Esther

Do keep those, chapters open 3 and 4. 2 weeks ago, we began a series in the book of Esther, And, as you might have picked up from the reading, we're in Susa, which was 1 of the capitals of Persia, which was certainly at its time, the greatest kingdom, the world has ever seen. And in our first session, we learned that although god is not explicitly mentioned in this book, There is no doubt that he is the director working behind the scenes, ordering every single event for the good of his people. Vashti, the original queen, you might remember her. She was thrown out of her royal position for refusing to perform at Zurich's drunken banquet.

And, in her place, this Jewish exile named Esther, has come into the royal house, and she is now queen in her stead. How did that happen? Well, you remember she won a beauty contest. So the lord was working in mysterious ways to bring her there. So she is now queen, and she is reigning with this kind of drunken out of control slob who we know as king xerxes.

And at the end of chapter 2, you might remember there was another twist So we met Mordecai, his Esther's cousin, and he uncovered this plot to assassinate the king. Do you remember that? He was sitting at the king's gate, and he happened to overhear 2 officials who were planning this assassination. He reported it to Ester. Ester then reported it to the king and the 2 assassins were impaled upon a pole.

Because in Persia, that's what happens when you upset the king. And it might have been that Mordecai got her to do that just to sort of slightly strengthen her position in the royal house. But then in chapter 3, it is really, really odd as we pick it up because Mordecai seems to get no reward at all for his loyalty. Somebody else gets promoted instead of him. I don't know if you've ever had that experience at work.

You've you've kind of been slogging your guts out for a particular promotion or a position that you'd like to get to. The interview comes up. The position is available. You go for it. You wait for the response and you've been passed over in favor of someone else.

This is a bit gutting, isn't it? But at least in that situation, you hope that the person who's been given the job has got it because they deserve it. But in this case, mordecai seems to be forgotten in favor of some noble nobody's ever heard of. Chapter 3 verse 1. After these events, King Zerxes honored Hammond, son of Hamadatha, the Agagite.

Hammond, the Agagite gets the promotion. And as the story develops, you're gonna get quite a picture of this guy, particularly this weekend next week, but to help you sort of get an idea of what he's like. I wonder if you recognize this, this chat. Is this gonna work? Maybe not, Steve, you're gonna have to help me out here.

Next 1. I wonder if you recognize him on the left. That is a character called worm tongue, from the lord of the rings. Okay? And at first, when you first meet worm tongue, he is an adviser to this good righteous king Theoden.

Okay? He's the adviser of the theoden. But then in the 2 towers, the second book in the trilogy, we learn that worm tongue, as you can tell from that picture, is actually working undercover for this wicked wizard called Saruman. And as his name suggests, Wormtongue. He is a wormy snaky sort of character.

He sits there all day whispering poison into the king's ear to try to turn him against the forces of good. And what we see is that his words are so toxic and so bitter that he was able to change this righteous, young, powerful king into that withered bitter shell of a person you see in the picture. Everybody knows in the kingdom of Rohan that listening to him is like breathing in poison. So hold that picture in your mind. Okay?

You've got a pale, green snake. Whispering poison into the king's ear. In chapter 3, Hayman steps on stage, and that is gonna help us to understand him. But as you can see from chapter 3, the first thing we learn about him is more to do with his origins. So Steve, you can click that off now to stop us all staring at him.

Should I try it again? It's brilliant. There we go. So verse, verse 1, after these events, King Zirksy's honored Hammond, the son of Hamedatha, the Agagite elevating him and giving him a seat of honor higher than that of all the other nobles. Now in our last session, we also learned that family trees are a big deal in this book or origins where you come from matter.

So Mordecai and Esther are introduced to not just as random people who happen to be living in the empire, but as exiles. They are god's people, they're Jews, who were living in the land, but not Hammond, he is an Agagite. Now what does that mean? Well Agag was no joke. I wrote that in.

Didn't know how it was gonna go, but I'm pleased it came off. He was the king of the AmeloKites. Okay? So not a joke. And, he was a pretty he was a pretty nasty bloke, and the AmeloKites were the ancient enemies of god's people.

