Evil On Display
Transcript Search
Notes
Transcript
Now it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus, (this is Ahasuerus which reigned, from India even unto Ethiopia, over an hundred and seven and twenty provinces:) That in those days, when the king Ahasuerus sat on the throne of his kingdom, which was in Shushan the palace, In the third year of his reign, he made a feast unto all his princes and his servants; the power of Persia and Media, the nobles and princes of the provinces, being before him: When he shewed the riches of his glorious kingdom and the honour of his excellent majesty many days, even an hundred and fourscore days.
Introduction
Introduction
According to Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary.
When this story is rehearsed to groups of Jewish children during the feast of Purim, it is customary for the children to hiss (like a snake) loudly and stomp their feet every time the name of Haman occurs in order to block out even the sound of his name. As such he is seen as a “satanic” figure.
Esther is one of only tow books of the Bible that is named after a woman.
Esther has not always been well viewed by theologians. John Calvin never preached a sermon from it, and Luther said, it contained “too many heathen unnaturalities.
Esther contains 190 references to Ahasuerus and no mention of God, but it has been wisely stated, “though the name of God be not in it, His finger is”.
What About Evil?
What About Evil?
Those who are opposed to Christianity use the issue of evil as there reason. It goes something like this:
1. Evil and suffering exist in the world.
2. If God were all-powerful, He could prevent evil and suffering.
3. If God were all-loving, He would want to prevent evil and suffering.
4. Therefore, since evil and suffering still exist in the world, either God is not powerful enough to stop it, not loving enough to stop it, or He merely doesn’t exist.
However, the Bible tells us
God is both all powerful and all loving. He is God of gods and the Lord of lords, mighty and awesome.
For the Lord your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward:
God works all things to His ultimate will.
In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
God is compassionate, gracious, and abounding in love.
The Lord is merciful and gracious, Slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.
When men speak of evil they tend to blur the lines between natural evil(diseases, epidemics, animal instincts and forces of nature), and moral evil such as murder, rape, theft, political corruption, oppression, physical abuse, sex trafficking, terrorist attacks, genocide, povery due to oppression, etc...
How Does Evil Prove God’s Existence?
How Does Evil Prove God’s Existence?
Moral evil rules God in… not out. The very fact that we have the ability to identify something as immoral means there must be a Moral Law… Which means there must be a Moral Lawgiver who created our conscience.
The moment that anyone looks at an action and objectively labels it as good or evil they have revealed they have accepted that their is something beyond us. A morality to which we contribute no value.
Genesis tell us God has stamped His image on us. It because of this and only because of that we are able to differentiate between good and evil, fair and unfair, love and hatred.
Does God Know About Evil?
Does God Know About Evil?
If Bertrand Russell was correct and man is just “a curious accident,” or nothing more than cosmic sludge…then what would it matter if we die suddenly or slowly, peacefully or painfully? What difference does it make?
But God clears it up for us in
Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
In fact he tells us our fall had far reaching consequences.
For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
There is a Moral Agent/God who is
God is never surprised by sin.
His plans are never disrupted by corruption.
His will is never hampered by rebellion.
He is never bound by iniquity.
God can and does make all things including evil work to the fulfillment of His plan
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
The spiritual, physical, and emotional anguish Christ suffered on the cross was not accidental… it was planned and purposed.
Thats how the Prophets in the Old Testament could describe it in such detail in Psalms 22 and Isaiah 53 centuries before Christ was born.
God was the one pulling the strings all along
And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
Peter doesn't preach on Pentecost.... God can’t believe you did that. No he says God determined it and your wicked hands did it.
Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain:
Will I Experience Evil?
Will I Experience Evil?
Death is not something you can avoid. Evil came in to the world through the fall of man, Jesus dealt with it at the cross and one day God will right every human wrong.
The problem with death is not that it touches some so suddenly, but rather that it touches everyone eventually.
According to Life magazine, William Randolph Hearst, when 75 years old, forbid the mention of death in his presence. However, when yielding voting control of his publications to an attorney, “the man who has arrogantly and brilliantly ruled a $200,000,000 empire acknowledged death although he did not mention it.” The statement merely read that Mr. Hearst had become “conscious of the uncertainties of life.”
There is a coming day when God will make a universal adjustment. Perfect justice will be dispensed. The wicked will no longer prosper and the righteous will no longer suffer and the problem of evil will be fully and finally settled beyond all doubt and dispute.-John Blanchard
So why doesn’t God just deal with it now? Because If God eradicated all the evil in this world, He would have to eradicate you… and me… so when do you want Him to start?
Is There A Solution To Evil?
Is There A Solution To Evil?
The Cross is the Answer
The Bible tell us that God is rich in mercy and because of His grace and love He gives us multiplied opportunities to trust him, accept Him, love him, to come to the cross of Christ and see the arms of Justice bearing our injustice.
It is awe inspiring to come to the realization that in all the chaos and the corruption surrounding the cross God was tracing a thread that would fulfill the plan of redemption. The chaos was never beyond God’s control.
It is one thing to see God navigate the chaos in scripture… it is another to believe that He is working in the chaos of your life.
Even when the Twin Towers fall or a Tsunami wipes out 100’s of 1000’s of lives in a day. Gos is till merciful. Even when Bush, Obama, Trump, Biden, or whoever is next is elected President God is still good. Even when the Taliban kicks in your door and drags you and family out in the street to face death for your faith....God is still God.
