Guest Writer
Chima Anaele Sylvanus
“if I perish, I perish”. Esther 4:16
I could remember years back when this text became a reality to me. I was about making a crucial decision for God’s glory that could literally destroy my whole life and career from a worldly perspective, but I was determined to make the right decision in following Jesus because I had come to the end of my self but in all God favored me because he saw my sincere heart to please him.
I didn’t perish as I thought I would, but yet I could see God achieving something in me from that day on, “dying to self”
I strongly believe this is one of God’s Call to every believer In Christ. Esther was not even in the new covenant, yet she knew how to die to self. She knew that doing God’s will was going to place a cost on her life even if it cost her life or her crown.
Was this not the same mindset the Hebrew children had when they told King Nebuchadnezzar;
“If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” Daniel 3:17-18
An average Christian today lives in habitual disobedient and sin to God. They do not even know any cost of following Jesus.
They can preach Grace to you, tell you what Jesus did in the past, present and future, and they are sweet talkers, yet their life is extremely lukewarm because they aren’t ready to perish for their Lord. They do not know the life of Jesus.
Eshter wasn’t even in the new covenant but yet she knew that doing God’s will was going to cost her, her life, pride, world and flesh.
The simple truth is this, Many know the benefit of the Cross but they do not know the demands of The Cross.
You need to see what they chose over God’s will. I strongly believe there will be surprises on judgment day, because we have many mixed multitude in today’s church. They can speak in tounges for hours, chant for hours, shake their head from morning to night in prayers, yet their life has no bearing, no cost and no dying to self. This is because, nobody ever told them that when they came to Jesus they signed a death warrant to never live for themselves but for God alone.
Queen Ester knew this Cross life, no wonder she could boldly say, “if I perish, I perish”
Not many believers today can say these words, because they have never perished to the flesh, world and materialism of life, instead they will rather say, “Jesus has perished his life for me, so I need no dying to self because I am the righteousness of God”
Yet this same people daily live in sin and do their own will always.
Ah! May God have mercy on The Christianity that has no cost to follow Jesus. Amen.
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