A couple years ago, with the help of Carl and Lora Conner, Sue and I learned a new card game. It’s called “Hand and Foot.” Do we have any “hand and foot” players here today? The thing I like about this new card game is that it takes just enough brain power to make it competitively fun but it doesn’t take so much brain power that you have to concentrate to the extent that you can’t talk with your fellow players. Plus the game takes a long time to play—three to four hours—which gives you a lot of time to talk. And on top of this you are constantly changing partners. I mean the game is a real mixer and I don’t think there is a limit as to how many people have to play. It just has to be an even number. Because of these three factors this particular card game becomes more than a game. It becomes a tool—a tool to build relationships. In fact, I’d love to see someone use our ROC foyer as a huge HAND AND FOOT tournament a tool to sweeten our fellowship!
This morning I’d like to borrow an idea from David Stone of Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, and use a deck of cards as another kind of tool a memory tool to help you remember what happened in last week’s assignment in THE STORY. I’m referring to one of my favorite Bible stories—the TRUE story of Esther. There are five main characters in the Biblical account of Esther’s life and I’d like us to use these giant playing cards to help us keep these five people straight as we review the story. The first card is a KING. It represents a king named Xerxes…ruler of the Persian Empire. Our second and third cards are QUEENs because we have two queens in the story. We have the queen of diamonds, to represent Queen Vashti. And the queen of hearts to represent Esther. I picked the queen of hearts for Esther because, as the heroine, she touches the heart of anyone who reads her life story. Next we have a JOKER…not because the person it represents is funny but because this person constantly ridicules the Jewish people. His name is Haman, and he is a very evil person. Finally, the fifth character in our account of Esther’s life is Mordecai and we’re representing him with the ACE because he is the ace in the hole in that God is going to use him in a mighty way.
Let’s do a quick test now. I’ll show the card you tell me who it represents:
- King? XERXES!
- Queen of Diamonds? QUEEN VASHTI
- Queen of Hearts? QUEEN ESTHER
- JOKER? HAMAN
- Ace of Hearts? MORDECAI
Good! Let’s proceed. Esther’s story focuses on the Jews who did not return to Jerusalem with Zerubbabel. You remember from last week that 50,000 did, which means that the majority of the Jewish people were still in Persia at this point. This part of God’s story takes place years after that first group returned. Cyrus is no longer on the throne. Now Xerxes, the son of Darius I, is on the king of Persia. Xerxes ruled the empire from 485B.C. until his assassination at the hands of his vizier in 465 B.C. Esther’s part in God’s story opens in the third year of Xerxes’ reign—and we should note that he was a king of IMMENSE power. In fact, at this time in history no ruler on earth was as powerful as he. Xerxes’ kingdom was divided into127 provinces that extended from Asia Minor all the way down to Africa and into parts of Northern India. And he ruled this vast empire from his capitol city of Susa.
The first chapter of the book of Esther tells us of a banquet that King Xerxes hosted and what a banquet it was! It lasted for six months and all the nobles and official and military leaders were present. I’d hate to have his grocery bill! Verse 4 says that the purpose of this lengthy party was to “display Xerxes’ great wealth.” And he probably did this to impress the leaders of the provinces of his nation so they would have enough confidence in him to support his upcoming invasion of Greece which was about the only part of the known world that Xerxes didn’t control.
Well, after the first full-blown 6-month feast Xerxes hosted another bash—this one lasting seven days and according to verse 5 of chapter 1 everyone was invited “…from the least to the greatest who were in the citadel of Susa.” Let me describe it to you. The banquet was held in Xerxes’ palace and everyone sat on golden and silver couches in a garden decorated with white and blue linen fastened with silver rings on marble pillars. The floor of the room was made of marble in-lade with mother-of-pearl and other costly stones. And wine was served in golden goblets each custom-made for the banquet no two were alike. And everyone could drink as much wine as they liked—there were no “designated drivers” at this party. In essence Xerxes turned his palace into a frat house of sorts.
