WEBVTT 00:00:00.220 --> 00:00:04.070 I'm going to invite you to the book of Esther chapter seven, Esther chapter seven is where we're at today. 00:00:04.780 --> 00:00:10.880 And this is a very sobering subject that we're going to engage in. 00:00:10.880 --> 00:00:17.900 Now, this is the part of the story where we're going to find out, and you probably already know somewhat of the story of Esther, but this is the part of the story 00:00:17.900 --> 00:00:22.360 where they tell us who lives and who dies in the book of Esther. 00:00:22.480 --> 00:00:26.330 And when we talk about life and death, it's a very sobering subject. 00:00:26.480 --> 00:00:33.540 I mean, even on the world stage on the news every night, if you flip that on you see a battle raging 00:00:33.540 --> 00:00:36.300 in the world between Ukraine and Russia right now. 00:00:36.300 --> 00:00:43.500 And just the idea of life and death unfolding before our eyes, it is a sensitive topic, 00:00:43.900 --> 00:00:45.280 a very weighty topic. 00:00:46.040 --> 00:00:50.480 And on a snowy day like today, this is the topic we're going to engage in. 00:00:51.360 --> 00:00:54.860 But the very top of your notes, this is the first blank if you picked up the notes this morning. 00:00:55.800 --> 00:00:59.560 This is where we want to begin is, Consider the value of your soul. 00:01:00.620 --> 00:01:01.740 Consider the value of your soul. 00:01:02.160 --> 00:01:09.640 And before I actually dive into Esther chapter seven, I'm going to springboard from one text to another 00:01:09.640 --> 00:01:10.920 leading into this. 00:01:10.920 --> 00:01:11.880 We don't typically do this. 00:01:11.880 --> 00:01:19.160 I like to just engage directly with the text, but I want to initiate this by looking at Mark chapter eight for just a minute, and you don't necessarily have 00:01:19.160 --> 00:01:25.640 to turn there, but Mark chapter eight is a very pivotal chapter in the gospel of Mark. 00:01:26.260 --> 00:01:33.180 It correlates well to Matthew chapter 16, the same story in Mark eight unfolding in Matthew chapter 16. 00:01:33.800 --> 00:01:36.800 This chapter is a very motivational chapter. 00:01:36.900 --> 00:01:43.080 This is where in the gospel of Mark chapter eight, where Jesus really transitions in his ministry. 00:01:43.540 --> 00:01:50.920 He's demonstrated a lot of what he's about in Mark eight, but now he starts to communicate what he's going to do, in this 00:01:50.920 --> 00:01:51.800 chapter of Mark. 00:01:51.840 --> 00:01:54.590 It's sort of this monumental moment. 00:01:56.020 --> 00:02:03.360 And at the end of this chapter, he asks a very thought provoking question that he wants the 00:02:03.360 --> 00:02:10.520 heart and minds of his disciples to contemplate, to churn within their soul, to consider as 00:02:10.520 --> 00:02:15.560 he has just going through in this chapter, some very heavy and weighty thoughts. 00:02:15.580 --> 00:02:22.660 And he asks this in Mark chapter eight, and this parallels well with Esther seven, but he says, "For what does it 00:02:22.660 --> 00:02:30.440 benefit a person to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul, for 00:02:30.440 --> 00:02:37.460 what could a person give an exchange for his soul?" What Jesus 00:02:37.460 --> 00:02:40.380 is asking is, "What is your soul worth? 00:02:42.860 --> 00:02:46.400 And what would you toss aside... 00:02:46.420 --> 00:02:53.840 I mean, what would you give up for your soul in order to gain some things from this world?" He wants us to recognize there's really nothing 00:02:53.840 --> 00:03:00.220 in life worth exchanging for the preciousness of what your soul is. 00:03:02.600 --> 00:03:04.800 But for some reason, we do that. 00:03:05.120 --> 00:03:07.180 We give up on the value of the things of... 00:03:07.960 --> 00:03:15.000 Or we gain the value of the things of this world in exchange for the preciousness and pricelessness of what our soul is. 00:03:15.960 --> 00:03:24.340 In talking about this soul and the importance of your soul, previous to these verses Jesus was teaching 00:03:24.340 --> 00:03:28.590 us about the value of his identity in light of our soul. 00:03:29.000 --> 00:03:34.110 In verse 29, he asked that famous question, Who do you say that I am? 00:03:34.820 --> 00:03:35.600 Who do you say that I am? 00:03:35.600 --> 00:03:42.660 The reason Jesus was asking this question is because in Mark eight, Jesus recognized that, as he's done ministry in this world, all these 00:03:42.660 --> 00:03:46.620 people that he was doing ministry around had this perception of what the Messiah should be about. 00:03:47.800 --> 00:03:49.470 And none of their thinking was correct. 00:03:51.420 --> 00:03:58.460 And Jesus, with his close followers, he just wanted to get to the root of his identity so they could understand how the importance of who he was helped 00:03:58.460 --> 00:04:04.720 them better understand who they were in light of who he was, and why he has come for the rescue of their souls. 00:04:06.740 --> 00:04:12.380 Satan is okay with you believing in a Jesus. 00:04:14.120 --> 00:04:16.519 Satan does not care about you believing in a Jesus. 00:04:18.220 --> 00:04:19.620 It's what you believe about Jesus. 00:04:21.300 --> 00:04:23.050 That is where the power is represented. 00:04:23.120 --> 00:04:29.780 In fact, in Second Corinthians chapter 11, verse four, that's what the apostle Paul said to us about Jesus. 00:04:29.840 --> 00:04:37.100 He says, "I'm concerned for you that you might be pursuing another Christ." The religions in this world have all different 00:04:37.100 --> 00:04:44.910 views of the idea of who Jesus is, but who is Jesus, really? 00:04:45.360 --> 00:04:47.180 It's not about what people say about Jesus. 00:04:47.620 --> 00:04:50.840 It's what Jesus says about Jesus that matters. 00:04:51.840 --> 00:04:55.040 That's what Jesus asks disciples in Mark chapter eight. 00:04:55.120 --> 00:04:57.200 And then he goes on to demonstrate to them. 00:04:57.200 --> 00:05:00.300 And in verse 31, he says, "Look, I'm going to die. 00:05:01.380 --> 00:05:02.380 You want to understand what I'm about? 