Taking A Risk
Notes
Transcript
CORNERSTONE BAPTIST CHURCH CREED
THE BIBLE IS THE WORD OF GOD
THE TRUTH OF THE BIBLE WILL CHANGE MY LIFE
LORD OPEN MY HEART AND AWKEN MY MIND AND GIVE ME GRACE TO RESPOND
CHANGE ME FRO YOUR GLORY AD MY JOY AMEN.
This is week three of our study in the book of Esther and when we started in Chapter 1 we were introduced to a KIng named (Auh Has Ur Us).
Powerful
Rich
Ruler of 127 states reaching from Africa all the way over to the middle east (Palestine)
He had ultimate power over his kingdom
He threw a party that lasted for 6 months with all of his friends, and then threw another party for the city that lasted a week. In that last week he wanted to show off his queen’s beauty. So he called for her to come and he wanted her to walk around so everyone could see her beauty. But really he wanted everyone to see how lucky he was to have have beauty. The queen named Vashti refused to come and be put on display. So the king decided to replace her. He sent an order out in all of the land to look for a new queen.
And they brought women in from all over the kingdom. One of those women was named Esther. Her parents died when she was young. She was an orphan. Her Uncle, a man named Mordecai was taking care of her. And there was one other thing… She was a Jewish girl.
Now in the Old Testament the Jews are taken into exile by the Babylonians. Now they have come back, but it is a different land from when they left. They are scattered in may different areas, some of them living in places with other people. So we see here, Mordecai ad Esther, Jewish people, living among people who are not part of the Israelites. There were other Jews, but they were in smaller numbers.
The King was not a Jew, most of the people in these states were not Jews.
The prophet Isaiah, said this would happen...
English Standard Version Chapter 10
21 A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God. 22 For though your people Israel be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will return. Destruction is decreed, overflowing with righteousness.
Many went into exile, but a smaller amount came out. But God was faithful…preserving the line of his chose people. WHY? Because it would be through that line that Jesus of Nazareth, the incarnate God would be born on this earth.
In Esther 1 we saw the kings party, the refusal of the Queen to display herself, and the King’s decision to replace her
In Esther 2 we read about the young girl Esther and her Uncle Mordecai and how she was made the new queen. But in the last few verses of Chapter 2 Mordecai, her uncle, hears of a plot to kill the King, so he tells Esther, she tells the King, and his life is saved.
Esther 3 begins with a new name… Haman. The King makes Haman his right hand man, gives him complete power to make any rules. So one of the rules that Haman makes is that everyone should bow before HIM…Haman. Mordecai, being a good Jewish man will bow before no man, only the one true God, Jehovah. As a Jewish man, in his mind, maybe he is remembering from the law… Exodus 20:4-6
4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.
He would not bow down, and Haman didn’t like it. These Jewish people had to go. He wanted to kill them all. Remove them. Exterminate them. And he made a plan. He went to the King and said that this group of Jewish people do not honor you. They don’t bow to you and they are trouble. He told the king that need to all be killed. The king, believed his right hand man and gave him the authority to kill all the Jews. So Haman sends out the law throughout all the states, and here were the orders: KILL ALL THE JEWS…MEN…WOMEN....AND CHILDREN.
When Chapter 3 ends, Haman and the King have made their decision to kill all teh Jews and they sit down and enjoy a meal.
Today we are going to see Esther asked to take a risk. She will be asked to place her own life in danger for an entire nation. She will be asked to place her life at risk so that the Jewish blood line will continue to move all the way to a young girl named Mary. She doesn’t know anything about Mary. Mary would not be born for 400 years. But what she decides in this moment will make a difference. Probably the biggest difference in the history of all mankind. Will Esther take a risk?
Open your Bibles to Esther 4
1 When Mordecai learned all that had been done, Mordecai tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the midst of the city, and he cried out with a loud and bitter cry. 2 He went up to the entrance of the king’s gate, for no one was allowed to enter the king’s gate clothed in sackcloth. 3 And in every province, wherever the king’s command and his decree reached, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting and weeping and lamenting, and many of them lay in sackcloth and ashes. 4 When Esther’s young women and her eunuchs came and told her, the queen was deeply distressed. She sent garments to clothe Mordecai, so that he might take off his sackcloth, but he would not accept them. 5 Then Esther called for Hathach, one of the king’s eunuchs, who had been appointed to attend her, and ordered him to go to Mordecai to learn what this was and why it was. 6 Hathach went out to Mordecai in the open square of the city in front of the king’s gate, 7 and Mordecai told him all that had happened to him, and the exact sum of money that Haman had promised to pay into the king’s treasuries for the destruction of the Jews. 8 Mordecai also gave him a copy of the written decree issued in Susa for their destruction, that he might show it to Esther and explain it to her and command her to go to the king to beg his favor and plead with him on behalf of her people. 9 And Hathach went and told Esther what Mordecai had said. 10 Then Esther spoke to Hathach and commanded him to go to Mordecai and say, 11 “All the king’s servants and the people of the king’s provinces know that if any man or woman goes to the king inside the inner court without being called, there is but one law—to be put to death, except the one to whom the king holds out the golden scepter so that he may live. But as for me, I have not been called to come in to the king these thirty days.” 12 And they told Mordecai what Esther had said. 13 Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, “Do not think to yourself that in the king’s palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews. 14 For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” 15 Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai, 16 “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish.” 17 Mordecai then went away and did everything as Esther had ordered him.
