References: -->Esther 5-7; Psalm 93:1-2; Proverbs 17:4
Now it happened on the third day that Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the king's palace, across from the king's house, while the king sat on his royal throne in the royal house, facing the entrance of the house. So it was, when the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, that she found favor in his sight, and the king held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand. Then Esther went near and touched the top of the scepter.
And the king said to her, "What do you wish, Queen Esther? What is your request? It shall be given to you-up to half the kingdom!"
So Esther answered, "If it pleases the king, let the king and Haman come today to the banquet that I have prepared for him."
Then the king said, "Bring Haman quickly, that he may do as Esther has said." So the king and Haman went to the banquet that Esther had prepared.
At the banquet of wine the king said to Esther, "What is your petition? It shall be granted you. What is your request, up to half the kingdom? It shall be done!"
Then Esther answered and said, "My petition and request is this: If I have found favor in the sight of the king, and if it pleases the king to grant my petition and fulfill my request, then let the king and Haman come to the banquet which I will prepare for them, and tomorrow I will do as the king has said."
So Haman went out that day joyful and with a glad heart; but when Haman saw Mordecai in the king's gate, and that he did not stand or tremble before him, he was filled with indignation against Mordecai. Nevertheless Haman restrained himself and went home, and he sent and called for his friends and his wife Zeresh. Then Haman told them of his great riches, the multitude of his children, everything in which the king had promoted him, and how he had advanced him above the officials and servants of the king.
Moreover Haman said, "Besides, Queen Esther invited no one but me to come in with the king to the banquet that she prepared; and tomorrow I am again invited by her, along with the king. Yet all this avails me nothing, so long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king's gate."
Then his wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, "Let a gallows be made, fifty cubits high, and in the morning suggest to the king that Mordecai be hanged on it; then go merrily with the king to the banquet."
And the thing pleased Haman; so he had the gallows made. That night the king could not sleep. So one was commanded to bring the book of the records of the chronicles; and they were read before the king. And it was found written that Mordecai had told of Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king's eunuchs, the doorkeepers who had sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus. Then the king said, "What honor or dignity has been bestowed on Mordecai for this?"
And the king's servants who attended him said, "Nothing has been done for him."
So the king said, "Who is in the court?" Now Haman had just entered the outer court of the king's palace to suggest that the king hang Mordecai on the gallows that he had prepared for him.
The king's servants said to him, "Haman is there, standing in the court." And the king said, "Let him come in." So Haman came in, and the king asked him, "What shall be done for the man whom the king delights to honor?"
Now Haman thought in his heart, "Whom would the king delight to honor more than me?" And Haman answered the king, "For the man whom the king delights to honor, let a royal robe be brought which the king has worn, and a horse on which the king has ridden, which has a royal crest placed on its head. Then let this robe and horse be delivered to the hand of one of the king's most noble princes, that he may array the man whom the king delights to honor. Then parade him on horseback through the city square, and proclaim before him: 'Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor!'"
Then the king said to Haman, "Hurry, take the robe and the horse, as you have suggested, and do so for Mordecai the Jew who sits within the king's gate! Leave nothing undone of all that you have spoken."
So Haman took the robe and the horse, arrayed Mordecai and led him on horseback through the city square, and proclaimed before him, "Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor!"
Afterward Mordecai went back to the king's gate. But Haman hurried to his house, mourning and with his head covered. When Haman told his wife Zeresh and all his friends everything that had happened to him, his wise men and his wife Zeresh said to him, "If Mordecai, before whom you have begun to fall, is of Jewish descent, you will not prevail against him but will surely fall before him."
While they were still talking with him, the king's eunuchs came, and hastened to bring Haman to the banquet which Esther had prepared.
So the king and Haman went to dine with Queen Esther. And on the second day, at the banquet of wine, the king again said to Esther, "What is your petition, Queen Esther? It shall be granted you. And what is your request, up to half the kingdom? It shall be done!"
Then Queen Esther answered and said, "If I have found favor in your sight, O king, and if it pleases the king, let my life be given me at my petition, and my people at my request. For we have been sold, my people and I, to be destroyed, to be killed, and to be annihilated. Had we been sold as male and female slaves, I would have held my tongue, although the enemy could never compensate for the king's loss."
