Well, we are getting close to the end of the
book of Esther, aren't we? Really close. Last
Sunday, I mentioned that I had been looking forward
to preaching through chapter 8. From the very
beginning of the series, I was really excited
about chapter 8, and that's because of all the
gospel foreshadowing that we find there in the
narrative of Esther. And it was a joy to work
through all those things together last week.
I got a lot of... Really positive feedback saying
I had no idea there was so many gospel elements
in this Old Testament book, but they're there.
So, by the way, if you missed last Sunday, I'd
highly recommend going back and listening online.
It will bless your soul to see how many of those
gospel aspects are found in this Old Testament
narrative. But with that in the rearview mirror,
I have an admission to make this morning. Today
we're coming to a chapter that I was really not
looking forward to preaching through. So from
my favorite chapter to my least favorite chapter
in the blink of an eye. And the reason for my
trepidation is some of the dark elements that
are in this part of the story, including violent
conflict, including widespread loss of life,
and frankly, some gruesome details that align
with an ancient tribal grudge. As most of you
know, early on in the story of Esther, I was
pretty hard on her character. and pointed out
a number of what I think are some glaring inconsistencies,
spiritual compromises in her life. But in recent
chapters, it's been so encouraging. We've seen
this young lady grow in her trust, in her courage,
and we've complimented her accordingly. But now
as we come to chapter 9, once again, we're going
to have to resist the temptation, and we all
have this, to look at someone like Esther and
see her as an impeccable heroine. who never does
anything wrong, almost not even human, and at
least consider some hard questions about some
of her choices in this chapter. But before we
go there, I have to recap for you an important
story from earlier in the Hebrew Scriptures,
because it is going to explain much of what we're
going to read in chapter 9 of Esther. Now, it's
a story that we covered earlier in this series,
but let me... Let me refresh your memory. It
comes from 1 Samuel chapter 15. This is the days
after Saul was anointed Israel's king by the
prophet Samuel. And you might recall that Israel
at that time sinfully and selfishly cried out
for a human king because they wanted to be like
all the other nations, even though God wanted
them to be set apart. And so Samuel said it best.
He said, the Lord your God was your king, Israel.
But since this is what you want in your sinful
flesh, I will set a very flawed man over you
in the person of King Saul. Now, early in Saul's
reign, he proved to be a strong military commander.
We see him fighting against all the surrounding
nations, the Moabites and the Ammonites and the
Edomites and, of course, the Philistines. But
in 1 Samuel 15, things start to go awry. The
Lord gives to Saul a very specific instruction
concerning an ancient enemy left over from the
days of Moses. At the time of the Exodus. Here's
what Yahweh said through his prophet Samuel.
That's going to come up in just a second. Trust
me. There we go. Good. Thus says the Lord of
hosts. I will punish Amalek for what he did to
Israel. How he set himself against him on the
way while he was coming up from Egypt. Now, Saul,
go and strike Amalek and utterly destroy all
that he has. Look at that underlined part. Utterly
destroy all that he has and do not spare him.
But put to death both man and woman, child and
infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey. In other
words, rid the world of this wicked people. And
so Saul took 200 ,000 of his men. They set an
ambush for the Amalekites, and they defeated
them in battle. Only Saul failed to carry out
God's instructions. Correct? He disobeyed. Rather
than wiping out every trace of the wickedness
of Amalek from the earth, he took their king,
King Agag. They took him alive and took him as
a prisoner of war. And worse, he took all kinds
of plunder. The best of the sheep, the best of
the oxen, the fatlings and the lambs. And God's
anger burned against Saul for his disobedience.
Yet he tried to fake his way out of it when he
came into the presence of Samuel, even though
the prophet already knew that he had disobeyed.
The text says that Saul came to Samuel and said
to him, blessed are you, I've carried out the
command of the Lord. Can you see the falsehood
in it? Just his face. Look what I've done. But
Samuel said, Really? What then is this bleeding
of the sheep in my ears and the lowing of the
oxen which I hear? And after hemming and hawing
and trying to make, you know, excuse, claim,
well, I kept the best of the animals so that
I could give them in worship to Yahweh. Samuel
rebuked him. He said, why did you not obey the
voice of the Lord? Why have you rushed upon the
spoils? and done what is evil in the sight of
the Lord. And then he cut to the heart of the
matter, saying to Saul, what you see on the screen,
has the Lord as much delight in burnt offerings
and sacrifices as in obeying his voice? Behold,
to obey is better than sacrifice. And because
you've rejected the word of the Lord, he has
rejected you from being king. So two big things
I want you to take from this recap of this story.
for later consideration in this message. Number
one, God's instructions to wipe out the Amalekites
completely. And number two, Saul's disobedience
in taking spoils of war. Let's go to Esther now.
