Mordecai: A Real Stand-up Guy

Mordecai was the kind of guy you’d like to have for a neighbor. Mordecai was someone you could depend on no matter what happened. He was always available, no matter the job.

After his Jewish parents were exiled to Persia (present-day Iran) under King Nebuchadnezzar, Mordecai called Persia home.  When his uncle and aunt died, leaving their daughter, Esther, orphaned, Mordecai became her guardian and father figure.

Somehow, Mordecai had risen through the ranks to land a government job.  He was a gatekeeper at the royal palace. Think Secret Service without the sunglasses or TSA without the X-ray machines!

In an unexpected turn of events, Esther won the Miss Persia contest and became the next Queen of Persia.  Now, Mordecai’s job was to protect both Esther and the King.

One ordinary, standing-at-attention day at the gate, Mordecai overheard men who ranked higher than him speak of a plot to kill King Xerxes. Mordecai quickly followed protocol and reported the treason.  Hold that unrewarded circumstance for now because there was another problem.  His name was Haman.

Haman was next in command under the King and made sure everyone knew it. When he rode into the royal courtyard, he demanded that everyone bow to him.  This was not an easy, bend-at-the-waist bow.  This was a get-down-on-your-knees-and-bow-your-head-to-the-ground bow. Haman wanted more than respect; he wanted worship.

But Mordecai wouldn’t bow. Obedient, respectful, servant-minded Mordecai would not give to Haman the honor that only belonged to the one, true God.  He stuck out in his standing position while everyone else made themselves into a pallet on the ground.

Haman tried to get rid of this disrespectful servant and had a gallows built for Mordecai’s execution.  But in an ironic twist that only God could have created, the king finally recognized Haman for the self-serving, overrated advisor that he was and the discovery left Haman hanging from his own rope, literally.

There’s more to the story, and you can read it for yourself in the Old Testament book of Esther.  However, this is enough to learn some important lessons from Mordecai:

• Even if you are the only one left standing, never bow to anyone or anything that doesn’t represent who God is or what God wants.

• God can use us as reliable representatives for Him, especially when we think nobody notices.

• Always use your influence God’s way and for His purposes.

Mordecai could have been a silent witness for God.  However, he would have been a victim of a genocide that never had to take place. The protection Esther needed and the rescue their people needed depended on one man’s quiet but very effective obedience.

Mordecai didn’t stand out of protest; he stood giving reverence to God.  His obedience got the right person’s attention. 

How might your obedience make a difference no one else can make?  You’ll never know without living the obedience God deserves and letting Him use it anyway He wants.