Esther Session 8

[Music] [Music] not only is victory rarely quick it's really simple don't you know that if some of our forefathers had known what would be required of them could have give it up before they began instead God told them only what they needed to know at the time and supplied the grace required to get through that and our narrative Haman was out of the way Esther and Mordecai were well positioned but the victory would require an army I'll see you in class for such a time as this I'm the one do as you wish who knows but that I'm in this place to prove your presence be praised safe in his hands sweet Destin [Music] we have come together for such a time as this and that time just keeps fleeting and slipping out of our hands I do not want this series to end I am NOT ready we've still got one more week and I want to just love on you and I want to love on those of you on the other side of that screen because you have been faithful and I say to all of you you have been faith look at one another and say you've been faithful I know what a time commitment it is to come week after week after week in all the priorities you have with family with work just to get a little bit of rest for a change so I want you to know I esteem your hard work and I so appreciate you being here and I'm praying that you and I are receiving just what I want to say with a little bit of a grin on my face the ester anointing anybody know what I'm talking about for such a time as whatever it may be in our personal lives and as I look around this particular environment I think to myself you know we don't have to be in important places of politics and government and big corporations to have a call of Esther on our lives sometimes it's just time to get a hold of a lawn during such a time as doing the carpool amen so such a time as just dealing with some things and some personal relationships such a time to teach a Bible class she doesn't have to be a big position just a depth of calling that says I placed an open door before you with the courage of Christ step into it somehow just had the domestic anointing for the last couple of days I can't explain it in case I look a little different it's because I have cook dinner two nights in a row let's try not to be prideful and they were even you can even eat them which made me so happy I used those dishes because I've gotten them out to show y'all that chiastic structure I thought Moz will use them while they were outside in my car for days because I didn't miss them when I brought them in I thought I might as well put something on them so this button on today and here's the ultimate I colored my own hair day before yesterday that isn't done yet oh ma n isn't it that's why I kind of pinned it up because you know if you got fresh roots you want to show it anybody know what I'm talking because there's a certain way you do your hair when your roots are really long overdue am i telling you the truth and my time and then there's ways you do when you got fresh color going on then you do it all sorts of updos and pulled up people somebody's new to Bible study going I thought we were going really get in the water we are but we are women get in the word and for some reason we like to talk about hair I was listening this morning to a television interview that my friend Jennifer Rothschilds was on and I don't know how many of you are familiar with her work but she's a marvelous marvelous Bible teacher and such a woman of God with with a tremendous testimony of what Christ has done and she said not only words I knew is in by tracking with me not only words I knew stay with me sister words that I had talked nothing like God bring him back to you what you taught out of your own mouth and ain't doing hate when that happens hate when it happens and she was talking outsole talking she said you know the psalmist teaches us that sometimes we have to speak to our own soul and she said like we just have to look into our inner man and say find rest o my soul in God alone son rest I have taught that but I needed to do it would you open with me with great joy to ester the ninth chapter Esther chapter nine now one reason why this is such an important chapter in the book for one thing you can tell by the link that we have a lot to learn you're going to be taking it apart all through your week of homework and your final week of homework so wrestle it out it's very interesting and not only is it just is it lengthy so it offers a lot but it also gives us the two explicit references to the reversal of destiny you and I have been camped on for a couple of weeks everybody say that phrase reversal of destiny say it again I want you to hear us I've told you something we were looking at by concept for several weeks but something we're going to see dead on two different places in Esther nine one of which you're going to study later in the week but I want to show it to you now and then we're gonna back up our lesson is on verses 1 through 4 but let's begin first of all by looking at 19 through 22 Esther 9 19 through 22 you're going to understand this when the time comes in your homework but it says that is why rural Jews those living in villages observed the fourteenth of the month of Adar as a day of joy and feasting a day for giving presents to each other I can't wait for you to study this morning I recorded these events and he sent letters to all the Jews throughout the provinces of King Xerxes near and far to have them celebrate annually the 14th and 15th days of the month of Adar as the time when the Jews got relief from their enemies and as the month when their sorrow was turned if I say was turn if I say it again when their sorrow was turned into joy and their mourning into a day of celebration and he wrote them to observe the days as days of feasting and joy and giving presents of food to one another and gifts to the poor you can tell already that this is going to be the institution of the Jewish feast of Purim you know by now what that poor represents and what it means in the original language so you're going to look at every single bit of that in your homework but for now I want you to see that word was turned that particular phrase and that word turned because that is the explicit word for reversal in Esther coming to a climactic point of what we've seen by concept from the very beginning now look with me at Esther nine one three four and we're gonna see that exact same word as its predecessor here