So King Ahasuerus answered and said to Queen Esther, "Who is he, and where is he, who would dare presume in his heart to do such a thing?"
And Esther said, "The adversary and enemy is this wicked Haman!" So Haman was terrified before the king and queen. Then the king arose in his wrath from the banquet of wine and went into the palace garden; but Haman stood before Queen Esther, pleading for his life, for he saw that evil was determined against him by the king. When the king returned from the palace garden to the place of the banquet of wine, Haman had fallen across the couch where Esther was. Then the king said, "Will he also assault the queen while I am in the house?"
As the word left the king's mouth, they covered Haman's face. Now Harbonah, one of the eunuchs, said to the king, "Look! The gallows, fifty cubits high, which Haman made for Mordecai, who spoke good on the king's behalf, is standing at the house of Haman."
Then the king said, "Hang him on it!" So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the king's wrath subsided.
Esther 5-7
WORSHIP
The LORD reigns, He is clothed with majesty; The LORD is clothed, He has girded Himself with strength. Surely the world is established, so that it cannot be moved. Your throne is established from of old; You are from everlasting. Psalm 93:1-2
WISDOM
An evildoer gives heed to false lips; A liar listens eagerly to a spiteful tongue. Proverbs 17:4
Friday, May 30, 2008
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Esther A Time Like This
“Who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 3:14)
The Old Testament Book of Esther is a wonderful love story—a story of what God did in the life of a woman to literally save a nation. Esther was a Jew who was plucked out of obscurity through an unusual chain of events and was made queen over the kingdom. Meanwhile, a wicked man named Haman had been devising a plot to put to death the 15 million Jews in that kingdom. So Mordecai, Esther's uncle, came to the palace, wanting Esther to use her influence to help her people.
He sent word to Esther, “Do not think in your heart that you will escape in the king’s palace any more than all the other Jews. For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:13–14).
Wherever you may find yourself today, know that God has put you where you are for such a time as this. He has put you in that job or at that school. He has put you in that neighborhood. There are opportunities to seize. You need to take hold of them.
Yet the dilemma of Esther is similar to that of many believers today. They have been delivered from sin. They have found safety in the church. And they have grown lazy. They have no vision. Of course, the devil is happy with this, because that is exactly how he wants Christians to live. Be a complacent, apathetic Christian, and the devil will be generally pleased.
The Old Testament Book of Esther is a wonderful love story—a story of what God did in the life of a woman to literally save a nation. Esther was a Jew who was plucked out of obscurity through an unusual chain of events and was made queen over the kingdom. Meanwhile, a wicked man named Haman had been devising a plot to put to death the 15 million Jews in that kingdom. So Mordecai, Esther's uncle, came to the palace, wanting Esther to use her influence to help her people.
He sent word to Esther, “Do not think in your heart that you will escape in the king’s palace any more than all the other Jews. For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:13–14).
Wherever you may find yourself today, know that God has put you where you are for such a time as this. He has put you in that job or at that school. He has put you in that neighborhood. There are opportunities to seize. You need to take hold of them.
Yet the dilemma of Esther is similar to that of many believers today. They have been delivered from sin. They have found safety in the church. And they have grown lazy. They have no vision. Of course, the devil is happy with this, because that is exactly how he wants Christians to live. Be a complacent, apathetic Christian, and the devil will be generally pleased.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
[ Esther ] For such a Time as this
Esther -
For Such a Time as This
Esther 3 brought us to the central crisis of this book. We saw that Haman, the second in command of the Persian Empire, had convinced Ahasuerus to order everyone to bow to Haman as he passed by. Of course, the people did so in fear for their lives. All except one: Mordecai, who alone stood up against compromise in doing homage to man rather than to God. Haman was furious as a result. Just getting back at Mordecai wouldn’t be enough. Instead he wanted to destroy all the Jews and remove them from getting in the way of his self-seeking plans. Haman first cast lots (pur) to decide when the destruction was to take place. He craftily fooled Ahasuerus into authorizing the destruction of these people by playing on Ahasuerus’ greed, superstition, and ego. Copies of this decree were distributed throughout the land via the Persian Pony Express. The chapter ended in an unusual way: “So the king and Haman sat down to drink, but the city of Shushan was perplexed” (Esther 3:15, nkjv).
