The following message was given at Grace Community Church in Mendon, Nevada. Esther chapter 2. We're going to start reading at verse 19. This is the reading of God's holy word. When the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai was sitting at the king's gate. Esther had not yet made known her kindred or her people, even as Mordecai had commanded her. For Esther did what Mordecai told her as she had done. when under his care. In those days, while Mordecai was sitting at the king's gate, Bigtan and Teresh, two of the king's officials from those who guarded the door, became angry and sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus. But the plot became known to Mordecai, and he told Queen Esther, and Esther informed the king in Mordecai's name. Now, when the plot was investigated and found to be so, they were both hanged on a gallows, and it was written in the book of the Chronicles in the king's presence, After these events, King Ahasuerus promoted Haman, the son of Hamadatha, the Agagite, and advanced him and established his authority over all the princes who were with him. All the king's servants who were at the king's gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman, so the king had commanded concerning him. But Mordecai neither bowed nor paid homage. Then the king's servants who were at the king's gate said to Mordecai, why are you transgressing the king's command? Now it was when they had spoken daily to him, and he would not listen to them, that they told Haman to see whether Mordecai's reason would stand, for he had told them that he was a Jew. When Haman saw that Mordecai neither bowed nor paid homage to him, Haman was filled with rage. But he disdained to lay hands on Mordecai alone, for they had told him who the people of Mordecai were, Therefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews, the people of Mordecai, who were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus. This is the reading of God's word. You may be seated. Let's pray together. Father, thank you for your love, which has been poured out from heaven like a flood. Father, we thank you. that you love us, and we thank you that in your great love, you change our hearts, you cause our faces to be lifted up to look at you in the face of Jesus Christ. And Father, we thank you for the glorious gospel. Father, this afternoon, we remember our sister, Ruth Barnett. We pray that your grace would be abundant in her life right now. Lord, as she gets closer and closer to seeing Jesus face to face. Father, we also think of the church plant in Reno. And Father, how we thank you for the stirring message we heard this morning. And we pray that what you do would be establish a gospel preaching church that saves those whom you have chosen. Father, thank you for the work of the gospel. Thank you for it here. Thank you for it all over the world. We give you thanks that it is the gospel of our living and reigning king, the Lord Jesus. We now pray that you would help us as we study your word this afternoon. We pray that you'd help us just to be alert and to learn and to take to heart the things that you have told us in the scriptures. In Jesus' name, amen. So Esther and Mordecai's Jewish identity and their Persian identity have collided. Esther, think about it, Esther is eating the king's food, she's in the king's bed, and she's hiding the fact that she's Jewish. Mordecai is seen to be, he's caring, but he's also compromised. He paces back and forth in front of the king's palace. Later on, he sits at the gate, which we'll talk about, with his ear open to see what's going on with Esther. It's probably a reflection of his deep concern for her fate. But then the question is, Why was she subjected to this in the first place? As the Jewish and Persian identity has collided, the fact is is that by the end of chapter two, the Persian identity is the one that comes out on top. But here's what is unmistakable about this book so far, and that is that it is by the hand of God, the invisible hand of providence, that Esther is now the queen, certainly neither Esther nor Mordecai are heroic in chapter two, but God is, because God is at work. And now what we're gonna see is we're gonna see something start to unfold in Esther chapter three where Mordecai will in fact be put in better light in what happens. And as the evil unfolds, Mordecai will actually emerge as it were as more of a man of God. But once again, it will be the infallible outworking of God's hand that will be at center stage. There's absolutely no mistake about it. And so in verses 19 to 23 of chapter 2, we see this, what just simply has to be called a providential rescue. So verse 19 gives us somewhat this ambiguous statement about the virgins being gathered a second time. This may actually mean that the virgins who were sent to the second string harem actually were being brought back for Ahasuerus for his pleasure after Esther was king or queen. Now the reason that that might be an important detail if that's the way we're to understand verse 19 is that it alludes to the fact that Esther is actually not with the king all the time. That will come into play in chapter four. Mordecai, verse 