rest. Most people say to me before I leave, I hope you have a good rest or I hope you have a good
break, that sort of stuff. It's not so much sleep that I need. I tend to sleep fairly well. I've got
one of these Fitbit things that tells me when I need to go to bed and wakes me up at the right
time and what sort of quality of sleep I've had. It's more the freedom from deadlines and the
day-to-day burdens to be able to step out of those things and do something very different. That
is rest for me. And so tonight I will crawl into bed and not have my mind on work commitments for
the next day. And that will feel good. That will feel really good. I had experience recently for a
long weekend where I did that, crawling to bed on a Sunday night and I wasn't thinking about, oh,
I don't have to go to work tomorrow. That felt good. Now rest is a big theme in the Bible. Right
the beginning. God created the world and it says that he rested from all of his work in creating.
And the rest there is a picture of harmony and peace. Everything is as it should be. However,
the rejection of God and the devastating effects of sin destroyed that rest. And much of the Bible
from that point on is this process of God revealing his plan to undo that and to bring his people back to
a state of peace and rest with him. And as we come to the end of the story of Esther today, we notice
that the upshot of all that Esther has achieved was that she got rest for God's people from rest from all of
their enemies. And so let's track back a little bit. Remember what's transpired to this point.
Esther is the young orphan Jewish woman who became Queen of Persia around two and a half thousand years
ago. In the first couple of chapters, she hides her Jewish identity. She's compliant. She wins Miss
Persia beauty pageant 480 BC. And her prize is to be the wife of the most powerful man in the world at
the time, King Xerxes. In chapter three, she's living the high life in the palace when all of everything
turns bad. Having been convinced by the narcissistic Haman, Xerxes issues a decree to his whole empire
to kill, destroy and annihilate the Jews. They're Esther's people. They're God's people.
And this was all because Esther's older cousin Mordecai wouldn't acknowledge how important Haman was.
Chapters four and five, Esther finally does identify with her people, goes to Xerxes to mediate a plan on
behalf of those people, a rescue plan. She risks her life and uses her position in the palace to work to
save God's people. Chapter six, although Haman plots to execute Mordecai, Xerxes honors Mordecai in just the
time to save his life. And from that moment on, Haman's downfall is swift. In chapter seven, there's a sense of
poetic justice as he is executed on the stake that he himself had built to execute Mordecai on. And Mordecai
then rises to Haman's place of power. A counter edict is drawn up saying that the Jews could now defend
themselves when they are attacked and they could take the plunder of their enemies. Now, I suspect
that Esther and Mordecai would have been hoping with the, that edict, counter edict being drawn up, that they
could put the whole thing to rest and that people wouldn't be bothered now to attack the Jews.
And as we see in chapter nine, many tried anyway. The whole thing wasn't put to rest. There was an
enormous amount of bloodshed and many of the Jews were killed. Clearly, there were quite a few who were
willing to carry through on the original edict. They really did hate the people of God. And even in the
citadel, the seat of power and influence, there were more than 500 who wanted to kill the Jews.
This is in the palace, more than 500. In verse 16, we see that 75,000 were killed by God's people in one
day. And none of them are named, none of the killed were named, except in verses seven to nine, the 10
sons of Haman with names that are impossible to pronounce. Why are they named? I think for two
really important reasons. Firstly, at the end of chapter five, when Haman's ego was bruised by Mordecai,
he goes home, he gathers his family and his friends around him, and he just has a little boast session,
tells him how great he is. And he boasts about three things. His wealth, his authority, his sons.
In chapter seven, his position was taken away from him, given to Mordecai in chapter eight. In chapter
eight, his wealth is taken away from him and given to Esther. And in chapter nine, his sons are no longer.
They are hung on a pole as a public spectacle. The proud has been brought low. His boasting is gone.
There is nothing left to boast about. And secondly, I think the death of Haman's sons marks the reversal
and the end to a mistake the king saw make back in one Samuel chapter 15 that Deb spoke about a number
of weeks ago. God had instructed Saul to go and attack the Amalekites and to wipe them out and not to touch
their plunder. And Saul didn't wipe them out and he took the plunder. And with the death of Haman's sons,
we're meant to see the end of the Amalekites, the enemies of God's people.
