WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.520 Well, we are getting close to the end of the 00:00:02.520 --> 00:00:05.440 book of Esther, aren't we? Really close. Last 00:00:05.440 --> 00:00:08.419 Sunday, I mentioned that I had been looking forward 00:00:08.419 --> 00:00:11.740 to preaching through chapter 8. From the very 00:00:11.740 --> 00:00:14.400 beginning of the series, I was really excited 00:00:14.400 --> 00:00:17.559 about chapter 8, and that's because of all the 00:00:17.559 --> 00:00:20.800 gospel foreshadowing that we find there in the 00:00:20.800 --> 00:00:24.339 narrative of Esther. And it was a joy to work 00:00:24.339 --> 00:00:26.079 through all those things together last week. 00:00:26.100 --> 00:00:28.839 I got a lot of... Really positive feedback saying 00:00:28.839 --> 00:00:31.760 I had no idea there was so many gospel elements 00:00:31.760 --> 00:00:33.899 in this Old Testament book, but they're there. 00:00:34.039 --> 00:00:36.119 So, by the way, if you missed last Sunday, I'd 00:00:36.119 --> 00:00:39.119 highly recommend going back and listening online. 00:00:39.179 --> 00:00:41.600 It will bless your soul to see how many of those 00:00:41.600 --> 00:00:44.619 gospel aspects are found in this Old Testament 00:00:44.619 --> 00:00:47.359 narrative. But with that in the rearview mirror, 00:00:47.560 --> 00:00:50.619 I have an admission to make this morning. Today 00:00:50.619 --> 00:00:53.240 we're coming to a chapter that I was really not 00:00:53.240 --> 00:00:56.810 looking forward to preaching through. So from 00:00:56.810 --> 00:00:59.710 my favorite chapter to my least favorite chapter 00:00:59.710 --> 00:01:02.929 in the blink of an eye. And the reason for my 00:01:02.929 --> 00:01:05.730 trepidation is some of the dark elements that 00:01:05.730 --> 00:01:09.349 are in this part of the story, including violent 00:01:09.349 --> 00:01:13.670 conflict, including widespread loss of life, 00:01:13.810 --> 00:01:17.010 and frankly, some gruesome details that align 00:01:17.010 --> 00:01:21.549 with an ancient tribal grudge. As most of you 00:01:21.549 --> 00:01:23.829 know, early on in the story of Esther, I was 00:01:23.829 --> 00:01:26.909 pretty hard on her character. and pointed out 00:01:26.909 --> 00:01:30.450 a number of what I think are some glaring inconsistencies, 00:01:30.450 --> 00:01:33.390 spiritual compromises in her life. But in recent 00:01:33.390 --> 00:01:35.829 chapters, it's been so encouraging. We've seen 00:01:35.829 --> 00:01:39.670 this young lady grow in her trust, in her courage, 00:01:39.870 --> 00:01:44.650 and we've complimented her accordingly. But now 00:01:44.650 --> 00:01:46.709 as we come to chapter 9, once again, we're going 00:01:46.709 --> 00:01:49.730 to have to resist the temptation, and we all 00:01:49.730 --> 00:01:52.730 have this, to look at someone like Esther and 00:01:52.730 --> 00:01:56.120 see her as an impeccable heroine. who never does 00:01:56.120 --> 00:01:59.579 anything wrong, almost not even human, and at 00:01:59.579 --> 00:02:02.500 least consider some hard questions about some 00:02:02.500 --> 00:02:04.540 of her choices in this chapter. But before we 00:02:04.540 --> 00:02:07.319 go there, I have to recap for you an important 00:02:07.319 --> 00:02:09.919 story from earlier in the Hebrew Scriptures, 00:02:10.039 --> 00:02:13.300 because it is going to explain much of what we're 00:02:13.300 --> 00:02:15.599 going to read in chapter 9 of Esther. Now, it's 00:02:15.599 --> 00:02:18.439 a story that we covered earlier in this series, 00:02:18.479 --> 00:02:20.919 but let me... Let me refresh your memory. It 00:02:20.919 --> 00:02:23.960 comes from 1 Samuel chapter 15. This is the days 00:02:23.960 --> 00:02:26.919 after Saul was anointed Israel's king by the 00:02:26.919 --> 00:02:29.900 prophet Samuel. And you might recall that Israel 00:02:29.900 --> 00:02:32.819 at that time sinfully and selfishly cried out 00:02:32.819 --> 00:02:35.300 for a human king because they wanted to be like 00:02:35.300 --> 00:02:37.960 all the other nations, even though God wanted 00:02:37.960 --> 00:02:41.939 them to be set apart. And so Samuel said it best. 00:02:42.000 --> 00:02:44.860 He said, the Lord your God was your king, Israel. 00:02:45.419 --> 00:02:47.979 But since this is what you want in your sinful 00:02:47.979 --> 00:02:51.560 flesh, I will set a very flawed man over you 00:02:51.560 --> 00:02:55.599 in the person of King Saul. Now, early in Saul's 00:02:55.599 --> 00:02:57.919 reign, he proved to be a strong military commander. 00:02:58.180 --> 00:03:00.500 We see him fighting against all the surrounding 00:03:00.500 --> 00:03:03.240 nations, the Moabites and the Ammonites and the 00:03:03.240 --> 00:03:06.000 Edomites and, of course, the Philistines. But 00:03:06.000 --> 00:03:09.439 in 1 Samuel 15, things start to go awry. The 00:03:09.439 --> 00:03:12.620 Lord gives to Saul a very specific instruction 00:03:12.620 --> 00:03:15.759 concerning an ancient enemy left over from the 00:03:15.759 --> 00:03:19.110 days of Moses. At the time of the Exodus. Here's 00:03:19.110 --> 00:03:22.490 what Yahweh said through his prophet Samuel. 00:03:24.289 --> 00:03:26.050 That's going to come up in just a second. Trust 00:03:26.050 --> 00:03:31.930 me. There we go. Good. Thus says the Lord of 00:03:31.930 --> 00:03:36.969 hosts. I will punish Amalek for what he did to 00:03:36.969 --> 00:03:41.270 Israel. How he set himself against him on the 00:03:41.270 --> 00:03:44.819 way while he was coming up from Egypt. Now, Saul, 00:03:45.099 --> 00:03:48.759 go and strike Amalek and utterly destroy all 00:03:48.759 --> 00:03:51.319 that he has. Look at that underlined part. Utterly 00:03:51.319 --> 00:03:54.159 destroy all that he has and do not spare him. 00:03:54.580 --> 00:03:57.539 But put to death both man and woman, child and 00:03:57.539 --> 00:04:01.580 infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey. In other 00:04:01.580 --> 00:04:05.270 words, rid the world of this wicked people. And 00:04:05.270 --> 00:04:08.449 so Saul took 200 ,000 of his men. They set an 00:04:08.449 --> 00:04:10.770 ambush for the Amalekites, and they defeated 00:04:10.770 --> 00:04:13.830 them in battle. Only Saul failed to carry out 00:04:13.830 --> 00:04:18.129 God's instructions. Correct? He disobeyed. Rather 00:04:18.129 --> 00:04:20.209 than wiping out every trace of the wickedness 00:04:20.209 --> 00:04:22.829 of Amalek from the earth, he took their king, 00:04:22.930 --> 00:04:25.850 King Agag. They took him alive and took him as 00:04:25.850 --> 00:04:29.029 a prisoner of war. And worse, he took all kinds 00:04:29.029 --> 00:04:32.459 of plunder. The best of the sheep, the best of 00:04:32.459 --> 00:04:35.639 the oxen, the fatlings and the lambs. And God's 00:04:35.639 --> 00:04:38.600 anger burned against Saul for his disobedience. 00:04:38.620 --> 00:04:40.920 Yet he tried to fake his way out of it when he 00:04:40.920 --> 00:04:43.620 came into the presence of Samuel, even though 00:04:43.620 --> 00:04:45.839 the prophet already knew that he had disobeyed. 00:04:45.980 --> 00:04:48.540 The text says that Saul came to Samuel and said 00:04:48.540 --> 00:04:51.300 to him, blessed are you, I've carried out the 00:04:51.300 --> 00:04:54.300 command of the Lord. Can you see the falsehood 00:04:54.300 --> 00:04:58.180 in it? Just his face. Look what I've done. But 00:04:58.180 --> 00:05:02.540 Samuel said, Really? What then is this bleeding 00:05:02.540 --> 00:05:04.819 of the sheep in my ears and the lowing of the 00:05:04.819 --> 00:05:09.019 oxen which I hear? And after hemming and hawing 00:05:09.019 --> 00:05:11.079 and trying to make, you know, excuse, claim, 00:05:11.160 --> 00:05:13.199 well, I kept the best of the animals so that 00:05:13.199 --> 00:05:16.879 I could give them in worship to Yahweh. Samuel 00:05:16.879 --> 00:05:19.699 rebuked him. He said, why did you not obey the 00:05:19.699 --> 00:05:22.399 voice of the Lord? Why have you rushed upon the 00:05:22.399 --> 00:05:25.699 spoils? and done what is evil in the sight of 00:05:25.699 --> 00:05:28.259 the Lord. And then he cut to the heart of the 00:05:28.259 --> 00:05:30.079 matter, saying to Saul, what you see on the screen, 00:05:30.540 --> 00:05:33.079 has the Lord as much delight in burnt offerings 00:05:33.079 --> 00:05:37.620 and sacrifices as in obeying his voice? Behold, 00:05:37.620 --> 00:05:42.199 to obey is better than sacrifice. And because 00:05:42.199 --> 00:05:44.319 you've rejected the word of the Lord, he has 00:05:44.319 --> 00:05:48.019 rejected you from being king. So two big things 00:05:48.019 --> 00:05:51.279 I want you to take from this recap of this story. 00:05:51.800 --> 00:05:54.379 for later consideration in this message. Number 00:05:54.379 --> 00:05:57.800 one, God's instructions to wipe out the Amalekites 00:05:57.800 --> 00:06:01.500 completely. And number two, Saul's disobedience 00:06:01.500 --> 00:06:06.300 in taking spoils of war. Let's go to Esther now. 00:06:06.360 --> 00:06:08.480 Grab your Bibles. We're gonna go to Esther chapter 00:06:08.480 --> 00:06:11.920 nine and cover the first 17 verses of this chapter. 