God’s grace and Israel’s existence today

“For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14

After Mordecai learns of Haman’s plot to destroy the Jews in the book of Esther, Mordecai seeks to motivate Queen Esther to use her position to help save her people. His question in 4:14 was intended to help Esther see God’s purpose in enabling her to become Queen at “such a time as this.”  

After fasting for three days, Queen Esther intervenes and exposes Haman’s plot to annihilate the Jews and then Haman is hanged “on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai” (Chapters 5-7). Queen Esther then persuades her husband, King Ahasuerus, to send letters throughout his kingdom enabling the Jews to “avenge themselves on their enemies” so that on that designated day, the Jews defended themselves by killing “seventy-five thousand of their enemies” (9:1-16). Afterward Queen Esther and Mordecai established the Feast of Purim to be celebrated yearly so the memory of these Jews “should not perish among their descendants” (9:17-28). Then Mordecai was elevated by the king to second in command (Chapter 10). 

Throughout history, the devil has tried to destroy the Jews through different nations and leaders, the most familiar recent attempt being Hitler’s slaughter of millions of Jews in the 1940s. Think about it, today Israel exists like a tiny island of a few million immigrants surrounded by a sea of over 300 million enemies. It would seem inevitable that, sooner or later, this tiny nation would be destroyed. 

Israel’s existence today is best explained by God’s faithfulness and grace  to His promises to Abraham and his descendants (cf. Genesis 12:1-3;  13:16; 15:17-21; 17:7-8; et. al). God has supernaturally preserved His people even though Israel has stubbornly disobeyed the Lord resulting in them being oppressed and scattered throughout the whole world (Deuteronomy 4:27; 28:65). 

According to the Bible, a future leader will make a seven-year peace deal with Israel, fulfilling Israel’s longing for peace (Daniel 9:27a). But Scripture also says this peace plan will be broken, and Israel will be attacked once again (Daniel 9:27b; cf. Revelation 12:13-17). Countless armies will amass against them with no human hope of victory at the end of the seven-year Tribulation (Psalm 2:1-2; Revelation 16:12-16; 19:19). Only King Jesus’ return, judgment and reign will finally bring lasting peace to Israel (Revelation 19:11-20:6; cf. Isaiah 2:1-4). 

As you read this article, you may ask, “Why would God continue to pursue such a stubborn and rebellious people such as Israel”? The answer is that God is demonstrating His amazing grace to the world. Only a God of grace would put up with them! But that is true of you and me as well. God is not doing one thing for the Jewish people that He is not willing to do for all of us. He pursues us in love despite our sinfulness. And regardless of how stiff-necked we may be, He never washes His hands of us.

God knew you would be reading this article right now. He knows what you are going through and He wants to extend His grace to you. God says in Hebrews 13:5: “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” If you have Jesus Christ in your life, you need to know that He will never abandon you. He will never leave you alone. You may have lost your job…home…family… even your own health, but you cannot lose your relationship with Jesus Christ once you come to Him in faith. No one can take that away from you.

If you do not have Jesus Christ in your life, you need to know that time is running out! One day soon, Jesus will be coming for His church to remove them from the earth (I Thessalonians 4:13-18). Here is the question: Is He coming for you? You can know for sure that He is if you will do but one thing – “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). 

The Bible tells us that all people have sinned against God with their thoughts, words, and actions (Romans 3:23). Because of our sins, we all deserve to die forever in a terrible place called the Lake of Fire (Romans 6:23a; Revelation 20:15). But God does not want any of us to die forever in hell, so He sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to earth to die for our sins on the cross and rise from the dead (John 3:16a; I Corinthians 15;1-6). God is now asking you to “believe” or trust in the Lord Jesus Christ alone (not your water baptism or goodness or morality), to save you from the Lake of Fire forever (Acts 16:31). No amount of your good works can save you from an eternity in the Lake of Fire (cf. Isaiah 64:6; Romans 4:5). Only Jesus Christ can save you because He is God (John 1:1, 14, 17; Titus 2:13) and only God can save you from your sins forever and give you eternal life (John 14:6; Acts 4:12; 16:31; I John 5:20). 

If you just believed or trusted Christ alone to save you from the Lake of Fire and give you eternal life, know that Christ has saved you forever and given you everlasting life (John 3:16; Acts 16:31! Rest in His promise to deliver you from the Lake of Fire forever and from the coming wrath of God on earth (I Thessalonians 1:10; 4:13-18). Begin to share this good news with others so Jesus can do the same for them (Matthew 4:19; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8).