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“He used his authority thinking about others” (10 mins.)
Let's imagine an employee of an important company, who receives news, being told that from now on he will no longer be an employee, but rather a manager of said company. Isn't it a 180 degree turn? As we can see, it is a very radical change. However, if said employee does not take measures to best handle this important responsibility, he or she may react like many people who have authority in this world. And if he takes the respective measures, he will be able to use his authority thinking about the interests of others.
Precisely in this speech from Treasures of the Bible that is titled "Did he use his authority thinking about others?" We are going to talk about Mordecai, who went from being an ordinary person to having great authority over others and how he used that authority thinking about others and not about himself. What do you think if we analyze in light of the Bible, what it says about the authority that Mordecai had, in the text of Esther 9:4. Please accompany me with the reading and do not close his Bible or his electronic device, because we are going to continue analyzing this chapter, he says like this:
LET'S READ ESTHER 9:4.
He had received much authority in the king's house. Mordecai's fame continued to grow throughout the provinces, as his authority was increasing.
And why do we say that Mordecai received much authority? Let us remember that Mordecai, upon replacing Haman as Prime Minister, received the King's signet ring to seal the documents of the State. Imagine the degree of authority that Mordecai had. It is as if a president of a country told a person that from now on he has the right to change the laws of said country.
So we can see that Mordecai had a lot of authority over the others, since as we already know Esther placed Mordecai over the house of Haman that the king had given to her. After that Mordecai used the king's authorization to issue the decree giving the Jews the right to defend themselves, thereby counteracting the previous decree.
Imagine how the Jews must have felt, since this decree was a sign of liberation and joy, for them and for many people who were against the previous decree. So much so that many of the Persian empire allied themselves with the Jews and when the 13th of Adar arrived, that day their laws came into effect, and the Jews were prepared. And since it was already a decree and because Mordecai had a high position, the authorities sided with them.
The happiness of the Jews was very great, since with the approval of Esther, Mordecai ordered that the festival of the 14th and 15th days of Adar "The days of slurry" be celebrated annually, with the aim of rejoicing, making a great banquet and give gifts to each other including the poor. And as the second ruler of the empire, Mordecai had the respect of God's dedicated people and the Jews, which encouraged him to continue working for their good.
Although it is true that Mordecai had a lot of authority and had the power to make many decrees for the good of his people, that authority that he had did not come from him, nor from Esther, nor from Haman, but from Jehovah. That's why Mordecai sets up a party. And what was the reason Mordecai established an annual festival? Let's please see now, the same Chapter 9 of the book of Esther, but this time verses 20 to 22, and 26-28, and if you didn't find it, please accompany me with the reading, it says like this......
LET'S READ ESTHER 9:20-22,26-28.
Mordecai recorded these events and sent official letters to all the Jews in all of King Ahasuerus's provinces, both near and far. 21 He commanded them to celebrate the 14th and 15th days of Adar every year, 22 for those were the days on which the Jews rested from their enemies. That month his pain became joy, and his mourning became a day of celebration. They had to celebrate those days with feasting and joy, and they had to send food to each other and give gifts to the poor.
Hence they called these days Purim, from the word pur. In view of what Mordecai had written in the letter, what they had seen, and what had happened to them, 27 the Jews pledged that they, their descendants, and all those who joined them would celebrate those two days without fail and do what was written about those days every year on the established dates. 28 All families of each generation had to remember and celebrate those days in all provinces and in all cities. The Jews would never stop celebrating those days of Purim, and their descendants would never stop remembering and celebrating them.
Nowadays, the festival of Purim is still celebrated, but as some commentators say, it is now a more profane festival than a religious one. And sometimes this festival is characterized by excesses, But this festival instituted in the first era by Mordecai and Esther was not like that, since they served the true God Jehovah, And the purpose for which Mordecai and Esther established this festival was solely for honor the only true God, Jehovah.
And both Esther and Mordecai and the people in general were very clear about this. Since the liberation of the Jews at that time was only attributed to Jehovah God, and why are we so sure of that? Why the issue was favorable due to Mordecai's integrity in his exclusive worship of Jehovah. Let us remember that Haman was probably an Amalekite, and as we well know, Jehovah had cursed and condemned Amalek to destruction. And with his actions Mordecai demonstrated that he respected God's decree by not bowing down to Haman.
Another reason is because the words of Mordecai and Esther indicate that they trusted not in their own strength but in a superior force for the salvation of the Jews. Furthermore, Esther's fasting before appearing before the king to make his first request shows that he turned to God for help.
As we can see that Mordecai decreed this holiday solely with the objective of honoring God. Both Esther and Mordecai were spiritual people, who in their worst moments trusted Jehovah completely, and as we well know, Jehovah rewarded them greatly. And how else did Mordecai use his authority thinking about others? Let's please read the book of Esther, but now Chapter 10 and verse 3. It says the following:
LET'S READ ESTHER 10:3.
Because Mordecai the Jew was the most important man in the kingdom after King Ahasuerus. He was great * among the Jews and highly respected by all his people. He worked for the good of his people and sought the well-being of * all their descendants.
Mordecai could easily send someone to do the work, but as we can see, according to the text read, despite being the most important man in the kingdom, the text says that he worked for his people and not only that, but he sought the well-being of each one of them. What a great example for each of us.
And what lesson can the brothers who have a certain authority in the congregation learn? As we can see in our activity guide for this week, the brothers who have a certain authority within the congregation strive to imitate Mordecai. And how do they do it? The image helps us answer that question, since there we can see how a brother who has a certain authority in the congregation is helping an elderly sister in preaching. And we see in the brother's face a genuine interest in helping our sister who no longer has the same physical strength as before.
And analyzing the image a little we can see that the brother, having authority, could send a publisher to do this work, but we see that he, in imitation of Mordecai, is using his authority thinking personally of others. We can give an example. Let's imagine that a good friend asks us to take care of an object that he values very much and that cost him a lot of money. Wouldn't we be very careful? In the same way, God asks the elderly to take care of something that he values greatly. Who are we referring to? to the sheep or members of the congregation. To Jehovah they are of great value.
Jehovah loves them so much that he paid a very high price for them: the precious blood of his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. There is no way there could be a higher price! The elders remember this with humility and care for Jehovah's sheep with affection.
So my dear brothers, the brothers who have a certain authority in the congregation must strive to follow the example of Mordecai, since he set the example for us by trusting in Jehovah and demonstrating exclusive devotion, he transmitted that to the Jews and took advantage of His authority to work for the good of God's people, just as elders and overseers do today.
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