Good question! It was put to a beautiful young lady who in God’s plan and purpose had become Queen of Persia. The story of Esther is unique, because although there is no reference to God, it is the story of how God’s people, Israel, were delivered from death and annihilation. The Jewish Feast of Purim held annually is the celebration of how God preserved His people through a time of crisis and threat. It is a time of rejoicing and thanksgiving to God for Esther, a Jewish orphan who was cared for and brought up by Mordecai, her cousin.
Chapters one and two of the Book of Esther describe how she became the wife of Ahasuerus, King of the great Persian Empire. Chapters three and four record how Mordecai (Esther’s guardian) refused to bow down and pay homage to Haman, a high official of the king.
This makes Haman so angry he petitions the King to have all the Jews in the kingdom destroyed on a certain day. Mordecai hears of the plot and asks Esther to speak to the King, expose Haman’s plan, and save the Jews from extinction.
Esther knew that even as Queen, to approach the King without an invitation, would put her own life at risk. However, Mordecai points out the urgency of the situation and persuades her that she is who she is, and where she is, “for such a time as this”.
These six words in the fascinating story of Esther, apply to all of us. Esther was called into the kingdom of Persia to meet a specific need in her time. As children of God, we are chosen, called, and placed in God’s Kingdom to meet the needs of our time. We have been raised up together and made to sit together in heavenly places for such a time as this. We have been delivered from the power of darkness and conveyed into the kingdom of the Son of His love for such a time as this.
Praise God! You are ‘in the Kingdom’. You are strategically placed by the Father, indwelt by the Son, and led by the Holy Spirit for such a time as this. Whatever the crisis, we can “come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” Hebrews 4 v16.
Be blessed, and be encouraged; you are who you are, and where you are, for such a time as this.
Eddie.