Bible Study - Leadership - Use Your Influence - Esther 4 and 8 - May 8, 2011

Bible Study – Leadership – Use Your Influence – May 8, 2011

This is lesson two (2) in our series entitled “Taking the Lead.”
Our scripture is Esther 4:13-17; 8:3-8 [I encourage you read the entire book of Esther.]
It is interesting that “influence” and “influenza” come from the same Latin word which means to “flow into someone or something.” When we influence someone else, we infect or impact him/her. This can be a good thing or a bad thing. People generally take on the ways, actions, ideas, habits, speech, dress, intellectual level, lifestyle, etc. of those with whom they associate.

All of us have influence upon others. Is it for good? Or bad? That is why our circle of friends is very important. That is why our teens and young adults can be vulnerable to emotional distress when their peers turn against them. Some people thrive off the feeling of power and controlling the lives of others.

We need to consider some background leading up to our selected scripture:

Esther lived about 483 B. C. Xerxes (ZUHRK seez) was king and ruled over 127 provinces stretching from India to Cush (Egypt/Ethiopia). Xerxes was also known as King Ahasuerus (uh haz yoo HER uhs). He ruled the Persian Empire from 486 – 465 B. C. His winter palace was in Susa (Iran).

He invited the military leaders of Persia and Media and the nobles of the provinces in his third year as king for a 180 day meeting in Susa. The purpose was to display his vast wealth and plan war. After the 180 day meeting the king gave an elaborate banquet for the men which lasted for 7 days. The king’s wife, Queen Vashti (VASH tie) gave a banquet for the women.

The men had their choice of wine and the quantity they wished to drink. They got drunk. On the seventh day King Xerxes was drunk and ordered that his beautiful wife, Vashti, to be brought to him wearing her royal crown. He wanted to display her beauty to his guests. She refused. This was serious. It seems like a simple request. Why would she refuse? The king and his guests were drunk but some believe that the king wanted her to come naked, only wearing her crown. There is another thought that she was pregnant and she did not want them to see her pregnant - Naked or not.

This was a serious blow to all married males. They said, “If the word gets out that Queen Vashti refused an order from the king, then every wife will feel free not to obey her husband.” The simple solution was to have the king issue a royal decree to be written in the laws of Persia and Media. Such a law could not be repealed. This is important as our story unfolds. The law would state that Queen Vashti was to never again enter the presence of King Xerxes. The king was to give her royal position to someone else who is better than she.

This was done and the king sent an edict throughout his kingdom that “All women will respect their husbands, from the least to the greatest.”

It seems that after the king had a cooling off period, he had second thoughts. But a law is law. So his advisors proposed “That a search be made for beautiful young virgins for the king.” Commissioners were appointed in every province to look for beautiful girls.

Here is where Esther (Her Jewish name was Hadassah) comes into the picture. Esther was an orphan and lived with her cousin, Mordecai. Mordecai had taken her as his own daughter. Mordecai was a Jew who had apparently inherited an official position, which kept him around the palace. Mordecai instructed Esther not to reveal her nationality.

Those commissioned to find these beautiful girls would either talk them into going to a 12 month beauty school or take them and send them to the king’s beauty school.

Hegai, the king’s eunuch, was in-charge of the beauty school. Esther was taken to the beauty school, which implies that she had no choice and Hegai thought she had promise. So he took a special interest in her and worked with her. Remember Mordecai had instructed Esther not to reveal her nationality. So no one knew that she was a Jew. This will be an important point later in the unfolding story.

Esther was chosen as the queen in the seventh (7th) year of King Xerxes rule. The queen had a higher position than a concubine. She was still part of the king’s harem but had more freedom along with certain restrictions. After-all she had replaced a queen who had dared to refuse the order of the king.

One day Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate and overheard a plot by two of the king’s officers to assassinate the king. Mordecai told Queen Esther and after an investigation, the two men were hung. Queen Esther had given credit to Mordecai for reporting the plot.

Sometime after the hanging of these two conspirators, a new character, Haman, entered the story. The king elevated Haman to second in command. Haman had a rank higher than all the nobles. The king had commanded that all the royal officials should kneel and pay honor to Haman but Mordecai refused. The other officials pointed this out to Haman and he became enraged. He wanted to more than kill Mordecai. Haman learned that Mordecai was a Jew. This gave Haman an idea. He looked for a way to destroy all the Jews under the rule of King Xerxes.

Haman cast lots to determine the best day to carry out a decree to kill all the Jews. The lot fell on a day almost a year away.

