Little Things to Know About a Big God
Letting God Guide You
May 15, 2003
**** READ Esther 6:1-14
Show video clips…
As you watched those clips, there’s one similarity between all of them. “Things aren’t what they seem to be”…
1. Here’s this cute little girl washing dishes for her Mom. Ahhhh! Until you find out that she’s washing a laptop!
2. A man leans on his expensive Porshe to stretch his legs and thinking He’s helping, another guy comes along and pushes it over the cliff!
3. Someone’s getting balled out in the coaches office, and you find out it’s a priest!
Things aren’t always what they seem to be! When are we going to learn that lesson? It’s so easy to pre-judge people and situations. It’s so easy to prejudge our OWN situations. It’s so easy to pre-judge GOD! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been in a circumstance where I thought I knew what was going to happen… only to find out that God had a totally different agenda.
We’ve been studying the book of Esther the past few weeks, and I don’t know about you, but I’m really seeing that God is amazingly un-predictable. In fact, one of the biggest mistakes you can make is to try and put Him in a box… because 1st of all He won’t fit… and secondly, even if He did… He’d break out of it.
Throughout the entire book, even though His name is never mentioned, the invisible, almighty God has been working behind the scenes on behalf of His people. Subtly setting up situations, incidents, events… that work to the benefit of those who love and follow Him.
And don’t think He doesn’t work that way today! He’s still doing it! Right now, today, if you’re trusting and following Him… He’s weaving the ‘seemingly insignificant’ details of your life into His perfect plan for you. But He’s doing it anonymously, many times without your awareness or knowledge.
If you don’t remember anything else I say this morning… remember this… as you look at the situation you find yourself in today… realize that “things are not what they seem”. There’s a lot more going on than meets the eye! In order to help you come to that realization this morning, I want to share with you from the story of Esther… “5 Little Things that you should know about a Big God”…
1st of all, you should know that…
1. When all seems LOST… it isn’t .
When we left our story a couple of weeks ago… things were not looking so good for God’s people… A Jewish young woman named Esther had been appointed Queen by King Xerxes, but his prime minister (the evil Haman) was plotting to exterminate all the Jews. Esther’s older cousin Mordacai (who raised her) was the focal point of Haman’s hatred, because he represented everything that he despised about the Jewish race. Their intolerance for immorality, their zealous passion for God, and their unwillingness to bow down to anyone but Him.
Haman succeeded in fooling King Xerxes into signing an irreversible law, that on a certain day, it would be “open season” on all Jewish people. They would be rounded up and murdered, much like what Hitler did during WWII. Little did Xerxes know, that his own queen was a Jewess. To squelch any opposition, Haman was planning to turn Mordecai (one of their well-known leaders) into a ‘human Shiskobob”.
During the night, he had constructed a 75 ft. high pointed pole to impale him on… for everyone to see. This looked like the end for the Jewish race. It was hopeless…nothing could be done. All the pieces were falling in place for their destruction. All was lost… Have you ever been there?
· Bankrupsy…you’ve hopelessly behind on your bills and there’s nothing left to do but file.
· Divorce… the papers are signed, the court date is set
· The medical report comes back negative.
All of the deadlines have come and gone… this is it. What are you going to do? Remember what I told you not to forget? With God in control, things are not what they seem! It’s the toughest thing in the world to remember when you’re right THERE in the middle of a crises. But you have to hold out hope. It’s at those pivotal times in life, that we have a choice to make. Are we going to give in to the inevitable? Or are we going to trust that God’s up to something? It’s a tough choice, but we make it whether we know it or not.
Is God real? Does He know what He’s doing? YES! You just need to know a little thing about a big God… when all seems lost…it’s not! READ Esther 6:1-3. “That night the king could not sleep; so he ordered the book of the chronicles, the record of his reign, to be brought in and read to him. 2 It was found recorded there that Mordecai had exposed Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king’s officers who guarded the doorway, who had conspired to assassinate King Xerxes. 3 “What honor and recognition has Mordecai received for this?” the king asked. “Nothing has been done for him,” his attendants answered. ” –Esther 6:1-3
As we read through these scriptures this morning, I want you to keep a sharp eye out for the timing of the events as they unfold, and realize that they’re not just lucky coincidences. They’re God appointed moments.