20, sitting at the gate. And again, sitting at the gate, he's not sitting at the gate like a beggar. He's actually sitting at the gate as some kind of official. And notice Esther is keeping the secret. Mordecai is now in the government bureaucracy. perhaps by Esther pulling a string or two to get him there. Notice he's not actually in the court, he's at the gate, but it's still a position of authority. And then you have these two characters, and they're only mentioned right here, Bigtan and Teresh, right? And these two guys become angry with the king. and they plot to assassinate him. And so I know it's probably very hard to imagine a world in which you could have disaffected, disgruntled employees who want to kill their boss, but here it is. These two guys are guards and they're probably like secret service level guards, not just guys out in the parking lot watching the cars, okay? And it's very possible that they're trying to rally support among the guys that are at the gate, but somehow or another, Mordecai learns of the plot to assassinate Ahasuerus. By the way, it's interesting, in Persian history, this is exactly how Ahasuerus will end up dying. Mordecai learns the plot, Mordecai then somehow, don't know how, gets the message to Esther, informs Esther of the plot. Esther then in turn somehow informs the king and informs the king in Mordecai's name. And so here the plot is exposed and there is an investigation. An investigation that goes almost three years and at the end they found no Russian collusion. Actually, they find these two to be guilty, and they are, the new American standard says, hanged on a gallows. I don't know why it says that. It's probably better they were impaled on a stake, okay? by the way, probably after they were executed. They could have been impaled alive, but that's gruesome to think about. But in Persian capital punishment, what you wanted to do is you wanted to humiliate the person, and so actually impaling them on a stake for public display was an act of public disgrace. And so there's this plot, it's a big deal, right? I mean, you hear about it, somebody sends, you know, Something to the president and it's got poison powder on it and all of a sudden it makes the news. Well, these guys make the news. And right in Ahasuerus' presence, it's written in the state archives, Mordecai reveals plot to assassinate the king. Plot thwarted, king saved, period. What do we see at the end of chapter two? We see Mordecai actually starting to show some moral decency and courage. We already know that he was a morally decent person. He took Esther, who was his much younger cousin, into his home to raise her, but he shows some moral decency and courage, and he begins, as it were, really to sort of redeem his character from chapter two, and he takes a risk. By the way, it was very risky. It would have been easy for him, keep his mouth shut, let things run their course, let Ahasuerus bite the dust, but he doesn't, and so he courageously exposes the plot. He uses his connection with Esther to get the information to the king, and here is Mordecai at the end of chapter two, Mordecai the whistleblower, Mordecai the guy that saved the king. Mordecai, the guy who was immediately forgotten. Mordecai, the guy who goes unrewarded for his loyalty in a kingdom where reward for loyalty ran deep. Mordecai did the right thing, not necessarily looking for any sort of self-promotion, and so what do you see at the end of chapter two? I want you to think about this. We read this passage, we read this book, you have to understand that every single turn is the invisible hand of providence. And so the hand of providence is evident in Mordecai being at the right place at the right time, he hears the plot, he exposes the plot, that's the hand of providence. He gets his name in the archives of the Persian government, that too is the hand of providence. And he is unrewarded for his courage. In fact, he's almost forgotten just like Joseph was forgotten when he was imprisoned. But even being forgotten was the hand of providence. Remember that. When it seems that you've been passed over, when it seems you've gone unrewarded, When it seems you have been simply forgotten, God is no less active than when you're leading the parade. You get to chapter three. In chapter three, I'll just give it away real quick. What you have is the war between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent. That's what you end up having. And so here we have Esther, here we have Mordecai, and then enter into the story the villain, Haman. And all we know about Haman right out of the gate is in verse one, he's promoted to the highest office in the land next to the king. He has the place of highest authority and we don't know why, but you are supposed to say, huh, look at that, Mordecai got passed over and Haman actually is the one that got promoted. Now Haman, is the son of Hamadatha and nobody knows who that is, but he's also an Agagite and we know who Agag is. And so we're gonna come back to that because that's vitally important as to what unfolds next. And so here's Haman and he gets in his little chariot every morning and he rides through town and people are bowing