00:06:12.060 --> 00:06:14.500 Hopefully explain some of the difficult parts 00:06:14.500 --> 00:06:19.589 that we're gonna read. Esther chapter 9, verses 00:06:19.589 --> 00:06:21.910 1 to 17. We're definitely going to talk about 00:06:21.910 --> 00:06:23.889 this issue of plunder because we covered it last 00:06:23.889 --> 00:06:26.209 Sunday, didn't we? We covered it quite a bit. 00:06:26.230 --> 00:06:27.810 In fact, a lot of you were joking afterwards 00:06:27.810 --> 00:06:31.730 about, let's go plunder. So we'll explain some 00:06:31.730 --> 00:06:33.470 of that. And if you missed last week, you're 00:06:33.470 --> 00:06:36.889 going, what? Excuse me? Trust me on this. And 00:06:36.889 --> 00:06:38.410 then, by the way, we're going to take an interesting 00:06:38.410 --> 00:06:40.769 and very practical rabbit trail this morning 00:06:40.769 --> 00:06:43.689 because it lines up with Sanctity of Life Sunday 00:06:43.689 --> 00:06:46.730 and also with our text. We're going to talk about 00:06:46.730 --> 00:06:49.769 the somewhat controversial subject of self -defense 00:06:49.769 --> 00:06:52.649 in the life of a Christian. So hold on to your 00:06:52.649 --> 00:06:56.040 hats for that. So let's look at the text. It's 00:06:56.040 --> 00:06:57.899 important to know as we come to chapter 9 that 00:06:57.899 --> 00:07:00.620 this entire story of Mordecai and Esther is now 00:07:00.620 --> 00:07:04.160 building to a climax. Recall that there had been 00:07:04.160 --> 00:07:07.199 an unchangeable law issued by Haman, the wicked 00:07:07.199 --> 00:07:10.120 vizier of King Xerxes. This was an edict that 00:07:10.120 --> 00:07:13.160 could not be changed, and it gave the Persian 00:07:13.160 --> 00:07:16.360 populace freedom on one particular day in the 00:07:16.360 --> 00:07:19.240 future to attack and destroy all of the Jews 00:07:19.240 --> 00:07:21.680 and to take any of their possessions they wanted. 00:07:22.120 --> 00:07:25.370 How horrific, right? But thanks to God's sovereign 00:07:25.370 --> 00:07:28.009 intervention, he sends Queen Esther, gives her 00:07:28.009 --> 00:07:30.329 the courage and the strength to intercede for 00:07:30.329 --> 00:07:33.689 her people before the king. And two months later, 00:07:33.850 --> 00:07:37.370 Haman's wicked plan is exposed, he's executed, 00:07:37.449 --> 00:07:41.769 and a second unchangeable law is issued to counteract 00:07:41.769 --> 00:07:44.209 the first one. But remember, the first one couldn't 00:07:44.209 --> 00:07:47.069 be changed, but here comes a second one. This 00:07:47.069 --> 00:07:50.069 second unit gives the Jews the king's full backing 00:07:50.069 --> 00:07:54.339 and authority to legally defend themselves. To 00:07:54.339 --> 00:07:56.639 legally defend themselves and to kill any group 00:07:56.639 --> 00:07:59.259 of people who would seek to harm them and steal 00:07:59.259 --> 00:08:02.860 their things. So as we come to verse 1, nine 00:08:02.860 --> 00:08:05.800 months have now passed and the day of conflict 00:08:05.800 --> 00:08:09.160 has finally arrived. These two unchangeable laws. 00:08:09.759 --> 00:08:12.339 Both issued by the king, one by Haman, one by 00:08:12.339 --> 00:08:16.120 Mordecai, are about to run headlong into each 00:08:16.120 --> 00:08:18.459 other. That means there is still a significant 00:08:18.459 --> 00:08:20.980 amount of Persian people out there who have been 00:08:20.980 --> 00:08:23.639 licking their chops and planning to attack the 00:08:23.639 --> 00:08:26.100 Jews and to make themselves wealthier. And you 00:08:26.100 --> 00:08:27.800 can imagine that happening. People are like, 00:08:27.899 --> 00:08:30.660 no, I saw that first law and I am ready for it. 00:08:31.439 --> 00:08:33.879 But it also means that the Jews had seen the 00:08:33.879 --> 00:08:35.759 second law and they had organized themselves 00:08:35.759 --> 00:08:39.690 to resist and to fight back. So you can imagine 00:08:39.690 --> 00:08:42.149 the tension on this particular day. Let's look 00:08:42.149 --> 00:08:44.950 at verse one. Now in the 12th month, that is 00:08:44.950 --> 00:08:47.830 the month of Adar, on the 13th day, that's the 00:08:47.830 --> 00:08:51.090 big day, when the king's command and edict were 00:08:51.090 --> 00:08:54.250 about to be executed, on the day when the enemies 00:08:54.250 --> 00:08:56.909 of the Jews hoped to gain mastery over them, 00:08:57.029 --> 00:09:01.210 it was turned to the contrary so that the Jews 00:09:01.210 --> 00:09:04.769 themselves gained the mastery over those who 00:09:04.769 --> 00:09:07.700 hated them. That was that eucatastrophe that 00:09:07.700 --> 00:09:09.879 we talked about last Sunday, right? And again, 00:09:09.940 --> 00:09:11.519 if you missed it last Sunday, sorry to throw 00:09:11.519 --> 00:09:14.740 that word into your lexicon, but it means a sudden 00:09:14.740 --> 00:09:17.879 good turn of events. This was the eucatastrophe 00:09:17.879 --> 00:09:20.960 for the Jewish people, a turn of events. Here's 00:09:20.960 --> 00:09:23.539 how it happened, verse two. The Jews assembled 00:09:23.539 --> 00:09:26.620 in their cities throughout all the provinces 00:09:26.620 --> 00:09:30.620 of King Ahasuerus. Remember how broad this empire 00:09:30.620 --> 00:09:33.710 was? Massive. Persian Empire. They assembled 00:09:33.710 --> 00:09:37.129 in the cities, it says, to lay hands on those 00:09:37.129 --> 00:09:40.850 who sought their harm. And no one could stand 00:09:40.850 --> 00:09:43.850 before them, for the dread of them had fallen 00:09:43.850 --> 00:09:48.629 on all the people. So what we see take place 00:09:48.629 --> 00:09:51.289 is a combination of two things. First and foremost, 00:09:51.549 --> 00:09:53.970 we have to acknowledge the sovereign protective 00:09:53.970 --> 00:09:56.990 hand of God over his people. He is in control 00:09:56.990 --> 00:10:00.049 of this situation. But second, you see the unity. 00:10:00.700 --> 00:10:03.320 and the passion that is produced by a people 00:10:03.320 --> 00:10:07.059 who are fighting for their very survival. That 00:10:07.059 --> 00:10:08.519 makes all the difference. If you've ever studied 00:10:08.519 --> 00:10:10.559 ancient battles, you know the people that are 00:10:10.559 --> 00:10:12.639 defending their lives, their very lives, their 00:10:12.639 --> 00:10:15.240 existence, their land, always have more passion 00:10:15.240 --> 00:10:18.620 to fight than the enemy. And so in every province 00:10:18.620 --> 00:10:21.700 across this vast empire, the Jews rally together 00:10:21.700 --> 00:10:24.220 and they prevail in these battles and skirmishes 00:10:24.220 --> 00:10:28.720 that are taking place all across the land. And 00:10:28.720 --> 00:10:30.879 it's a reminder, it's something that really struck 00:10:30.879 --> 00:10:33.740 me last night as I was writing, that if there's 00:10:33.740 --> 00:10:35.379 anything you can say about the Jewish people 00:10:35.379 --> 00:10:37.480 over the centuries, it's that they know how to 00:10:37.480 --> 00:10:41.399 survive. Amen? Right? In every place that they've 00:10:41.399 --> 00:10:43.460 been, they've figured out a way to survive, even 00:10:43.460 --> 00:10:46.000 today in the land of Israel, even surrounded 00:10:46.000 --> 00:10:49.399 by as many enemies as they are today, they know 00:10:49.399 --> 00:10:52.960 how to survive and even flourish under God's 00:10:52.960 --> 00:10:56.470 protective hand. There's also a third factor 00:10:56.470 --> 00:10:58.769 involved, and you see this in verse three. It 00:10:58.769 --> 00:11:00.690 says, even all the princes of the provinces, 00:11:00.950 --> 00:11:03.429 the satraps, the governors, and those who were 00:11:03.429 --> 00:11:06.070 doing the king's business, look, assisted the 00:11:06.070 --> 00:11:11.070 Jews because of the dread of Mordecai had fallen 00:11:11.070 --> 00:11:14.169 on them. So the Jews are now assisted in all 00:11:14.169 --> 00:11:16.509 these provinces by the government officials. 00:11:16.730 --> 00:11:19.289 Why? Why would that suddenly happen? Well, no 00:11:19.289 --> 00:11:22.779 doubt word had spread that guess what? The king, 00:11:22.779 --> 00:11:26.039 who's all powerful, his beloved queen is Jewish. 