And remember, his goal was to LOOK good to IMPRESS his subjects with his power to make his soldiers proud and his enemies afraid. Verse 10 of chapter one says that on the last day of this banquet—when the King was “in high spirits from all this wine”—in other words: when he was very drunk he ordered his servants to bring in Queen Vashti so that all his guests could see her. And again, his motive is to impress. He’d been showing off all his possessions: his goblets and his tapestries and his palace and now he wanted to show off is ultimate possession, his lovely Queen! Verse 11 says that Xerxes instructed her to come before them wearing her royal crown and some scholars think this meant this was all she was to wear but regardless of her garb, to order her to traipse in front of the king and his inebriated subjects was a great disrespect and Vashti bravely said “No.”
Now how did the king respond? Look at verse 12: “The king was furious and burned with anger!” because Vashti had embarrassed him in front of his subjects. She made him look weak at a moment when he wanted to look strong. Well that kind of thing simply would not do. So Xerxes consulted his sages to get their ruling on this issue. This was sort of like taking the issue to “the supreme court” of his day. And their ruling reminds me of some of the rulings of the highest court in our nation today for they did not compliment Vashti on her morals.
No, they recommended that the king punish her for them. They also warned Xerxes that Vashti’s attitude might catch on that unless she was severely punished other wives in the kingdom might start standing up to their husbands. And they couldn’t have that so they advised that Vashti be deposed. Xerxes agreed and so a royal decree went out, written into the laws of Persia and Media, with no possibility of repeal, removing Vashti and forbidding her ever again to enter the king’s presence.
Now, this all took place in CHAPTER ONE of the Book of Esther. Between chapters ONE and TWO, four years passed and in that time Xerxes made his ambitious but disastrous attempt to conquer Greece which ended in 479 B.C. He returned home to Susa in disgrace. Picture it—he entered the tall, gilded palace doors, weary from battle, depressed by his military disaster. He longed for someone to greet him with arms outstretched, someone who would offer words of comfort and understanding not just a servant or one of his officers eager to please their king but someone who truly cared for him and his feelings.
He had long since sobered up enough to forget his anger at Vashti and now remembered only her beauty, the warmth of her arms, and the comfort of her understanding but alas the unchangeable law had gone out and so he had no Vashti! He had no queen. People tend to do things they regret when they are drunk and King Xerxes is no exception. Well—his personal attendants noticed his depression and advised that he find a NEW queen.
Now, these attendants were young men high-testosterone body-guards of the king and perhaps this explains the “Queen selection method” that they recommended. I mean, their number one criteria for a queen was not wisdom or poise or maturity. Look at verse 2 of chapter 2. They said, “Let a search be made for beautiful young virgins for the king.” They suggested girls be chosen from each of the 127 provinces and that they parade in front of the king so he could select his preference for the new queen based on PHYSICAL beauty. Well, the king loved the idea of this the first MISS UNIVERSE PAGEANT! So that is what happened.
One of the girls who was drafted—and drafted is a good word because if chosen you had to go—one of the girls drafted into this beauty contest was a young Jewish girl by the name of Esther. God’s Word tell us that she was an orphan. When her parents died she had been adopted and raised by her cousin Mordecai. Well, along with several others, Esther made it past the prelims into the final round of this contest but before Esther and the other finalists went before the king they underwent some very impressive beauty treatments.
Let me pause here to do a quick survey of the single females present. How long do you take to get ready for a date? I mean including hair-washing and hair-drying, make-up, wardrobe selection 45 minutes? An hour? Anyone spend more time getting ready for the date than you actually spend on the date itself? Well, look at the prep time Esther went through! Chapter 2:12 says, “This was the regular period of their cosmetic treatment: six months with oil of myrrh and six months with perfumes and cosmetics…” 12 months—an entire year! That’s a lot of Oil of Olay and Revlon! Men, don’t complain at how long it takes your wife to get ready again! Esther and her peers took 12 months!
Well, after all this prep time each girl went before the king and he made his choice: ESTHER.
Verse 17 says that “He loved Esther more than the other women. She won his favor and devotion so that he set the royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.”
Mordecai apparently followed her to the palace and got a job at the Kings Gate. And one day while he was at work, he overheard two of the kings’ officers conspiring to assassinate Xerxes.
