Esther - For Such a Time as Tis

[0:00] The Book of Esther The Book of Esther, for such a time as this.

[0:17] ! The Book of Esther shows us how a believer can live in this world where we are in a minority.

[1:00] We are a minority group. And how God is in control, even when it seems like He is not. Esther, at the start here, she was perhaps, some reckon, about 14 years old.

[1:12] I don't know if there are any 14-year-old girls here today. But this was Esther, as these events started to unfold in the Book. She had known hardship. Here she was, an orphan girl.

[1:24] Her parents had died. And her older cousin, Mordecai, who served in the Persian ruler's palace, had raised her as his own child. And taught Esther to fear God.

[1:37] So we'll pick up the story in verse 7 of Esther 2. Esther 2, verse 7. Esther 2, verse 8.

[2:15] Esther 2, verse 8. And so too with Esther. Her heroism shone through when she and her people were in danger. Esther, the name that was given to her when she was brought to the king's court.

[2:29] Esther means star. A star. God is never mentioned through the book of Esther. Yet through this story we see God's presence.

[2:41] We see His power. His providence. And His plan. As Esther and His people were moved by God. And so this story gives us courage today.

[2:57] That no matter what is going on for us, our Lord is in control. Our God. And we can have courage in that.

[3:08] Chapter 1 starts off in the Persian court. And the powerful king of Persia, Ahasuerus, reeled over 127 provinces. 127 provinces.

[3:20] And the Jews were captives at this time in this foreign kingdom of Babylonia. And the king gave a huge feast for all the princes of the land. It was a lavish party.

[3:32] It lasted six months long. That was some kind of party, wasn't it? And the king wanted to show off his great wealth. And his mighty army. And his harem of beautiful women.

[3:43] This king. Then he gave another week long feast for the common people of Shushan. His capital. And on the seventh day of this feast. King Ahasuerus commanded Queen Vashti.

[3:57] That she appear before him and his guests. But Vashti refused. And the king was angry. That Queen Vashti had refused his command.

[4:08] And did not appear. The king, egged on by his advisors. Removed her as queen. He made a decree that she would never appear before him again.

[4:23] Queen Vashti was deposed. Next up in chapter 2. Our king's advisors suggested. That he search across the land.

[4:35] To find a woman. Fitting to be the new queen. And in Esther 2 verse 4. They advised the king. And let the maiden which pleaseth the king be queen.

[4:47] Instead of Vashti. And the thing pleased the king. And he did so. So there was a big contest now. A big beauty competition of sorts.

[4:59] That many were called. Many beautiful young women. And Josephus records a historian of the time. That there was 400 virgins brought to the palace.

[5:12] 400. Esther was just one of these many, many women. Who were taken for this competition. To be the new queen. Notice firstly Esther's favour.

[5:25] Esther shows us how to handle life. In her case she received favour from everyone who saw her. God granted her favour. And the king selected Esther.

[5:37] This humble orphan girl. To be his new queen. And she became his favoured wife. In Esther 2 verse 17. It says. Esther received favour.

[5:51] And she obtained grace and favour in his sight. More than all the virgins. So that he set the royal crown upon her head. And made her queen.

[6:02] Instead of Vashti. Esther received favour. Yet she maintained grace. There was a certain quality. A certain character to this woman.

[6:14] A noble spirit. A strength of character. Of wisdom. There was just something about Esther. That was a favour. There was Esther's favour here.

[6:26] And that should mark every child of God. God's favour. God's favour. It's something about how she carried herself. Something about how she conducted herself.

[6:38] She was already a child of the king. She was already royalty. And so too are we. We're kings and priests. We're sons and daughters of the living God.

[6:49] We should carry ourselves. With that favour of God. About us. As Esther did. Mordecai, her cousin, counselled Esther. To not reveal that she was a Jew.

[7:02] At this time. The Jews were viewed with suspicion. And so she kept this quiet. God will grant us favour. favour with God and men.