God had not forgotten his plan to judge the Amalekites. He might take his time, but his justice
will end up catching up. He always punishes his enemies. And at the very least, we ought to all
at this point be considering our state before God very clearly. God's silence on our sin does not mean
his absence or his lack of care for it. Now, let's be frank. Many people struggle with these parts
of the Old Testament that portray God's people executing God's judgment on others.
But God's anger here at his enemies is not a cranky explosion. It is his settled opposition
to the cancer which is eating the insides of the human race, the race that he loves with his whole
being. The Bible says that God's anger flows from his love and his delight of his creation. He is angry
at evil and injustice because it is destroying the peace and the integrity of what he has made.
It's quite noticeable that a couple of times in chapter 9 that we are told here that the Jews did not
take the wealth of their attackers, even though the edict gave them permission to do so.
And that just helps us see here, just for a moment, that this bloodshed here was simply an act of
self-defence. It's an act of justice on wrongdoers. This bloodshed was not an imperial action by which
they were enriching themselves and increasing their power. They were simply wanted and needed relief
from their enemies. And that's what they get in chapter 9, verse 17. They rested and made it a day
of feasting and joy. And at this point, they ended up consecrating a new annual celebration to remember
the time that they got relief from their enemies. And yet, they've been here before, many times.
God's people have a track record of getting rest that doesn't last.
Moses gave it to them for a little while. Joshua gave it to them for a little while. David gave it to
them for a little while. Solomon gave it to them for a little while. Esther and Mordecai gives it to
them for a little while. But this, even this rest that they have in this moment does not last.
Tacked on the end of Esther is this awkward little postscript in chapter 10.
Just a few verses. It's kind of awkward. It reads,
King Xerxes imposed tribute throughout the empire to its distant shores and all his acts of power and
might together with a full account of the greatness of Mordecai whom the king had promoted.
And at first glance, it appears, what's that there for? Why end with those words? What's the purpose of it?
But if you put them in the big picture of the enormous reversal which has been experienced in the book of Esther,
they show us that in the end, not a lot has actually changed.
Xerxes is still king.
And don't forget, it was his cold indifference that saw him write a law that allowed for the destruction of the Jews
throughout the whole empire.
And he's still on the throne.
His personal interests still remain paramount regardless of the cost to his subjects.
That's what it means when it says here that he imposed tribute throughout the empire.
A tribute is not a...
Good on Mordecai.
A tribute is a new tax.
It's a new tax.
Or, and most likely both together, it's also conscripting people into forced labour.
God's people have received rest from all of their enemies
except Xerxes.
And he's still on the throne.
It's a temporary rest.
It's a fragile rest.
And that's why the later prophets in the Old Testament, like Isaiah and Daniel,
began to prophesy that someday the Messiah would come
and he would give God's people the ultimate rest,
the final rest,
the final peace that God longs for.
In fact, Daniel chapter 7 talks about the Son of Man
who comes and he wages war,
just warfare against all evil and injustice
and who will bring final rest.
And along comes Jesus.
Jesus, 500 odd years after Esther and says,
I am the Son of Man.
But he wages war against God's enemies differently.
In Luke chapter 9,
there's a place where some people reject Jesus
and they show themselves to be enemies of Jesus
and enemies of God's people.
And the disciples turn to Jesus
and ask Jesus whether he wants them
to call down fire on these people.
It's like the disciples are sort of saying to Jesus,
you know, Jesus, you're the Son of Man, right?
And you've come to wage war,
you know, final warfare
on all of the enemies of God's people
and to give us rest.
So do you want to start now
on these people?
Because we don't like them.
Fire down on these people?
That'd be good.
And Jesus rebukes him.
He says,
love your enemies.
Forgive your enemies.
And it doesn't make sense.
How can that bring us rest from our enemies?
And then at the very end,
when his enemies come for him
at the Garden of Gethsemane,
the disciples finally got it.
And that's when they ran.
When they got it.
This is the moment when Jesus,
the Son of Man,
is arrested
and Peter
draws his sword
ready to die for Jesus
because he thinks
that this is the moment
where we are going to bring destruction
upon the enemies of God.
It's finally a rise.
This is the moment
when Jesus is going to rise up
and he's going to defeat the Romans.
