Now is the Time

September 29, 2024 Esther 7:1-6, 9-10; 9:20-22 19th Sunday after Pentecost Year B Now is the time! Prelude Greeting Call to Worship L: It’s a great day to be here. P: There are so many things we can do to serve the Lord. L: Just listen for God’s call to you. Let God guide your life. P: We are willing to open our lives to God’s service. L: Come, let’s worship and celebrate God’s good news for us. P: Let us bring our hopes and prayers to God with joy. AMEN (United Methodist Ministry Matters, Nancy Townley) Opening Prayer (James 5, Mark 9) Christ Jesus, we come into your presence from many different places. We come with songs of joy and shouts of gratitude. We come carrying heavy burdens and sighs of suffering. As you welcome us into your house, lift our burdens and receive our praise. Salt us with your grace and flavor us with your mercy. Bind us together, that we may be at peace with one another and be strengthened to go forth in service to the world. In your holy name, we pray. Amen. (United Methodist Ministry Matters, Mary Scifres) Responsive Reading Psalm 124 UMH 846 Song A Mighty Fortress is our God UMH 110 A Sermon for all Ages God created you and me. He tells us in His Word that He knit us together while we were inside our mother’s wombs. Psalm 139:13-15 He knows every little detail about us. He knows how many hairs we have on our heads. Matthew 10:30 He knows what we like and what we don’t like. He made each of unique and there is no one created exactly like us in the whole world. We live in a world that sometimes makes us think that we aren’t special because we are not popular, pretty, athletic, or as smart as others. Our value to God isn’t based on any of those things. He loves us because He created us and placed us in this world for a purpose. His purpose for placing each one of us on this earth is to glorify Him and enjoy Him forever. We glorify God when we live a life that pleases Him and points others to Him. When we live that kind of life we will enjoy God and all the blessings that come from Him. Because God’s purpose is for each of us to glorify Him and enjoy Him forever, He has given us gifts or talents that we can use to help others see that God exists and wants them to be a part of His family too. Sometimes we know clearly what our gifts/talents are and how God wants to use us in this life. Other times we may not know what our gift and purpose is in this life. (If possible take a gift-wrapped box out of a bag and set on your lap.) Our lives are like this unopened present. We have received a present but we don’t know exactly what is inside until we take the wrapping paper off the present. As each of us walk with God by faith day by day, obeying His Word He begins to prepare us for what is inside that present. In God’s perfect time He allows the wrapping on the gift we have to come off and He allows us to see what the talent/ability for serving Him will be. Whether we know what gift God has given us or not, we are to live a faithful and obedient life that pleases God. Because even though we might not feel like we have a purpose and are not useful to God, He sees all that is going on around us. He knows how your life will affect the people around you. We all influence the lives of others around us. Whether it’s your brother/sister or your classmates there is someone who is affected by the way you live your life. The question we need to think about this morning is: are you influencing people to want to know God and live for Him, or are you influencing people to disobey and rebel against God? Scripture Esther 7:1-6,9-10; 9:20-22 Sermon Now is the Time! I think it was the theologian Karl Barth who said that faithful people should practice their faith while holding the bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other. In other words, we should keep up with the signs of the times. I think in church, we try to do the exact opposite. We want the world to comply with biblical teaching. I know I intentionally try to do that in my sermons. I try to avoid making any comments on current events, since there are so many different opinions on matters going on in our world. Gayle and I usually look at the scriptures for the day well in advanced. When I looked at the scripture this week, and then looked all of the things going on the news, I got a little worried because it was all there in the scripture staring me in the face. How do I address all of these things. From Israel fighting Hamas at all cost to defend itself, to Puff Daddy getting arrested for having wild parties and disrespecting women, even a political climate that is divisive. It is all right there in this scripture. These are all topics that I wouldn’t touch with a ten foot pole in a sermon. And get this, all these things are mentioned, but in the entire book of Esther makes no mention of God, or prayer, or worship, or even faithful living. Many theologians and church fathers have wondered why this book is even a part of the bible, what does it have to do with faith? Many preachers refuse to preach from this book – because they feel that there is no lesson. As a matter of fact, the lectionary, which gives us our readings every week only includes the book of Esther once in the three year cycle. I know that I have preached on this text before, but interestingly, I can’t even find it. So I am stuck preaching today with the bible in one hand and the newspaper on the other. First, it is important go back and to tell the whole story – our scripture is just the end to a much longer saga. It starts with a wild party that got out of hand. King Xerxes ( his name sound a lot like the word for big headache in Hebrew) had a big party for all of his friends. The party was so big and so intense he was the most beautiful woman in the world. Vashti was the hostess of her own party, when she get a message that her husband wants her to stop what she is doing at her party and come to the men’s party for a parade – literally just wearing nothing but her crown. Being a respectable married women, already doing an important role for her kingdom – she refuses and tells the king no thank you. When word gets to the men’s party that the queen disobeyed a direct order from the king. The men of the party convince King Big headache that this is a grave injustice. If the queen disobeys the king, then that would encourage all of the women of the land to disobey their husbands too. They convince the king to make an edict that wives disobeying their husbands will not be tolerated. Even though the king loves his beautiful wife, she has to go. In some versions I think she is beheaded, in other stories she is just deposed and banished. So not the king realizes that he is alone, and needs a new queen. So he has a nationwide beauty contest to find a new bride. Esther, a young orphaned Hebrew girl wins the contest. Esther is beautiful, but she is young, she is not Vashti – but the king is happy for awhile. After awhile, he gets bored with her and stops calling her to be by his side. Meanwhile, those who are close to the king think they are powerful too. One of his commanders, is so full of himself that