Mordecai told is adopted daughter—Esther—who in turn reported it to her husband, Xerxes, giving credit to Mordecai. Verse 23 of chapter 2 says,“And when the report was investigated and found to be true, the two…were hanged on a gallows. All this was recorded in the Book of the Annals in the presence of the king.” Now, gallows in those days were not like gallows are today—where people were hung by a rope. No, it was a wooden contraption on which they were impaled—like being hung on a cross.
As chapter 3 opens, for some reason the king honored an evil man by the name of Haman, an Agagite, and elevated him to the seat of honor higher than any other noble. Verse 2 says, “All the royal officials at the king’s gate knelt down and paid honor to Haman, for the king had commanded this concerning him but Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor.” Now, Mordecai wasn’t being rude. It’s just that he was a Jew and to bow down to anyone or anything other than God was against God’s law. Well word of Mordecai’s behavior got back to Haman and he was enraged. But, instead of looking for a way to punish just Mordecai, he hatched a plot to destroy all of Mordecai’s people. Haman wanted to remove all the Jews from the face of the earth. You know, many times we begin to see a person’s true character when they are elevated to positions of power and Haman is a good example. His behavior showed that he was someone who was addicted to power. He was in love with himself. Plus, he was prejudiced against the Jews. And, in case you wonder why, remember, Haman was an Agagite and the Agagites had held a grudge against the Jews since way back in the book of Exodus. It began when the Amelikites attacked Israel after they left Egypt. God told Saul to kill all the Amelikites, along with all their animals. Do you remember this part of our reading from The Story? Saul, pragmatist that he was, thought he knew better than our all-knowing God and saved the best of the enemy’s sheep. He also spared the king—a man named AGAG. And the Agagites, descendants of the Amalekites, got their name from the king that Saul didn’t’ kill which should be an excellent reminder that when God tells you to do something, you’d better do it. He always has a reason for His rules!
Well, in all the years since, the Agagites had passed this burning hatred of the Jews down from generation to generation. Apparently these people had been very good at teaching their children to embrace the sin of prejudice. And remember no one is born with grudges. Prejudice is not a package deal that comes with birth. It is something we learn. And Haman had learned his lessons well—for, he hated the Jews. So, like Adolph Hitler twenty-five centuries later, he plotted to exterminate them all. Now, apparently at the beginning of every new year the King cast lots called “PUR” to see which day of the year would be his lucky day. (Remember that word “PUR” for later.) Well when the lots were cast in at the beginning of 473B.C., they fell on the 13th day of the 12th month of the year. And when this happened verses 8 & 9 record that Haman said to the king: “There is a certain people dispersed and scattered among the people in all the provinces of your kingdom whose customs are different from those of all other people and who do not obey the king’s laws. It is not in the kings’ best interest to tolerate the so let a decree be issued to destroy them and I will put ten thousand talents of silver into the royal treasury for the men who carry out this business.” In other words he said, “If you really want luck to smile on you—on this day the lots have selected…then, there’s only one thing to do….get rid of these Jews!” This goes to show that when your life is driven by superstition, you always come up with ridiculous ideas and decisions…stupid things…demonic things…as certainly was the case here.
Xerxes loved Haman’s idea! It appealed to his superstition so much that he said Haman could keep his money and exterminate these people…so he gave Haman his signet ring—which contained the official seal. And Haman used it to send the order out. By the way this was another one of those laws of the Medes and the Persians that could not be rescinded. The law said that in twelve months (on the 13th day of the last month of the year) all Jews—even women and little children—were to be killed.
Esther was secluded in the palace and unaware of what had happened so Mordecai sent word to her and asked her to intercede with the king. She hesitated to go to the king at first. And this point is the climax of this book. If you have your Bibles look at Esther chapter 4 verses 13-16. It says that after Esther’s hesitation, “Mordecai sent back this answer: ‘Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?’ Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: ‘Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.’
At this point Esther showed her true self. Her actions showed that she was more than just some bathing beauty. I mean, Xerxes chose an attractive queen….but he really got a woman who wasn’t afraid to stand up for what was right. I imagine we all go through situations like this—times when we are in a position where we have to decide: Will we ignore wrong—or will we stand up for the truth?
- Perhaps you have a college professor who laughs at your belief that there is a God Who created the heavens and the earth.
- Or perhaps your boss has asked you to do something unethical in order to help the bottom line—to financially help the company.
- Maybe you have a co-worker of the opposite gender who flirts with you.