And Jesus says,
Peter, put your sword away.
And Jesus goes with his enemies
and he dies on a cross.
He utters incredible words
from the cross.
He says,
Father, forgive them
for they don't know
what they are doing.
He forgives his enemies.
Now, it's at this point
that many people think
there's a difference
between the God of the Old Testament
and the God of the New Testament.
You may have heard it before.
The God of the Old Testament
is a bloodthirsty God
who's angry,
capricious,
evil.
He doesn't like evil injustice
and he's just always smiting things.
Always obliterating things,
annihilating things.
But he's mellowed a bit
by the time he gets
to the New Testament.
Gotten a bit older or something.
Mellowed a bit
and Jesus is love.
Jesus just loves everybody.
He just accepts everybody
and little kittens
and children
and lambs love him.
And yet Jesus believed
in the judgment of God
on evil.
Jesus talked more about
hell and judgment
than everyone else
in the Bible put together.
Of course he believed
in the reality of hell
and the judgment of God
on all sin
and evil injustice.
And what we have
on the cross
is Jesus Christ
loving his enemies,
forgiving his enemies,
dying for his enemies.
And yet it's the ultimate
warfare
and judgment
on evil and injustice.
He is concerned about
destroying the sin
and the evil
and the injustice
that he's eating away
at the world
that he loves.
Galatians 3.13
says that Jesus
was hung on a pole.
He was on display
as a public spectacle.
It says,
Christ redeemed us
from the curse
of the law
by becoming
a curse for us.
For as it is written,
cursed is everyone
who is hung
on a pole.
He redeemed us
in order
that the blessing
of Abraham
might come
to the Gentiles
through Christ Jesus
so that by faith
we might receive
the promise
of the Spirit.
You see,
Jesus trades places
with us
and becomes
a curse
for us.
He takes God's anger
and his judgment
for us.
He's made a spectacle
for our sin
and our evil
and our injustice.
You see,
what the cross
of Christ reveals
is that God
is concerned
to destroy
evil,
injustice and sin
but he's not so much
concerned to destroy
that enemy over there
and that enemy over there.
he is very concerned
to destroy
enmity.
He's very concerned
to destroy
enmity.
That is
hostility.
That's what he wants
to destroy.
In Ephesians 2
we are told
that on the cross
Jesus killed
the enmity
that divides me
from you
and you from you.
The enmity
that divides us
as people
from God.
the hostility
that exists
and he killed
the enmity
that exists.
You see,
if Jesus
had said to Peter
go nuts
in the Garden
of Gethsemane
use your sword
and in fact
all the disciples
let's all whip out
our swords
and go nuts
on these guys
and destroy
the Romans
he would have
given his people
in that moment
temporary
rest
from one
particular enemy
but when he died
on the cross
for our sin
he was destroying
sin
and evil
and injustice
and death
itself.
He became
the curse
he was hung
on a pole
and turned away
the anger
of God
the cross
is the ultimate
warfare
against God's
enemies
because it
kills the enmity
the hostility.
This is so
important to
grasp.
If someone
wrongs you
in some way
maybe they've
hurt your
reputation
or something
most people
would conclude
that you have
a perfect right
to tell everyone
else about it.
Tell them
what's happened
and therefore
what you're doing
in that moment
is you're ruining
their reputation.
or if a person
has robbed you
of happiness
or in love
we tend to think
that we have
every right
to withdraw
from that person
to withhold
from that person
our love.
We can go
really cold
with them
and so that
we hurt them
and we hurt
their happiness
and their love.
We're really good
at this in marriage
especially.
Wife doesn't
treat me the way
I want
doesn't give me
what I want
so I'm just
going to go
over here
and I'm just
going to go
cold shoulder
until I get
what I want.
Great at that.
That's our
default human
position.
Our position
in the human
heart
is to respond
to evil
force
with hurtful
force.
Evil force
hurtful
force.
Our default
position
is to
whack
the enemy
even if
it is
our
spouse.
And if
you whack
them hard
enough
you will
get rest.
That's because
they're
dead
or they're
gone
or they're
debilitated
or they're
in hospital
they're
humiliated
or something's
happened.
if you
whack
them
hard
enough
you
will
win
with
that
enemy
for a
moment.