down to him and he's just like so happy, look at all these people. Now it is interesting of course, everybody kneels, shows him respect, but it is by a command. So let me just tell you that if you have to have the king command people, bow down and show you respect, that's probably a sign that you are not all that inherently respectable, okay? And so, could you imagine, it's a royal command, you gotta bow down, and here's Mordecai, and he's just so full of himself, he's so happy with his new position, he probably got a brand new chariot, four-wheel drive, big engine and all that, and he's so full he doesn't even recognize that there's this one guy who's refusing to bow down. Now, Here's Mordecai, the chariot goes by, everybody is like, you know, right, get on by, and then, and there's Mordecai. Refuses to bow. Commentators are divided over why he refuses to bow. By the way, the command to bow to him was actually a sign of respect, it was not worship. They were not commanding Haman to be worshiped. So this is not exactly the same as Daniel 3, bow down and worship the statue, but there's enough similarities to Daniel 3 to catch our attention. Some people say, well, he is sore over the fact that he got passed over for the promotion, and he's like, well, I'm not gonna bow down to that rascal who got the promotion that I deserve. That's probably nonsense. Other people, well, he was just too arrogant to bow, and that's probably not true either. The servants end up saying, why this transgression? So could you imagine, everybody's walking to work, everybody's got their lunchbox, everybody's going to their place, and here comes Haman, right, you know, through town, and everybody bows, but everybody's noticing that Mordecai's not bowing, Mordecai's not kneeling, he's not genuflecting, and so then they start saying, what's your deal? Why aren't you following the edict of the king? Now by the way, Mordecai will answer that question, but not right away. As things unfold, Haman ends up being told about this, and so what happens is, is that the text says, every day they talk to him about it. By the way, it's probably not accidental, who else was harassed every day when he went to work? Joseph. And so here he is, here's poor Mordecai just being harangued day after day, in the break room at lunchtime, everybody's, what's your deal? Why aren't you bowing down? And then the text says, and every day he refused to listen to him. So here's Mordecai, every day, what's your problem, what's your problem, what's your problem? And here's Mordecai, talk to the hand. Now finally, these guys actually tell Haman just to see, notice the way the text puts it, to see if Mordecai's reason would stand. Might be something like this. Can that guy get away with this? Or it could have been something like this. Are they really bowing exemptions? Do you think we might be able to get one? Mordecai answers this question, and here's what he says. Real simple. I am a Jew. You wanna know why I don't bow? I am a Jew. Now on the face of it, that actually does not explain a whole lot, but if we understand a little history, it begins to explain just about everything. And so keep your finger there in Esther 3 and turn over to Exodus chapter 17. There's two texts I want you to look at with me. Exodus chapter 17. And so you might remember what happens in Exodus chapter 17 is that the Amalekites come and fight against Israel in the wilderness, all right? So the Amalekites. Guess what Haman is? He's an Amalekite. And so this is that famous scene where Moses has his hands lifted and the battle's going and Aaron and her hold his arms up because when his arms are up, the battle's going in Israel's favor. And now look at verse 13. So Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. Then the Lord said to Moses, write this in a book as a memorial and recite it to Joshua that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. Moses built an altar and named it the Lord is my banner and he said, the Lord has sworn the Lord will have war against Amalek from generation to generation. Deuteronomy chapter 25, Deuteronomy chapter 25 verse 17, Remember what Amalek did to you along the way when you came out from Egypt, how he met you along the way and attacked among you all the stragglers at the rear. So here's the Amalekites and what are they doing? Who's gonna be straggling at the rear by the way? The old, the young, the weak. when you were faint and weary, and he did not fear God. Therefore, it shall come about when the Lord your God has given you rest from all your surrounding enemies in the land which the Lord your God gives you as an inheritance to possess, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. You must not forget. Guess who didn't forget? Now, there's one more. King Saul is commanded to actually execute this order from God in 1 Samuel 15. And this is Saul's opportunity to fulfill the command of God to wipe out the Amalekites, the enemy of God, and what does King Saul do? Well, he doesn't do what he's told to do. He doesn't wipe out, listen carefully, he doesn't kill King Agag, king of the Amalekites. and he doesn't kill all the Amalekites, and he actually takes their cattle