So we come to Esther 4, in which the crisis begins to reach its peak. Being Jewish, Esther was in just as much danger as her people, although she was now the queen. She and Mordecai will discover in this chapter the hand of God’s sovereignty at work in arranging all of these things, and they would have vital decisions to make that would effect the survival of Judaism and the people of Israel.DAY ONE: Mourning and Sackcloth Please carefully read Esther 4:1-4 and answer the following questions.
1. Jews throughout the Persian Empire received word that their day of destruction had been decreed under the wicked supervision of Haman. What was Mordecai’s reaction to this edict, not just for himself, but all of the people (v. 1)? How did the other Jews throughout the Empire similarly react to this news (v. 3)?
2. This was no light mourning or sadness. When Mordecai “cried out with a loud and bitter cry,” literally he shrieked out in a bitter, sad, wild display of heart-crushing grief; it was like a distress signal, a cry for help.[i] The Septuagint translation of the Old Testament, which needlessly attempted to bring God more directly into Esther, adds to verse 1 that Mordecai wailed, “An innocent people is being condemned to death.”
No doubt Mordecai’s next thought was about his beloved cousin Esther. What prevented him from having access to her (v. 2)?
4. Probably one of Esther’s servants saw Mordecai in such a state, and reported it to her. What was Esther’s reaction to this (v. 4)?
5. Esther was evidently unaware of this edict. The news that her cousin was in such a state which prevented him from coming to her greatly upset her. In fact, “deeply distressed” means she turned around in circles, writhing like a woman who is in the midst of childbirth, and trembled at this.
Our Western culture has wrongly minimized and squelched the display of emotions. Even in times of grief we feel pressured to just “pull ourselves together,” and “get over it.” This was not so in the Jewish culture, nor elsewhere in the Eastern world, as we have seen in video of peoples’ graphic mourning of the tragic disasters in Southeast Asia. We need to understand that if we are grieving, there is no reason to “just snap out of it,” but to express our grief and burdens and give them over to God. There is “a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance” (Ecclesiastes 3:4, nkjv). God wants us to seek Him honestly, and to know that He loves us anyway. How will He bring healing in our lives as we take our burdens and cares to Him?
Matthew 11:28-30
1 Peter 5:6, 7
For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this? Esther 4:14, nkjv
For Such a Time as This
Esther 3 brought us to the central crisis of this book. We saw that Haman, the second in command of the Persian Empire, had convinced Ahasuerus to order everyone to bow to Haman as he passed by. Of course, the people did so in fear for their lives. All except one: Mordecai, who alone stood up against compromise in doing homage to man rather than to God. Haman was furious as a result. Just getting back at Mordecai wouldn’t be enough. Instead he wanted to destroy all the Jews and remove them from getting in the way of his self-seeking plans. Haman first cast lots (pur) to decide when the destruction was to take place. He craftily fooled Ahasuerus into authorizing the destruction of these people by playing on Ahasuerus’ greed, superstition, and ego. Copies of this decree were distributed throughout the land via the Persian Pony Express. The chapter ended in an unusual way: “So the king and Haman sat down to drink, but the city of Shushan was perplexed” (Esther 3:15, nkjv).
So we come to Esther 4, in which the crisis begins to reach its peak. Being Jewish, Esther was in just as much danger as her people, although she was now the queen. She and Mordecai will discover in this chapter the hand of God’s sovereignty at work in arranging all of these things, and they would have vital decisions to make that would effect the survival of Judaism and the people of Israel.DAY ONE: Mourning and Sackcloth Please carefully read Esther 4:1-4 and answer the following questions.
1. Jews throughout the Persian Empire received word that their day of destruction had been decreed under the wicked supervision of Haman. What was Mordecai’s reaction to this edict, not just for himself, but all of the people (v. 1)? How did the other Jews throughout the Empire similarly react to this news (v. 3)?
