Here is a lesser known hero in the Bible. Not a lot of things are written about him and as a matter of fact his name only appears in one book, Esther. And in that book he is a main character.
Mordecai was a Jew and he raised a beautiful girl named Hadassah (also known as Esther), who was really his Uncle’s daughter. Mordecai raised her as his own daughter because she had no mother or father (Esther 2:7).
Mordecai was in service in the royal palace. King Ahasuerus (or Xerxes), was searching for a new queen since the former queen had been deposed because she refused to come when the king summoned her. Young maidens were to come to the palace under the custody of Hegai, the keeper of women, while they were prepared to audition before the king. Among these women was Esther, Mordecai’s daughter, whose Jewish nationality was hidden from Hegai. Esther was well liked by Hegai so he made sure she was well presented before the king.
Long story short – the king liked Esther too and took her as his queen. Throughout the book of Esther you see that Mordecai continues to have a relationship with Esther, only in private because he does not want anyone to know of her true heritage. Mordecai is a man of God (even though God is never mentioned in this book). Mordecai overhears a plot to kill the king and he tells this to Esther, who then tells the king, giving credit to Mordecai for the information.
As the story moves on, a man named Haman was promoted as one of the king’s right hand men and everyone bowed to him, except Mordecai who refused. Because of this Haman sought to kill all the Jews in the kingdom, since he knew these were Mordecai’s people. Haman convinced the king that this was the right thing to do and so the king authorized the massacre.
This plot greatly distressed Mordecai and he sent word back to the queen of the evil plot. Mordecai convinced Esther to appeal to the king and because of Mordecai’s persistence the king called off the plan and eventually even executed Haman.
Many would believe that Esther was the hero in this account, but I believe Mordecai’s care for her from childhood and continued love for her was the reason she risked her own life to appeal to the king. Mordecai’s cry for help to his little girl – now the queen - saved the queen and her people. Mordecai was an unsung hero.
In our Christian lives we are sometimes challenged and we hide our Christianity. I do it with emails. I have a little poem adapted from a song about touching the sun and that God’s love for me never dies. This is a signature at the end of my personal emails, but I am mindful and selective to whom I send it. But I think with the story of Mordecai, we can see that hiding or protecting your faith, whilst still being an outward beacon of that faith can prove to be useful.
Whilst I don’t actively promote my Christian faith at work, my colleagues know that I am a Christian and I uphold certain values that outwardly project my faith as a Christ follower.
Can you be an unsung Hero? Is there somebody, like Mordecai, who you can quietly mentor, or by your actions promote a positive outlook towards a broken world?
Steve Fogo
No comments:
Post a Comment