00:11:26.919 --> 00:11:30.039 That changes the game for every official in the 00:11:30.039 --> 00:11:32.899 empire. And that her relative Mordecai, also 00:11:32.899 --> 00:11:35.600 Jewish, has now come to power and is running 00:11:35.600 --> 00:11:39.440 things from Susa. So having received this second 00:11:39.440 --> 00:11:42.019 law from the king that now supports the Jews, 00:11:42.539 --> 00:11:44.440 you know these officials are not going to cross 00:11:44.440 --> 00:11:46.899 Mordecai. It doesn't make sense. They must have 00:11:46.899 --> 00:11:49.500 realized that if I assist the Jews, I'm actually 00:11:49.500 --> 00:11:52.320 assisting the king's own household. So it just 00:11:52.320 --> 00:11:55.600 makes sense, right? Verse four, indeed, Mordecai 00:11:55.600 --> 00:11:58.269 was great in the king's house. And his fame spread 00:11:58.269 --> 00:12:01.110 throughout all the provinces, for the man Mordecai 00:12:01.110 --> 00:12:03.409 became greater and greater. And the language 00:12:03.409 --> 00:12:06.090 you see there is sort of an echo from an earlier 00:12:06.090 --> 00:12:08.990 time in Jewish history. Mordecai is walking in 00:12:08.990 --> 00:12:11.809 the footsteps of men like Joseph and Moses, who 00:12:11.809 --> 00:12:15.450 also became great in foreign courts, not Persia, 00:12:15.570 --> 00:12:18.029 but in those two cases, in the court of Pharaoh 00:12:18.029 --> 00:12:21.649 of Egypt. Similar situation, God has lifted him 00:12:21.649 --> 00:12:24.750 up to this important position. Verse five, thus 00:12:24.750 --> 00:12:26.710 the Jews struck all their enemies with the sword, 00:12:27.240 --> 00:12:29.019 Killing and destroying. And they did what they 00:12:29.019 --> 00:12:31.840 pleased to those who hated them. This is a rout. 00:12:32.679 --> 00:12:36.100 They are winning these skirmishes all the time. 00:12:36.720 --> 00:12:38.519 So that's a description, a general description 00:12:38.519 --> 00:12:40.860 of what's going on kingdom wide. The Jews are 00:12:40.860 --> 00:12:43.019 prevailing, but look at verse six. Beginning 00:12:43.019 --> 00:12:46.039 here now, the focus narrows to one location, 00:12:46.320 --> 00:12:49.379 the citadel in the capital city of Susa. This 00:12:49.379 --> 00:12:51.879 is where, again, the royal court is. This is 00:12:51.879 --> 00:12:54.659 where Queen Esther lives. This is where Mordecai 00:12:54.659 --> 00:12:57.980 is ruling from. Verse six says, at the citadel 00:12:57.980 --> 00:13:01.600 in Susa, the Jews killed and destroyed 500 men. 00:13:02.500 --> 00:13:07.659 Wow. And then here comes a list of, I hate when 00:13:07.659 --> 00:13:11.019 I have to do this. Here come the list of the 00:13:11.019 --> 00:13:14.600 names of Haman's ten sons. Are you ready for 00:13:14.600 --> 00:13:21.500 this? Parshendatha. Good? Good. Dalfon. Aspatha. 00:13:22.500 --> 00:13:29.419 Poratha. Adelia. Aridatha. Parmashta. Arisai. 00:13:29.940 --> 00:13:35.769 Aridai. And Vaisatha. These are the ten sons 00:13:35.769 --> 00:13:39.090 of Haman, the son of Hamadatha, the Jews' enemy. 00:13:40.330 --> 00:13:43.610 You see it? The Jews' enemy. Notice now, last 00:13:43.610 --> 00:13:46.529 phrase, but they did not lay their hands on the 00:13:46.529 --> 00:13:49.470 plunder. We'll come back to that. Yael, are you 00:13:49.470 --> 00:13:53.149 laughing at my pronunciation? It's fine. She'll 00:13:53.149 --> 00:13:56.970 correct me later. It's good. Now, why list the 00:13:56.970 --> 00:13:59.429 name of Haman's sons here? Well, this is critical 00:13:59.429 --> 00:14:02.629 for the story. This is the final step in the 00:14:02.629 --> 00:14:05.629 overthrow of Haman's house. We saw that last 00:14:05.629 --> 00:14:08.470 week, how all of his wealth, his estate, everything 00:14:08.470 --> 00:14:11.289 was given over to Esther, who then gave it to 00:14:11.289 --> 00:14:14.129 Mordecai as a steward. This is the final element, 00:14:14.210 --> 00:14:16.830 the overthrow of Haman's house. This is the end 00:14:16.830 --> 00:14:19.850 of his genealogical line. This is what happens 00:14:19.850 --> 00:14:22.029 when all of your sons die in battle at one time. 00:14:22.929 --> 00:14:25.190 Now, this is the point beginning in verse 11 00:14:25.190 --> 00:14:28.840 where things start to get dark. On that day, 00:14:28.860 --> 00:14:31.720 the number of those who were killed at the citadel 00:14:31.720 --> 00:14:35.940 in Susa was reported to the king. Okay, so you 00:14:35.940 --> 00:14:37.799 can picture the guy comes in with the announcement. 00:14:38.059 --> 00:14:40.899 Oh, great king, live forever. Here's the number 00:14:40.899 --> 00:14:43.320 of people the Jews have killed in your capital 00:14:43.320 --> 00:14:47.559 city. That should upset him, right? These are 00:14:47.559 --> 00:14:50.899 his subjects. These are his people. But you have 00:14:50.899 --> 00:14:52.679 to understand the ways of the ancient Persian 00:14:52.679 --> 00:14:55.700 kings. These were the most powerful men on the 00:14:55.700 --> 00:14:58.399 earth at this time. They fancied themselves to 00:14:58.399 --> 00:15:01.799 be gods themselves. So essentially to them, people 00:15:01.799 --> 00:15:05.779 are just pawns on a chessboard, pawns to be sacrificed. 00:15:06.019 --> 00:15:08.799 So a man like Xerxes has no regard for human 00:15:08.799 --> 00:15:11.360 life. What he cared about most was what pleased 00:15:11.360 --> 00:15:15.620 him. And what pleases him in this situation is, 00:15:15.679 --> 00:15:19.480 is my queen happy and content? That's it. So 00:15:19.480 --> 00:15:34.679 in verse 12, it says, Not only does he not seem 00:15:34.679 --> 00:15:37.279 to care about the loss of life, he actually seems 00:15:37.279 --> 00:15:39.659 pretty impressed with the numbers. Like, hey, 00:15:39.700 --> 00:15:42.090 not bad. Look at all the people that they've 00:15:42.090 --> 00:15:45.230 killed in my city. And he muses out loud, well, 00:15:45.370 --> 00:15:47.809 my goodness, if the Jews have killed 500 people 00:15:47.809 --> 00:15:50.850 there, how widespread is the slaughter? It must 00:15:50.850 --> 00:15:53.470 mean thousands or even tens of thousands of dead 00:15:53.470 --> 00:15:57.289 throughout my empire. This guy's a sociopath. 00:15:58.669 --> 00:16:01.289 There's no other way to explain this verse other 00:16:01.289 --> 00:16:04.970 than he is an absolute psychotic. He just doesn't 00:16:04.970 --> 00:16:08.070 care. And then he becomes even more callous. 00:16:08.590 --> 00:16:11.990 Completely unsolicited, he offers to Esther a 00:16:11.990 --> 00:16:16.450 chance to ask for even more. Now, what is your 00:16:16.450 --> 00:16:20.710 petition? He asks her. It shall even be granted 00:16:20.710 --> 00:16:23.610 to you. And what is your further request? It 00:16:23.610 --> 00:16:26.850 shall also be done. Here's where the controversy 00:16:26.850 --> 00:16:31.269 really comes into play. Verse 13. Then said Esther, 00:16:31.470 --> 00:16:34.970 if it pleases the king, more submissive court 00:16:34.970 --> 00:16:38.950 language. Let tomorrow also be granted to the 00:16:38.950 --> 00:16:42.509 Jews who are in Susa to do according to the edict 00:16:42.509 --> 00:16:47.429 of today and let Haman's 10 sons be hanged on 00:16:47.429 --> 00:16:50.570 the gallows. They're already dead, by the way. 00:16:53.490 --> 00:16:56.450 So Esther asks that the king give her an extension 00:16:56.450 --> 00:17:00.169 of the law for a second day so that the Jews 00:17:00.169 --> 00:17:03.450 can continue to eliminate their enemies there 00:17:03.450 --> 00:17:06.559 in the capital city. And she wants the corpses 00:17:06.559 --> 00:17:11.220 of Haman's 10 sons to be publicly displayed on 00:17:11.220 --> 00:17:13.940 the gallows that Haman himself had built. Now 00:17:13.940 --> 00:17:16.559 remember, we talked about a long time ago, gallows 00:17:16.559 --> 00:17:19.119 like this, the Persians didn't hang people by 00:17:19.119 --> 00:17:21.240 the neck. These would have been sharp stakes. 00:17:22.259 --> 00:17:24.920 And the bodies would have been, yeah, I'll let 00:17:24.920 --> 00:17:29.759 you not picture that in your minds. So what are 00:17:29.759 --> 00:17:35.029 we to make of this? It's hard not to, At least 00:17:35.029 --> 00:17:37.789 consider the obvious, right? Because it sounds 00:17:37.789 --> 00:17:41.150 so cold and so brutal to our modern ears. And 00:17:41.150 --> 00:17:45.150 in fact, this part of the story has been used 00:17:45.150 --> 00:17:47.210 against the Jewish people for centuries, if you 00:17:47.210 --> 00:17:49.829 didn't know. Martin Luther was guilty of this. 00:17:49.890 --> 00:17:52.089 Later in his life, in his anti -Semitic writings, 00:17:52.190 --> 00:17:55.670 pointed back to Esther chapter 9 as an example, 00:17:55.750 --> 00:17:58.509 drawing this blanket statement. Well, obviously 00:17:58.509 --> 00:18:01.609 the Jewish people are nationalistic and vengeful 00:18:01.609 --> 00:18:04.289 and wrote some awful things. about the Jewish 00:18:04.289 --> 00:18:06.390 people. So this has been used against the Jews 00:18:06.390 --> 00:18:10.470 for a long time. But what's going on here? Is 00:18:10.470 --> 00:18:15.490 Esther really seeking vengeance? I have read 00:18:15.490 --> 00:18:18.329 so much on this subject, and I still am here 00:18:18.329 --> 00:18:20.390 this morning to say, I'm not sure we can know 00:18:20.390 --> 00:18:23.660 for sure what's happening in her heart. There's 00:18:23.660 --> 00:18:26.200 a lot of opinions on the question. It's difficult 00:18:26.200 --> 00:18:29.140 for us to understand fully because none of us 00:18:29.140 --> 00:18:31.660 have lived in that time and place. None of us 00:18:31.660 --> 00:18:34.099 have lived in that culture. None of us have ever 00:18:34.099 --> 00:18:38.180 faced literally a genocide of our people. So 00:18:38.180 --> 00:18:40.400 we have to be careful that we don't judge too 00:18:40.400 --> 00:18:42.680 harshly. Listen, as I've said before concerning 00:18:42.680 --> 00:18:45.799 Esther, We have to balance the two extremes. 00:18:45.900 --> 00:18:49.220 She is neither a perfect heroine who does everything 00:18:49.220 --> 00:18:52.019 right, nor should we be too harsh in judging 00:18:52.019 --> 00:18:54.160 her because we haven't walked in those shoes. 