Esther 4:13-14 “Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. 14 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 royal position for such a time as this?”
 
LET’S be clear about this biblical truth: When God says, “Go there for me.” you must say, “Here am I.” Then be prepared to go.
    Does that sound too harsh, too bottom-line and even too bossy? Perhaps it sounds that way, but what else is there to do? Who are we, the clay, to say, “No.” to our Potter? Yes, it certainly can be a fearful experience to tell God, “Yes, I’ll go.” when you have few details, no experience and little desire. But such “go” steps are the only steps that will truly reflect obeying the two great commands recorded in Matthew 22:37-39 “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”  
Yes, it’s true. Saying, “Here am I.” when God calls is always about moving out of your comfort zone. You know that, don’t you? That’s why it is difficult to be Jesus’ disciple.
    Surely, then, you can understand the clash occurring in Esther’s mind. She had a good reason, didn’t she, to stay away from the king and to say, “I’m NOT here, God!” But in truth, a real love for God does not even allow a death threat to turn us away from his call. Jesus showed us that. Ans so have many faithful maryrs thorugh the years. Without such men and women, we may not have a Bible to read!
    Act into God’s “Go.” call to you, even as you surely want to say, “No.” In your faithful obedience, you will see God enlarge your faith in him. You will experience God expand your love for him and for others.  
   
Prayer: Teach me to eagerly go into each place you point, Father. Joyfully, I will be your tool of salvation to your chosen people. In Jesus’ name I rejoice, amen.

Esther 4:12-14 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?”
 
ESTHER and Mordecai are having a dialogue. Much has been written about the question, “And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” and rightly so. The question is one that calls us to account. It is a soul-stirring reminder we are sometimes called to difficult circumstances for the opportunity to magnificently represent God.
    We’ll look at that question, though, more tomorrow. But today let’s focus on some “ignored people” here. These are Esther’s servants. Isn’t it fascinating to note how such a critical conversation between Esther and Mordecai is through a third party? The “they” and the “them” in this passage is likely Hathach, who is named in verse 10 and others who serve Esther in the king’s harem. In addition, there are those who serve Mordecai in the king’s court.
    These messengers teach us a life-giving lesson as we claim membership in the Kingdom of God. As Hathach and others represented Esther’s and Mordecai’s words to each other, they acted as ambassadors. An ambassador is one who represents the leader of his nation to another nation’s leader. His main purpose is to accurately convey the thoughts, words and policies of the leader he represents. Many of these messages between nations can be very significant. At times, the accuracy of the messages can affect policy for many years. Sometimes misconstrued words can cause breakdown in relationships or even war.
     Are you a Christian, a citizen of the Kingdom of God? Then Haltech and the others are good examples for you. You represent the King of Kings. You are an ambassador from the King, assigned to carry a very critical message to a world already engaged in a war of eternal consequences.
    The Apostle Paul made that point in 2 Corinthians 5:20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. Understand that Paul’s “imploring” is his great urging for the church to be together in their great purpose. Note, too, the power of a messenger to affect others as recorded in Proverbs 13:17 A wicked messenger falls into trouble, but a faithful envoy brings healing. Messengers can disrupt. Messengers can heal.
    God was using Haltech and the others for the purpose of the Jews’ salvation just as much as he was using Esther and Mordecai. If any one of these three parties was not engaged in the conversation to act into God’s purpose “for such a time as this” our Sovereign Lord would have raised up others to do the work. As Mordecai states, “For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place.” we are reminded that when the Lord calls, we have the privilege to respond and see him at work for the salvation of many.
    From generation to generation, God chooses his ambassadors to convey his message of salvation. Being an ambassador is a highly desired appointment in our government. Rejoice God has so appointed you. Join in the mission. Be a joyful ambassador to convey Jesus’ most critical message into a broken world.
 
Prayer: Thank you, Father, for inviting me to work with you. As I say, “I am a Christian.” remind me each day that what I say and do represents you. Amen.  