for spoil. Samuel gets there, and Samuel says, what's the sound of the bleeding of sheep, and what have you done? And of course Saul, the great excuse maker, is making excuses, and then Samuel says, bring King Agag to me, And Agag says, hey, you know, battle's tough, war's hard, but friends are friends forever, that's what friends are for. And Samuel the prophet takes a sword and he hacks Agag to pieces. And then God takes the kingdom away from Saul. Why is the kingdom stripped from Saul? Because of Saul's disobedience regarding the Amalekites, and in particular, King Agag. And so, here's the story. Here is Mordecai, the son of Kish. Guess what family Kish is? Saul's family. a Benjamite. Guess what Saul's tribe was? The tribe of Benjamin. And so here is a Jewish man who remembers what God had said, do not forget. Here's a descendant of Saul who actually sees the kingdom stripped away from his own lineage, from his own family line, and he looks at that and there is an innate animosity towards the Amalekites, which means there is an animosity towards Haman. Haman is a descendant of King Agag and Haman only, listen, Haman only exists because Saul failed to do his job. It's a Mordecai. Well, let's just say his ethics are already shown to be a little shaky. He's tried hard to fit into the Persian culture, but you know what? At the end of the day, even when his Persian identity and his Israel identity would collide, At the end of the day, even though oftentimes the Persian identity ended up on top, one thing you could not take away from him, and that is that he was a Jewish man. By the way, that is what happens to God's real people when their identities clash. A lesser identity may prove to have the upper hand for a while, but when you boil it right down, you know what you are. And so here is Mordecai, and bowing to Haman, as Ian Duguid puts it, was a bridge too far. Here he stood, he could do no other, his conscience was captive to a higher call. And so then, by the way, so Mordecai knows the history. Mordecai knows Exodus 17. Mordecai knows Deuteronomy 25, don't ever forget. Mordecai knows 1 Samuel 15. But guess who also knows the history? Haman. So Haman is told, verses five and six, And then he sees. And so there he is, proud, arrogant, full of himself, in his chariot. Now he notices this guy Mordecai. Everybody else is bowing and there's Mordecai standing up and once Haman notices, he is absolutely filled with rage. By the way, that phrase, filled with rage, will be used in the book of Esther a number of times. One commentator puts it like this, hell hath no fury like an Agagite scorned. He is consumed, right? His pride, everything in him is just churning with anger and hatred as he sees Mordecai refusing to bow. Mordecai is not showing me the respect that I am due. And so, he starts to think, it's not enough for me just to kill Mordecai. I'm going to kill every Jew in the kingdom. In the words of Festus Hagen, some of you don't even know who I'm talking about, so sad. No. That's a gizzard full of hate. That's a gizzard full of hate. By the way, Festus was Matt Dillon's deputy. Get with the program, okay? That's a gizzard full of hate. To be so hateful, to look at somebody, to know the history, to know the innate tension that existed, and to say, I'm not satisfied just to see that guy go, I want to see everybody in that race go. Vile. And so here we have this danger. I mean, a real honest-to-goodness danger. This guy wants to see all the Jewish people in the kingdom dead, and to make matters worse, he is now the second highest in command in all of Persia. And so here there's this amazing reversal that's just happened before our very eyes if you slow down to read it. And so one commentator puts it like this, this is very good, he says, Haman's plan becomes a final solution aimed at the genocide of the Jewish people. He wants nothing short of ethnic cleansing. But you see the irony, don't you? Having saved Ahasuerus for the lesser evil, Mordecai and Esther fall foul to the greater evil. Ahasuerus gets rescued while his rescuers fall into the very danger the king had faced only on a much larger scale. Talk about sudden reversals, it's dizzying. Verse seven, in the first month, which is in the month of Nisan in the 12th year of King Ahasuerus, by the way, so Esther would have been queen for about five years at this point. poor, that is the lot was cast before Haman from day to day and from month to month until the 12th month, that is the month of Adar. Then Haman said, so let me just tell you what's going on in verse seven. He goes to his psychic, Haman goes to his psychic and begins casting lots to try to find the luckiest day to kill the Jews. And so pur, by the way, is Babylonian word for lot, and so here he is, and he's casting lots until it falls on the best day to do this, the day in which, so to speak, the stars are aligned, and Haman's determination to have the luckiest day actually puts this plan about a year out. Verse eight, Haman said to King Ahasuerus, there is a certain people, scattered and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom. Their laws are different from those of all other people, and they do not observe