Ester // Esther

We are in part three of this series called Legends and I am truly enjoying this series because we are learning so much more about the Bible. We're looking at how God takes common men and women to do great things. And very frequently we see legends of the Bible. And we think that God could use them but not me. But the truth is that if God used them, then he can also use us today. And we're going to look at the key verse for this series. It says, therefore since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. God has a purpose for us to run in. But very frequently we compare ourselves, we look to the left, we look to the right. But why are we looking at another person running their race when God has called us to run our own? This verse contains a very beautiful image. We see a race and a great multitude around us. And these legends have already finished their race. And now they have taken their place in the stadium. And from there they are encouraging us so we can also run our race. What would we be able to hear if we could hear them from the stadium encouraging us? What would they teach us? We hear the roaring of the multitude like in a sports event. But we can't hear just one voice. But if you could hear just one voice, what would they say to us? The first week we spoke about what Jonah may say to us. The second week we spoke about what Samson may say to us.

But today we're going to take from the multitude a woman named Esther. What would Esther say to us as we run our race? What would we hear from her? What would she teach us? The story of Esther is such a great story. Because to have a great story you need a hero, you need a villain, you need drama and a lot of suspense. And all of this is found in the story of Esther. It happened in the year 486 B.C. The Jews were taken out of their country of origin. And now they are in a land that is not their own. They're in the capital of Persia. The king is King Xerxes who reigned up until 465 B.C. Now I'm going to invite you to use our imagination. And we're going to imagine this as a play. Help me. So the first scene begins, the curtain opens. And there is the king in the palace celebrating a great party. That we can't imagine how great this party was. If you think that you're a great party planner. But the parties that we throw are only a few hours long. Then we start wanting for people to go home. And you see that great pile of dishes, dirty dishes at home. And you say, now I have to clean all this up. But there's always a friend or a family member that just won't leave. And sometimes they've told you or you've had to tell someone, hey, just turn the lights off when you leave. But that's not what's happening here.

This is a great celebration, a great party where they would eat and celebrate for days. We can hear the people laughing. And the king already happy because of the wine, he stands to his feet and he says, ladies and gentlemen, I want to show you the beauty of my wife, Queen Vashti. And he sends his servants to get the queen. But she says, no. And the problem with this is that you never tell the king, no. And the king becomes furious. He looks at his advisors and they say to him, she cannot continue to be queen. And they get rid of her. The first scene is over, the curtain closes. And we start with the next scene, let's open the curtain. And now we see the king with his advisors. And they say, we need to have a beauty pageant. We need to find you a new queen. And the king likes the idea. And they travel through the whole country recruiting the most beautiful young ladies. And amongst them is Esther. So then they do something very important. They finally mention and introduce the main character of the story. And it says, Mordecai had a cousin named Hadassah. This young woman was also known as Esther. She had a lovely figure and was beautiful. Mordecai had taken her as his own daughter when her father and mother died. Mordecai raised Esther as his own daughter. She was an orphan. And now she is living in a place that is not her country. She has now been recruited by the king. And this young lady feels like she's in the wrong place. This young lady feels like she's in the wrong time.

Have you ever felt this way? Where you're in a place and you feel like you shouldn't be there. And you say to yourself, I didn't expect it to be this way. But listen to what Esther would say to us today. You have not been left out because God always has a place for you. Esther is afraid. She doesn't know what's going on. But she's about to find out. Because God did not forget about her. God had a place for her. So all of the young ladies that were chosen, they had 12 months of preparation before going in to see the king. Before a young woman's turn came to go into King Xerxes, she had to complete 12 months of beauty treatments prescribed for the women. Six months of oil of myrrh and six months with perfume and cosmetics. So much preparation before going into the presence of the king. 12 long months. And I believe that Esther would tell us today, do not despise seasons of preparation. Because you have no idea. what is to follow. Many times we know where we want to go, but we don't like the process that we go through. I love what James says. Consider it pure joy my brothers and sisters whenever you face trials of many kinds. Because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. Hebrews says so that you run with perseverance. And the only way to have perseverance is through the trials that we go through. So there is always a season of preparation that will always take place. Every hero of faith went through that preparation. Because the season of preparation will take us to a season of blessing when we submit to God. And Esther is there in this room with all of these young ladies. And the person that is in charge of them says to them, you can choose any dress that you want. You can choose any jewel that you want. And they go crazy because in that room they have everything.