00:05:02.380 --> 00:05:03.940 I'm asking this question, Who do you say that I am? 00:05:03.940 --> 00:05:08.900 And I want you to have this correct picture that I'm coming to this world not just simply to teach people how to be better. 00:05:10.260 --> 00:05:16.300 I'm coming to this world in order to give my life that you might find life in me." That's the whole point, he gave his life. 00:05:16.300 --> 00:05:17.840 His whole point was his life, was his death. 00:05:18.200 --> 00:05:19.140 Verse 31. 00:05:20.740 --> 00:05:24.400 And Peter, not even understanding that, rebukes Jesus. 00:05:24.440 --> 00:05:28.000 And that's when Jesus says to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan. 00:05:28.180 --> 00:05:35.590 You don't understand what I'm about." We need Jesus to lay down his life. 00:05:36.960 --> 00:05:40.960 There is no other way for life, for our soul, apart from that. 00:05:40.960 --> 00:05:46.240 If there was another way, Jesus would not have sacrificed himself for us. 00:05:46.680 --> 00:05:53.740 The fact that Jesus was willing to do this, if there were any other way, Jesus would've said, Look, here's some suggestions of other opportunities you might have in life 00:05:53.740 --> 00:05:56.020 because I am not about to die for this, right? 00:05:56.220 --> 00:06:03.320 But the willingness that Jesus had to lay down his life for you and for me suggests that if there were any other alternative, Christ would've pursued that, 00:06:03.340 --> 00:06:10.760 but because he is the only way, John 14:6 tells us that it's important for our souls to 00:06:10.920 --> 00:06:18.200 understand who he is and the preciousness of what it means to trust he in him. 00:06:20.320 --> 00:06:27.960 Not only do we need it for us to experience true life, it's also inspiring 00:06:27.960 --> 00:06:31.000 to see that kind of sacrifice in Christ. 00:06:33.300 --> 00:06:38.830 There is no greater battle than the battle Jesus has fought for you and for me. 00:06:40.200 --> 00:06:44.580 I mean, it's inspiring when you see leaders that give of themselves. 00:06:45.420 --> 00:06:52.880 And I don't want to be political in this and pretend like I understand every detail that's happening in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, but 00:06:52.880 --> 00:07:00.180 I will tell you, one of the things that I have just been drawn into is to see the resolve of the president of Ukraine. 00:07:02.400 --> 00:07:09.400 I mean, when he says to his other leaders in the government that, "This may be the last time that you see me alive," and he's willing to stay down 00:07:09.400 --> 00:07:12.220 and fight for his country and his people. 00:07:12.380 --> 00:07:13.010 That is inspiring. 00:07:16.140 --> 00:07:23.400 And when I look at Jesus, everyone abandoned him, but 00:07:23.400 --> 00:07:31.000 he saw the need and the need compelled him with such great conviction that he was willing to 00:07:31.080 --> 00:07:33.120 do that for you and for me. 00:07:36.460 --> 00:07:43.580 He didn't need us, but we needed him and he willingly gave his 00:07:43.580 --> 00:07:43.980 life. 00:07:45.220 --> 00:07:53.240 What a beautiful picture of love and grace and mercy for 00:07:53.240 --> 00:07:54.260 your soul. 00:07:56.920 --> 00:08:03.940 The story in Esther chapter seven becomes the place of exploring the significance 00:08:03.940 --> 00:08:06.650 of life and death. 00:08:07.940 --> 00:08:13.160 This is the place now in the story where Esther, she reveals her identity to the king. 00:08:14.180 --> 00:08:19.640 This is done at great risk to herself because you remember the law that's been written by the king, that it's the Jewish people? 00:08:19.680 --> 00:08:26.240 The king, I don't think, is aware that it's necessarily the Jewish people, but Haman has written a law that the Jewish people are about to be exterminated. 00:08:27.440 --> 00:08:33.400 And before she became queen in Persia, she was told by her uncle Mordecai, Do not tell anyone you're a Jew. 00:08:34.400 --> 00:08:41.100 And now in chapter seven, this is the part of the story where she has prepared this feast for the king, not just once but twice, and now she's about to reveal her identity. 00:08:41.400 --> 00:08:48.730 And not only is she going to reveal her identity, she's also going to point to Haman as being the one who's writing the law to exterminate 00:08:49.400 --> 00:08:49.740 her people. 00:08:51.100 --> 00:08:58.280 This becomes the place in the story where there is life and death in the balance, and this story becomes a place for us to consider the position of our own 00:08:58.280 --> 00:09:01.680 soul before the Lord, and how we're using it. 00:09:03.200 --> 00:09:04.660 Esther chapter seven, verse one. 00:09:05.180 --> 00:09:12.280 In this blank in your notes, before I read this, I want you to write down these two blanks: Esther represents a 00:09:12.280 --> 00:09:14.480 soul's new life by faith. 00:09:16.840 --> 00:09:20.300 Esther, in this story, she represents a soul's new life by faith. 00:09:20.300 --> 00:09:22.830 And it begins this way in verse one. 00:09:24.000 --> 00:09:31.100 Says, "Now the king and Haman came to drink wine with Esther and the queen." And this verse is no different than every verse we 00:09:31.100 --> 00:09:31.760 read about the king. 00:09:31.780 --> 00:09:37.280 I feel like every time the king Xerxes or Ahasuerus is brought up in this story, it's always the same. 00:09:37.340 --> 00:09:39.780 The man never puts down a wine glass, right? 00:09:39.940 --> 00:09:43.910 The king with his wine glass and Haman, here they are again. 00:09:44.080 --> 00:09:45.600 We know how this goes for the king. 00:09:45.840 --> 00:09:51.660 The very beginning of the chapter, that's chapter one, this is a story that starts with the king with the wine glass. 00:09:51.780 --> 00:09:54.220 This guy is a man of extremes when he drinks. 00:09:54.350 --> 00:09:57.670 He's throwing lots of parties and all kinds of happy places. 