2. This was no light mourning or sadness. When Mordecai “cried out with a loud and bitter cry,” literally he shrieked out in a bitter, sad, wild display of heart-crushing grief; it was like a distress signal, a cry for help.[i] The Septuagint translation of the Old Testament, which needlessly attempted to bring God more directly into Esther, adds to verse 1 that Mordecai wailed, “An innocent people is being condemned to death.”
No doubt Mordecai’s next thought was about his beloved cousin Esther. What prevented him from having access to her (v. 2)?
4. Probably one of Esther’s servants saw Mordecai in such a state, and reported it to her. What was Esther’s reaction to this (v. 4)?
5. Esther was evidently unaware of this edict. The news that her cousin was in such a state which prevented him from coming to her greatly upset her. In fact, “deeply distressed” means she turned around in circles, writhing like a woman who is in the midst of childbirth, and trembled at this.
Our Western culture has wrongly minimized and squelched the display of emotions. Even in times of grief we feel pressured to just “pull ourselves together,” and “get over it.” This was not so in the Jewish culture, nor elsewhere in the Eastern world, as we have seen in video of peoples’ graphic mourning of the tragic disasters in Southeast Asia. We need to understand that if we are grieving, there is no reason to “just snap out of it,” but to express our grief and burdens and give them over to God. There is “a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance” (Ecclesiastes 3:4, nkjv). God wants us to seek Him honestly, and to know that He loves us anyway. How will He bring healing in our lives as we take our burdens and cares to Him?
Matthew 11:28-30
1 Peter 5:6, 7
For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this? Esther 4:14, nkjv
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Heaven
There is an old legend of a swan and a crane. A beautiful swan alighted by the banks of the water in which a crane was wading about seeking snails. For a few moments the crane viewed the swan in wonder and then inquired: "Where do you come from?"
"I come from heaven!" replied the swan.
"And where is heaven?" asked the crane."Heaven!" said the swan, "Heaven! Have you never heard of heaven?" And the beautiful bird went on to describe the grandeur of the Eternal City. She told of streets of gold, and the gates and walls made of precious stones; of the river of life, pure as crystal, upon whose banks is the tree whose leaves shall be for the healing of the nations. In eloquent terms the swan sought to describe the hosts who live in the other world, but without arousing the slightest interest on the part of the crane.Finally the crane asked: "Are there any snails there?"
"Snails!" repeated the swan; "no! Of course there are not."
"Then," said the crane, as it continued its search along the slimy banks of the pool, "you can have your heaven. I want snails!"
"I come from heaven!" replied the swan.
"And where is heaven?" asked the crane."Heaven!" said the swan, "Heaven! Have you never heard of heaven?" And the beautiful bird went on to describe the grandeur of the Eternal City. She told of streets of gold, and the gates and walls made of precious stones; of the river of life, pure as crystal, upon whose banks is the tree whose leaves shall be for the healing of the nations. In eloquent terms the swan sought to describe the hosts who live in the other world, but without arousing the slightest interest on the part of the crane.Finally the crane asked: "Are there any snails there?"
"Snails!" repeated the swan; "no! Of course there are not."
"Then," said the crane, as it continued its search along the slimy banks of the pool, "you can have your heaven. I want snails!"
Sun of Righteousness Healing in it's Wings
SUN OF RIGHTEOUSNESSWITH HEALING IN ITS WINGS
“But for you who revere my name,
the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.”
Malachi 4:2
FROM THE FATHER'S HEART My child, in this life you will experience injustice, illness, rejection, misunderstanding, and death. But the time is coming when I, the sun of righteousness, will both rise and de-scend to call My children home. Heaven’s healing waits for those who have known and revered Me—and a special place in My kingdom. Don’t be weary doing good things in My name. Because you have acknowledged My name, I will acknowledge yours.
A GRATEFUL RESPONSE One day I’ll discard all my worn bandages and frayed Band-Aids—and receive no more doctor bills. You are the sun of righteousness, Lord. Like an eagle soaring in the sky, You’ll rise with ultimate healing in Your wings. I’m waiting for that day, Lord.
SIMPLE TRUTH
The Lord delights in those who delight in Him.
“But for you who revere my name,
the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.”