in this segment nine one through four on the 13th day of the 12th month the month of Adar the edict commanded by the King was to be carried out on this day the enemies of the Jews had hoped to overpower them now remember if you were able to get your homework done in Chapter eight you've been learning how the edict was released remember that the edict to have the Jews annihilated and slaughtered was a movable and unchangeable so there had to be a new one that simply stated now they can defend themselves see because once the law of the Medes and the Persians was commanded and put out in front of the people it was immutable no way to change it so all that could happen was another word to go out to tell the Jews now you can defend yourselves so that that's what we've got here and look where it says on this day the enemy of the Jews had hoped to overpower them but now the tables were turned everybody say the tables were turned and the Jews got the upper hand over those who hated them the Jews assembled in their cities and all the provinces of King Xerxes to attack those seeking their destruction no one could stand against them because the people of all the other nationalities were afraid of them verse 3 and all the nobles of the provinces the set traps the governors and the Kings administrators help the Jews look at this dig this at the very anniversary because fear of Mordecai had seized them fear of Mordecai do you remember seeing him in in chapter 4 at the very beginning of forum that's going to remind you where we see him tearing his clothes putting on sackcloth and ashes go out into the city wailing loudly and bitterly you talk about a man who had some fear for his people and suddenly they're scared of Mordecai how interesting verse 4 Mordecai was prominent in the palace his reputation spread throughout the provinces and he became more and more powerful now in those two places in 922 where we looked a few moments ago where it says that their sorrow was turned into joy and then very much at the beginning of the chapter where it says that the tables were turned that word I want to give you the Hebrew transliteration for it it's H a P a K H a P a K the tables were turned that Hebrew transliteration ephah' is how you would say the word in Hebrew and it means to overturn it means to overthrow it means to tumble now I want you to see the premise we're gonna build our entire session on because this is what we're going to work from and it just spoke to me over and over again this is really where I want us to have a heavy focus during this entire next 45 minutes listen to this God can't turn a table that was never set against you we're talking about having tables turned at the tables turn and the Jews got the upper hand but but here's what occur to me as we begin this session we cannot have a table turn that was never set against us in other words how in the world are we ever going to know victory unless we've gone through something difficult enough that God takes the table set against us and he turns that table really the life we keep praying for is the life where we would never know a table turn if we had things as simple as we want if we got all of all of the answers that we are seeking in our present prayer journals or I don't want any pain I want absolutely you do not want any suffering nor do I want any one I love to have any I mean wouldn't we be crazy if we wouldn't give them suffering Lord give them in Jesus and I mean who's gonna do that but what I am saying is this to know the joy of a table turn a table has to be said against you you have to you have to know what it's like to come upon fierce opposition and even at times oppression I've got a little piece of paper yeah I have notes all over the place when I'm working on a study and before I ever write the first word there's probably five months that's gone into it just looking at some background before I ever get to the pool where I start really writing something down so I have a little scratch pieces of paper all over the place and this was one from the very beginning just a scratch no just really for me to think over now I've thought it over it's come back to me over and over and I've wondered if I would use it for you but this is a question that I that I asked the Lord I wrote down Esther and I put a dash there this was way back to the beginning stages of studying this book and and I asked this question am i strong or just spoiled my strong or is it just that I really don't have to go through comparatively speaking a lot of what other people do we're not in a third world country we're not being persecuted as Christians I mean we're here and all our finest but I have to ask question are we strong or we just spoiled because that is exactly what the enemy suggested to God about job he spoiled no wonder he worships you you take all that I'll bet he won't only did and God knew he would I don't want to just be spoiled want to be a warrior of course I want to be a warrior I want I want I want a crown to cast here's an important part of our lesson now I want you to say that back to me the premise for today's session I want you to say it back to me God can't anybody get that if you get that on will see your hand I'm gonna see your hand too okay I get that I'm not ever gonna see this kind of turn if things have not been set against me so here's what we're gonna do and I've just thrown this out to you and you're listening god we're going to try to see some purpose in some tough scenarios because if we could begin to see some purpose in it then then we're going to begin to grow that kind of trust that brings that turn around now here's what I want you to do our warranty we were going to be looking back at it and back at it I want you to look back at your page call turn it around and I want to remind you what we're presently doing in proper chiastic structure by say chiastic structure don't make me get out my sticks because I really want to I really want to listen I was so attached to him I didn't even need them in today's lesson but I just had to bring them because now it's a good thing that I'm doing breaking free doing the revision of it next because I'm gonna need to break free from my sticks you might be curious to know that these my coworker said today what in the world are they acid pegs from Keith's tenth that he uses to goose and duck hunt which is exactly why this time of year for such a time as this I'm going to have to soon return