the king's laws, so it is not in the king's best interest to let them remain. If it is pleasing to the king, let it be decreed that they be destroyed, and I will pay 10,000 talents of silver into the hands of those who carry on the king's business to put into the king's treasuries. Then the king took his signet ring from his hand, gave it to Haman, the son of Hamadathah, the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews. The king said to Haman, the silver is yours, and the people also, do with them as you please. And so here's Haman, and he's going to present his final solution, if you will, and he says to the king, I mean, really, just think about how ambiguous this is, right? There's a certain people, and they're scattered and dispersed throughout the kingdom. Now, you know what he's doing, is he's saying there's an implicit threat in your kingdom. You have all these sleeper cells, and you don't know. These people operate by different laws. Was that true? To an extent, right? But also, there's something that's somewhat ironic about it, is that even Mordecai and Esther didn't live by different laws, right? And they don't obey the king's laws, which, by the way, is just an outright lie. So what is Haman doing? He's presenting this ambiguous people, scattered and dispersed, as traitors, and it is absolutely untrue. Mordecai's already demonstrated his loyalty to the king. By the way, Mordecai will have more loyalty to the king than Haman would ever dream about. Haman is all about Haman. And so what Haman does, by the way, isn't that what qualifies him to be a politician? He presents a truth, a half-truth, let's just say a three-quarter truth, a half-truth, and then a lie. And then what Haman does is he basically says, you know, it's to the king's best interest if you just exterminate all of them. This is anti-Semitism. It is prejudice and it is evil. Every form of prejudice is evil. To hate somebody because they belong to a certain group that is different than yours is evil. Antisemitism, by the way, if we were reading this story, let's say in the 1920s, it might be a little hard to believe, but let's face it, the 1930s and early 1940s confirmed that there are people in this world that if they have the power, they will seek to destroy all the Jewish people. This antisemitism, resides in Haman's heart. And so he's got a great idea. He says, so what we need to do is we need to get a royal decree out there because we know how effective your royal decrees are, law of the Medes and the Persians. And then Haman even actually says this. This is the way he would say it. So I know that this, I know that, you know, Proposition 8 here that I'm presenting to you. It's gonna be very, very, very expensive. And so what I want you to know is that I'll actually pay for it. By the way, the amount of money that Haman says he will contribute to the treasury would have been 60% of the annual revenue of the kingdom. I'll cover the cost. As we see Haman though, what begins to emerge very clearly to us is that Haman is absolutely trafficking in the politics of hate and in the politics of fear and of prejudice. What is he doing? He is stirring up the king, not with substance, but with simple empty rhetoric based on a vague threat. Why? Because he hates Mordecai and the Jews. Things don't change, by the way. You do understand that these things continue to go on, and so then you get to verse 10, and the king takes his signet ring. By the way, this is like saying, you know, here's the presidential pin to sign whatever you want, and once again, what we see is Ahasuerus being easily manipulated by an invented problem. Things don't change. Here's the stunning thing. Well, you know what? Maybe it's not that stunning. He doesn't even ask any questions. Imagine that, accepting an invented problem without asking any questions. He's blind to Haman's agenda. Imagine being so blind to Haman's agenda that you don't even say, and so who are they? And why are they dangerous? And what have they done? And so here we have an invented problem that is accepted and the king is absolutely manipulated into buying into an agenda that is really not even his own. Welcome to 2020. The king gives Haman everything he needs to execute his plan, and in fact, even says something to the effect, you keep your money, at least for now, and you've got complete authority. And so, the danger that we see is actually underscored for us again in verse 11, when we have the repeated identity of Haman, who is the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews. Remember, he knows the history as well as Mordecai does. He is an Agagite. He knows what happened between Saul and his forbearer. And so what we need to see in this unfolding drama in front of our eyes is that this is not simply an ethnic issue between Amalekites and Jews. It's not simply something between two warring tribes that goes back for a long time. Some of you might remember that when the Soviet Union was the Soviet Union, There were so many countries that had been brought under the authority of the Soviet Union that there was a sense of, just like the Pax Romana back in the first century, the Peace of Rome, and the Peace