In this fourth chapter of the
book of Esther, we also are going to
find out that a decree has been made, a law has been given. Naaman
has produced the law and he has passed it before the king and
the king without much thought passed it. Now we read about
the law of the Medes and the Persians, that it cannot be thwarted. And what a characteristic about
that is, the divine purpose of God, it cannot be thwarted, it
cannot be changed, it cannot be altered. What God purposed
before the foundation of the world is not going to be altered.
And so as we follow this down, we find that the proposal, the
new law that's been enacted is all the Jews in the realm are
to be killed. That's what the purpose is. Now,
we find that in this passage, as we look at it tonight in the
fourth chapter, that it brought out an emotional cry from Mordecai. This is the queen's cousin on
the outside. He probably has some important
office. But in this time, we find that
he cannot go past the gate because he goes into sackcloth and ashes. Now notice with me in verse one
of Esther chapter four. In verse one of Esther chapter
four, we find that Mordecai perceived all that was done. Now he's a
perceptive person. He has a great deal of knowledge.
He's in an important place and he understands immediately the
consequences of that law. He has perceived all that was
done and Mordecai rent his clothes and put on sackcloth with ashes
and went out into the midst of the city and cried with a loud
voice and a bitter cry." Now, you know, I can see this man
in his great burden that he feels about the situation. But I think,
and as I found in the scripture, I believe that Mordecai is doing
much more than that because we find a number of places throughout
the Old Testament as well as the New Testament that God's
people cry out to the Lord. Now the name of God is not mentioned
here, but I believe that Mordecai is doing more than just whining
out there in the street. I believe he's out there in great
prayer for what's going to happen and what's going on. And we're
going to see in verse 14 of this chapter that he has been given
a double portion of faith. He is a believer, and he has
a great deal of faith about what's going to happen to those people.
But before we go over there, turn with me, if you would, to
the book of 1 Samuel. In 1 Samuel chapter 7, 1 Samuel
chapter 7, we back up here just a few books in the Bible. known unto God are why Ezra,
Nehemiah, and Esther are where they are. Because they're after
the Babylonian captivity. And most of the books, minor
prophets, are before that. But they are there, we'll just
address them that way. But in 1 Samuel chapter 7, in
1 Samuel chapter 7, we have the children of Israel said unto
Samuel, cease not to cry unto the Lord our God for us. Now
we're gonna go over there and see that Mordecai is crying himself. Here, these people are asking
that Samuel cease not to cry unto the Lord our God for us.
That he will save us out of the hand of the Philistines. Now,
here we have Mordecai is out in the street and I don't believe
that he is, what the Lord said, don't pray out in public. I think
he's praying to himself. but he is exercising his right
to cry under the circumstances, to wail. So here, the children
of Israel said to Samuel, cease not to cry unto the Lord, you
are our emissary, you are our go-between at this point, and
cease not to cry unto us because the Philistines are at the door.
All right, under that same thought, let's turn over to the book of
Psalms, Psalm 18 in verse six. Psalm 18 and verse six, we find
this principle is brought out through the scriptures. I was talking to someone the
other day and they said they quit praying for their children.
And I says, really? And he says, now I cry out for
them. Well, it kind of shocked me to
begin with, but I can understand what he is doing. He's crying
out for them. And we read this here in verse
six of Psalm 18, in my distress, And if anybody we've read about
recently is in distress, it's Mordecai. He is in distress. This has really bothered him,
the law that has been passed. In my distress, I called upon
the Lord and cried unto my God. Now notice this, he heard my
voice out of his temple and my cry came before him even into
his ears. Now the Lord God of heaven is
going to do something for Mordecai When he gives a conversation
to be shared with the queen, he's going to tell her, if you're
not going to be used to deliver the Jews, someone else will.
He has absolute faith that the Jews are going to be delivered.
He knows that God is going to deliver his people. And so he's
praying here, even this in my distress. And again, we find
this principle brought out in the scriptures in the 34th Psalm,
Psalm 34 and verse 15. As we think about Mordecai out
in the street crying out to the Lord on behalf of the people
and for himself, we find here in Psalm 34 and verse 15, this
message is given here, how important it is to pray unto God and to
bring our petitions before him. And he knows what we have need
of before we ask. Most certainly the God that had
all of these events happen, also knows how it's going to come
out in the end. He is going to deliver those
people. They are not going to be killed. The edict that was
made out, the law of the Medes and the Persians will be honored,
but another one is going to supersede it and take care of it. In verse
15 of Psalm 34, it says, the eyes of the Lord are upon the
righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry. So we find this
very thing that Mordecai does is common among God's people.