them chiastic structure we're seeing the inverted parallelism so here's what we've been doing throughout the course of our study we have been looking at seven different tough scenarios for women because it's tough being a woman somebody say that back to me it's just it's just tough being a woman I said we looked at seven different scenarios and so here's what we're doing ever since we learned about the reversal of destiny and we gave it a phrase we gave it a name we have set about to see every one of these turn that when we're in that kind of a tough scenario how can we see the effects reversed so that what was originally against us is a table turn and it's for us I want you to look at that bottom line it's something that we turn out that we've filled out in last week's lesson but I want you to read it back to me look at that bottom line under all those squares where it says but trust remember it's tough being a woman but what about trust I want you to tell it to me but trust reverses the detours of adversity into highways of destiny just what we think was a huge detour for us suddenly we're going how does winning most important things that ever happened to me I never would have fulfilled my calling without that anybody anybody looking back over their past going listen I hated that so badly and I could not see for the life of me how it fit but I'm telling you it was crucial to what God was doing here's what we're learning to tell ourselves that every single time we think it's tough being a woman and boy are we gonna think it now because we've got something to call it we're gonna be able to think and it's trust that turns it all around so here's what we're doing with every single one of those tough scenarios we are drawing as we back up now going from seven to one we are drawing a line to that square where it's reversed by the truth of God's Word we're going to trust him to turn those tables we've already done 7 & 6 in today's lesson we're going to do five four and three we're just about to do five so here's what I want you to do I want you to look with me aisle number five what was the fifth scenario it's tough being a woman you fill in the rest of that blank for me in a tight fist to fear everybody say it again all right so here's what we're gonna do we're gonna camp on fear for a moment in just a moment you're gonna start getting scripts or references to markdown I'm going to lead you through it on the screen where you're going to have certain references you're putting down in those boxes that becomes our trust when we're going through that scenario we're going to go to that word and we're going to claim that word and we're going to see that adversity turn into part of our destiny and Trust is the way we're going to do it now what we're also doing is it on our index cards we're going to write them all the way out on the back of it with the scenario on front so that literally when we're looking at that scenario we can turn it around anybody gonna act that out I like demonstrations I like I like something symbolic like that a couple of weeks ago we talked about this particular scenario it hit a nerve with us anybody just battle as stronghold of fear like I have just my biggie my most consistent one and I want you to think about some things as we really reflect on it and see it turned and want so much to see that kind of adversity turn into destiny I started thinking to myself and I'm just convinced of it then one reason why we as women fear so much is because we feel so much do you think that could be true I'm not saying that men don't fear nor am i saying that they don't feel for crying out loud but I just am simply saying I'm not saying we're not intellectual people of course we are I'm just saying women feel a lot of things and not only because we're hormonal I got the sweetest email from a co-worker today just encouraging me in in my day and I wrote her back and I said the tears are just stinging in my eyes and right after that I wanted to write and I'm not even hormonal now why did I need to qualify that I'm just asking someone why is it we need to do that because we need you know we don't know half of what we feel is it hormones or not he might know what I'm talking about maybe it's just me maybe maybe I am for motile in the red book Sam I say the red book somebody writes in this I hope I can make it clear that I'm not in any way trying to be argumentative but I have to know why is it that we as women view our emotions and hormones so negatively I love that I feel deeply and that I can approach a problem not only based on logic but also on feeling I like crying at commercials and books and movies because I love the honesty of it you can't get more real than a bunch of women sitting together laughing crying and even getting angry all at the same time or maybe it's trying to hide our emotions that makes us hate that part of our makeup I spent a lot of time trying to cut out that part of me and it just made me miserable we're all made to feel and denying that just hurts us in the long run most women have been privileged to be given an emotional vocabulary maybe men are not so lucky fact as men are emotional and hormonal beings - but they're just forced to work so much harder than we are hide it interesting interesting maybe though to feel so much is to be tempted to fear so much I was praying with our praise team before class started today and that very interesting thing came up and every now and then I know that you've experienced this - if you're a teacher or facilitator of any kind when you've said something that you know was not even on your mind to say and you know it was God and that he was saying it to you and to them but one of our praise team members was telling us asking us if we would pray for her mother because her mother had gone through breast cancer a year and a half ago and is living cancer-free to the great praise and healing and glory of our God but she said the thing of it is every time she gets the least little thing now she's overcome with fear anybody know what I'm talking about and see here's the interesting thing if she's like so many others I've talked to because I've talked to so many people who had given that same testimony who have said the thing about it is while I was going through it I felt the strength and power but after I came out of it I've got a stronghold of fear about ever going back into it and you know what came straight out of my mouth I didn't