We need to know that the name of GOD was never mentioned in the entire book of Esther. But it was very clear GOD was at work. We will see as our story continues.

Haman approached the king and told him that there was a certain people dispersed within his provinces whose customs were different and they did not obey the king’s laws. He asked the king to issue a decree to destroy them. In fact, he would put ten thousand talents of silver into the royal treasury to carry out this decree. So Haman would help finance this ethnic cleansing.

The king agreed by giving Haman his signet ring, which carried the full power and authority of the king. He even told Haman to keep his money and do as he pleased.

So Haman put the royal secretaries to work writing orders to those under the king’s authority to destroy, kill and annihilate all Jews – young and old, women and little children on a single day. When Mordecai learned what was done, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes and went out into the city, wailing loudly and bitterly. He went to the king’s gate but he could go no further because no one clothed in sackcloth was allowed to enter the gate. But Mordecai had a plan. Queen Esther’s maids and eunuchs told her about Mordecai. So Queen Esther asked one of the king’s eunuchs to find out what was troubling Mordecai.

The eunuch spoke to Mordecai and reported back to Queen Esther. She sent word back to Mordecai that if she approached the king without being summoned, she could be put to death, unless the king extended the gold scepter to her. This brings us to our scripture.

Let’s read Esther 4:13-14: Recognize Your God-given Potential for Influence:

13 Mordecai told [the messenger]* to reply to Esther, “Don’t think that you will escape the fate of all the Jews because you are in the king’s palace. 14 If you keep silent at this time, liberation and deliverance will come to the Jewish people from another place, but you and your father’s house will be destroyed. Who knows, perhaps you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this.”[7]

Mordecai reminded Esther that she was a Jew and that she would not be spared just because she was in the king’s palace. If she kept silent her ancestral line would be destroyed. Then the heart of our scripture is “Who knows, perhaps you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this.”

Mordecai told her that this could be the very reason she was in the position she was to prevent such a massacre. She should use her influence on the king.

GOD is in all things and has a plan for our lives. It is not an accident that you are who you are and in the position or circumstances you find yourself. Could it be that GOD has you where you are in “such times as this?”

Here we have to be careful. Some may try to justify that GOD has placed you in a drug house to do drugs for a purpose. NO!!! You placed yourself in a drug house and you need to look to GOD for deliverance. After you have your life under HIS control and you are clean, then GOD can use you to help others. This goes for other addictions.

Let’s read Esther 4:15-17: Realize that God Is the Ultimate Influencer:

15 Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: 16 “Go and assemble all the Jews who can be found in Susa and fast for me. Don’t eat or drink for three days, night and day. I and my female servants will also fast in the same way. After that, I will go to the king even if it is against the law. If I perish, I perish.” 17 So Mordecai went and did everything Esther had ordered him.

Mordecai’s words got through to Esther. Esther asked that all the Jews in Susa fast for three (3) days in preparation for her to approach the king. Prayer is not mentioned but fasting usually accompanies prayer. She stated that her female servants would also fast.

We have to go to fill in some of what is happening between Chapter 4 and Chapter 8.

On the third day of the fast, Queen Esther put on her royal garb and stood in the inner court of the place. The king’s throne faced the entrance and he saw Esther standing there. He liked what he saw and he extended the gold scepter toward her and she approached and touched the scepter. Now keep in mind that she had told Mordecai that it had been 30 days since she had seen the king. So the king liked what he saw.

The king asked her what she wanted, even up to half of his kingdom. She must have been looking gooood. She wanted him and Haman to come to a banquet she had prepared for him that very day. The king and Haman came to the banquet and she asked that they come to another banquet the next day and at that time she would let the king know what she had on her mind. Haman left the banquet about as happy as a person can get. But he passed Mordecai and Mordecai did not show him honor or fear. This made Haman’s blood boil. But this was not the time to let Mordecai spoil his elation. He went home bragging about being the only one who was at the banquet with the king and queen. He called all of his friends to his house to tell them about his good fortune. In fact, he was the only person the queen had invited to her banquet the next day. Then he complained about Mordecai not showing him the honor he deserved. So his wife and friends said, “Have a gallows built, seventy-five feet high and ask the king in the morning to have Mordecai hanged on it. Then go with the king to the dinner and be happy.” This suggestion delighted Haman.

That night, GOD was still working. The king could not sleep. So he ordered that the book of the chronicles, the record of his reign, to be brought to him. As he read the book, he noticed that Mordecai had exposed the plot for his would be assassination. The king asked if they had ever honored Mordecai for his heroic deed. The answer was no.