- Maybe other coworkers mock morality and scoff at your view of Biblical marriage as being between one man and one woman.
In those moments of truth what do you do? Do you speak up? Do you stand up for the truth—with gentleness and respect of course—but do you stand up? Esther stood up and in so doing she showed true courage. You see, Esther really did have good reason to fear approaching her husband, the king. For anyone—even the queen—to infringe upon the king’s privacy unbidden was tantamount to treason. To enforce this law a squad of men armed with axes stood about the throne ready to hack the unbidden guests down unless the king in his mercy extended the golden scepter to restrain them. So Esther’s anxiety was not misplaced. And, the king had not summoned Esther for 30 days, so she was right to wonder how much influence she’d have with him at that moment. But, Mordecai wisely pointed out that she was not brought to this position in life to accumulate an exquisite wardrobe and precious gems and exotic fragrances. God’s providence was at work in putting her in this position!
Now, up until this point, Esther has been fairly passive. As per Mordecai’s instructions she hadn’t even told anyone that she was a Jew but now she acted on her trust in God’s provision. She asked Mordecai to gather the Jews for a serious three day fast—no food or water during this time. She pledged to do the same. In other words, she prepared herself spiritually for this task.
And then, armed with the courage that only time alone with God can give, she put on her royal robes and went to the king—to his inner court—and waited for Xerxes to see her. Imagine what went through her mind as she waited. Is it going to be life or death? Well, the king saw her and mercifully reached out his scepter. She would live at least for the moment. In chapter 5, verse 3 he said, “What is it, Queen Esther? What is your request? It shall be given to you even to the half of my kingdom.” Now you have to read between the lines here. His statement was really “king talk” for, “What do you want? I’m in a good mood today.” In other words, it was kind of an exaggeration. If Esther would have said, “Okay Xerxes, I’ll take the northern half of your kingdom,” his tune would have changed real fast. Xerxes was just spouting king talk…more on the level of, “Would you like to be in charge of the remote control tonight?”…that kind of deal…so at this point Esther couldn’t blurt out, “I’d like to have you revoke the unalterable law of the Medes and the Persians and execute your chief of staff please.” Instead she wisely said, “I’m hosting a banquet…and I’d like for you and Haman to come.”
He agreed and the banquet went great. In my mind they had flounder stuffed with crab imperial from Phillips Seafood and baked potatoes slathered with butter and cheese and bacon bits. But whatever they ate—they ate good and the king had a great time and as he was drinking and feeling good he again said to his queen, “What is your petition, it shall be granted to you. Even to half of my kingdom.” And once again Esther showed her God-given wisdom. In verse 8 of chapter 5 she said, “This is my petition and request: if I have won the king’s favor and if it pleases the king to GRANT my petition and fulfill my request.” Which was a way of saying, “If you want to say YES to what I have to ask you…then let the king and Haman come tomorrow to the banquet that I shall prepare for them, and then I will do as the king has said.” In other words, “Tomorrow at the next party, I’ll tell you what it is that I want.” See, Esther had been so skillful that the king had pretty much already agreed to her request before he even heard it—amazing boldness and wisdom on her part. The prayers and fasting of Esther and her people were paying off!