00:09:57.800 --> 00:10:00.820 And then someone doesn't do what he wants and he just goes flying off the cuff. 00:10:00.860 --> 00:10:05.500 That tends to be Xerxes and so it lets us know, Here we go again, the king and his wine. 00:10:05.540 --> 00:10:12.780 And then verse two, "And the king said to Esther on the second day, also, as they drank their wine at the banquet, What is your request, Queen Ether? 00:10:13.160 --> 00:10:14.280 It shall be granted you. 00:10:14.280 --> 00:10:15.280 And what is your wish? 00:10:15.520 --> 00:10:20.420 Up to half the kingdom it shall be done here." Here he is in his merry state, asking this question. 00:10:20.460 --> 00:10:22.180 He's asked this question twice already. 00:10:22.480 --> 00:10:23.740 He did it in chapter five, verse three. 00:10:24.120 --> 00:10:25.550 He did it again in chapter five, verse six. 00:10:26.220 --> 00:10:32.980 Asked her, "Whatever you want, up to half the kingdom is yours." And here we are at chapter seven, verse two, asking the question once again, What is it you want? 00:10:32.980 --> 00:10:34.640 I'm here to give you whatever you offer. 00:10:34.640 --> 00:10:40.600 Now we were saying the first time he mentioned this in chapter five, that he probably literally doesn't mean this. 00:10:40.660 --> 00:10:47.700 I think that he likes Esther as much as he likes the other 1000 women in his harem, but at least he's favorable to 00:10:47.700 --> 00:10:51.620 Esther, but this was kind of a way that the king would just show off. 00:10:52.080 --> 00:10:57.740 He wants the praise of the people to recognize, What a generous king he might be, up to half the kingdom. 00:10:57.740 --> 00:11:04.220 But if you were to take this literal from the king and request half the kingdom, he would probably see it as a threat and take your life, right? 00:11:04.220 --> 00:11:07.400 But he's at least asking the question to Esther. 00:11:07.420 --> 00:11:15.140 And then in verse three, Esther says, "Then Queen replied, If I have found favor in your sight, O king, and 00:11:15.140 --> 00:11:22.360 if it pleases the king, let my life be given me as my request and my people as my 00:11:22.360 --> 00:11:28.370 wish; for we have been sold, and I and my people to be destroyed, killed and eliminated. 00:11:28.840 --> 00:11:36.160 Now if we had only been sold as slaves, men and women, I would've kept silent because the distress would not 00:11:36.160 --> 00:11:43.240 be sufficient reason to burden the king." When Esther brings 00:11:43.240 --> 00:11:50.260 this up, this would've been a shocking revelation for Xerxes because he is unaware of the 00:11:50.300 --> 00:11:51.220 background of his queen. 00:11:51.280 --> 00:11:55.380 He has no idea of her ethnicity, which just begins to show you what an awful... 00:11:55.880 --> 00:11:58.740 Guys, if you're married, know something about the history of your wife. 00:11:58.740 --> 00:12:00.500 Where she comes from, what she's about. 00:12:00.800 --> 00:12:04.920 This guy, this is a new revelation for him that he's hearing from the queen. 00:12:04.920 --> 00:12:12.000 He's trying to wrap his mind about what in the world could she even be talking about because a threat to the queen is 00:12:12.000 --> 00:12:13.500 a threat to the king. 00:12:13.780 --> 00:12:17.420 And she identifies for us in verse four that her people have been sold. 00:12:17.720 --> 00:12:25.040 And if you remember the law that Haman had written in order to write this law, he says to the king, Look, if you let me kill these people 00:12:25.040 --> 00:12:27.740 that I hate, I will make you very rich. 00:12:27.740 --> 00:12:35.500 He wants to give an exorbitant amount of silver to Xerxes for allowing Haman to write this law these people 00:12:35.500 --> 00:12:37.580 that the king is really unaware of. 00:12:39.700 --> 00:12:49.080 And Esther recognizes the dire moment that her people, "We've 00:12:49.120 --> 00:12:53.720 been sold and we're about to be destroyed, killed and eliminated. 00:12:55.640 --> 00:13:02.790 Had there been any other way, any other opportunity, we would not even have bothered the king." This is what she said, "Even if we were just going to be sold into slavery, 00:13:02.880 --> 00:13:10.420 at least we would still have our lives, but because we have no other place to go, King, 00:13:10.500 --> 00:13:17.780 I'm coming to you." And then verse five, "The king Ahasuerus 00:13:17.780 --> 00:13:25.100 asked Queen Ester, by this point in a slurred speech, I'm sure, "Who is he, and where is he, who 00:13:25.100 --> 00:13:32.680 would presume to do such a thing?" The king wants to know, Where 00:13:32.680 --> 00:13:34.040 is this attack coming from. 00:13:35.600 --> 00:13:37.940 Esther, why are you saying this? 00:13:39.260 --> 00:13:46.360 " And then in verse six, she identifies and Esther said, "A foe and an enemy 00:13:46.360 --> 00:13:53.400 is the wicked Haman!" Esther comes to this place where she 00:13:53.560 --> 00:13:56.940 finally fully puts her life on the line. 00:13:58.660 --> 00:14:03.080 I remember chapter five, Mordecai comes before Esther. 00:14:03.120 --> 00:14:03.940 It's chapter four, actually. 00:14:03.940 --> 00:14:10.440 Mordecai comes before Esther and he says to her, "For such a time as this, God's got you in a position to be the queen. 00:14:10.460 --> 00:14:11.920 And you've got to go before the king. 00:14:11.940 --> 00:14:18.940 And you've got to share with the king that the Jewish people, that we're going to be eliminated if you 00:14:18.940 --> 00:14:26.100 don't do something." And Esther in verse 16 says, "Get together all the people, and fast and pray for me because I'm going to go before the king." 00:14:26.120 --> 00:14:33.220 And it's the first time we really see, in this book, Esther taking a true step of faith in the Lord 00:14:33.220 --> 00:14:39.600 and putting her life in his hands and just trusting that God is going to provide in this moment. 00:14:39.620 --> 00:14:46.860 And so finally, it's come to this place in this story where Esther has verbally put herself out there before the king, who has written 00:14:46.860 --> 00:14:51.220 this law to kill her people, to expose that she, in fact, is a Jew. 00:14:53.280 --> 00:14:54.610 And it's Haman's fault. 