Grab your Bibles. We're gonna go to Esther chapter
nine and cover the first 17 verses of this chapter.
Hopefully explain some of the difficult parts
that we're gonna read. Esther chapter 9, verses
1 to 17. We're definitely going to talk about
this issue of plunder because we covered it last
Sunday, didn't we? We covered it quite a bit.
In fact, a lot of you were joking afterwards
about, let's go plunder. So we'll explain some
of that. And if you missed last week, you're
going, what? Excuse me? Trust me on this. And
then, by the way, we're going to take an interesting
and very practical rabbit trail this morning
because it lines up with Sanctity of Life Sunday
and also with our text. We're going to talk about
the somewhat controversial subject of self -defense
in the life of a Christian. So hold on to your
hats for that. So let's look at the text. It's
important to know as we come to chapter 9 that
this entire story of Mordecai and Esther is now
building to a climax. Recall that there had been
an unchangeable law issued by Haman, the wicked
vizier of King Xerxes. This was an edict that
could not be changed, and it gave the Persian
populace freedom on one particular day in the
future to attack and destroy all of the Jews
and to take any of their possessions they wanted.
How horrific, right? But thanks to God's sovereign
intervention, he sends Queen Esther, gives her
the courage and the strength to intercede for
her people before the king. And two months later,
Haman's wicked plan is exposed, he's executed,
and a second unchangeable law is issued to counteract
the first one. But remember, the first one couldn't
be changed, but here comes a second one. This
second unit gives the Jews the king's full backing
and authority to legally defend themselves. To
legally defend themselves and to kill any group
of people who would seek to harm them and steal
their things. So as we come to verse 1, nine
months have now passed and the day of conflict
has finally arrived. These two unchangeable laws.
Both issued by the king, one by Haman, one by
Mordecai, are about to run headlong into each
other. That means there is still a significant
amount of Persian people out there who have been
licking their chops and planning to attack the
Jews and to make themselves wealthier. And you
can imagine that happening. People are like,
no, I saw that first law and I am ready for it.
But it also means that the Jews had seen the
second law and they had organized themselves
to resist and to fight back. So you can imagine
the tension on this particular day. Let's look
at verse one. Now in the 12th month, that is
the month of Adar, on the 13th day, that's the
big day, when the king's command and edict were
about to be executed, on the day when the enemies
of the Jews hoped to gain mastery over them,
it was turned to the contrary so that the Jews
themselves gained the mastery over those who
hated them. That was that eucatastrophe that
we talked about last Sunday, right? And again,
if you missed it last Sunday, sorry to throw
that word into your lexicon, but it means a sudden
good turn of events. This was the eucatastrophe
for the Jewish people, a turn of events. Here's
how it happened, verse two. The Jews assembled
in their cities throughout all the provinces
of King Ahasuerus. Remember how broad this empire
was? Massive. Persian Empire. They assembled
in the cities, it says, to lay hands on those
who sought their harm. And no one could stand
before them, for the dread of them had fallen
on all the people. So what we see take place
is a combination of two things. First and foremost,
we have to acknowledge the sovereign protective
hand of God over his people. He is in control
of this situation. But second, you see the unity.
and the passion that is produced by a people
who are fighting for their very survival. That
makes all the difference. If you've ever studied
ancient battles, you know the people that are
defending their lives, their very lives, their
existence, their land, always have more passion
to fight than the enemy. And so in every province
across this vast empire, the Jews rally together
and they prevail in these battles and skirmishes
that are taking place all across the land. And
it's a reminder, it's something that really struck
me last night as I was writing, that if there's
anything you can say about the Jewish people
over the centuries, it's that they know how to
survive. Amen? Right? In every place that they've
been, they've figured out a way to survive, even
today in the land of Israel, even surrounded
by as many enemies as they are today, they know
how to survive and even flourish under God's
protective hand. There's also a third factor
involved, and you see this in verse three. It
says, even all the princes of the provinces,
the satraps, the governors, and those who were
doing the king's business, look, assisted the
Jews because of the dread of Mordecai had fallen
on them. So the Jews are now assisted in all
these provinces by the government officials.
Why? Why would that suddenly happen? Well, no
doubt word had spread that guess what? The king,
who's all powerful, his beloved queen is Jewish.
That changes the game for every official in the
empire. And that her relative Mordecai, also
Jewish, has now come to power and is running
things from Susa. So having received this second
law from the king that now supports the Jews,
you know these officials are not going to cross
Mordecai. It doesn't make sense. They must have
realized that if I assist the Jews, I'm actually
assisting the king's own household. So it just
makes sense, right? Verse four, indeed, Mordecai
was great in the king's house. And his fame spread
throughout all the provinces, for the man Mordecai
became greater and greater. And the language
you see there is sort of an echo from an earlier
time in Jewish history. Mordecai is walking in
the footsteps of men like Joseph and Moses, who
also became great in foreign courts, not Persia,
but in those two cases, in the court of Pharaoh
of Egypt. Similar situation, God has lifted him
up to this important position. Verse five, thus
the Jews struck all their enemies with the sword,
Killing and destroying. And they did what they
pleased to those who hated them. This is a rout.