Vs.1 starts out with the words…“THAT NIGHT” What night? The very night before Mordecai is to be hung. “That” night… not the night before… not the night after… but THAT night… the king couldn’t sleep! Ahhhh… poor kingy! I’m sure He tried everything. He tried counting sheep, chariots, the # of his concubines… but nothing worked. Hmmm… don’t you find it interesting that on the very night that Haman was getting ready to kill Mordecai… that the King couldn’t get to sleep? You know sometimes God’s miracles aren’t so much in WHAT He does… as WHEN He does them!
I mean, you can dismiss the parting of the Red Sea by Moses as an oddity caused by an earthquake or a wind-storm if you want… …but aren’t you just a little curious that it happened at the exact moment that Moses hit the water with his staff? Doctors write off people being cured by cancer as a fluke of nature, but isn’t it amazing that it happens right after their church had an all night prayer meeting?
A lot of people have tried to explain the miracles found in the bible by natural means… but what they haven’t even come close to explaining… is the timing of those miracles! Which leads to the 2nd little known fact about a big God…
2. When no one seems to NOTICE … they do… He does.
Vs. 1 tells us that Xerxes couldn’t sleep. We’re not told why. It could have been insomnia, worry about his kingdom, a bad pizza? We don’t know… but the bottom line is… when God doesn’t want you to sleep, you don’t!
So he orders one of his servants to his royal library and get his “Book of the Chronicles”… (the official records of his reign up to this point.) Now all I can say is that he must have been really, really bored to have these books brought in. He could have called in one of his concubines, or a court musician… maybe play a card game… but instead he decides to have a bedtime story. I think He must have been trying to get back to sleep because this book was a mind numbing list of ancient budget meetings, names of people who had given and received favors, and a monotonous list of daily happenings. It would’ve been like reading the phone book or the dictionary…
So as the servant drones on and on… “Tomacich K, 4083 Willow Rd.…returned your call about re-uphostering you golden throne. Call him at 684-9729 for a quote. Tomiello, Pete, 1441 Detroit Ave, gives to you the King his most grateful praise and adoration for the donation of a donkey to the Children’s hospital, Tomita Yasuhiro, on this day the 15th of May, 343 B.C. unplugged your drains and fixed the leaky faucet in your kitchen… The kings eyelids are getting heavier and heavier as the servant drones on… “Mordecai of Susa has on this day rendered an exemplary service to the Crown by thwarting and attempt on the life of the King and of his kingdom. Xerxes will forever be in his debt.” Nancy Nolan of 7235 Prince Dr….
Wait a minute… what did you say? Nancy Nolan… NO! No! Something about Mordecai… ( ‘Mordecai of Susa has on this day rendered an exemplary service to the Crown’)…That’s it! Read on! Read on!… (‘by thwarting an attempt on the life of the King and of his kingdom. Xerxes will forever be in his debt.” )
Does it say anything about his reward?
(No, your highness.)
Well, we’ve got to do something about that!
Now, of all the texts that could have been selected by the librarian from the records of Xerxes’ 12 years of rule, isn’t it amazing that the one chosen contained the account of Mordecai’s uncovering the assassination plot in Esther 2:21-23.
That’s what was read to the king, on the night he couldn’t get to sleep… the night before Mordecai was to be executed. I know, I know… coincidence right?
Let me ask you this… Can God direct us in the “little things” of life? How many of you would say yes? Can God direct in the books that people pick up and read? Yes, He can. Late in February 1916, a British student bought a book at a used-book store in a railway station. He’d looked at that book and rejected it at least a dozen times before, but on that day he purchased it. It was called, ‘Phantastes’, by George MacDonald, a famous English preacher… and reading that book eventually led to that young man’s conversion. His name? C.S. Lewis, probably the greatest and most popular defender of the Christian faith in this century. He later wrote to a friend that he had picked up the book “by hazard,” HA! I believe God directed his choice.
Chuck Swindoll in his book on Esther writes that… “Momentous events often hang on the tiniest trivialities”. It’s humbling to think about the tiny glitches & twists that happened in my life to direct me to where I am today… You’ve had ‘em happen to you too!
· It was some girls goofing around in the back seat of a car, and one of them reaching up and started playing with my hair. I looked around and was introduced to my future wife. What if I’d have cut my hair that day, or maybe decided not to go to help out at a nursing home that night?
