Esther For Such a Time as This
Esther 3-5 Nov 1 2020
Hello, I'm Pastor Greg of Calvary Reformed Church. We've been doing a whole series on the Book of Esther. Before we start let's have a word of prayer.
Father God, as we come to You, we give You thanks for this day. We give You thanks for the weather and for Your grace. We give you thanks for healing for all who are struggling, for those who have lost loved ones Lord, we ask a blessing on their lives. Those who are sick Lord, bless their lives. For the businesses who have been lost, the income lost…Lord we ask for a blessing on those people’s lives. Lord, the Book of Esther old teaches us
that You are ultimately in control and that we're called to walk in Your providence within our lives. We give You thanks for that oh Lord. In your name we pray, amen.
This is our third week studying the book of Esther. The book of Esther is an interesting one. It's from the Old Testament times and it involves the land of Persia and King Xerxes. Around 480’s BC to the 460’s BC King Xerxes throws a huge party - a half a year party. He wants his wife, Queen Vashti, to parade in front of all the people. She refuses and he gets rid of her. King Xerxes then goes and fights against the Greeks. He is soundly defeated. He comes home to Persia, a defeated king, but has no queen.
So, they have this Persian beauty contest or the King Xerxes bachelor contest. Esther ends up winning that contest and she becomes Queen of Persia. Amongst all of this, there is a story of God’s providence over it all. God is working.
Esther’s parents had died, and she was being raised by Mordecai, her cousin. Esther and Mordecai’s family had been deposed by Nebuchadnezzar from Jerusalem about a 110-120 years prior. Esther's life was not an easy one having lost her mom and dad and being raised by her cousin in a foreign land. Yet we're going to see the providence of God working in her life, working in Mordecai's life, working within the Jewish people's lives, and working in our lives.
We talked a little bit last week about Haman. Haman was one of the leaders who was raised up by King Xerxes in the land of Persia. It's interesting because Haman’s ancestry was of the Amalekite’s ancestry. The Amalekites and the Jews had been at odds ever since Esau and Jacob. They were the twins…Abraham had Isaac and Isaac had Esau and Jacob.
Esau had a son who became the founder of the Amalekite nation. Years later when the Jewish people were moving, the Hebrew people are going from the land of Egypt to the land of Israel. The Amalekites attack the Jewish people, and they kill the elderly and the young…the two sides of society we really need to protect. Because of that, God said they need to be gone. God told King Saul, who was the son of Kish, to get rid of the Amalekite people.
King Saul did not do it. That was around 100 BC.
Mordecai is a descendant of Kish. Haman is a descendant of the Amalekites and Haman hates the Jewish people. We pick up that story here and we're going to hear the story that Esther is really known for. If you have your Bibles, turn to Esther, Chapter 3: 6-9 as we read about racism, false accusations, and the best interest to the king. As we read through Esther 3 we learn that Haman wants to destroy Mordecai’s people, the Jews. In the 12th year of the king they cast the lot and Haman chose the time that they would get rid of the Jewish people.
He went to the king and said there's a certain people who do not follow your customs. They don't obey your laws and it's in the best interest not to tolerate them. If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to destroy them and I will give 10,000 talents of silver into your royal treasury. Today, that would be about 326 billion dollars – roughly two-thirds of the yearly budget for the Persian empire. So, in other words Haman was bribing the king with two-thirds of the Persian budget to get rid of the Jewish people.
If you've been following this story at all you know that King Xerxes is not a very strong king. He tends to follow the wisdom of his leaders. The problem is if we follow the people who say they are wise, but they don't use scripture as their foundation, their wisdom is empty and void. All the wisdom that Xerxes was given by his advisors, by Haman, all led to death and destruction. Racism, false accusations, best interest of the king. Best interest of just a certain few people, bribery…Does that happen today within our lives? Does that happen today within our society?
There was estimated to be around 12 million Jews at that time. From Persia to the land of Israel – because King Xerxes’ grandfather, King Cyrus, had allowed the Jewish people to
return from Babylon to go back to Jerusalem. Haman is angry, filled with rage. After Haman’s plea, the king said, ‘Yes go ahead and go do it. I think it's best. You know what to do. I will listen to what you have to say.’ When Mordecai (descendant of Kish…son King Saul, lots of animosity) hears about this he tore his clothes.
He put on sack cloth and ashes and he went into the city wailing loudly and bitterly. He only went as far as the king's gate because no one was allowed in sackcloth to enter past that gate. In every providence to which the edict and order of the king had been given there was mourning among the Jews. Fasting, weeping, and wailing. Many wearing sackcloth and ashes. This was a way Old Testament people showed their sorrow or dismay.