[7:13] This was true of our Lord himself. In Luke 2.52 it says, And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature and in favour with God and men. The word often mentions how God's people found favour.

[7:26] Joseph found favour. Moses found favour. Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. Proverbs 14.9 it says, Phil's make a mock at sin, but among the righteous there is favour.

[7:40] And Psalm 5 verse 12 it says, For the Lord will bless the righteous with favour. Wilt thou compass him as with a shield. There's a certain favour of God.

[7:51] A favour with God and men. Back to the story of Esther. Now shortly she became queen. Shortly after there was an incident that happened.

[8:01] Recorded in verses 21 through 23 of chapter 2. There was two men who plotted to kill the king. But Mordecai, Esther's cousin, became aware of this.

[8:12] And through Esther revealed it to the king. So these two men who plotted to kill the king were hanged. And the incident was recorded in the king's personal history.

[8:24] This incident would have had a big impact on later events that we'll come to. In chapter 3 we meet the villain of our story.

[8:36] Wicked Haman. Haman. Haman was also shown favour by the king. He was shown favour. He was made the prime minister, second in command of the empire.

[8:48] He was shown favour. But he handled it differently. In Haman's case, his promotion kind of went to his head. He got all proud and puffed up and arrogant.

[9:00] He was a prideful man. And in his arrogance, he demanded that everyone bow down to him. When he walked past as if he was some kind of a god. Everyone did.

[9:11] Except Mordecai. Amen. Except Mordecai. Verse 2 of chapter 3. And all the king's servants that were in the king's gate bowed and reverenced Haman. For the king had so commanded concerning him.

[9:24] But Mordecai bowed not. But Mordecai bowed not. Nor did him reverence. But Mordecai. Mordecai. He stood out from the crowd.

[9:36] Everyone else was bowing down. Virtually worshipping this man. But not Mordecai. He was a true follower of God. And he did not want to compromise by giving a man the honour that was due only to God.

[9:51] Mordecai didn't bow down. Amen. And this hurt Haman's pride. He was fuming mad. Mordecai's not bowing down to me. Esther 3 verse 5.

[10:02] And when Haman saw that Mordecai bowed not. Nor did him reverence. Then was Haman full of wrath. Haman saw Mordecai bowed not. Nor did him reverence.

[10:13] And Haman was full of wrath. Haman was arrogant. He was angry at Mordecai. Mordecai refused to bow down. He despised Mordecai for his faithfulness to God.

[10:26] And Haman hated the Jews. And he hated Mordecai especially. And Haman started to plot some ways that he could destroy all the Jews.

[10:40] Wipe them out in Persia. Esther 3 verse 8. And Haman said unto king Ahasuerus. There is a certain people scattered abroad. And dispersed among the people.

[10:51] In all the provinces of thy kingdom. And their laws are diverse from all the people. Neither keep they the king's laws. Therefore it is not for the king's prophet to soften them.

[11:02] He wrote. He said let it be written that they be destroyed. Esther 3 verse 9. Haman ultimately tricked the king.

[11:13] To declare this death sentence on all the Jews. Haman talked the king into this murderous plan. And the king agreed. Not realising that his own new wife was herself a Jew.

[11:26] The king issued a command by royal decree. Condemning the Jewish people to death on a specific day. It was nearly a year later. It was going to be a day of slaughter.

[11:39] Esther 3 verse 13. And the letters were sent by posts. So these runners. They sent these letters into all the king's provinces. And the orders were to destroy, to kill and to cause to perish.

[11:54] All Jews. Both young and old. Little children and women. In one day. In one day. And to take the spoil of them for a prey.

[12:06] So proud Haman is a picture for us of the evil of sin. At work in a man. In all of its deadly power. It's a picture of sin.

[12:17] It's a picture of Satan. Chapter 4 now. Mordecai learnt of the wicked plan. To destroy God's people. In Esther 4 verse 1. It says. When Mordecai perceived all that was done.

