I think we, as a people, generally have gotten away from the Word when it comes to matters such as the racial tension surrounding the ” Jena 6 ” and the town of Jena, La., especially. What I believe in my heart needs to happen is every Christian, regardless of color, should study the book of Esther. I’m saying every Christian, but especially black brothers and sisters. We should turn to the Bible for answers regarding the most effective ways to confront problems of this magnitude.
In other words, marches and rallies don’t hurt. I have nothing against them. But a greater emphasis on Christians calling for prayer and fasting for God’s guidance and His favor, I believe, helps tremendously in getting unrighteous laws, or decrees, reversed.
For instance, I believe strongly that the reversal of the court decision to try ” Jena 6 ” teen Mychal Bell as an adult in the beating of another student would’ve been elusive had it not been for the many Christians who were on hand in Jena at the rally praying for a righteous outcome, and the many more who prayed and fasted from their homes and churches in their own cities and states, including those from right here in southeast Texas.
The Associated Press even quoted Reed Walters, the prosecutor in the Jena 6 case, as saying that Jesus Christ is to thank for keeping the Sept. 20 protests peaceful.
“I firmly believe that had it not been for the direct intervention of the Lord Jesus Christ, a disaster would have happened,” he said. “The Lord Jesus Christ put His influence on the people, and they responded accordingly.”
More of us should use the book of Esther as our blueprint for not only a fair outcome for Bell, who now will be tried in juvenile court, and his fellow defendants, but for righteousness across the board throughout the U.S. justice system.
The book of Esther is more about some unknown Jewish woman who happened to be in the right place at the right time. It is a decree happily ever after.
The book of Esther is about a decree, a law, that was signed and backed by the king that legalized the extermination of a whole race of people-the Jews.
God, Himself, orchestrated moves to get this woman selected from a multitude of women to become queen after the first queen lost her position.
The purpose? To save his people from legalized genocide. What am I saying here? To make a long (albeit true) story short, let me say this (and you can meditate on the book for yourself and let my meaning drive home in your spirit):
Esther, after much counsel from her cousin Mordecai, who raised her after she was orphaned, used her position as queen to soften her husband’s (the king’s) heart and stance on the decree that he’d just made.
In other words, because of Queen Esther’s boldness and her “if I perish, I perish” attitude, she positioned herself to be the instrument through which God, Himself, would move on the king’s heart and cause him to reverse the decision that he’s ALREADY made legal.
How did Esther position herself to be used by God to have a conviction overturned? She sent word out to God’s chosen people, the Jews, to fast and pray without ceasing for three days.
By the time that third day of prayer and fasting had run their course, God had stirred up within Queen Esther the boldness and spiritual power it took to arrange a meeting with her husband, the king, and tell him about the wickedness of his right-hand man, Haman, who had influenced the king’s earlier decision to wipe out the Jews.
What happens in this real-life story? God gives Esther favor with the king. The king not only brings forth a judgment that supercedes his earlier judgment against the Jews, but the author of the plot to exterminate a race of people, Haman, ended up being hanged by the same gallows that he’d had set up for God’s people (Esther 8:1-15).
What am I calling for? I’m calling for the saints of God to rise up and continue to fast and pray on the behalf of the Jena 6 and others on the receiving end of a misapplication of justice.
The Bible has proven time and again that the Word of God can, and will, reverse decisions made by unjust judges (and/or juries). So, pray and fast.
While we’re doing that, God moves on the hearts of unjust judges, prosecuting attorneys and jurors, influencing their decisions to rule with fairness (Proverbs 21:1). And He moves in the spirits of defense attorneys, giving them the wisdom and the understanding needed to present effective arguments that elicit just outcomes.
And when all is said and done, God gets the glory.