Ruling
If we go back to the third chapter we will see what caused all of this mourning and stress.
Esther 3:8–9 (ESV)
8 Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom. Their laws are different from those of every other people, and they do not keep the king’s laws, so that it is not to the king’s profit to tolerate them. 9 If it please the king, let it be decreed that they be destroyed, and I will pay 10,000 talents of silver into the hands of those who have charge of the king’s business, that they may put it into the king’s treasuries.”
The Jews were going to be erased. Haman used his power to get rid of his families enemies. Remember he was an Agagite, who was the King of the Amalikites who Moses and the Israelites defeated coming out of Egypt. Now he wanted revenge for his people. And because he was in control, he was going to kill all the Jews.
But we know, on this side of history that God had a plan. His plan was that Jesus, God in the flesh would be a Jew, so his people would not be destroyed. But still, the Jews in this time responded i the right way. What was their response?
2. The Response
This was a serious situation. Thew entire Jewish race was about to be erased. Haman was given authority by the King, and it was about to take place. But what is very important here is the response of Mordecai and Esther. In verse one you see a great sadness. They’re people were about to be eliminated so there is a natural response of grief and sadness. Mordecai, as was the custom of the day would tear his clothes, but o sackcloth which was a very harsh fabric and place ashes on his head. He would then place himself in a public place ad cry, very loud, and mourn. This was the custom. It was normal, in that day, Jews and people who were not Jews to react this way during times of mourning and distress.
I have seen it here, you have too. When someone dies, there is great grief, mourning, crying, and even people will throw themselves on the ground.
But I don’t want you to miss what the Jewish people, Esther, and Mordecai did.
In verse 3 the people, how did they react? Esther 4:3
Esther 4:3 (ESV)
3 And in every province, wherever the king’s command and his decree reached, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting and weeping and lamenting, and many of them lay in sackcloth and ashes.
In verses 15-17, how did Esther and Mordecai react? Esther 4:15-17
Esther 4:15–17 (ESV)
15 Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai, 16 “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish.” 17 Mordecai then went away and did everything as Esther had ordered him.
In their grief, in their time of distress, they looked to God. Teh Bible says that they fasted. Fasting was a way to completely focus on God. When you think about fasting, you think about NO FOOD. But the purpose was to remove food for a period of time, so that you could fully focus on God. When they gave up food, they fully gave themselves to God. This was the first thing they did. What was before them was they were going to be erased, and their first step was to go to God. Jehovah God was their only hope.
What do you do when you face something? Do you try to take care of it yourself? Do you try to find your own way to solve the problem? And when you cannot take care of it, what do you do. Finally, the LAST thing, you turn to God. The last thing, not the first?
What does the Bible tells us? Matthew 6:33
33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Does it say, seek God last? What about seek God after you have tried tried tried? No.
1 I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? 2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
When we face struggles, when we face uncertainty, there is only one place to turn. The Lord. And that’s what Esther, Mordecai, and and the rest of the Jews did.
In their response to fast and seek the Lord, Esther had a response as well, but it was a very dangerous risk. Look at here risk...
The Risk
8 Mordecai also gave him a copy of the written decree issued in Susa for their destruction, that he might show it to Esther and explain it to her and command her to go to the king to beg his favor and plead with him on behalf of her people. 9 And Hathach went and told Esther what Mordecai had said. 10 Then Esther spoke to Hathach and commanded him to go to Mordecai and say, 11 “All the king’s servants and the people of the king’s provinces know that if any man or woman goes to the king inside the inner court without being called, there is but one law—to be put to death, except the one to whom the king holds out the golden scepter so that he may live. But as for me, I have not been called to come in to the king these thirty days.”