In our closets, it's common for us to cry out unto the Lord.
As we read Hannah, I'm not drunk, but I'm praying unto the Lord.
Again in Psalm, Psalm 107, we read this. Psalm 107, the scriptures
share this, that again, shares with us the blessing that we
have of coming before the throne of grace in prayer and crying
unto Him in our distress, crying unto Him with our cares and crying
unto Him for our children and our grandchildren. And Lord,
by God's grace, save them according to your eternal purpose. Here
in Psalm 107 and verse 19, the scriptures share this. It said,
then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble and he saveth them
out of their distresses. Now, if we go to three or four
passages in the Minor, Minor Prophets, only because they're
shorter, he says, they will cry unto me and I will not hear.
Now, those that are his people, he will hear them. He is prompting. We sing a song from time to time
that tells us that our prayers are really, that's what's given
us to God. We know not how to pray as we
ought. I appreciate that passage because it really helps me. We
know not how to pray as we ought, but the Holy Spirit maketh intercession
for us with groanings that cannot be uttered. We're not able to
present them like we want, but the Holy Spirit is there to aid
us. And I've mentioned several times
to people, talking should be the simplest thing we can do.
And yet when it comes to talking to God, we are in desperate need
that someone intercede for us. So if that, the simplest thing,
what about the most difficult thing? And that is salvation,
the new birth, impossibilities on our part. But so easy for
God, and so it is with our prayer. The most common thing, talking
with God, We need someone to go between us and God. We don't
know how to praise God. We do know that he knows what
we have need of before we ask. So he is an omniscient, omnipresent,
omnipotent God. He has all knowledge. He's purposed
all things. And he is so glad when we come
before his throne of grace, even as Mordecai crying out, Crying
out, my people will cry out in their distresses. Then they cry
unto the Lord in their trouble and he saveth them out of their
distresses. How often do we find that? It's exampled in the judges
so often, how they cried out, God raised up somebody, God delivered
the people. And then we find out because
of our natural inclination, we go right back. It's hard. Well, going back to the book
of Esther, we find there in Esther chapter 4, again in verse 1.
Let's read that again in Esther chapter 4 and verse 1. Esther chapter 4 and verse 1,
we find when Mordecai perceived all that was done, when he knew. Now, he has knowledge of what's
going to happen before most of the other Jews do. He has knowledge
before the Queen knows about it. He has knowledge before the
Jews in the hinterlands do. It's gonna take a while for it
to get out there. What a blessing that this man was given this
information so quickly and so quietly. And what a blessing
it is for him to bring this very thing before the Lord and cry
out to the Lord. Now we find that Esther goes
and makes, find out what's wrong with him.
What's happened? We know what it is to be kept
in the dark. Sometimes we just can't figure
out things. And I've been told by a preacher when we can't figure
it out, it's probably wrong. But here to be kept, but always
knowing that it is God behind the lattice. overseeing, overriding,
caring for, taking care of, preceding, going before. And I like what
Abraham said over there when it was brought to his attention.
Where's the lamb? And he said, God will provide
himself a lamb. And then he named that place
Jehovah-Jireh. Now that Jehovah-Jireh, God will
provide, isn't all that that means. It really goes on to say,
God says, I will see to it. And there's a whole bunch of
Jehovah Jirehs in the Bible. And we're going to find that
as we follow this passage of scripture, the book of Esther
out, God is going to see to it. He's not caught by surprise.
It's not any of that. He's purposed it. He will see
to it. And not only did he bring this Haman to authority, he will
dispatch him. Not only does the ruling go out
that all the Jews are going to be killed, but he will take care
of that. I will see to it. All right, as we follow this
through, Mordecai thoroughly believed
that it was a cause which one or other would certainly be carried
out and therefore might be There's going to be a venture upon this.
God's going to take care of it. We're going to see that Mordecai
had a great deal of faith. You know, I wish I'd have thought
of this verse today when I was talking to a young man, but I'm
going to bring it up tonight. And that is Jesus told his disciples,
if you, if you had the faith as a grain of mustard. Now, I
don't think it was a mistake when he said, if you have the
faith, Do you know what we would do if we had the faith? All we'd
have to do is say to that mountain, be removed and it would be removed.
Now the Lord is sharing with us, we don't have faith. We're
dependent upon someone else to supply that faith. We, if we
had faith as a, as a, Seed of an alfalfa. Let's just
think of that. They're about the same size.
Minuscule little seed. If we had faith as a grain of
mustard, we could say to the sycamine tree, we could say to
this mountain. And he says, you don't have any.
It is not in you to have faith in God. We do not have faith
of our own. And when people tell me they
have faith, they don't have faith in their own. It is supplied.