So in the book of Exodus, they were the first nation to wage war against god's people after they've left the land of Egypt. And so we can see in chapter 17 of exodus, the lord says, about them, write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it because I will completely blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven. And then there's a number of other episodes in the old testament which just cement this hatred you remember the first king of Israel's soul was commanded to destroy the amalekites and to take their king Agag to white him out and to wipe the population out from the face of the earth. He refused to obey the lord because he wanted to keep the best of the flocks for himself. And so the prophet Samuel came and had to finish the job and saul was condemned for his lack of obedience.

So all the way throughout the old testament, there is this rivalry boiling away between the amalekites and between god's people. So what we have here is ancient enemies locking swords again. Hayman the agogite and Mortechai the Jew. And that probably explains verse 2 to 4. So we're told that mordecai will not bow the knee to Hammond probably because he stands for anti godness in even a way that the other Persians don't.

So this is a real rivalry here. And as we can see from the reading, for Hammond, That refusal to bow is is just unacceptable. And so that's the first point this morning. We've got the plot Okay? This is Hammond's plot.

Have a look at verse 6 of chapter 3. Having learned who mordecai's people were he scorned the idea of killing only mordecai. Instead, Hammond looked for a way to destroy all Mordecai's people, the Jews throughout the whole kingdom of Azerxes. As how as Abri alluded to in his prayers, you you might know that 2 weeks ago, the, the Republic of Ireland, voted to replace the eighth amendment which, which now in practice basically means there are many, many more reasons why somebody can have a an abortion legally in in the Republic of Ireland. Obviously, it was a very emotional referendum, and there were strong opinions on both sides, and you probably were following it a bit in the news.

And, when that particular story broke, I heard an interview with a writer called Peter Hitchens, and a scientist called Adam Rutherford, and Rutherford was saying in this particular debate that actually he he himself in the laboratory has worked with, with many aborted babies during his his research, and he is absolutely certain, absolutely certain that they are not human beings. And he says, I don't believe that the things I've worked with in the laboratories are human beings. They look like them, They resemble them physically in every way, but they are not human beings. And Peter Hitching's replies in that debate Good lord, that is concentration camp language. They look like human beings, they resemble them physically, but they're actually not human beings, they're Jews.

This is amazing. It is the oldest tactic in the book before you kill, you dehumanize. You reclassify and you give it another name. And in so doing, you argue yourself into the most appalling moral positions without even realizing it, which I thought was was sort of was tragic, but but very helpful understanding what goes on, isn't it? It it is much easier to justify something like the concentration camps if you dehumanize the people involved.

They look like people. They sound like people. They have families like other people. They make the same noises as people. They resemble people, but they're not people, they're Jews.

They look like children. They resemble their children. They resemble them physically in every way. But they're not children, they're just cells. And with that, the outrage is justified.

Now, 2000 years ago, Jesus Christ died on a cross for the sins of his people. And he died for those who have had a part to play in abortion and he died for those who have had a hand in genocide of some kind, he died for every other foul sin that comes from the human heart and offers us grace. But we were never gonna we're never gonna treasure that grace or understand the wickedness of the human heart or understand how our culture works if we don't see this process here, and the way the heart can work in dehumanizing and destroying. Gotta understand that because Hitchens is right. It is the oldest tactic in the book, and it is exactly what Hammond does here in verse 8.

Have a look how he phrases it. Then Hayman said to King Xerxes, There is a certain people dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom who keep themselves separate. Their customs are different from those of all the other people and they do not obey the king's laws. It is not in the king's best interest to tolerate them. If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to the destroy them.

See how he does it? There is a certain people. They look like people, but they're not really people. There's a certain people different from others. Don't obey, not worth tolerating.

Let's destroy them. That's good business. You dehumanize, you reclassify, and then you can destroy them. But it's not the other the only tactic he uses, He also tries to define them just by their actions. Do you notice that?

And this kind of thing happens all the time. So I remember it from student living. 1 of the big reasons students fall out with each other when they live together is because relationships in the house begin to break down. And once relationships have broken down, people become defined by their bad habits. So you're no longer jess.

You're the person who doesn't wash her dishes. You're no longer John. You're person who leaves open bin bags on the floor and doesn't remove them. And it's just obvious when a relationship has reached a stage, where somebody has become their bad habit. It's very easy to hate them because there's no relationship.

