Loving God, just as you did with Esther, sometimes you place us in the right place at the right time.  Help us to be open to your leading in all situations, ready to let your light shine; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

    Esther was, by all accounts, a nobody.  She was an orphan, who had been raised by her cousin Mordecai.  She was a woman in a male-dominated culture.  She was a Jew living in Persia after the Jews had been carried off into exile.  However, Esther did have at least one thing going for her: She was beautiful, and it was her beauty that landed her in the king’s harem in Susa.  It was also her beauty (and her disposition, one would think) that won the favour of King Ahasuerus and resulted in her becoming Queen Esther.

    Even then, however, it seems as though she did not think too much of herself.  When Esther first finds out that all of the Jews will be put to death on a certain day, she really doesn’t think there’s much she can do about it.  What she sends back to Mordecai is essentially an excuse saying why she really can’t go to the king.  However, Mordecai is able to see what she cannot – that God has put her in this position in order to save her people.

    Today’s reading gives us only part of the story, as it ends with Esther agreeing to go to the king.  In the end, Esther is not put to death, and she does save her people.  Haman, who had wanted to destroy the Jews out of spite, is put to death instead, and a new decree is issued that allows the Jews to take up arms and defend themselves on the day that had been appointed for their destruction.  All of this forms the background to the feast of Purim, which is still celebrated today.

    How many of you similarly feel that there is nothing that you can do?  How many of you feel as though you are nobodies, with no gifts to offer?  I am sometimes amazed at how many people there are who have no idea what their gifts are.  And yet, there is not one person here today who has not been given gifts and abilities by God.  In Esther’s case, her gifts were beauty and humility.  Which gifts are yours, either spiritual or otherwise?

    Have you been given faith or hope or love?  Have you been given wisdom or knowledge?  Are you able to serve others or to teach?  Are you able to encourage others or to approach others with compassion?  Do you have leadership skills or the ability to give generously?  Do you have the gift of hospitality or the ability to make others feel at home?  Are you able to read or write?  Do you have the gift of the gab or a good sense of humour?  Do you have working hands and feet?  Are you able to build or fix things?  Are you artistic or musical?  Are you able to drive a car?

    The thing is that, whatever position you are in and whatever gifts and abilities you have, God can and will work through you.  The only thing that would prevent this is if you are an unwilling participant.  And so, even if you are lying in a care home or a hospital, God can work through you.  Even if you are simply going about your daily business, God might put a situation right in front of you where you are in the right place at the right time in order to let your light shine.

    It could be as simple as being right there when somebody in front of you on the highway has a tire blow out.  It could be simply having a listening ear when somebody desperately needs to unburden themselves.  You might find yourself in a position to be able to share a meal or a cup of coffee with somebody who has nothing.  Or maybe you might have the opportunity to welcome somebody who feels like an outsider.  And sometimes something as simple as a phone call to somebody who is lonely can make a huge difference in that person’s life.

    God not only works through people for big things – such as saving your people from certain death.  No – God is just as capable of working through us for little things – which sometimes still make a big difference.  In fact, even for the big things, sometimes we can have more of an impact than we think.

    In Esther’s case, there was a gross injustice that was about to take place.  All of the Jewish people in Susa were about to be put to death – for no reason other than Haman’s hatred of Mordecai.  You see, Mordecai refused to bow down to Haman, for as a Jew he would only bow down to God.  And to Haman, this was reason enough to get rid of all of the Jewish people.

    In this case, all it takes is the voice of one person speaking truth to power in order to right this injustice.  While none of us may be kings or queens, there are still times when our voices are more powerful than we think.  Whether we might work through an international organization like Avaaz, or a Canadian organization like KAIROS, or even take the time to write or speak to politicians, all of us have a voice.  It is when nobody bothers to speak up that real tragedy happens.

    The thing is that Jesus is speaking to every single one of us when he says “You are the salt of the earth,” and “You are the light of the world” (Mt. 5:13-14).  In fact, you might remember at the same time that Jesus also referred to himself as the light of the world (Jn. 8:12).  It is his light that shines through us and that causes others to give glory to God (Mt. 5:16).

    In this season of Advent, the focus is on the coming of Jesus.  In fact, the word advent means coming.  We think about when Jesus first came to earth and was born as a human baby to Mary and Joseph.  We also think about when Jesus will come again, at the end of all things.  However, there are also ways in which Jesus continues to come to us in the mean time.

    An article in the December issue of the Canada Lutheran mentions some of the ways in which Jesus comes to us even now (“The Second Coming” by Rev. Dr. Harry Maier).  He comes to us in the waters of Baptism and in the bread and wine of Holy Communion.  He comes to us when we hear God’s Word preached to us.  However, Jesus also comes through us and through other people.

    That is the sense in which Jesus’ coming is lifted up through the story of Esther today.  Just as God worked through Esther in order to save her people, God can work through us in order to reveal the light of Christ to others.  There will be some times when Jesus comes to us through others, and there will be some times when Jesus comes to others through us.

    Let us then allow God to work through us by the power of the Holy Spirit, helping us to use both our gifts and our positions in life for the good of others.  Who knows?  It may be “for just such a time as this” that we have been placed right where we are (Esth. 4:14).  Thanks be to God!  Amen.

Advent 2 (NL 1)                                Esther 4:1-17
December 7, 2014                                Matthew 5:13-16
St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church
Pastor Lynne Hutchison

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