Well, even Haman had enjoyed that FIRST banquet and on the way home people were bowing to him right and left but then he encountered Mordecai who refused to bow and that just ruined his day. So when he got home he moped about the house and told his wife, “I’ve got all this going for me. I’m #2 in power in the kingdom. I’m tremendously wealthy. Why…I’ve just come from a private banquet with the king and queen and they’ve invited me back tomorrow night but all this does me no good as long as I see that Jew, Mordecai, sitting at the king’s gate.” Well, his wife suggested that he would feel better if he would build a gallows and have Mordecai impaled on it and that brightened his mood. So, he instructed the workers to build one 75 feet high for just that purpose. And they worked all night on the project—constructing the biggest gallows ever! Well, that night the king couldn’t sleep (probably because of all the hammering and sawing going on over at Haman’s house!) So he woke his servants and ordered them to read to him. And they selected a real, sleep-inducing book, The Annals of the King! which would as thrilling as reading the phone book but for some reason they began to read a very exciting portion the chapter that told of the time Mordecai saved the king from assassination. When they read that excerpt, Xerxes asked if Mordecai had ever been honored for this brave act and they said “NO,” so he had to do something. Otherwise it would be a blot on his kingly pay-back record. By this time it was early in the morning and the king asked, “Who is in the court?” And Haman was there bright and early to ask permission to use the gallows he had built on Mordecai. So Haman was brought in and the king said to him, “I need to pick your brain about something Haman…What shall be done for the man to whom the king wishes to honor?” (Esther 6:6)
Now this is where the book of Esther gets really good. To get the full effect, picture this like a play and Haman is now doing a stage whisper just to the crowd such that the other character—the king—can’t hear. Haman whispers to us, “Who would the king wish to honor more than me? Of course he must mean me! I better make this really good because I get to write my own check.” So Haman turned and said to the king, “If you really want to honor ‘someone’ then let him wear one of your robes and crowns and sit on one of your horses and have someone parade him through the streets saying this is how ‘someone’ whom the king honors is treated.” And the king said, “That is a good idea! I like it because I want to honor—MORDECAI! And Haman, you be the one to parade him through the streets!” Imagine Haman’s humiliation!
That night was Esther’s second banquet and Haman probably just picked at his food which in my mind was catered by Riccuiti’s just kidding again but Haman picked at the delicacies on his plate after a day of being forced to honor his sworn enemy. Well, at least the king had a good time and once again he said, “Okay, you’ve been fattening me up long enough Esther. What’s your request? Even half the kingdom.” Xerxes was not a real original guy—same deal every time, “even half my kingdom…” Well the time for Esther to speak up had come and with the amazing wisdom and boldness that only comes from utter dependence on God, she informed the king that she and her people were about to be destroyed. The king said, “What? By whom?!” And here again she showed her daring because she didn’t even blink as she replied, “By a foe and an enemy THIS WICKED HAMAN!” Well, the king got up in rage and stomped out onto the balcony and when he did Haman threw himself on the couch where Esther was reclining…intending to beg for mercy…but he apparently tripped on a Persian rug and landed on top of Esther. And at this point the king walked back in and saw Haman on the couch with Esther struggling to get out from beneath him and said, “Will you even molest my queen?”
At this point one of king’s “yes-men” eunuchs stepped up and said, “Hey Xerxes there’s a gallows 75 feet high outside that Haman made for Mordecai”And the king said, “Hang Haman on it!” At this point Proverbs 11:8 comes to mind which says, “The righteous man is rescued from trouble, and it comes on the wicked instead.”
Well, Haman’s estate was given to Esther who gave it to Mordecai and he eventually took Haman’s place as #2 in the kingdom and whereas the edict allowing the Jews to be killed could not be rescinded, Xerxes consented to another edict giving them the right to defend themselves.
And they did and because they did no Jews were even hurt when the 13th day of the 12th month rolled around! To this day Jews celebrate this event in a festival in February or March which they call PURIM, based on the Persian word for “lots” which you should remember is “PUR.”
Now, there is a great deal that we can learn from the adventures of this woman of the Bible. You could preach an entire sermon series on Esther’s life but in the time remaining I want to point out just two powerful truths for us to take with us today and the first is this:
(1) God is at work in our lives, even when we can’t see Him at work.
Scholars have pointed out that God’s name is not even mentioned in this little book of the Bible and that’s true but His sovereign actions are on every page! I like how Matthew Henry puts it:“…though the NAME of God be not in [Esther], the FINGER of God is directing many minute events for the bringing about of His people’s deliverance.” God was obviously acting behind the scenes. He’s dealing the “cards” in this story through a number of seeming coincidences. Let’s review them:
- Esther being chosen as queen over all the other 126 beautiful candidates
- Mordecai discovering the plot to kill the king
- the casting of lots for the day to kill the Jews resulting in a date LATE in the year, which gave Mordecai and Esther plenty of time to act
This “coincidence” reminds me of Proverbs 16:33 which says, “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.”
- Another example of God’s working behind the scenes was the king’s enthusiastic welcome to Esther after ignoring her for a month
- as was his patience with Esther in permitting her to hold two banquets before she made her request.
- And what about the kings’ insomnia that brought to light Mordecai’s deed of kindness.