The relationship's fallen If I know you and I love you and we get on well, I can say, you're filthy. Pick up your bin back. Like, wash your dishes for goodness sake, you know, and there's a security of relationship there. But when broken apart, you become your bad habit and then I can hate you from a distance. Hammond knows that.

They disobey. They are different. They do different things. They don't do what other people do. No relationship, just bad habits.

Easy to hate. And it gets worse. When you want to do something like this, you also have to generalize and exaggerate to the point where you don't even recognize that their argument anymore. And we still see this today. Do you have a problem with do you have a problem with abortion?

You're against women's rights. You want women to be slaves, don't you? You want all women to be slaves. You want your religion to rule this country don't you? You're you're against women.

You're against women. That's what you are. Hayman knows that. He takes Mordecai and he says, yeah, they're all like this. All of them.

Every 1 of them is like this, all across the empire. They all do it. They all disobey. Not a single 1 of them is worth tolerating when really there is no evidence for that at all. In fact, in verse 15, when the command goes out, we're told the city was bewildered.

They couldn't even understand why suddenly this decree has gone out. It's like if Kingston Council says, right, as of next week, everybody in Epsom needs to be deported and rehomed overseas. No explanation. We would just think What have they? What?

I mean, you know, we might understand it a little bit, but we might think that on the whole we would think, why have they done that? You know, it's Why have they done that? They couldn't understand it. And sadly, this is exactly what we see, isn't it? You dehumanize, you reclassify, you generalize, you exaggerate, you lie, and after that, it's just small step to genocide.

And sadly, we know this isn't just an ancient problem or something that we see in the world today it still happens to our brothers and sisters, doesn't it all over the world? You can imagine the conversations high up in the offices. Do you know those Christians can't be tolerated? They have their own laws. They've got political motives.

They're harming society. They don't seem to share British values. They're intolerant of others. And of course, when you put it like that, who wants them around? Nobody, who wants them around?

It happened with the Savior, didn't it? Do you remember the pharisees? They were perfectly happy to have an illegal trial and to hear false accusations to get the job done. Throughout the Bible, we see this pattern. Those who do not want to turn to god and to submit to his authority will use these kind of tactics against the people of god.

Not not not always not everyone, not everyone of your non Christian friends is trying to kill you, but there is this conflict between the world and those who live for Christ. And Esther shows us that if we are gonna follow Jesus in our day, because this isn't just about the Jews, we shouldn't be surprised if we too are at the sharp end of these tactics. So remember this chap here, whispering in the ear. That's Hammond. That's Hammond's toxic bitter twisting words in the ear.

And before we move on to chapter 4, let's just see what happens right right near the end of chapter 3. In verses 9 to 11. Have a look at verse 9 to 11 with me. If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to destroy them. And I will give 10000 talents of silver into the king's administrators for the royal treasury.

So the king took his signature ring from his finger without any questions, any investigation, no sort of, you know, exploration into it at all, and gave it to Hammond, son of Hamadatha, the acre guide. The enemy of the Jews, keep the money. The king said to Hammond, and do with the people as you please. It's exactly the outcome he wanted. In verse 7, they were already casting lots or rolling dice to reveal the best time for this plan So before he'd even spoken to the king, his heart was totally committed to genocide.

It's exactly what he wanted. And so at the end of the chapter, the decree is rushing out in the empire, and why not? Hammond and Xerxes sit down for a little drink. Who knows how many men and women and children will be dead across the empire when this is actioned and they sit down with a glass of brandy to toast the job. It's like those scenes from James Bond, isn't it where he he does something like fires a harpoon into somebody's face and says, I think he got the point.

You know, there's something sort of psych pathic about it, isn't there? It just feels wrong. They sit down and have a drink to toast their work. So that's the plot. That's the plot.

Secondly, we're gonna have a look at the plan. Okay? The plan. Have a look at chapter 4 and verses 1 to 4. When Mordukai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and he went out into the city wailing, loudly, and bitterly.