of Rome was actually an enforced peace, basically saying, if you make trouble, we'll come and kill you. There was a Pax Soviet Union. There was a peace that was imposed by the Soviet Union. Do you know what happened when the Soviet Union fell? Tribal wars that had gone on decades and decades before that had been suspended because of the power of the Soviet Union, once the Soviet Union collapsed, do you know what happened immediately? Those tribal wars started up all over again as if they had never stopped. Bosnia, Kosovo. century-old conflicts that simply saw a 70-year hiatus, and then they come up again. Let me just say, this is not simply that. The conflict that's going on between Mordecai and Haman is on a much grander scale than just tribal conflict. It represents the war between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent. It represents the difference between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan. Haman, the Agagite, stands as a Jew-hating Antichrist, and he is a tool of Satan. Why in the world would the devil want to destroy the Jewish people. It is because the Jewish people would be the physical line in which Messiah would come into this world. To want to destroy the Jewish people is a satanic plot, as it were, to destroy the very possibility of Messiah coming into this world as the savior of the world. What do you think Herod tried to do? And so here is this conflict between these two guys and it is the conflict that represents all conflict. So, the decrees written 12 to 15, king scribes were summoned on the 13th day of the first month and it was written just as Haman commanded to the king's satraps, those are the people that are one step above governors who are in charge of the provinces, to the governors who were over each province and to the princes of each people, each province according to its script, each people according to its language, being written in the name of the king Ahasuerus, sealed with the king's signet ring, Letters were sent by couriers to all the king's provinces to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate all the Jews, both young and old, women and children, in one day, the 13th day of the 12 month, which is month Adar, and to seize their possessions as plunder. A copy of the edict was to be issued as law in every province and was published to all the people so they should be ready for this day. The couriers went out impelled by the king's command while the decree was issued at the citadel in Susa, and while the king and Haman sat down to drink, the city of Susa was in confusion. Edict is published, it's put into all the languages, all the dialects, it's sent out by order of the king, and here's the amazing thing, how did that day get chosen? Casting the lots, right? Just making sure you're not comatose. Just an honest question once in a while. Afternoons are tough, I know. So they cast the lot. He cast lots until he got his lucky day. Irony number one. The lot is cast into the lap and it's every decision is from the Lord. Proverbs 16.33. Do you think that verse was lost on Jewish people as they heard this story? Here's the other irony. The day in which the massacre is to take place is one day before Passover, which of course is the greatest act of deliverance. So the Jews actually are preparing to celebrate God's greatest act of deliverance in their distant past, a present threat emerges to their present survival. Here's the content of the edict. So what's that movie where you get one day to go out and kill people? Purge, okay, yeah, great movie. Here's the edict, you can go out and destroy, and kill, and annihilate. By the way, you do understand destroy, kill, and annihilate. It's all the same thing. It's just repetition for the sake of emphasis. It's not like, hey, destroyed that guy, annihilated that guy, killed that guy, and you did three different things. It's all the same. Notice, young and old, women and children, all in one day. Put it on your calendars. We're gonna have Jewish Purge Day. And you get, by right of the king, you have the right to kill any Jewish person you know, and here's a little incentive. You can plunder their property, keep all of their possessions. In other words, there is a financial incentive to join the massacre. Is this not sick? It's 11-month waiting period, so get ready. By the way, that 11-month period, just imagine, first of all, the 11-month period on the one hand could serve to fuel the greed of people to participate, starting to think, oh yeah, let's make a plan, let's do this, and then think about the psychological torture to the Jewish people. Everybody knew that that day was on the calendar. And this inviolable edict is published absolutely everywhere, Ahasuerus. I mean, there's this awful, awful irony, right? Here this edict goes out, people are put into a panic, and there's King Ahasuerus and Haman sitting down to drink a few beers, while Susa is in absolute chaos and confusion. Again, just showing how superficial, how shallow. The king really is. He just signed legislation that would possibly lead to the death of thousands and thousands and thousands of Jewish people. And it has no more impact on him than he sits