Esther Series Part 16

Esther series – pt. 16

Pastor Eric A. Green

And Esther replied, “If it please the king, let the king and Haman come today to a banquet I have prepared for the king.” The king turned to his attendants and said, “Tell Haman to come quickly to a banquet, as Esther has requested.” So the king and Haman went to Esther’s banquet. And while they were drinking wine, the king said to Esther, “Now tell me what you really want. What is your request? I will give it to you, even if it is half the kingdom!”⁷ Esther replied, “This is my request and deepest wish. If I have found favor with the king, and if it pleases the king to grant my request and do what I ask, please come with Haman tomorrow to the banquet I will prepare for you. Then I will explain what this is all about.” Esther 5:4-8 (NLT)

Esther is now the central figure in the drama swirling around her. She is standing at the crossroads of her peoples’ destiny, and her next move would mean salvation or genocide. What an overwhelming burden the Lord allowed to be laid on her slim shoulders! She never asked for this, never saw it coming, never tried to place herself in the history books – but here she is, and her response to the stark realities of her times would pave the way for the future of an entire nation.

Have you ever been overwhelmed by the confluence of life’s circumstances? Where do you go when the weight of difficulties and crushing realities threaten to extinguish your hopes and dreams? How do you spell r-e-l-i-e-f? In Psalm 61:1-3 David says,

“Hear my cry, O God; attend to my prayer.  From the end of the earth I will cry to You, when my heart is overwhelmed; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.  For You have been a shelter for me, a strong tower from the enemy.” (NKJV)

Each step Esther took from this point forward had life-and-death ramifications for her and the Jewish nation, and she could not afford even the slightest misstep. The most important decision she made was to fast, pray, and wait for divine guidance from her God. Mostly, she needed to be wise and shrewd. I call shrewdness the “razor’s edge of wisdom”. It is the attribute necessary to deal with demonic forces and their strategies – Jesus call these strategies “the gates of hell” (Matthew 16:18). David says in 2 Samuel 22: 26-28,

"With the merciful You will show Yourself merciful; with a blameless man You will show Yourself blameless; ²⁷ with the pure You will show Yourself pure; and with the devious You will show Yourself shrewd. ²⁸ You will save the humble people; but Your eyes are on the haughty, that You may bring them down.

The Hamans in our lives are bent on destruction and confusion, as in Esther’s story, and the weapons she successfully employed are the same ones available to us today. Nations, kings, governors and armies are simply bit players in God’s ultimate plan of redemption, and one faithful saint, like Esther, can wield more power than all the forces of darkness combined.  So as we go to the Lord with our trials, remember, Romans 8:31 says,

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

Be encouraged. The same God that walked with Esther walks with you!

Love and perfect peace,

Pastor Eric