00:18:54.460 --> 00:18:57.559 And I think at best what we can say here is had 00:18:57.559 --> 00:19:00.200 we been in her position, would any of us done 00:19:00.200 --> 00:19:03.420 any better? And I think that kind of humility 00:19:03.420 --> 00:19:05.640 is important as we come to the text. The answers 00:19:05.640 --> 00:19:07.740 are not as clear as we wish they were because 00:19:07.740 --> 00:19:09.759 the author hasn't given us those clear answers. 00:19:10.079 --> 00:19:12.119 So you have to be careful not to judge too much. 00:19:12.359 --> 00:19:14.740 Here's the thing. There are a number of factors 00:19:14.740 --> 00:19:18.319 involved here in the way Esther responds. At 00:19:18.319 --> 00:19:20.779 first glance, it's easy to judge her. Some people 00:19:20.779 --> 00:19:23.660 say she's bloodthirsty for revenge. Now that 00:19:23.660 --> 00:19:25.480 the Jews are prevailing in the battle, now she 00:19:25.480 --> 00:19:27.920 wants to keep going. That's one of the narratives 00:19:27.920 --> 00:19:30.460 that comes out of this chapter. But it seems 00:19:30.460 --> 00:19:32.559 that in her mind, the important work of destroying 00:19:32.559 --> 00:19:36.000 those who hate God and hate her people wasn't 00:19:36.000 --> 00:19:38.420 done after just one day, that there were more 00:19:38.420 --> 00:19:40.279 that needed to be dealt with. And if the job 00:19:40.279 --> 00:19:42.599 isn't finished yet, then that threat is going 00:19:42.599 --> 00:19:45.039 to still be out there, and it's going to linger 00:19:45.039 --> 00:19:47.160 into the future, and we're going to have generation 00:19:47.160 --> 00:19:51.420 after generation of constant fighting. So at 00:19:51.420 --> 00:19:53.819 least in her mind, she's like, give me one more 00:19:53.819 --> 00:19:59.019 day to settle the issue. Whatever you think of 00:19:59.019 --> 00:20:01.740 that, that's probably going on in the back of 00:20:01.740 --> 00:20:03.960 her mind. From a purely practical standpoint, 00:20:04.240 --> 00:20:07.559 you can see why she asked for permission for 00:20:07.559 --> 00:20:09.859 the fight to continue. And by the way, you can 00:20:09.859 --> 00:20:12.849 also make the case that, well, She's somewhat 00:20:12.849 --> 00:20:15.069 restrained in this. First of all, she's only 00:20:15.069 --> 00:20:17.730 asking for what the Jews can do according to 00:20:17.730 --> 00:20:20.650 the law, which means only self -defense. And 00:20:20.650 --> 00:20:23.289 she's limiting it to just one more day, not like, 00:20:23.289 --> 00:20:25.109 well, we want this to go on for weeks so that 00:20:25.109 --> 00:20:27.470 we can just keep slaughtering. So there is some 00:20:27.470 --> 00:20:30.869 restraint in what she says. In terms of Haman's 00:20:30.869 --> 00:20:33.829 sons, we have to remember two things. First of 00:20:33.829 --> 00:20:37.369 all, Haman is the biblical archetype of the enemy 00:20:37.369 --> 00:20:41.089 of God. Right? We talked about it. He embodies 00:20:41.089 --> 00:20:44.250 satanic opposition to God's people, and his sons 00:20:44.250 --> 00:20:47.990 are an extension of his house. You can't separate 00:20:47.990 --> 00:20:50.809 Haman from his sons. They are considered one 00:20:50.809 --> 00:20:53.049 thing in the ancient Near East. They are part 00:20:53.049 --> 00:20:55.730 of his house. Second, we should remember that 00:20:55.730 --> 00:20:58.390 this was common practice in that day, in the 00:20:58.390 --> 00:21:01.990 ancient Near East. Even when it offends our modern 00:21:01.990 --> 00:21:04.950 sensibilities, the execution of the sons of your 00:21:04.950 --> 00:21:08.210 enemy was required back then. Common practice. 00:21:08.309 --> 00:21:11.130 Why? So that you eliminate the possibility that 00:21:11.130 --> 00:21:13.789 someday those boys are going to grow up and take 00:21:13.789 --> 00:21:16.890 revenge for their father's death. Very common 00:21:16.890 --> 00:21:19.630 practice. Again, I'm not saying that's good or 00:21:19.630 --> 00:21:23.430 right. I'm giving you the practical issues that 00:21:23.430 --> 00:21:25.910 are involved here in the background. As to the 00:21:25.910 --> 00:21:28.430 public humiliation of their bodies, here's what 00:21:28.430 --> 00:21:31.170 we can say about this. It served as a demonstration 00:21:31.170 --> 00:21:34.089 of Yahweh's justice and wrath upon those who 00:21:34.089 --> 00:21:36.609 would threaten his people. and a warning for 00:21:36.609 --> 00:21:39.750 all those in the future not to cross the God 00:21:39.750 --> 00:21:42.430 of Israel. And it certainly would have been a 00:21:42.430 --> 00:21:45.329 very stark warning for anybody that witnessed 00:21:45.329 --> 00:21:48.289 this spectacle of their corpses being displayed 00:21:48.289 --> 00:21:52.369 in public. Those are the practical things. Now, 00:21:52.390 --> 00:21:55.130 let me share that it got really quiet in here, 00:21:55.170 --> 00:21:57.069 by the way. Did you see this? Everybody's really 00:21:57.069 --> 00:21:59.390 quiet. I know this is hard. This is why I dreaded 00:21:59.390 --> 00:22:03.180 this chapter. The larger historical issue that 00:22:03.180 --> 00:22:05.400 looms behind all this, we have to go back to 00:22:05.400 --> 00:22:07.440 where I started this morning with the story of 00:22:07.440 --> 00:22:10.140 Saul and the Amalekites. Think about this now. 00:22:10.240 --> 00:22:13.059 You've got to put on your thinking caps. Saul 00:22:13.059 --> 00:22:15.660 had failed to carry out God's instructions in 00:22:15.660 --> 00:22:18.740 his day to utterly destroy Amalek. And because 00:22:18.740 --> 00:22:22.180 of his failure, 500 years later, we have this 00:22:22.180 --> 00:22:26.130 conflict. Because Saul disobeyed, this is sort 00:22:26.130 --> 00:22:30.329 of the background of this particular story. Saul's 00:22:30.329 --> 00:22:33.170 descendants from the tribe of Benjamin include 00:22:33.170 --> 00:22:35.849 Mordecai and Esther, and they are in a death 00:22:35.849 --> 00:22:39.369 struggle against Agag's descendants, Haman and 00:22:39.369 --> 00:22:42.049 his 10 sons. That thing has lingered for hundreds 00:22:42.049 --> 00:22:45.589 of years. We have to understand that. So there's 00:22:45.589 --> 00:22:49.640 unfinished business being resolved here. Esther 00:22:49.640 --> 00:22:52.200 and Mordecai are prosecuting a new war against 00:22:52.200 --> 00:22:55.779 God's enemy, seeking permission from King Xerxes 00:22:55.779 --> 00:23:01.019 to finish what Saul left undone. Does that make 00:23:01.019 --> 00:23:04.519 sense? That's what's going on here. Even the 00:23:04.519 --> 00:23:06.579 gruesome act of publicly displaying the bodies 00:23:06.579 --> 00:23:10.859 of Haman's sons has a historical precedent to 00:23:10.859 --> 00:23:15.440 it. Do you recall how Saul was killed? How his 00:23:15.440 --> 00:23:20.009 son Jonathan was killed? They died in battle 00:23:20.009 --> 00:23:23.309 on Mount Gilboa. And what happened to their corpses? 00:23:24.190 --> 00:23:28.450 The enemy hung their bodies on the wall at Beit 00:23:28.450 --> 00:23:33.089 Shein. Right? So there's precedent to that as 00:23:33.089 --> 00:23:36.660 well. The same type of humiliation. So as brutal 00:23:36.660 --> 00:23:39.119 as all this was, we do need to understand that 00:23:39.119 --> 00:23:42.279 in conducting this war against the ancient enemy 00:23:42.279 --> 00:23:45.259 of Amalek, it's not as if Mordecai and Esther 00:23:45.259 --> 00:23:47.380 are out there. This is not some kind of a land 00:23:47.380 --> 00:23:49.500 grab. They're not trying to be greedy and build 00:23:49.500 --> 00:23:52.660 their wealth. This is finishing the job that 00:23:52.660 --> 00:23:57.220 should have been done 500 years prior. Theologically 00:23:57.220 --> 00:23:59.839 and historically, this is a prosecution of God's 00:23:59.839 --> 00:24:05.359 judicial decree against his enemies. that are 00:24:05.359 --> 00:24:08.819 so represented by Haman. And then on a deeper 00:24:08.819 --> 00:24:11.519 level, it's that ongoing war that's been raging 00:24:11.519 --> 00:24:15.339 since Genesis 3 .15, right? It's all part of 00:24:15.339 --> 00:24:17.000 this. When God declared that the seed of the 00:24:17.000 --> 00:24:19.079 woman and the seed of the serpent would live 00:24:19.079 --> 00:24:22.119 in constant hostility until the day that the 00:24:22.119 --> 00:24:24.480 Redeemer came and he crushed the head of the 00:24:24.480 --> 00:24:28.279 serpent. There's a lot going on here, isn't there? 00:24:29.480 --> 00:24:32.240 Okay, let's finish the story. Verse 14. So the 00:24:32.240 --> 00:24:34.819 king commanded that it should be done. He granted 00:24:34.819 --> 00:24:38.259 Esther's request. And an edict was issued in 00:24:38.259 --> 00:24:42.660 Susa and Haman's 10 sons were hanged. The Jews 00:24:42.660 --> 00:24:45.220 who were in Susa assembled also on the 14th day 00:24:45.220 --> 00:24:49.720 of the month of Adar and killed 300 more men 00:24:49.720 --> 00:24:52.980 in Susa. But then see this again. They did not 00:24:52.980 --> 00:24:56.259 lay their hands on the plunder. Verse 16, now 00:24:56.259 --> 00:24:58.059 the rest of the Jews who were in the king's provinces 00:24:58.059 --> 00:25:01.019 assembled to defend their lives and rid themselves 00:25:01.019 --> 00:25:06.460 of their enemies and kill 75 ,000 of those who 00:25:06.460 --> 00:25:09.880 hated them. That's the full casualty list from 00:25:09.880 --> 00:25:14.779 across this vast empire, 75 ,000. But last time, 00:25:14.779 --> 00:25:17.059 they did not lay their hands on the plunder. 