plan it I didn't I didn't have the I didn't have the wherewithal to know it I said that's because God's grace is given according to our need not what we have made up out of our fear so I'm just going to give us strength in our vain imagination oh I just don't have to sit down I'm just gonna wait here till everybody gets that because that that blew my mind we want God to give us strength - for our vain imaginations because you're making that up I'm giving you strength in that one set you free from fear not help you think I've stopped [Laughter] [Applause] just about puts me in a bad mood God puts me in a bad mood that's my pray over me today the the prayer team earlier that God would tell me today what he thought I thought what are you sure did that sometimes I fear things I've just made up help us floor it we get freed up from a stronghold of fear turn that scenario around how are we gonna do it we're gonna see this I want you to notice with me we looked back a little while ago at the very beginning of the Esther chapter 4 where Mordecai's in the sack cloth and ashes he's just wailing his head off suddenly they're all scared of him and he's growing more and more powerful and influential as what one translation of the Bible said that I read and prepared for this lesson but I want you to notice something with me this is a very very important part of this series I want us to get this before this concludes first bullet point is this the Jews weren't just delivered they were empowered help us Lord the Jews weren't just delivered they were empowered write it down sister we get all delivered but we don't get empowered we're gonna go right back to that defeat I deliver it's the last 30 minutes on a good day listen God doesn't mean to just deliver us he wants to empower us to be warriors I wonder if you could like collect it into your thoughts and I could collect it into my thoughts that God wants to make the unseen enemy forces afraid of us can you picture that wimpy me scared me captive me and he wants to make some demons trim it over you your little self you look at one another say some at you come at you come at you see with me Deuteronomy 33 29 leave something here in Esther because we're about to also go to Nehemiah and I want you close by Deuteronomy the last of the five books of Moses chapter 33 verse 29 I love the verse that I'm about to share with you it's going to be one if you want to go ahead and write it down it's going to be the first one in your chiastic across from number five you're going to mark it all the way across to the fifth oneness we're going to see a reversal because we're going to trust God and so you're gonna write down in that box you're gonna write Deuteronomy 33 29 and I'm about to read it to you and you're going to see why you want to call upon him when you are in the tight grip of fear it says in verse 29 of Deuteronomy 33 I just love this I just love this I just love this blessed are you O Israel and who is like you of people saved by the Lord now go here with me for sex sisters because I just totally dig this because over and over in God's Word he tells us there is no one like me there is no one like me there is no other God besides me there is no other Rock I know but but here he suggests to us he said here's what you need to understand because there's nobody like me there is no people on earth like my people oh don't make me sit down again don't make me I will if I have to is my under my over here understand what I'm saying the you may feel like a wimp but there is no one like the people of God on the face of the earth a people saved by the Lord of people saved by the Lord there's he says there's no people like you because I am your God listen what he says he is your shield and helper and your glorious sword I just want to pitch this question out why is it that he has to help us when he could do it himself let's do it you have to help us go right ahead I need to wash dishes trying to get that stirred morning over my sink anybody your helper your help why why because listen he says your enemies will cower before you look at what others say before you oh look at one others say it again for you your enemies will cower before you and you will trample down their hot places listen to what he's saying he said look I know I could do it myself the problem is you don't think you can do it is that I want to show you my glory when I use will be you to do it because listen in the black night we are so insecure we do not know what to do I don't know maybe I'm just out of my mind and I'm concluding that a whole lot of people are like me when they're not but but I'm gonna say to you I don't believe there are many people on the face of the earth I don't care what kind of position they are in and how their reputation has walked its way across this earth in the black of night they're weak in their natural selves and he said here's the deal I know I know I can make people and principalities cower but you don't know that you can make principalities cower I know God says I can trample down some high places I got a hot foot you see everything is under his feet anybody but he says what's going to be wild and when you're going to know that I am God is when I use your foot to do it yes yeah all right hallelujah I think we're gonna get it today I think we're gonna get now go back to Esther and I want you to go one book before it to Nehemiah that's a little strange how our traditional Old Testaments are put together because Nehemiah the events there actually happened about 30 years after the events that you and I are reading about in Esther these are all diaspora Jews in fact very interestingly Nehemiah if you look very soon at the beginning of the book he tells that he was coming out of the Citadel of Sousa very interesting in verse 1 of chapter 1 in the month of Kislev in the 20th year while I was in the Citadel of Sousa and then so you have to wonder if they were if he knew and had been told of the things that had happened in this era whether or not he was a child whether or not he'd been born he was raised up knowing what had happened in the Citadel of Sousa that we're studying he had have known about this feast but he was sent back to be part of the the home going Jews in Jerusalem that we're going to rebuild the walls around the city now I want you to hear some of the oppression that they encountered and some of the opposition so that you can be encouraged in your faith with