Malachi 4:2
FROM THE FATHER'S HEART My child, in this life you will experience injustice, illness, rejection, misunderstanding, and death. But the time is coming when I, the sun of righteousness, will both rise and de-scend to call My children home. Heaven’s healing waits for those who have known and revered Me—and a special place in My kingdom. Don’t be weary doing good things in My name. Because you have acknowledged My name, I will acknowledge yours.
A GRATEFUL RESPONSE One day I’ll discard all my worn bandages and frayed Band-Aids—and receive no more doctor bills. You are the sun of righteousness, Lord. Like an eagle soaring in the sky, You’ll rise with ultimate healing in Your wings. I’m waiting for that day, Lord.
SIMPLE TRUTH
The Lord delights in those who delight in Him.
Monday, May 26, 2008
Answers For Unanswered Prayer from page 3
Then, there is a battle of dueling deities in the story of the plagues in Exodus 7-13. The plagues are not just neat special effects that spice up the story; they are carefully designed polemics to stress the greatness of the Lord over the gods of Egypt. The Egyptians believed that Hapi protected the Nile, and so God turned the Nile into blood. They believed that Re was the god of the sun, and so God turned out the lights. They believed that the Pharaoh was a god incarnate, and so God took the life of his firstborn son.
Finally, at the Red Sea in Exodus 14, there is a battle of dueling warriors, when God the Divine Warrior bares his right arm and destroys the Egyptian army. The most powerful army on earth in that day was no match for the Lord. It was said of the Pharaoh of the exodus, "He will make a ruler of the land whom no one can attack."3 The Pharaoh found out the hard way who had real power.
Unanswered prayer doesn’t void the omnipotence of God. There is nothing we can ask God that is beyond his ability to accomplish, but the greatest demonstrations of God’s power are often found in his answers to our unanswered prayers. Bob Mitchell prayed for the safety of five young missionaries who went to the jungles of South America in order to share the gospel with the Auca Indians, but Jim Elliott and his four companions were brutally murdered. Years later, Mitchell attended a conference in Europe and met an evangelist who was one of the Auca Indians that had murdered Elliott and the other missionaries.4 Only God could orchestrate that kind of answer to an unanswered prayer.
We see in the exodus that the power of God is not something placed at Israel’s disposal with the flip of a switch or the pull of a lever. The how and when of God’s answer to prayer is determined by what brings him the greatest amount of glory. When God answered, it was done in a way so that even Pharaoh himself could not deny that Yahweh was God over all. Some of the greatest demonstrations of God’s power we will ever experience come in God’s answers to our unanswered prayers.
We pray to the same God as these Hebrew slaves. Whether God’s answer to our prayers is “Yes,” “No,” or “Wait,” his answers are always the perfect expression of his love and power in our lives.
_______________________
Finally, at the Red Sea in Exodus 14, there is a battle of dueling warriors, when God the Divine Warrior bares his right arm and destroys the Egyptian army. The most powerful army on earth in that day was no match for the Lord. It was said of the Pharaoh of the exodus, "He will make a ruler of the land whom no one can attack."3 The Pharaoh found out the hard way who had real power.
Unanswered prayer doesn’t void the omnipotence of God. There is nothing we can ask God that is beyond his ability to accomplish, but the greatest demonstrations of God’s power are often found in his answers to our unanswered prayers. Bob Mitchell prayed for the safety of five young missionaries who went to the jungles of South America in order to share the gospel with the Auca Indians, but Jim Elliott and his four companions were brutally murdered. Years later, Mitchell attended a conference in Europe and met an evangelist who was one of the Auca Indians that had murdered Elliott and the other missionaries.4 Only God could orchestrate that kind of answer to an unanswered prayer.
We see in the exodus that the power of God is not something placed at Israel’s disposal with the flip of a switch or the pull of a lever. The how and when of God’s answer to prayer is determined by what brings him the greatest amount of glory. When God answered, it was done in a way so that even Pharaoh himself could not deny that Yahweh was God over all. Some of the greatest demonstrations of God’s power we will ever experience come in God’s answers to our unanswered prayers.
We pray to the same God as these Hebrew slaves. Whether God’s answer to our prayers is “Yes,” “No,” or “Wait,” his answers are always the perfect expression of his love and power in our lives.
_______________________
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