The Alternative

Dr. Tony Evans: You know it's time for God to move you to your ultimate purpose, when He has given you a position that leverages influence for the advancement of His kingdom.

Guest (Male): But Dr. Tony Evans says being called for a godly purpose doesn't mean that fulfilling it will be easy.

Dr. Tony Evans: There's going to be a risky step of faith. And that risky step of faith has to take in both options. This could work or it might not.

Guest (Male): This is the Alternative broadcast featuring the timeless biblical teachings from the archives of Dr. Tony Evans. No matter where you are in life, you didn't get there by accident. Today, Dr. Evans helps us recognize God's intricate planning and perfect timing as he shows us how to spot kingdom opportunities when they come along. Let's join him in chapters three and four of the book of Esther.

Dr. Tony Evans: It is in these chapters that the greatest statement and the most famous statement in the book is located in chapter 4, verse 14, when Mordecai asks her the question, "Have you not obtained royalty for such a time as this?" Or as the King James says, "Have you not been called to the kingdom for such a time as this?" I want to explain to you using the providential hand of God in the life of Esther how you know when it's your time. You hear people talk about "it's my time, it's my season."

That's easy to say and quote, but how do you know when God has prepared you for the moment? That time that he has worked with you through the good, the bad, and the ugly to bring you to a space of usefulness for his kingdom purposes? Chapter three opens up with a problem because we're told in chapter three Ahasuerus the king has decided to elevate a man named Haman. Haman is made the second most powerful person in the Medo-Persian Empire.

The king has said, "I want there to be public recognition of the promotion that I've given to Haman, so I want everybody in the kingdom to bow." As everybody began to bow, then they came to one of the employees of the king named Mordecai. They told Mordecai, "It's time to bow, Mr. Haman is coming down. Mr. Haman is passing through." Mordecai says, "Excuse me, but I can't do that. I can't bow and pay homage. I cannot worship him. I can respect him. I can affirm him, but what you're asking me to do is bow down and pay homage. You're calling for an act of worship and I can't do that."

Mordecai refuses. They want to know in verse 3, "How are you transgressing the king's command?" Let me put it in everyday language: "How are you not doing what the government told you to do?" Because this is the king talking, this is governmental affairs. They say, "Look, this is the government and we expect you to obey the government." Obeying the government is one thing, worshiping and bowing to it, that's a whole another ball game. Mordecai says, "I can't do that." Haman, verse 5, was full of rage, ticked off.

He said, "Well, not only am I going to kill Mordecai, I'm going to kill all of his people. I'm going to do genocide against the Jews, because I know all them people think like he thinks." We're not going to have that, not under my rule. King Ahasuerus has given me clout, and I'm not going to have anybody around here not recognizing my authority. He's gone and everybody like him is gone. We're going to get rid of the Jews. In fact, I want to get rid of these people so bad, verse 9, that I will pay you to help get rid of them: 10,000 talents of silver.

I'm going to give you a boatload of money just to get rid of these people, because these people are nothing but trouble. They're not going to bow, they're not going to submit to the government, they're not going to submit to the authority. The king put his signet ring down, signed the law of Haman the Agagite. Now not only is Mordecai in trouble, the whole race of Jews is about to be exterminated. Okay, here's lesson number one. You know it's your time when God connects spiritual preparation with spiritual warfare.

Haman was an agent of the devil whose goal it is to thwart the purposes of God. In the Old Testament, it had to do with destroying the Jews. In the New Testament, it has to do with muting the effectiveness of the church, the people, representative people of God. In order to pull that off, Satan uses people and uses systems in order to destroy the program and promises and purposes of God. God had said, "I'm going to build this people, protect this people. They are going to be my people, because the Messiah is going to come through the Jews." All along the way, there's a theology of genocide and destruction trying to hinder the purposes of God.

Chapter 4, verse 1, when Mordecai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, the garments of sorrow, and went out into the midst of the city and wailed loudly and bitterly. You could hear that man crying all over the place, because when Satan is trying to do a number on you, he can bring you to tears. It looks like a hopeless situation. Let me tell you something: never count God out, no matter how bad things look. Esther finds out that a cousin is out there in sackcloth and ashes. She doesn't really know what's going on, and so she sends him clothes out there to get him dressed. He rejects the clothes.

Now it gets real interesting. She sends her servant, Hathach, out in verse 6 to Mordecai, and Mordecai told him all that had happened to him, the exact amount of money that Haman had promised to pay to the king's treasury for the destruction of the Jews. He sends word back to Esther, gave a copy of the edict, and this is what he says to her in verse 8: "That he might show Esther and inform her, and order her to go to the king and implore his favor and to plead with him for her people." Mordecai tells Esther's servant, "Take the edict to Esther and tell Esther now to go to the king and tell him who you are." Remember, I told you don't tell him when he first brought you in.

Don't tell him because there's an anti-Semitic atmosphere in this city. You don't tell him. But girlfriend, honey bun, cuz, it's now time. It's now time to go public. It's now time to let it be known who you are and who your people happen to be. It's time. You know it's time for God to move you to your ultimate purpose, when He has given you a position that leverages influence for the advancement of His kingdom. He tells her it's time. It's time for you to use your position, your influence, your resources, and you are now to leverage that in light of the spiritual issue. The problem is if you don't see the spiritual, you don't see the opportunity.

