Esther: Living For God, in a Godless Culture
Esther 1:1-9
INTRODUCTION TO ESTHER
-For 60 years in a row the percentage of Christians in every American state has been decreasing.
-Some modern day prophets see this decline as evidence that the end is near…perhaps they’re right.
-Some experts and scholars say this is the historical trend of the gospel worldwide…the gospel comes and goes.
-The pessimists say…that God is judging our country for its sins…there might be some truth to that.
-The optimists say…that’s just more lost people for us to share the message of Jesus with!
-Whatever the explanation, the percentage of Christians in every American state has been decreasing for 60 years!
-Many of us who are trying to follow God feel overwhelmed at times by the godless culture that we live in.
-When I was a kid pastors would say, “This is a Christian nation.”
-But no one really believes that today.
-We are Christians, but it’s hard to be Christians in a world that seems contrary to everything we believe in.
-Our children are taught things at school that contradict our beliefs.
-The courts make decisions that don’t reflect our values.
-Television shows get raunchier and more graphic all the time.
-The breakdown of marriage and family in our land is epidemic.
-We can’t hardly let our kids spend the night at a friend’s house because we aren’t sure of what they’ll see, hear, watch, or dig up online!
-More and more Christians have a sense that we are the minority; the culture we live in doesn’t share our worldview, our values, or our faith in Jesus Christ.
-That can make us feel marginalized, angry, sad, overwhelmed, and can make us feel like just giving up on our faith.
-But Christians; this isn't a new thing. This is a normal thing.
-Historically the people of God have almost always been in the minority in their respective countries and cultures.
-Jesus and his disciples were branded, ostracized, and persecuted.
-Roman Christians were persecuted fiercely & killed for their beliefs.
-And even before Christ came; God’s people knew what it was like to “live for God in a godless culture.”
-That’s what we’re going to be studying as we head into the book of Esther these next couple months.
-Here are some things you need to know about the book of Esther:
• The author is unknown. (Mordecai)
• One of the last books written in OT.
• One of only two books in the Bible named after a woman.
• God is never mentioned in this book.
-The entire setting of Esther is so godless that God isn’t even mentioned in the account of what went on.
-Today we aren’t going to focus on Esther but another key character who is introduced in chap 1.
-It’s perfect that many of you are wearing football gear today.
-There is one necessary component for all serious armchair quarterbacks…an arm chair. A recliner! Men love their recliners
XERXES: A GODLESS KING who loved his armchair…more on that later.
VS 1 These events happened in the days of King Xerxes, who reigned over 127 provinces stretching from India to Ethiopia.
-Xerxes was the son of the ruthless Persian King Darius who had conquered most of the known world at that time.
-Darius, like most of the ancient kings, had a whole harem of wives and thus he had many children.
-Xerxes was the chosen son to be the heir to this massive kingdom.
-At the time of Esther’s story he was about 35 years old. (483BC)
-Xerxes was raised in luxury at the King’s palace.
-He was spoiled. He was concieted and extremly egostictical.
-He was a typical ancient king. He wasn’t elected by the people.
-His dad handed him the keys to a vast kingdom.
-He owned many nations, ruled over people who spoke many languages, had control over a vast army and had a god-like status over the people that he ruled.
-In fact, he gave himself the title “king of kings.”
-There’s someone else we know who rightfully owns that title, and I wouldn’t suggest calling yourself that! Lighting could strike!
-Xerxes had an amazing armchair…well it was a throne.
-And it was a very impressive, richly decorated throne.
-And he loved to sit in it. It may have even had heated seat and massage, we aren’t sure.
-It was carried on the shoulders of slaves so that wherever he went people had to look up on him and so he could look down on them.
-People were required to bow down as his throne passed buy.
-He would sit in that throne while his army would fight for him.
-He was hands down the most powerful man in the world.
-He was the leader of the largest, richest, most powerful nation in the history of the world at that time.
-What would it be like to live among the world’s most powerful people? -This is nothing unfamiliar to us. It is us!
-All around us we see people in positions of power and influence.
-We hear about the ultra-rich, and those elite people who rule in government, influence culture, and tell the rest of what we need to have, and buy, and do.
-We read about the exploits of those rich people, the tantrums of celebrities, the immoral activities of rock stars and rap stars, and those who consider themselves to be pretty darn impressive.
-Powerful people then and now think and live differently than we do.
-I dug up some quotes this week from ultra-famous/rich people
-The famous Beatles singer John Lennon once said, “Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink. We're more popular than Jesus now -- I don't know which will go first, rock & roll or Christianity."
-(they’re neck and neck but I’m putting my on Jesus lasting to the end)
-Mariah Carey "Whenever I watch TV and see those poor starving kids all over the world, I can't help but cry. I mean I'd love to be skinny like that but not with all those flies and death and stuff." Really?
-Madonna is quoted as saying, “I won’t be happy until I’m as famous as God.” (she might just fit in with old Xerxes!)