00:25:17.759 --> 00:25:20.579 This was done on the 13th day of the month Adar, 00:25:20.599 --> 00:25:23.240 and on the 14th day, they rested and made it 00:25:23.240 --> 00:25:28.319 a day of feasting and rejoicing. Let's pray. 00:25:28.420 --> 00:25:33.759 No, I'm just kidding. Okay, you see why that 00:25:33.759 --> 00:25:36.480 was tough? There's a lot happening here. Okay, 00:25:36.579 --> 00:25:38.559 can we come back to the issue of plunder for 00:25:38.559 --> 00:25:40.740 a moment? Because I know I made a big deal in 00:25:40.740 --> 00:25:45.319 closing last week on this. I ended the messaging, 00:25:45.319 --> 00:25:46.880 for those of you who weren't here, by talking 00:25:46.880 --> 00:25:48.799 about how we as Christians have the victory over 00:25:48.799 --> 00:25:51.640 Satan. That that victory is secured for us because 00:25:51.640 --> 00:25:53.799 of our union with Christ, right? And because 00:25:53.799 --> 00:25:56.259 of the cross. We now have the victory over the 00:25:56.259 --> 00:25:58.819 law of sin and death. And we can celebrate just 00:25:58.819 --> 00:26:01.420 as the Jews celebrated when that second law was 00:26:01.420 --> 00:26:03.839 issued. We did that last week. And so each and 00:26:03.839 --> 00:26:06.039 every day that you and I abide with Christ, when 00:26:06.039 --> 00:26:08.180 we live for his glory and the advancement of 00:26:08.180 --> 00:26:10.859 his kingdom, we are plundering the house of the 00:26:10.859 --> 00:26:14.490 enemy. In little things, repentance, prayer, 00:26:14.750 --> 00:26:17.589 worship, praise, all of these things, understanding 00:26:17.589 --> 00:26:20.609 God's truth, studying the word, we are plundering 00:26:20.609 --> 00:26:23.369 the house of the enemy. It's all part of the 00:26:23.369 --> 00:26:26.230 spiritual battle that we fight and we fight individually 00:26:26.230 --> 00:26:29.009 as believers and we fight together as a local 00:26:29.009 --> 00:26:31.950 body of Christ. That is all true. So we are all 00:26:31.950 --> 00:26:34.230 about plundering. But here in the text, it says 00:26:34.230 --> 00:26:36.529 the Jews didn't take the plunder three times 00:26:36.529 --> 00:26:42.980 to emphasize it. So was I wrong last week? Okay, 00:26:43.059 --> 00:26:50.319 thank you, Carol. Some of you were wondering. 00:26:51.319 --> 00:26:55.220 There is a sinful, idolatrous kind of plundering 00:26:55.220 --> 00:26:57.839 that the people of God are never to engage in. 00:26:58.240 --> 00:27:00.680 And that is what's being described in this text. 00:27:00.819 --> 00:27:03.720 What the Jews refused to take in this text were 00:27:03.720 --> 00:27:08.269 the material spoils of war. The physical material 00:27:08.269 --> 00:27:11.150 spoils of war. And though the king's second law 00:27:11.150 --> 00:27:13.390 actually gave them permission to do it, they 00:27:13.390 --> 00:27:17.690 knew better. We don't do this. Remember, in their 00:27:17.690 --> 00:27:20.750 minds, this was self -defense. And it's not just 00:27:20.750 --> 00:27:22.930 a political battle, it's a spiritual battle as 00:27:22.930 --> 00:27:25.430 well. When I talked about plundering last Sunday, 00:27:25.589 --> 00:27:27.910 I was referring to spiritual plundering, right? 00:27:28.750 --> 00:27:31.599 Spiritual, not physical plunder. And remember, 00:27:31.680 --> 00:27:34.220 we pointed to that important text in 2 Corinthians 00:27:34.220 --> 00:27:37.460 10 that says the weapons that we use in battle 00:27:37.460 --> 00:27:41.240 are not according to the flesh, right? They're 00:27:41.240 --> 00:27:44.220 spiritual weapons that destroy falsehoods and 00:27:44.220 --> 00:27:46.339 tear down arguments that are raised against the 00:27:46.339 --> 00:27:48.859 knowledge of God. That's the realm that we fight 00:27:48.859 --> 00:27:51.980 in, not physical, but spiritual. So at the end 00:27:51.980 --> 00:27:54.529 of the day, it's not material plunder. That's 00:27:54.529 --> 00:27:56.930 going to last into eternity, is it? It's spiritual 00:27:56.930 --> 00:27:59.349 treasure that will last for eternity. That's 00:27:59.349 --> 00:28:02.049 where the battle needs to be fought. Now for 00:28:02.049 --> 00:28:04.890 the Jews, there's more history behind this issue 00:28:04.890 --> 00:28:06.809 of plunder that goes all the way back to the 00:28:06.809 --> 00:28:10.210 Torah and the prophets. In Genesis 14, you might 00:28:10.210 --> 00:28:14.369 recall Abraham had to go to war in order to rescue 00:28:14.369 --> 00:28:18.450 his nephew Lot, correct? And he pursued his enemy 00:28:18.450 --> 00:28:21.390 and he won this great victory. And when he came 00:28:21.390 --> 00:28:24.059 back, do you remember the king of Sodom? offered 00:28:24.059 --> 00:28:27.420 him the spoils of war. And what did Abraham do? 00:28:28.619 --> 00:28:33.140 He refused it. He said, no, thank you. Why? Lest 00:28:33.140 --> 00:28:36.599 the wickedness of Sodom would become the source 00:28:36.599 --> 00:28:39.500 of his prosperity. We don't take that kind of 00:28:39.500 --> 00:28:42.539 wicked plunder, he said. And from that point 00:28:42.539 --> 00:28:46.039 forward, even during the wars of conquest for 00:28:46.039 --> 00:28:48.700 the promised land, the Jews would not touch any 00:28:48.700 --> 00:28:52.339 of their enemies' possessions. Rightfully so. 00:28:53.039 --> 00:28:55.339 So, for example, after the defeat of Jericho 00:28:55.339 --> 00:28:58.119 under Joshua's leadership, remember Israel went 00:28:58.119 --> 00:29:01.640 on and they attacked the city of Ai. And they 00:29:01.640 --> 00:29:05.799 lost decisively, right? Well, why? Because there 00:29:05.799 --> 00:29:08.240 was a man in the camp named Achan who had secretly 00:29:08.240 --> 00:29:12.059 taken the enemy's plunder. And for that reason, 00:29:12.099 --> 00:29:14.900 God's anger was kindled. And until Achan was 00:29:14.900 --> 00:29:17.279 dealt with, until he was put to death, Israel 00:29:17.279 --> 00:29:20.759 was not going to be victorious. So in history, 00:29:20.859 --> 00:29:23.079 anytime Israel waged war against the enemies 00:29:23.079 --> 00:29:26.559 of God for the purpose of executing divine judgment 00:29:26.559 --> 00:29:29.940 on them, which was righteous for their immorality, 00:29:29.980 --> 00:29:33.019 for their idolatry, they were to do so according 00:29:33.019 --> 00:29:36.539 to God's instructions. And that meant not profiting 00:29:36.539 --> 00:29:39.059 from the wickedness of those kingdoms. Don't 00:29:39.059 --> 00:29:43.259 take that spoil. It's tainted. And the Jews understood 00:29:43.259 --> 00:29:46.410 this. Coming back to our story of Saul and the 00:29:46.410 --> 00:29:49.809 Amalekites, Saul, when he destroys Amalek, he 00:29:49.809 --> 00:29:52.890 takes the king captive and he plunders the best 00:29:52.890 --> 00:29:55.190 of their possessions, all the sheep and the ox 00:29:55.190 --> 00:29:58.710 and all that stuff. And God's anger burned against 00:29:58.710 --> 00:30:02.670 Saul and he was disqualified as Israel's king. 00:30:03.230 --> 00:30:05.450 So with all that in mind, we come back to the 00:30:05.450 --> 00:30:08.390 story of Esther. Now we understand why it says 00:30:08.390 --> 00:30:11.009 three times in this text, but they did not take 00:30:11.009 --> 00:30:14.220 the plunder. It's historical and it's theological. 00:30:14.640 --> 00:30:17.299 Mordecai is not going to make the same mistake 00:30:17.299 --> 00:30:21.039 that his ancestor Saul did by engaging in idolatrous 00:30:21.039 --> 00:30:24.720 plundering. Our plundering is what? Spiritual, 00:30:24.980 --> 00:30:28.480 not physical. Remember, Samuel said it back in 00:30:28.480 --> 00:30:30.460 the day, obedience is better than sacrifice. 00:30:30.920 --> 00:30:33.700 Do it right the first time. Don't sin and then 00:30:33.700 --> 00:30:35.759 expect that my sacrifice is just going to please 00:30:35.759 --> 00:30:39.440 God. Do it right the first time. Obey him. Follow 00:30:39.440 --> 00:30:45.970 his instructions. Amen? Okay. So I want to close 00:30:45.970 --> 00:30:49.470 our time by taking this rabbit trail that I promised. 00:30:50.269 --> 00:30:53.390 This is Sanctity of Life Sunday. And so we should 00:30:53.390 --> 00:30:56.869 talk about protecting life and how we go about 00:30:56.869 --> 00:31:01.390 doing that. And so I want to talk about this 00:31:01.390 --> 00:31:04.490 somewhat controversial issue of Christians and 00:31:04.490 --> 00:31:07.130 self -defense. And how do we do that? How do 00:31:07.130 --> 00:31:08.910 we do that in a way that is pleasing to God? 00:31:09.089 --> 00:31:13.220 Even the use of force. The use of force in protecting 00:31:13.220 --> 00:31:17.019 life. Occasionally you'll run into a fellow believer 00:31:17.019 --> 00:31:20.799 who will tell you that he or she has taken the 00:31:20.799 --> 00:31:25.079 absolute position of pacifism. I've met folks 00:31:25.079 --> 00:31:27.599 like this. That in all cases, and by the way, 00:31:27.640 --> 00:31:30.759 the people that I've met that hold to pacifism, 00:31:30.799 --> 00:31:32.779 that is their biblical conviction. They have 00:31:32.779 --> 00:31:36.099 arrived at that position through prayerful consideration. 