But Esther goes for something much more simple. The day finally comes where they all come before the king. And you know what? The king chose Esther. That young lady that felt out of place. That young lady that felt she was living in the wrong country. She becomes the queen of Persia. The curtain closes and the scene ends. Let's open the curtain again. The next scene begins. And here we find Esther's cousin Mordecai who is walking by and he hears two officials of the king who are plotting to kill the king. Mordecai tells Esther. Queen Esther tells the king. And the king sends someone to investigate this and it turns out that it was true. And those two officials are hung. Mordecai just saved the king's life. Everyone is happy. And that action is recorded in the chronicles of the king. But here is where it starts to get interesting because the villain of the story appears. His name is Haman and he is second in command in the entire kingdom. He is so powerful that when he is walking down the streets people not only kneel but they also bow and humble themselves before him. And one day Haman as he is walking down the streets he runs into this man who does not humble himself nor kneel before him. And he asks the question who is this man? And they say it's Mordecai. He only humbles himself before God. He humbles himself before no man. And the days went by and Mordecai continued firm in his decision in not bowing down before this man Haman. But look at Haman's wickedness. Yet having learned who he was who Mordecai's people were. He scorned the idea of killing only Mordecai. Instead Haman looked for a way to destroy all Mordecai's people. The Jews throughout the whole kingdom the kingdom of Xerxes. So Haman comes with the look on his face. He comes to the king. And he says, King, I have an idea. There are people who are not keeping your law. We need to do something to kill them. In fact, let me take care of it. You don't need to worry about anything. And the king who has no idea what's going on, he says, fine, you do it. And look at what he did. Dispatches were sent out by couriers to all the king's provinces with the order to destroy, kill and annihilate all the Jews, young and old, women and children.

Haman was fed by so much hate that now all of the people of God in all ages, including Queen Esther, they are all fearing for their lives. They are mourning, lamenting, they're crying. But when you feel afraid, look at what Esther can say to us today. The presence of fear can also indicate the presence of an opportunity. Esther was so afraid, but it was a great opportunity. And Mordecai sends to say to her, Esther, you are the only one that can do something in this. And Esther answers, but you know that there is a law that no one can come near to the king without first receiving permission because surely they will be executed unless the king extends his gold scepter and spares their lives. And Esther had not seen the king in 30 days. So she couldn't just show up to see the king without previously warning him. But look at what Mordecai responds. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. In other words, Mordecai is telling Esther, it's fine, you can stay in your comfort, or you can walk in God's calling for you. You can't keep both. And Esther is afraid, but she is about to be brave.

And Mordecai continues to say, and who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this. For such a time as this, Esther, maybe this was the reason why they were preparing you for so long. It's a great opportunity for you to make a great difference. And in the midst of that anguish, we can hear Esther say, making a difference will require great courage. Listen to this, courage is not the absence of fear, but it is what you do in the midst of fear. It's when you look at fear in the face and you say, you're in my way, I'm going to keep going forward. Because fear is a reaction, but courage is a decision. Listen, if we would know the results for everything, there would be no, we wouldn't need faith or courage. I believe that God has called us to live lives, not with fear, but with courage. As a parent, I have so many memories from my children when they were little. And one of the games that I would play with them when they were about a year and a half or two years old, is that I would put them on a table and I would say, I'm going to play with you. And I would stand in front of them, and I would open my arms. And I would say to them, jump. In the beginning the kids were afraid because they didn't know if I was going to catch them in the air. But I wanted to teach them to take a jump of faith, a jump of courage. During that time I was very skinny, very thin. And finally Nito dared to do it. He jumped, and in the air I caught him, and I felt incredible as a father. But Gagi was so chubby, and he was so heavy, that when he jumped and I caught him, he brought me down with him.

