Esther Sermon - 7

Lars Janssen

Esther Series • Sermon • Submitted 4 years ago

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Behind the Seen: The Pivot Point

Esther 6:1-14

1. Introduction – I’ve said throughout this series that Esther is a wonderful piece of literature.

a. It’s rife with drama and intrigue, suspense and tension, and like any good drama, there comes a point in the plotline where the tables turn.

i. Where good conquers evil against all odds. But for that to happen, in order for the action to come to a close, there has to be a turning point – or as we’ll call it this morning, a pivot point.

b. And what we come to this morning in chapter 6 is the pivot point for the entire book of Esther. Up to this point nothing has gone right for Esther, Mordecai, or God’s people.

i. It seems as if Haman and Xerxes always have the upper hand. But, after this chapter the tables turn and God’s people begin to have the upper hand.

1. Let’s see what was used to turn the tables in this story. Let’s read Esther 6.

2. Retelling – Remember last week at the end of chapter 5, Haman went home from the first banquet full of joy – only to have his joy turned to anger when he saw Mordecai.

a. Haman went home and vented to his friends and family – touting his greatness.

i. But Haman’s ego is so fragile and he longs to be recognized publicly so much, that one man’s lack of respect drives him to despair.

1. Remember Haman’s wife suggests getting rid of Mordecai – building gallows 75 feet tall.

a. Now just so we’re clear – in ancient Persia gallows weren’t for hanging, they were for impaling.

i. A long wooden stake was reserved for the most sordid criminals and it was considered the most shameful and disgraceful way to die.

ii. The fact that this impaling pole was 75 feet tall shows that Haman wasn’t satisfied with just killing Mordecai; he wanted to humiliate him.

1. So, Haman orders it built and waits with eager anticipation for the morning.

3. The King Can’t Sleep – And on that same night, the king had insomnia. And the text gives us no apparent reason for Xerxes being awake.

a. No dreams apparently troubled him; maybe it was the construction crew building Haman’s gallows that kept him awake – but the text itself gives us no reason for Xerxes’ insomnia.

i. And look at the king’s chosen activity for the night. Here was a guy who lacked nothing regarding potential entertainment – food, drink, dancing girls…not to mention an enormous harem, where all at his disposal.

1. But Xerxes chose to have the chronicles of his reign read to him. It would not have been compelling like read. More like reading the phone book line by line, or like reading an annual report or tax laws.

a. It wouldn’t have been riveting – and maybe that was the point. If anything could put Xerxes back to sleep – it was the reading of his own life story!

b. But something jolts Xerxes awake – a good deed from 5 years earlier that went unrewarded.

i. Remember a few weeks ago at the end of chapter 2, Mordecai discovered an assassination plot against Xerxes, he made it known and the plan was foiled.

1. Remember the details from chapter 2, it was recorded, but not rewarded.

a. In ancient Persia, rewards for good deeds were important to kings – if they lavishly rewarded those who helped them there’s a better chance of that person being loyal to them.

c. This is an omission that needs to be rectified. But how? It’s the middle of the night, and Xerxes has no one around to help him make a decision. He’s helpless on his own. He needs someone to tell him what to do.

i. And then – it just so happens that on this night Haman can’t sleep either. Coincidence or providence?

1. Remember, Haman wasn’t supposed to go to the king until morning, when his impaling pole was finished, but he just couldn’t wait.

a. So coincidentally or providentially, he goes to the king seeking permission to kill Mordecai at the precise moment the king is trying to figure out how to reward him.

i. It is one of the great ironies of this scene. Haman wants to humiliate Mordecai while the king wants to honour him.

4. Haman and Xerxes – And so Haman is brought to Xerxes to lend some advice – to figure out a reward.

a. And what follows is one of the most comedic scenes in the entire Bible.

i. They are in the same room, they are talking to each other – but Xerxes and Haman are having two completely different conversations.

b. The king asks Haman how he should honour a man who pleases him. Haman – thinking that the king wants to honour him – comes up with the most elaborate and indulgent celebration he can think of.

i. And notice that it’s not wealth or power that Haman is interested in – he already has those things. Haman longs for public recognition.

1. It’s hard to think of a more indulgent suggestion. Wearing one of the king’s robes – riding on one of the king’s horses.

a. Haman was to act like king; check that, Haman wants to BE the king.

i. Let’s think about this scene so far – Haman came to the impatiently and enraged. But he’s been stopped in his tracks at the allure of public recognition.

c. And we can all picture the look on Haman’s face when the king says, “Go and do all of that for Mordecai!”

i. And since the king ordered it – Haman had to do it.

1. He took the king’s royal robe, and instead of slinging it around his own shoulders – he has to drape it over Mordecai’s.

a. Instead of being helped up on to the king’s horse – he must help Mordecai on to it.

i. Instead of being heralded around town as an honourable man – he has to be the herald to Mordecai.

5. Afterward – But apparently the whole ordeal doesn’t really phase Mordecai. When it is all over, he simply goes back to work at the king’s gate.

a. Meanwhile, Haman goes home dejected. And so, the reversals begin. Mordecai, who was once forgotten is now being honoured and Haman is being disgraced.

i. The last time Mordecai’s attire was mentioned he was wearing sackcloth and ashes were covering his head.

1. Now, he’s wearing one of the king’s robes – and Haman is covering his head in distress.

b. And again, Haman goes home to his family – and his wife makes a profound statement.

i. “Haman’ you’ll never pull this off because Mordecai is a Jew.” The implication being that Jews have always had something or someone working on their behalf.

