The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…
"For Such a Time As This"
"And the letters were sent by posts into all the king's provinces, to destroy, to kill, and to cause to perish, all Jews, both young and old, little children and women, in one day" (Esther 3:13).
"Who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?" (Esther 4:14).
Mordecai's ancient rhetorical inquiry to Esther, upon whom the preservation of the bloodline of the Lord Jesus Christ depended, speaks to all who trust God when we come to places of challenge and sacrifice. There is one difference, however: we know we have come to our place of challenge and sacrifice for the fulfillment of God's purpose in the Lord Jesus.
"We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair, persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed, always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh" (II Corinthians 4:8-11).
From the moment of our new birth through faith in Christ, the entirety of our existence becomes the scene of God's working within and through us to glorify the Lord Jesus in our sphere of influence. We serve "the eternal purpose, which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Ephesians 3:11). Like Esther, we have choices to make as to whether we willingly acknowledge our role "for such a time as this." Unlike Esther, we have the fullness of Biblical revelation to illuminate and confirm our place in God's purposes. We know why we exist, and why we have "come to the kingdom" of challenge, which ultimately leads to the revelation of God's glory, grace, and power. The Bible tells us plainly. If Christ lives in us, He walks in us. If He walks in us, He wars in us. If He wars in us, He wins in us, or rather, He reveals the triumph of the ages won through Calvary, the empty tomb, and the occupied Heavenly throne. Our calling involves viewing our challenges accordingly, trusting they have vital significance in God's purpose (whatever their circumstance or situation), and then following Esther's example to arise in faith, but to go forth with far more understanding than she possessed of the Lord's working.
Esther greatly glorified her Lord and served His purposes with relatively little understanding of how vital a place she had in so glorious a purpose. We serve no less in our sphere of influence. However, we serve in the light of the Bible that provides the whys and wherefores regarding the challenges we face.
Perhaps for such a time as this,
our Lord has brought you here,
His instrument of grace and peace,
His truth for all to hear.
Perhaps your sorrows are His way
of bringing joy to others.
Perhaps your trials will be His means
of setting free your brother.
Perhaps your tears will water soil
long barren, hard, and dry.
Perhaps your years of pain and toil
will bring to others Christ.
Perhaps for such a time as this,
those in your world await
to see the Savior's faithfulness
as only you display.
Perhaps, no, it is certain
for such a time as this,
our Lord has brought you here,
to be the faithful witness
Of light your world would never see
without you in the midst,
in such time as this…
such a time as this.
"But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the Gospel."
(Philippians 1:12)
"So then death worketh in us, but life in you."
(II Corinthians 4:12)
Weekly Memory Verse
"Fight the good fight of faith."
(I Timothy 6:12)
7073
No comments:
Post a Comment