They are winning these skirmishes all the time.
So that's a description, a general description
of what's going on kingdom wide. The Jews are
prevailing, but look at verse six. Beginning
here now, the focus narrows to one location,
the citadel in the capital city of Susa. This
is where, again, the royal court is. This is
where Queen Esther lives. This is where Mordecai
is ruling from. Verse six says, at the citadel
in Susa, the Jews killed and destroyed 500 men.
Wow. And then here comes a list of, I hate when
I have to do this. Here come the list of the
names of Haman's ten sons. Are you ready for
this? Parshendatha. Good? Good. Dalfon. Aspatha.
Poratha. Adelia. Aridatha. Parmashta. Arisai.
Aridai. And Vaisatha. These are the ten sons
of Haman, the son of Hamadatha, the Jews' enemy.
You see it? The Jews' enemy. Notice now, last
phrase, but they did not lay their hands on the
plunder. We'll come back to that. Yael, are you
laughing at my pronunciation? It's fine. She'll
correct me later. It's good. Now, why list the
name of Haman's sons here? Well, this is critical
for the story. This is the final step in the
overthrow of Haman's house. We saw that last
week, how all of his wealth, his estate, everything
was given over to Esther, who then gave it to
Mordecai as a steward. This is the final element,
the overthrow of Haman's house. This is the end
of his genealogical line. This is what happens
when all of your sons die in battle at one time.
Now, this is the point beginning in verse 11
where things start to get dark. On that day,
the number of those who were killed at the citadel
in Susa was reported to the king. Okay, so you
can picture the guy comes in with the announcement.
Oh, great king, live forever. Here's the number
of people the Jews have killed in your capital
city. That should upset him, right? These are
his subjects. These are his people. But you have
to understand the ways of the ancient Persian
kings. These were the most powerful men on the
earth at this time. They fancied themselves to
be gods themselves. So essentially to them, people
are just pawns on a chessboard, pawns to be sacrificed.
So a man like Xerxes has no regard for human
life. What he cared about most was what pleased
him. And what pleases him in this situation is,
is my queen happy and content? That's it. So
in verse 12, it says, Not only does he not seem
to care about the loss of life, he actually seems
pretty impressed with the numbers. Like, hey,
not bad. Look at all the people that they've
killed in my city. And he muses out loud, well,
my goodness, if the Jews have killed 500 people
there, how widespread is the slaughter? It must
mean thousands or even tens of thousands of dead
throughout my empire. This guy's a sociopath.
There's no other way to explain this verse other
than he is an absolute psychotic. He just doesn't
care. And then he becomes even more callous.
Completely unsolicited, he offers to Esther a
chance to ask for even more. Now, what is your
petition? He asks her. It shall even be granted
to you. And what is your further request? It
shall also be done. Here's where the controversy
really comes into play. Verse 13. Then said Esther,
if it pleases the king, more submissive court
language. Let tomorrow also be granted to the
Jews who are in Susa to do according to the edict
of today and let Haman's 10 sons be hanged on
the gallows. They're already dead, by the way.
So Esther asks that the king give her an extension
of the law for a second day so that the Jews
can continue to eliminate their enemies there
in the capital city. And she wants the corpses
of Haman's 10 sons to be publicly displayed on
the gallows that Haman himself had built. Now
remember, we talked about a long time ago, gallows
like this, the Persians didn't hang people by
the neck. These would have been sharp stakes.
And the bodies would have been, yeah, I'll let
you not picture that in your minds. So what are
we to make of this? It's hard not to, At least
consider the obvious, right? Because it sounds
so cold and so brutal to our modern ears. And
in fact, this part of the story has been used
against the Jewish people for centuries, if you
didn't know. Martin Luther was guilty of this.
Later in his life, in his anti -Semitic writings,
pointed back to Esther chapter 9 as an example,
drawing this blanket statement. Well, obviously
the Jewish people are nationalistic and vengeful
and wrote some awful things. about the Jewish
people. So this has been used against the Jews
for a long time. But what's going on here? Is
Esther really seeking vengeance? I have read
so much on this subject, and I still am here
this morning to say, I'm not sure we can know
for sure what's happening in her heart. There's
a lot of opinions on the question. It's difficult
for us to understand fully because none of us
have lived in that time and place. None of us
have lived in that culture. None of us have ever
faced literally a genocide of our people. So
we have to be careful that we don't judge too
harshly. Listen, as I've said before concerning
Esther, We have to balance the two extremes.