1. And once again, even though is name isn’t mentioned directly, God shows up.

a. He’s been present this whole chapter.

c. The king just happened to have insomnia, the attendant just happened to read the account from 5 years earlier about Mordecai…

i. Haman just happened to show up as the king decided to honour Mordecai…Haman’s wife was right – he will never succeed in his plan because Mordecai belongs to the Jewish nation – YHWH’s people, and YHWH always protects and delivers his people

6. Turning Point – And as I said at the beginning of this sermon – this chapter is the turning point of this book.

a. But, I would like to take some time this morning to point out the literary symmetry of the Esther story.

i. This book is written in an ancient literary style called a chiasm.

1. A chiasm is a way of storytelling where the first event and the last event are related.

a. The second event and the second to last event are related… and so on.

i. This is how the book of Esther is structured. It’s symmetrical in its storytelling.

b. But the symmetry of Esther revolves around one of the great themes of the story – banquets. It seems like every week someone is sitting down to a banquet or somebody is having a feast. But Esther is actually structured around pairs of feasts

i. So, the chiastic structure of Esther goes like this. It starts and ends with a pair of banquets and in the middle, there are two pairs of two feast each.

1. But in any chiasm, and in the book of Esther, there is a pivot point. Think about it this way – if the action has been winding up, there has to be an event that allows the action to unwind.

c. So far, we’ve encountered 4 banquets, we have 4 to go, but around these 4 banquets things have been getting increasingly worse for God’s people.

i. But, as we’ll see in the closing weeks of this study, during the last 4 banquets of Esther, things begin to work out for God’s people and they are eventually delivered.

1. What’s the turning point? What’s the pivot point…the great event that allows the action to wind down??? It’s Esther 6:1 – the king has insomnia.

a. One would think the pivot point would be an act of heroism – Esther going to the king or confronting Haman about his evil plan, or some other courageous act.

d. But it’s not – the turning point of the entire book of Esther is the king’s insomnia – that’s the event that triggers, not only the resolution of all the tension, but in most cases, it triggers the reversal of all we’ve seen happen so far.

i. And here’s the point the author is making; by making the pivot point an insignificant event rather than the point of highest drama – it takes the focus away from human action.

1. Had the pivot point been the scene where Esther goes to the king, Esther would be in the spotlight and her actions would be seen as the cause of the reversals.

a. But the pivot point is not any human act of courage – it’s insomnia.

i. This drives home the point that not even the most powerful man in the empire is in control of what is happening. An unseen and unnamed power is controlling the reversals.

7. Ordinary Ways – And what we see in this chapter is a reminder of what we’ve looked at previously.

a. It’s a reminder that sometimes God uses the seemingly meaningless and insignificant events of life to bring about extraordinary change.

i. In the past – God delivered his people through mighty acts. There were 10 plagues in Egypt; he opened the Red Sea and his people walked across it on dry land.

1. But, in Esther’s story, God uses the seemingly insignificant events, the king’s insomnia, to fulfill his promises.

b. What a mighty and great God we serve! Any deity worth his salt can do a miracle now and then, but our God is so powerful and so great that he can work without miracles.

i. And he can work through the ordinary events of human life to accomplish his eternal purposes.

1. God delivered the Jews of Persia because one man had a sleepless night, because a man would not bow to his superior, because a woman found herself in a pagan king’s bedroom. How inscrutable are the ways of God!

a. And if God can work through those events – he can work through anything!

c. Think about how God moves and works in your life. Earlier in this series I shared my own experience of how God worked in my life. He’s worked miraculously – healing me from cancer.

i. But I also shared how God used a seemingly insignificant event – a choice of where to do my Master’s Degree – to change the entire trajectory of my life.

1. That week I challenged you to trace the course of your life to see how God has moved and worked. You did this???

a. Who saw God perform the miraculous? An unexpected healing???

i. Who saw God working through the ordinary?

d. And here the main point for us this morning. At the time, events may seem meaningless or even pointless, but in the hands of God, who is constantly working behind the scenes, those ordinary moments can be used in extraordinary ways.

i. And knowing that this is how God works – both through the miraculous and the ordinary, we have to be on the lookout for such moments.

1. Life is not a series of coincidental events; it’s not fully of happenstance. Everything happens, both the good and the bad, is orchestrated by God, who works subtly and providentially in our lives.

e. And when we acknowledge that God works through every situation and circumstance of life – we begin to see life differently.

i. Life is not a series of random and completely unrelated events; life is filled with events that can be used by God for his redemptive purposes.

1. And when we have this perspective everyday becomes a walk of faith.

f. Who knows what will happen to you this week that might be a pivot point in your life.

i. Who knows what God might do through an email you receive, a phone call you make or a lunch date you have.

1. Who knows what God might be lining up in your life that you can’t see right now.

a. And who knows what disappointments or closed doors God might use to work out his plan in your life.

i. You see, with this outlook, the ordinary becomes extraordinary. Everyday regardless of what it holds is an opportunity for God to work in your life.

8. Application – This week, starting as soon as you walk out the door, look for those ways God is moving.

a. Look back over the past couple days, weeks, months, years, and see where and how God has moved in your life to bring you to where you are today.

i. Be on the lookout for how God might be using events in your present to effect change in the future.

1. My guess is that there will be both miraculous events and ordinary events that were turned into extraordinary ones.

a. And remember that in the powerful, subtle and providential hands of God – no event is ordinary. If God worked through insomnia, he can use anything in your life to fulfill his purposes.

i. Be on the lookout for the subtly powerful work of God in your life.

b. I’m off for the next 2 weeks – so for November 12, read Esther 7, get familiar with how it fits into the flow of story and we’ll look at that together as we begin to see the tension and the drama of this great story come to an epic conclusion.