Esther 4:9-11 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 has urged Esther to intercede for her people – and her own life – before the king. He knows, of course, Esther is the Jews’ best hope. Esther is favored in the king’s mind above almost everyone in Persia. In addition, Esther’s own life is at risk. She is the perfect candidate with the best reasons to intercede to the king for the Jews’ salvation.
     But she hesitates. She speaks of the king’s rules as fearful obstacle. As she has submitted to the king’s authority, she knows there is only one proper and secure way to go to him. One must wait for King Ahasuerus to call. Otherwise, King Ahasuerus could quickly execute the uninvited person. Esther surely has a good reason to stop and consider Mordecai’s directive, doesn’t she? Even as she is becoming aware, “I must do this very difficult thing for my people.” Esther is now face-to-face with the king’s rule.
     Yes, caution and reason are good traits as we faithfully follow Jesus. God gave to us a mind to be aware of dangers. We must know the right way to live under the government and society’s rules. We must be cautious to consider our actions against those rules. This helps us to live in peace and protect our lives for our Lord’s good work.
     God also gave us minds to know when we must boldly, even to the cost of our lives, stand before someone who is determined to do great harm. Esther has been called to help the king see he is wrong in his decree. She considers Mordecai’s request. She gives a reason for saying, “No.” She will then – as we all must do – consider the reason(s) for saying, “Yes, I will do so. Even at the risk, even at the cost of my life.”
     Around the world, people are daily confronted with such faith obstacles. Consider refugees who flee deadly rulers. Think of a battered woman who needs to leave the house in order to save her children and herself. Be mindful of Christians who are called to denounce Jesus or be killed. Remember pastors and counselors who must intervene to save a family from destruction. Perhaps someone sees evil at a job they need to feed their families. What must one do?
     We all have to make decisions affecting our lives and those we love. Be mindful of the right way to respond. Have the courage and the faith to do as God directs you. Esther will have to trust God, and so will you.
 
Prayer: Help us, Lord, to know when we must confront wrongdoing. Help us to have wisdom and grace. Help us to seek the truth found surely in you. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Esther 4:5-8 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. 
 
IN this account, we see how Mordecai is a type, a picture, of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
    See, first, how Mordecai recognizes the full extent of Haman’s evil decision to destroy the Jews. Mordecai knew the full monetary cost of the scheduled mass murder. Jesus knows the full cost of Satan’s evil desires to destroy mankind.   
    Second, Mordecai wrote down every detail to inform Esther of the great threat against her and the Jews. Jesus is the Living Word of God (John 1). He has written everything down to tell us completely of Satan’s great threat against our individual lives and the lives of all in the world.
    Further, Mordecai has given his message to a trusted messenger. Jesus has given his message to you. Can he trust you to tell the true message of the deadly danger that threatens mankind’s souls?
 
Prayer: Lord God, thank you for sending your Son to tell us the message of sin. Thank you he then gave to us the message of salvation. Turn our ears to listen to the Living Word. Open the hearts of many to know the power of the gospel to save. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Esther 3:15-4:4 The couriers went out hurriedly by order of the king, and the decree was issued in Susa the citadel. And the king and Haman sat down to drink, but the city of Susa was thrown into confusion. 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 Mordecai 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. 
 
 WE see here the contrast between those who decree evil and the decree’s victims. Haman and King Ahasuerus have committed enormous physical resources to the Jews’ destruction. Then they relax and have a drink! There is no conscience, no remorse and no regret. They are happy in their evil ignorance.
    Then, as you can well imagine, Mordecai reacts to the news with extreme grief. He sees the death promise against his people, and he puts on sackcloth – a covering of coarse camel or goat hair – to proclaim his mournful heart. Mordecai is grieving for his people, and perhaps he is blaming himself.
    Yes, he could have seen his decision to not bow before Haman as the possible cause for this great disaster. Mordecai had acted in faith to obey God’s commands to worship only God (Exodus 20:4). In response, Haman had become angry with the righteous Mordecai, the Jew. Haman then transferred his anger to all Jews. Evil hates God’s goodness and will strive to destroy God’s people.
    We can apply this to our own lives in this way: When you stand for Jesus and his church as Mordecai stood for God in Persia, you can anticipate that evil will come against you. Read in Acts of the many ways the Jews, then the Romans persecuted the first century church. Even more, history records Christian martyrs through every century and to this very day. People who stand to worship only God die to glorify his name. Spiritual warfare becomes deadly visible through Christian martyrdom.
     Mordecai lived in faith each day, trusting his God to care for him. We must do the same. After all, as we confess Jesus, we are under his promise to eternally worship him.    
 
Prayer: In times of my distress, Father, strengthen me stand for you. In Jesus’ name, amen.  
 

Esther 3:12-14 Then the king’s scribes were summoned on the thirteenth day of the first month, and an edict, according to all that Haman commanded, was written to the king’s satraps and to the governors over all the provinces and to the officials of all the peoples, to every province in its own script and every people in its own language. It was written in the name of King Ahasuerus and sealed with the king’s signet ring. 13 Letters were sent by couriers to all the king’s provinces with instruction to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate all Jews, young and old, women and children, in one day, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar, and to plunder their goods. 14 A copy of the document was to be issued as a decree in every province by proclamation to all the peoples to be ready for that day.
 
