THE LAW OF THE SPIRIT - PART 2 (Esther 8:1-17)
INTRODUCTION:
We began to look at Esther 8 last week, my hope was to get all the way through it in one message. About the middle of the week, I saw that was not going to happen and decided to break it into two messages, each a bit shorter than usual. Last week, we saw Mordecai honored by the king and queen. The king gave Mordecai his signet ring and bestowed on him the office of prime minister in place of Haman. The king seized the estate of Haman upon his execution, which we know from history was a practice of the Persians for someone who was convicted of a crime against the state. The king then gave the estate of Haman to queen Esther and Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman. This is what happened historically. Spiritually, we begin to see Ahasuerus, who represents man’s soul in harmony with his spirit, represented by Esther submit themselves to the control of the Holy Spirit, represented by Mordecai. We saw this played out even more when Esther again requested that something be done to revoke the evil edict of Haman that called for the destruction of the Jews. Ahasuerus answered that he was powerless to revoke a law signed by his name and sealed with his ring. Recognizing his total helplessness in this matter, he does the only wise thing; he put the whole matter into the hands of Mordecai. “Write whatever you please,” he says, “and I will sign it.” He surrendered completely to the will of Mordecai to find a way for the Jews to be saved from annihilation. Let’s pray and then see Mordecai’s wisdom and splendor.
--PRAY--
SCRIPTURE:
Turn in your Bibles again to Esther 8:1-17. I am going to read all 17 verses again to pick up the context. Please, if you are able, stand in honor of the reading of God’s Word, and follow along as I read.
Esther 8:1-17,
“On that day King Ahasuerus gave the house of Haman, the enemy of the Jews, to Queen Esther; and Mordecai came before the king, for Esther had disclosed what he was to her. The king took off his signet ring which he had taken away from Haman, and gave it to Mordecai. And Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman. Then Esther spoke again to the king, fell at his feet, wept and implored him to avert the evil scheme of Haman the Agagite and his plot which he had devised against the Jews. The king extended the golden scepter to Esther. So Esther arose and stood before the king. Then she said, ‘If it pleases the king and if I have found favor before him and the matter seems proper to the king and I am pleasing in his sight, let it be written to revoke the letters devised by Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, which he wrote to destroy the Jews who are in all the king’s provinces. For how can I endure to see the calamity which will befall my people, and how can I endure to see the destruction of my kindred?’ So King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther and to Mordecai the Jew, ‘Behold, I have given the house of Haman to Esther, and him they have hanged on the gallows because he had stretched out his hands against the Jews. Now you write to the Jews as you see fit, in the king’s name, and seal it with the king’s signet ring; for a decree which is written in the name of the king and sealed with the king’s signet ring may not be revoked.’ So the king’s scribes were called at that time in the third month (that is, the month Sivan), on the twenty-third day; and it was written according to all that Mordecai commanded to the Jews, the satraps, the governors and the princes of the provinces which extended from India to Ethiopia, 127 provinces, to every province according to its script, and to every people according to their language as well as to the Jews according to their script and their language. He wrote in the name of King Ahasuerus, and sealed it with the king’s signet ring, and sent letters by couriers on horses, riding on steeds sired by the royal stud. In them the king granted the Jews who were in each and every city the right to assemble and to defend their lives, to destroy, to kill and to annihilate the entire army of any people or province which might attack them, including children and women, and to plunder their spoil, on one day in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month (that is, the month Adar). A copy of the edict to be issued as law in each and every province was published to all the peoples, so that the Jews would be ready for this day to avenge themselves on their enemies. The couriers, hastened and impelled by the king’s command, went out, riding on the royal steeds; and the decree was given out at the citadel in Susa. Then Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal robes of blue and white, with a large crown of gold and a garment of fine linen and purple; and the city of Susa shouted and rejoiced. For the Jews there was light and gladness and joy and honor. In each and every province and in each and every city, wherever the king’s commandment and his decree arrived, there was gladness and joy for the Jews, a feast and a holiday. And many among the peoples of the land became Jews, for the dread of the Jews had fallen on them.” (Esther 8:1–17, NASB95)[1]
MORDECAI’S WISDOM (Esther 8:9-14)
Mordecai needs no other urging from the king or anyone else, he immediately acts to defend his people and to keep them from being annihilated. We read in verse 9 how he accomplished this. Esther 8:9 says, “So the king’s scribes were called at that time in the third month (that is, the month Sivan), on the twenty-third day; and it was written according to all that Mordecai commanded to the Jews, the satraps, the governors and the princes of the provinces which extended from India to Ethiopia, 127 provinces, to every province according to its script, and to every people according to their language as well as to the Jews according to their script and their language.” (Esther 8:9, NASB95)[2] We immediately learn several things in this verse. First, what took place here happened in the third month, the month Sivan in Persian, on the 23rd day of the month. The edict by Haman was to go into effect on the 13th day of the 12th month, the month Adar in Persian. This edict by Mordecai was written approximately nine months before the decree of Haman was to go into effect, plenty of time to reach the farthest borders of the empire. Second, we are told that what was written to the Jews, the satraps, the governors, and the princes in all 127 provinces in the Media-Persia empire which extended from India to Ethiopia. The decree written by Mordecai concerned the Jews, but it went to every level of government in each province. Finally, it was written according to the script of each province and to every people according to their language, including the script and language of the Jews.