what he says Nehemiah 4 10 through 14 it's going to be 14 it's going to be Nehemiah 4:14 that you're going to ride down as an address that next address in that same square as we reverse the effects when we are tempted to be in fear listen to ten meanwhile the people in Judah said the strength of the laborers is giving out and there's so much rubble that we can't rebuild the wall anybody feel like they just can't I can't Lord I'm not telling you I don't want to I'm just wondering if I'm speaking to anybody I'm telling you I can't anybody I can't also our enemy said before they know it or see us we'll be right there among them and we'll kill them and put an end to their work the turning of the enemy it says in verse 12 then the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten times over wherever you turn they will attack us wherever you turn they will attack us wherever you turn they will attack us wherever you talk they will attack us wherever you turn they won't have anybody doing that with you going you're killing me here you're killing me here your bet to kill my faith quit telling me this it's not going to work I know what God's Word says I know what he said to me look at what it says next it says that in verse 13 therefore I stationed some of the people behind the lowest points of the wall at the exposed places posting them by families with their swords spears and bows and after I look things over I stood up and said to the nobles the officials and the rest of the people this is what you're going to be writing down on your card and this is the verse that's gonna go down in that square don't be afraid of them remember the Lord who is great and awesome and fight for your brothers your sons and your daughters your wives and your homes do not be afraid of them she remembers your God he is glorious and awesome you fight for your home you fight for your home you fight for your home fight for your marriage wives fight for your children mothers fight for nieces and nephews ants bite for your family your God is a great and awesome God next bullet point says this notice that it tells us in verse 2 the Jews assembled in their cities and all the provinces of King Xerxes to attack those seeking their destruction they assembled as some of your versions say they gathered together the point of it is this is just this an awesome thought to me now notice with me we substantiated from the very beginning that due to the contextual clues and and the things that we're left wondering about through the the narrative of Esther we are left to conclude that they were all that secular Jews completely assimilated into their culture in Persia why because they didn't even have to tell anybody they didn't know obviously that Esther was Jewish so we're left to think since she's going to be representative of a whole lot of people among the Jews in the Empire of Persia and we're thinking they have so assimilated these are people that chose not to go home when they could they stayed put they liked life in in Persia they liked what it had to offer so there they're all over the place nothing unified about them until they're in trouble until they're in trouble and suddenly they start assembling anybody getting this they start assembling and pulling together and and it says that and I'm suggesting to you and you're listening guys the power wasn't just Mordecai's it was all of theirs it was all of theirs the power we've talked about the fact that the Jews weren't just delivered they were wild ladies you tell me they were empowered and you shall receive power acts 1:8 says when the Holy Spirit comes upon you power power to walk as a warrior on this planet to cause some demons to tremble but we see it wasn't just Mordecai but they were all out in the provinces it was all the people it was he the people that thought they were cowards listen you are not a coward you are not a coward you have it in you to be a mighty mighty woman and Warner of God here's something that just kept occurring to me big battles are won by teams girlfriends teams one reason why some of us I say this gently and with compassion and I'm going to tell you that one reason some of us remain in our bondage is because we are keeping our secret to ourselves so we just stay in it that's because God says there are some battles that are won by the body by bringing some people together to war with you that is what it takes ha-hi this was so blessed by all the people in the provinces having to take their swords because it occurs to me that these winning teams are made up of purity common people with uncommon power anybody got that does common people like us with uncommon power somebody needs to know here today you are not a loser look at one another and say you're not a loser somebody came to class just to hear that just feel like one big L it's on your forehead that L stands for Lord Lord he's Lord is Lord over this here's why I want you to seeing the next in the next bullet point because I just love this remember that our scenario number five is what is tough being a woman into what Todd grip of fear Tibor a miserable place to be and and what the Word of God God led my mind to think I want you to write down that every time you're in a tight fist of fear remember you're in something a whole lot tighter in something much tighter than a tight grip of fear I want you to fill in the blank and you're not going to look this verse up I've got it down for you and this is what's going to go in that last segment of that square that you have to reverse the effects of fear listen to these words Isaiah 49 16 says see I have engraved you on the palm of my hands I've been great you now Stu you fill that in and then I want you to stick with me here I'm going to demonstrate this all right the picture that Isaiah 49 is paining for us is when something is held so tight in a grip I just want you to fill that grip because we've talked about the tide grip of fear the God says that he holds us so tightly we are engraved it is a word that means to inscribe it could be to to write words on a page or it can mean to cut into literally cut into is that you aren't engraved on my hands it is to be held so tight get this with me that we are literally engraved in the palm of his hand you are tightly held someone 39 says that we are held in his right hand and your right hand shall hold me listen you think you're in a tight grip of fear you're in something a whole lot tighter than that you're