WE see here the great power of a government decree. Near the end of Esther, you will see that once a decree was written and marked with the king’s signet ring, not even the king could stop it. Death, it seems, is sure for the Jews. Annihilation can come so casually from the minds of evil men.
    Are such decrees in our world today? Your first thoughts might go to terrorist organizations who decree the deaths of innocent people. But let’s look for a minute at our own governments and courts. In the U.S., for example, in 240 years of our existence, our Supreme Court has decreed racial, moral and physical destruction on our country as it affirmed slavery and separate education for races. In the past 45 years the court has sent out such deadly and immoral decrees as: Abortion is a right. Gay couples can be married.
    I have written of submission to government authorities in this study of Esther. The Scriptures declare how we are to live under the authority of those who rule over us. But the Bible also teaches us we are to work diligently and passionately to remove evil laws and rule from our land. Thankfully, the Court’s 19th century decisions affirming slavery and separating races were corrected in the 20th century to pave the way for integration in the United States.
    In God there is sufficient hope for change to his right laws. We must be purposeful to work to negate the sinful decrees that have caused the annihilation of millions of unborn in this country and around the world. We must work in hope to call all mothers to know God’s truth. We must make known God’s decrees to a confused, self-focused world that true marriage is only between a man and a woman.
    We can see such hope in Esther.  As the Jews in Persia faced annihilation, the Lord God was raising up a faithful man and woman to negate the king’s decree. No, the King of Persia could not stop his own decree. But the King of Kings could. He can do the same today.
 
Prayer: Lord God, you know the evil intentions of many to decree death to the unborn. We pray you continue to raise up faithful men and women to be your agents of life for these children. In Jesus’ name we plead. Amen.
 

Esther 3:8-11 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.” 10 So the king took his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews. 11 And the king said to Haman, “The money is given to you, the people also, to do with them as it seems good to you.”
 
CAN you believe this? Haman proposes an extermination of the Jews. He offers to pay for it! Then King Ahasuerus says, “Do with them as seems good to you.” What kind of weak-minded man is this king? How could he so casually allow this advisor of his to suggest the holocaust of a significant number of Persia’s citizens? Even worse, how could he so flippantly approve? Did the king do so because Haman said, “I’ll pay for it?” (By the way, this was 750,000 pounds of silver, about $147,000,000! I wonder how this government official became so extravagantly wealthy?)
    Haman, though, wasn’t satisfied with his wasteful wealth. He wanted to remove anyone who reminded him of Mordecai’s insult. He could use his power and influence to destroy a people. So he acted. Perhaps he is the spoiled child who demands more simply because he loves his use of power. The more lives he could affect, the greater he will feel. The power appetite is never satisfied.
    Haman and King Ahasuerus are truly symbols of Satan infecting God’s creation. As Satan is “seeking whom he may devour.” (1 Peter 5:8), these two men are eager to consume the lives of anyone who disturbs their minds. Vainly vicious, their disregard for humankind is merciless as they act from their own view of what “seems good”.
    As we consider leaders in our midst today who seem consume with power for their sense of purpose, let us be in deliberate prayer that God will deliver such leaders from Satan’s evil influence. Pray those who do violence are silenced, that those who seek power are humbled, that those who disregard others submit to God’s salvation.
 
Prayer: Father in Heaven, we pray you deliver our leaders from evil and protect them against the Adversary. Where vicious men reign, bring an end to Satan’s rule. Come, Lord Jesus. Amen.

Estther 3:7 In the twelfth year of King Xerxes, in the first month, the month of Nisan, they cast the pur (that is, the lot) in the presence of Haman to select a day and month. And the lot fell on the twelfth month, the month of Adar.  
 
WHAT is this about lots being cast in the presence of Haman? First of all, the “they” are sorcerers and priests of Persia’s idols. “Pur” is Hebrew for “lot”. Casting a lot to make certain decisions or to reveal certain truths was done among the Jews under God’s sovereign authority. For example, lots were used to determine the distribution of the Promised Land (Num 26:55), choose Saul as Israel’s first king (1 Sam 10:20) and select Matthias to replace Judas as the 12th disciple (Acts 1:24-26).
    But as prayers to idols are useless, so is the casting of lots useless by those who serve demonic idols. The lot casting was more as flipping a coin to make a decision. Haman believed the idols he worshiped would determine the date for the Jews’ extermination.
    But we rejoice that it is the God of the universe who moved the lot to the Jews’ advantage. Nothing in our world is by chance. As recorded in Proverbs 16:33 The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord. “Rolling the dice”, “trying your luck” or “taking my chances” are phrases reflecting mankind’s cultural superstitions. Such words must not come from the lips of God’s faithful church.
    Haman believed the “pur” – the lots – gave to him a date for the Jews’ extermination. The date was nearly a year after the lots were cast. This timeframe would allow God’s plans to save his people unfold through Esther and Mordecai. In truth, then, it was God who was using the lots to set the date of the Jews salvation.  
 