In the meantime Haman was in the outer court planning to ask the king about hanging Mordecai. The king asked who was in the outer court and he was told that it was Haman. Timing is always perfect with GOD.

The king asked Haman, “What should be done for the man the king delights to honor?” Haman was beside himself. WOW!!! What an opportunity for me because I have to be the person the king has in mind.

So Haman told the king that he should let this person wear a royal robe which the king had worn, ride a horse which the king had ridden and a royal crest placed on his head. Then have one of the kings most noble princes lead this person through the city streets, proclaiming before him, ‘This is what is done for the man the king delights to honor.’

The king said, “Great idea!!!” “So Haman you go at once and do all that you have said for Mordecai!!!” WOW!!! I would have liked to have seen Haman’s face. Taking about sweet revenge - GOD knows how to do it. GOD tells us that vengeance is “MINE”. That is why we need to leave retaliation in GOD’S hands. When we retaliate we take it out of GOD’S hands. Don’t you know some people you would like to see something like this happen to? But we have to realize Mordecai was within hours of being executed.

Haman did as the king had instructed and when he finished he went straight home, distraught. He told his wife and friends and they said, “You are in trouble because Mordecai is a Jew.”

The king’s eunuchs arrived at Haman’s home and whisked him off to the banquet that Queen Esther had planned for him and the king.

So they dined, drank wine and the king asked Queen Esther what was her request. Her response and the circumstances which followed were recorded in Esther 7:3-10 - 3 Queen Esther answered, “If I have obtained your approval,[3] my king, and if the king is pleased, spare my life—[this is]* my request; and [spare]* my people—[this is]* my desire. 4 For my people and I have been sold out to destruction, death, and extermination.[4] If we had merely been sold as male and female slaves, I would have kept silent. Indeed, the trouble wouldn’t be worth burdening the king.” 5 King Ahasuerus (Xerxes) spoke up and asked Queen Esther, “Who is this, and where is the one who would devise such a scheme?”[5]6 Esther answered, “The adversary and enemy is this evil Haman.” Haman stood terrified before the king and queen. 7 Angered by this, the king arose from where they were drinking wine and [went to]* the palace garden. Haman remained to beg Queen Esther for his life because he realized the king was planning something terrible for him. 8 Just as the king returned from the palace garden to the banquet hall, Haman was falling on the couch where Esther was reclining. The king exclaimed, “Would he actually violate the queen while I am in the palace?” As soon as the statement left the king’s mouth, Haman’s face was covered. 9 Harbona, one of the royal eunuchs, said: “There is a gallows 75 feet[6] tall at Haman’s house that he made for Mordecai, who [gave]* the report that saved[7] the king.” The king commanded, “Hang him on it.” 10 They hanged Haman on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai.[8] Then the king’s anger subsided.

This brings us to our last scripture.

Let’s read Esther 8:3-8: Use Your Influence in Godly Ways:

3 Then Esther addressed the king again. She fell at his feet, wept, and begged him to revoke the evil of Haman the Agagite, and his plot he had devised against the Jews. 4 The king extended the golden scepter[3] toward Esther, so she got up and stood before the king. 5 She said, “If it pleases the king, and I have found approval before him, if the matter seems right to the king and I am pleasing in his sight,[4] let [a royal edict]* be written. Let it revoke the documents the scheming Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite, wrote to destroy the Jews who [reside]* in all the king’s provinces.[5] 6 For how could I bear to see the evil that would come on my people? How could I bear to see the destruction of my relatives?” 7 King Ahasuerus (Xerxes) said to Esther the Queen and to Mordecai the Jew, “Look, I have given Haman’s estate to Esther, and he was hanged on the gallows because he attacked[6] the Jews. 8 You may write in the king’s name whatever pleases you concerning the Jews, and seal it with the royal signet ring. A document written in the king’s name and sealed with the royal signet ring cannot be revoked.”[7]

The king gave Haman’s estate to Queen Esther. In turn, Queen Esther appointed Mordecai to oversee Haman’s estate. Only GOD can bring about such a conclusion. Mordecai wrote a law telling the Jews they could defend themselves and the bloodbath Haman had orchestrated was brought to a satisfactory conclusion.

Our study has been about influence. Influence combined with GOD’S power equals success. Notice how close pending disaster was to Mordecai and the Jewish people including Queen Esther.

In our study of Esther we see the influence both good and bad that people have on others. We also see GOD’S hand working to bring about good for those who love HIM and obediently serve HIM. Ponder the words in our first scripture, “Who knows, perhaps you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this.” Are you in a position of influence to come to aid, to mentor or to encourage someone? Blessings to all!!!