· Maybe it was by a chance meeting that you got invited to go to church one Sunday, and it changed your life! What if you had decided not to come?
Think about how God has worked in your life up to this point using the most trivial little events and twists in life to direct you and guide you. It’s crazy how He does it! I can’t control it, I don’t even know when He’s doing it…but that’s how He works the best. And then realize that He’s still doing it!
That’s why it’s so important to be obedient to Him when He directs you. That’s why it’s so important not to become hard-hearted or stuck in your ways. That’s why it’s so important to keep close to Him by prayer and reading His word… because He wants to direct your life in the little things. You may not know what God’s up to! But let me just say this… it’s something good!
Maybe you’ve helped somebody at work (or maybe in this church) and no one noticed or even thanked you for it. Or you did the right thing and somebody else got the credit. Think nobody cares? Think nobody notices? You’re wrong! Because when nobody seems to notice… God does! God’s the one who orchestrated the Kings insomnia… God’s the one who directed him to read the part of the book that describes what Mordecai did for him. Heb.6:10 says… “God is fair; he will not forget the work you did and the love you showed for him by helping his people. And he will remember that you are still helping them.” –Heb.6:10 (NCV)
See, when no one else notices… mark it down… God does! I love this verse in Ps. 56:8… “You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.” According to that verse, God has a bottle. And in that bottle is every tear you’ve ever cried. He keeps count of them! And you think no one cares? God also has a book, and it’s more detailed than anything King Xerxes had.
And in that book He records every good work you’ve ever done, and whether anybody else saw it or not… He did. Know why He keeps a record? Because someday, He’s going to reward you for every act, every kindness, every good work you’ve done in His name.
You don’t gain eternal life for your good works… (that’s something only Jesus can do by dying for your sins)… but once we give our lives to Christ, the bible teaches that we WILL receive rewards for our good works. The bible makes that very clear. Think about it… if Mordecai had been honored 5 years earlier (when he was supposed to be), his life wouldn’t have been spared. He was rewarded at the perfect time. I remember hearing about a missionary…who had suffered and sacrificed for years bringing the gospel to primitive people. As his health began to fail, he was forced to retire, and so he boarded a plane and flew back to the states. On that plane was a group of professional football players who had just won a big game.
When they arrived at the airport, huge crowds were there to cheer and greet… (not the missionary) but the football players. In fact, no one was there to welcome the missionary home. Over time he began to think about this and become resentful. He complained to the Lord… “Lord, here I am… I’ve struggled and sacrificed, scrimped and given my life to you, and after years of faithful service I come back to the states and nobody could care less. While, all these football players do is win a silly game. I come back and get nothing, while they come back home and get cheering crowds… what’s the deal? After a long silence, the Lord answered him in a quiet, gentle voice… “Son, you’re not home yet!”
It’s important to remember that when it comes to serving God… we’re not home yet! And you may think it’s not worth it. But it is! It’s often been said that “God’s delays are not God’s denials.”
We sometimes get impatient and wonder “Why are the wicked prospering while the righteous suffer?” But God’s never in a hurry. He’s long-suffering towards people who reject Him, because He wants them to repent, and He’s patient with His people because He wants us to receive the right reward, at the right time, for the right purpose.
If Mordecai was ever puzzled because the king promoted Haman but ignored him, he would soon find out that God wasn’t done yet. When you don’t understand why God allows things to happen in your life… realize… He’s not done yet!
The 3rd little thing we need to know about a big God is…
3. When everything seems GREAT … it’s not
Sounds like one of Murphies Laws doesn’t it? Now, I’m not trying to be negative or anything, but when things are going great, it’s not always because God’s blessing you. (surprised?) We have a tendency to think 2 things when everything’s going our way…
1. God is favoring us because we’re special and better than other people, and 2ndly that…
2. We don’t need God anymore. So we ignore and forget Him.
Both of those assumptions are wrong! As soon as the king heard that nothing had been done for Mordecai… his wheels started turning. It was a huge insult in Persian society to overlook a favor, (especially one of this magnitude)… so Xerxes began to imagine what could be done to reward this great deed.
