Sermon Tone Analysis

The Stage is Set for an Epic Adventure

Read verses 1-9

I am so excited to begin this new school year, with a new series of studies, through a book of the Bible that many of us have never really studied before.

The book of ’m excited for a number of reasons.

First: The main human character in this book, is a woman.

There aren’t many books of the Bible, of which that’s true.

Women - you already know that when we read, “brothers”, or “man” in the Bible - that you properly insert ‘sisters’ or ‘woman’ in that spot.

God created us male and female - in His image.

But still, it’s refreshing to have a female take center stage once sometimes - so ladies - I’m excited for you here.

Second: this book is history - it’s our story as Christians … and it’s a GREAT STORY.

Brilliantly written -

Blockbuster movies - Marvel - Avengers … Superheroes each of whom could have a movie of their own … come together to save the world from alien invaders.

The book of Esther is a blockbuster … Epic … There is Power on an immense scale … one that we don’t see today.

Power is in the hands of Ahasuerus (NIV - Xerxes.

It’s the same person: Xerxes is his Greek name; Ahasuerus is his name in Hebrew).

He is the god-king or god-emperor.

Film 300 - Xerxes defeats the Greeks at Thermopylae in 480 BC (lost the next year).

Xerxes - He is the power figure in this story

Every blockbuster needs a villain … There’s a brilliant villain in this story … his name is Haman.

He’s the kind of person you can’t help but hate.

When you see him in action, when you hear his manipulative talk - your blood is going to boil.

A blockbuster needs a hero and and heroine … In this book, Mordecai is the hero and Esther is the heroine ...they aren’t romantically involved.

Now, most blockbusters have the hero and heroine getting romantically involved.

That doesn’t happen in this story … Mordecai and Esther are cousins.

Mordecai is older - like a father figure.

He has raised Esther, as his own daughter, since her own parents passed away.

There are beautiful women, palace intrigue, wealth on a vast scale.

Within the story - reversal of fortune, people being at the right place at just the right time to make a difference, we see one man’s courage and one woman’s courage - on display … we see the destiny of an entire people - the Jews, hanging in the balance ...

… we have a titanic struggle against injustice.

We also have the threat of a coming holocaust - which connects this book to very recent history … Jewish writers have made many connections between Esther and post-holocaust

So, why did I grow up in church, never having heard a series of sermons preached through the book of Esther?

Sure, growing up in Sunday School - we learned the story of Esther the queen and Haman the creep … flannelgraph images are still emblazoned in my brain - but don’t remember a single sermon, let alone series walking through this book and what it means for us, today.

And why do I think that, if we took a survey here this morning of those who have been in church for all of your lives, - why am I pretty sure that most of the rest of you haven’t heard a series on this book, either?

Because it’s kind of an obscure, OT book?

Maybe.

Because at the end it gets a little violent?

Maybe.

Because it’s very Jewish - and doesn’t seem to connect to the NT very well?

Perhaps.

Most likely, though - for the very same reason the book of Esther was one of the few books with any question at all over whether it should be received into the canon of Scripture - the 66 books that make up our Bible - recognized as God’s inspired word.

I don’t want to blow this out of proportion because it wasn’t like there was huge controversy over Esther - but there were no copies of this book found in the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Luther didn’t like this book.

The reason for the controversy over Esther - is because God is NOT mentioned in the entire book.

Not by His revealed name: “Yahweh” - “The Great I Am”; There’s not even a single reference to the generic title, ‘God’.

Not a single time.

No word from God, No THEOPHANY, No dream given by Him … NOTHING BUT SILENCE!

How can God inspire a book as useful - needful for His Church, when He doesn’t even show up, ONCE, on its pages?!!

I love it - - Do you see how relevant this book is for you?

In the world you live in, right now?! IN fact, I would suggest that there is NO MORE relevant book for us to give our attention to, as we begin a new school year

.... ILLUSTRATION/ EXAMPLES .... Persecution

.... Unanswered prayer.

When you pray, when you take seriously that you are a Christian and you want to represent your Savior in this world - WELL … but you hear from heaven only silence … when you feel like God is so far away and not.

Doing.