But he went only as far as the king's gate because no 1 clothed in sackcloth was allowed to enter in every province province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, which fasting, weeping, and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes. Sometimes when I don't know if you've heard this, but sometimes when people cry, it it's it's a kind of noise that's worse than death, isn't it? If you've heard that, there's this kind of crying and then there's real sorrow, and then there's this noise which is just difficult to describe. It it's a grief unlike anything you've heard.

As if a soul is being torn apart with sadness as they cry. It's a deep guttural sadness. We need to try to hear that sound in chapter 4. How many words are used here? Wailing, loudly, bitterly, great morning, fasting, weeping, wailing, lying in ashes.

This is language with eyes and ears. And so we need to feel their grief. This is gonna be the end of god's people. Some of them had gone back to Judea to rebuild. Some of them have stayed in the Persian empire.

All of them were under the kingship of Xerxes, and all of them would be dead. Just imagine receiving that letter or seeing it pinned up on the town notice board. From that moment, the clock is ticking for you, and every father, every mother, every child, every newborn, every Arpenter, every builder, every tradesman, every marketplace worker, every housewife is going to be dead. If god's people are gonna have a future at all, something needs to happen. Now Esther doesn't have a clue about this.

She's out of the way. She's in the citadel. She doesn't even know about the law. And that's quite interesting because it shows you that at this stage, she was just unable to identify with her people in any kind of meaningful way. She was just out of the picture and so up steps Mordecai with his plan.

Have a look at verses 5 to 8. Then Esther summoned Hatak, 1 of the king's eunuchs assigned to attend her and ordered her to find out what was troubling Mordecai and why she had no idea. So Hackak went out to Mordecai in the open square of the city in front of the king's gate. Mordecai told him everything that had happened to him including the exact amount of money Hammond had promised to pay into the royal treasury for the destruction of the Jews. He also gave him a copy of the text of the edict for their annihilation, which had been published in Susa, to show to Esther and to explain to her.

And he told him instruct her, to go into the king's presence, to beg for mercy and to plead with him for her people. So at this point, They all know that they need a miracle because the laws and the medes and the Persians cannot be changed. There's no way around it There's no loopholes. You can't employ someone clever to hack into the mainframe and somehow work the computers and reorder it. You can't You can't do anything.

The only thing that you can try is begging. And Mordecai is very strong on this. He doesn't just instruct her. He actually literally commands her. He commands her to do it.

And although to us, it feels like a bit of a no hope situation. Remember that the Jews had a friend in very high places. And in the world, as we know, who you know, is often as important as what you know. If you've got 500 IT graduates who are going for the same job, it helps if your uncle works in the firm and can put in a good work, good word for you. Rightly or wrongly.

We know that, don't we? The contacts that you make in life are sometimes more important than the qualifications you earn. Well, Esther, the undercover Jew is Queen, and that's a good contact to have. That's a friend in a very, very high place. But there's a problem, and that's the third point.

So we've heard his plan go and beg, but there's a problem Have a look at verse 11. First part of verse 11. All the kings, this is her reply, all the king's officials and the people of the Royal provinces now that for any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned, the king has but 1 law that they be put to death. Unless the king extends the gold scepter to them and spares their lives. 2 weeks ago, you remember I showed you a picture from the, from from a museum because 1 of the lovely things about the story of Esther is it's so well supported with archaeological evidence outside the Bible.

And, you may well have seen this image as well, if you've been around the British Museum. And this is actually a, a kind of wall carving of king xerxes, And, in his hand, he is holding that very scepter. That is the scepter he would have. It was an iconic image. So just like, you know, with our queen, we might have the royal standard or the crown jewels or whatever sort of iconic images associated with her.

For him, it would be the scepter. Okay? And as we see in the passage, this scepter would be stretched out towards incoming people as a sign of his favor. But if he held it back and I'm not sure what he's doing in that 1, that looks like a back pull to me, doesn't it? Like a handbrake pulling it back.

If he held it back, you were in big trouble. And Esther knows that. In fact, everybody knows that. Just like today, I can't roll up to Windsor chapel in the middle of a royal wedding and just park myself down at the front without being invited. We know that.

Well, same here. You could not approach the king. Whenever you felt like it, even if you're the queen, you don't just waltz in when you fancy a chat with him, That's not how it works. And here's the thing, that isn't even the main problem. Have a look at the other half of verse 11.