It is given. And so we're going to find out
here that Mordecai was given a great deal of faith for him
to be able to say, whether you take care of it or not, God's
going to take care of it. He may use someone else, but
God is going to deliver the Jews. He understood that. It is so
much like what we read over there with regard to Abraham. I like
what it says in the book of Hebrews chapter 11 verse 17. Turn over
there with me if you would. Hebrews chapter 11 verse 17.
We don't catch this so much in the Old Testament, but it's so
delivered here. Maybe in the original it would
say this, but in the book of Hebrews it explains so much about
what took place there on Mount Moriah. that Abraham told those
people that he left behind with those donkeys, we're both going
up and we're both coming back. Well, this is why. He tells us
in Hebrews chapter 11, verse 17. Hebrews chapter 11, verse
17. By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac. And he that
had received the promise offered up his only begotten son, of
whom it was said that in Isaac shall thy seed be called. Now Abraham had faith to believe
that in this very son, the Messiah is coming. Offer him up? Okay. Accounting, verse 19, accounting
that God was able to raise him up from the ash heap. He was
asked to consume him with fire. to quarter him as he would a
sacrifice, consume him. And then he said, if that takes
place, I know he is able to raise him up even from the dead. From
whence also you receive him in a figure. He received him in
a figure that way. There was someone else that took
his place. There was blood spilled on that mountain. Great Ram was
slain. Blood was slain. He was quartered.
He was burnt. And both Abraham and Isaac came
off of that mountain. But Abraham understood that whatever
happens, I'm coming off this mountain with this young man
because he is the line of the Messiah. I don't, I'm not going
to have another one. This is the promise seed. And
we find in the book of Galatians, the apostle Paul brings that
up so clearly about not in seeds, but seed. All right. So God will
provide. God will provide. He will see
to it. I'm convinced that in the heart
and the mind of Mordecai, he understood that principle that
God will provide. He's going to share with it in
just a minute. Now over one other place I want to look over found
over in the book of Second Chronicles. Second Chronicles. In Second
Chronicles, there's a very blessed verse of scripture I'm going down the freeway today,
and I'm thankful that I had a piece of scratch paper in my car and
a pen. This first struck me, and I had
to write it down. Then I had to find it. But here
it is. There's a lot of problems going on. There has been problems
in Israel from the very beginning. 2 Chronicles 20, verse 12. 2
Chronicles 20, verse 12. A lot of problems. And it looks hopeless. Just like
Mordecai looks out and sees the edict has gone out. I have it
in my hand. It says every Jew in the realm
is to be killed. Signed King Ahasuerus. And seconded by Haman. Oh our God. Verse 12. Wilt thou not judge them? For
we have no might against this great company that cometh against
us." We can't do it. We have no might against this
great company. Neither know we what to do. We know not how to pray as we
ought. We don't know what to do. It's too big. It looks overwhelming. But notice
the next phrase. Our eyes are upon thee. You're all our hope and you're
all our salvation. Now, we don't know what's going
to happen here. We don't know how it's going to come out, but
we know that our eyes are upon you. And Mordecai, let's now,
let's go over here. Well, I like that verse over
there in the book of Romans 8, 32, it says, God spared not his
own son, shall he not freely give us all things? If he gave
us the absolute most best and everything, he's gonna take care
of the rest. There is eternal life, he'll take care of it.
All right, now, let's go back over here to the book of Esther.
Esther chapter four. Amortikei cries out, how God's
people cry out, how they pray to God, how we come before Him
with our troubles, how we come before Him with situations. I
don't know what to do. But I know you do. I know you
have it. I'm thankful that we read in
the scriptures that He's a God that neither slumbers nor sleeps,
so Judah is in good hands. He'll take care of the issues.
It looks scary. There's a problem. I'm going
to cry about it. I am going to weep over it. But
it is going to be taken care of. And here in the book of Esther,
chapter 4, Esther chapter 4, we have Mordecai sharing with
us what God had given to him. Esther chapter 4, verse 14. Now, he is sharing this. Let's read verse 13, so we'll
have a little bit here. Then Mordecai commanded to answer
Esther, think not with thyself that thou shall escape the king's
house more than all the Jews. He's saying, you're in the same
house. When they find out about you, they're going to do the
same thing to you because you fall into this edict. I fall
into this edict and the children and grandchildren and the great-grandchildren
in the farthest hinterlands are going to fall into this edict.
Every Jew is to be destroyed, to be killed. And it's been signed
by the king and it cannot be changed because it is the law
of the meat and the persons. It looks bad. But just like those people in
that day when it looked bad, he says, our eyes are on you.
