Standing Firm
The Story of Mordecai and Haman in the Book of Esther is instructive in a number of ways but one thing that stands out above most is the value of standing firm in what one believes.
This is just a short article focused on that one thing
One with tongue in cheek could say it was a common virtue between Mordecai and Haman except may be Haman could be seen as being infatuated with his ego and desire to be bowed unto by Mordecai in particular.
Mordecai refused to bow unto Haman, he was not someone who did not know the laws of the land, considering that he was careful not to wear sackcloth at the gate of the palace of the king though he stood at the entrance to the gate. He seemed to know of Haman’s anti-Jew stance and decided to ignore him and maybe he was just proud and refused . This attitude brought the worst out of Haman. He thought of nothing else but how to get back at Mordecai.
No matter how high he rose in the government of the day, the only pleasure he sought was the destruction of Mordecai. Unfortunately for him, he decided Mordecai was not enough, he had to exterminate all Jews everywhere including the hanging of Mordecai on the gallows.
it is not so clear what drove Mordecai, but he seemed to know that though they were far from Israel, God was near and close by and once the law came out that the Jews were to be exterminated, he went all out in his belief that God could save while using every legitimate means he could lay his hands on.
In the providence of God, things began to turn sour for Haman, first, he leads Mordecai on a ride around town declaring how the king honors the one he delights in, then the issue with Esther comes up which costs him his life. On the flip side of things, the state of Mordecai changes till be becomes what Mordecai despised.
It is instructive that we don’t get infatuated with people who are below us in life’s station, especially if they decide they will not respect up or defer to us in any way, in all reality, it takes nothing from us. If they are wrong, they will pay and if not it doesn’t change anything.
This issue became bigger because because in the grand scheme of things, Haman wanted to kill all Jews in the whole kingdom which would include the land of the Jews, which would affect God’s plan and so though not mentioned directly, God intervenes and turns around the evil plan of Mordecai.
God is not asleep, he sees everything, he allows somethings to happen and prevents others from happening. He know why he does what he does but whatever the case, he never stops working on behalf of his people even through ordinary means.
So stand firm and stay with the Lord, it is the safest place to be.
The Reformation 500
October 31, 2017 by Jide Ajayi • Christian Living, Life, Thoughts • Tags: 95 Theses, Indulgence, Luther, Reformation •
This October 31 marks the 500th year Dr. Martin Luther knocked a document on the door of the church at Wittenberg in Germany. The document which had in it items for consideration in a debate was pasted (as was common among the academia in those days) for the faculty to read and see what was to be discussed. This document which is called the 95 theses detailed issues about the papacy in the matter of indulgences. The papal practice of indulgences was one which encouraged people to pay money to the coffers of the church to receive forgiveness for their sins rather than do penance. This request for debate was part of the result of the angst Luther had about his own sinfulness and what can take away that sin and sinfulness. The action by Luther followed the due process around the time but without his input or desire, the theses was all over Europe. The recently invented technology of the time, the printing press made all the difference. It enabled the quick and mass reproduction of the theses that everyone who could read knew what was happening and what was to be discussed. Though the debate never held, the document had caused something in the life of the people which eventually resulted in the Protestant Reformation.
The reformation did not start with Luther, it started with others before him. These folks were not looking for a split in the church, they were not looking to usurp the authority of the church leadership. Rather, they wanted things to change by going back to the teaching of the word of God and heralding the word of God as the sole authority over the church and the life of Christians.
These forebears of Luther in the desire to see the church go back to the word include men like John Wycliffe and John Huss.
The reformers wanted the focus to be on the work of God. They wanted the church to place the word of God on the pedestal which belongs to it. To emphasize this and ensure that the people remembered the purpose and the goal, the five solas slang was developed.
It emphasized that we are saved by grace alone (Sola gratis) through faith alone (Sola fide) in Christ alone (Solus Christus) to the glory of God alone (Soli Deo Gloria ) based on the scriptures alone (Sola Scriptura).
Today, the emphasis on the place of the scriptures is waning in a lot of Christian circles, some see the scriptures as a great book of ideas where one can pick anything and say what ever comes to mind. Others see it as a book where you hunt for blessings and claim them when you find them. Others think it is too much of a hassle to even bother about reading or preaching.
It means the intent of the reformation and what errors it wanted corrected and changes it sought to restore are still with us and the emphasis placed on the place of the word of God and salvation by grace through faith still needs to be preached as the word of God.
The law does not justify anyone (Gal 3:11) it is faith in Christ the one through whom we are saved and declared righteous before God.
The last five centuries shows how far we have come from the days of paying money for forgiveness of sin but in these days we still have issues which the reformation still speaks to.