[12:29] He heard what was going to be done. He tore his clothes apart. And he put sackcloth on him. This sign of mourning with ashes. And he went out into the midst of the city.

[12:41] And cried with a loud and bitter cry. There was great distress in the nation. Verse 3. It says. In every province. Whithersoever. The king's commandment.

[12:52] And his decree came. There was great mourning. And wailing. And fasting. And many lay in sackcloth and ashes. So there was this great mourning among the Jews.

[13:02] And fasting. And weeping. And wailing. Mordecai then told Esther. Of Haman's destructive plans. And he urged her to intervene.

[13:13] On behalf of her people. In verse 8. So Mordecai caught on Esther. Caught on the new queen. Esther. To seek mercy from the king. Or they would all be killed. Esther then reminded Mordecai.

[13:26] That if anyone came before the king. Without being invited. That even the queen. Could be put to death. Because it was not. The dumb thing.

[13:36] It wasn't. Appropriate. Unless. He extended grace. By extending. The golden scepter. As a sign. Of his mercy. Like Esther.

[13:49] You can know God's favour. Esther knew God's favour. Esther knew the king's favour. And like Esther. You can depend on God's timing. In your life. Whatever's going on for you.

[14:01] Esther received favour. God was working. All through the events. Of her life. For such a time. As this. Here now Mordecai.

[14:12] Made this telling statement. In Esther 4. 14. For if thou altogether. Holdest thy peace. At this time. Then shall their enlargement. And deliverance arise. To the Jews. From another place.

[14:24] But thou. And thy father's house. Shall be destroyed. And who knoweth. Whether thou art come. To the kingdom. For such a time as this. Now she could have held her peace. She could have been silent.

[14:36] But Mordecai. Said to Esther. Who knows that. It's for such a time as this. That you've come. Into this royal position. To be made queen. You've come to the kingdom.

[14:47] For such a time as this. Esther was here. At this time. At this place. By God's appointment. By God's favour. Esther had been placed right here.

[14:59] Right there. In this palace. In God's timing. And in God's will. So we've seen. Esther's favour. And brother. Sister.

[15:10] As a believer in Christ. You are a child of God. Amen. You are a son and daughter. Of the everlasting king. Amen. The king of kings. And the lord of lords. You're already nobility. Yes.

[15:21] You are of royal seed. Amen. Born again. Born again. And you. As Esther. Can know God's favour. Esther's favour.

[15:33] We've seen. God's blessings in her life. Despite her hardships. As a. Little orphan girl. And we can know God's favour too.

[15:44] In our lives. God had placed Esther. Into. This royal position. In order to fulfil. His divine plan. And Esther now. Asked Mordecai.

[15:55] To call the people. To fast. And to pray. Effectively. She called on to fast. Fast. And of course. Fasting is associated with prayer. There was a depending on God.

[16:08] So we see. Secondly here. Esther's faith. We see. Esther's faith. And like Esther too. You can dare to trust God.

[16:18] Dare to trust God. For such a time as this. We've heard. Told of. The state of our world. We know. Christian. Leaders are few.

[16:31] Our nation is in peril. And it's for such a time as this. We need faith. And to dare to trust God. As Esther did. As we'll see. Verse 16.

[16:41] Of Esther 4. Esther says. Go. Gather together. All the Jews.

[16:52] That are present in Shushan. And fast ye. For me. And neither eat nor drink. Three days. Night or day. I also and my maidens. Will fast likewise.

[17:03] And so will I go in. Unto the king. So will I go. Amen. Praise the Lord. I will go in. Unto the king. Which is not according to the law.

[17:15] And if I perish. I perish. So we see. The king had shown her favour. But now Esther. In faith. Was ready. To put her life on the line. By going to the king for help.

[17:27] At the risk of her own life. Her faith had feet under it. It was faith in action. She says. Fast for me. Effectively. She was saying. Pray for me.