On the
train on
Wednesday
I was
heading back
up this
way and
there were
a couple
of guys
standing
beside me
talking about
some work
scenario
and from
what I could
gather
and I tell
you what
it's
everything to
me not to
jump in on
this conversation
but for
what I could
gather
one of the
guys had
just finished
up on a
job and
it ended
fairly badly
with the
boss.
And these
two guys
were really
bad-mouthing
this guy
and for
what I could
gather
that this
guy who
finished up
the job
and his
boss were
bad-mouthing
each other
in their
fairly small
industry.
And the
other gentleman
there was
giving him
advice on
how he can
win.
And he
mentioned a
bunch of
stuff and
a few
things that
he could
manipulate in
the scenario
and leverage
to beat
his former
boss.
His
conflict
management
advice
included a
heap of
threats,
manipulation
and
expletive
laden
sentences.
Just say
this to him
and I'm
thinking oh
that's going
to inflame
it, that's
going to
inflame
it.
You see
what was
happening in
that moment
evil force
hurtful
force.
Someone will
come out the
victor, someone
will lose.
You've
whacked the
only enemy
but all
you've done
is made
the enemy
worse.
That's all
you've
done.
The
enmity, the
hostility between
you and the
enemy is still
there.
It's still
there.
When you
fight evil
with evil
you don't
beat evil,
evil wins.
and it
wins in
two ways.
Firstly, you
become harder.
You become
colder.
But most of
all you
become self
righteous.
You say
things like I
can't believe
that person
did that.
I can't
believe they
said that.
I would
never do
that.
So evil
wins firstly
that way.
The second
way that evil
wins is when
you whack an
enemy back
you make
them more
of an
enemy.
even if
they are
dead.
The
children might
come after
you.
Haman's a
classic case
here.
Haman's
bitterness
towards God
people was
carried over
from centuries
before.
Or maybe
the enemy
will regroup
and be more
angry than
ever.
It just
goes on
and on
and on.
the best
way to
defeat
evil and
injustice
the best
way to
defeat
an enemy
is with
good.
The cross
of Jesus
Christ
changes the
warfare
against evil
and injustice
so that now
the way we
handle enemies
is by loving
them and
forgiving them.
We overcome
evil with
good.
We don't
respond to
evil force
with hurtful
force.
we respond
to evil
force with
something more
powerful,
grace.
Grace is
powerful.
Grace
destroys
enmity.
There is
nothing more
formidable,
nothing more
violent in
the best
possible way
than
grace.
You may,
for those who
are cultural
buffs amongst
us,
les mis,
Jean Valjean,
the interaction
with the
bishop right
at the end
when the
bishop says,
oh, you
stole the
candlesticks,
I told you
to take
everything else.
Jean Valjean
walks away
from that
moment and
he says,
grace did
violence to
his soul.
Nothing more
violent in the
best possible way
than grace.
And get
this, this
is so
important.
when you
give somebody
grace,
when you
forgive them,
and especially
your enemies,
you give them
the prospect
of becoming
a friend.
And that
is the only
way to
truly to
destroy an
enemy,
is to make
them a
friend.
It's the only
way.
God's
enemies to
God's
friends.
He was
changing us
from being
God's
enemies to
God's
friends.
Rather than
smiting us
and whacking
us, he
dealt with
the righteous
anger because
of our
evil by
whacking
himself to
make us
his friends.
the minute
we grasp
hold of
that, the
minute we
grasp hold
of that, it
changes us
from being
an enemy
to a
friend of
God.
And what
that does is
it sends
you out
into this
world at
truly being
at rest
with your
enemies.
If you
understand the
good news of
what Jesus
has done
for you, you
get rest from
your enemies.
And this is
how it works.
Do you
truly believe
that Jesus
Christ had to
die for you
because you
are that
bad, that
sinful, that
evil, that
unjust?
Do you
believe that
you are that
sinful that
nothing less
than the
Son of
God dying
on the
cross could
save you?
That is
humbling.
The cross
of Christ is
tumbling.
It inoculates
you against
what evil
does to
keep itself
going in
this world.
When someone
does something
wrong to you,
when an enemy
insults you,
the first thing
that happens is
we jump on our
high horse of
self-righteousness,
we get angry.
