Hope in Difficult Days
December 11, 2016

Scripture: Esther 6

I. You have hope because God’s invisible hand controls your life.

A. The whole turning point of the book of Esther occurs in Esther 6:1: “On that night the king could not sleep.” A series of five major “coincidences” happens because King Ahasuerus has a sleepless night. All of these coincidences working together reveal the invisible hand of God at work to save Mordecai and all of the Jewish people. There are too many coincidences here. God must be behind all of the details and all of the coincidences that worked themselves out in saving Mordecai’s life. You always have hope because God’s invisible hand controls your life.

B. The same point is made in another Old Testament story: the story of Joseph. By a series of remarkable coincidences God’s invisible hand was at work in Joseph’s life to raise him up from the hopelessness of slavery to become second only to Pharaoh in all of Egypt. And God then used Joseph to save the life of his brothers and his father and the entire family by preparing the land for a famine. Genesis 45:5, “And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life.”

II. You have hope because God’s great power reverses your circumstances.

A. There are two main characters in Esther 6: Haman and Mordecai. At the beginning of chapter 6 Haman is rich and powerful. But what were Haman’s circumstances at the end of chapter 6? After the king honored Mordecai with a parade instead of Haman, Haman returned home according to vs. 12 “mourning and with his head covered.” Haman was not so high and mighty now. The high had been brought low by God. Within less than 24 hours the powerful Haman will be dead. Haman’s pride led to a great fall. God had completely reversed his circumstances.

B. At the beginning of Esther 6, Mordecai is under a death sentence. Mordecai doesn’t know it, but Haman is planning to kill him in less than 24 hours. But what happens at the end of Esther 6? The king of Persia himself had honored Mordecai and thrown a parade for him because Mordecai had saved the king’s life. God is a God who saves. This is the meaning of Christmas seen in the message God brought to Joseph in Matthew 1:21: “She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

III. You have hope because God has promised to save your life.

A. Humanly speaking, at the beginning of Esther 6, it looked like Haman would stay on top and Mordecai would die. But such a viewpoint leaves something very important out: God always keeps His promises. God’s promise to Abraham and the Jews is found in Genesis 12:3: “I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” And God’s promise to Christians today is found in Romans 8:32: “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”

Application:
Count on God to keep His promises and help you in your time of need.

Sources:
The book of Esther
Commentaries on Esther by Frederic Bush, Iain Duguid, and Karen Jobes