00:31:36.279 --> 00:31:39.140 I want to respect that. But their position is 00:31:39.140 --> 00:31:42.859 that in all cases, And in all situations, Christians 00:31:42.859 --> 00:31:47.559 should 100 % denounce war, violence, and the 00:31:47.559 --> 00:31:51.000 use of force in resolving disputes. To the extent 00:31:51.000 --> 00:31:53.220 that they would say, and I've heard someone say 00:31:53.220 --> 00:31:57.119 this, I will not physically defend my life or 00:31:57.119 --> 00:31:59.660 the life of my wife and children if I'm attacked. 00:32:01.380 --> 00:32:04.319 I will not defend anyone, not myself and not 00:32:04.319 --> 00:32:08.099 my family. Now, I disagree with that. And I think 00:32:08.099 --> 00:32:11.089 it's a really difficult case. to make if you're 00:32:11.089 --> 00:32:14.029 taking the entire canon of Scripture into consideration. 00:32:15.230 --> 00:32:17.690 So let me try to lay this out in a logical fashion 00:32:17.690 --> 00:32:20.309 so that we can understand the issue. First of 00:32:20.309 --> 00:32:23.049 all, it's true that on one hand, Scripture calls 00:32:23.049 --> 00:32:30.690 us to be peacemakers. Amen? That should be our 00:32:30.690 --> 00:32:34.430 default position to seek peace. That should be 00:32:34.430 --> 00:32:37.240 our goal in all things. So we have to say that 00:32:37.240 --> 00:32:40.160 very loudly and very clearly. We're to be peacemakers. 00:32:40.200 --> 00:32:42.759 That is part of our testimony as Christ followers. 00:32:42.980 --> 00:32:45.680 We should always seek to honor God every time 00:32:45.680 --> 00:32:47.920 we come into conflict, every time we deal with 00:32:47.920 --> 00:32:51.539 a dispute. Paul famously says in Romans 12, as 00:32:51.539 --> 00:32:54.819 much as it depends on you or me, we should be 00:32:54.819 --> 00:32:57.579 at peace with all men, right? That's part of 00:32:57.579 --> 00:33:00.539 our testimony. But having said that, it's also 00:33:00.539 --> 00:33:03.640 true that the Bible strongly affirms the need 00:33:03.640 --> 00:33:06.940 to protect the sanctity of human life, and yes, 00:33:06.980 --> 00:33:10.900 sometimes by use of force. It's actually in the 00:33:10.900 --> 00:33:14.180 text. We're given consistent examples of godly 00:33:14.180 --> 00:33:18.700 people who have confronted evil with violence 00:33:18.700 --> 00:33:23.279 in order to protect innocent life. So again, 00:33:23.339 --> 00:33:25.660 back to the Torah. God addressed this issue with 00:33:25.660 --> 00:33:28.000 his people. He did it both in his legal code 00:33:28.000 --> 00:33:30.720 and by way of example. We just talked about Abraham. 00:33:31.740 --> 00:33:34.799 When Lot, his nephew, was kidnapped and taken, 00:33:34.940 --> 00:33:37.880 did Abraham just sit around and hope that Lot 00:33:37.880 --> 00:33:42.299 would be okay? Well, I hope they take care of 00:33:42.299 --> 00:33:44.140 him. What were the odds that they were going 00:33:44.140 --> 00:33:49.240 to take care of him? No, no, he led a militia. 00:33:49.779 --> 00:33:52.519 We forget that Abraham was actually a man of 00:33:52.519 --> 00:33:56.559 war. He led a militia of 300 trained men to pursue 00:33:56.559 --> 00:34:01.420 his enemies to save Lot's life. That's in the 00:34:01.420 --> 00:34:04.700 text. We also know that God commanded Israel 00:34:04.700 --> 00:34:08.179 to go to war on many occasions. Why? To build 00:34:08.179 --> 00:34:11.239 and preserve his chosen people in that promised 00:34:11.239 --> 00:34:13.820 land. And in the process of that, you have to 00:34:13.820 --> 00:34:16.320 understand the armies of Israel are acting as 00:34:16.320 --> 00:34:19.460 Yahweh's hand of judgment against the wickedness 00:34:19.460 --> 00:34:22.579 of the people in that region. So at times, God's 00:34:22.579 --> 00:34:25.039 people have had to go to battle for the cause 00:34:25.039 --> 00:34:29.289 of righteousness over evil. And I know these 00:34:29.289 --> 00:34:32.829 are hard things to accept, but they are Yahweh's 00:34:32.829 --> 00:34:35.869 hand of righteousness in the book of Joshua, 00:34:36.030 --> 00:34:39.050 for example, over the wickedness of those people 00:34:39.050 --> 00:34:41.449 groups. On a more personal level, if you read 00:34:41.449 --> 00:34:44.789 in Exodus 22, God actually instructs the people 00:34:44.789 --> 00:34:47.809 through Moses about how a man should protect 00:34:48.380 --> 00:34:51.280 his household, even gives very specific instructions 00:34:51.280 --> 00:34:54.420 that if a thief breaks in, this is what you should 00:34:54.420 --> 00:34:56.920 do. You can strike him. At nighttime, you could 00:34:56.920 --> 00:34:59.719 even strike him dead and there will be no guilt. 00:35:01.039 --> 00:35:03.280 God's very practical with that. We have the rulers 00:35:03.280 --> 00:35:05.280 of the United Kingdom of Israel, Saul, David, 00:35:05.360 --> 00:35:07.800 and Solomon. How many times do they take up arms 00:35:07.800 --> 00:35:10.420 against enemy nations? Why did they do that? 00:35:10.880 --> 00:35:14.530 To protect their people. They go to war with 00:35:14.530 --> 00:35:17.570 the Philistines to solidify their borders so 00:35:17.570 --> 00:35:21.929 that the people can be safe and protected. You 00:35:21.929 --> 00:35:24.349 fast forward to the return from exile in Babylon 00:35:24.349 --> 00:35:27.429 and you see Nehemiah's workers, they're rebuilding 00:35:27.429 --> 00:35:30.170 the walls of Jerusalem while constantly being 00:35:30.170 --> 00:35:34.030 attacked. So what did they do? Did they say, 00:35:34.050 --> 00:35:35.789 well, that's just tough luck. Let's just keep 00:35:35.789 --> 00:35:38.090 building and we'll just, oops, sorry, arrow in 00:35:38.090 --> 00:35:41.170 the back, right? Well, you know, we can't, we 00:35:41.170 --> 00:35:44.050 shouldn't do anything about this. Of course not. 00:35:44.409 --> 00:35:48.409 Some Jewish men were tasked by Nehemiah to guard 00:35:48.409 --> 00:35:52.590 the construction with actual spears. And all 00:35:52.590 --> 00:35:55.030 the others that were building still kept a sword 00:35:55.030 --> 00:35:58.610 girded on their side, ready to spring into defensive 00:35:58.610 --> 00:36:02.409 action. So we have these examples. The reality, 00:36:02.489 --> 00:36:05.489 friends, is there are times when resisting evil 00:36:05.489 --> 00:36:09.340 does require the use of force. And we should 00:36:09.340 --> 00:36:11.000 recognize that. Now, when you come to the New 00:36:11.000 --> 00:36:14.300 Testament, do things change? Well, there's some 00:36:14.300 --> 00:36:16.699 consistent principles. There's a change in form 00:36:16.699 --> 00:36:20.400 and function. But that goes with, not to make 00:36:20.400 --> 00:36:22.800 this controversial, with the dispensational changes 00:36:22.800 --> 00:36:26.079 from Israel to the church. The church is not 00:36:26.079 --> 00:36:29.019 a single people group. It's not a political nation. 00:36:29.199 --> 00:36:31.820 It doesn't have borders or armies. So the commands 00:36:31.820 --> 00:36:34.739 to go to war are not given to the church. It's 00:36:34.739 --> 00:36:36.840 a massive difference between Israel and the church. 00:36:37.559 --> 00:36:40.099 But you do see the principle of self -defense 00:36:40.099 --> 00:36:43.159 and protection of life being put forth by the 00:36:43.159 --> 00:36:48.099 apostles and by Jesus himself and by Jesus. Now, 00:36:48.179 --> 00:36:50.440 pacifists will quickly cite the Sermon on the 00:36:50.440 --> 00:36:52.900 Mount, and they'll say, well, Jesus said, when 00:36:52.900 --> 00:36:54.780 somebody strikes you in the cheek, what do you 00:36:54.780 --> 00:36:58.739 do? You punch them back. No, no, sorry. You turn 00:36:58.739 --> 00:37:01.699 the other cheek. And we should take that teaching 00:37:01.699 --> 00:37:05.280 seriously. Sometimes those of us who are on the 00:37:05.280 --> 00:37:07.590 other side of the issue will say, well, He didn't 00:37:07.590 --> 00:37:10.530 really mean that. Yeah, he did. What Jesus was 00:37:10.530 --> 00:37:14.110 trying to do was to warn us against, you know, 00:37:14.130 --> 00:37:16.869 the eye for an eye principle that we can so quickly 00:37:16.869 --> 00:37:20.309 jump to and become violent. It's far better, 00:37:20.389 --> 00:37:23.530 he says, to overlook a personal insult. Far better 00:37:23.530 --> 00:37:27.349 to look past a minor offense for the sake of 00:37:27.349 --> 00:37:29.769 maintaining peace. We should affirm that over 00:37:29.769 --> 00:37:32.989 and over again. What he doesn't mean by turn 00:37:32.989 --> 00:37:38.140 the other cheek is let someone murder you. right 00:37:38.140 --> 00:37:42.360 what he doesn't mean is well let people come 00:37:42.360 --> 00:37:46.340 and harm your family that's a ridiculous jump 00:37:46.340 --> 00:37:49.840 in logic neither does it mean stand by and pull 00:37:49.840 --> 00:37:52.739 out your phone and don't intervene when an evil 00:37:52.739 --> 00:37:56.019 person seeks to harm somebody within your presence 00:37:56.019 --> 00:38:00.320 which is all too common today we have more videos 00:38:00.320 --> 00:38:02.559 of people being attacked than people jumping 00:38:02.559 --> 00:38:06.849 in to prevent evil That's a message for you men 00:38:06.849 --> 00:38:11.690 out there. Be courageous. This is simply not 00:38:11.690 --> 00:38:13.469 consistent with the whole counsel of scripture. 