[17:37] Pray for me. And I will go. It was her time. Her calling. To fulfil her mission. Her assignment.

[17:49] Was not to be queen. Was to. Stand up for God. And his people. It wasn't going to be easy. Necessarily.

[18:01] But she dared to believe God. And so can you. So can we. We can like Esther. Dare to believe God. Whatever. Whatever. And this was the time.

[18:11] For her faith to shine. Esther. Which means star. This was the time. For Esther to shine. For her faith to shine. No matter the danger.

[18:23] And friends. Today. God's works in human beings. Human beings. Just like Esther. Flesh and blood. God works in our. Own human lives.

[18:33] In these. Earthen vessels. Of clay. According to his. Perfect plan. And timing. And. Brother. Sister. God has his.

[18:45] Perfect timing. For all of us. He has his timing. You know. We see back. Moses. He spent 40. Years. In the desert. Looking after.

[18:56] Sheep. Before coming. To deliver the Israelites. God is preparing us. For his plan. You know. With Esther. She had to spend a whole year. Of preparation.

[19:07] A whole year. Of beauty treatment. But God is preparing. His people. For his plans. But God cannot use. A proud man. Or a proud woman.

[19:19] Moses had to be. Humbled. Made the most meek man. Joseph was another. In jail. In slavery. He waited 13 years.

[19:33] For God's time. Amen. For God's time. Yeah. For God to do a work in him. And God will move in you. In me. In his time. When we remain faithful.

[19:44] And follow his leading. Now sometimes it feels like. I'm just one person. What can I do? Now Ralph could say that. I'm just one person. What can I do? No. I'm going to stand.

[19:54] Amen. I'm going to stand for God. Amen. Just one person. You might say. But through history. We see that one person. Can make the difference. Can make all the difference.

[20:05] Here's just some. Instances of that. Through world history. In 1645. One vote. Gave Oliver Cromwell.

[20:15] Control of England. Wow. And. I suppose good was out of. Came out of that. In contrast of what could have happened. In 1649. One vote. Cause Charles the first of England.

[20:27] To be executed. One vote. One vote. In 1776. One vote. Gave America. The English language. Instead of German. You know.

[20:37] Pastor Adam. Could be. Could be coming over here. Having to learn English. But. No. But thankfully. In 1776. One vote in America. Determined that. Americans would speak English.

[20:49] Not German. Amazing. Isn't it? In 1849. 1875. One vote. Brought Texas into the union. Could have been different. In 1875. One vote.

[21:00] Changed France. From a monarchy. To a republic. And in 1923. One vote. Gave Adolf Hitler. Control. Of the Nazi party. One vote. Can make a big difference.

[21:11] One person. Can make a big difference. You can make a difference. You can make a difference. Amen. Just like Esther did. One person counts. For such a time as this.

[21:22] Esther said. I'm going to stand and be counted. Esther. This was her moment. To shine. And so Esther was willing to risk her life. For her people. She was ready to deny herself.

[21:34] And put her life on the line. She was ready. To make a decision. To dare to trust God. And to go. She said. I will go. Pray for me. I will go.

[21:45] To the king. Pray for me. You know. She called the people to fast. Which means. To not have food. For a period. It was a godly work. We can fast today.

[21:55] I know there's people in this congregation. Who fast. Fasting helps us to draw closer to God. We're not under a bondage to fast. But. The Lord might lead you to fast.

[22:08] To draw closer to God. To have those seasons of prayer. To have those seasons of humbling yourself and praying. And Esther said. Pray for me. I'm going to fast. Fast for me.

[22:20] And I will go. Esther needed direction. And she sought after God. In faith. We've seen Esther's favour. We've seen Esther's faith.

[22:31] Chapter 5. We've seen some more of the story. Verse 2. And it was so when the king saw Esther the queen. Standing in the court. That she obtained favour in his sight. There's that word again.