But 30 days have passed since I was called to go to the king. It's what we might call the silent treatment. Ever had that? You know, you've had a great friendship kicking off at first. They were chatting with you all the time.

They were sending texts back to you within 30 seconds of receiving them. You know, they wanted to be with you all the time. You were organizing social occasions, but then they started to go a bit cold. You know, they started ignoring you a bit. You notice on social media, they were spending more time with other people than with you.

Or maybe if you've got WhatsApp, they viewed your message. There's 2 blue ticks, but no response. No response. 30 days and no response. 30 days.

That's cold, isn't it? Yeah? That's what it was happening. See, when s when xerxes is in good spirits approaching him is risky, But at this moment, when she might have lost his favor, it's even more likely to backfire in her face. 30 days since I was called.

That's a big problem. So fourthly, Mordukai has to step up the plan and bring a bit of persuasion. The fourth point is persuasion. Have a look at verse 12 to 14. When Esther's words were reported to Mordecai, he sent back this answer.

Do not think that because you are in the king's house, you alone of all the Jews will escape. 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, and who knows, but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this. 2 things he does here a bit like a pincer movement. Okay? From 1 side, he seems to give a pretty strong warning, and from the other side, he gets out his paintbrush and sets her a vision.

On the 1 side, he says, if you don't act, if you remain silent when the Jews get rescued, judgment will come to your house. It's interesting, isn't it? Mordecai is a hundred percent confident that even if this does not work, god will step in to rescue his people. He will discipline them. He might throw them to the ends of the earth in judgment but he will never, ever wipe them out.

Somehow, even if this doesn't work, even if it looks like our only option, god is gonna come in to rescue and Esther if you sit comfortably and watch this happen when that rescue comes, you and your father's house, you'll perish. God is gonna save his people, and the question is this, Will you stand with them? Will you risk it? Will you identify with us now publicly in our hour of need or will you keep your head down? It's tough love, isn't it?

He's trying to persuade her, but he doesn't stop there he then gets out that beautiful canvas and paintbrush and he sets her a vision. Verse 14 again. And who knows? But that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this. When many people think about story, those words probably come to mind.

There's some of the most famous words in all of the old testament. And once again, They are showing us as every verse of this book is that behind these events, there is something more. And given who Mordecai is and the family line he's from, surely, he is saying here, we know that yahweh, our covenant god, our lord, is at work. I mean, just think about it, Esther. Trace the course of your life over the past few years.

Why the beauty contest? Why the assassination plot, why Hammond's plans, why you, why here, why now, could it be that you are here for this reason to approach that king to go into the lion's den and by the grace of god to identify with our people and to be the means of our rescue. That's how to inspire someone, isn't it? You paint a picture for them, you fire their imagination, you help them to rest in the sovereignty of god and risk something for his glory. Esther is weighted.

And so the last point is this, the plan part 2. This is Ester's plan. Have a look at a verse 15. Then s to send this reply to Mordecai go, gather together all of the Jews who are in Sousa and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for these 3 days night or day, I and my attendants will fast as you do.

When this is done, I'll go to the king, even though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish. And the fasting that she has got in mind here is not for sadness. This is a different type of fasting. This is the kind of fasting where you get together and you surely are seeking the lord's help and blessing for this plan. So in Ester language, these are 2 statements of faith.

Mordekai says for such a time as this, Ester says, get the people together and get fasting. And then she says, very famous. If I perish I perish. It's quite something, isn't it? And all over the world still, we love this kind of story.

Even though the ages are rolling on and times and cultures change so dramatically, the story of a person willing to risk themselves for other people is 1 we want to hear and 1 we love. I mean, just the other day, you might have seen this a man in Paris climbed 4 stories of a building on the outside to save a child dangling from a balcony. Did you hear about that? Here's a picture of him. Quite an amazing thing that he did, and, he's been labeled the Spider Man of Paris.

And, for his courage, He was given French citizenship and offered a job on the Parisian fire brigade, which feels like a bit of a slap in the face to everybody else waiting in this system doesn't it? You know, we're applying for citizenship. All you have to do is climb that building and then you get it. But but it's funny, isn't it? We we we we love that kind of story.