The problem with that is that after that they were climbing on everything, waiting for me to catch them when they would jump off. And one day I got home from work, I was so tired, and I laid down on the floor with my face down next to the bed. And I didn't even realize it when Nito jumped on the bed. And I just saw the shadow when he jumped. And just in time I tensed up my muscles. Or he would have hurt my back when he landed on my back. My point with this is that there will be moments where we need to make the difference. You will feel afraid. You're going to feel like you can't do it. But in that moment you will need great courage. I want to tell you that if you have courage and you take that step, your Heavenly Father will be there in front of you with his arms wide open to catch you and not let you fall. And Esther is there before fear. But she chooses to have courage. And look at what she said, she says, go gather all the Jews who are in Susa and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my attendants will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish. She is choosing to be courageous. But I love what she focuses her attention on. She says, before I go, let's fast and pray. I believe Esther would tell us this today. Don't forget to keep your focus on God. She said, before I do anything, first I need to depend on God. Listen to this because you will be able to see your purpose much clearer. When you take the attention off yourself and you focus on God.

And Esther said, I need to trust in God. The curtain closes and that scene ends. And we go into chapter five, the curtain opens and the new scene begins. And we see Esther opening the door where the king was seated on his throne. She knows that she could die at any moment. But you know what happened? When she saw the beauty of this woman, he extended his gold scepter. And he extended his grace. And she said, all I want is for you to come to a banquet, you and Haman. Esther sets the table, all three of them are there eating. And the king says, well what's the purpose of this banquet? What is it that you want? And she says, I want for you and Haman to come back tomorrow for another banquet. They say their goodbyes and Haman leaves walking through the streets very happy. And there was Mordecai on his feet, without kneeling nor humbling himself before Haman. Imagine how Haman clenched his teeth and his fists. He became even more furious. He gets home and he tells his friends. And one of them says to him, kill him already, what are you waiting for? Then Haman says, tomorrow I will go to the king to ask for permission to kill Mordecai. But that night the king could not sleep. And the king says, have someone read the chronicles of my life to me. And there they read to him about his reign, about his achievements, about the wars, about his struggles. And there they found that Mordecai had saved the king's life. And the king says, wait a minute, what did we do to honor this man? And the princess said to him, nothing. While Haman was walking down the courts, just whistling and skipping. And the king says, who is that that's coming? They say, oh, that's Haman.

He says, that's perfect, bring him here. And Haman goes in to ask the king the question, to ask for permission to kill Mordecai. And the king says, he says, king, I have a question. And the king says, no, wait a minute, I have a question for you. And he says, what would you do for the man whom the king would like to honor? And quickly in his heart he thought, he was filled with pride and haughtiness. He spread his feathers like a peacock. And he said, well, who else would the king like to honor, if not me? And look at what Haman said. He says, have them bring a royal robe the king has worn. And a horse the king has ridden, one with a royal crest placed on his head. And let the robe and the horse be entrusted to one of the king's most noble princess. Let them robe the man the king delights to honor. And lead him on the horse through the city streets, proclaiming before him. This is what is done for the man the king delights to honor. Look at what a beautiful advice Haman gave. And the king says, I love it. What a genius idea you have, Haman. Let's do all of this for Mordecai, the Jew. Can you imagine the surprise of Haman, the look on his face? And the king says, and I want it to be you, who will place that robe upon him. You will help him on the horse. And you're going to place that on its head. And you will lead the horse through the city streets. And you will proclaim honor to this man. That was the worst day for Haman. He got home so humiliated. And he was telling his wife everything that happened to him. When they come for him to take him to the banquet. And they're at the banquet, and they're all eating, and all of a sudden the king says.