She is neither a perfect heroine who does everything
right, nor should we be too harsh in judging
her because we haven't walked in those shoes.
And I think at best what we can say here is had
we been in her position, would any of us done
any better? And I think that kind of humility
is important as we come to the text. The answers
are not as clear as we wish they were because
the author hasn't given us those clear answers.
So you have to be careful not to judge too much.
Here's the thing. There are a number of factors
involved here in the way Esther responds. At
first glance, it's easy to judge her. Some people
say she's bloodthirsty for revenge. Now that
the Jews are prevailing in the battle, now she
wants to keep going. That's one of the narratives
that comes out of this chapter. But it seems
that in her mind, the important work of destroying
those who hate God and hate her people wasn't
done after just one day, that there were more
that needed to be dealt with. And if the job
isn't finished yet, then that threat is going
to still be out there, and it's going to linger
into the future, and we're going to have generation
after generation of constant fighting. So at
least in her mind, she's like, give me one more
day to settle the issue. Whatever you think of
that, that's probably going on in the back of
her mind. From a purely practical standpoint,
you can see why she asked for permission for
the fight to continue. And by the way, you can
also make the case that, well, She's somewhat
restrained in this. First of all, she's only
asking for what the Jews can do according to
the law, which means only self -defense. And
she's limiting it to just one more day, not like,
well, we want this to go on for weeks so that
we can just keep slaughtering. So there is some
restraint in what she says. In terms of Haman's
sons, we have to remember two things. First of
all, Haman is the biblical archetype of the enemy
of God. Right? We talked about it. He embodies
satanic opposition to God's people, and his sons
are an extension of his house. You can't separate
Haman from his sons. They are considered one
thing in the ancient Near East. They are part
of his house. Second, we should remember that
this was common practice in that day, in the
ancient Near East. Even when it offends our modern
sensibilities, the execution of the sons of your
enemy was required back then. Common practice.
Why? So that you eliminate the possibility that
someday those boys are going to grow up and take
revenge for their father's death. Very common
practice. Again, I'm not saying that's good or
right. I'm giving you the practical issues that
are involved here in the background. As to the
public humiliation of their bodies, here's what
we can say about this. It served as a demonstration
of Yahweh's justice and wrath upon those who
would threaten his people. and a warning for
all those in the future not to cross the God
of Israel. And it certainly would have been a
very stark warning for anybody that witnessed
this spectacle of their corpses being displayed
in public. Those are the practical things. Now,
let me share that it got really quiet in here,
by the way. Did you see this? Everybody's really
quiet. I know this is hard. This is why I dreaded
this chapter. The larger historical issue that
looms behind all this, we have to go back to
where I started this morning with the story of
Saul and the Amalekites. Think about this now.
You've got to put on your thinking caps. Saul
had failed to carry out God's instructions in
his day to utterly destroy Amalek. And because
of his failure, 500 years later, we have this
conflict. Because Saul disobeyed, this is sort
of the background of this particular story. Saul's
descendants from the tribe of Benjamin include
Mordecai and Esther, and they are in a death
struggle against Agag's descendants, Haman and
his 10 sons. That thing has lingered for hundreds
of years. We have to understand that. So there's
unfinished business being resolved here. Esther
and Mordecai are prosecuting a new war against
God's enemy, seeking permission from King Xerxes
to finish what Saul left undone. Does that make
sense? That's what's going on here. Even the
gruesome act of publicly displaying the bodies
of Haman's sons has a historical precedent to
it. Do you recall how Saul was killed? How his
son Jonathan was killed? They died in battle
on Mount Gilboa. And what happened to their corpses?
The enemy hung their bodies on the wall at Beit
Shein. Right? So there's precedent to that as
well. The same type of humiliation. So as brutal
as all this was, we do need to understand that
in conducting this war against the ancient enemy
of Amalek, it's not as if Mordecai and Esther
are out there. This is not some kind of a land
grab. They're not trying to be greedy and build
their wealth. This is finishing the job that
should have been done 500 years prior. Theologically
and historically, this is a prosecution of God's
judicial decree against his enemies. that are
so represented by Haman. And then on a deeper
level, it's that ongoing war that's been raging
since Genesis 3 .15, right? It's all part of
this. When God declared that the seed of the
woman and the seed of the serpent would live
in constant hostility until the day that the
Redeemer came and he crushed the head of the
serpent. There's a lot going on here, isn't there?