What was Mordecai’s answer to this threat which was hanging over the head of his people? He cannot cancel or revoke the law written by Haman; that is impossible. But there is one thing he can do; he can issue a new law. The new law, with the king’s consent and authority, will reach and affect the farthest borders of the kingdom, which could turn the threatened defeat into victory. The details of the new law are given to us in verses 10-14, which says, “He wrote in the name of King Ahasuerus, and sealed it with the king’s signet ring, and sent letters by couriers on horses, riding on steeds sired by the royal stud. In them the king granted the Jews who were in each and every city the right to assemble and to defend their lives, to destroy, to kill and to annihilate the entire army of any people or province which might attack them, including children and women, and to plunder their spoil, on one day in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month (that is, the month Adar). A copy of the edict to be issued as law in each and every province was published to all the peoples, so that the Jews would be ready for this day to avenge themselves on their enemies. The couriers, hastened and impelled by the king’s command, went out, riding on the royal steeds; and the decree was given out at the citadel in Susa.” (Esther 8:10–14, NASB95)[3]
This new law gave the Jews the right to defend themselves against all their enemies. I do want to direct your attention to verse 11. In the NASB this verse reads, “In them the king granted the Jews who were in each and every city the right to assemble and to defend their lives, to destroy, to kill and to annihilate the entire army of any people or province which might attack them, including children and women, and to plunder their spoil,” (Esther 8:11, NASB95)[4] This verse makes this new law sound as bad as the one written by Haman. It sounds like Mordecai is calling on the Jews to not only defend themselves against their attackers but to go on the offensive and kill their enemies’ children and women as well, and to plunder their spoil. I have studied this verse and looked at the words of it and I believe that the word “including” in the last phrase is a bad translation. I do not believe this is what Mordecai was saying because we will learn in chapter nine that the Jews did not plunder their enemies. Listen to how this is written in the New Revised Standard Version, I believe it is the better translation in this instance. Esther 8:11 in the NRSV says, “By these letters the king allowed the Jews who were in every city to assemble and defend their lives, to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate any armed force of any people or province that might attack them, with their children and women, and to plunder their goods” (Esther 8:11, NRSV)[5] The women and children and plunder refers to the Jews’ women and children and their plunder which the Jews’ attackers would seek to kill and plunder.
We have been comparing the law of Media-Persia which cannot be revoked with the law of sin and death that we each are subject to in this life. It too is a law which cannot be revoked. Just as the first law written by Haman could not be revoked or eliminated, its effects could be canceled out. Paul also writes in Romans 8:2, “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.” (Romans 8:2, NASB95)[6] Again in Galatians 2:20 Paul declares triumphantly, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” (Galatians 2:20, NASB95)[7] Paul is saying that the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus in me is able to counteract the effects of the law of sin and death. It is no longer I who work, but it is He who works in me. And so, I live His life. It is still I who live it, but I live it by faith in the Son of God, who loves me and gave Himself for me. When I count on His indwelling life to work through me, he turns even my failures into victories. The very circumstances of defeat become the way of triumph.
Jesus told his disciples before he went to the cross, “Truly, truly, I say to you, that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; you will grieve, but your grief will be turned into joy.” (John 16:20, NASB95)[8] Jesus did not say that their grief or their sorrow would be replaced by joy. That is the best we can hope for from the world’s perspective, that somehow the circumstances will change so that our sorrow can be replaced by joy. But what Jesus was saying to his disciples was that the very thing which was to cause their sorrow, when the Holy Spirit comes into your life this will be the very thing in which you find joy. And He was so right! The shadow of the cross had stricken the disciples with fear and caused deep sorrow. They could see it as nothing but pain, anguish, and heartache. But Jesus pointed out that when the Holy Spirit came that very cross would be the source of their richest joy. And so, it proved to be.
