“It’s My Party”, No Vashti It Isn’t! – A Call To Biblical Discipleship.

Read Time: 4 Minutes

Lesley Gore’s “It’s My Party” was a 1963 party anthem, topping the charts in many countries including the US Billboard Hot 100. What does a party song have to do with discipleship? This is about a royal party!

The Book of Esther opens with King Xerxes’ banquet. At some point he summoned for Queen Vashti, to which she declined. The Bible never told us why she did. Seeing how the Book of Esther eventually played out, it would be correct to say it was a sovereign act of God to elevate Esther into the palace.

Nonetheless, what was going on Queen Vashti’s head, her real reason for declining? Especially as there was no indication of any prior or ongoing disputation with the king? In fact, she was hosting a banquet for the women as part of the king’s banquet?

This leaves many Bible students and scholars filling in the gap. From modesty reasons to cultural reasons to her background and historical reasons and everything in between.

However, there are those who theorize that her reason may not be as complicated as it is often made to be. It is simply because she had her own banquet going and doesn’t want to be pulled from her guests. She may as well have been vibing to Lesley Gore’s “It’s My Party” or a similar Persian tune in her head! Why would she leave where she was the Alpha and Omega to be a mere Mu and Nu in someone else’s alphabet?  Why would she leave where she was the entire room to be a centrepiece?

Which would mean she forgot one thing, whose party it really was! In the first place, her banquet was only happening because of the king’s banquet.

Many, very many possess the Vashti complex, forgetting whose party it really is.

God gave you a job, a business. To the glory of God and your credit, you have lived as a good Christian witness. However, God does not dare interfere with your work commitments. Not only that, because of the demand of work, your personal and corporate fellowship time with God are now nonexistent or spasmodic at best. Whose party is it anyway?

God blesses you with resources, dutifully and faithfully you pay your tithe and offering but God dares not upend your budget by asking for anything extra. Whose party is it anyway?

God gave you a ministry and you have heeded Paul’s admonition to Archippus in fulfilling it. In doing so you have become like Martha who was distracted with too much serving. Thereby, making a casualty of the one thing that is necessary. Whose party is it anyway?

Lastly, God gave you your life, you have done well planning it in the godliest manner as possible, making God first in everything. However, you know, God also knows that He dares not suggest anything outside of your carefully well laid out plans.

At least you have made God first, you have that box ticked. But, right there is the problem: Jesus never asked to be made first, but rather to be made all! The two positions are quite unique. In one, we sequence him first, in the other there is no sequencing, he is the Base-10, just him “all and in all! “Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it” (Luke 9:23-24 NIV).

In fact, in Luke 14:26-27, He was even more stark, requesting that you ‘hate’ your own life! How then would he want to be first in something he already told you to ‘hate’? Luke 14:26-27 NIV: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.”

Paul didn’t say I put God first daily, but, I die daily. But wait, didn’t Jesus tell us to seek first the kingdom of God? Yes, He did! Here is the nuance though, you seek the kingdom but accept the Lordship of Jesus Christ, becoming His Love Slave. In any case, if you indeed die to yourself, seeking the kingdom first comes in effortlessly.

Vashti lost her queenship because she wrongly equated hosting a banquet in king’s honour to the king himself, that error cost her dearly.

“For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again” (2 Corinthians‬ ‭5‬:‭14‬-‭15‬ ‭NIV‬‬).

Whose party is it anyway? Whose life, whose time, whose resource are they? Not yours for sure! Hope that helps?

– Ola Bosun Ajidahun

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