he orders everyone who passes by him to bow. Everyone in the land does, but it seems that those Hebrew people seem to act to proud. One of them, a servant named Mordecai refuses to bow at all. Whenever he runs into Mordecai, there is tension. Haman gets do frustrated that he asks the king to kill not only Mordecai – but all of the Hebrews. Another of those strange edicts that once it is said it cant be taken back goes out that in a year all of the Hebrews will be killed. It just so happens that Esther, the new queen is Mordecai’s niece, or some say cousin. Mordecai reminds Esther that she is Hebrew, if the king kills her people, he will kill her too. Unless she uses her influence as the queen. She explain to Mordecai – that is just it, lately she has on influence as the queen. No one talks to the king unless he asks for them, even her. Mordecai convinces her that she had to do something or they will all die. In the meantime, Haman is so angry at Mordecai’s disrespect that he is building a special gallow in his back yard to hang him on. Meanwhile King Headache is doing some reading of some old records and realizes that Mordecai once saved his life and he never thanked him. The king asks Haman how to repay someone who did the king a favor. Mordecai is honored which makes Haman madder. Esther decides that the best way to the kings heart is to have a party, and to expose Haman in public. At the party, Hamans plan to kill all Hebrews is exposed, King headache kills Haman on the same gallows that were planned for Mordecai. The king realizes that he cant change the edict that all Hebrews will be killed, but he does make an edict that when the time comes – the Hebrews have a right to defend themselves from all personal threats. No one knows if this is a true story – but the story of how Queen Esther saved her people is still told every year. Every year in the spring, Purim is celebrated – it is kind of like Halloween. Everyone dresses up in costumes. They tell the story of Esther. You relive the story, laugh and joke and parade around the neighborhood asking for candy. Today the parties are always kid friendly – to make light of such a dark story. You boo whenever Haman is talking, you cheer for Mordecai. You celebrate Esther. This is a semi religious holiday – sort of like a church sponsoring a trunk or treat celebration. No God, no prayer, no worship. But that does this story have to do with us today? In convincing Esther to act, Mordecai explained to her that she had been placed in her role as Queen for such a time as this in order to go God’s work. I have a tshirt that says “For Such a time as this”. Reminding me that in God’s world there are no accidents or coincidences. We are all here for a reason. We all have purpose. And there is a reason that God placed us in this time, with these headlines, and each of us have a responsibility to live faithful lives and to witness to what is going on in the world around us. When we listen to the news, it is easy for us to wonder where is God in the midst of this situation. Why doesn’t God speak up and stop all of this chaos and confusion. Why does God allow human misbehavior to get so out of hand. If God is a God of grace and peace, why are so many people getting killed. Why are people and property being destroyed in the name of God? Where is the respect for life, where is the spirit of God, where is prayer, where is worship. Far be it from me to be able to explain why the book of Esther is even in the bible. Far be it from me why we only hear this story in the lectionary once every three years. But I think the point of the story is to help us realize – that God works in mysterious unspoken ways. Even in the most human of story – God is working, sometimes behind the scenes. We have to learn to look for the presence of God. Sometimes we have to be reminded that We were placed in the middle of that story for such a time as this. The presence of God is inside of us – God’s faithful people. I think that the moral of the story of Esther – in the midst of the booing and cheering for the characters, to remember that we are called to be Esther. – to speak up for injustice, to remember that our actions are about others and not ourselves, and most importantly to look for God in the midst of struggle. God is always there. Let us pray. Song What Gift Can we Bring UMH 87 Prayers of the People Prayers of the People (James 5, Mark 9) (Any person may offer a brief spoken prayer or lift a name following each petition. The unison response may follow individual prayers or the group of prayers.) (United Methodist Board of Discipleship) (Just print the instructions, but not the prayer) God of love and power, hear our prayers as we raise our thoughts and our voices to you. We pray for those who suffer and are sick . . . God of love and power, hear our prayer. We pray for those who struggle with temptation and sin . . . God of love and power, hear our prayer. We pray for those who lead and guide others on the journey of faith . . . God of love and power, hear our prayer. We pray for those who serve and share in ministry around the world . . . God of love and power, hear our prayer. We pray for the world and its leaders . . . God of love and power, hear our prayer. We give thanks for those who are cheerful and who bring joy to our lives . . . God of love and power, we give you praise. We give thanks for those who are loving and kind . . . God of love and power, we give you praise. We give thanks for those who serve and lead us in our journeys of faith . . . God of love and power, we give you praise. We give thanks for this earth and its bounty . . . God of love and power, we give you praise. We give thanks for Christ’s grace in our lives, and for the presence of God in our world . . . God of love and power, we give you praise. God of love and power, hear our prayers as we raise our thoughts and our voices to you. Amen. Lord’s Prayer Stewardship Moment Invitation to the Offering Offertory Gracious God, we dedicate these offerings to your service, inspired by Esther's wisdom and courage. Just as she sought deliverance and found grace, may our gifts bring hope and relief to those in need. Guide us to use these resources to promote justice, mercy, and compassion in our community. May we always act with gratitude and wisdom, recognizing your providence in all we do. Bless these gifts and those who give them so that, together, we may reflect your love and grace in the world. In Christ, our savior and redeemer, we pray. Amen. (Esther 7:1-6, 9-10; 9:20-22) (United Methodist Board of Discipleship) Announcements Closing Prayer for Facebook May the holy wisdom of God Guard your ways and guide your paths May the living truth of God Enlighten your hearts and open your minds And may the living Spirit of God Give you life, and life to the full! Amen! (Posted on Literature & Liturgy) Community Time – joys and Concerns Benediction Go in peace to serve the Lord. Remember the healing love that has taken place in your life.. Be open to all the wonders and opportunities that God puts before you. Go in peace. AMEN. (United Methodist Ministry Matters, Nancy Townley)