Okay, let's finish the story. Verse 14. So the
king commanded that it should be done. He granted
Esther's request. And an edict was issued in
Susa and Haman's 10 sons were hanged. The Jews
who were in Susa assembled also on the 14th day
of the month of Adar and killed 300 more men
in Susa. But then see this again. They did not
lay their hands on the plunder. Verse 16, now
the rest of the Jews who were in the king's provinces
assembled to defend their lives and rid themselves
of their enemies and kill 75 ,000 of those who
hated them. That's the full casualty list from
across this vast empire, 75 ,000. But last time,
they did not lay their hands on the plunder.
This was done on the 13th day of the month Adar,
and on the 14th day, they rested and made it
a day of feasting and rejoicing. Let's pray.
No, I'm just kidding. Okay, you see why that
was tough? There's a lot happening here. Okay,
can we come back to the issue of plunder for
a moment? Because I know I made a big deal in
closing last week on this. I ended the messaging,
for those of you who weren't here, by talking
about how we as Christians have the victory over
Satan. That that victory is secured for us because
of our union with Christ, right? And because
of the cross. We now have the victory over the
law of sin and death. And we can celebrate just
as the Jews celebrated when that second law was
issued. We did that last week. And so each and
every day that you and I abide with Christ, when
we live for his glory and the advancement of
his kingdom, we are plundering the house of the
enemy. In little things, repentance, prayer,
worship, praise, all of these things, understanding
God's truth, studying the word, we are plundering
the house of the enemy. It's all part of the
spiritual battle that we fight and we fight individually
as believers and we fight together as a local
body of Christ. That is all true. So we are all
about plundering. But here in the text, it says
the Jews didn't take the plunder three times
to emphasize it. So was I wrong last week? Okay,
thank you, Carol. Some of you were wondering.
There is a sinful, idolatrous kind of plundering
that the people of God are never to engage in.
And that is what's being described in this text.
What the Jews refused to take in this text were
the material spoils of war. The physical material
spoils of war. And though the king's second law
actually gave them permission to do it, they
knew better. We don't do this. Remember, in their
minds, this was self -defense. And it's not just
a political battle, it's a spiritual battle as
well. When I talked about plundering last Sunday,
I was referring to spiritual plundering, right?
Spiritual, not physical plunder. And remember,
we pointed to that important text in 2 Corinthians
10 that says the weapons that we use in battle
are not according to the flesh, right? They're
spiritual weapons that destroy falsehoods and
tear down arguments that are raised against the
knowledge of God. That's the realm that we fight
in, not physical, but spiritual. So at the end
of the day, it's not material plunder. That's
going to last into eternity, is it? It's spiritual
treasure that will last for eternity. That's
where the battle needs to be fought. Now for
the Jews, there's more history behind this issue
of plunder that goes all the way back to the
Torah and the prophets. In Genesis 14, you might
recall Abraham had to go to war in order to rescue
his nephew Lot, correct? And he pursued his enemy
and he won this great victory. And when he came
back, do you remember the king of Sodom? offered
him the spoils of war. And what did Abraham do?
He refused it. He said, no, thank you. Why? Lest
the wickedness of Sodom would become the source
of his prosperity. We don't take that kind of
wicked plunder, he said. And from that point
forward, even during the wars of conquest for
the promised land, the Jews would not touch any
of their enemies' possessions. Rightfully so.
So, for example, after the defeat of Jericho
under Joshua's leadership, remember Israel went
on and they attacked the city of Ai. And they
lost decisively, right? Well, why? Because there
was a man in the camp named Achan who had secretly
taken the enemy's plunder. And for that reason,
God's anger was kindled. And until Achan was
dealt with, until he was put to death, Israel
was not going to be victorious. So in history,
anytime Israel waged war against the enemies
of God for the purpose of executing divine judgment
on them, which was righteous for their immorality,
for their idolatry, they were to do so according
to God's instructions. And that meant not profiting
from the wickedness of those kingdoms. Don't
take that spoil. It's tainted. And the Jews understood
this. Coming back to our story of Saul and the
Amalekites, Saul, when he destroys Amalek, he
takes the king captive and he plunders the best
of their possessions, all the sheep and the ox
and all that stuff. And God's anger burned against
Saul and he was disqualified as Israel's king.
So with all that in mind, we come back to the
story of Esther. Now we understand why it says
three times in this text, but they did not take
the plunder. It's historical and it's theological.
Mordecai is not going to make the same mistake
that his ancestor Saul did by engaging in idolatrous
plundering. Our plundering is what? Spiritual,
not physical. Remember, Samuel said it back in
the day, obedience is better than sacrifice.
Do it right the first time. Don't sin and then
expect that my sacrifice is just going to please
God. Do it right the first time. Obey him. Follow
his instructions. Amen? Okay. So I want to close
our time by taking this rabbit trail that I promised.
