First Presbyterian Church of Baton Rouge

There is a profound mystery going on when someone tells us the story of Jesus in their own words. We hear it from their voice. Maybe they tell it simply, or haltingly, or even with some parts missing. But as they speak we hear another voice. The voice of God speaks in our hearts. Something resounds inside us. The Spirit moves us. We find we believe. As we believe, energy and joy flow inside us. Something changes within us. This is the consistent experience of Christian believers through the centuries across cultures and continents.

God sent a great earthquake, which shook the prison to its foundation. The doors flew open and their bonds released. But Paul and Silas did not immediately flee the jail. They waited to meet the jailer. He was terrified at what would happen to him if his prisoners escaped. Paul shared with him the gospel, and the jailer became a believer. That night the very essence of the church of Jesus Christ was revealed. Two washings occurred. In love and gratitude for his newfound salvation, the jailer washed the wounds of Paul and Silas. And Paul washed the jailer and his whole family by baptizing them, symbolically joining them to Jesus and his cleansing of our sins. So a picture of the church of Jesus came into focus: we are a wound-washing community. We wash minds and bodies broken in so many tragic ways. In the power of the Spirit, we wash dirty souls with the gospel news of Christ’s forgiveness and grace.

• Hadassah (Esther’s Hebrew name) means “myrtle." Isaiah prophesied several hundred years earlier, “Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress; instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle; and it shall make a name for the Lord, an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off” (Isaiah 55:13).
• Compare and contrast Daniel's life and experience in the kingdom of Babylon with Esther's in the kingdom of Persia. How are they similar? How are they different?
• Reflection: When have we been tempted to conceal our faith out of comfort or convenience, out of fear of rejection, or to avoid conflict or confrontation? What does this reveal about who's approval we are seeking?
• These were dark times in ancient Persia. Our world today, in many ways, is just as dark. Luckily, as we’ll soon discover for Esther, dark times are no obstacle for God. In fact, sometimes it’s in the darkest of times that His glory is revealed most powerfully.
• Take note of the seven references to the number seven in Esther 1:1-2:16. (Hint: 1:1, 1:5, 1:10 (2), 1:14, 2:9, 2:16.) Seven is the number used in Scripture most often to reflect the completeness or wholeness of God. God's name may not be mentioned, but there are whispers of God all over!
• Why does Esther advance over all the other girls? Take note of the repeated word "favor" in verses 9, 15, and 17. That's the big Hebrew word HESED that we find here, pointing us to God's covenantal, steadfast love. The king finding favor with her was GOD’s doing. Esther finds herself in a position of prominence because of God’s providence.
• Regardless of our disobedience, God’s hand hovers over every detail, moving the pieces into the places he’s determined. Though God may discipline us, he NEVER discards us. He works in and through and despite the sin and suffering in our lives, all for the good of those who love him and who’ve been called according to his purpose.
• God’s not seeking a perfect servant, one who can be perfectly obedient. He sent one: Jesus Christ.
• Esther was being prepared (as a bride) for the king. She spent so much time and energy undergoing beauty treatments in order to make herself acceptable for the king. What makes us beautiful before the Father? The cross of Christ. All of the ugliness of our sin and shame, nailed to that cross, so gruesome and bloody and violent… so that we could be washed clean, so that his righteousness would be imputed on US, so that we are beautiful in the Father’s eyes.
• “The gospel is not a love story in which a good-looking groom meets and falls in love with a radiant, pure bride. The gospel is a love story in which a radiant and pure groom chooses to love and purify a wretched bride who has repeatedly given herself to the devouring love of the flesh and the world… Christ took us who were spiritually ugly and gave us HIS beauty.” Landon Dowden

The deal with idols is that they always disappoint. And then, even as they are disappointing us, they demand payment. Ask the addict; the pain pills slave. Or the woman who idolized the power of her youth beauty and now sees it fade. Or the man who traded his family for the once in a lifetime opportunity, again and again. Or ask the couples who looked to each other for all meaning and purpose. Then, the honeymoon ended and all they see in each other’s eyes is disappointment. Idols always, always disappoint. Christ wants to be paired with us. But he won’t let us sync up with him until we disconnect with our idols. We can’t have it both ways.

• It’s interesting to read Esther 1 in the original context and see how the events unfolded completely normally for “them then,” and then look at it through a wider perspective for “us today," with the gospel in view. We have the advantage of seeing things that the original readers wouldn’t have seen. We see the limitations of Ahasuerus’ power exposed.
• Why do you think this story is included in Scripture? What do we learn from it?
• Reflect on the king’s advisors. Do you think the decree the advisors suggested was wise? Why or why not? Why is it important for us today to seek Godly counsel from faithful believers?
• Esther repeatedly gives us opportunities to compare the Kingdom of Persia to the Kingdom of God. This passage was no exception. Compare Ahasuerus’ power in this story to God’s power. Why can we trust God’s sovereignty above all? How can we seek God’s sovereignty in our daily lives?
• Reflection: Who in your life do you seek when you need council? Who are your godly counselors who steadily push you to the Word and encourage you in your faith?
• Compare Ahasuerus’ view of his bride (the Queen) to Jesus’ view of his bride (the church). When Christ summons his bride (the church) to his banquet table, he does so not to expose our shame, but to lavish his grace and mercy upon us. And we aren’t beautiful by nature, our sin is very unattractive, and yet, Christ gave himself for us, in that state, laid down his life for us, washed all that ugliness away and welcomes us to him. And what’s more, he pursues us no matter our resistance. We, like Vashti, will be tempted to say “no” when he requests something of us – to rebel and disobey, and yet, Christ, unlike Ahasuerus, doesn’t just dispose of us or give up on us. He relentlessly pursues us, over and over. (See the song "Reckless Love", by Cory Asbury!) And so we can submit to our bridegroom (Jesus Christ) with full assurance of his reckless love for us!
• This story in Esther reminds us (yet again!) to seek God, in places we may not expect. What seemed insignificant for them then had a lot of significance for God’s people. God uses Ahasuerus’ impulsiveness and Vashti’s rebellion to open the door for Esther’s future reign, to position her where she needs to be so she could rise to a position of power in order to protect God’s people against an enemy that was on the rise.
• Reflection: Think back on your life . . . where do you see God’s hand at work in seemingly small, ordinary details, that you may have not recognized at the time?

The church in Thessalonica was only a few months old. Paul had been forced to leave the city before he had taught them and led them into maturity. In a city of 100,000 or more people, there were perhaps only a hundred Christians. Thessalonica was a harbor town. And a trading town. All the vices were in full bloom: sex trade, gambling, swindling, drugs. All kinds of pagan religious practices appeared much more dramatic and interesting than the quiet services of the Christians. Their families would have thought they had gone weird on them. They could so easily have been sucked back into their old lives. The Thessalonians longed for encouragement and direction. Paul could not re-enter the city. So after he heard that they were still meeting, still pursuing Christ, he wrote them.

The book of Esther tells how an exiled Jewish girl became the queen of Persia and, with the help of her cousin Mordecai, rescued God’s people from those that sought to destroy them.There were no signs and wonders, no special revelations, no miracles. This teaches us that God’s plan is often achieved through his divine providence working through ordinary events. Even the actions of those that oppose God are woven into the purposes determined by him.