00:14:56.760 --> 00:15:01.740 It's Haman's fault for writing this law that's going to eliminate her and her people. 00:15:03.680 --> 00:15:08.930 And this puts the king now in a position to decide who lives and who dies. 00:15:11.100 --> 00:15:12.960 What will the king do? 00:15:14.160 --> 00:15:17.560 It's the king, who's written the law, the king can't back down from this law. 00:15:17.580 --> 00:15:21.160 In order to observe this law, then, Esther could be killed. 00:15:21.160 --> 00:15:23.140 The king should just decide, just like Vasti. 00:15:23.440 --> 00:15:24.340 Remember Vasti? 00:15:24.360 --> 00:15:27.300 She was the queen and she didn't do what the king wanted. 00:15:27.300 --> 00:15:30.340 And now, all of a sudden, Vashti's never heard from again. 00:15:30.480 --> 00:15:31.640 What happened to Vashti? 00:15:31.940 --> 00:15:33.840 The king was frustrated by her. 00:15:33.860 --> 00:15:36.600 It's just easier for him to get rid of life than to deal with trouble. 00:15:38.560 --> 00:15:45.400 And he could easily do this with Esther, and he could easily do this with Haman. 00:15:47.080 --> 00:15:49.770 Life and death are in the balance. 00:15:50.000 --> 00:15:54.990 We generally know how the story of Esther goes, that Esther's life is preserved and so are the people. 00:15:55.120 --> 00:16:01.620 And so in that, she becomes a representation of a soul's new life by faith. 00:16:01.700 --> 00:16:04.540 And not just her life, but others' as well. 00:16:04.540 --> 00:16:14.840 If you remember how this story worked in the life of Esther, it took a sobering moment for Esther in 00:16:14.840 --> 00:16:22.140 order for her to recognize the preciousness of her soul and the souls 00:16:22.220 --> 00:16:24.140 of her people. 00:16:25.800 --> 00:16:33.000 That laid out for us in this book my thoughts on Esther and Mordecai, but I don't think they necessarily really had a 00:16:33.000 --> 00:16:34.920 walk with God before this trouble began. 00:16:37.120 --> 00:16:44.460 I think Esther and Mordecai, both of them gave enough evidence in their lives that they were compromising in their Jewish 00:16:44.460 --> 00:16:49.040 identity, that they didn't exercise genuine faith in the Lord. 00:16:49.180 --> 00:16:56.540 But when trouble came, that was the sobering moment in their life, where they considered the value of 00:16:56.700 --> 00:16:59.030 their soul before the Lord. 00:17:00.340 --> 00:17:07.200 And not only does Esther choose to just cherish her value before God, but she also looks at the value of her people. 00:17:07.220 --> 00:17:14.319 I mean, she could have said before Mordecai, when Mordecai says, "Look, you've got to go before the king and declare to the king that you're Jewish and stand up 00:17:14.319 --> 00:17:15.480 for your people or we're all going to die. 00:17:15.500 --> 00:17:18.260 And she could have said, that's awful for you, but I've got it made for me. 00:17:18.260 --> 00:17:19.540 I'm the queen and the castle, right? 00:17:19.540 --> 00:17:21.359 Like this is bad circumstance. 00:17:21.359 --> 00:17:23.420 You guys think of plan B, but she didn't do that. 00:17:26.400 --> 00:17:34.680 She saw the importance of where the Lord had brought her and asked her in 00:17:34.680 --> 00:17:41.920 that moment of faith that led her to a place of bravery, she laid it all down for the Lord and for her people. 00:17:42.160 --> 00:17:44.780 And she exposes who she was. 00:17:46.800 --> 00:17:50.610 This wasn't a popular decision for her. 00:17:51.960 --> 00:18:00.500 This wasn't an easy decision for her, but it was an important decision for her to 00:18:00.500 --> 00:18:07.520 think selflessly as the grace of God was made known in her life, how she could allow that grace of God to work 00:18:07.660 --> 00:18:09.600 through her life for the benefit of others. 00:18:12.260 --> 00:18:19.440 And guys, I think about our position in this day and age when I see a story like this, where God has 00:18:19.440 --> 00:18:26.760 led you, the grace he has demonstrated to you, and the opportunity he's 00:18:26.760 --> 00:18:29.000 provided in your life to do the same. 00:18:31.240 --> 00:18:37.380 Esther's story for us becomes a spiritual picture of what it looks like to follow the Lord. 00:18:38.820 --> 00:18:44.250 Esther, in this moment, she's in a physical battle that reminds her of her spiritual need. 00:18:45.760 --> 00:18:52.800 And we, in this day and age, where we are here in America, we don't carry the concern of physical war, at least in this 00:18:52.800 --> 00:18:59.820 moment, but it does, and a story like this awaken us to the reality of spiritual needs of people around 00:18:59.820 --> 00:19:00.340 the world. 00:19:02.520 --> 00:19:09.660 And we've shared about it a little in the beginning here with Uganda, but the same is true for this place 00:19:09.660 --> 00:19:10.620 in which we live. 00:19:12.460 --> 00:19:19.680 I mean, how important it is, your relationship with God and where the Lord has you in this valley and the opportunity that you have to 00:19:19.680 --> 00:19:23.580 be a light for him, for the glory of God and for the sake of people. 00:19:24.980 --> 00:19:32.180 If we would just see the opportunity in which God has presented us with, and willingly each day lay down our life for the benefit 00:19:32.180 --> 00:19:39.660 of others, that the goodness of Christ could be made known and to consider, as Jesus says in Mark 00:19:39.660 --> 00:19:43.950 chapter eight, "What value is the soul?" In verses 36 and 37? 00:19:45.880 --> 00:19:52.880 And see how precious the opportunity is in any day that we're given to honor our God and those he has created in his image by 00:19:52.880 --> 00:19:59.880 declaring his goodness in their lives, that they may know him too and find rescue, and such a glorious king that 00:19:59.880 --> 00:20:01.520 would pursue them with his life. 00:20:05.280 --> 00:20:13.220 Given the position that I'm in as a church plant catalyst for an organization here in Utah and I 00:20:13.220 --> 00:20:16.020 get to study the statistical needs of our valley. 