In Esther 4 we see that Esther hears about what's going on with Mordecai. She doesn't know what's going on. She hears about her cousin and she is in great distress. Verse 4 says she sent clothes to Mordecai to put on instead of his sackcloth, but he wouldn't accept them. Esther then sent one of the king's eunuchs a sign to attend to her. She asked him to find out what was troubling Mordecai. Mordecai then told him everything that had happened including the exact amount of money that Haman had bribed King Xerxes within order to have genocide of the Jewish people.
Mordecai urged the eunuch to go to Esther to ask her to go into the king's presence and to beg for mercy. To plead with him for her people. Now this is the second time that Mordecai
has gone to queen Esther and encouraged her to go in to see the king. The first time was when Mordecai overheard a plot to kill the king. He went and said to Esther this is what's going on and she said would go tell the king. Esther dared to do what she did. They were still probably in their honeymoon time. We're going to see here that they're sort of out of that honeymoon time. This time Esther says the king hasn't called for me for 30 days. If i go in to see the king and he doesn't put out a scepter to me, I will be killed. My life is in jeopardy.
It's interesting, the first time she's willing to go in, but this time she's not. The first time the king's life was in jeopardy. she's willing to go in to talk to the king, her husband, currently. But, when the Jewish people's lives, her own life, is in jeopardy…she's not willing to go into talk. If we go to Chapter 4, Verse 13 Mordecai sends the reply to Esther when Mordecai is told Esther is not going to go do it. He says, ‘Do not think that because you are in the king's house you alone will escape.’ In other words, Mordecai is saying to Esther, as her cousin, as her father, just because you're the queen that doesn’t make you safe. Remember King Xerxes got rid of Vashti the queen.
Before you were chosen as queen you were a Jew. You will face the same outcome as the rest of us Jews. If you remain silent at this time, Esther, relief, and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place. But you and your family will perish. Mordecai is saying Esther if you don't step up, I trust Yahweh God to provide the deliverance…to have the providence within our lives to protect us as Jewish people. God will provide someone else.
I find it interesting that Esther rose to that position through God's provision. Daniel in Babylon rose to the position. He had Daniel's three friends in Babylon rise to the occasion.
He had Joseph in Egypt sold into slavery by his brothers yet rose to be the second most powerful man in Egypt. Friends, God has a reason for where you are within your life. God has a reason for where I am within my life.
I was at a leadership training with the Air National Guard in Battle Creek at the 110th Wing and we had a couple of days of leadership training. The leaders were telling of different stories. About a day and a half in I went up to the leaders and said um do you guys really understand the stories you're using? I asked if they understood they were referencing a biblical story. They said they did know but couldn’t say it was biblical. These biblical stories are relevant for our lives whether we are walking in the Christian faith or not. They will keep us on a direct path, a moral line of life. As we walk with Jesus Christ it keeps us on that eternal line with Him.
Mordecai said to Esther, if you don't act, God's going to raise somebody else up. That's number one friends. How are we called to act and love our neighbors? How are you called to act? How am I called to act? How do we draw other people into a relationship with Jesus Christ? Not by causing problems or causing dissension. Not with creating animosity. How do we become, as Jesus says, fishers of men? Now, I'm not a very good fisherman…I will acknowledge that. If i get a bite on the line, I pull too hard and it's gone. A good fisherman knows what type of bait to use. He knows how to just tug that line to set the hook. If you don't use the proper bait, you don't catch the fish. For such a time as this you and I have been placed where God has placed us - here and now to be used by Him. To praise Him; to reach out to others and to seek his grace within our lives.
We're going to go on with the story here because when Mordecai says to Esther, ‘Okay, if you don't do it, God's going to raise somebody else up. I trust God. But for such a time as this, Esther, you have been placed in this position.’ What Esther does next is wonderful. You see Esther is not a loud, brash, hasty reactor, she has a well-planned response that ends up being in God's timing and with God's wisdom
In Chapter 4, verse 16 it says she says go gather all the Jews who are in Susa and fast for me. Don't eat or drink for three days or three nights. My maids and I will fast as well and when this is done, I will go to talk with the king. She says to be in prayer for her about it. Esther desired to consult God before she did anything. We would be doing a whole lot better within our lives if we consulted God about everything. I know I would be doing a
lot better in my life if I consulted God before I ever spoke a word out of my mouth or took action in my life or had an attitude in my heart to say God what do you desire from me?
How can I best be used by you for such a time as this? For the building of your body of Christ?
Then Queen Esther goes in to see the king and the king puts his scepter down because he is happy to see his wife, Esther. He says to her that she can have whatever she requires, even if it’s half of the kingdom…he says, ‘I will give it to you.’ In the next one and a half chapters there are three to four more times the king says to his wife, the queen, whatever you want…up to half the kingdom, I give it to you, I love you. I will give you whatever you want and need. So, she says to King Xerxes, ‘If it pleases the king, let the king, together with Haman, (who has orchestrated this genocide of the Jewish people) come today to a banquet I have prepared for him.’