Now… watch the timing again… because it’s perfect… READ Esther 6:4-5. Now is that great or what? Here’s Haman rushing into the palace to ask for permission to hang Mordecai at the exact moment the King is looking for someone to consult about Mordecai’s reward. Haman’s thinking, “What timing! The King’s calling me! This is going to be simple!” The King’s thinking… “What timing… my prime-minister is here just on time!” God is thinking… “Oh yea.” (READ Esther 6:6)
When the King asks, “What should I do to the person I want to honor…”, Haman immediately thinks of the person He loves the most… Himself!… and begins to describe his own personal dream…
“Weeelll, let’s see now (looking up) What should we do to for this special person… Oh I know! 1st … take a royal robe, one that you Yourself have worn, and place it on his shoulders in front of thousands. Then have a high-level dignitary place this man on your most impressive warhorse, arrayed in full royal dress… and have this dignitary lead him through the main streets of Susa for hours… proclaiming at the top of his voice… “Here is the man the King wishes to honor for great and courageous service to the throne.” The King is impressed! “That’s perfect… couldn’t have thought of something better myself… now go do that exact thing to… MORDECAI!”
I wish I would have been there to see his face! Because this is one of the most satisfying and comical moments in the bible! I’m sure all the color drained from His face as He stood dumbfounded before the King. He couldn’t believe His ears! “But… but… Sire… you can’t be serious!” I CAN’T??? Well, maybe you can!”
There are 3 ways to gain rewards in life… earlier we talked about the 1st one…
· Allowing God to reward you. This is the best way, because it’s eternal.
· The 2nd way to gain rewards, is to let others reward you. This isn’t quite as good because it’s not eternal, and besides… it doesn’t last very long. The trophy you get today is being sold at a garage sale tomorrow.
· The 3rd way is to try and reward YOURSELF. That’s what Haman was trying to do. This is the worst way to gain rewards and it’s at the root of all temptation. More people have destroyed their lives trying to reward themselves, than any other way.
Describing the process of temptation, James says in 1:14-17 “…but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”
According to that vs. every temptation known to man starts with our ‘own evil desires’…
· I have a desire to reward myself for a tough day… so I drink.
· I want to reward myself for the hard work I do at work without recognition… so I steal from my employer.
· I feel I don’t get the attention I want from my wife so I reward myself with porn.
· The kids are driving me crazy… so as a reward to SELF… I spend money I don’t have…
Every temptation has as it’s ‘ignition point’… the desire to meet my own needs in my own way.
But the bible says, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights.” In otherwords, God knows what my needs are and He knows how to reward me… IF I’ll let him…
· Instead of porn… He’ll give me a deep and fulfilling relationship with my wife.
· He rewards my job performance with respect, and if not that… a new job!
· He’ll give me the wisdom, joy and patience to raise great kids, so I don’t have a desire to escape from them all the time!
And believe me, God’s gifts to me are a lot better than the ones I give myself! Haman tried to reward Himself and he ended up with gravel in his mouth. Mordacai allowed God to reward him and he got more than He could ever imagine!
Prov.18:12…“Before destruction the heart of a man is haughty, and before honor is humility” The first ½ of that verse applies to Haman and the last ½ to Mordecai. What an incredible difference a little comma makes!
Proverbs 29:23 gives the same message: “A man’s pride shall bring him low,(comma) but the humble in spirit will retain honor” Ask yourself this morning… “On which side of the comma am I living?” The proud, self-rewarding side… or the humble, God-rewarding side?
The 4th little thing you need to know about our big God is that
4. When nothing seems JUST… it is.
So many times we accuse God of being unjust. What an insult! We don’t even know how to SPELL ‘just’… and God defines it! If you’ve been with us the past few weeks, you’ve been waiting for and wondering when Haman was going to get what He deserves. Here’s just the 1st ‘helping’ of it!
1st, he had to go out to the king’s gate, get Mordecai, and bring him into the palace. Then he had to dress Mordecai in the king’s robes, put him on the king’s horse, and lead the horse throughout the city and proclaiming, “This is what is done for the man the king delights to honor!” (v. 9, NIV) Talk about irony! For a whole day Haman was the servant of Mordecai, commanding the people to bow down and honor him! The very thing Mordecai wouldn’t do for Haman… Haman had to tell others to do for Mordecai! All day long instead of gloating over him, Haman is ‘hoarse’ from leading his ‘horse’ & shouting Mordacai’s praises! I can just imagine people were calling out from crowd…”Haman, we thought you were going to hang him, not honor him!” How humiliating!
