Today, we depart somewhat from the beaten path in order to examine a topic that is not quite the kind that normally comes up in this column. It’s a Sunday after all, and one might not really need an excuse to consider a subject with a slightly more spiritual bent. All the same, we might actually end up drawing conclusions similar to those more commonly seen here – and thus see that we have not ventured too far afield from the well-worn path on the long run!
It is not my practice to attend churches with a predominantly Nigerian population when I travel out of the country; after all, part of the benefits of traveling is to experience difference in all its various shades and colours – what is aptly captured in the French concept of “d’paysement”, referring to a state of being out of one’s country, both literally and figuratively. However, some prevailing circumstances dictated otherwise last Sunday, and I therefore found myself worshipping with a primarily Nigerian congregation somewhere in the United States. The church has as its motto for the month of May 2015, “My month of 360 degrees favour”, and from all I could gather, all the sermons and other exhortations throughout the month have been and will be focused on how God may choose to so surround an apparently undeserving individual with favour, that people will truly wonder. Of course, all the prayers offered that day were directed towards imploring God to surround us worshippers and our families with such favour. I have problems with that in itself, for I believe a period of intercession should focus more on the needs of other people. I wondered, for example, why we were not asked to pray that Sunday for the people of Nepal who had suffered two devastating earthquakes within days of each other. But that is another matter.
The Bible portion upon which the sermon was based was taken from the book of Esther – a true rags-to-riches story if ever there was one. A beautiful, orphaned young girl, raised by her uncle, ends up being selected to replace the arrogant Vashti as queen when that one was deposed from her exalted position. From the moment Esther steps into the king’s palace as a contestant, she literally runs into favour. Hegai, the custodian of the young women from among whom the king would choose Vashti’s successor, seems positioned primarily for her sake: “Now the young woman pleased him, and she obtained his favour; so he readily gave beauty preparations to her, besides her allowance. Then seven choice maidservants were provided for her from the king’s palace, and he moved her and her maidservants to the best place in the house of the women.” (Esther 2: 9, New King James Version) Why was God being so partial to Hadassah, a.k.a. Esther?
This, I wish to humbly submit, is where considerations of the Esther story often fall short: they tend not to ask why God, with whom there is said to be no partiality (Acts 10: 34; Galatians 2: 6), should appear to be contradicting His own nature and undermining His reputation in a case such as this. What was He doing? Well, I believe the crux of the matter is that God was looking for someone who would do an important job for Him. God knew a situation would arise when the lives of His people, the Jews, would be in serious danger, and God needed to position someone close to the king and who would be able to counter the evil scheming of Haman, the enemy of the Jews. What kind of person could God depend upon to perform this all-important task? God needed an Esther kind of person, one who would be ready to lay her life on the line, going before the king when she had not been invited, something that was against the laws of the kingdom (Esther 4: 16). Esther was mindful of the great danger facing her, and therefore called for three days of fasting before she went to see the king on behalf of her people; but she was able to rise up to the challenge, uttering these now famous words: “And if I perish, I perish!” Now, is anybody still wondering why God “favoured” Esther?
So, what point is being made? This: that each time in the Bible where God appears to favour an individual, it is actually a call to perform some duty. And while none of God’s favours is earned, still there must be qualities God looks upon and finds pleasing in those individuals whom He chooses to so favour. Think of Mary, the mother of Jesus; why should she have been chosen? No doubt she had lived her life in such a “clean” manner that God felt comfortable making His abode in her body. Esther too must have had qualities which God saw and counted upon. The real question, therefore, for all those who sweat so hard praying for God to favour them like He did Esther, is actually: What qualities are you known for that God could use? When a voice is needed to speak out in defence of the truth, can God depend on you to be that voice? With iniquity and impunity in such abundance in the land, where are the ‘Esthers’ of our time? God is ready and willing to favour somebody today!