down and has a few drinks. There's two things about this passage that's worth us noting. The first is this. Just as sure as back in chapter one, and just as sure as in chapter two, so in chapter three, God is at work. God is at work. God is at work, but without the displays of the Red Sea, without the pyrotechnics, without this massive display of power, but God is at work and he's at work in just what seem to be sort of ordinary things in life. Right place, right time, being forgotten. A sense of conviction, of not bowing. By the way, was that not also the providential hand of God, exposing his secret? By the way, did you notice that Mordecai does the very thing he told Esther not to do? Don't tell anybody that you're a Jew. Why don't you bow down to Haman? I'm a Jew. That too. would be the providence of Almighty God. There's nothing that escapes the providence of God. Not a single thing. And what ends up happening is, as God's plan is unfolding, the enmity between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent come to the fore, and it is absolutely revealed for everybody to see. And it is all the unfolding in visible hand. So providence does not simply extend to the good things in life. It extends over the hard things and the painful things and the disappointing things of life. And you don't have the prerogative of looking back yet. And so you trust him. But here's the thing that we need to understand today as well. This war that's going on has not ceased. Jesus tells his disciples in John chapter 15 in the upper room, he says, if the world hates you, you know that it hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own, but because you are not of the world, I chose you out of the world. Because of this, the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, a slave is not greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they'll also persecute you. If they kept my word, they'll keep yours also. Fat chance. And so here's the reality, is that you and I live in a world which is incredibly hostile to us because of Jesus. Not because of Saul, not because of Israelites, but because of Jesus. That fundamental war between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent still exists. Those who align themselves with the ultimate seed of the woman, Jesus Christ, will be hated by the seed of the serpent in this world. Here's the amazing thing about being an American and being a Christian is that we get surprised. We act like they were mean to me because I'm a Christian. This is America. The war on Christians is a war that has gone on for 2,000 years throughout the entire world. By the way, we are the anomaly. If you are a Christian in Erie and Jaya, or you are a Christian in Sudan, or you are a Christian in Saudi Arabia, or you are a Christian in most any other part of the world, you are not only a minority, you are a hated minority. You often are a persecuted minority. Oftentimes, many of these governments don't even recognize your right to exist as a Christian. You do understand that. And so, there is a war on Christians throughout this world, but mark my words, the war on Christians in this nation is increasing. And it is nothing less than the dragon's war on the woman and her children. Wait until we get to Revelation chapter 12. And that war on a human level is driven by all kinds of things. It's driven by the politics of hate. It is driven by the politics of fear. But here's the reality. At the end of the day, that warfare is still under the sovereign rule of Almighty God. Have you ever read your Bible slowly enough to notice this, Revelation chapter 17 and verse 14? These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are called and chosen and faithful. So there's a war against the Lamb, right? Do you understand that, right? There's a war against the Lamb, and there's a war against those who are with Him. But three verses later it says, For God had put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and handing over their royal power to the beast until the words of God are fulfilled. The war is under the sovereign control of the living God. And so when we hear the lion roar, When we feel the discrimination and the hate, look to the ruler of the kings of all the earth and do not bow. Know that he is working all things after the counsel of his will and know this with certainty, he wins. And therefore, we win, even though we die. Let's pray. Father, we pray that you would deliver us from the evil one. Father, we realize that all of these details that take place are simply an outworking of your own plan. And yet, Lord, the battle is very real for us. And so we pray that you would help us to be strong. We pray that you would help us to be faithful. Father, we pray that you would help us to be courageous. Lord, as things get worse, Lord, we pray that they'd get better. But if they get worse, we pray that you'd help us to be strong in you and in the strength of your might. In Jesus' name, amen. We hope that you were edified by this message. For additional sermons as well as information on giving to the ministry of Grace Community Church, please visit us online at gracenevada.com. That's gracenevada.com.