And that's
what helps
evil continue
to go around
and around
and around.
I'm not
like that.
You've
whacked me,
I'm going to
whack you.
the good
news of
Jesus dying
on the
cross for
me tells
me that I
am no
better.
I am a
sinner saved
by sheer
grace and
if that is
your place
of refuge,
then the
evil one
and evil
and injustice
and sin
doesn't have
any place to
get a
foothold in
your life.
The enemy
of the
Christian can
no longer
destroy them
because they
can't make
you hate
them.
If you
hate your
enemy,
then you
don't know
that you
are a
sinner saved
by grace.
You don't
know that.
If you
haven't been
humbled by
the Christian
gospel of
God dying
on the cross
for you,
if you
haven't truly
seen that,
then you
are so
vulnerable.
if you
don't have
rest from
your enemies,
your enemies
can destroy
you and
they can
control you,
they can
manipulate you
and the
Christian
gospel
humbles you
so that
you are
able to
resist what
the enemy
does to
you.
And now
you can
go out in
the world
and you
can give
enemies
what you
got from
Jesus.
You can
forgive them,
reach out to
them, be
gracious to
them.
More and
more enemies
will then
become friends,
not all of
them, but
many will
become
friends.
That's what
we need.
That's true
and genuine
and enduring
rest.
And that's
what we all
need and
that's what
the Lord
Jesus has
secured for
us and
promises us.
And it's a
rest that we
can have both
now and a
rest that just
goes on and
on into all
the future
and eternity.
Jesus gives
us rest for
ourselves now.
Jesus says
this in
Matthew 11.
He says,
Come to me
all who are
weary and
burdened and
I will give
you rest.
Take my
yoke upon
you and
learn from
me for
I am
gentle and
humble in
heart and
you will
find rest
for your
souls.
Many
people today
speak about
a deep
hunger in
the human
heart.
People are
hungry for
love and
security and
significance and
meaning.
And Jesus
says,
I'm the bread
of life.
Feed them
mean you
never be
hungry.
Many walk
in darkness
and disillusionment
and despair.
And Jesus
says,
I'm the light
of the world.
If you
follow me,
you will
never walk
in darkness.
Instead,
you'll have
the light
of life.
Others are
fearful of
death.
And Jesus
says,
I'm the
resurrection
of the
life.
He who
believes in
me will
live even
though he
dies.
And whoever
lives and
believes in
me will
never die.
Others are
burdened by
worry and
anxiety and
fear and
guilt.
And Jesus
says,
come to
me,
all who
are weary
and burdened,
and I
will give
you rest.
That's the
promise of
rest for
our souls
right now
as we
come to
Jesus.
And yet
the best
is yet to
come for
those who
trust in
Jesus.
Jesus
secured
final,
perfect,
never-ending
rest in
God's new
creation.
The rest
of unspoiled
love between
you and
God.
No enemies.
The rest
of temptation
and our
inbuilt drift
away from
God.
The rest
from the
shaming cycle
of failing,
failure and
confession and
trying harder
and failure
and confession
and rest
from the
opposition of
the world,
rest from
all sickness
and pain
and disability
and death,
rest from
everything that
takes the
gloss of this
life.
And that
is the
rest that
Jesus offers
his people
right now.
It's what he
has secured
for you right
now.
And so
we come to
the end of
Esther.
Six weeks
looking at
pride and
identity in
Christ and
a bunch of
other stuff.
And the
last verse
of chapter
eight is
where I
want to
take some
of you
right now.
It says,
Jews and
many people
of other
nationalities
became Jews
because fear
of the
Jews had
seized them.
That is,
what was
remarkable at
the end of
chapter eight
is that many
people across
the Persian
empire identified
with the
people of
God.
They identified
with the
God of the
Bible and
they too
enjoyed the
rest of
chapter nine
and ten
and the
celebration of
joy and
happiness.
And so as
we come to
our time,
the end of
our time in
Esther,
this is a
decision time
for you.
It might be
that you don't
have that place
of rest right
now.
And maybe
today is the
day that you
need to make
that decision
to have
that rest.
Come to
Jesus,
end the
warfare on
God,
and find
true and
enduring rest
for your
soul.
If that's
you,
I'd be
really glad
to speak to
you after
the service.