00:20:17.580 --> 00:20:22.280 Some of the things that are just interesting to me, if you go back and look at the history of Utah. 00:20:22.560 --> 00:20:28.680 Since 2004, Utah has grown by an average of 54,000 people every year. 00:20:30.370 --> 00:20:37.820 54,000 people every year, which means if we plant a church of a thousand people every week, we can't even keep up with the population 00:20:37.820 --> 00:20:41.100 increase, let alone reach the people that already live here. 00:20:42.880 --> 00:20:50.500 In our county, 700,000 people live here, and about 25 mainstream Christian churches. 00:20:52.340 --> 00:20:53.800 What's that? 00:20:53.800 --> 00:20:56.340 One church for every 28,000 people. 00:20:58.980 --> 00:21:06.880 How important to recognize the spiritual battle 00:21:06.880 --> 00:21:14.340 that takes place in our valley and the importance of a soul, and the position that the Lord has you to 00:21:14.340 --> 00:21:17.750 let your life shine for him. 00:21:19.340 --> 00:21:26.220 Here you see a story of the life of Esther and she, at risk to herself, leans into the faithfulness of God. 00:21:26.300 --> 00:21:28.900 And she sees God delivering in that moment. 00:21:28.920 --> 00:21:32.140 And the same is true for us, that we see the truth of God proclaimed. 00:21:32.380 --> 00:21:39.840 And we have a position in our life, by the goodness of who he is, to lean in God and just say, "Lord, show yourself faithful 00:21:39.840 --> 00:21:47.140 in your promises to us that we can see your great name declared in this valley." Esther 00:21:47.140 --> 00:21:54.340 becomes a representation of the newness of life by faith in 00:21:54.340 --> 00:21:55.090 him. 00:21:56.910 --> 00:21:59.490 Juxtaposed to that story, then, is Haman. 00:22:00.480 --> 00:22:02.090 Haman, in the next blink in your notes. 00:22:02.380 --> 00:22:06.920 Haman represents the soul's destruction and sin and judgment. 00:22:08.560 --> 00:22:10.040 The soul's destruction and sin and judgment. 00:22:10.100 --> 00:22:16.830 Anytime you talk about life and death as it relates to spiritual matters, you come to a place where you talk about sin and judgment. 00:22:17.560 --> 00:22:24.560 Excuse me, if I said "destruction," I meant "sin and judgment" in your blank, but you come to a place where you talk about sin and judgment, and that's the reality of 00:22:24.560 --> 00:22:26.580 what Jesus rescues us from. 00:22:26.860 --> 00:22:29.720 But when you read in chapters seven verse six, it goes on from there. 00:22:29.720 --> 00:22:37.220 Second half of the verse, "Then Haman became terrified both for the king and the queen." Once Esther 00:22:37.220 --> 00:22:44.360 let the cat out of the bag and she revealed that Haman was coming against her, which was a threat against the king, Haman became terrified in 00:22:44.360 --> 00:22:46.560 his position because his sin found him out. 00:22:46.560 --> 00:22:49.040 Haman and his hatred wanted to kill the Jews. 00:22:49.340 --> 00:22:50.940 That place of hatred is wrong. 00:22:50.940 --> 00:22:52.180 It's sinful, it's bad. 00:22:52.180 --> 00:22:52.650 It's not good. 00:22:52.700 --> 00:22:53.820 It's not honoring to Lord. 00:22:54.180 --> 00:23:01.540 And Haman, once the light, spotlight is put on him, he becomes terrified in this position, but that's the reality of all sin before God. 00:23:01.540 --> 00:23:02.020 Listen to this. 00:23:02.780 --> 00:23:04.080 Luke chapter 12, verse two. 00:23:04.080 --> 00:23:11.180 These are the kind of the verses that we like to read and read fast in the Bible and start thinking about other verses, but let me read this one to you, "For there is 00:23:11.180 --> 00:23:18.620 nothing covered that shall not be revealed neither hid, that shall not 00:23:18.620 --> 00:23:27.560 be known." That's a sobering verse when we consider the soul before God. 00:23:27.780 --> 00:23:35.210 Or in Jeremiah 23, "'Can anyone hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him?' says the Lord. 00:23:35.800 --> 00:23:42.800 "Do not I feel heaven and earth?' says the Lord." And then as the story goes 00:23:42.800 --> 00:23:46.920 on in chapter seven, verse seven, you see this judgment unfolding. 00:23:46.920 --> 00:23:51.400 It says, "Then the king got up in his anger," because that's what the king does when he drinks, right? 00:23:51.400 --> 00:23:52.960 He's either one extreme or the other. 00:23:53.000 --> 00:24:00.680 He gets up in his anger from drinking wine and went into the palace garden "but Haman stayed to beg for his life from Queen 00:24:00.680 --> 00:24:07.800 Esther for he saw that harm had been determined against him by the king." It sort of gives this idea, the king in this moment, 00:24:08.060 --> 00:24:10.780 he knows he's angry, but he is not quite sure what he's going to do. 00:24:10.820 --> 00:24:14.340 So he gets it from this moment, he's probably reeling from all the information he just heard. 00:24:14.560 --> 00:24:17.180 He just found out his wife was Jewish and he had no idea. 00:24:17.680 --> 00:24:23.160 And then he realizes that his wife has been turned over to Haman who's written this law that's going to exterminate her people. 00:24:23.960 --> 00:24:27.830 And so he gets up and he leaves, and Haman's begging for his life in verse eight. 00:24:28.060 --> 00:24:35.140 "Now, when the king returned from the palace garden into the place where they hadn't been drinking wine, Haman falling on the couch where Esther 00:24:35.140 --> 00:24:35.560 was. 00:24:35.820 --> 00:24:43.200 Then the king said, 'Will he even assault the queen with me in the house?' And the word went out of the king's mouth and they covered 00:24:43.200 --> 00:24:50.520 Haman's face." And it goes on, "Then Harbonah, one of the eunuchs who stood before the king, said, 'Indeed, behold 00:24:50.520 --> 00:24:57.600 the wooden gallows standing at Haman's house, 50 cubits high, which Haman made for Mordecai who spoke good on behalf 00:24:57.600 --> 00:25:04.880 of the king.' And the king said, 'Hang him on it." So they hanged Haman on the wooden gallows which he had prepared for 00:25:04.940 --> 00:25:11.380 Mordecai and the King's anger subsided." Judgment happens. 