00:38:13.570 --> 00:38:16.710 Jesus himself acknowledges a very practical need 00:38:16.710 --> 00:38:18.949 for self -defense in Luke 22. Do you remember? 00:38:19.050 --> 00:38:21.590 Before he sends out his disciples, he says, do 00:38:21.590 --> 00:38:24.949 you have a sword? If you don't, sell your cloak 00:38:24.949 --> 00:38:28.530 and get one. Did Jesus not know what was gonna 00:38:28.530 --> 00:38:31.409 happen? Of course he knew, right? In other words, 00:38:31.469 --> 00:38:35.300 friends. Don't be naive to the dangers of this 00:38:35.300 --> 00:38:38.260 fallen world. There are wicked people out there, 00:38:38.380 --> 00:38:41.019 and they may try to take advantage of you and 00:38:41.019 --> 00:38:45.840 harm you, so be prepared and be alert. Don't 00:38:45.840 --> 00:38:48.739 obsess over it, but understand that that's true 00:38:48.739 --> 00:38:52.000 of the fallen world we live in. In terms of war, 00:38:52.079 --> 00:38:54.239 I find it interesting that when Jesus interacts 00:38:54.239 --> 00:38:56.679 with the Roman centurion in Matthew chapter 8, 00:38:56.760 --> 00:38:59.599 and this guy comes with a prayer request, does 00:38:59.599 --> 00:39:02.190 Jesus say, First of all, renounce your military 00:39:02.190 --> 00:39:06.690 service. He doesn't. He hears the request and 00:39:06.690 --> 00:39:09.050 he compliments him for his remarkable faith. 00:39:09.210 --> 00:39:12.010 And we shouldn't forget that Jesus himself, though 00:39:12.010 --> 00:39:14.230 while in the flesh was nothing but gentle and 00:39:14.230 --> 00:39:16.670 peace -loving, he did flip some tables, right? 00:39:17.010 --> 00:39:19.369 But he's gentle and peace -loving, but someday 00:39:19.369 --> 00:39:22.610 he will return and judge the nation with, you 00:39:22.610 --> 00:39:28.010 ready for it? Perfectly righteous violence. Perfectly 00:39:28.010 --> 00:39:33.469 righteous violence. The use of great force will 00:39:33.469 --> 00:39:36.289 be his holy response towards those who oppose 00:39:36.289 --> 00:39:39.710 him and practice evil. These are important truths. 00:39:39.869 --> 00:39:41.809 I know it's hard to sort of formulate this and 00:39:41.809 --> 00:39:44.230 arguments can go back and forth, but understanding 00:39:44.230 --> 00:39:47.650 the whole counsel matters. Now, beyond those 00:39:47.650 --> 00:39:50.050 examples, which I think are important, I'm going 00:39:50.050 --> 00:39:51.909 to put some things on the screen, just some basic 00:39:51.909 --> 00:39:54.969 principles for us to understand. And these are 00:39:54.969 --> 00:39:57.219 things we should know about. First of all, One 00:39:57.219 --> 00:39:59.880 of the things that undergirds the doctrine of 00:39:59.880 --> 00:40:04.239 Christian self -defense is, man, this thing's 00:40:04.239 --> 00:40:07.460 dying. There we go. Is understanding the high 00:40:07.460 --> 00:40:10.880 value that scripture places on human life. It 00:40:10.880 --> 00:40:13.219 starts there. When we recognize that every life 00:40:13.219 --> 00:40:16.340 comes from God and we defend it, we are honoring 00:40:16.340 --> 00:40:20.360 the Imago Dei. We are honoring the image of God 00:40:20.360 --> 00:40:22.699 in each one of us. And that is especially true. 00:40:23.320 --> 00:40:26.400 when you and I step in and defend those who can't 00:40:26.400 --> 00:40:29.760 defend themselves. I'm going to say that again. 00:40:29.880 --> 00:40:33.219 This is especially true when we step in and defend 00:40:33.219 --> 00:40:36.420 those who cannot defend themselves. What am I 00:40:36.420 --> 00:40:38.659 talking about? The most vulnerable among us, 00:40:38.739 --> 00:40:41.679 babies in the womb, starting there. But children, 00:40:41.780 --> 00:40:44.099 obviously, right? Those who are poor, those who 00:40:44.099 --> 00:40:47.989 are too weak and unable to fight. We have to 00:40:47.989 --> 00:40:49.909 step in on those things. Every life matters. 00:40:49.989 --> 00:40:52.690 That's where it starts. Second principle is love 00:40:52.690 --> 00:40:55.250 your neighbor. Love your neighbor. Sometimes 00:40:55.250 --> 00:40:58.289 loving your neighbor means taking action to protect 00:40:58.289 --> 00:41:02.989 him or her from violence. Right? Even if it puts 00:41:02.989 --> 00:41:05.670 us in the crosshairs and we sacrifice ourselves 00:41:05.670 --> 00:41:08.909 to protect somebody. I know this much for sure. 00:41:08.969 --> 00:41:11.789 It's not loving to stand by and do nothing if 00:41:11.789 --> 00:41:14.329 somebody is attacked. You know, recording it. 00:41:14.650 --> 00:41:18.750 That is not loving your neighbor. Even loving 00:41:18.750 --> 00:41:20.630 our enemies doesn't mean we have to let them 00:41:20.630 --> 00:41:22.949 harm other people. Yeah, we have to love our 00:41:22.949 --> 00:41:24.929 enemies. That doesn't mean, well, I have to love 00:41:24.929 --> 00:41:26.650 you, so go ahead and do all that you want to 00:41:26.650 --> 00:41:28.809 do, harm anybody that you want. How ridiculous 00:41:28.809 --> 00:41:32.309 is that? In fact, by resisting a violent aggressor 00:41:32.309 --> 00:41:34.989 and stopping him, we're working for his ultimate 00:41:34.989 --> 00:41:38.349 good, to stop him from doing something wicked. 00:41:38.550 --> 00:41:41.230 Hopefully repent. That's actually for his good. 00:41:43.010 --> 00:41:45.690 The third principle is we have a God -ordained 00:41:45.690 --> 00:41:49.449 mandate. to protect those that God has put under 00:41:49.449 --> 00:41:53.769 our care. This is a broader theme we see in Scripture. 00:41:54.030 --> 00:41:56.610 It starts with David. It finishes with Jesus. 00:41:56.849 --> 00:41:59.690 The shepherd protects his sheep from the wolves. 00:42:00.909 --> 00:42:04.489 Protect, sometimes with force. Did David not 00:42:04.489 --> 00:42:06.849 do that with a stick, right, with a shepherd's 00:42:06.849 --> 00:42:10.030 crook, a lion and a bear? Could you imagine him 00:42:10.030 --> 00:42:13.329 going, well, look, you know, they look delicious, 00:42:13.429 --> 00:42:15.269 don't they? And I don't want to get involved. 00:42:16.679 --> 00:42:18.820 Of course not. The shepherd protects the sheep. 00:42:19.159 --> 00:42:21.360 Believers protect the vulnerable from predators, 00:42:21.739 --> 00:42:26.380 physical predators, spiritual predators. In 1 00:42:26.380 --> 00:42:29.360 Timothy 5, Paul says, providing for one's own 00:42:29.360 --> 00:42:32.400 household is a mark of genuine faith. If you 00:42:32.400 --> 00:42:34.739 don't provide for your household, you are worse 00:42:34.739 --> 00:42:37.940 than an unbeliever. That has to mean naturally 00:42:37.940 --> 00:42:41.960 protecting those under your care. If you're going 00:42:41.960 --> 00:42:43.480 to be head of household, you've got to protect 00:42:43.480 --> 00:42:45.679 those under your care, keeping them safe from 00:42:45.679 --> 00:42:49.400 harm. So in daily life, that might mean something 00:42:49.400 --> 00:42:52.239 as basic as locking the doors and windows at 00:42:52.239 --> 00:42:54.820 night as the head of the household, right? It 00:42:54.820 --> 00:42:57.699 might mean stepping into danger when it comes 00:42:57.699 --> 00:43:01.019 your way. Maybe it just means being alert, having 00:43:01.019 --> 00:43:03.380 your head on a swivel and looking for threats 00:43:03.380 --> 00:43:05.519 that are out there. Again, not obsessing over 00:43:05.519 --> 00:43:08.139 it, but knowing that there are threats out there 00:43:08.139 --> 00:43:13.079 and being aware of them. Keep this in mind. Trusting 00:43:13.079 --> 00:43:16.980 God never means abandoning wisdom, or being purposely 00:43:16.980 --> 00:43:19.880 naive about the world that we live in. Sometimes 00:43:19.880 --> 00:43:22.239 Christians get this way, and I appreciate the 00:43:22.239 --> 00:43:24.239 heart behind it. They just want to be sort of 00:43:24.239 --> 00:43:26.900 naively happy, and everything's going to be fine. 00:43:27.760 --> 00:43:30.800 But we don't abandon wisdom. We don't just get 00:43:30.800 --> 00:43:33.500 purposely naive and put those that we love at 00:43:33.500 --> 00:43:38.920 risk. Make sense? Just as we install smoke detectors 00:43:38.920 --> 00:43:41.719 in our house to protect our family, just when 00:43:41.719 --> 00:43:44.639 our child gets sick, what do we do? We take them 00:43:44.639 --> 00:43:47.780 to the doctor. We do those practical things, 00:43:47.840 --> 00:43:51.039 reasonable steps to guard those under our care. 00:43:51.119 --> 00:43:55.920 It is an act of love. So practical question that 00:43:55.920 --> 00:43:58.639 flows out of that. And I'm almost done, y 'all. 00:44:00.440 --> 00:44:02.559 Should we get security systems in our homes? 