in the palm of God you are in the palm of God all right let's look back and our turn it around page and we're gonna start turning around scenario number four it's tough being a woman and what did we talk about in that fourth scenario how tough is it hey boy it's really tough when we've been thrown a what a giant-sized wait couple of weeks ago I got an email from Christina khals now I asked her permission today if I could read this to you because I just thought it was so absolutely hilarious and she gave it to me and we had a good laugh over it today but but she is as anointed a songwriter and and singer and worship leader as you will ever find on the face of this earth at such a time as this but I just want you to hear what she shared with me in an email she hi sweet friend I hope you're doing well first I have to tell you the dream I had a few nights ago hysterical in my dream I was at the mall buying a wedding gown for some reason mind you she's a mother of three why in her dream she was getting a wedding gown and I do not know it says I walked outside of the mall and you were on the stage teaching at this event there were hundreds of women out on this grassy field man she just got her wedding gown she's come out now I'm teaching here and there are women on a grassy field but she's even worked the grassy knoll into it somehow and it says there was a huge staircase that went down from the mall all the way down to the field I had on high heels and I fell all the way down the stairs in front of all the women then I got to the bottom and you ran over and asked me if I wanted to go see a movie with you and a friend I didn't come over and say how are you have you broken your leg when we were trying to decide what movie we'd go see Santa Claus and his reindeer over the top of us and over all the women and I ran into the middle of the crowd parting the women in yelling behold your God who makes his creation fly the wind girls do we need some help we need some help we're trying to go back and see if we can just start over in our marriage now I'm not I'm not saying this is what she was doing I'm just saying then we're gonna work out then we've got it we've got a good teaching scene going but suddenly we humiliate ourselves by falling down the stairs and then we're going to the movie and then suddenly Santa Claus and the reindeer are overhead and then we're just going to worship God over Santa Claus and the reindeer and bless God who makes creation fly oh I'll tell you it's just exhausting isn't it somebody say it's exhausting being a woman anybody get it woman's the last time you had a dream of that last night you just don't remember it you're two dancing we're confused dieting confused it's tough being a woman throwing a giant-sized weight but here's what I want you to see I just look at this I just love this now the tables were turned we're told in verse 1 of chapter 9 and the Jews got the upper hand I want everybody said got the upper hand say it again dot thought perhaps now here it see here's what we're trying to picture how we're going to turn around this giant size weight and I'm going to show you how this is going to happen I want you to write down in that verse little bullet point God always has the upper hand girlfriend God always has the upper hand now here's what I want you to fill in the fill in here and then I'm going to come back explain it we're going to exchange our burden for a weapon we're gonna change our burden for a weapon you write that down and then let me explain this to you now if you'll picture it says the Jews were given the upper hand all right all right how in the world if God has an upper hand this whoa this is why we need Lord Lord Lord Lord because if God's got the upper hand then why do I need to do with my giant size weight well I better get my hands upper I better give me some upper hands you you want to get an upper hand get your hands up get your hands up get your hands up get your hands up anybody hear what I'm saying to you well we're all listen this is what we do and I'm not talking about we oh well now on this you was going to talk about that that's how we all have praise and where I've got timeout praise and worship I'm not talking about praise and worship I'm talking about going here here one of the first verses I want you to write down as we reverse that scenario is first Peter 5:7 that says cast your anxiety upon him for he cares for you we're going to give it to him and listen the bigger the burn the bore you better stretch how hot can your hands go how hot can my hands go I better get my hand upper still I must stretch up on those tiptoes and go God here here here the bigger the weight the more you stretch it up hand it to him and say you take the weight I'll take the weapon that girlfriend it's quick weight loss now [Applause] Deuteronomy 23 oh you're so fun I got to Deuteronomy 23 be turning there now you're already wanting to ride down in that space and that next line you're gonna draw that line over draw that line over from four to four this one happens to be on top of one another you don't draw it down and you're gonna write down first Peter 5:7 and then I'm going to show you Deuteronomy 23 you got it go ahead and ride down the segment 23 5 just write down that address remember the whole thing goes on your index cards but on this particular page just the addresses so go ahead and write down 23 5 and I'm going to read it to you in a second I want you to see what we're talking about here as these tables are turned Deuteronomy chapter 23 verses 3 through 5 says this no ammonite Moabite or any of his descendants may enter the Assembly of the Lord even down to the 10th generation now listen this code because we're pulling this out of context but what God is saying he is hold and nations responsible for not coming to the rescue of his own children very interesting because it very much parallels the table of Nations in Matthew 25 32 that's for your own study but take a look at this 4 it says in verse 4 where they did not come to meet you with bread and water on your way when you came out of Egypt and they hired Balaam son of a or a path or in Aaron Najarian to pronounce a curse on you however the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam but turned the curse into a blessing for you because the Lord your God loves you he loves you I want you to look at those words because that word turned is exactly our same word turned for our reversals