This is really an important question. 2 For this Moment We must know that one of the most essential ingredients in a Christian’s faith is that in the course of human experiences, there is God’s action; and in the completion of God’s forever kingdom, there is human’s participation. The Bible is not just a set of doctrines. It is not a list of do’s or don’ts. Rather, it is a diary, recording how God’s Spirit is impressed in human footprints and how humans have learned or have not learned from this experience, which leads to their success or failure. History is “His story.” Maybe you and I are not very important persons. Most of our names probably will never appear in the high school American history textbook. But in the everlasting kingdom, the Bible teaches us, “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world,” (Ephesians 1:4a). The purpose of predestination is that, under the influence and guidance of God’s Spirit, by means of the smoothness or roughness of the earthly environments, we can reveal step by step God’s plan and bring out God’s will through our lives. 2 Therefore, let us stop for a moment and reflect upon ourselves. Let us put down our busy schedule and reflect upon the days that have passed. In the center of our mundane lives, where have we placed our hearts? The leaves come and go; so do our days. Every single leaf blown away carries a chapter of our story. On it may be marked a section of damage or sadness, or a section of blessing or victory. In this repeated cycle, are we wasted away ignorantly and powerlessly, or are we knowing surely, moment by moment, that I live for such a time as this — that I will see His magnificence everywhere, that I will see His footsteps in the forest and His fingers on the roses; that His impulse in my heart, His lamp onto my feet, His light onto my path, and that my life, because of his presence, shines with brightness and truth; that I am, because He is? The Book of Esther is not just telling an old, affecting story. Neither is it just passing down statutes, or laws, or commandments of morals. It is also recording a critically important historical event. Had that wicked man Haman’s conspiracy gone through, then five hundreds years before Christ was born, the entire race of Jews would have been exterminated. Were there no more Jews, the prophecy that Jesus will be born from the root of David would never be fulfilled. Were God’s plan of salvation hindered, the fate of humans would never be the same and the whole world would continue to lay in sin and darkness. Haman’s crafty scheme is not just to revenge his rival Mordecai’s unyieldingness to his authority, rather it is part of Satan’s machinations to completely cutoff “the woman’s seed.” This is such a colossal event with the gravest, unimaginable, uncharacterizable consequences that Mordecai was right in saying to Esther, “For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place” (Esther 4:14a). Do you think that God will let a little man such as Haman have his way to interfere with the eternal plan? Of course not. But what deserves our full attention is that, at this crisis, we see how a woman, who must be a young woman for she was crowned as a queen for only five years, by her obedience, at the risk of her life, with her wisdom, saved her entire tribe and maintained God’s salvation plan. Its effects ripple through generations even onto you and me. We can say in the most general terms that God sees the larger picture and that God controls the overall development. But we must also say in the most specific terms that Esther must willingly offer herself, at this critical moment, to be used as a pawn on the chessboard to turn the situation around. “Who knows but that you have come to the royal position for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14b).