[22:42] And the king held out to Esther. The golden scepter. That was in his hands. So Esther drew near. And touched the top of the scepter. Now the king's scepter. This golden staff. Represented his authority.

[22:53] Esther found favour again. As she in faith. Stepped before the king. And not only did he hold out the scepter. As a token of saving her life. But he said.

[23:04] I'll grant you anything. That you'll ask of me. Verse 3. Then the king said unto her. What wilt thou Queen Esther? Verse 3. What wilt thou Queen Esther?

[23:14] And what is thy request? It shall be given to thee. Even half of the kingdom. She invited the king and Haman. To a banquet that day. This was her request. Verse 4.

[23:25] And Esther answered. If it seemed good unto the king. Let the king and Haman come. This day unto the banquet. That I have prepared for him. In all of this. We see God's perfect timing.

[23:37] Esther made the request to meet the king. To see the king. And it was the right time. You know. Friends today. God's timing is always best. Sometimes we've got to wait. Sometimes we've got to pray.

[23:48] Sometimes we've got to take time. For God's time. That doesn't mean that it's an excuse to sit back and do nothing. But we need to be responsive.

[24:00] And wait God's timing. To do God's things. So Esther told the king. She would tell him. Of her desire. At the next banquet. The next time. And so she asked that Haman be invited.

[24:11] To hear her request. Esther 5 verse 8. She says. If I found favour in thy sight. And if it pleased the king. To grant my petition. And to perform my request.

[24:23] Let the king and Haman come. To the banquet. That I shall prepare for them. And I will do tomorrow. As the king has said. Haman heard this. And he was really pleased.

[24:34] He thought well. Going to get another feed. Around the royal table. And as he went on his way. He was quite happy. About all this. Until. He encountered Mordecai again.

[24:45] Here we see in Esther 5 verse 9. Then went Haman forth. That day joyful. And with a glad heart. But. When Haman saw Mordecai.

[24:57] In the king's game. That he stood not up. Nor moved for him. He was full of indignation. Against Mordecai. You know. Steam was coming.

[25:07] Smoke was coming out of his ears. And he went all red in the face. Have you seen people like that? He was full of indignation. He got even more enraged. Than he was before. And he wanted to destroy Mordecai.

[25:20] We've seen Esther's favour. God blessed her. God blessed us. Amen. We've seen Esther's faith. She said pray for me.

[25:32] I'm going to go. She took a risk. And stood up. For the right. And thirdly. We see a third aspect here. That marked this. Such a life. As Esther's.

[25:43] Esther's. Esther's. Esther's. Esther's. Esther's. Esther's. Fight. Esther was up against a committed enemy. A wily enemy. And so are we.

[25:54] The wiles of the devil. The enemy that's against us. Day by day. Is an ongoing fight that we're in. Esther's fight. When Haman got home.

[26:05] He told his wife. Of what had happened. Of Mordecai. Not standing up. And bowing to him. And she suggested. That they build a gallows.

[26:16] Just to hang Mordecai. Let's build a gallows. To hang this man. She said. Verse 14. Then said Zeresh. His wife. And all his friends. Unto him.

[26:27] Let a gallows be made. Of 50 cubans. That's nearly 23 metres high. This was one gallows. Now you see those phone towers. It must have been huge.

[26:37] Massive. 23 metres high. And tomorrow. Speak them unto the king. That Mordecai may be hanged thereon. Then go thou in Merrily. With the king. Unto the banquet. And the thing pleased Haman.

[26:49] Oh. He was all smiles then. Oh. It pleased Haman. And he caused the gallows. To be made. Yep. We're going to make some gallows. For this man. And truly.

[27:00] This was Esther's fight. A fight for her life. A fight for her people. A fight for the life. Of her cousin Mordecai. It's a fight people. Isn't it?

[27:13] Haman is a representative of Satan. The committed adversary. Of God's people. Esther fought the good fight. She fought the good fight.

