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• Michelle J Goff

Written by Michelle J. Goff, Director of Iron Rose Sister Ministries

Esther was unaware of the impact that her life would have on the Jewish people, her people. When she answered the call to bravery and potential sacrifice, her uncle spoke these oft-quoted words, “And who knows but that you have come to [this] position for such a time as this?”

 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. 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 your royal position for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:12-14)

A simple Jewish girl, an orphan, was raised by her close relative, Mordecai. Trusting his guidance, she entered the contest for who would become King Xerxes’ new wife. Wisely taking the advice of the king’s servants and the head over all the young virgins, she won the favor of the king and became queen.

However, every good story has a capital villain, a true enemy; it’s the character we love to hate. Within the book of Esther, that villain is Haman. He is selfish, brooding, self-centered, glory-seeking, and cannot stand those who don’t see things his way. Ugh!

As the story unfolds, we discover that Haman has selected the Jews, the chosen people of God, as the recipients of his rage. Mordecai had refused to bow down to him, so now all of the Jews had to pay.

When we already know the end of the story, we may not understand the risk Esther took by approaching the king without being summoned. She, her maidens, Mordecai, and others spend three days fasting and praying before she approaches the king. The tension continues to mount as Haman’s anger grows. In the meantime, God reminds the king of Mordecai’s unrewarded heroism. Will God’s people be saved in time? Why doesn’t Esther just go ahead and tell the king what is happening at the first banquet instead of asking him to another one and waiting another day?

As a child, there are stories that we request again and again. A parent with tired eyes can nearly quote every page as the child also memorizes the narrative, learning many truths through the wonder of reading. One of those important lessons is that we can trust the ending of the story. Fairy tale endings are possible; dreams can come true; dragons will get slain; heroes will arise.

Bible stories are filled with the best heroes and the reminders that God is always in control. We can trust the ending of Histories. I encourage you to read the story of Esther this week. We intentionally selected this story to highlight this week as it coincides with Purim, March 16-17.

Purim is celebrated every year (typically mid-March according to the Western calendar). Children reenact the story, often with costumes or puppets. The festival is a family and community gathering in which the people remember God’s protection from their enemies and provision for their needs (see Esther 8-10).

As with the end of the story of Esther, for those who are on God’s team, it is true that the good guys win and the bad guys lose. In the middle of the story, we may have our doubts, but the book of Revelation reminds us that God is ultimately and definitively victorious.

When the story of Esther is retold as part of Purim, there are certain facets of “audience participation.” The reenactment is intended to be humorous. Therefore, every time Haman enters the story, the children “boo” or “hiss.” Little girls cheer every time Esther’s name is mentioned. Similarly, young men champion Mordecai as the hero of the story. More modern-day narrations may include a tongue-in-cheek reference to Queen Vashti as an early promoter of “women’s lib.” Other colorful characters are interspersed throughout the story, as well.

The story of Esther is rich in its descriptive characters, its narrative form (following the Jewish pattern of storytelling), and its redemptive ending. I have adopted the practice of rereading the Biblical account at least once/year, as inspired by the Purim festival.

Similarly, the Passover story is told once/year at Easter. It is rich in its descriptive characters, its narrative form, and its redemptive ending—in the Exodus account and, of course, as a foreshadowing of Christ as our eternal Redeemer.

I pray that you have been inspired to reread the story of Esther this week, delighting in the reminders of truth or seeds of faith that we and Jewish children have celebrated for centuries. Which part of the story do you love to remember or meditate on? Be sure to share why!

• guest writer

Written by Deanna Brooks, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Arkansas

Do you think about being HOLY? What does it mean to you?

Peter writes, “as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ‘you shall be holy, for I am holy.’” (1 Pet 1:15-16 ESV.)

Simply defined, “holy” means “set apart for a purpose.” The word is used over 900 times in Scripture. To me, that means it is important...that God is trying to get a message across to us.

In Isaiah 6:1-6 we read of Isaiah’s vision and how in verse 1 the train of God’s robe filled the temple. In ancient days the length of the train of a king’s robe measured his greatness. Isaiah tells us God’s train filled the temple, and the earth is filled with His glory.

We are the temple of God, and His glory should fill our lives.

“Be holy as I am holy” is found several times in Leviticus and in 1 Peter 1:16. Other passages like John 14:23, 1 Corinthians 3:16, and Galatians 3:20 speak of Christ and the Spirit living in us.

So, if the Holy One lives in us, we have become the temple in which He resides. What does it mean for us to become the temple of God?

In John 17 Jesus prayed for us to live in the world, yet be separate from the world and that we would be protected from the evil one. We stand between two places…the holy and the common…the clean and the unclean…and we daily seek the difference and strive to make choices that bring glory to the Father. Part of being holy is making a decision between what Jesus would have us do and the enticement of the world around us.

When we are holy it affects our speech, our dress, our choice of entertainment, how we spend our time, and our attitude towards others. We don’t joke about the Holy One, but we treat Him with reverence.

Our Heavenly Father demands that we treat Him as holy. Moses was not allowed into the Promised Land because he did not uphold God as holy (Numbers 20:12.)

Nadab and Abihu failed to treat God as holy. In Exodus 24 and Leviticus 9 we read they had been among those chosen to go with Moses and the 70 to see God…then in Leviticus 10 they decided to “do things their way.” (verses 1-5). God was not pleased and they died. They treated God casually, not as holy.

In Lev 10:3 (ESV) we read: “This is what the Lord has said: ‘Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.” And Aaron held his peace.”

Sanctified means: set apart or declared holy.

Glorified means: to honor or exalt.

We all bear the consequences of Adam and Eve’s sin…they exalted the words of the serpent and did not honor the holiness of God.

God demands to be treated as holy, and He wants us to be like Him. Heb 12:14 (ESV): “Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.”

That’s how important our holiness is to God. If we are not holy, we will not see Him.

Jesus did not come to earth and die because of pity. He came to make us holy and return us to the relationship for which we were created.

As believers we are to be holy not because we want to be loved by God but because we are already loved in Christ. We love because He first loved us (1 John 4:19), and the best way to show that we love God is by seeking to become holy because He is Holy.

One thing I have done in reading through the Bible is to write down Scriptures that mention holy or being like Jesus. Making Jesus our LORD is the path to being holy as He is holy, and we do that by absolute surrender to His will.
I want to challenge you as you read through the Scriptures to mark or make a list of Scriptures that speak to being holy. They may not have the word “holy” in them. It may be a scripture like Eph 4:32 which tells us to be kind and tender-hearted towards one another.

Remember: without holiness we will not see God. Let’s live our lives, asking if what we are doing is making us more like God… let’s strive to be holy as He is holy!