00:44:02.679 --> 00:44:05.719 Should we own a gun for self -defense? These 00:44:05.719 --> 00:44:07.900 are questions that come up. And some of those 00:44:07.900 --> 00:44:09.500 types of questions are going to be preferences. 00:44:10.300 --> 00:44:12.780 And there are going to be convictions to consider 00:44:12.780 --> 00:44:15.840 and pray over. So we might arrive at different 00:44:15.840 --> 00:44:18.820 conclusions on those things. But there's certainly 00:44:18.820 --> 00:44:21.019 nothing wrong with having a security system in 00:44:21.019 --> 00:44:24.099 your home. And depending on your situation, it 00:44:24.099 --> 00:44:26.079 might actually be a good stewardship decision. 00:44:26.920 --> 00:44:29.639 But that's for you to consider. Remember, Nehemiah 00:44:29.639 --> 00:44:33.400 did two things. He prayed for protection, and 00:44:33.400 --> 00:44:36.199 then he posted a guard outside the walls. Ah, 00:44:36.400 --> 00:44:40.559 both are necessary. But there's a caution that 00:44:40.559 --> 00:44:41.719 goes with this too, so I'm going to give you 00:44:41.719 --> 00:44:44.559 some cautions here. If your motivation for having 00:44:44.559 --> 00:44:47.539 a security system is driven by over -the -top 00:44:47.539 --> 00:44:51.340 fear and constant worry, you've crossed the line 00:44:51.340 --> 00:44:55.420 into sin. So balance this carefully. Check your 00:44:55.420 --> 00:44:59.219 heart. Be honest with yourself. Yes, a security 00:44:59.219 --> 00:45:01.920 system can bring a measure of peace, but it cannot 00:45:01.920 --> 00:45:05.340 replace your trust in the Lord. He is your ultimate 00:45:05.340 --> 00:45:08.719 protector. Amen? In terms of being a gun owner. 00:45:09.320 --> 00:45:11.739 Again, scripture doesn't forbid owning weapons 00:45:11.739 --> 00:45:15.059 for legitimate self -defense. And any tool that 00:45:15.059 --> 00:45:17.820 you put in your hand, in and of itself, is morally 00:45:17.820 --> 00:45:21.340 neutral. What changes that is the heart of the 00:45:21.340 --> 00:45:23.679 person that wields it. Understand that. That's 00:45:23.679 --> 00:45:25.420 the whole problem with the argument of gun control, 00:45:25.519 --> 00:45:28.639 right? So gun ownership can be responsible in 00:45:28.639 --> 00:45:31.699 God honoring when it's guided by humility and 00:45:31.699 --> 00:45:36.059 restraint and lawful purpose. And of course, 00:45:36.079 --> 00:45:37.940 there's cautions that go with that as well. And 00:45:37.940 --> 00:45:40.659 I know guys like this. If you're purchasing guns 00:45:40.659 --> 00:45:44.139 as a means of sort of creating this image of 00:45:44.139 --> 00:45:46.000 yourself that you think will be really impressive 00:45:46.000 --> 00:45:49.519 to other people, I'm a big time gun guy. And 00:45:49.519 --> 00:45:53.639 it comes out pridefully, no, don't do that. Don't 00:45:53.639 --> 00:45:55.699 do that. Or if you have an unhealthy fascination 00:45:55.699 --> 00:45:59.820 with guns and violence, these things have no 00:45:59.820 --> 00:46:01.719 place in a Christian's life. Check your heart. 00:46:02.599 --> 00:46:05.260 And then two larger overriding cautions for us. 00:46:05.440 --> 00:46:08.119 First, self -defense has to be motivated by the 00:46:08.119 --> 00:46:13.880 right things, not by anger, not by hatred, and 00:46:13.880 --> 00:46:17.679 never by thoughts of revenge. That is not self 00:46:17.679 --> 00:46:21.500 -defense, not biblical. It's got to be motivated 00:46:21.500 --> 00:46:24.320 by love and by care. And it's so important to 00:46:24.320 --> 00:46:26.619 see that consistently throughout the New Testament, 00:46:26.780 --> 00:46:30.440 this idea of taking vengeance is absolutely 100 00:46:30.440 --> 00:46:34.239 % condemned. Going back to Romans 12, Paul says, 00:46:34.380 --> 00:46:38.139 never take your own revenge, beloved. Leave room 00:46:38.139 --> 00:46:40.559 for the wrath of God. For it's written, vengeance 00:46:40.559 --> 00:46:45.099 is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. So distinction, 00:46:45.440 --> 00:46:48.599 self -defense can be employed in the immediate 00:46:48.599 --> 00:46:51.400 moment when somebody is threatened. And force 00:46:51.400 --> 00:46:54.219 can be used in those situations. What we can't 00:46:54.219 --> 00:46:58.019 do is go home and plot revenge. Those are different 00:46:58.019 --> 00:47:01.860 things. In the moment, protecting life. Not going 00:47:01.860 --> 00:47:03.880 home and saying, I'm going to create some plan 00:47:03.880 --> 00:47:06.239 to get revenge on this person. Completely different 00:47:06.239 --> 00:47:09.739 things. Make sure you understand that. And also 00:47:09.739 --> 00:47:11.599 make sure that we recognize the difference between 00:47:11.599 --> 00:47:15.559 immediate physical harm and persecution that 00:47:15.559 --> 00:47:18.360 takes place over time. Some attacks are criminal. 00:47:18.500 --> 00:47:21.699 Some are just pure persecution. They're not the 00:47:21.699 --> 00:47:24.619 same thing. A criminal attack calls for protection 00:47:24.619 --> 00:47:28.000 of life. Persecution for the believer requires 00:47:28.000 --> 00:47:32.280 patient endurance. Make sure you understand that. 00:47:33.039 --> 00:47:36.099 And in every case, forgiveness and compassion 00:47:36.099 --> 00:47:39.599 is required afterwards. Even if we have to stop 00:47:39.599 --> 00:47:43.019 an attacker, our heart towards that person should 00:47:43.019 --> 00:47:46.159 remain governed by compassion, mercy, and the 00:47:46.159 --> 00:47:48.760 hope that someday they would repent of that sin 00:47:48.760 --> 00:47:52.820 and come to know Christ. Amen? That's the big 00:47:52.820 --> 00:47:56.159 picture of this whole thing. So last thing to 00:47:56.159 --> 00:47:59.539 guide us, biblical defense has to be measured. 00:48:00.420 --> 00:48:04.159 It cannot be reckless. It cannot be out of control 00:48:04.159 --> 00:48:06.760 as if we've somehow, well, the Bible gives me 00:48:06.760 --> 00:48:10.320 permission, so now I've been deputized as a vigilante 00:48:10.320 --> 00:48:14.039 for Christ. It's not to be reckless or out of 00:48:14.039 --> 00:48:16.579 control. That means we don't go blindly rushing 00:48:16.579 --> 00:48:20.159 into every conflict and every dispute. We employ 00:48:20.159 --> 00:48:23.719 wisdom. We assess the situation carefully before 00:48:23.719 --> 00:48:27.599 we jump in. And so a godly man is prepared. He 00:48:27.599 --> 00:48:30.719 is alert. He is looking to protect the sanctity 00:48:30.719 --> 00:48:34.960 of life. And in doing so, he exercises courage 00:48:34.960 --> 00:48:39.019 and self -control and ultimately trust in the 00:48:39.019 --> 00:48:42.719 one who sovereignly determines every single outcome. 00:48:43.920 --> 00:48:46.780 Let's balance these things well, folks. Amen? 00:48:48.300 --> 00:48:50.000 Thanks for putting up with me on that. Let's 00:48:50.000 --> 00:49:01.039 bow our heads. Father, my prayer this morning 00:49:01.039 --> 00:49:03.719 for myself, for my brothers and sisters, is that 00:49:03.719 --> 00:49:06.300 as we look at Esther chapter nine, that you would 00:49:06.300 --> 00:49:10.329 give us wisdom. You give us insight by your spirit 00:49:10.329 --> 00:49:12.690 to understand what's going on in this story and 00:49:12.690 --> 00:49:15.349 to, again, see some of the gospel aspects of 00:49:15.349 --> 00:49:18.190 this, how you have rescued your people, how this 00:49:18.190 --> 00:49:22.170 new law has come into effect that overrides for 00:49:22.170 --> 00:49:24.369 us the law of sin and death and allows us to 00:49:24.369 --> 00:49:27.570 be saved by your grace, to come into union with 00:49:27.570 --> 00:49:30.610 you, to abide with you. Lord, help us to see 00:49:30.610 --> 00:49:34.610 that in the text of Esther and give us clarity 00:49:34.610 --> 00:49:36.610 on these difficult things, Lord, to understand 00:49:36.610 --> 00:49:39.329 what's happening. And Father, I pray that you'll 00:49:39.329 --> 00:49:41.110 seal in our hearts some of these truths we just 00:49:41.110 --> 00:49:43.929 talked about, what it means to be a peacemaker, 00:49:44.030 --> 00:49:48.090 what it means to conduct self -defense and protection 00:49:48.090 --> 00:49:50.920 in a way that honors you. These are difficult 00:49:50.920 --> 00:49:53.559 things for us down here on earth, Lord. Our flesh 00:49:53.559 --> 00:49:56.400 is sinful, so we struggle in these areas. So 00:49:56.400 --> 00:49:58.739 I pray that you will work in our hearts by your 00:49:58.739 --> 00:50:00.940 spirit and help us to understand more and more. 00:50:01.139 --> 00:50:03.019 Thank you for our time this morning in the word, 00:50:03.079 --> 00:50:04.880 Lord. What a privilege now that we get to sing 00:50:04.880 --> 00:50:07.000 more praises to your name, for you are worthy 00:50:07.000 --> 00:50:09.739 of it. So help us to do that well. We pray in 00:50:09.739 --> 00:50:10.820 Christ's name, amen.