We wanna We wanna reward it. We wanna hear about it. We like to see that kind of courage. And I think that is what we find here. When Esther says when I perish, I perish.

Now some people take it very differently and think that these words are kind of mainly unbelief from Ester. So she's accepting certain death and basically she's saying, okay, mordecai. Well, when you put it like that and I'm gonna die I've basically got no option. Have I? So I may as well go any event if it kills me, I'll go through with it.

Okay? Or others would say, no. No. This is her. Coming to trust in the lord and submitting to his will.

That doesn't mean she knows the outcome. Doesn't mean she knows everything. She might perish, but in the end, that this is the courage of faith, and personally I would vote for that second option. You see Ester, she had no promise of signs and wonders did she? She had no direct voice from heaven.

She had no burning bush experience. But if god's people get together And if she thinks about the way the lord has been at work in her life so far, if she's willing to take that risk, identify with her people in their hour of need. Who knows what the lord might do? Now next week, we're gonna load up the next episode because unfortunately we can't binge like a Netflix box set and just watch them all back to back. But before before we finish, let's have a think about how some of this applies to us.

And to start with, as I said a few weeks ago, this book is not just moralism, Okay? It will be a disaster just to come away saying, okay, right. Well, I've gotta not think too much about God. I've just gotta I just shouldn't be like Hayman and I should be more like Ester, and I'm gonna try and do that somehow. You know, it's not just moralism of course, but At the end of the day, these stories are meant to inspire us and to challenge us in our own lives, surely.

And at the moment, in our culture, we need to hear some of that because although we don't have to deal with these kind of national threats to life as many of god's people do. And 1 day, we might face that. National threats to life. I mean, if this story shows us 1 thing, it's that a tolerant liberal nation can turn very quickly. All it takes is 1 promotion, 1 person with an agenda, 1 new law and suddenly we're on the ropes.

If we think that's unlikely to happen, we just need to look at this book and look at history and learn how quickly a liberal empire can turn nasty in the space of just 1 appointment. But the truth is even now We Christians are not at home in this world. We are exiles in the lands like they were. And so although we are citizens of this country with 2 passports, that's what we have with 1 passport rather. In reality, we have 2 passports, as I was gonna We've got a passport for this country, but we've also got another passport, a true passport, which says we are children of god and children of heaven.

And that means that this is not our true home. We are exiles in the land. And sometimes, if we're honest, The differences between god's people and the citizens of this world don't seem that big, do they in our in our world We we we live and we work with people who are very much like us in lots of different ways. But other times, it becomes very clear, sometimes painfully clear that Christians are exiles in the land. And at some stage, we will face challenges to stand up and identify with the people of God.

And as we know, that is hard to do because in our culture, it's much easier not to And I think there's more of a hint, more than a hint that the Jews were maybe guilty of this too much blending in. Remember Cyrus, King Cyrus had given them the opportunity to go home. He said they could They could go back, they could rebuild, and they could start again in their own land, but many of them chose not to. Now Why would you not choose to do that? Why would you not choose to go to the promised land, to rebuild, to rebuild the temple to get those sacrifices and those feasts going again.

Why wouldn't you do that? Why would you choose to stay in this massive, rich, secure empire? Well, for the same reason, that we might feel pressure to shrug off our true identity. It's easier. It's less hassle.

It's more comfortable and honestly we prefer we prefer the lifestyle. And maybe there was a hint that to start with Ester felt a bit like that. You see it's not hard, is it? For us to identify as a Christian when everybody loves it. On a Christian camp or here this morning, it's quite easy for us to identify as Christian.

But most of the time we are not here. And when the most powerful man in the land has ordered your death, or when we are surrounded by people who think Jesus is just so dull compared to the pleasures of this world there is a temptation to shrug it off, blend in, and keep our heads down. But the other temptation we might face and Doubtedly the Jews would have faced in this kind of situation is despair. Can you imagine them thinking that when the law went out? What is happening here to us?

Where is the god who parted the Red Sea Where is the god who we know can raise the dead, who can feed us miraculously, who can do with the nations what he pleases? Where is that god? Where is the god who can do these powerful visual signs to let everybody know that we're secure and he's on the throne. Where is he? It's an easy path to despair, isn't it?

