Esther 4:14
For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?
Evil seemed to have won. The Jews were facing annihilation. Haman had paid the great price for his evil intent to become a law. What was this law? This law was that on a certain day, the enemies of the Jews could kill every Jew without facing the punishment for murder.
There seemed to be nothing that could save the Jews, but there was one man who understood what to do in the days of evil that could turn the intent of evil around. Mordecai told Esther that she needed to bring the cause to the king to have this law turned around. However, Esther reminded Mordecai that she had to be called into the king’s presence, for if she appeared before the king and he did not put out the golden sceptre to accept her presence, she would be killed. Mordecai made that well-known statement to Esther: who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this? He was saying you need to step up for such a time as this when evil prevails.
However, Esther’s response is what turned the evil around. She said in verse 16, Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish. Esther was telling Mordecai to have the people fast and pray so that this evil could be turned around. The actions of both of these people is what turned the evil around to good for the Jews.
My friend, for such a time as this when evil seems to prevail, prayer is the one answer to stopping evil. We tend to forget the power of prayer and what it can do. The heart of the king is in the hand of the LORD, and only prayer can cause the LORD to turn the evil around to good. We can complain about the evil in our day, but we have no right to complain if we are not praying.
Moreover, for such a time as this when evil seems to prevail, we not only need to pray, but we need to fast and pray. Fasting is taking prayer to another level. Jesus said in Mark 9:29, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting. There are times when you need this kind of prayer answered, and in these times is when you need to add fasting to your prayer life.
Furthermore, for such a time as this when evil seems to prevail, we must take action to turn the evil hearts to righteousness. Soul winning is the answer to turning evil hearts to righteousness. Yes, we should fast and pray for God to turn the evil around, but He expects us to do the work of soul winning to see people saved. Nothing changes a heart like someone getting saved. When someone gets saved, the evil that has prevailed in their heart will be turned to good, just like it did in the heart of Saul who persecuted the early church.
We live in evil days, but evil days can be turned to good IF we will fast and pray, and do our part to win as many people to Christ as we can. For such a time as this when evil seems to prevail, fasting, praying, and soul winning are the answer to quenching evil so that righteousness may prevail.
Commenti