Defining Moments
Esther 4
“And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?” vs. 14
Flying In The Right Direction
Navy Law: If you can keep your head when all about you others are losing theirs, maybe you just don’t understand the situation. Test pilots have a litmus test for evaluating problems. When something goes wrong, they ask, “Is this thing still flying?” If the answer is yes, then there’s no immediate danger, no need to overreact. When Apollo 12 took off, the spacecraft was hit by lightning. The entire console began to glow with orange and red trouble lights. There was a temptation to “Do Something!” But the pilots asked themselves, “Is this thing still flying in the right direction?” The answer was yes—it was headed for the moon. They let the lights glow as they addressed the individual problems, and watched orange and red lights blink out, one by one. That’s something to think about in any pressure situation. If your thing is still flying, think first, and then act. Capt. Alan Bean, USN, Apollo Astronaut, in Reader’s Digest
This story really challenges us to consider how we handle the difficult times, the crises, the defining moments of our life. Do we act cool under pressure or do we have a tendency to overact, panic, and “wig-out.?” Today we are going to look at Mordecai and his response to the threats of imminent danger and the plot to not only kill him but to annihilate the entire Jewish population. Just think for a second how frantic it would be if you were flying some fighter jet for the Navy and it seemed like you were going to lose control of the plane; to have the sense of mind to say “Isis still flying and am I heading in the right direction?” Think about how cool you would have to be to be able to do that. Now, what if you could handle the trouble points, the difficulties, the defining moments of your life that way? Let’s see how Mordecai does and what we could learn from him from his story in Esther 4.
Read Passage – Esther 4
When Mordecai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the city, wailing loudly and bitterly. 2 But he went only as far as the king’s gate, because no one clothed in sackcloth was allowed to enter it. 3 In every province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes. 4 When Esther’s maids and eunuchs came and told her about Mordecai, she was in great distress. She sent clothes for him to put on instead of his sackcloth, but he would not accept them. 5 Then Esther summoned Hathach, one of the king’s eunuchs assigned to attend her, and ordered him to find out what was troubling Mordecai and why. 6 So Hathach went out to Mordecai in the open square of the city in front of the king’s gate. 7 Mordecai told him everything that had happened to him, including the exact amount of money Haman had promised to pay into the royal treasury for the destruction of the Jews. 8 He also gave him a copy of the text of the edict for their annihilation, which had been published in Susa, to show to Esther and explain it to her, and he told him to urge her to go into the king’s presence to beg for mercy and plead with him for her people. 9 Hathach went back and reported to Esther what Mordecai had said. 10 Then she instructed him to say to Mordecai, 11 “All the king’s officials and the people of the royal provinces know that for any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned the king has but one law: that he be put to death. The only exception to this is for the king to extend the gold scepter to him and spare his life. But thirty days have passed since I was called to go to the king.” 12 When Esther’s words were reported to Mordecai, 13 he sent back this answer: “Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. 14 For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?” 15 Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: 16 “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 maids 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.” 17 So Mordecai went away and carried out all of Esther’s instructions.
Dire Circumstances
Let’s take a brief look back at what has happened in our story so far. The Jews have been taken captive by Babylonians and then the Persians conquer the Babylonians which turns out to be god for the Israelites. They live in Persia under the rule of King Xerxes and he has given them a lot of freedom and many have returned to Jerusalem under the guide of Ezra, Nehemiah and King Xerxes himself. King Xerxes dismissed his queen because she wouldn’t dance and show herself off at one of his parties and so after a search of all the maidens of the land Esther is chosen the new queen because the King fell in love with her. Esther is a Jew who was raise d by her cousin Mordecai because her parents had died. When she was chosen queen Mordecai told her to keep her nationality a secret which she did. The king had a right-hand man named Hamman. Hamman hated the Jews and as he is given more power by the king and everyone is expected to bow down to Hamman. Mordecai won’t bow down and Hamman uses that as an excuse not only to kill Mordecai but all the Jews as well. In fact, he is vague with the king and present this plan to kill off all these people who are detrimental to the king and without all the details the king agrees to it. Enter our story today. Mordecai has just learned of the edict to kill off all the Jews. Verse 1:
“When Mordecai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the city, wailing loudly and bitterly.” vs. 1
Mordecai and his fellow Jews are now under a death sentence. The circumstances are dire. Something needs to be done of they die. They can’t really plan on escaping because they have no where to go, no homeland, no place to call their own because they are being ruled by the Persians.
So what Mordecai does here is rely on his customs and his faith in God to bring attention to the situation. He puts on death clothes and ashes (death make-up) and he and his comrades walk around wailing and crying out in bitterness. This was their custom. It is also a way to bring attention to the situation so that maybe someone will respond or help out. Esther on the other hand, is not as distressed about all this but she tries to put on a good face and kind of smooth over the situation by getting Mordecai to put on some nicer clothes. She might be that kind of person that when things look bad she tells you; “Oh, you just need to think positive!” Doesn’t seem to really help here.
Seemingly No Way Out
Sometimes in life we have situations where we seemingly have no way out. Mordecai had no where he could go from here. He could not appeal to the king. He could appeal the decision. Humanly speaking, it seemed hopeless. So he does what he knows to do, what he can do, and goes where he can go. Verse 2:
“But he went only as far as the king’s gate, because no one clothed in sackcloth was allowed to enter it.” vs. 2
It was here, at the kings gate, that we learn our lessons from Mordecai.
Moving Through Life’s Crises
What I would like to look at today is Mordecai’s response to the crises he is facing and what we can learn from it. Maybe it helps us keep the plane flying in the right direction like Capt. Bean was talking about in our opening story.
