{"id":15228,"date":"2013-10-17T00:01:26","date_gmt":"2013-10-17T05:01:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/?p=15228"},"modified":"2013-10-16T21:34:41","modified_gmt":"2013-10-17T02:34:41","slug":"esther-chapter-78-10","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/2013\/10\/17\/esther-chapter-78-10\/","title":{"rendered":"Esther – Chapter 7:8-10"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Wk7_Clella_Esther\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cJust 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, \u2018Will he even molest the queen while she is with me in the house?\u2019\u201d \u2014 Esther 7:8 NIV<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

As King Xerxes walked back into the banquet hall, I believe he was determined to protect his wife, Queen Esther, and ultimately stop the order for the annihilation of her people the Jews. What he saw next was the final straw! \u00a0As Haman realized that his plan was falling apart, he began to completely unravel, and fell onto Esther\u2019s couch<\/span>. \u00a0How he got there really doesn\u2019t matter.\u00a0 What does matter was the timing.\u00a0 Take a moment, as I did, to review this whole story and see for yourself how often God\u2019s timing was \u201cright on time.\u201d\u00a0 This time was no different. God\u2019s timing is always<\/em><\/strong> perfect.<\/p>\n

When we as Christians look back on our lives we can see the Lord\u2019s perfect timing, often even in the bad times.\u00a0 Many years ago, my husband, Steve, needed to transfer with his job from Georgia to California.\u00a0 I did not want to move!\u00a0 We had two young daughters and were foster parents of two boys.\u00a0 California seemed halfway around the world from our families in Florida and Indiana. So as Steve tells the story, I went “kicking and screaming all the way.” \u00a0In spite of that being a very hard move for me, God knew what was best for me and His timing was perfect. \u00a0Through a co-worker of Steve\u2019s, we got established in a strong Bible teaching church and we spiritually grew by leaps and bounds. \u00a0When I look back, I\u2019m so grateful for His perfect timing.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs soon as the word left the king\u2019s mouth, they covered Haman\u2019s face. \u00a0Then Harbona, one of the eunuchs attending the king, said, \u00a0\u2018A gallows seventy-five feet high stands by Haman\u2019s house.\u00a0 He had it made for Mordecai, who spoke up to help the king.\u2019\u00a0 The king said, \u2018Hang him on it!\u2019\u00a0 So they hanged Haman on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai.\u00a0 Then the king\u2019s fury subsided.\u201d — Esther 7:8b-10<\/p>\n

Haman\u2019s head was covered, an act many times used when someone is being taken to their execution. \u00a0It is also a way to prevent one from making eye contact with an authority or an accuser. \u00a0Covering one\u2019s face can be an act prompted by shame. \u00a0Children will duck their heads when they\u2019ve done something wrong, and some adults will put their hands over their face when they are admitting a wrong.<\/p>\n

When our Lord and Savior Jesus was arrested, beaten, and hanged on the Cross, He did not cover His face.\u00a0 Why? \u00a0Because He wasn\u2019t guilty of anything…He was sinless.\u00a0 Isaiah 50:6-7, \u201c\u2026<\/span>I did not hide My face from mocking and spitting. Because the Sovereign Lord helps Me, I will not be disgraced. Therefore have I set My face like flint, and I know I will not be put to shame.\u201d\u00a0 He took our sins to the Cross and died as payment for our transgressions; but He, personally, had nothing for which to be ashamed.<\/p>\n

Because of what Jesus did for us, we can say with the Psalmist, \u201cBut You are a shield around me, O Lord; You bestow glory on me and lift up my head\u201d\u00a0(Psalm 3:3). \u00a0We have nothing to be ashamed of once we have submitted our life completely to Christ Jesus, because He has taken our guilt and shame for us.\u00a0 \u201cWho is a God like You, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of His inheritance? \u00a0You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy.\u00a0 You will again have compassion on us. \u00a0You will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea\u201d (Micah 7:18, 19).<\/p>\n

Satan had\u00a0Haman believing that he could get away with his sinister plan to kill off all the Jews. But look at these verses:<\/p>\n

\u2026<\/span>He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men\u2019s hearts\u2026.<\/p>\n

I Corinthians 4:5<\/strong><\/p>\n

You have set our iniquities before You, our secret sins in the light of Your presence.<\/p>\n

Psalm 90:8<\/strong><\/p>\n

Haman wasn\u2019t going to get away with a thing!\u00a0 What Haman didn\u2019t know was Who God Is!\u00a0 \u201cGreat is our Lord and mighty in power; His understanding has no limit” (Psalm 147:5). \u00a0God, the Omniscient, Omnipresent, Omnipotent One, was and is the God of the Jews, and of all people who have now submitted their life to His Son, Jesus. It is vital that we know Who God Is in our own lives.<\/p>\n

It is also important to know Who We Are in God through Christ.\u00a0 We are His children (Galatians 3:26), we are His ambassadors (II Corinthians 5:20), we are His hands and feet (I Corinthians 12:27, Matthew 28:19). Therefore, \u201cit is important for us to live an authentic life that is grounded in Christ<\/em>\u201d (Darlene Schacht).\u00a0 We need to fill our lives with God\u2019s Word and His Holy Spirit, so there is no room for sin and shame. \u00a0And when we sin (and we will), God is ready to forgive us. \u00a0\u201cIf we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins, and purify us from all unrighteousness\u201d (1 John 1:9).<\/p>\n

Let’s Pray<\/span>:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dear Lord,
\nWe thank You that Your timing is always perfect.\u00a0 Holy Spirit, please help us to be patient when it seems that You aren\u2019t answering a prayer or providing a way. \u00a0Remind us that Your ways are higher than our ways (Isaiah 55:9). \u00a0We thank You, Jesus, that You took our sin and shame to the Cross.\u00a0 May we \u201clive an authentic life that is grounded\u201d in our maturing relationship with You, The Great I AM.\u00a0 For, in You, we want to \u201clive and move and have our being\u201d (Acts 17:28). \u00a0In Jesus\u2019 Name.<\/p>\n

Amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cJust 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, \u2018Will he even molest the queen while she is with me in the house?\u2019\u201d \u2014 Esther 7:8 NIV As King Xerxes walked back into the banquet hall, I believe […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":53,"featured_media":15230,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[8],"tags":[4125,4123,3660,3475,2052,4109,3512,388,4119,4112,425,436,450,3685,4111,506,4121,4116,4120,4113,4124,554,3492,4122,4115,2054,3537,3536,3535,4110,4114,4117,1617,1233,4118,1739],"class_list":["post-15228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-womens","tag-acts-1728","tag-authentic-life","tag-clella-gilbert-fox","tag-darlene-schacht","tag-esther","tag-esther-78-10","tag-esther-the-beauty-of-courageous-submission","tag-forgive","tag-galatians-326","tag-gallows","tag-girlfriends-coffee-hour","tag-god","tag-gods-word","tag-haman","tag-harbona","tag-holy-spirit","tag-i-corinthians-1227","tag-i-corinthians-45","tag-ii-corinthians-520","tag-isaiah-506-7","tag-isaiah-559","tag-jesus","tag-king-xerxes","tag-matthew-2819","tag-micah-718-19","tag-mordecai","tag-omnipotent","tag-omnipresent","tag-omniscient","tag-perfect-timing","tag-psalm-33","tag-psalm-908","tag-satan","tag-shame","tag-submitted","tag-womens-on-line-bible-study","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/Wk7_Clella_Esther.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p39pHp-3XC","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15228","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/53"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15228"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15228\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15283,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15228\/revisions\/15283"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15230"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}