-Gwyneth Paltrow "I am who I am. I can't pretend to be somebody who makes $25,000 a year." Her life is so hard!
-Kanye West…“my greatest pain in life is that I will never be able to see myself perform live." And I share that pain…I too will never see Kanye…
-There have always been godless kings, rulers, & celebrities in our world
-Powerful people that have no clue how the little guys live.
-And living around those ancient Persian celebrities there were also Jews; God’s chosen people trying to worship the God in a foreign land and in a culture that knew nothing of their God.
-And the people trying to live for God were powerless to change all that.
VS 2 At that time Xerxes ruled his empire from his royal throne at the fortress of Susa.
-The fortress of Susa was only one of Xerxes’ palaces and it sat up on a hill…they always sat up on a hill so that people had to look up to them.
-These fortresses were the definition of wealth and opulence and they were heavily fortified against attacks.
-Have you ever heard of the immortals?
-Those guys were like the Navy Seals of Persia.
-They could kill you ten different ways with a paper clip before you could even get close to king Xerxes.
-I don’t know how tough they really were, but my personal policy is to try and avoid fights with people who are heavily armed and call themselves immortal.
-There were 10,000 of these guys and they were the personal body guards of Xerxes.
-Not three guys in suits with dark glasses and earpieces, 10,000 men with sharp objects.
-The separation between the common man and the king was so great that people worshipped these kings…surely they must be gods!
-As bad as we may think that we have it, imagine a culture where people believe that their king is an actually a god living among men.
-Imagine what’s it like when your king believes he is god?
-People were required to bow before his throne or be killed.
-Imagine that everyone around you is caught up in this godless culture?
PERSIA: A GODLESS CULTURE
VS 3 In the third year of his reign, he gave a banquet for all his nobles and officials. He invited all the military officers of Persia and Media as well as the princes and nobles of the provinces.
-Because the Middle East is the cradle of civilization most of the earth’s population lived there at that time…and Xerxes controlled all of it.
MAP -Susa is in modern day Iran…and Xerxes kingdom basically ran from Sudan all the way up to Pakistan today, all the way over to Greece.
-His empire extended over 3 million square miles.
-One of the awesome things about Esther is we have Bible characters taking part in well documented historical events.
-Archaeologists have found the building where Xerxes banquet was held
-And we can even speculate about why he held this party.
-This was to buy the affection of the government and military leaders before he started a war with the Greeks.
-So he threw a royal banquet for all the nobles and officials, military officers, and princes; he invited all the important people!
-There were an estimated 15,000 people in attendance.
-It was an all-expenses paid party. Xerxes banquet included housing, food, support staff, women, waiters, and a lot of wine.
VS 4 The celebration lasted 180 days—a tremendous display of the opulent wealth of his empire and the pomp and splendor of his majesty.
-He threw a party that last for 180 days….6 months.
-What’s the longest party you’ve been to? An all-day 4th of July bash?
-These guys partied for 6 months. And you can be sure the tax payers footed the bill for this thing.
-And Xerxes did all this, funded all this, to impress people and buy their support for his political ambitions.
-That doesn’t sound familiar does it?
-People spending money to influence politics and politicians?
-He didn’t use his great provide for needy children, or feed the hungry
-He didn’t build infrastructure, or create jobs, he threw a party for 15,000 people, for 6 months, and he did it to show off.
-And what do you do when a party like that is over? Besides rehab.
-You throw another party! The Persian Princes were like “dude…
VS 5 When it was all over, the king gave a banquet for all the people, from the greatest to the least, who were in the fortress of Susa. It lasted for seven days and was held in the courtyard of the palace garden.
-The important people get a 6 month party and the regular folks get a 7 day party…this was for all people who lived in the fortress city of Susa
-The influential people party was 15,000…how many people were at the “everyone included” party was? Some say up to 50,000 people.
-What would it be like to live a culture with such excess and wealth?
-Do we really have to wonder?
-Have you ever watched the Oscars or the Emmy’s? All the important people roll up in limousines, wearing expensive suits and low slung dresses. Their outfits cost more than we make in 6 months.
-It’s by invitation only, and no ugly people are allowed.
-They have perfect hair, sparkling white teeth, and diamonds.
-They know people are watching, they want people to watch and be really impressed.
-They do all that stuff to be revered/loved by their adoring fans.
-Whether they’d use the term or not they want to be worshipped.
-Everyone wants their picture, their autograph and their opinion.
-Millions of dollars are spent on after-parties, receptions, on gift baskets
-And millions of people watch on television…why?
-Because they are drawn to it. They are enamored with the wealth and success of those celebrities and their…godlike status.
-Think about it. Verse 6 gives us a little more description about the layout of the fortress of Susa.
VS 6 The courtyard was beautifully decorated with white cotton curtains and blue hangings, which were fastened with white linen cords and purple ribbons to silver rings embedded in marble pillars. Gold and silver couches stood on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and other costly stones.
-In our neck of the woods only men who are Husky fans wear purple.
-In ancient times, only powerful people wore purple.