in Esther 9 for Genesis chapter 3 same exact word ha ha and it says this that he can take what's a curse see and I'm not talking about I'm not getting into all sorts of wild stuff here I'm just saying what the enemy would have liked to have been a cur Jos God takes that very thing and switches it into a blessing you talk of if you talk about driving the enemy crazy not just obliterate it not just as if it never happened no take the very thing and turn it into the blessing I'm just gonna get excited I'm just going to get excited that's a thrill to me that's a thrill to me it says and I want you to write this down and you're listening got it and this is what you're gonna write as your address on the square however the Lord your God turned the curse into a blessing for you because the Lord your God loves you loves you you know somebody here needs to know that they need to know that Lord don't ever let me forget to say that if you know nothing else and all your adversity you talk about something that was so trusting to your life where we turn into a highway of destiny for you you got to know above all things I am loved by my god I am loved I don't know where he is right now see that's a message of Esther that's the theology of Esther I may not be able to see him at work but I know he is here and I know that he loves me how I want you to hear what kind of love it is it's the most interesting wonderful Hebrew word and there's a word I'm pulling this part out of the lexical aids of the key word Study Bible listen to this part of the definition it implies an ardent and vehement inclination of the mind and a tenderness of affection at the same time fill in those blanks and camp on in a second with me an ardent and vehement inclination the mind in other words it has something in us just like I like I'm a wolf would be over her Cubs vehement inclination of mine but a tenderness of affection at the same time listen some of us as mothers know exactly what that's talking about because we can rock that child when you take that temperature tuck that baby in bed and then when somebody messes with that child at school we will go try to tear the hair out what is that that vehement inclination ardent affection and tenderness all at the same time I keep thinking about something a friend told me whose 20-year marriage is coming to an end Oh Lord I pray they'll fight for their family because their Lord at their God is great and awesome but she just sobbed that her husband had so quickly agreed to divorce and she said this and it just keeps burning in my mind over and over he didn't fight for me he didn't fight for me he didn't fight for me my son-in-law and my daughter were married right there on that platform and in that ceremony he had done it as the ancient Jewish husbands would have done it when they themselves wrote the contract and the woman didn't even sign it in traditional in ancient Judaism it was up to the man to keep that bow and he literally was the only one to sign the contract Kerr wrote it for Amanda and signed it during the ceremony after he read it to her there are two lines of it it was it was much lengthier than this but he said this I'll fight for you I'll die for you so many people listening today they know exactly what my friend was talking about are you you just not had somebody that would fight for you show you that your value enough to fight for you let me tell you something Jesus Christ fights for you he fights for you his love for you is ardent his availment he had a whole lot of feeling where you're concerned and not one iota fear Jesus does not fear how strongly he feels about you somebody needs to know that ardent ardent ardent tenderness of affection all at the same time and he said this I'll fight for you I'll die for you that's some love found something so interesting in all those places where I looked up occasions where something with that same Hebrew word with overturned tables were turned found the strangest thing I have it in your listening guide I'm gonna have you look it up because it would take us 15 minutes to find Hosea would somebody say Amen but he says this talking about some among the people of Israel says Ephraim is a flat cake not turned over it's a flat cake not turned over is that an interesting metaphor what you know what that saying is in our terminology it's talking about a pancake that is only cooked on one side imagine it imagine it when you fix a pancake you flip it only says you're like a cake that it flipped and here's what it spoke to me we keep we have this side we want to show publicly we know what we want people to think we know we know and it's the side we bring to church the side we try to bring to work the side we bring into a lot of our social gatherings but there's a whole other side God's going you know what this thing is not gonna turn around till you let me get to that side anybody got a side come on now come on now anybody got a side that only a few choice people get the privilege to see this cakes gotta flip this thing's not gonna turn around till the cake flips and we let him to that side God wants access to both sides look at what others say to both sides that's a pancake who'da thought a pancake let's look lastly and for just a few minutes at that third scenario and let's turn it around third scenario it's tough being a woman and somebody tell me just how tough and what the surroundings can be in a white girl in a Maine world in a Maine world and here's what we suggested several weeks ago when we first really thought about how tough it is to be a woman in such a Maine world and so how overwhelming that is here's what's even tougher it's even tougher not to get mean with it amen listen listen listen there is a Maine man is ugly but a mean woman is ugly some things just should not be just should not be tough being a woman in a mean world especially if we don't want to get mean with it in a mean world I want you to jot this down as your bullet point New Testament believers are called to a good fight we are called to a good fight listen in a mean world we're not just left to be victims of our main world we do get to fight we do look at one another say we do get to fight but girlfriends we are called to a good fight we are called to a good fight to learn how to wage a good and godly fight and our fight is not against human flesh and blood as much as we want to zero in and target it on them that's not who our fight is with I want you to