Esther reminds us that good men are not always on the the throne, but God is always faithful. Even when it seems like God is absent… He is still there and He cares.
As step into Esther the Jews are struggling with questions about evil… They have been in bondage for hundreds of years because they disobeyed God. Worse yet God who had spoken through their prophets and kings, had gone eerily silent.
While God may have been silent He was not inactive.God had moved Cyrus’ heart to shew mercy to the Jews and allow them to return home over the next few decades. Yet many refused because they had become so accustomed to Persian life that they had lost all desire to return to Jerusalem… they had become Persianized,by the culture around them.
One commentary puts it this way:
During this time of silence, the Jews had been taken into captivity. Those who lived in Jerusalem had been carried away by the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar—the same king responsible for destroying the city’s walls and temple, pillaging, plundering, and making off with their treasures.
Fifty years later, Cyrus conquered Babylon when his soldiers diverted the water of the Euphrates River that ran through the capital city and he literally waded underneath the iron spikes of the wall and into the city.
Just before Cyrus showed up with his army, Nebuchadnezzar’s son Belshazzar was having a drunken orgy in his palace. The Bible records that a hand suddenly appeared and began writing on the wall letters that no one could understand. Needless to say, that ruined the party.
They called the prophet Daniel out of retirement so he could read the words on the wall and interpret the message to Belshazzar: effectively, “You’re toast!”
And Daniel’s interpretation came true that very night. Belshazzar was killed and the Persian kingdom replaced the kingdom of Babylon. Cyrus the Great was now ruler of the known world.
In their opinion God was a relic of the past… He belonged in His place in His Temple in Jerusalem which was as broken as they felt He was.
Naturally we believe that God will protect those who are retruning, but what about those who decide not to go back… like maybe Esther and Mordecai?
What If Evil Takes Over?
What If Evil Takes Over?
Ahasuerus was not a good man… He went by the name Xerxes “Sovereign over men” or “Hero of Heroes”.
One inscription that was found read,
“I am Xerxes, the great king, the only king, the king of this entire earth, far and near.”
Let it never be forgotten that glamour is not greatness; applause is not fame; prominence is not eminence. The man of the hour is not apt to be the man of the ages. A stone may sparkle, but that does not make it a diamond; people may have money, but that does not make them a success.
It is what the unimportant people do that really counts and determines the course of history. The greatest forces in the universe are never spectacular. Summer showers are more effective than hurricanes, but they get no publicity. The world would soon die but for the fidelity, loyalty, and consecration of those whose names are unhonored and unsung. - James R. Sizoo
A man named Pythius offered Ahasuerus an enormous amount of money in support of his military expedition against Greece. Ahasuerus, moved by this man’s loyalty, returned the gift and sent presents back to Pythius. However, when Pythius asked Ahasuerus to allow his oldest son to remain home from the war, the king, enraged by the request, ordered the son to be cut into two pieces and had the army march between them on their way to battle.
During his expedition against Greece—the same where he and more than 100,000 soldiers were held off for seven days by Leonidus and 300 brave Spartans at the battle of Thermopylae—Ahasueras attempted to build two bridges across a river to accommodate his huge army. Although they were successfully built, a storm rose up and destroyed the bridges overnight. Furious and delusional, the king had a soldier beat the river with a whip 300 times while other soldiers shouted and cursed at the water. He also ordered that a pair of shackles be thrown into the river to symbolize his sovereignty over the waters, even though he had failed to cross it. As final proof of his absolute dominance of all things, he then had the bridge engineers beheaded.
On another occasion, he travelled back to Susa and wintered in the city of Sardis where he tried to seduce his sister-in-law. She refused his advances and, as a result, he later had her and her husband (his own brother) tortured to death.
Xerxes was described as Haughty, angry, merciless… He wanted control over everybody and everything… and it would seem he had it here in Shushan the same palace where Daniel was buried.
What Is That I See In The Shadows?
What Is That I See In The Shadows?
If you hear nothing else this morning hear this:
Even when God is invisible, He is still invincible.
Remember this:
God may remain hidden … but He is not absent.
He may be invisible … but He is infallible.
He may be quiet … but He has undiminished control.
He may be disregarded … but His will is never frustrated.
He may be unnoticed … but He remains unconquerable.
And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation: And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?
Whatsoever the Lord pleased, That did he in heaven, and in earth, In the seas, and all deep places.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Evil doesn’t mean God doesn’t exist.
Moral Evil means God exists
God can and does make all things, including evil work toward His will.
You can not avoid evil… death comes for us all.
The cross is the answer to evil.
Even when God is invisible…He is still invincible.
In the second century they brought a Christian before a king, who wanted him to recant and give up Christ and Christianity, but the man spurned the proposition. But the king said:
“If you don’t do it, I will banish you.”
The man smiled and answered, “You can’t banish me from Christ, for He says He will never leave me nor forsake me.”
The king got angry, and said: “Well, I will confiscate your property and take it all from you.”
And the man replied: “My treasures are laid up on high; you cannot get them.”
The king became still more angry, and said: “I will kill you.”
“Why,” the man answered, “I have been dead forty years; I have been dead with Christ, dead to the world, and my life is hid with Christ in God, and you cannot touch it.”
“What are you going to do with such a fanatic?” said the king.
We are given this glimpse not so that we can say, “Oh my Mordecai and Esther were very wise… rather we should say God is good… even in the midst of chaos.”
I hope that at the end of this study you will say, “God is the author of my story, He is the hero in my drama, He is the King even behind the scene.”