Used By God
Esther • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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****CBC CREED****
Many of the verses and books we read from the Bible come from God speaking through men. Every book in the New Testament, the Holy Spirit inspired people like Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Paul, Peter, James, and Jude to record these things. The only book that we don’t know about is who authored Hebrews. But if you look at every other, it was men that teh Holy Spirit inspired to write these things down.
But there are some very important women in teh New Testament. Mary, the mother of Jesus, Mary Magdalene, Martha, the women at the tomb of Jesus, Lydia, Priscilla. And in the Old Testament there is Eve, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel,. Leah, Miriam, Deborah who was a Judge, Abigal who was married to David, Rehab, and Esther.
Women played an important role in the Bible and in God’s plan throughout history. Boys, men, no matter what you may think, God uses women to fulfill his purpose. They have value, purpose, and God uses them just as much as he can use a man.
Many think that God made men higher than women, but its not true.
Look at the first chapter of the Bible: Genesis 1.
Genesis 1:26–27 (ESV)
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
In verse 26 when you see the word man, the original Hebrew word does not point to a male human being. It points to a human…man or woman. It points to mankind…humans. So as God gave dominion, he gave it to both men and women. In doing this, he shows that he doesn’t see women as the lesser sex. He loved them both, he created them both, and he sees both man and woman as equal importance. Galatians 3:28
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
For the next 5 weeks we are going to go through the Book of Esther. Esther is one of those women who played a very important role in the Bible.
I have heard it said that the Bible is one story. One story. From Genesis through Revelation…one story.
And we can divide into four parts:
1. Creation. (Genesis 1-2)
2. The Fall. (Genesis 3)
3. Redemption. (The Gospels)
4. Restoration. (Revelation)
1. Creation. (Genesis 1-2)
2. The Fall. (Genesis 3)
The Story of Esther
3. Redemption. (The Gospels)
4. Restoration. (Revelation)
The life of Esther and what we see over the next five weeks shows us the importance of where the events happened between the Fall and the redemption of Jesus Christ by his death and resurrection on the cross and how God used one simple woman to continue the story towards redemption and Jesus Christ coming into this world.
It is a story of Power. A story of Courage. And a story of not allowing fear to overcome us, even in the most dreadful circumstances.
As we start, here are a few things I want to point out.
The book of Esther never mentions God by name.
God is in control of all the circumstances that happen in the book.
The author of the book is not known.
Now as we begin to see the events of the book unfold I want to give you some definitions. Here are some words you will hear me say from the Scripture that you need to understand the meaning.
King Ahasuerus: pronounced (Uh-Haa_sur-us)
citadel - a palace where the King lived
eunuch - a palace official who worked for the king. They may have been castrated.
Open your Bibles to Esther 1.
1 Now in the days of Ahasuerus, the Ahasuerus who reigned from India to Ethiopia over 127 provinces, 2 in those days when King Ahasuerus sat on his royal throne in Susa, the citadel, 3 in the third year of his reign he gave a feast for all his officials and servants. The army of Persia and Media and the nobles and governors of the provinces were before him, 4 while he showed the riches of his royal glory and the splendor and pomp of his greatness for many days, 180 days. 5 And when these days were completed, the king gave for all the people present in Susa the citadel, both great and small, a feast lasting for seven days in the court of the garden of the king’s palace. 6 There were white cotton curtains and violet hangings fastened with cords of fine linen and purple to silver rods and marble pillars, and also couches of gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and precious stones. 7 Drinks were served in golden vessels, vessels of different kinds, and the royal wine was lavished according to the bounty of the king. 8 And drinking was according to this edict: “There is no compulsion.” For the king had given orders to all the staff of his palace to do as each man desired. 9 Queen Vashti also gave a feast for the women in the palace that belonged to King Ahasuerus. 10 On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha and Abagtha, Zethar and Carkas, the seven eunuchs who served in the presence of King Ahasuerus, 11 to bring Queen Vashti before the king with her royal crown, in order to show the peoples and the princes her beauty, for she was lovely to look at. 12 But Queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s command delivered by the eunuchs. At this the king became enraged, and his anger burned within him.