This is Sanctity of Life Sunday. And so we should
talk about protecting life and how we go about
doing that. And so I want to talk about this
somewhat controversial issue of Christians and
self -defense. And how do we do that? How do
we do that in a way that is pleasing to God?
Even the use of force. The use of force in protecting
life. Occasionally you'll run into a fellow believer
who will tell you that he or she has taken the
absolute position of pacifism. I've met folks
like this. That in all cases, and by the way,
the people that I've met that hold to pacifism,
that is their biblical conviction. They have
arrived at that position through prayerful consideration.
I want to respect that. But their position is
that in all cases, And in all situations, Christians
should 100 % denounce war, violence, and the
use of force in resolving disputes. To the extent
that they would say, and I've heard someone say
this, I will not physically defend my life or
the life of my wife and children if I'm attacked.
I will not defend anyone, not myself and not
my family. Now, I disagree with that. And I think
it's a really difficult case. to make if you're
taking the entire canon of Scripture into consideration.
So let me try to lay this out in a logical fashion
so that we can understand the issue. First of
all, it's true that on one hand, Scripture calls
us to be peacemakers. Amen? That should be our
default position to seek peace. That should be
our goal in all things. So we have to say that
very loudly and very clearly. We're to be peacemakers.
That is part of our testimony as Christ followers.
We should always seek to honor God every time
we come into conflict, every time we deal with
a dispute. Paul famously says in Romans 12, as
much as it depends on you or me, we should be
at peace with all men, right? That's part of
our testimony. But having said that, it's also
true that the Bible strongly affirms the need
to protect the sanctity of human life, and yes,
sometimes by use of force. It's actually in the
text. We're given consistent examples of godly
people who have confronted evil with violence
in order to protect innocent life. So again,
back to the Torah. God addressed this issue with
his people. He did it both in his legal code
and by way of example. We just talked about Abraham.
When Lot, his nephew, was kidnapped and taken,
did Abraham just sit around and hope that Lot
would be okay? Well, I hope they take care of
him. What were the odds that they were going
to take care of him? No, no, he led a militia.
We forget that Abraham was actually a man of
war. He led a militia of 300 trained men to pursue
his enemies to save Lot's life. That's in the
text. We also know that God commanded Israel
to go to war on many occasions. Why? To build
and preserve his chosen people in that promised
land. And in the process of that, you have to
understand the armies of Israel are acting as
Yahweh's hand of judgment against the wickedness
of the people in that region. So at times, God's
people have had to go to battle for the cause
of righteousness over evil. And I know these
are hard things to accept, but they are Yahweh's
hand of righteousness in the book of Joshua,
for example, over the wickedness of those people
groups. On a more personal level, if you read
in Exodus 22, God actually instructs the people
through Moses about how a man should protect
his household, even gives very specific instructions
that if a thief breaks in, this is what you should
do. You can strike him. At nighttime, you could
even strike him dead and there will be no guilt.
God's very practical with that. We have the rulers
of the United Kingdom of Israel, Saul, David,
and Solomon. How many times do they take up arms
against enemy nations? Why did they do that?
To protect their people. They go to war with
the Philistines to solidify their borders so
that the people can be safe and protected. You
fast forward to the return from exile in Babylon
and you see Nehemiah's workers, they're rebuilding
the walls of Jerusalem while constantly being
attacked. So what did they do? Did they say,
well, that's just tough luck. Let's just keep
building and we'll just, oops, sorry, arrow in
the back, right? Well, you know, we can't, we
shouldn't do anything about this. Of course not.
Some Jewish men were tasked by Nehemiah to guard
the construction with actual spears. And all
the others that were building still kept a sword
girded on their side, ready to spring into defensive
action. So we have these examples. The reality,
friends, is there are times when resisting evil
does require the use of force. And we should
recognize that. Now, when you come to the New
Testament, do things change? Well, there's some
consistent principles. There's a change in form
and function. But that goes with, not to make
this controversial, with the dispensational changes
from Israel to the church. The church is not
a single people group. It's not a political nation.
It doesn't have borders or armies. So the commands
to go to war are not given to the church. It's
a massive difference between Israel and the church.
But you do see the principle of self -defense
and protection of life being put forth by the
apostles and by Jesus himself and by Jesus. Now,
pacifists will quickly cite the Sermon on the
Mount, and they'll say, well, Jesus said, when
somebody strikes you in the cheek, what do you
do? You punch them back. No, no, sorry. You turn
the other cheek. And we should take that teaching
seriously. Sometimes those of us who are on the
other side of the issue will say, well, He didn't
really mean that. Yeah, he did. What Jesus was
trying to do was to warn us against, you know,
the eye for an eye principle that we can so quickly
jump to and become violent. It's far better,
he says, to overlook a personal insult. Far better
to look past a minor offense for the sake of
maintaining peace. We should affirm that over
and over again. What he doesn't mean by turn
the other cheek is let someone murder you. right
what he doesn't mean is well let people come
and harm your family that's a ridiculous jump
in logic neither does it mean stand by and pull
out your phone and don't intervene when an evil
person seeks to harm somebody within your presence
which is all too common today we have more videos
of people being attacked than people jumping
in to prevent evil That's a message for you men
out there. Be courageous. This is simply not
consistent with the whole counsel of scripture.