We're trusting you in this. If you see fit for us to go into
the burning fiery furnace, so be it. And if you see fit to
protect us in there, so be it. If you want us to go into the
dinner lines, okay. If you don't, okay. If you have
us eaten up, okay. And if you don't have us eaten
up, okay. Our eyes are on you, all right. Verse 14, for if thou
altogether holdest thy peace at this time, Then shall their
enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place. Lord of Caesars, I know this. The Jews will be delivered. Now,
you may be here, as he goes on to say, whether thou art come
to the kingdom for such a time as this, is the rest of that.
You're gonna suffer the same consequences. You are a Jew.
You're going to have this fall out on you. But whether you go
or not, God is going to deliver his people. Now, this faith This
faith is not Mordecai's faith. It's a gift faith. It's a gift
of God. For by grace are you saved through
faith, and that not of yourselves. It is a gift of God. This faith,
even as it is, is nothing more than a conduit. It is a deliverance
way. I don't know whether I put that
article in the bulletin or whether I read it and said I want to
put it in the bulletin, but it is simply like the aqueducts
of Rome. The aqueducts were not worshipped.
That wasn't the thing. It was the water that it delivered.
That's what they wanted, was the water. This is just, and
that's the way it is. Our faith given to us is nothing
more than the delivered system. It's not something that we worship.
We worship the one who's delivered. We worship God. We worship the
Lord Jesus Christ. And by faith, we can see him
as he is. Not by sight, but by faith, we
see him. And Christianity, pure Christianity,
worshiping God in spirit and in truth is the only thing on
this world, heaven and earth, where people worship that which
they cannot see. Now, religions have all kinds
of adornments and they say, well, this helped us to worship. No,
that's an idol. Christianity worships in spirit
and in truth. God gives us the blessing of
salvation by the new birth and grants us the privilege of worshiping
him. And he's invisible. We've never
seen him. We looked and read in the scriptures
about our God and what he did, what the Lord did in his time.
And we say, if I was there, I could not believe it any more than
I am right now. It's that simple. It's that clear. I don't have
to see that happen. I don't have to see him change
a bunch of sardines and bread into feed 10,000 or 5,000. When you read it, well, that's
just as clear as it can be. I trust that. Well, that's what
we find out with all things. Where did that come from? Turn
with me, if you would, to the first chapter of the book of
Titus. The book of Titus, the apostle Paul is writing, and
you know, Paul wrote so much about what he didn't believe
before he was saved. He didn't believe in total depravity
before he was saved, but he certainly did after he was saved. And he
was given that section of scripture in the book of Romans. There
is not one person that seeks after God. Now he would probably
say before he was saved, I was seeking after God, I was honoring
him, I was doing all this. He thought he was doing God a
service. And then he found out he wasn't. God revealed that
to him. Well, here in the book of Titus,
Titus chapter one, Titus chapter one, verse one. Paul, a servant of God, and an
apostle of Jesus Christ according to the faith of God's elect. Now that's where faith is. Faith of God's elect, he provides
it all. Mike has shared with us several
times in his studies of Luke, whatever God demands, he supplies. Because he knows ours is garbage. So he's going to supply real
faith. We have faith that I'm going
to sit down in this chair and it's not going to collapse on
me. That isn't even what we're talking about. We're talking
about being able to believe God. And by our own self, we cannot,
we will not. We're anathema maranatha to God. We're enmity with God. But when
he saves us, he said, I've given you the faith that I give all
my elect. And now you can trust me. You could be like Mordecai. It
looks bad. It is bad. Don't take it's not
bad. An edict has been passed and
all the Jews are gonna get killed. But Mordecai said, you know,
Esther, I love you with all my heart. But if you don't see the
need to put yourself in this position, God will raise up someone
else. And I believe that when it comes
to missionary work, to pastoral work, God is going to put whoever
he needs in the place to preach the gospel so that all his lost
people hear it. Jonah, if you don't go, I'll
raise up someone else, but I'm gonna make you go. All right,
Titus, Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ
said this by inspiration. the faith of God's elect. Turn with me, if you would, to
First Thessalonians chapter one. First Thessalonians chapter one,
verse six, this whole chapter. It's a wonderful e-chapter. But here in verse six, and ye
became followers of us First Thessalonians chapter one verse
six, ye became followers of us and of the Lord, having received
the word in much affliction with joy of the Holy Ghost. Mordecai said, I don't know how
it's gonna happen, but I know this, the people of God shall
be delivered. We read his name. His name shall
be called Jesus. For he shall save his people
from their sins. Now, how he carries that out
is his business. And who he appoints to be the
preacher is his business. But he shall save his people
from their sins. In Acts 13, 48, we find that
a whole group of Gentiles got to have what God had given to
a bunch of Jews, to Mordecai, to David. to Solomon, to Abraham. These, that tells us who were
ordained to eternal life, believed. They were given faith. God saved
them by His grace through faith. And so it is just going out throughout
all the world. Now, we pray that we might have
something happen here like is happening down in New Guinea.
