Latest / Reflections On The Word With Richard Kay / Chosen For A Time Such As This | Episode #381 | Encore Episode #052
Transcript
- 0:47Speaker 1: Welcome to today's edition of Reflection on the Word with
- 0:50Speaker 1: Richard K. I'm Chuck Christie, and today we are asking
- 0:54Speaker 1: you to spend a few moments of your time with
- 0:56Speaker 1: us each day as Richard shares from God's work with notes, quotes,
- 0:59Speaker 1: and story along with some of his own personal experiences,
- 1:02Speaker 1: to confirm for you God's great love for us, that
- 1:05Speaker 1: his compassion for us never fails, and that He has
- 1:08Speaker 1: a great faithfulness toward us in every regard. Now, if
- 1:11Speaker 1: you miss a portion of today's broadcast or would like
- 1:13Speaker 1: to recommend it to a friend, you can hear this
- 1:16Speaker 1: program anytime online at Talknetwork Radio dot com. Well, now,
- 1:21Speaker 1: here's Richard with today's reflection.
- 1:24Speaker 2: Today's reflection is entitled Chosen for a time such as this?
- 1:31Speaker 2: Do you know that in Scripture there are many examples
- 1:36Speaker 2: of how people are selected for God's purpose. One that
- 1:42Speaker 2: is remarkably actually shown is the story of Esther, who
- 1:51Speaker 2: responded to God in an obedient manner. There was a
- 1:56Speaker 2: prophetic statement that was made to Esther through Mordecai, her uncle,
- 2:03Speaker 2: and this was what was said. Don't think that you
- 2:07Speaker 2: will escape the fate of all the Jews because you
- 2:11Speaker 2: are in the King's palace. If you keep silent at
- 2:15Speaker 2: this time, liberation and deliverance will come to the Jewish
- 2:21Speaker 2: people from another place, But you and your father's house
- 2:27Speaker 2: will be destroyed. Who knows. Perhaps you have come to
- 2:32Speaker 2: the kingdom for such a time as this. The Book
- 2:37Speaker 2: of Esther, chapter four, verses thirteen and fourteen to this,
- 2:45Speaker 2: Esther replies when she sends back the message to Mordecai,
- 2:51Speaker 2: she says, go and assemble all the Jews who can
- 2:55Speaker 2: be found in Susa, and fast for me. Don't eat
- 3:01Speaker 2: or drink for three days, night and day. I and
- 3:06Speaker 2: my female servants will also fast in the same way.
- 3:11Speaker 2: After that I will go to the king, even it
- 3:16Speaker 2: is against the law. If I perish, I perish. So
- 3:21Speaker 2: Mordecai went and did everything Esther had ordered him. Esther,
- 3:29Speaker 2: Chapter four and verse sixteen to seventeen. Have you ever
- 3:35Speaker 2: thought just why you were born in this country or
- 3:40Speaker 2: whatever Pacific country that you may have been born in.
- 3:45Speaker 2: We all have a family line that can be traced
- 3:49Speaker 2: back to either the early settlers of this land or
- 3:52Speaker 2: immigrants from a foreign country. With all of its problems
- 3:57Speaker 2: and troubles, America is still the most desired place to live,
- 4:03Speaker 2: and many nations want what we have, not only the
- 4:08Speaker 2: material well being, but the freedom that is so precious
- 4:12Speaker 2: and the core values of a godly nation. America is
- 4:18Speaker 2: not great because of its work ethic or because of
- 4:23Speaker 2: its industrial and technological advancement. America is great because our
- 4:29Speaker 2: foundation is based on the Judeo Christian principles of God
- 4:35Speaker 2: applied to the opportunity to be those who share His bounty.
- 4:43Speaker 2: Very few of us have experienced the loss of the
- 4:46Speaker 2: freedom we all hold so dear. There are some who
- 4:52Speaker 2: have been taken captive in war torn countries, who bear
- 4:56Speaker 2: unspeakable torture and persecution because they're Americans. There are also
- 5:03Speaker 2: many who have been taken captive and tortured just for
- 5:07Speaker 2: preaching the Gospel, whether American or of some other country.