Jesus himself acknowledges a very practical need
for self -defense in Luke 22. Do you remember?
Before he sends out his disciples, he says, do
you have a sword? If you don't, sell your cloak
and get one. Did Jesus not know what was gonna
happen? Of course he knew, right? In other words,
friends. Don't be naive to the dangers of this
fallen world. There are wicked people out there,
and they may try to take advantage of you and
harm you, so be prepared and be alert. Don't
obsess over it, but understand that that's true
of the fallen world we live in. In terms of war,
I find it interesting that when Jesus interacts
with the Roman centurion in Matthew chapter 8,
and this guy comes with a prayer request, does
Jesus say, First of all, renounce your military
service. He doesn't. He hears the request and
he compliments him for his remarkable faith.
And we shouldn't forget that Jesus himself, though
while in the flesh was nothing but gentle and
peace -loving, he did flip some tables, right?
But he's gentle and peace -loving, but someday
he will return and judge the nation with, you
ready for it? Perfectly righteous violence. Perfectly
righteous violence. The use of great force will
be his holy response towards those who oppose
him and practice evil. These are important truths.
I know it's hard to sort of formulate this and
arguments can go back and forth, but understanding
the whole counsel matters. Now, beyond those
examples, which I think are important, I'm going
to put some things on the screen, just some basic
principles for us to understand. And these are
things we should know about. First of all, One
of the things that undergirds the doctrine of
Christian self -defense is, man, this thing's
dying. There we go. Is understanding the high
value that scripture places on human life. It
starts there. When we recognize that every life
comes from God and we defend it, we are honoring
the Imago Dei. We are honoring the image of God
in each one of us. And that is especially true.
when you and I step in and defend those who can't
defend themselves. I'm going to say that again.
This is especially true when we step in and defend
those who cannot defend themselves. What am I
talking about? The most vulnerable among us,
babies in the womb, starting there. But children,
obviously, right? Those who are poor, those who
are too weak and unable to fight. We have to
step in on those things. Every life matters.
That's where it starts. Second principle is love
your neighbor. Love your neighbor. Sometimes
loving your neighbor means taking action to protect
him or her from violence. Right? Even if it puts
us in the crosshairs and we sacrifice ourselves
to protect somebody. I know this much for sure.
It's not loving to stand by and do nothing if
somebody is attacked. You know, recording it.
That is not loving your neighbor. Even loving
our enemies doesn't mean we have to let them
harm other people. Yeah, we have to love our
enemies. That doesn't mean, well, I have to love
you, so go ahead and do all that you want to
do, harm anybody that you want. How ridiculous
is that? In fact, by resisting a violent aggressor
and stopping him, we're working for his ultimate
good, to stop him from doing something wicked.
Hopefully repent. That's actually for his good.
The third principle is we have a God -ordained
mandate. to protect those that God has put under
our care. This is a broader theme we see in Scripture.
It starts with David. It finishes with Jesus.
The shepherd protects his sheep from the wolves.
Protect, sometimes with force. Did David not
do that with a stick, right, with a shepherd's
crook, a lion and a bear? Could you imagine him
going, well, look, you know, they look delicious,
don't they? And I don't want to get involved.
Of course not. The shepherd protects the sheep.
Believers protect the vulnerable from predators,
physical predators, spiritual predators. In 1
Timothy 5, Paul says, providing for one's own
household is a mark of genuine faith. If you
don't provide for your household, you are worse
than an unbeliever. That has to mean naturally
protecting those under your care. If you're going
to be head of household, you've got to protect
those under your care, keeping them safe from
harm. So in daily life, that might mean something
as basic as locking the doors and windows at
night as the head of the household, right? It
might mean stepping into danger when it comes
your way. Maybe it just means being alert, having
your head on a swivel and looking for threats
that are out there. Again, not obsessing over
it, but knowing that there are threats out there
and being aware of them. Keep this in mind. Trusting
God never means abandoning wisdom, or being purposely
naive about the world that we live in. Sometimes
Christians get this way, and I appreciate the
heart behind it. They just want to be sort of
naively happy, and everything's going to be fine.
But we don't abandon wisdom. We don't just get
purposely naive and put those that we love at
risk. Make sense? Just as we install smoke detectors
in our house to protect our family, just when
our child gets sick, what do we do? We take them
to the doctor. We do those practical things,
reasonable steps to guard those under our care.
