Noah was such a one. Noah fulfilled God's mission for Him. God was going to bring a flood to the whole world. God is never willing that any perish despite the wickedness of mankind (2 Peter 3:3-10). God provided a man, the righteous one of the lot, and a 'rescue' boat, commonly referred to as "Noah's Ark".
Noah preached for about 75 years while he was building the ark. The ark door was opened to one and all. People had ample time to go aboard while Noah, and likely his sons, were stocking up on food and while the animals were marching two by two and seven by seven into the ark. Sadly, only eight souls were saved from The Flood. That was not God's fault!
Nor was it Noah's. He had faithfully preached and built the ark. He was God's "man for such a time as this" (Genesis 5-9).
God often brought His man or woman up out of seeming obscurity. Joseph, the favored son of his father Jacob, was such a one. He got sold by his jealous half-brothers to Canaanites who in turn sold him as a slave to the Egyptian Potiphar (Genesis 37).
Potiphar's wife tried to seduce Joseph but when he refused to take the bait, she yelled, "Rape!" and got him thrown into prison (Genesis 39). Joseph was forgotten about for many years but he clung to God and honored Him. In the end, God honored Joseph. He was brought up out of that prison to a VIP post, second only to Pharoah, the king of the land (Genesis 41).
Joseph had been able to tell Pharoah the meaning of his troubling dreams. Pharoah then found Joseph to be "a discreet and wise" man and put him in charge of gathering mega amounts from the bountiful grain harvests of the years of plenty to be kept in storehouses for the coming seven years of extreme famine.
Not only were the Egyptians fed throughout those famine years but peoples from surrounding areas as well. That included Joseph's own brothers, their families and his father.
Joseph told his brothers that what they had done they had meant for harm but God turned it into good. He said that it was God who had sent him there...
"to save lives...and to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance" (Genesis 45:5-7).
God, through Joseph, was able to "save" thousands from starvation and death!
Moses was one of God's most famous and well-known persons of the time. A reluctant man of the hour yet when you stop and think of all he did with God's help it's totally amazing.
Imagine leading hundreds of thousands of people tramping through the wilderness for forty years (Exodus 12:37-38). Originally Moses's "job" was going to be three days to go out into the desert and worship God and then come back to Egypt. Even at that you could understand Moses's hesitancy. Yet when you read the account of God's rescue plan for His people of Israel in getting out of the bondage of Egyptian slavery, you see Moses was instrumental in making it happen.
There was miraculous, monumental movement of millions by Moses, the mighty man of God "for such a time as this".
King David did not start out as royalty. He was "just a shepherd boy"; the baby of the family whom nobody seemed to take much notice of, even by his own father. Yet God had His eye upon David and brought him up out of incertitude and set him upon the throne of Israel!
The Israelites had been in their Promised Land for many years. However under the previous king, King Saul, the people had already begun to forget God and all He had done for them. Saul had been the "people's choice" (1 Samuel 9; 10:24).
King David was God's choice (1 Samuel 16). David, prior to becoming king, had done many great exploits, the famous David and Goliath story being one of them (1 Samuel 17). He had rescued the people from the giant and Israel got victory that day over their enemies. David had had many such successful battle victories because he feared God and God honored him.
David was a man of integrity for the most part; one who could and did repent of his great sin and seek God's forgiveness. David became faithful to God and depended mightily upon Him.
He brought the people of his kingdom to focus on God and led them in worship and sacrifice. Although this is not exactly a rescue story despite his many victories in battle, he is one who set a godly example to his people. God honored that too and promised him a descendant upon his throne forever (1 Kings 9:5). He was in the lineage of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:5-6); the one great Rescuer to come. God's man for such a time as this.
When we think of big rescues and people being in the right place at the right time, we can never dismiss Queen Esther.
Queen Esther saved her people from annihilation. The wicked Haman had tricked King Xerxes, Queen Esther's husband, into signing a decree to wipe out all the Jews. Queen Esther saved the day.
With prayer, fasting of Esther, her maids and all the Jews, coupled with the great wisdom from her uncle Mordecai and from God Himself, Queen Esther approached the king in fear and trembling. It was a fearful thing to enter the king's presence uninvited, yet she did so out of obedience to her uncle and love of her people. She also knew that one way or another she would not be spared the massacre.
Queen Esther's uncle Mordecai put it to her, you are in such a unique position under such unique circumstances,
"who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?" (Esther 4:14 NIV)
We know the wonderful outcome. Tragedy was averted and the
"...month of sorrow was turned into joy...and ...a day of celebration" ensued (Esther 9:22 NIV).
Daniel and his three friends prevented a slaughter of all the king's wise men and of themselves as well.
King Nebuchadnezzar had dreams that trouble him and he demanded an interpretation. Furthermore, he would not divulge the nature of the dreams. On pain of death, "the magicians, enchanters, sorcerers and astrologers" (Daniel 2:2) were told to come up with the dream and the interpretation.
They were stymied and terrified.
Daniel learned of the dire predicament and brought the matter to his three friends for prayer and fasting and contemplation. They beseeched God to reveal both the dreams and the interpretation and for mercy (Daniel 2).
God granted them their request and revealed the mystery to Daniel in a vision. Daniel then was brought before the king and told him the dreams and explained the interpretation. The execution of the wise men was stayed.
Daniel gave credit to God and praised Him for the revelation of the king's mystery dreams. Truly Daniel and friends were God's men for such a time as this.
Down throughout the ages of time, God had his men and women in place for his great and mighty purposes. They were all prototypes of His Master plan that He was going to unfold.
He was going to send His one and only son Jesus to the world to provide salvation for one and all. He did send. Jesus came. Jesus died on the cross and shed his blood for the atonement of our souls. He rose again from the dead for our justification (Romans 422-25).
God's great rescue plan, rescued us from the consequences of our sin, the consequence of suffering and death and hell. What a mighty God we serve!
Let us remember on Lord's Days especially, when we take the bread and drink the cup of remembrance, what a victory Jesus secured for us. He truly was, and still is, God's Man for such a time as this!
~ERC April 2018~
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