00:25:13.140 --> 00:25:13.940 Haman is executed. 00:25:15.220 --> 00:25:18.840 And this becomes a clear picture of the certainty of judgment. 00:25:20.380 --> 00:25:24.800 This correlates for us in spiritually thinking about our own condition before God. 00:25:24.860 --> 00:25:29.300 And it would be easy in this moment to get all hell, fire and brimstone on you. 00:25:29.500 --> 00:25:36.700 But look, I know guilt is a horrible motivator, and I would rather 00:25:36.700 --> 00:25:41.000 think more reflectively on the condition of our soul before the Lord. 00:25:43.180 --> 00:25:46.260 Judgment is sobering. 00:25:49.140 --> 00:25:56.570 And in order for one who's in authoritative position, in order for a ruler of any kind to be considered halfway decent, 00:25:57.820 --> 00:25:59.460 they have to execute judgment. 00:26:00.580 --> 00:26:05.580 In order for God to be good, it demands that he must execute judgment. 00:26:06.920 --> 00:26:13.940 The reason we say that is when you think about the laws in our land, if you ever had someone commit a crime against 00:26:13.940 --> 00:26:21.120 you and you go into the court of law and you represent your case, and the judge determines that the person against you is guilty, but the judge determines 00:26:21.120 --> 00:26:28.120 that he's also not going to execute any sort of discipline or judgment against the individual that violated anything against you 00:26:28.240 --> 00:26:36.560 would look at that judge and say, "You aren't a good judge at all because if you cared about me, if you loved me, then you would execute judgment." 00:26:36.780 --> 00:26:38.440 And the same thing's true with the Lord. 00:26:38.440 --> 00:26:41.940 In order for God to be a good God, he must be a God that judges. 00:26:42.100 --> 00:26:45.170 In Galatians six verse seven, it says, "Be not deceived. 00:26:45.920 --> 00:26:46.680 God is not mocked. 00:26:47.140 --> 00:26:54.280 For whatsoever a man's soweth, that shall he also reap, for he that soweth to the flesh shall of the flesh reap 00:26:54.280 --> 00:26:54.830 corruption. 00:26:55.840 --> 00:27:02.900 But he that soweth to the spirit shall of the spirit reap life everlasting." And in second Corinthians 5:10, 00:27:03.220 --> 00:27:10.360 "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ that everyone may receive the things done in his body according to that he 00:27:10.360 --> 00:27:17.520 hath done, whether it be good or bad." First Peter 1:17, "And if you call on the Father who, without respect 00:27:17.520 --> 00:27:20.920 of persons, judges according to each man's work. 00:27:21.500 --> 00:27:28.800 Pass the time of your sojourning here in fear." There is the reality that God, in order to be good, 00:27:29.400 --> 00:27:29.940 must judge. 00:27:32.520 --> 00:27:37.440 We think in terms of what Jesus has done for us, though Jesus has come to offer us salvation. 00:27:39.340 --> 00:27:41.920 Jesus has provided a way to escape. 00:27:42.920 --> 00:27:50.220 Now it's presumptive on our parts as people to just assume that because of Jesus, 00:27:50.220 --> 00:27:52.720 that means we all just get to go to heaven, right? 00:27:53.480 --> 00:28:00.560 I think we naturally conclude that as people, that in this life, sometimes, not biblically speaking, but in 00:28:00.560 --> 00:28:04.760 this life we realize that heaven in our imagination is a great place to be. 00:28:04.800 --> 00:28:06.940 So when we die, we automatically go there. 00:28:07.040 --> 00:28:12.870 No one just instantly says, "I'm the one Jesus talks about in judgment that gets cast to outer darkness. 00:28:13.200 --> 00:28:14.920 That's me, right?" No, no. 00:28:15.060 --> 00:28:21.140 Or at least I've never walked into anyone that says, "I'm the hell bound person." No one just takes that posture or assumes that. 00:28:21.440 --> 00:28:26.420 But it's very presumptuous for us, I think, to assume the other side of that coin. 00:28:26.420 --> 00:28:30.730 But the reality is, God owes us nothing. 00:28:34.340 --> 00:28:36.450 God owes us nothing. 00:28:39.220 --> 00:28:46.280 And sometimes in that sort of thinking where we just assume that we're bound for heaven as people, we 00:28:46.280 --> 00:28:51.570 kind of caveat that idea with this thought living, that as long as you're good, that's all that matters. 00:28:52.680 --> 00:28:54.980 I'm heading to heaven. 00:28:54.980 --> 00:29:00.500 And the reason being, my theology is, as long as you're good, that's all that matters. 00:29:01.640 --> 00:29:08.740 We think about the idea of just being good simply by comparing ourselves to someone else, we get this definition of 00:29:08.740 --> 00:29:09.700 what we think is bad. 00:29:09.760 --> 00:29:14.640 We compare that to that person or that idea of what we think is bad. 00:29:14.640 --> 00:29:19.540 And in comparison to that, we think that we're better than that, so therefore we label ourselves as good. 00:29:19.540 --> 00:29:25.880 And in conclusion, therefore, the determination is, that I must enter into the good side of the afterlife into heaven. 00:29:28.260 --> 00:29:34.990 But it's important for us to recognize that when we think in terms of good and bad, that what we compare ourselves to isn't other people. 00:29:36.960 --> 00:29:44.100 What we're comparing ourselves to is the perfection of God, and God 00:29:44.100 --> 00:29:47.660 is holy and we aren't. 00:29:49.880 --> 00:29:53.900 And God, in order to be good, must judge. 00:29:55.260 --> 00:29:58.900 So please hear me this morning in saying this. 00:29:59.000 --> 00:30:05.440 I am not telling us this morning, "Esther is good, Haman is bad. 00:30:06.400 --> 00:30:13.400 Be a better do-gooder." I'm not telling you this morning, "Try harder." I mean, 00:30:13.480 --> 00:30:19.500 if you remember the story of Haman and Esther, Esther was one, I don't think in the beginning, who walked with the Lord. 00:30:21.160 --> 00:30:23.100 And I don't think Mordecai walked with the Lord. 00:30:24.620 --> 00:30:31.680 I think it took a very sobering moment for them to recognize that life is precious and 00:30:31.680 --> 00:30:34.000 life can be gone in the blink of an eye. 00:30:35.720 --> 00:30:36.830 And what are you going to do about it? 00:30:38.100 --> 00:30:40.300 That's Mark eight verse 36 and 37. 