1 writer called John Flivell in the book, his book called The Mystery of Providence, says this. I think it's just wonderful for answering that question. It is the great support and solace of the saints. In all the distresses that before them here, that there is a wise spirit sitting in all the wheels of motion and governing the most eccentric creatures and their most hateful designs to blessed and happy issues. And that marching band clearly agree that that is a quote worth hearing because they've come particularly loud to celebrate it for us.

I think it's I think it's just such a real encouragement, isn't it? Most of us live and work in places where the atmosphere is either hostile or just indifferent to Christ and most of the time, we don't see these great waves of visual miracles, but the book of Esther teaches us not to despair. But to trust in god's plan because no matter what happens to us, he is at the wheel, steering every single event to the blessing of his people. And in many ways, is that not more awesome than any miracle? To know that every single event and every moment of your every day even in opposition that god is directing it for the everlasting good of his people and for the glory of his name.

What a miracle What a god who could be so in control like that? When Mordicae says for such a time as this, He's trying to inspire that kind of outlook and to encourage us to rest in god's sovereignty. And of course, as we finish, He's doing even more than that, isn't he? In all of these events that we have seen, we are supposed to see the shadow of Jesus Christ, shining in this book. The Bible says this.

Have a look at, what these verses in the new testament. Paul says, you see it just the right time. When we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly, when the, when the Galatians 4, when the set time had fully come, God sent his son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law that we might receive adoption to onship. More decies for such a time as this is pause when the fullness of time had come. When the fullness of time had come, God raised up his deliverer.

And unlike Esther, Jesus didn't just risk perishing, did he? It wasn't just a possible outcome that he might perish. He came into this world knowing that he would perish. From day 1, he was going to perish for the sake of his people, and it gets better. Jesus didn't do this because somebody else persuaded him.

He offered himself freely to save us from something far worse than Hammond to save us from the wrath of god and from the damning consequences of our sin. At no point did Jesus Christ need his arm twisting? He never needed persuading in order to identify with his people. He loved to do that for us. He took the nature of a servant.

He lived as 1 of us in this world then on the cross, he identified with us by taking our sin upon his shoulders. Even now, He is in the presence of god identifying boldly with us, praying for us, and 1 day when he comes to rescue us people. He will not be ashamed to identify us with with us again. He will identify us. He'll be thrilled to bring us home.

And in light of that wonderful gospel, let's think about the opportunities we've got. Where are you in life at this moment? What stage are you in? Where has God put you? What family?

What workplace? What opportunities do you have? And why is it you? Why now? It's not just an accident.

It's not just fate. You are where you are because god's hand has put you there. So let's open our eyes and ask the question. What would he have us do? I mean, I think it's probably true for all of us, isn't it?

That whatever we do, we don't want to get to the end of our lives and not have any stories to tell. We wanna get to the end of our lives, don't we? And think whatever I did, wherever god put me, I've got stories to tell of his I've got stories to tell of how he helped me to make a difference, for how he helped me to stand up and identify with god's people, for how he helped me to risk something for sake of the gospel. Deep down, we want those kind of stories to tell at the end of our lives, don't we? Ester needed to have a vision set for her.

She needed persuading and then came through with the courage of faith. Jesus didn't and right now he is on the throne ruling over all identifying with us before the father and his grace will overflow to us here and now to give us fresh courage to identify with Christ and his people, even in our hostile days. Let's pray. He would help us to do that. Father god, we thank you that you are the sovereign high king of heaven, and not a single atom in this universe can move except by your leave.

We thank you that you are sovereign even over the wicked schemes of men that the heart of the king is in your hand like water, and you can direct it wherever it goes. We thank you that you are in control of our lives and that even the most ordinary day to day things that happen to us. They are still working according to your good word to bring about our everlasting good and your Laurie. We pray father that you would help us by your grace to stand for you in our day. We thank you for the lord Jesus Christ who didn't just risk perishing, but knew when he first stepped foot upon this earth, he would perish for our sins.

And father, we thank you that his grace can overflow to us today. It can forgive us of all our wrongs. And can inspire us to do what we can given who we are and the opportunities we've got we've got for the sake of his kingdom. And so we ask for your help for that in Jesus' name, amen.