-Remarks to God & Bishop (brief)
-Prayer/Reading of scripture/Seating of ppl
I. Introduction
-This particular text excites me on many levels, and is pregnant with possibility. We see in the text that King Xerxes, Hamam, and Esther are all dining together at a banquet requested by Esther the Queen. And the King asks, “What is your request? I will grant it unto you even up to half of the land.” Esther goes on in the text to begin to reveal some things that were previously hidden, from the fact that she was a Jew all the way up to the decree that was put out by the King that all the Jews were to be destroyed. The King now asks her “Who could or would do such a thing?” And she goes on to expose Haman, calling him out for everything he was and had done. Haman as a result of all of this and realizing his now imminent demise begins to plead Esther for his life as the King gets up in a rage and goes out into the palace courtyard. We see beyond this text that Haman is hung, the decree against the Jews is reversed, Esther gets Haman’s estate, his children die, and the Jews party like never before.
In order to grasp the totality of this message there was much that led up to the text at hand, and for a brief moment I’d like to take a historical trip back and bring us all up to speed, as I begin to lay the framework for this assignment. In short and for the sake of time the book of Esther opens up with the former Queen Vashti being deposed of her position as Queen due to her disobedience to the King’s command for her to dance for him. A search then initiates to find a new Queen, and that is when we learn of this young orphan Jew girl Esther, who spends an entire year preparing to go before the King. The search for a new Queen ultimately culminates as the King finds Esther attractive, gives her his favor, and makes Esther the Queen. In chapter 3 we also find that the King promotes a fellow by the name of Haman to the office of Prime Minister.
Moredacai, who is Esther’s cousin, refuses to bow down to Haman in his new position. This enrages Haman so much so that he goes to the King and has a decree made to not just kill Moredacai, but all of his people the Jews too. Upon hearing of this Moredacai goes and asks Esther for help, and initially she feels helpless. Esther ultimately makes up her mind to have her and her people fast for three days, and then regardless of the consequence, approach the King on her own. The King we find in chapter 5 finds favor with Esther and when she approaches him, he asks her what her request is. She proceeds to ask for a banquet for her, the King, and Haman, and the text says that as they dine at the banquet the king asks her again what her request is and she astonishingly enough asks for yet another banquet. Haman in the process is infuriated a second time at Moredacai not bowing, and as we get to chapter 6 en route to our text Haman has conspired with his people and had a gallows built on his very land to have Moredaci hung. Thus Haman goes to the King trying to ask him if he will let him execute Moredacai, but the King is on some other time as the King has just found out that some time back, Moredacai exposed a conspiracy against the King, and is thinking of ways to honor him for doing so. Haman in his ignorance ends up having to honor the vey person that he’s trying to kill. I’ve said all of that to get us now to the text at hand, where this third banquet is held, Esther reveals her true identity and Haman’s plot to kill the Jews as the King asks her what her request is, it is granted, Haman is ultimately hung on the gallows he prepared for Moredacai, the decree is reversed, and her people ultimately come out from under it. And that’s where I’m stuck.
Present title of sermon.
If I can keep it real with you on tonight my brothers and my sisters, I am convinced that many of us have and continue to find ourselves in the very place in the text that Esther and the Jews find themselves. We have gone through much trial and tribulation, hurt and pain, heartache and heartbreak, living in fear of our enemies, tear stained pillows and sleepless nights, broke as a joke, families and situations jacked up, enemies seemingly victorious over us, feeling defeated, and we feel as if God is nowhere to be found, as we continually go before him, asking him to grant our requests, interceding, fasting, praying, throwing oil, and pleading the blood. And after all we’ve endured over these past few months and years of our life, all many of us want to know now is “When?” When is it going to happen? When will it turn around? When will God flip the script? When will my enemies be defeated and I come out victorious? ALL I WANNA KNOW IS WHEN ON EARTH AM I GOING TO COME OUT OF THIS MESS!!!!
And for those of you wondering that on tonight I have good news: Much like the King God has been before many of us over the last little while asking us what our request is, but now has moved from the prophetic into the natural, and is ready to grant most of our requests. Now I don’t want you to get this twisted because as much as God’s desire is for us to come out, He is not some cosmic bellhop boy who grants our requests instantaneously with no actions on our part. No rather before we come out of what it is we are in there are certain things the Lord wants us to learn, develop in our character, and accomplish while we’re in. There are in a sense, some “Pre requisites if you will” to coming out. So I had a talk with Esther the Queen the other day… (Transition to body of sermon.)
II. Body: Three pre requisites Esther had that you need to develop before you can “Come out.”
A.) Preparation
One of the greatest characteristics Esther possessed was a spirit of preparation in all she did. Need proof I got it? Notice back in Chapter 2 she spent a year preparing for just the possibility of the position.
-Not only then but in Chapter 4 she had to prepare once again before she approached the King, as had she just mindlessly gone up there she could have been killed for approaching the King without being summoned.
-She didn’t just mindlessly prepare though, her preparation was focused, intent, methodical, planned, and purposeful. Want proof? Look at all she went through just to become Queen! (Elaborate.)