Mordecai told Esther, you have got to go before the King and tell him what is going on. Tell him the truth about what Haman is doing. The truth is that they are living peacefully, not causing any problems. He even told Esther, when he finds out that you are a Jew, you will not escape what is going to come to the other Jews.
There was a risk. A risk to Esthers own life. The rule was that you could not enter into the kings presence unless you were called by the King. Even the Queen had to be asked to come to see the King. If she were to walk i without being asked, she could be killed.
Then Mordechai said these words to Esther in the last part
Esther 4:14 (ESV)
14 For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”
Two things I want you to see here. Two things Mordecai tells Esther.
Whatever happens, God’s will will be done. (For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish.)
When God spoke in the garden and said that He (Satan) would bruise his (Jesus’) heal, he also said that he (the Messiah, Jesus) would bruise your (Satan’s) head. What did that mean? It meant that Satan might injury Jesus, even kill him, but he would be resurrected. But Jesus, in the end will defeat Satan. (Revelation 20:7-10)
English Standard Version Chapter 20
7 And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison 8 and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. 9 And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, 10 and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
The will of God will be done. It will be accomplished. Ad somehow, Mordecai knew this. And he even recognized that even though God’s will will be done, we have a part to play in his will to be done. He tells Esther, you may choose to keep silent, but somehow, some way his will will be done. Even if you keep silent, deliverance for the Jews will come from another place because it is God’s will that thew Messiah would come, and come from the Jewish people.
2. The he says this.... And who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this.
This young, orphaned by her parents, raised by her uncle, chosen as the new queen from hundreds maybe thousands of other women. A Jewish girl, living as a queen to a non-Jewish king. There is no reasonable reason this would happen. Except…God’s will. Mordecai said maybe the reason that you are the one who was chosen was because of this specific circumstance. This is why you were placed here… to stop the killing of all Jews, so they would not be erased, but that the blood line would continue. She was about to take a risk, and it cost her her life, or it could save teh Jewish race. She would have to make a decision.
This week Mom showed me a article of something that happened in June in Niger. Niger is the country that touches the northern of Nigeria.
Become Muslim or be slaughtered
“Whenever the militants visit a village, they will ask the chief to call all the people to listen to their message. The militants will say to people that they are against the government, that they want everybody to become Muslim and that those who refuse to obey will be slaughtered.”
These are the words of a local church leader in Niger. We can’t tell you his name or precise location because he is afraid of retribution for daring to talk about what seems obvious – parts of Niger are amid a crisis driven by radical Islamic violence.
The local leader is commenting on the latest aggression towards a village in the southwest, near Niger’s border with Burkina Faso. According to a reliable field source, Islamic militants approached the village on 10 June and gave the ultimatum: Christians should either leave within 72 hours or accept Islam.
“A total of 40% of the population in that village are Christians,” said an Open Doors field partner. “Currently, 69 Christian families have left the village, and they are taking refuge in a town where many Christians live. Those displaced believers are living under the trees, and it is the rainy season. Life is extremely hard for them now.”
“Christians are the ones who are being persecuted by militants in that area,” a local church leader said.
The June incident is just one of many. In another nearby village, militants told Christians they were not allowed to play music during church services. They also said Christian women must wear hijabs, while men are required to wear a modest tunic and allow their beards to grow long. Men were to instruct their wives to stay at home, doing nothing, as their interpretation of the Quran commands.
In fact, the increasing influence of various Islamic militant groups – particularly Islamic State Greater Sahara (ISGS) – has recently become so intense that all public Christian worship has come to a halt in some rural areas.
“This area constitutes the largest Christian community in this region,” said a local church leader. “There are several churches in the villages, but because of the jihadist threat, all the churches in the rural area have closed. Pray for the Christian believers who are facing this situation of persecution.”
The people of this area who are Christians are risking their lives. Turn to be a Muslim or die.
Esther was told that she needed to take a risk. Go before the king without being asked to come in. Speak for her people, or they would all be killed. What did she do?
15 Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai, 16 “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish.” 17 Mordecai then went away and did everything as Esther had ordered him.
Would you take that risk? What if you were put in place to do something to stand up for what you believe?
Like that place in Niger, what if that is the choice you were given. If they were to come down the road here in Opi and walk up to you and say, become a Muslim or die. What would you say?
What risk would you take?
You see 2000 years ago, Jesus came from heaven. He left all of heave to come down here. He knew what was before him. He knew he would pay a price. He knew the risk. But the risk would glorify the Father, the most important thing to him. And when he glorified the Father, he shed his blood for you and me. He made a way for a sinful person like you and me so that we could be made whole before the Lord, if we turn our lives from a life of sin, to a life of trust i n Jesus as the Lord of our lives.