If all you're looking at is the physical, then you don't see what's happening behind the scenes in the spiritual. You're all shook up about what's happening in the physical, because you don't know that there is a spiritual activity occurring behind the scenes. She hears that she's supposed to go before the king. She sends word back to Mort. "Mort," verse 11, "all the king's servants and the people of the king's provinces know that for any man or woman who comes to the king to the inner court who is not summoned, he has but one law: that he be put to death. Unless the king holds out to him the golden scepter so that he may live. And I have not been summoned to come to the king for these 30 days."

"Mort, let me explain something. I need you to understand, cuz. It's sort of like this. Me and the king have not been talking for 30 days. If you go in the king uninvited, and he does not hold out that royal scepter, it's over. It's over. You are put to death. What you're asking is for me to risk my career, life, economic stability for y'all." Your destiny will always involve a test whether you want to be a blessing or whether you only want to be blessed. Once you hit that test, God now examines your heart.

Are you here for Him? Are you here for how He can use you for others? Or is this just about you? Is this just about selfishness? Your value to the kingdom of God is your usefulness. God says about His people in Luke 14, He says some of His believers are useless. He calls us useless because we have no kingdom orientation, and we wind up saying, "I don't know what my purpose is." You'll never find it if you're not kingdom oriented. You'll never find your time because it's only about you, not through you, only to you.

Your time comes when you discover how God can use you to be a blessing. Mordecai gets this information from her, and Mordecai writes her back because you know, by two or three witnesses. He says, "No, we got to have a second conversation." Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, "Cuz, do not imagine, verse 13, that you in the king's palace can escape any more than all the Jews. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, and you and your father's house will perish. And who knows whether you have attained royalty, called to the kingdom, for such a time as this?"

He says, "Cuz, let me help you out here, because you're a little confused. Do you imagine, do you think, do you have the mistaken idea that this thing revolves around you? Hello? Because right now your imagination is running away with you. Do you think that by not doing this you're going to save you and all of us are going to be wiped out? Let me shape your theology, cuz. If you don't do it, God has a solution elsewhere. I don't know what it is, I don't know where it is, but without using the name God, let me give you some theology, cuz. Nobody is indispensable. Let's get this straight. I don't care how good you are, how rich you are, how powerful you are, how skilled you are."

God never limits Himself to one person. God always has something up His sleeve. He doesn't reveal it until He needs to. But God always has hidden options. If He can't use you, then He will find somebody else. We don't even know who they are, because God never allows men to box Him in.

Guest (Male): Dr. Evans will return in a moment with more about how God's plans include us but don't necessarily depend on us when he continues his message after this.

Dr. Tony Evans: This October, journey through Israel with Tony Evans. We're going to gather together with many of our friends to survey the sites of the Holy Land. We're going to go to the Jordan River, the Sea of Galilee, the Garden Tomb, the Garden of Gethsemane. We're going to open God's word together and watch its truth leap off of the pages of Scripture as we walk where our Lord walked and see God give us new excitement about His greatness and about the truth of His word.

Guest (Male): It's an unforgettable experience that'll change the way you understand Scripture. Space is limited, so visit TonyEvans.org today to get all the details and register before it's too late. That's TonyEvans.org. Ten wonderful days in the Holy Land. Looking forward to meeting you as we tour Israel together.

Today is the second installment in a powerful teaching collection exploring pathways to purpose, a study on the remarkable life of Esther. You can get this entire study for yourself, including additional material and entire messages we won't have time to bring you on the air. You can download the complete six-part series or get it on CD or USB flash drive as our thank you gift when you make a donation in support of the ministry of the Alternative. Don't forget, along with the series, you'll also receive a copy of Tony's popular book that goes hand in hand with these messages. It's called Pathways. Make a point of visiting us right away at TonyEvans.org to make the arrangements. That's TonyEvans.org. Or you can call our 24-hour resource center at 1-800-800-3222 and let one of our friendly team members help you. That number again: 1-800-800-3222.

Where we find ourselves in life could seem like the result of random elements naturally coming together. But tomorrow, Dr. Evans helps us see how much work God puts into the way our lives work out. Right now, Dr. Evans is back with more of today's lesson. Let's join him.

Dr. Tony Evans: God always keeps His options open. Nobody is indispensable when it comes to His kingdom purpose. Now the reason he said that is because God had made a promise: "I will preserve the Jews." See, he had enough of God's word—God's word is not mentioned, God is not mentioned—but he knows enough to know that if you don't do it, God's sovereignty will make sure it's done because God is true to His word. And His word can be banked on and depended upon. He would rather use you. But come on, girl. Not only will He bring somebody else because He can't use you, He's going to mess you up because you were disobedient to your kingdom calling.