In the same way, the law of sin and death may continue to work in our circumstances, but the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus transforms those very painful circumstances into rejoicing and blessing. This morning in our Scripture reading, Mike read of Paul when he had a thorn in the flesh—a raw, grinding, unpleasant thing from which he struggled to be free. He asked the Lord three times to take this thorn of the flesh away from him. The answer from the Lord in 2nd Corinthians 12:9, “And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ ” (2 Corinthians 12:9a, NASB95)[9] Paul grabbed onto that answer from the Lord, and he realized that the thorn made him feel weak and helpless, and it was his sense of weakness which caused him to cast himself upon the sustaining grace of the indwelling Lord. That in turn resulted in a mighty display of the power of God in his ministry. Paul declared after receiving God’s answer, “Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.” (2 Corinthians 12:9, NASB95)[10] The new Law of the Spirit never eliminates the law of sin and death; it simply superimposes upon it a higher power. This is what Mordecai did with the new edict he wrote in the king’s name and sealed with the king’s ring, he did not eliminate the previous law written by Haman, but superimposed upon it another law given with all the authority and power of king Ahasuerus.
MORDECAI’S SPLENDOR (Esther 8:15-17)
When the new edict was announced throughout the empire, there was immense joy and gladness among the Jews. Mordecai left the palace looking the part of the newly appointed prime minister, no longer did he go about in sackcloth because God had worked to bring about a deliverance for the Jews. This was a time for rejoicing, their sorrow had been turned into joy. Listen to the final verses of this chapter. Verses 15-17 say, “Then Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal robes of blue and white, with a large crown of gold and a garment of fine linen and purple; and the city of Susa shouted and rejoiced. For the Jews there was light and gladness and joy and honor. In each and every province and in each and every city, wherever the king’s commandment and his decree arrived, there was gladness and joy for the Jews, a feast and a holiday.” (Esther 8:15–17a, NASB95)[11] This time Mordecai does not reject the clothes from the palace but comes out in the splendor of his new position. His robe of blue and white are the royal colors of the kingdom, his crown of gold announces his prominent position in the kingdom, and his garment of fine linen and purple was the garment of someone close to the king, someone who had the king’s ear.
This decree brought joy to the city of Susa, it is said to bring to the Jews light and gladness, and joy, and honor. Notice that this joy comes even before the deliverance has actually been realized. It has simply been announced; it has not yet been experienced. Mordecai and the Jews are now honored everywhere. The city of Susa shouts with gladness. This is such a picture for us when we realize within our defeated hearts that God has made a way out of the barrenness of mere fleshly activity, we know instant joy. What a relief it is that we can allow the Spirit’s control over our lives and His law of life supersedes that of the law of sin and death. Compare this edict of Mordecai’s with that of Haman’s in chapter 3. The result in the city when Haman’s edict was announced was confusion and bewilderment. But now Mordecai is in power, and when the new edict is issued there is joy and gladness, feasting and a holiday. What a glorious thing it is to realize that deliverance is possible; that this miserable, barren, unfruitfulness is not God’s intended experience for us; that each one of us, without exception, is free to step into the glorious reality of a life lived in the power of the Spirit of God, for this is the life God intended us to live.
Not only was there joy in the kingdom of Media-Persia when Mordecai’s decree was announced, but there was also another remarkable result. Listen to the end of verse 17, “And many among the peoples of the land became Jews, for the dread of the Jews had fallen on them.” (Esther 8:17b, NASB95)[12] This simply means that pagan Gentiles of Media-Persia, seeing the Jews so joyful and confident in Mordecai’s wisdom, power, and splendor, they turned from their pagan idols and put their faith in the only true God. They saw for the first time something different about the Jews. Suddenly the Jews had come to life, and there was a glorious quality of joy and faith about them. The neighbors began to say, “There must be something wonderful about this faith in Yahweh.” And they became Jews. This is true in our own lives as well, when your life becomes noticeably different because of your faith; when you react to circumstances and situations in a way that seems opposite of the reaction called for, and when your activities no longer look like they once did; that is when your neighbor will begin to take notice. In the eyes of the world, it is not our relationship to Jesus Christ that counts, it is how much we look and act like Him. In the middle of circumstances that look like certain defeat, there is no more powerful testimony than the joy produced by faith.
CONCLUSION:
As I wrap up this morning, let me just say that this is the Christian life we should each aspire to live. A life in which we are completely surrendered to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. As Paul says in Romans 12:1-2, “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:1–2, NASB95)[13] We saw in the life of Ahasuerus what can happen when we get out of the way and let the Mordecai in your life take over, then deliverance is found and with the announcement of it comes joy. Our life can be this way as well if we just get out of the way, quit trying to do it in our own strength and let the Holy Spirit who indwells us take over. Then we will be able to echo Paul’s words in 2nd Corinthians 12:9-10, “Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:9b–10, NASB95)[14]
[1]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[2]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[3]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[4]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[5]The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version. (1989). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.
[6]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[7]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[8]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[9]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[10]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[11]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[12]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[13]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[14]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.