Purim: a time for thanksgiving and a call to intercession

Did you see the full moon last night? It's the Jewish feast of Purim this weekend, a celebration of the salvation of the Jewish people from the satanic attack of their enemies during their exile in Babylon in the 6th century BC. The story is recorded in the book of Esther, a young Jewish lady who was married to Xerxes, the king of the Persia. One night she put her life on the line to appeal to her husband to spare her life, and the lives of her people. Xerxes, whose empire stretched all the way from Egypt to India (!), could not annul the decree to kill all the Jews in the empire but he did authorize them to defend themselves on the day planned for their extermination -- and even to kill their attackers. Thus the Jews survived one of the greatest threats to their existence, and now celebrate their victory in the feast of Purim.

Purim is a time for us to read the book of Esther. It has incredible relevance in our day, even as radical Islamists seek to exterminate the Jewish people worldwide. Read these words by Hassan Nasrallah, Secretary General of Hezbollah:

We have discovered how to hit the Jews where they are most vulnerable. The Jews love life, so that is what we will take from them. We are going to win, because they love life and we love death. [Source]

Purim is a time for us to pray for the Jewish people to come to know their own Messiah, Yeshua (Jesus). Circumcision is not enough; it never saved anyone from his sins. People need Jesus! Jews are loved by God on account of the patriarchs, but they are enemies of the gospel for our (Gentiles') sake (Romans 11:28) and unsaved (11:14). This is the Church that has persecuted them for 19 centuries, instead of loving them and interceding for them as it should have.

Purim is a time for us to pray for Messianic Jews (Jewish believers in Jesus). They are generally rejected by mainstream Judaism and by mainstream Christianity (unless the "de-Judaize" themselves by forsaking all things Jewish). Messianic Jews are facing increasing persecution, especially in Israel, as this short video shows.

Purim is a time for us to give thanks for the Jewish people, through whom we have received the Bible and the Saviour of the world! It was with Israel that the New Covenant was made (Jeremiah 31:31-34), and by their preaching to the Gentiles that we came to share in the wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:44). It is into the Olive Tree (Israel) that Christians have been grafted, connecting us to the blessings of Abraham (Romans 11:17), through whom all nations have been blessed (Genesis 18:18, 22:18, 26:4). Purim is a time for Christians to:

remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. (Ephesians 2:12-13)

Purim is a time for us to stand up for the rights of Jews to life and to their homeland, Israel. Esther put her life at risk to save her people. The ultimate outcome of this is that Jesus was born! Similarly, the Jews -- and particularly the religious establishment in Jerusalem -- have a crucial role to play in bringing about Jesus' return (Matthew 23:37-39). This is why Hitler was, and Ahmadinejad is, inspired by Satan to exterminate the Jews -- just like Haman in the story of Esther. Haman was hanged and you know what became of Hitler. Internationally, pressure is mounting for Christians to condemn Israel regarding the Palestinian conflict, but we who form the bride of the King are to speak up for Israel and to intercede for the Jews. If we fail to do so, deliverance for them will rise from another place, but we will have failed to fulfil God's calling on us. It is time for the Church to take up the challenge of Mordecai to Esther (4:13-14):

Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, "Do not think to yourself that in the king's palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews. For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?"