[27:25] We'll see further now. As we see that good fight. Our spiritual fight. And how God fights for us. In chapter 6. There's a reminder again. Of the conspiracy that happened.

[27:36] In chapter 2. A conspiracy to kill the king. And of the conspirators getting caught. Thanks to Esther. And Mordecai. So now it was the night before the day.

[27:47] Of the second banquet. And the king was having trouble sleeping. He was unable to sleep. So he called for someone. To read the history. Read his history. To him. Esther 6 verse 1.

[27:59] On that night. Could not the king sleep. He was just restless. He just couldn't sleep. He called. He commanded the book of records. Of the chronicles. His personal history. He wanted to hear about.

[28:10] His history. The records. And they were read. Before the king. And then it just so happened. Just so happened. That he heard about. The foiled plot. To take his life.

[28:21] And of how Mordecai. Had saved his life. And he asked. What's been done. To reward Mordecai for this. Verse 3. Of chapter 6. And the king said.

[28:31] What honour and dignity. Has been done. To Mordecai for this. Then said the king's servants. That ministered unto him. There is nothing done unto him.

[28:43] We've done nothing. The king was surprised. To hear this. It was the custom. To reward people. So this man. Mordecai. Had never been properly rewarded.

[28:53] For what he had done. Next up. Who should be waiting. Outside the door. Just outside. Haman's. Just outside the king's door. Waiting to see the king.

[29:04] Who should be there. But. Wicked. Haman. Haman. He was plotting. To kill Mordecai. He'd come to see the king. To ask permission. To hang him.

[29:15] He was the committed enemy. Of God's people. Filled with hatred. Against them. So when the king called Haman in. The two men had. Totally opposite.

[29:26] Plans. In mind. Then the king asked Haman. What shall be done. To someone who the king. Wants to honour.

[29:37] And so here's Haman. Chapter 6. Verse 6. Haman came in. And the king said unto him. What shall be done. Unto the man. And then the king. Delighted. To honour. Now Haman thought in his heart.

[29:49] Phew. Hmm. Of course he's talking about me. Isn't he? Now Haman thought in his heart.

[30:00] To whom would the king delight. To honour more than. To myself. And in his pride. Haman thought that the king. Was talking about him. And so he said.

[30:10] Yeah. Pull out all the stops. Mr. King. Pull out all the stops. Treat this man like royalty. Honour him. Have a high official announced before him. Thus shall it be done.

[30:21] To the man whom the king delights to honour. Haman answered the king. For the man whom the king delighteth to honour. Verse 8. Let the royal apparel be brought. Which the king useth to wear.

[30:32] And the horse that the king rideth upon. And the crown royal which is set upon his head. Haman wanted to be treated in style. Like a king. To be honoured. To be honoured.

[30:42] And not only that. But to be publicly acclaimed. And have glory and fame. And just have everybody praising him. Verse 9. And let this apparel on horse be delivered to the hand.

[30:54] Of one of the king's most noble princes. That they may array the man withal. Whom the king delighteth to honour. And bring him on horseback. Through the street of the city.

[31:05] And proclaim before him. The king agreed. Great idea Haman. Imagine Haman surprised when the king assigned his honour.

[31:17] This honour to his archenemy Mordecai. God was fighting for Esther in this spiritual fight. Haman didn't know that years earlier Mordecai had saved the king's life.

[31:29] Nor that Mordecai's young cousin was his own queen Esther. Verse 10. Then the king said to Haman. Make haste Haman. Take the apparel on the horse as thou hast said.

[31:39] And do even so to Mordecai the Jew. That sitteth at the king's gate. What a shock. What a humiliation it was to Haman. Oh how. How.

[31:51] Oh. He would have been just totally blown away. And the king was announcing that this honour was not for him. But to Mordecai the one that he wanted to kill. And he had to lead Mordecai in this parade in his honour.