- 5:14Speaker 2: Many years ago, as we read earlier, the Bible records
- 5:19Speaker 2: an historical event that freed a nation from similar persecution
- 5:26Speaker 2: and even death. In the Book of Esther, we read
- 5:31Speaker 2: about the expanded empire of King Ahashuwaris known as Meadow Persia,
- 5:38Speaker 2: that reached from India to kush. The empire covered one
- 5:42Speaker 2: hundred and twenty seven provinces and the king reigned from
- 5:47Speaker 2: his royal throne and palace in Suza. He and his
- 5:52Speaker 2: armies had conquered the Babylonians, and with the conquest those
- 5:57Speaker 2: people whom the Babylonians had taken, the Jews were captive
- 6:02Speaker 2: now to the Medo Persian king and his rule. History
- 6:08Speaker 2: records that the king was very opulent, vain, and proud
- 6:13Speaker 2: of the wealth of his empire. He was served by
- 6:17Speaker 2: many wise men and had a harem full of wives
- 6:21Speaker 2: and concubines. It was the king's custom to select a young,
- 6:25Speaker 2: beautiful virgin maiden to become one of his wives. So
- 6:31Speaker 2: the stage is set for this to happen, and a young,
- 6:35Speaker 2: beautiful Jewish virgin maiden is selected to become the king's wife.
- 6:43Speaker 2: The king did not know that Esther was a Jew,
- 6:48Speaker 2: and she had been advised by her cousin Mordechai not
- 6:53Speaker 2: to reveal that fact to the king. Through a miraculous
- 6:59Speaker 2: turn of events, Esther is able to win the favor
- 7:03Speaker 2: of the king and made to be his queen. There
- 7:08Speaker 2: is evil a foot, and God uses Esther to reverse
- 7:13Speaker 2: the decree made by the wicked Hayman, who had ordered
- 7:18Speaker 2: the annihilation of all the Jews. In Ester chapter one
- 7:26Speaker 2: through chapter ten. Ester asked for all of the Jews
- 7:36Speaker 2: to fast, not to eat or drink for three days
- 7:40Speaker 2: and nights, that she and her servants will also do
- 7:45Speaker 2: the same thing, and after that she will go to
- 7:51Speaker 2: the king, even if it's against his law. If I perish,
- 7:57Speaker 2: I perish. And so oh Mordecai went and did everything
- 8:04Speaker 2: Esther had ordered him to do. Because of her willingness
- 8:12Speaker 2: to even die if necessary, she took that occasion as
- 8:21Speaker 2: she believed she truly was born for such a time
- 8:29Speaker 2: as this.
- 8:31Speaker 1: Richard will be right back in a moment to wrap up.
- 8:34Speaker 1: But if you've just joined us, you've been listening to
- 8:36Speaker 1: Reflections on the Word with Richard K. You can hear
- 8:39Speaker 1: this message in its entirety again online as well as
- 8:42Speaker 1: Richard's entire archive at Talknetwork Radio dot com. We would
- 8:47Speaker 1: like to acknowledge our theme song how Great is Thy
- 8:50Speaker 1: faithfuness from the America's twenty five Favorite Hymns album unless otherwise.
- 8:55Speaker 1: Express scriptures are read from the Holman Christian Standard Bible,
- 9:00Speaker 1: which is published by Homan Bible Publishers in Nashville, Tennessee.
- 9:04Speaker 1: Additional resources used for Reflections on the Word with Richard K.
- 9:07Speaker 1: Include Great is Thy faithfulness by our daily breadth and
- 9:11Speaker 1: printed by Discovery House Publishers. Again, here is Richard to
- 9:15Speaker 1: wrap up today's message.
- 9:19Speaker 2: Today, we are born in a country that is in
- 9:23Speaker 2: great need of spiritual direction. Are you also born for
- 9:32Speaker 2: such a time as this? You're chosen as a believer
- 9:38Speaker 2: in the Lord Jesus to follow his direction and take
- 9:45Speaker 2: his authority and command others to follow him. That is
- 9:54Speaker 2: today's reflection on the Word.
- 9:58Speaker 1: Thank you Richard again tomorrow when we continue with the
- 10:01Speaker 1: next edition of Reflections on the Word, Richard K or
- 10:05Speaker 1: Richard on the entire team. This is Chuck Christie saying
- 10:08Speaker 1: thanks for listening to this edition of Reflections on the Word.