-It was very expensive, very rare, reserved only for kings and rulers.
-If the average person saw someone wearing purple they instantly associated them with royalty.
-Some of the people who entered the fortress for this party had probably never seen purple cloth, and they’d probably never seen gold.
-And there was plenty of gold at this party.
-They had gold couches and silver couches.
-They had so much precious metal lying around that they were asking themselves, “What should do with all this gold?”
-And somebody said, “let’s make some couches.”
-My best friend growing up was a Cuban kid named Pedro. And his mom Amy had all of her living room couches covered with clear plastic so we kids couldn’t ruin them…they were sweaty to sit on.
-She would have freaked out in the Palace of Susa.
-Commoners were sitting on couches that were made using silver and gold. Don’t you scuff that couch!
-And it gets worse…vs 7
VS 7 Drinks were served in gold goblets of many designs, and there was an abundance of royal wine, reflecting the king’s generosity. 8 By edict of the king, no limits were placed on the drinking, for the king had instructed all his palace officials to serve each man as much as he wanted.
-They drank out of cups made of gold. No red solo cups for those guys!
-They drank as much as they wanted to drink. It was an open bar.
-Nobody stopped them or wanted to stop them. Nobody was warning people about the dangers of excessive drinking.
-There weren’t any bar tenders cutting people off.
-They were encouraged to drink as much as they wanted to.
-And they did all the things people do when they get blitzed.
-Xerxes party was decadent and depraved.
-Whatever wild days you’ve put behind you, trust me when I say you’ve never even dreamt of how corrupt and depraved this Persian party was.
-The people indulged in every kind of wickedness.
-What would it be like to live in a culture that lives for pleasure?
-How many beer commercials are played during an average football game on TV? How many ads selling us on the party?
-How much attention do people place on fine foods and fine wines?
-How many people do we see around us that our just living for the weekend?
-How many people surviving until their next TV or movie fix?
-Counting down the work hours to get back to texting, gaming, surfing?
-How many people do we know whose church is the local tavern?
-How many movies portray outrageous parties as the ultimate thrill?
-In the United States of America, how much emphasis is placed on having a good time? On entertainment? On the pursuit of pleasure?
-We don’t have to wonder. Americans live for pleasure.
-The stuff going on in our modern era was going on in Persia.
-And this whole party was to make the king seem generous in his people’s eyes.
-That king Xerxes was a generous guy, as long as you bowed to him and did whatever he wanted you to do.
-And just in case there wasn’t enough luxury, enough partying, vs 9 says Queen Vashti also through a party.
-And we’ll look at Queen Vashti’s story next week.
-So we have a godless king. A godless culture. godless revelry.
-Now imagine that you’re a person trying to follow God.
-Imagine that you’re someone who’s trying to doing right in a culture where pleasing God is a foreign concept.
-Put yourself in the story for a moment and ask a serious question.
-If you were living in the Fortress of Susa at that time; would you have gone to the party?
-Would you have bowed to a king that called himself a “god”?
-Would you have been drawn in, by the wealth and extravagance?
-Would you have gotten caught up in the pursuit of pleasure?
-Well…the truth is we don’t have to time travel to test our virtue.
-We don’t have to go to Susa to see if our faith in God is true.
-Every day in America we’re tested, as we try to live for God in a godless culture. We have to ask those questions of ourselves.
-Which American idols do I bow to? And I don’t mean the show.
-Which singers, athletes, actors, and authors are we enamored with?
-Which celebrities, politicians, and TV hosts excite us the most?
-Could we unwittingly be bowing to those who sit on earthly thrones without realizing that we’ve given them our worship?
-Am I caught up in the pursuit of excess, wealth, and pleasure?
-Do I live to be entertained? Am I hungry for money and stuff?
-Is pleasure (food, sex, alcohol, entertainment) what I live for?
-What does God expect from me while I’m living in this godless culture?
-These are all things that we’ll be discussing in the coming weeks as we explore the book of Esther.
2 Cor 6:14 “Don’t team up with those who are unbelievers. How can righteousness be a partner with wickedness? How can light live with darkness? 15 What harmony can there be between Christ and the devil? How can a believer be a partner with an unbeliever? 16 And what union can there be between God’s temple and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God said:
“I will live in them and walk among them.
I will be their God, and they will be my people.
17 Therefore, come out from among unbelievers, and separate yourselves from them, says the Lord.
Don’t touch their filthy things, and I will welcome you.”
18 And I will be your Father, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”
-The best news about following God, living for Jesus in America is that we aren’t alone.
-As we’ll see in Esther…even in the worst of times God is working.
-Even when it seems like we are alone and overwhelmed by opposition, he is present and working on our behalf.
-Esther is a book that doesn’t use God’s name, and describes a culture that didn’t know his name, and yet…all throughout the book we a couple of true believers obeying…being faithful to the Lord.
-And as we move through the pages of this amazing book we see carefully laid out plan slowly unfolding.
-And I believe that God is working his plan for your life too.
