THE MAIN IDEA
God has given us fasting and prayer for such a time as this. Fasting always goes hand in hand with prayer, and the point of fasting, at least in part, is to remind ourselves of the urgency of the matter at hand and to remind ourselves that God is the One who is in control. The text shows us three reasons we should fast and pray.

FAST AND PRAY TO SAVE LOST SOULS
Esther risked the possibility of death whether she went to the king to make the appeal for mercy for the Jewish people or whether she did nothing. If she did nothing, however, all her family and countless numbers of Jewish people would have been exterminated. In a similar kind of way, the certainty of hell for every single human being was sealed when Adam and Eve chose to rebel against God. And no one can avoid the certainty of hell just because they were born into a Christian family or because they attend church regularly and serve or even because they went to seminary to become a pastor or missionary or minister or whatever. The only way to avoid the certainty of hell is by God’s grace and through faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ—a faith that forever connects us into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ as Savior and as Lord of our lives. As the church, we are called to support and love one another through earnest prayer and fasting, when called for. But we should not forget about the certainty of hell for those who do not call upon Jesus as Savior and Lord.

FAST AND PRAY TO SUBMIT TO GOD’s WILL
Mordecai tells Esther that if she does nothing, God will save the Jewish people somehow. However, many lives would be lost, including her own family, since Haman was targeting Mordecai and his family. Mordecai points out, furthermore, that God must have placed her in her position as queen exactly to help save the Jewish people. This may be one of the clearest examples of the relationship between God’s sovereignty and human responsibility in the entire Bible. That God is sovereign means that there is no such thing as coincidence in this world. Everything that happens in our lives is part of the unfolding of God sovereign plan of salvation to fill this earth with His glory in Jesus’s name through God-fearing, God-honoring, God-worshiping, God-loving communities and families— the church. God has brought every single one of us into existence and has led each of us to this very place at this very time, according to God’s sovereign grace and love and according to God’s sovereign plan of salvation for the world in Christ Jesus, for such a time as this—that we might pray and even fast for such a time as this.

FAST AND PRAY TO STRENGTHEN CHRIST’s CHURCH
After Mordecai made his case, Esther knew that he was right, and she knew what she had to do. But what really stands out—besides her courage, of course—is how she called upon the help and support of her community to fast and pray with her. And the word of God shows us again and again how community power is God’s way. It pleases God when His people gather together to call upon His name to pray and even to fast together. God is all about together. There is much to pray about, and fasting, when done in faith, will strengthen us.

Discussion: What is one urgent matter in this world, in this community, or in your life that would call for prayer—and even fasting?