THE STORY OF JESUS: Esther 8:15-17
“For the Jews it was a time of happiness and joy, gladness and honor.” (Esther 8:16)
Since sin entered the world, it has been a place of misery and sorrow.
On any given day, there is more sorrow than joy, more despair than hope.
Let me be clear, there can be no lasting joy or hope, apart from God’s intervention.
Without God, joy and hope are illusions, suffering and death the only reality.
Call this ‘the way of all flesh’, that is, flesh apart from God.
It is our alienation from God that makes this world the hell it is.
And the intervention of God that gives joy and hope their possibility.
God’s invisible presence is at work behind the scenes to work things out for good in the end.
“I will turn their mourning into gladness; I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow.” (Jeremiah 31:13)
What the Jews experienced here was not a temporary respite, but a sample of God’s ultimate purpose.
The same is true of all our experiences of joy and hope, they point us toward our future joy and hope.
Jesus makes this possible; He defeats the enemy and overcomes the curse of death.
He guarantees that life, not death, has the last word… joy, nor sorrow… hope, not despair.
When we celebrate special days like Christmas, Easter, Pentecost, etc., they are but samplers.
When we share together in the Lord’s Supper, it is but a taste of the feast that is to come.
“I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 8:11)
This will be a time of happiness and joy, gladness and honor!
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, thank You for giving us a taste of joy and hope. Help me to savor these things when this world tastes so depressing.