00:30:40.300 --> 00:30:43.010 That's what Jesus was wanting us to recognize. 00:30:43.340 --> 00:30:47.940 And the importance of his own life as he's come to deliver us by giving of himself. 00:30:49.360 --> 00:30:51.880 Jesus gave his life for us that we may find freedom in him. 00:30:51.880 --> 00:30:53.640 It's not about being a do-gooder. 00:30:53.640 --> 00:30:56.780 It's about turning ourselves completely over to him. 00:30:57.000 --> 00:31:03.460 And Esther finds her life full by giving it over to God. 00:31:03.600 --> 00:31:09.630 Everyone who ends up in heaven, everyone must come to heaven through the cross. 00:31:11.080 --> 00:31:16.370 Everyone must recognize their need for Jesus, that they're a sinner. 00:31:16.380 --> 00:31:18.750 They need forgiveness and they need rescued. 00:31:19.320 --> 00:31:21.640 And God has pursued us with his life. 00:31:22.020 --> 00:31:28.220 And God calls us to him that we may find freedom in Christ and in Christ a new identity. 00:31:28.360 --> 00:31:35.720 And in that new identity, a place that God's grace can flow through us to bless others for such a time 00:31:35.720 --> 00:31:36.280 as this. 00:31:38.480 --> 00:31:45.920 Forgiveness becomes an important part of finding our newness of life in Jesus. 00:31:46.060 --> 00:31:50.200 Apart from forgiveness, there is no newness of life. 00:31:50.200 --> 00:31:54.500 And we, in that, find a motivation to live for a new purpose. 00:31:54.580 --> 00:32:01.580 In fact, in John 3:36, it says this, "The one who believes in the Son has eternal life, but the one who does 00:32:01.580 --> 00:32:08.720 not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him." That 00:32:08.800 --> 00:32:15.860 position in Jesus, it's not about if you believe in a Jesus, but what you believe about Jesus, 00:32:15.960 --> 00:32:16.320 that matters. 00:32:16.620 --> 00:32:21.360 Because Jesus has given his life for us that we may find freedom in him. 00:32:22.120 --> 00:32:29.160 And he tells us apart from Jesus, the position that we find ourselves, it's under wrath because in 00:32:29.160 --> 00:32:31.010 order for God to be good, he must judge. 00:32:32.600 --> 00:32:37.670 But in the goodness of God, he also has provided a way of escape through his grace. 00:32:38.720 --> 00:32:46.340 I think it's one of the most beautiful pictures in all of life, is that at the cross of Christ, you find both justice and grace colliding 00:32:46.340 --> 00:32:48.120 in an incredible way. 00:32:48.780 --> 00:32:56.380 And nowhere else in all of humanity can you find that because everywhere else in humanity, in order for someone to show one 00:32:56.380 --> 00:32:59.380 side of either judgment or grace, they have to sacrifice the other. 00:33:00.360 --> 00:33:02.320 In order to bring judgment, you have to sacrifice grace. 00:33:02.680 --> 00:33:04.560 In order to bring grace, you have to sacrifice judgment. 00:33:05.120 --> 00:33:07.860 But at the cross of Christ, both of them collide. 00:33:09.620 --> 00:33:15.800 The judgment of God poured out on Christ and the grace of God made known through Christ that we could find ourselves free in him. 00:33:16.100 --> 00:33:18.340 And he says in that we find eternal life. 00:33:20.680 --> 00:33:27.720 And when he talks about eternal life, he doesn't just mean the quantity of life being forever, but also the 00:33:27.720 --> 00:33:34.440 quality of life being made new in Jesus, you find the purpose for which you exist. 00:33:37.060 --> 00:33:44.960 In the story between Esther and Haman, in Haman we 00:33:44.960 --> 00:33:50.640 find someone who keeps trying to find his purpose in himself. 00:33:52.120 --> 00:33:53.940 He makes life about himself. 00:33:54.000 --> 00:33:56.110 He lives his life to please himself. 00:33:56.840 --> 00:34:04.040 And when he couldn't control the circumstances to make himself happy with how his life was going, he gets angry 00:34:04.040 --> 00:34:08.739 and he decides to execute sinfully against the Jewish people. 00:34:08.739 --> 00:34:12.650 And inevitably, it leads his soul to death. 00:34:15.100 --> 00:34:22.340 But Esther, Esther who was not perfect, Esther finds a new way of 00:34:22.340 --> 00:34:29.340 life, one where she surrenders herself before the Lord, one where God 00:34:29.340 --> 00:34:36.630 makes her new and one where God puts her in a position to use her life for his glory, to the benefit of other people. 00:34:38.560 --> 00:34:39.659 How do you respond to this? 00:34:42.230 --> 00:34:49.340 One of the things that, as I see this story coming to this end, especially end of Haman, and I know we got a couple more chapters left, one of 00:34:49.340 --> 00:34:57.100 the things that my soul has just churned and resonated over in my mind, has been 00:34:57.100 --> 00:34:59.510 the identity of Haman. 00:35:00.200 --> 00:35:01.190 And what I mean is this. 00:35:01.840 --> 00:35:09.420 If you remember, I shared this once with us in an earlier sermon, that Haman was an Agagite, and 00:35:09.420 --> 00:35:15.080 an Agagite comes back to the book of First Samuel chapter 15. 00:35:15.120 --> 00:35:19.300 In chapter 15, you're introduced to a king, King Agag. 00:35:19.900 --> 00:35:24.880 And King Agag becomes the lineage of Haman who was an Agagite from King Agag. 00:35:25.260 --> 00:35:32.480 But all the way back in First Samuel chapter 15, God told to the Jewish people, and especially King Saul, "You need to deal with King Agag 00:35:32.480 --> 00:35:38.140 now." But rather than deal with King Agag, they let King Agag live. 00:35:39.780 --> 00:35:47.140 And from that time, there became this perpetual pressure, the thorn in the flesh and the side of Israel, that they never 00:35:47.140 --> 00:35:49.800 dealt with what God told them to deal with. 00:35:51.340 --> 00:35:56.720 And now here they are, 600 years later and the problem has still perpetuated. 