It is an act of love. So practical question that
flows out of that. And I'm almost done, y 'all.
Should we get security systems in our homes?
Should we own a gun for self -defense? These
are questions that come up. And some of those
types of questions are going to be preferences.
And there are going to be convictions to consider
and pray over. So we might arrive at different
conclusions on those things. But there's certainly
nothing wrong with having a security system in
your home. And depending on your situation, it
might actually be a good stewardship decision.
But that's for you to consider. Remember, Nehemiah
did two things. He prayed for protection, and
then he posted a guard outside the walls. Ah,
both are necessary. But there's a caution that
goes with this too, so I'm going to give you
some cautions here. If your motivation for having
a security system is driven by over -the -top
fear and constant worry, you've crossed the line
into sin. So balance this carefully. Check your
heart. Be honest with yourself. Yes, a security
system can bring a measure of peace, but it cannot
replace your trust in the Lord. He is your ultimate
protector. Amen? In terms of being a gun owner.
Again, scripture doesn't forbid owning weapons
for legitimate self -defense. And any tool that
you put in your hand, in and of itself, is morally
neutral. What changes that is the heart of the
person that wields it. Understand that. That's
the whole problem with the argument of gun control,
right? So gun ownership can be responsible in
God honoring when it's guided by humility and
restraint and lawful purpose. And of course,
there's cautions that go with that as well. And
I know guys like this. If you're purchasing guns
as a means of sort of creating this image of
yourself that you think will be really impressive
to other people, I'm a big time gun guy. And
it comes out pridefully, no, don't do that. Don't
do that. Or if you have an unhealthy fascination
with guns and violence, these things have no
place in a Christian's life. Check your heart.
And then two larger overriding cautions for us.
First, self -defense has to be motivated by the
right things, not by anger, not by hatred, and
never by thoughts of revenge. That is not self
-defense, not biblical. It's got to be motivated
by love and by care. And it's so important to
see that consistently throughout the New Testament,
this idea of taking vengeance is absolutely 100
% condemned. Going back to Romans 12, Paul says,
never take your own revenge, beloved. Leave room
for the wrath of God. For it's written, vengeance
is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. So distinction,
self -defense can be employed in the immediate
moment when somebody is threatened. And force
can be used in those situations. What we can't
do is go home and plot revenge. Those are different
things. In the moment, protecting life. Not going
home and saying, I'm going to create some plan
to get revenge on this person. Completely different
things. Make sure you understand that. And also
make sure that we recognize the difference between
immediate physical harm and persecution that
takes place over time. Some attacks are criminal.
Some are just pure persecution. They're not the
same thing. A criminal attack calls for protection
of life. Persecution for the believer requires
patient endurance. Make sure you understand that.
And in every case, forgiveness and compassion
is required afterwards. Even if we have to stop
an attacker, our heart towards that person should
remain governed by compassion, mercy, and the
hope that someday they would repent of that sin
and come to know Christ. Amen? That's the big
picture of this whole thing. So last thing to
guide us, biblical defense has to be measured.
It cannot be reckless. It cannot be out of control
as if we've somehow, well, the Bible gives me
permission, so now I've been deputized as a vigilante
for Christ. It's not to be reckless or out of
control. That means we don't go blindly rushing
into every conflict and every dispute. We employ
wisdom. We assess the situation carefully before
we jump in. And so a godly man is prepared. He
is alert. He is looking to protect the sanctity
of life. And in doing so, he exercises courage
and self -control and ultimately trust in the
one who sovereignly determines every single outcome.
Let's balance these things well, folks. Amen?
Thanks for putting up with me on that. Let's
bow our heads. Father, my prayer this morning
for myself, for my brothers and sisters, is that
as we look at Esther chapter nine, that you would
give us wisdom. You give us insight by your spirit
to understand what's going on in this story and
to, again, see some of the gospel aspects of
this, how you have rescued your people, how this
new law has come into effect that overrides for
us the law of sin and death and allows us to
be saved by your grace, to come into union with
you, to abide with you. Lord, help us to see
that in the text of Esther and give us clarity
on these difficult things, Lord, to understand
what's happening. And Father, I pray that you'll
seal in our hearts some of these truths we just
talked about, what it means to be a peacemaker,
what it means to conduct self -defense and protection
in a way that honors you. These are difficult
things for us down here on earth, Lord. Our flesh
is sinful, so we struggle in these areas. So
I pray that you will work in our hearts by your
spirit and help us to understand more and more.
Thank you for our time this morning in the word,
Lord. What a privilege now that we get to sing
more praises to your name, for you are worthy
of it. So help us to do that well. We pray in
Christ's name, amen.