-In order to come out of your current situation or experience you must prepare for the next level while you’re in your present mess!! (The incredible example of Mr. Incredible versus Buddy.)
-HS football coach quote...”Failing to prepare is preparing to fail!” Have you done any preparation for you next level in God even though you’re in your current mess? Any praying? Any fasting? Any giving? Any growing? Any inner change? Any maturing? Any sowing? Have you been humbled?
-Compare preparation for your next level to that of a woman giving birth.
-Have you prepared for the birth & manifestation of your next level?
(Move #1)
B.) Perseverance
-Not only did Esther have a spirit of preparation but she also had a spirit of perseverance. Look at just some of the things she endured and persevered through: She lost her parents to death and was therefore orphaned at a young age, she had to endure racism as a Jew, The preparation, hardship, and grueling process that led up to her becoming Queen, She endured having to hide her identity of being a Jew for the first part of her Queen ship. She endured the cognitive dissonance of being caught between helping her family and being a part of royalty. The fear of going before the King without being summoned, She even yet endured numerous indirect attacks from haters and an evil enemy in the camp whose arch nemesis characteristics were cloaked in a title of prime minister given him by the King, and all the other hardships that come along with being a woman of her stature in that time.
-My my that sounds a lot like what many of us have had to endure up to this very moment and hour doesn’t it? In order to come out you must first GET THROUGH while you’re in!!
-If you can’t survive this level, how can you possibly think God can trust you to get through your next level? Every round goes HIGHER & HIGHER!!!
Suck it up!! Quit complaining!! Go through whatever you have to go through at this level to come out and get to your next level!!
Don’t give up! Don’t throw in the towel! You’ve come too far to give up now & you’re right on the edge of your next level!!
(Move #2)
C.) Presence of Mind
-Esther had great presence of mind in that she understood the power, importance, and necessity of correct timing! Look at chapter 5 in Esther: The King asked her what her request was and she played it off by asking for a banquet with the King & Haman attending. The King asks her again at the banquet and she juke jives him a 2nd time. Finally at the 2nd banquet she requests and the 3rd time the King asks her she FINALLY lets the proverbial cat out of the bag so to speak AFTER the enemy has begun to create his own demise, and it all works to perfection as we’re about to see in the rest of the story.
-In order to come out of your season it is impeccable that you know and understand the timing, seasons, and shifts of God as that’s how God moves! Without this understanding you become a stumbling block to your own self b/c you will always miss the move of God in your life!
You’ll either be laid back chillin when it’s time for you to come out or you’ll be spinning your proverbial wheels going nowhere when God wants you to just stay put & endure! Stop operating on your own time & get on God’s time and watch how fast you may come out!
Wake up and get your spiritual clock revved up and in tune and in sync with the timing clock of God!
(Move #3 into preaching of the text.)
III. Preach The Text: (Celebration.)
-I’ve said all of this now to get you to the place where you can begin to see now in the text evidence that God indeed will bring you out. If I can keep it real with you on tonight, we find ourselves now in the text at hand, with Esther, the King, and Haman all sitting around dining at this 2nd banquet set up by Esther.
-Talk about the evolution of Esther’s name. In chapter 1 her birth name is “Hadassah” which means in literal transition “Myrtle”. Her name eventually gets changed to Esther which can be translated as I-S-H-T-A-R which means literally “Star.”
God can change your name, as a matter of fact, I dare you to just declare your name change from God and come against any negative names you’ve been called up till now in your life! (Give examples of negative names and positive names in response.) You are a STAR because YOU ARE A CHILD OF THE KING!!
And so we have this feast going on now, and the King goes on to ask Esther a 3rd time what her request is and tells her that he will grant it to her, up to ½ the land. I did some research on the number 3 which in bible numerology stands for “entirety and completeness” her timing was on point and her preparation for coming out was in essence complete.
Queen Esther responds by saying, “If I have found favor...” (You need the favor of God in ur life in order to come out & you have a King in ur pocket!
Esther goes on to expose her identity as a Jew in the text, which she has kept a secret the entire time she’s been Queen. (In order to come out you have to take off your masks and visods and get real with yourself and God!) Maybe the reason u haven’t come out is b/c u haven’t been real with God!)
-There’s another lesson here, I’m so glad God doesn’t base my future on my background! (Elaborate & relate.)
The King proceeds to ask Esther who would do such a thing? (Esther’s response.) (The last thing you need to do prior to coming out is to call out who or whatever is standing in your way and then let God move it or them! (Give examples of what can stand in your way.)
Once you declare it, watch what happens now, Haman becomes terrified and begins to plead Esther for his life and the King goes out into the courtyard livid and ticked off beyond return! Once you DECLARE it, God WILL MOVE it!!
The King returns to see Haman falling all over Esther, and accuses him of molesting the Queen! They quickly cover the face of Haman and inform the King of the gallows Haman had originally built for Mordecai.
The King has Haman hung on his own creation of destruction! Wow!