see something this is the verse I want you to write down an epic and that reversal Square 1st Timothy 1 18 and 19 jot down that address and then I want to read it to you don't want you to fill it in it's on your listening guide and we're going to treat it with some trust so it'll turn around so it'll turn around listen to this as Paul speaks over Timothy and speaks over us as a New Testament church I give you this instruction in keeping with the prophecies once made about you we can see it in terms of of our own selves as as what we were predestined to do before the foundation of the world when our works were literally set aside for us Ephesians 2:10 tells us that and if we're gonna fulfill those destinies and glorify God he says this so that by following them you may fight the good fight holding on to faith and a good conscience faith and a good conscience faith and a good conscience write those words down in those blanks he goes on to say some have rejected these talking about faith and a good conscience and have shipwrecked their faith rejected the Word of God rejected what has been spoken over them and rejected faith and good conscience now stick with me here because we're talking about how we can turn this thing around when we're just overcome we're watching the news we're reading the paper where it is listening to something a friend has been through we think this world is mean and in order sometimes the way we'll defend ourselves against it is that we grow cold and being ourselves we don't want that we want to keep a tender heart what a vehement nature like Christ we want to fight a good fight and war with the right entity and it's his faith and a good conscience here here's what occurred to me all right we can have a whole lot of faith but if we're getting a check in our conscience something is wrong so said we just get convinced God really wants to give us that particular position at work that promotion that particular position no and we're just filled with faith about it where does believing God for that position believing God for that race we believe he's spoken it to us but then we begin to just take opportunity to get in Vantage there now me want someone else's job we're trying to take anybody anybody tracking with me no faith and a good conscience that says when I start checking inside huh something's wrong here that's not a good fight that's not a good fight anybody getting that I like other times when you have a plenty good conscience our conscience is not bothering us at all only we just have zero faith faith and a good conscience we're gonna find out you're going to learn this week in the ninth chapter of Esther in your homework that the Jews were allowed to do more than they did go with me here sometimes just because we can doesn't mean we should just because we can listen we have power in our giftings of God we can abuse that power we can abuse it they said just because you can just because you have the power to do it doesn't mean you ought to do it doesn't mean I oughta do it faith in a good conscience faith and a good conscience I want to conclude our lesson with a wonderful egg sir out of a book called the Queen and I by race Stedman Chuck Swindoll and his book on Esther quoted him he was one of his mentor's someone he looked up to so much which makes me of course want to look up to him too gone home to be with the Lord but listen to these powerful words and get your pen ready when because of your faith your life - becomes perceptibly different when your reactions are quite opposite to what the situation seems to call for anybody going there when because of your faith when your reactions are quite opposite to what the situation seems and your activities can no longer be explained in terms of your personality that is when your neighbourhood will sit up and take notice hey you know you know how people will do when they just explained the way we handle things because you know she's got a great personality or they explain our peace by the fact that we just got one of those really phlegmatic laid-back personalities no he says no no no no when nothing can explain it except the Lord be God then your neighbourhood will sit up and take notice this is the best part in the eyes of the world in the eyes of the world it is not a relationship with Jesus Christ that counts in listen you ought to be sitting there going well then I want to know what does this is so profound I'm telling you I could have just screamed from the rooftop this was just I thought this is it not to us that's everything Todd said but to the world around us that is not what counts listen to this it is our resemblance to him so who somebody get it with me it's our resemblance to him listen to the rest of the world to everybody around us it's not a relationship with him that counts so it counts for me but to people around me they're watching it's not my relationship with him it's how much I resemble him it's how much I feel it's how much I resemble him it's how much I resemble him do I fight the fight like Christ with finance am I going to get mean or am I gonna fight it like Christ would fight it Kelly fight the good fight fight the good fight say to one another fight the good fight so Lord we come before you as we conclude this time together and go I'm just go out to my sisters with me we're just gonna get the upper hand we're just go and we're not gonna look at one another so we don't feel odd I pray father every single woman on the other side of that screen is lifting her hands up because this father is how we're going to get the upper hand this is how the table is going to be turned take it everybody say take it it's too much for us for it it's too much you are God make yourself famous through us in Jesus powerful and glorious name hallelujah [Applause] in a mean world New Testament believers are called to a good fight that's what we learned today one of our sisters recorded here in the red book said that a very tough thing about being a woman is wanting your man to battle for you and sometimes watching him let the enemies who's a front gate I know what it's like to throw open a gate to the enemy I also know what it's like to learn to slam it right on his foot fight the good fight dear one God is on your side [Music]

Channel: Kenneth Killian

Views: 2,318

Rating: 5 out of 5

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Id: KWqrB-IAn0Y

Length: 64min 35sec (3875 seconds)

Published: Wed Apr 22 2020