00:35:58.980 --> 00:36:06.160 And it just leads me to think, in my own life, where am I allowing those Agagite moments, the King Agag types of 00:36:06.400 --> 00:36:14.300 opportunities where God has come to me over and over and he has said, "Enough, it's 00:36:14.340 --> 00:36:16.440 time to stand up and deal with this. 00:36:17.860 --> 00:36:19.720 Give your life over to the Lord. 00:36:20.820 --> 00:36:25.450 Let God do a greater work in you and stop living for the things of this world. 00:36:26.940 --> 00:36:34.100 Give me control." Esther represents that lady, by faith, who finally said, "I 00:36:34.100 --> 00:36:41.180 am sick of this having an impact on my family, my friends, and even my life." She's the one that puts her foot down, for 00:36:41.180 --> 00:36:44.080 not only her sake, but for the sake of the people around her. 00:36:44.340 --> 00:36:49.750 And she takes a stand by faith in the Lord and she finds her identity in him. 00:36:51.880 --> 00:36:59.220 And not just Esther taking the stand, but when we take that stand, to think further about how it benefits 00:36:59.220 --> 00:37:00.200 people around us. 00:37:00.320 --> 00:37:07.560 Like every Sunday morning that we gather as a church, because I'm always thankful where I get the opportunity to stand on stage and look at everyone 00:37:07.560 --> 00:37:08.960 that's gathered to worship. 00:37:08.980 --> 00:37:11.360 Makes me just so appreciative of what God does here. 00:37:12.220 --> 00:37:19.400 And while I stand appreciative of what God does here, my eye is always, I consider, what 00:37:19.400 --> 00:37:20.400 about the empty chairs? 00:37:23.760 --> 00:37:24.880 What about the people that aren't here? 00:37:27.940 --> 00:37:34.960 What about the opportunity God has for us in such a time as this to understand we may not 00:37:34.960 --> 00:37:40.440 be fighting a physical battle like Esther, but there is value in the life of a human soul. 00:37:42.520 --> 00:37:45.660 And this valley needs us to be a people that stands up and fights. 00:37:45.680 --> 00:37:51.860 And the way that we fight is by being willing to lay our lives down as Esther did for his glory to the benefit of others. 00:37:52.140 --> 00:37:57.660 And the only way we do that is in a thankfulness for the way that the grace of God has shined into our lives. 00:38:00.040 --> 00:38:00.840 What about the empty chairs? 00:38:05.660 --> 00:38:12.940 And I think sometimes, I wonder about the power of the enemy that prevents us from seeing the opportunity from where God 00:38:12.940 --> 00:38:16.010 has placed us to do such a work as that. 00:38:17.360 --> 00:38:18.420 How do I tie that to an elephant? 00:38:18.860 --> 00:38:20.130 Let's do that, right? 00:38:21.740 --> 00:38:28.280 There was a story about a man who was walking through a village and he came across this herd of elephant. 00:38:28.780 --> 00:38:31.200 I think if a group of elephant are together, you call it a herd. 00:38:31.600 --> 00:38:31.860 I don't know. 00:38:31.980 --> 00:38:33.760 Maybe there's a different word for a gathering of elephants. 00:38:34.520 --> 00:38:38.020 Let's call it a "gaggle." He came across a gaggle of elephants, all right? 00:38:39.580 --> 00:38:42.960 And he was astounded because he recognized the elephants weren't going anywhere. 00:38:42.980 --> 00:38:48.060 And as he noticed, he realized the reason the elephants weren't moving is that they were tied to the ground by a rope. 00:38:48.840 --> 00:38:49.910 And this guy was blown away. 00:38:50.000 --> 00:38:51.990 Why are elephants tied to the ground by a rope? 00:38:52.080 --> 00:38:55.160 Those elephants can just break that rope in a matter of seconds. 00:38:55.240 --> 00:38:58.520 All they have to do is decide, "I don't like being here on this rope anymore," and walk away. 00:38:58.840 --> 00:38:59.700 And so he went over. 00:38:59.740 --> 00:39:03.360 He recognized that there was a man there that was actually in charge of these elephants. 00:39:03.360 --> 00:39:05.660 He went over the man and he said, "What in the world is... 00:39:05.780 --> 00:39:08.820 How are you keeping these elephants here by a rope? 00:39:08.920 --> 00:39:10.940 That is insane that they would even be there. 00:39:10.940 --> 00:39:12.420 What is your magic, man? 00:39:12.420 --> 00:39:16.220 That these elephants would just stay here on this rope like this?" And he said, "Oh, it's easy. 00:39:17.300 --> 00:39:21.810 When they were little, as soon as they were born, I tied them there with that rope. 00:39:22.380 --> 00:39:26.440 And when they were young, they believed that rope could hold them there. 00:39:26.520 --> 00:39:28.880 And it could because they were too little to break the rope. 00:39:29.740 --> 00:39:36.840 But as they began to age, they never realized that they'd gathered the strength to break that rope and be free." And here they 00:39:36.840 --> 00:39:43.140 stood by the power of a meager rope, this majestic animal able to be free. 00:39:45.400 --> 00:39:51.740 And guys, I think for us as God's people, the gospel is the same thing. 00:39:54.660 --> 00:40:02.800 If our hearts resonated and was saturated in the beauty of what Jesus has done and 00:40:02.800 --> 00:40:09.800 the transforming power of what Christ can do in us and through us, there is nothing that would hold us 00:40:09.800 --> 00:40:13.500 back from sharing and declaring the glory of God in this valley. 00:40:14.880 --> 00:40:19.940 A people this size in this valley could turn the world upside down for Jesus' sake. 00:40:21.000 --> 00:40:28.360 If we, by faith, would allow our souls to recognize just how glorious and powerful that Christ is, who 00:40:28.360 --> 00:40:30.520 desires to work in us and through us. 00:40:31.840 --> 00:40:37.700 I don't want to say all that to leave us walking out of here, just feeling heavy and guilty like you're not doing good enough as a church. 00:40:38.660 --> 00:40:45.720 I am thrilled by a church that deeply loves Jesus and continue to see what Christ is doing in us and through us, but I want 00:40:45.720 --> 00:40:49.680 to continue to encourage us to give it all over for him.