My love, my princess, my doll. What is the request that you have? He said, up until half of my kingdom, I will wed you. He was in love with her. And then finally Esther speaks. And she says, oh king, if I have found grace before your majesty, if it pleases you. My desire is that you grant me my life and that of my people. From someone who is trying to kill us. And the king is surprised saying, but who would dare try to kill my queen and her people? And he had him right there in front of him. And she says, it's this ugly guy here in front of us. Listen, they take Haman and they hang him in the pole that he was going to use for Mordecai. This is how the people that exalt themselves end. Because wickedness will never overcome. And they give Mordecai the position that Haman had in the palace. With your eyes you will see the reward of the unrighteous. But what happens is that the edict to kill the Jews had already been written. And a decree from a Persian king could not be annulled. But they had to write another decree. So that the Jews could be prepared for December 13th. And defend themselves from their enemies. On the 13th day of the 12th month, the month of Adar, the edict commanded by the king was to be carried out. On this day the enemies of the Jews had hoped to overpower them. But now the tables were turned and the Jews got the upper hand over those who hated them. And this is how Esther saved her people. And they celebrated. And in verse 22 of the same chapter. As the time when the Jews got relief from their enemies. And as the month when their sorrow was turned into joy and their mourning into a day of celebration. Listen to this, as the people of God we have a spiritual enemy.

He's trying to dominate us. He's trying to destroy our purpose. He's trying to steal our joy. But I believe that God can turn your mourning into joy. Unfortunately many of us are still in mourning when it's time to celebrate. This is how the story of Esther ends and the curtain closes. But there are three other things that Esther would say to us. Number one. When you don't understand, stay faithful. When it doesn't look good, stay faithful, stand firm. Keep going forward, keep trusting God. And number two. When you know God is with you, it's easier to take the next step. God has a plan for us. This is why we have the next steps here at church. We want to help you in this. We want to help you to discover your gifts. So that you can make a difference. Whatever it may be, but take that next step. Maybe it's simply just inviting someone to church. Maybe it's getting baptized or maybe it's starting to tithe. Or maybe it's simply to surrender your life to Jesus. But know that God is with you. And right before the voice of Esther disappears amongst the multitude in the stadium. As we run our race. She would say this last thing to us. Your obedience to God's next step can save people's lives. While the story of Esther is very known because she saved her people. It simply points to a story that would be told after. And that would be the story of Jesus saving humanity.

saving humanity. Jesus is the better and true Esther. Jesus is the better and true King Xerxes. Esther saved her nation that was scattered by another nation. She was able to do this during her generation. But Jesus saves his people in every nation and in every generation. Esther was afraid to enter into the presence of the King, but we can confidently go to the throne of grace because our King Jesus, our Savior, he extends his scepter of grace for you and us, for me every day. Esther prepared a banquet for her King, while our King Jesus prepares a banquet for you and I in the kingdom of heaven. While the reign of King Xerxes was coming to an end, the reign of King Jesus will never end. And he invites you to be part of his kingdom, part of this family, from a people who can receive grace, who is called to make an eternal difference. Maybe you were born for such a time as this. Maybe God brought you to this church for such a time as this. You can become brave through God's power and say, I was born for this. I am here for a reason. Because you have not been left out. Because God always has a place for you. So do not despise the seasons of preparation. Because the presence of fear can indicate a great opportunity. And to make a difference, you need to have great courage. And your obedience to God's next step can save so many people around you. If you decide to walk in God's calling, close your eyes and bow your heads. Thank you so much for watching the message. Subscribe to this channel so you won't miss a video and share it with a friend. Also, we want to encourage you to partner with us through your giving. We can take this message further and faster and make a difference in the lives of so many people. You can give using the link below or by visiting our website at myvisionchurch.org. We love you so much and we're looking forward to seeing you back here next time.