He gave you this job, He gave you this position, He gave you these resources, He gave you this education, He gave you this opportunity, and you have missed the kingdom purpose. None of that is being used for the kingdom, which involves God's promise for the preservation of His people. The great tragedy today is if our church exists and still doesn't accomplish kingdom purpose. Just because you're a church doesn't mean you're accomplishing kingdom purpose. That's a name, church. If we're not winning people to Christ, discipling them in the faith, and improving their lives in history so that they can be greater impact vessels for God for eternity, if we're not doing that, demonstrating the kingdom of heaven visiting the kingdom of earth through kingdom disciples who are heaven's representatives on earth, if we're not doing that, we have a weekly party in the name of Jesus.

You've been called to the kingdom for such a time, and the kingdom is bigger than the church. The church is facilitating the kingdom. Then Esther told them, verse 15 through 17, "Go assemble all the Jews who are found in Susa and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maidens also will fast in the same way, and thus I will go in to the king, which is not according to the law. This is risky. And if I perish, I perish." So Mordecai went and did just as Esther had commanded him. Let me tell you how you'll know it's your time. There'll be a spiritual conflict that God wants you to intervene on.

You will see how He has prepared you to be a blessing, not just be blessed. But then He will ask you to take, watch this, a risk of faith. Faith is risky business, because you're dealing with something you can't see. Faith is taking a step without being guaranteed the outcome. The greater the uncertainty, the more fearful the step. She says, "If I perish, I perish." I do not know how this is going to work out. And sometimes God calls us when it's our time to take a step, and we don't see where that foot's going to land. I don't know if he's going to put out his scepter, I don't know if he's going to keep down his scepter, I do not know how this is going to work out.

Mordecai said, "You've been called to the kingdom. You've been given a royal opportunity for such a time as this." And because this is now, and you have to take a step, and every time all through the Bible, people have had to take risky steps of faith whenever God was ready to do something big. It's a spiritual entrepreneurialism. Entrepreneurialism is where you take risk. But spiritually, it's where you're acting on God's word based on God's revelation, but without having the result. And it could go left. I could perish. But it's clear what I want God to do. So I need spiritual preparation to take this risk. Have y'all fast, everybody you know fast, tell your cousins to fast, your people to fast, your aunties, your uncles, tell everybody to fast, because I'm going out here on the line.

The three Hebrew boys had to take a risk. They told Nebuchadnezzar, "We're not going to bow." Nebuchadnezzar said, "Then you're going into the fiery furnace." They didn't know that there was going to be a fourth person in there to meet them. They had to take a risky faith because they wouldn't bow in contradiction to the word of God. Daniel had to take a risk. He had to take a risk that when he refused to stop praying when the king's edict said you can no longer pray in school, you can no longer pray in court, you can no longer do, he took a risk of faith. And he got thrown into the lion's den. He didn't know that the lions would have been fed from manna from above before he got thrown in there, and they would lose their appetite for human flesh.

Peter had to take a risky step when he stepped out on the water. The only reason he stepped out on the water because Jesus told him he could step out on the water. He steps out on the water and can walk on water, but he didn't know whether he was going to drown before he stepped out. The Israelites crossing the Red Sea, they got Pharaoh on one hand, the Red Sea on the other hand. They don't know whether that water's going to crash in once they get out into the middle of the ocean. But when you've been called for a purpose, there's going to be a risky step of faith. And that risky step of faith has to take in both options. This could work or it might not. That's God's problem.

That's God's problem. I have to trust God if I'm convinced that this is how He's positioned me to use me. I have to trust God, and it will always involve benefiting more than you. The Bible says don't just look at yourself, but look at the things of others. How will I be beneficial to others in the process of me benefiting? It will benefit. You don't want to be like the pilot. The four engines on the plane went out. All four engines on the plane went out. The pilot went and grabbed the one parachute that was on this small plane. He went to the door, unlocked the door. Just before he jumped, he said, "Don't worry, I'm just going to get some help." It was just about him.

A turtle only makes progress when it sticks its neck out. Not until it sticks its neck out is it going to move. God wants to use you, God wants to bless you, God wants to empower you because He wants you to make a difference even if it means gambling with faith. That is the risk when you don't know the outcome.

Guest (Male): When Dr. Evans returns in a moment, he'll challenge us to take that idea to the next level. Don't go away. Today is the second installment in a powerful teaching collection exploring pathways to purpose, a study on the remarkable life of Esther. You can download the complete six-part series or get it on CD or USB flash drive as our thank you gift when you make a donation in support of the ministry of the Alternative. And don't forget, along with the series, you'll also receive a copy of Tony's popular book that goes hand in hand with these messages. It's called Pathways. Visit us today at TonyEvans.org. Or give us a phone call at 1-800-800-3222 where resource team members are standing by ready to help you. That's 1-800-800-3222. For now though, he's back with a final thought for today.

Dr. Tony Evans: I'm challenging you and me and I to another level, the kingdom level. To say, "Okay God, with the uncertainty, with me not knowing where all this is going, here I am. Here I am. Use me in whatever way You choose. Use us even with the uncertainty. I'll take the risk. I just want You to show me: this is the risk You want me to take without any promises. I will take the risk of faith because I want my time. I don't want to end this time and not have had my time."