- Take Inventory
The first step in crisis management is to take an inventory of what the situation is and what your personal convictions are. Learn from Mordecai from verse 5:
“When Esther’s words were reported to Mordecai, he sent back this answer: “Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape.” vss. 12-13
Mordecai does something here that we all need once in a while. He is blunt and straightforward with Esther and reminds her that she is not exempt just because she is the queen. Verses 12-13:
Now I am a positive thinker. I always look at the glass as half-full. But I rely on people to speak the truth into my life and remind me of the severity of situations sometimes.
Ex. Recently my friend Chris telling me I was being to hard on someone
Remember that Mordecai knew the customs of his people and how to act when something like this death sentence was pronounced. Go back to the situation where Esther wants Mordecai to put on his good clothes. Without personal conviction he could have said, “Well, she is the queen. And maybe I need to see this in a different light.” NO! He knew that this was a terrible edict that was being handed down and he needed to lead his fellow countrymen. People were watching him, his dress, his reaction, his trust in God. He followed his customs so that people would see the severity of it and would turn to God for help. His putting on the mourning clothes was a way of leading people to do the same and that meant turning to God. He wanted his trust in God’s ways to be seen by others. Let me back this up with a thought from Proverbs 14:15:
“The prudent give thought to their steps…” Proverbs 14:15
Know this: When crises hit and the chips are down, people are watching what you do and how you act and…more importantly…if you are turning to God. Mordecai didn’t have a clever scheme to get out of this, he put on his morning clothes because he thought about his steps and that meant leading through faithfulness to God.
Ex. Shooting in CO on Friday night. It’s the religious leaders who should step up and lead the people in prayer, in mourning, in faith back to God. We cannot compromise our beliefs and trust in God that even when things are difficult and don’t make sense, that God will work this for His good and that He is still in charge.
- Appeal To God
The second thing that we can do in time of crisis is appeal to God. Turn to Him. Now Mordecai set the tone for this by wearing his sackcloth and wailing. When Esther sees him do that, she takes charge and follows his lead. Verse 16:
“I and my maids will fast as you do.” vs. 16
There are so many circumstances in life that don’t make sense. One thing we can do is to gather those who can support us in those times and appeal to God. It really is that simple, we just need to pray. Have you ever wondered why prayer is so hard in difficult times? Why aren’t we open to praying more? It seems that much of it is because prayer is our link to God. Satan knows that if that link is broken, there is a much better chance we will fail. James 5:13 says:
“Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray.” James 5:13
The Persian kings had instituted a system where you could not approach the king directly. You had to make a request to see the king through one of the eunuch’s and then wait for a summons from the kings. We can go directly to our King (God). Prayer should be an automatic. It should be our trip; the first thing we do. It doesn’t have to be long, it doesn’t have to be on our knees, it doesn’t have to be in a quiet place, it just needs to happen. One of the things I love about some of the prophets in the OT is that they pray and many times it is on the fly. It is a quick, immediate response to the situation they are in and their first reaction is to pray. Don’t cut off your link to God! Don’t let Satan do that to you. If you find you lost your link, reestablish it. Let pray be the spontaneous response to your situations. I think if we do, we will see huge changes in our lives.
- The Strength Of Community
A third thing to do in time of crises is to surround yourself with a community of people that will support and encourage you and tying this in with what we just talked about, that will uphold you in prayer. Verse 16:
“Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me.” vs. 16
One thing to remember as we look at this verse, and it’s a key to understanding it, is that fasting is a means of us building a greater focus on God. Fasting is a means of giving up food or certain foods with the intent of using the time you would spend eating focusing on God. When we do this as a community, it builds a greater focus on God in our community. We need each other and we can support each other. We can ask for help and it not be a sign of weakness but just he opposite, in numbers we build strength. Reminds me of Ecc. 4:12:
“Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” Ecc. 4:12
One thing we can talking about here is addressing our problems from an emotionally healthy approach. Realizing our need for each other and the support and encouragement of others not only makes us healthy but stronger.
- The Work Of Hope
And finally, here is where our process of dealing with crises comes to a head. There is something at work that is essential for us to remember: the hope that comes from God. I call this the work of hope; God’s hope. I love Mordecai’s words to Esther here in verse 14:
“And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?” vs. 14
Let me somewhat paraphrase this verse. Mordecai is saying that God has a plan and that he isn’t sure what it is, but it might be this is why Esther was chosen to be queen; to save the Israelites. And here is what I take from this and it is really important to remember as we go through things, especially difficult things, in life: God has a plan and His plan will be worked. Our choice is; Do we want to be part of his plan or will he have to use others to complete His plan. I know for me, I want to be in a part of God’s plan. His plan is a plan of hope. David said in Psalm 26:3:
“No one who hopes in you will ever be put to shame…” Psalm 25:3
We can’t go wrong being part of God’s plan.
My Declaration: God, You Are Good!
And here is the what we can do to always keep our times of difficulty in the right perspective. We declare God’s goodness…in the good, in the bad, in all things.
Song: I Will Stand.
Verse 1:
You saved me from my destruction,
You turned my feet from death,
You lifted me with Your kindness,
You filled me with Your breathe.
Pre chorus:
How can I thank You?
What can I bring?
Chorus:
I will sand and worship You,
For everything You are to me.
I will lift my voice in praise,
for all the wonders You displayed.
I will stand,
I will stand and worship You.
Verse 2:
You draw me with tender mercies,
You hold me in Your grace.
So I will fall down in reverence,
at the mystery of Your ways.
Bridge:
In the middle of the congregation,
I will lift my voice and sing that,
You good.
In the midst of every situation,
I will make this declaration that,
You are good.