[32:04] The king said let nothing fail of all that thou hast spoken. Verse 11. Then took Haman the apparel and the horse and arrayed Mordecai. And brought him on horseback through the street of the city.

[32:17] And proclaimed before him. Thus shall it be done. Unto the man whom the king delighteth to honour. This was what he had to cry out.

[32:29] Mordecai. Here was this man who just days before. Had sat. Just the day before. Had sat in the city square. Clothed in sackcloth and ashes. Now he was robed in royal apparel.

[32:40] And had the king's crown upon his head. And he arrived with royal honour. To the same place. Friends God will vindicate. God will vindicate. Amen. If you've been done tough.

[32:51] God will vindicate. Amen. Vengeance is mine saith the Lord. God will give us power over all the power of the enemy. Amen. Chapter 7 tells of the second banquet. Now as Esther had requested for her first one of Esther 7.

[33:04] So the king and Haman came to the banquet with Esther the queen. And the king said again unto Esther on the second day of the banquet of wine. What is thy petition Queen Esther?

[33:17] And it shall be granted thee. And what is thy request? And it shall be performed even to the half of the kingdom. Here was Esther. And the king said whatever you want Esther.

[33:28] Esther said that she wanted this from the king. Verse 3. Then the queen answered. Esther the queen answered and said. If I have found favour in thy sight O king. And if it please the king.

[33:40] Let my life be given me. At my petition. And my people. At my request. For we are sold. I and my people. To be destroyed. To be slain.

[33:51] And to perish. Esther revealed the plan. Of Haman. To destroy her and her people. Verse 5. So then the king Ahasuerus answered and said unto Esther the queen.

[34:01] Who is he? And where is he? That does presume in his heart to do so. Who is this character who wants to wipe you out and your people? Who is this man?

[34:12] He was outraged. That anyone would dare to threaten his beloved queen. Esther then dramatically revealed. And named the mastermind.

[34:23] When asked who had done such a thing. Esther declared that it was Haman who wants to blame him. Verse 6 of Esther 7. And Esther said. The adversary and the enemy is this wicked Haman.

[34:37] Then Haman was afraid. Before the king and the queen. You know his knees were knocking now. And the king was so shocked and angered he had to leave the room. He was just so fuming mad.

[34:48] So angry he had to leave the room to just calm down. Just count to five. Count to ten. Whatever he had to do. And then verse 7. And the king arising from the banquet of wine and his wrath.

[35:01] He went into the palace garden. And Haman stood up to make a request for his life to Esther the queen. So the king stepped out. Haman came to Esther.

[35:13] He wanted to make a request for his life. He saw that evil was determined against him by the king. When the king came back in. He saw Haman fallen across the couch. Where Esther was.

[35:25] Pleading with her to spare his life. Verse 8. The king returned out of the palace garden. Into the place of the banquet of wine. And Haman was fallen upon the bed. Where on Esther was.

[35:35] Now the king accused Haman of trying to attack his wife. Then said the king. Will he force the queen also before me in the house? As the word went out of the king's mouth. They covered Haman's face.

[35:48] They covered his face. I'm told this was kind of a symbol. That he was as good as dead man. He was as good as a dead man. He was condemned to death.

[35:59] It's like they put this. Whatever they put on his head. And obscured his face. He was a dead man. And one of Esther's servants then told king.

[36:10] That Haman had made a gallows. On which he planned to hang Mordecai. So the king immediately commanded that Haman be hanged instead. On the very gallows he built.

[36:22] To kill Mordecai. What a turnaround. It was. Verse 9. Then the king said hang him thereon. So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai.

[36:38] Then was the king's wrath pacified. How ironic it was. God will vindicate. God will fight for you. God fought in Esther's fight.

[36:51] And God's plan prevailed. He fought over Haman's wicked plan. And God brought great victory in Esther's fight. And he does for us too.