Much.

.... What could have more relevance to you … than a Biblical book where there is no mention of God … than this very book.

… where God seems to be utterly ABSENT … not even a mention of His name.

And yet .... where He shows Himself to be fully and completely and unavoidably at work, on every page … accomplishing His purposes, for His glory … and for the joy of His people.

And He is.

That’s why I’m so excited to dig into this book with you.

What we don’t have in the book of Esther … is God.

Or so it seems.

God is not named.

That’s important.

And that’s the third and biggest reason that I’m so excited to begin this year, in this book: Because the book of Esther is SO RELEVANT to your life and mine.

Today.

Right here.

There is nothing you need more, in your life this year, than to understand the message of this book.

Now I just want to jump into the story.

It’s so good, I can hardly wait.

But the problem is, if I do that - and you don’t get the context - where this book fits into history - what’s gone on to lead up to this point … then you’re going to miss too much.

So, before we go any further - I need to give you a history lesson.

Everybody’s back into the school mode, so let me just take you to a quick history class:

Esther is a Jew - living in the 6th century BC - and you don’t belong.

You ha

NEED A HISTORY LESSON here.

Before we dive into the book, you need to find its place in history.

We need to go back - King David unites God’s people in the nation of Israel.

King Solomon’s reign was the ‘golden age’ of the nation - peace and prosperity and greatness in the eyes of the world, but the spiritual slide into idolatry and worshiping false gods brought God’s judgment - and, After Solomon died and his son took over - the continued spiritual side led to the breaking apart of Israel into 2 separate kingdoms with 2 separate kings, the Northern Kingdom and the 2 tribes that made up the Southern Kingdom, where Jerusalem was and where a descendant of David and Solomon reigned.

… 722 the Northern Kingdom falls to the Assyrian Kingdom - the superpower of its day.

The Southern Kingdom - Judah and Jerusalem, continues on for another 130 plus years, with a variety of kings, some godly, some anything but, the nation goes through ups and downs, but increasingly down … until you have kings like Manasseh, who turns so far from God that he ends up sacrificing his son in the fire, in pagan worship of a pagan god.

And the God of heaven has enough of this rebellion - He has warned them through the mouths of His prophets, for centuries … and now He brings the judgment.

And oh, how God brings His Holy Wrath.

He sends judgement in the form of the international superpower of the day … the Babylonians.

There are successive waves of attack on Jerusalem, starting in 605 BC..

And finally, in 586 BC, the Babylonians sack the southern kingdom, completely destroy the holy city of Jerusalem.

The last king of Judah is Zedekiah.

tells us that Zedekiah is captured.

Listen to what happened to him: , “Then they captured the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah, and they passed sentence on him.

(7) They slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him in chains and took him to Babylon.”

That was the end of Israel - Northern and Southern kingdom.

The temple is burned to the ground, the king’s palace is burned to the ground, the walls of Jerusalem are busted down into rubble, the people are rounded up, carted off to Babylon … and there is no more free, nation of Israel, from that time.

all the way until 1947.

God’s people are in captivity, in Babylon, all the way until 539 - King Belshazzar is ruler of Babylon - and you remember in the book of Daniel (), how he has a dream that he needs interpreted - he sees a disembodied hand, writing on a wall.

‘Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin”.

Daniel, the exiled man of God is able to interpret it and tells the king that God has weighed him in the balances and found him wanting.

His wickedness is too great and God says, ‘Your time is up’.

That very night, October 12, 539 BC, the army of the Persians - under the command of Cyrus the Great, in the middle of the night, wade through the Euphrates River and through the canals of Babylon, they march straight into the palace, kill Belshazzar in his sleep, take the city and, just like that, Persia is the new Superpower of the world.

Cyrus makes a decree that the Jews in captivity (and all the other captives) should be allowed to return home .... back to Judah.

The prophet Jeremiah had predicted this would happen, Isaiah calls him by name, - that “Cyrus - this foreign, pagan king, would be “the LORD’S anointed” - - for the sake of God’s rebellious, judged, exiled people - that he would issue a decree, because God would prompt it - and the people of God could go back the land God had given them.

Their failure was not final.