Esther 5:9-10 (ESV)
Haman Plans to Hang Mordecai
And Haman went out that day joyful and glad of heart. But when Haman saw Mordecai in the king’s gate, that he neither rose nor trembled before him, he was filled with wrath against Mordecai. Nevertheless, Haman restrained himself and went home, and he sent and brought his friends and his wife Zeresh.
The story of Esther is the perfect story. There is a hero, a villain, a maiden, a wise one, a warrior, an evil plot and a great rescue at the end. All the elements of a great movie production are sown into the fabric of this Biblical story. However, it is not a story. It is a real historical event that unfolded for the people of God, during their captivity. Remember, Satan needs Israel to be destroyed. The Messiah is to come from Israel, Jesus Christ. Satan believes that if he can destroy all the Jews, he can prevent God from sending His Son to die on the cross to defeat sin and his power over mankind. That is what makes this historical event so compelling. But how it unfolds is so amazing. Esther is placed into a beauty pageant and is selected as the next queen for King Ahasuerus. Ahasuerus had no idea that one of his henchmen, Haman, was working his way up the leadership ladder by any means possible. Ahasuerus seems to be a good type of king, but controlled by all the people around him. Haman’s desire for power was getting the best of him. He wanted the world to bow down to him. When Esther’s guardian, Mordecai, refused to honor him over and over, Haman plotted a revenge to have all the Jews exterminated. Haman knew not that Esther was a Jew. When Esther invites Haman to an exclusive banquet with her and the king, Haman is star-struck. This is the final step in his claim up the ladder. He has arrived. He is overjoyed. He is elated. Yet, he leaves the palace only to be dishonored, once again, by Mordecai. Even though he has permission from the king to kill all the Jews and has been invited to a glorious banquet with the king and the the queen, Haman is angered by Mordecai’s persistent disregard for his honor. That is the lesson to learn here, however. Mordecai is a man of character and faith. He will NOT bow down to Haman. Even with a death sentence over the Jewish people, Mordecai will not honor a man and bow down to him. We are not told why. Of course, the nation of Israel was told not to worship idols. Yet, they were in captivity because they did worship idols. Mordecai, like Daniel and Daniel’s three friends, is going to stand for the Law and the teachings God gave them, even in captivity. With a death sentence over the entire nation hanging in the balance, Mordecai DOES NOT bend the knee to this wicked, self-appointed, despot. We know how the story unfolds, but Mordecai did not. He simply stood on the promises of God and had faith that no matter what, God would honor him. And God does, as we will read further. The key here is that Mordecai did not bend the knee to a false “god,” even in the worst case scenario. Those who stand tall in a slouching world must do so by not bending the knee to a slouching world.
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