50 preachers getting together at one time, 23 gospel churches
in an area, and over 1,000 people gather on whatever day they want
to gather on. I don't know if they gather on
Sunday. I don't know when they gather on Monday, but they get
together. How that is, God has a purpose. He's going to save
His people from their sins. And in the book of Matthew chapter
16 and verse 18, This used to be quoted to me
quite a lot, but the real emphasis of this is found in the last
part of it. Matthew chapter 16 and verse
18, it says here concerning the church, concerning the elect
of God, concerning those that God brings in, God saves them
by His grace. He said, Peter, you're so insignificant,
you're a little stone. But I'm talking about a big rock
of Gibraltar. I'm talking about myself. I can
just see the Lord saying, upon this rock, not you. Now you're a part of it, but
you're not the church. Upon this rock, I will build
my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Now there have been many times
that people have thought it's almost at the brink and lo and
behold, some brethren come over from Ethiopia or out of the hinterlands
of the Persian empire. Mordecai said, I don't know how
it's gonna happen, but I know this, if you don't, someone else
will, and the people of God shall be delivered. All right, let's
go back to the book of Esther chapter four, Esther chapter
four. In Esther chapter four, as we continue here, we see this
great, thought given to Esther in Esther chapter four, and there
in verse 14, let's read this verse 15. Then Esther made them
answer, return more to Ki this answer, go gather together all
the Jews that are present in Shushan. Now let's back up just
a little bit here, and it tells us in verse 11, All the king's
servants and the people of the king's provinces do know that
whosoever, whether man or woman, shall come into the king into
the inner court who is not called, there is one law of his to put
him to death, except shall to whom the king shall hold out
the golden scepter that he may live. But I have not been called
to come in unto the king for these 30 days. Now what she has
to say is serious and it is the rule. Anybody that steps into
the presence of the king uninvited, the king has the right to censor,
seriously, to kill. You know, all those who say they're
gonna come in uninvited, that guy in a, didn't have the wedding
garment on, came in uninvited. Well, you know, we make mistakes,
you and I do. The Holy Spirit never makes mistakes.
We make mistakes. We can't see the heart. I was
asked again today, Norm, am I saved? I said, I wouldn't even tell
my wife that. And shame on you if you tell people that. That's
not your business. If the Holy Spirit, it tells
us in the scriptures, His Spirit beareth witness with our spirit
that we are the children of God. That's the testimony. All right. Well, here we have, if I go in
there and he doesn't lift up that golden scepter, I'm dead. Well, and they told Mordecai
Esther's words. Then Mordecai commanded to answer
Esther, think not with thyself that thou shall escape in the
king's house more than all the Jews. For if thou altogether
holdest thy peace at this time, then shall their enlargement
and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place. I am
sure of it. I have been given faith by God
to believe this, that they shall be protected. I don't know how
it's going to happen, but they shall be protected. But thou and thy father's house
shall be destroyed, and who knoweth whether thou art come to the
kingdom for such a time as this? Then Esther bade them return
Mordecai this answer. Go gather together all the Jews
that are present in Shushan and fast ye for me, and neither eat
nor drink three days, night or day. I also and my maidens will
fast likewise, and so will I go in unto the king, which is not
according to the law, and if I perish, I perish." All right. Let's pray for three days. What is she asking for? Strength
to go in and have her life taken from her. Strength to go before
the king. Strength to do this, what is
required. So Mordecai went his way and
did according to all that Esther had commanded. What did he say?
He found everybody he knew in Shushan the palace and he says,
all right, folks, let's pray. Let's pray. Let's go to our prayer
classes. Let's go to the Lord in prayer.
And so often that word fasting means more than just not eating
food. Let's keep our mouth shut. We'll trust the Lord. I love
what Brother Henry used to say in his invitations. He didn't
give invitations. He simply said, trust the Lord
and don't move a muscle. Don't get involved in it. Well,
that's an impossibility. So he's simply saying you can't
do it on your own. The Lord can. All right, we're
going to stop there tonight and we'll pick this up next time
in the next chapter. So much is going to happen. We
have the rest of the story. She, Mordecai up to this point
are kind of caught in suspense, but Mordecai, Like that king
of old says, our eyes are upon you.