So before we continue, what is going on here? There is a King named Ah-Hur-sure-us and he is powerful. It says that is is over 127 provinces or states. At that time this was the known world. reaching from Ethiopia which is in Africa, all the way over to Assyria. He had great power over all of this land and regions.
He decided to throw a feast for all of those people who serve him. Generals, governors, important people… and this feast, this party lasted for 180 days. That is some party…all the food, the fun, the enjoyment…180 days! Who wants to go?
At this party there was also wine served…but there was a rule, you didn’t have to take it…there was no compulsion.
And at the same time he was giving this party, his queen was giving her own party for the women. So the King, probably a little drunk decides he want to show off his queen. He wants to bring her in and show how beautiful she is. He wants to display her. But the queen, refused. I sure she was thinking, I’m not going in there to show myself before a bunch of drunken me. And it made the king angry (-12- his anger burned).
So his people in the palace came up with an idea for the King. Look at what they said in verse 19...
19 If it please the king, let a royal order go out from him, and let it be written among the laws of the Persians and the Medes so that it may not be repealed, that Vashti is never again to come before King Ahasuerus. And let the king give her royal position to another who is better than she. 20 So when the decree made by the king is proclaimed throughout all his kingdom, for it is vast, all women will give honor to their husbands, high and low alike.” 21 This advice pleased the king and the princes, and the king did as Memucan proposed. 22 He sent letters to all the royal provinces, to every province in its own script and to every people in its own language, that every man be master in his own household and speak according to the language of his people.
So this decree was made that she would no longer be queen and that every woman should give honor to their husband.
But then something happened. Now, he was without his queen. And he began to think of her.
Esther 2:1–7 (ESV)
1 After these things, when the anger of King Ahasuerus had abated, he remembered Vashti and what she had done and what had been decreed against her. 2 Then the king’s young men who attended him said, “Let beautiful young virgins be sought out for the king. 3 And let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom to gather all the beautiful young virgins to the harem in Susa the citadel, under custody of Hegai, the king’s eunuch, who is in charge of the women. Let their cosmetics be given them. 4 And let the young woman who pleases the king be queen instead of Vashti.” This pleased the king, and he did so. 5 Now there was a Jew in Susa the citadel whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, son of Shimei, son of Kish, a Benjaminite, 6 who had been carried away from Jerusalem among the captives carried away with Jeconiah king of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away. 7 He was bringing up Hadassah, that is Esther, the daughter of his uncle, for she had neither father nor mother. The young woman had a beautiful figure and was lovely to look at, and when her father and her mother died, Mordecai took her as his own daughter.
17 the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she won grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins, so that he set the royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti. 18 Then the king gave a great feast for all his officials and servants; it was Esther’s feast. He also granted a remission of taxes to the provinces and gave gifts with royal generosity.
So as be begin this Book of Esther,
we know:
1. Powerful King (127 states from Ethiopia to Susan (Palestine)
2. His queen would not allow him to show herself for his pleasure.
3. So he through her out and those who were close to him talked him into placing women at a very low level in their homes.
4. We know that his men told him that he needed to find a replacement for the Queen and they began to look all over to find one.
5. The story shifts away from the King for a moment and introduces us to Esther. He is a beautiful young woman who in an orphan. He other and Father are late, and she is being cared for by her Uncle Mordecai.
6. But also, Esther was a Jew (vs 5) Why is this important? The king wasn’t a Jew, but she was. She was an exile…a foreigner…and Mordecai didn’t want her to tell the King she was a Jew.
You may know what happens as this story continues. We will continue to look at what the rest of the book of Esther has to say over the next 5 weeks. But for now, let me show you three things from the Scriptures in Chapter 1 and part of Chapter 2.
God will use every circumstance to accomplish his will and purpose for His glory.
God will use unbelievers to accomplish his will and purpose for His glory.
God will use the most unlikely person at the most unlikely moment to accomplish his will and purpose for His glory.
Have you noticed anything that is the same about all three of these points?
God will use...
The Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6 includes these words...
10 Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.