Man… God really knows how to rub it in when He wants to! That’s why we don’t have to worry about getting revenge! God can do a pretty good job all by Himself! Just about the time you think that nothing in the world is fair… you find out that God’s incredibly fair. In fact, I don’t know about you, but I’m glad He cuts me a little slack… because if He didn’t I would have been destroyed for my sins a long time ago! Aren’t you glad that God’s not only fair… but He’s gracious?
Two verses are soooo true… the first one is Prov. 21:30... “There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the Lord”
The 2nd one is just as true… “If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31, KJV) Do you believe that?
Even Haman’s family believed that… READ vs. 13. His wife and family were saying… “Hey Haman, you’ve picked on the wrong people… God’s for these people and if He’s for them… you’re goose is cooked!” When you begin to realize and understand that God is for you and not against you… it’ll give you a tremendous amount of peace and confidence in whatever situation you’re facing this morning. As crafty and slick as Haman was, he couldn’t outwit God.
Recently I’ve been struggling with that very thing in my life… why does evil seem to prosper while goodness and righteousness seem to get the shaft? And the Lord had to remind me of these verses. “NO plan” … no matter how well funded, or how well promoted can succeed against the Lord!
READ Esther 6:12-13a. Amazingly, at the end of the day all this pageantry and prominence didn’t affect Mordecai in the least. When it was all over, the bible tells us that he simply returned to his place at the gate where he’d been praying and fasting for God’s deliverance of His people. See, applause doesn’t change people who are at home with themselves… their values and character are too deep to be affected by outward rewards.
Haman on the otherhand was humiliated! If you’ll remember, the last time Haman was home, he was ‘crowing’ and bragging about how great he was. Now he slides under the door… sniveling and whining about his misfortunes. The “Hamans” of this world always do that. They blame anybody and everybody for their own misfortunes. Never taking responsibility for their own actions. It’s never…
· “Well God taught me a valuable lesson” OR…
· Through this loss I gained this… OR
· God broke me, but I’ve learned to trust Him more
No..instead it’s … “If it hadn’t been for him”. Or… “If so & so hadn’t done this…”. Always playing the victim, never realizing that in reality, they’re victim of their own arrogance and rebellion against God.
Now there’s one last little thing you need to know about our BIG God…and this is really the theme of the whole book of Esther…
5. When God seems ABSENT… He’s present.
Even when you think God’s left the building… God shows Himself in an unmistakable way, proving that He’s still in charge. In the end, no matter what you or I, or a King, a government or a nation does… God is going to have His way! He’s not impressed with pride or prestige, wealth or fame. He’s not pushed around by dictators (or even Satan himself). He’s in charge! He’s running the show! He’s the director of the universe and nothing escapes His notice. He’s on the job! Mordacai and Esther knew that… Haman never got it. So, if you want to win in life… you better get on His side! Otherwise, you’re fighting a losing battle!
Reminds me of the story of a man who was shipwrecked on an uninhabited island. He painstakingly built a little hut for protection from the elements and where he could store a few items he’s salvaged from the wreck. For weeks he lived with only the hot sun and cold nights for company. Prayerfully, he scanned the horizon for the approach of a ship to rescue him. Nothing.
Then, one evening, after returning from a search for food, he was terrified to find his hut in flames. Unable to put out the fire, he was crushed by the disaster. What few possessions he owned had gone up in smoke. He went to sleep that night near the breaking point. Early the next morning he awoke to find a ship anchored off the island - the 1st ship he’d seen in all the weeks he’d been marooned.
Still trying to believe his eyes, he heard footsteps and then the captains voice… “We saw your smoke signal, and came to rescue you!”
Everything that man owned had to be destroyed before he could be discovered and rescued. From his perspective, God seemed so distant for so long, but in reality God was working on both ends… bringing a rescue ship, while at the same time reducing him to nothing. God is working and listen… things are not as they seem!
Where are you in that story? Does God feel distant this morning? Have you come to the end of yourself yet? Because until you do… He won’t show Himself. He wants to lead and guide your life… but not until you submit to His Lordship.
Do that today…
PRAY