- Or the scribes just happening to turn to that part of THE ANNALS OF THE KING.
- or Xerxes’ apparent lapse of memory that led him to honor Mordecai…one of the Jews he had agreed to slay.
We could go on listing unexplainable acts that in hindsight reveal the activity of God. And, these crucial, pivotal parts of the story are not just coincidences. They are God at work! Someone has defined a “coincidence” as “a miracle for which God chooses to remain anonymous” and that is certainly seen in this book! You know, many times we THINK that God is absent that He is not involved in our lives because miracles seem to be so rare these days but Esther’s story shows us that God is just as active in the mundane things of life as He is in the miracles. He is behind the scenes of our life directing things. God may be invisible but He is always invincible. He is present in every scene and movement of our days. We need to learn to REST in this fact! We may not see Him at work—but He ALWAYS is!
Scientists tell us that humans can only see about 30 percent of the light spectrum whereas honeybees and homing pigeons can detect ultraviolet light waves that are invisible to us. And in the supernatural realm, our vision is even more limited. We get only occasional glimpses of that unseen world. So it follows then that just because we aren’t able to SEE the activity of God doesn’t mean it’s He’s not active. And if you ever feel that God is silent or hidden in your life, remember Esther’s story and the words of 2 Cor. 5:7 where it says, “We walk by faith not by sight.” Never doubt the presence and activity of God—no matter how tough life gets!
(2) And then the second thing this story teaches is…the power…the potential impact…of one person.
Look. what Esther—ONE young woman—was able to do! God used her to save an entire race!And we need to read and re-read this story because in our overpopulated mass-media driven world, it is easy to underestimate our power as individuals. We wonder what we alone can contribute to the overwhelming needs of our world. Well, as this story illustrates, one person can make a HUGE difference! I like the way Edward Everett Hale addresses this point. He writes:
“I am only one….but I am still one…I cannot do everything….but still I can do something and because I cannot do everything…I will not refuse to do the something that I can do!” History is full of accounts of individuals who have made a difference. Think of the decisive military battles that have turned on the axis of one heroic person. Think of the contributions of the individual lives of artists from Michelangelo and da Vinci to Brahms and Beethoven. Think of the scientists, the inventors, the explorers, the technological experts who have literally changed the course of history. Think of the impact on the church that has been made by individuals like Augustine, Bunyan, Luther, Calvin, Wesley, Edwards, Spurgeon, Moody, and Graham to name only a few.
You know—in reading The Story this past year, I haven’t seen that many stories about God using a mass or throng of people to do His will. But what I have seen from Genesis to Esther is God’s hand on the lives of INDIVIDUALS who made history because they did what was right—regardless of the outcome! 2 Chronicles 16:9 says, “For the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart (singular) is completely His.” In Jeremiah 5:1 God gives him this command, “Look through the streets of Jerusalem, and take note. Seek her open squares, to see if you can find a man, if there is ONE who does justice, who seeks truth…” In Ezekiel 22:30 God says, “And I searched for a man among them who should build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land, that I should not destroy it but I found no ONE.” Well, this little book of the Bible records that God used one woman who was willing to make a stand AND HE WILL USE YOU if you let Him.
The world has yet to see what God can do with ONE person who is totally committed to Him. Think of where you work, where you live, where you shop. It is no accident that you are where you are, so ask yourself the same question Mordecai asked Esther, “Who knows but that YOU, one individual, have come to this position for such a time as this!” The people in your sphere of influence that little “congregation” that God has given you, needs you to be salt and light to speak the truth in love. To guide them to faith in God, our world desperately needs individuals like you and me to be willing to follow Esther’s example and stand in the gap for God. Remember all it takes for evil to prosper is for good people to do nothing and these days many good people ARE doing nothing.
This morning many of us may need to make commitments to God to be as courageous as Esther. Remember, it is no accident that you are where you are God has been at work! And if you are here this morning and are not a Christian then I believe that also is no accident God has acted maybe behind the scenes to bring you to this place so that you can have an opportunity to come to faith in Him. Whatever your decision, to profess faith in Christ, to join this church, even to make a public commitment to stand up for God in some way, I invite you to make any of these decisions public by walking forward and sharing them with me as we stand now and sing.