Prayer: Lord God, forgive us for the words we use that diminish your sovereign authority. Teach us to speak with words that always acknowledge you are in control of each matter in our lives. In the Spirit’s truth we pray, amen.

Esther 3:1-2, 5-6 After these things King Ahasuerus promoted Haman the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, and advanced him and set his throne above all the officials who were with him. 2 And all the king’s servants who were at the king’s gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman, for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai did not bow down or pay homage…5 And when Haman saw that Mordecai did not bow down or pay homage to him, Haman was filled with fury. 6 But he disdained to lay hands on Mordecai alone. So, as they had made known to him the people of Mordecai, Haman sought to destroy all the Jews, the people of Mordecai, throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus.
 
IT is said that Adolph Hitler’s hatred for the Jews began when he as a boy was displeased by their appearance. How could such a frivolous and preferential dislike cause the deaths of millions?
     The same seems true of Haman. Who was this man who could so easily turn an insult into a great anger against an entire people group? Haman’s ascent to power produced a great self-centered pride. Haman is as his king. He is easily angered beyond reason. When insulted by one Jew, Haman responded with hateful malice toward all Jews. Why would he do such a thing?
     We can go back to King Ahasuerus’ angry response to his wife, Queen Vashti. Perhaps Haman was watching the king’s reaction then to her insult of the king’s request. Maybe he learned from the king that he could display his power with a large, unreasonable act of revenge. Possibly he thought, “I can be even more angry than the king. I can do more harm to more people.”
     This is sin’s cancerous affects. Read in Genesis of the early years of human history. Adam’s sin of eating forbidden fruit led to Cain’s murder of Abel. Cain’s murder led to a man named Lamech who said this in Genesis 4:23-24 “Adah and Zillah, hear my voice; you wives of Lamech, listen to what I say: I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for striking me. 24 If Cain’s revenge is sevenfold, then Lamech’s is seventy-sevenfold.”
     Lamech took pride in his murderous heart. Genesis 5-6 record mankind’s downfall from there into even greater sin. In response, God judged mankind with the Great Flood to cleanse the earth. One sin is never one sin. There is always one more. Deeper and deeper it penetrates into one’s heart to kill and destroy. 
     Is there something in your family line that is the root of pain, hurt and grief from one generation to another? You can stop it. In the power of the Holy Spirit, call on the Lord Jesus to intercede. Pray for the Spirit’s power to fill you and strengthen you. Pray you will be his agent to bring righteousness to your family.
     Pray for your family to be redeemed. Pray that God’s right ways will beget more of God’s right ways.
 
Prayer: Lord God, deliver me from any sinful intent in my heart. Protect my family, my friends and my church from the evil one. In Jesus’ name, amen.
 

Esther 2:19-22 Now when the virgins were gathered together the second time, Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate. 20 Esther had not made known her kindred or her people, as Mordecai had commanded her, for Esther obeyed Mordecai just as when she was brought up by him. 21 In those days, as Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate, Bigthan and Teresh, two of the king’s eunuchs, who guarded the threshold, became angry and sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus. 22 And this came to the knowledge of Mordecai, and he told it to Queen Esther, and Esther told the king in the name of Mordecai. 23 When the affair was investigated and found to be so, the men were both hanged on the gallows. And it was recorded in the book of the chronicles in the presence of the king.
 
WE can remember here that Esther is a story of two faithful people – Esther and her father-figure cousin Mordecai. The faithfulness we see in these two from this Scripture relates to their relationship with King Ahasuerus. 
     As I have mentioned, the king is an ungodly man with lustful desires. He perhaps epitomizes the harmful desires and temptations that can stir all of our hearts into wrongful living. He has entrapped Esther into his harem. Mordecai serves in the court of this ungodly man; yet, Esther and Mordecai are faithful to save his life from the plotting eunuchs. Would it have not been convenient to allow these evil men to complete their plot? The king then would be gone. Perhaps this would have freed Esther to return to her home.
     But both recognized their allegiance to the king. They acted rightly as they understood evil was not to be solved with evil deeds. Esther and Mordecai served in the king’s court, and they would be loyal to the king. Mordecai’s faithful actions would save the king. And later his faithful response would save his people.
 
Prayer: We pray, Father, that we always live by your commands. Strengthen our faith to trust you will use our faithfulness to your good purposes. In Jesus’ name, amen.