[37:03] Brother, sister. We can apply these truths in Esther to the here and now. Amen. This victory that Esther had, we can have. Because it's the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.

[37:17] Amen. This is how God's providence works. We can leave our cares in his hand. Then the remainder of the book we see great rejoicing. From chapters 8 through 10. And the Jews celebrate this great day still.

[37:30] And it's known as the Feast of Purim. Which comes from the word pur. P-U-R. Which means lot. As in the casting of lots. Because in chapter 3 verse 7.

[37:41] Haman cast lots to find the best day. To destroy the Jews. But it was the day of deliverance. Mordecai was given Haman's signet ring and estate. And the king authorised Esther to reverse Haman's orders.

[37:55] And this all happened the very day. Nearly a year earlier, Haman had cast those lots. To determine the day when he would destroy all the Jews. But God had made such a time as this.

[38:08] Such a time as this. For his plan to be effective. Now verse 15 we see. Mordecai was on it now. In royal apparel of blue and white. With a great crown of gold.

[38:19] With a garment of fine linen and purple. And the city of Shushan rejoiced and was glad. Then the Jews had light and gladness and joy and honour. Amen. Esther's story shows God's intervention.

[38:32] Esther's story. It shows Esther's favour. How she handled life with all its tragedies and tests. And she showed grace.

[38:43] It was for such a time as this. For such a time as this. And friends today, let's think about Esther now. For such a time as this. Just to reflect. We see Esther's favour.

[38:56] God blessed her. She handled life with all of its tragedies. An orphan girl. Would have been tough. No mother or father. All life's tests.

[39:08] That came Esther's way. We see Esther's favour. God showed grace. And Esther showed grace. We see Esther's faith.

[39:20] It was strong faith. Despite all the odds. Faith at work. As Esther called the people to pray. To fast. Esther's faith was a faith that was a going faith.

[39:32] Fast for me. I will go. Esther's faith had feet under it. And then we see Esther's faith. She had the humility. The courage.

[39:43] And the determination to fight. And what a remarkable woman. Young women here today. We can apply these truths. Young men. Older women.

[39:55] Older men. This remarkable woman. Esther should speak to all of us. As she risked her life to save her own people. As she prevailed over the enemy.

[40:06] Of God's people. So can we. We have an enemy. His name's not Haman. But it's Satan. We have an enemy. And he's just as committed. And willful. And lively.

[40:18] Esther shows us how to win through. How to please the Lord. How to live with favour. How to walk tall. As men and women who are of royalty. Royal. Stock.

[40:29] Men and women. Kings and priests. Esther shows us how to please the Lord. Now God has not got a direct mention in the book. But certainly he is very present. Very present.

[40:42] Working behind the scenes. And it was for such a time as this. With Esther. God's got his timing for you. God's got his purpose. His plan for you.

[40:53] As Mordecai. Said to Esther. God had placed her in such a time. In such a place. For such a time as this. What has God given you to do?

[41:05] God has given all of us something to do. For his glory. He's placed his people where he wants them to be. Where he can use them. For his glory.

[41:16] God is still looking for Esthers. And Mordecais. Today. Amen. People who will trust him. No matter what. And be willing and available to be used by him.

[41:30] That means you and me. For such a time as this. God has a place for us. A purpose. His timing. Let's learn like Esther.

[41:41] Esther. Esther. Esther's favour to live right to live nobly with that high calling that we have Esther's favour shows us God is with us as he was with her Esther's faith we can depend on God even if we're stepping into something that's scary as Esther did we can depend on God and pray and have Esther's faith and we have Esther's fight as we enter into spiritual combat and we don't knock off from this fight until we see his face it's an ongoing fight isn't it brother, sister a combat that we're in and we can know spiritual victory why?

[42:29] because our God shall fight for us he knows what he's doing in his plan and time he'll finish off the enemy good and proper for the meantime keep fighting ending ending ending!

[42:49] ending Thank you.