His face is hidden
His hand is invisible
Yet He is very much active and present in the lives of His chosen people, in this case, the Israelites in captivity in a hostile country.
I have lived in and faced hostile situations , in which it was hard to believe that I was on the winning side, but as things heated up, God provided the victory.And I want to testify that I have experienced God in the most apprehensive and antagonistic state of affairs
Invisible Hand of God
Esther 2:1-11, 16-18
The king loved Esther more than any of the other young women. He was so delighted with her that he set the royal crown on her head and declared her queen instead of Vashti (v.17).
While her mother-in-law was out of town, my friend was given the keys to her luxurious car. Later, my friend said to me, “The leather seat seems to be made just for your body shape. And the car cruises silently along the highway. Wow, such luxury is intoxicating.”
Indeed, power, wealth, fame, and pleasure can be intoxicating. With that said, I wonder what it was like to be Esther—an orphan Jewish girl living as an exile— plucked from rags to riches? She received pampering beauty treatments, had seven maids standing by, and she stayed in the best place in the harem (Esther 2:9).
The Bible is surprisingly silent about Esther’s character, however. Unlike Daniel (Daniel 1:4), for instance, nothing about her devotion to God or character was mentioned. We only know that she was physically very beautiful (Esther 2:7,15). This is most unusual, for if the Bible tells us anything, it tells us to judge a person in terms of their character—not according to their good looks.
Yet, many of us are easily inclined to view Mordecai and Esther as godly. The question is why? Why are we happy to see Esther on the throne, even though she’s the winner of a contest . . . which included sleeping with the king?
Something is drastically wrong with God’s people as represented in the book of Esther. One Bible teacher suggests: “God is not mentioned in Esther, because God is not thought of in Esther.” As we read through the book, however, we sense that His invisible hand is working through events and people to preserve His chosen nation. He’s faithful even when His people are unfaithful.
Let’s walk faithfully with our great God who providentially cares for His people—even in the midst of intoxicating pleasures that threaten to distract us.
—Poh Fang Chia
Read Psalm 101 to see how one man—who was powerful, wealthy, and famous—committed himself to walking faithfully with God.
No comments:
Post a Comment