Queen Esther had been in prayer. She asked for other people to pray over what to do. She invited the king and Haman to the banquet and Haman was excited and honored to be the only one, other than the king, to be invited. Again, the king asks Esther, ‘What do you want from me? I'll give you half the kingdom.’ She says what I really want is for you to come back tomorrow night for another meal. Esther is setting up her husband through the providence of God.
Then we see in Chapter that Haman and the king leave. As Haman leaves, he sees Mordecai. Again, you've got to remember, Mordecai has not been bowing down to Haman. He is again enraged. He goes home and says how much he hates Mordecai and the rest of the Jews. He says he can't wait for another 11 months so they can exterminate them. Haman’s family says to build a 75-foot stake to hang Mordecai on. Haman says sounds good to me. Let's do it.
That night, King Xerxes is unable to sleep. So, he calls one of his workers into him to read from the book of Chronicles…the history of his kingship. They get to the part where Mordecai had warned the queen that the king was going to be killed by two of his bodyguards. King Xerxes wondered what honor had been given to Mordecai for this valiant act. The worker told Xerxes that no honor given to Mordecai. The next morning after the first banquet, Haman goes in to see the king.
The king says to Haman, ‘What should I do to honor somebody who has done something great for me?’ Haman thinks, ‘Hey, he's talking about me.’ So, he tells them to put the man of honor on one of the king’s stallions. Put one of your robes on him and parade him through town and say, ‘This is how the king honors people’. Haman thinks it's going to be him. Friends, he thinks he's going to get to ride the horse and have the king's garments on.
Then the king says to Haman, ‘Go get Mordecai. Put him on the horse, put the robe on him you lead the horse through town.’ Whoa! Talk about humiliation for Haman. He had just built this 75-foot stake to impale Mordecai on. Now he's got to lead Mordecai around town saying look who the king honors.
Think of the struggle within Haman now. The horror that was going on inside of him. He goes home and his family says man you are in trouble dad. So, the second night he goes back to the banquet and the king says to his wife, ‘What do you want me to give to you?’ Esther says to the king, “If I have found favor with you, Your Majesty, and if it pleases you, grant me my life—this is my petition. And spare my people—this is my request. 4 For I and my people have been sold to be destroyed, killed, and annihilated. She reminds Xerxes that she is Jewish. That Haman has called for these things to happen.
King Xerxes then gets up in a rage and leaves to go find Haman. As he walks into the banquet hall, he sees Haman falling to beg for his life from the queen. The king then exclaims, “Will he even molest the queen while she is with me in the house?” He tells Haman that he is done. If you read the rest of the story you see that Haman is then impaled on the 75-foot stake that he had made for Mordecai. Amazing story. If you read it you’ll get a better feel for it.
Friends, for such a time as this, God's body, the bride of Christ, you and I have been placed in positions to offer God's grace to others through love and through acceptance. Esther consulted God before she took any action. Her actions then followed the call of God in her life. It was well planned. She waited on God's timing and wisdom…for such a time as this.
I know God has placed you where you are for such a time as this. God has placed me here as well. We need to understand and realize that God desires us to continually, each day, walk in relationship with Him. As we have our hearts up to God and our hands out to others, we understand that God is in control. The Old Testament prophet Isaiah says (in Isaiah 43) ‘Yes, God says from ancient days I am He. I am God. No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act no one can reverse it.’ God’s son, Jesus Christ, came to redeem us, to pay for our sins, to buy us back, to bring us into relationship. No one can reverse that, friends.
The Apostle Paul, in Ephesians 3 says, ‘Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine according to his power.’ That is at work within us, friends. I love this passage. Let me read it again. If you have your Bibles out, look at Ephesians 3, Verse 20…’Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more.’ Right now, a lot of people have lost hope. A lot of people are walking in fear. Fear, doubt, and insecurity…My wife often talks about how the demonic wants to take us down. Fear, doubt, and insecurity…a loss of hope.
Now to Him who was able to do immeasurably more, we don't need to be afraid, doubt, or be insecure. We can walk with the One who does immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine according to His power. All that is at work within us. God is at work. He is moving. God is touching people's lives. He is shaping kingdoms. He is not surprised with what humanity does or doesn't do. Just because actions or motives happen to be secular or carnal or may not seem fair…it doesn't mean God's not present. Jesus Christ is always present. Those who are involved may not be glorifying Him, but never doubt it friends, God is present. He has placed you and me where he wants us to be for such a time as this.
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit…Lord, bless everyone that has heard this message. We seek within our lives to know the purpose that You have called us. To walk in the Lord so that our life has purpose for You for building the Body of Christ. In Your name we pray, Amen.
