HAMANíS LAST SUPPER

Scripture: Esther 7:1-10 (Text = Vs. 1)

Prayer

I would guess that all of us have been to a party.

But none of us have ever been to a party like King Ahasuerus (Ahaz-u-e-rus) threw.

His party lasted one hundred and eighty-one days.

It was one giant drunken orgy.

It ended when the king decided to put his beautiful queen Vashti on display.

He wanted everyone to see just how beautiful she was.

But Queen Vashti refused to co-operate.

And her refusal to co-operate embarrassed the king.

If he let her get away with it, women would rebel against their husbands all over

the kingdom.

So the king was very drunk;

Very embarrassed;

And very angry.

He issued a decree.

The husband is the head of the household.

The wife must obey her husband.

Queen Vashti will be deposed.

That took care of that.

He put her in her place.

Then, he sobered up and realized he had made a terrible mistake.

He loved his beautiful queen.

He missed her.

He wished he hadnít issued that decree.

But he did.

It was the law.

It couldnít be revoked.

The kingís servants knew he was lonely.

They felt sorry for him.

They wanted to help.

They had an idea.

They would sponsor a beauty contest.

They would invite the most beautiful women in the world to participate.

The king would be the judge.

Perhaps, he would find a new queen.

So they announced the beauty contest.

And it wasnít long until beautiful women started gathering from all over the world.

Among them was a young woman named Esther.

She was an orphan.

She was being raised by her cousin Mordecai.

They were Jews.

But they kept that a secret.

All the women were provided beautiful clothes, jewelry, makeup, oils, sweet odors,

and servants to help them prepare for the contest.

But Esther was unusual.

She was blessed with so much natural beauty that absolutely nothing could make her

more beautiful than she already was.

In fact, as soon as the king saw her the contest was over.

He knew he wanted Esther to be his queen.

He asked her to marry him.

He also asked Mordecai to be a Judge in his kingdom.

They accepted.

And it wasnít long until Mordecai discovered two men plotting to kill the king.

He told Queen Esther.

She told the king.

They were arrested, found guilty, and executed.

Mordecai saved the kingís life.

But the king failed to reward him for what he did.

About this time, the main villain came on the scene.

He was a little man called Haman the Agagite.

He was called an Agagite because he was a descendent of King Agag.

King Agag ruled the Amalekites in King Saulís day (I Samuel 15).

God told King Saul to kill him;

To kill all of his people and all their animals.

But King Saul didnít do what God told him to do.

He allowed King Agag and some of his people to live.

He spared their best animals.

He put them in his own herds.

Now, we see why God wanted all the Amalekites killed.

King Saulís disobedience was about to come home to roost.

King Ahasuerus had made Haman the Agagite the second most powerful man in his

kingdom.

He had also issued a decree that everyone should bow down before Haman.

But Mordecai was a Jew.

He wasnít suppose to bow down before anyone except God.

So he refused to bow down before Haman.

And he stood out like a sore thumb.

Some of Mordecaiís friends tried to get him to bow down.

Some didnít think he should make a big deal out of it.

But Mordecai finally admitted that he was a Jew and it was against his religion.

Haman was angry.

He decided to execute Mordecai for his refusal to bow down.

But he didnít stop there.

If one Jew couldnít bow down because of his religion, none of the Jews could bow ÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝ

down because of their religion.

He wouldnít have that.

So he decided to execute all the Jews in the kingdom.

Thatís why God told King Saul to kill King Agag.

And all of his people.

If King Saul had obeyed God, this problem wouldnít have come up.

But King Saul didnít obey God.

And now, this problem was about to cost the lives of fifteen million Jewish men, ÝÝÝÝ

women and children.

Haman cast lots to determine when they should be killed.

The lot fell in the last month of the year.

He went to King Ahasuerus.

He asked for permission to kill all of the Jews.

He said he would seize their property.

And put everything into the kingís treasury.

He wasnít thinking clearly.

If Mordecai was a Jew, his cousin Queen Esther was a Jew.

But Haman didnít think about that.

So the king signed the decree.

And Mordecai and all the Jews were condemned to die.

They knew that the king couldnít change his decree.

They fully expected to die at the end of the year.

They started wearing sackcloth and ashes.

Queen Esther hadnít heard about all of this.

She had heard that Mordecai was wearing sackcloth.

She wondered why.

She thought he lacked money.

She sent him some new clothes.

But he wouldnít wear them.

He sent a messenger to tell her about Hamanís deadly plan.

The messenger told her that she would be killed too.

The kingís decree included her.

It couldnít be changed.

Queen Esther wondered what to do.

Mordecai sent her a second message.

He wanted her to talk to the king.

This was a dangerous thing.

She could be killed, if she went in to talk to the king without being summoned.

But she had no choice.

Her life and the lives of fifteen million Jews was at stake.

She asked Mordecai and his Jewish friends to fast and pray for three days.

She and all of her servants would do the same.

She said, ìThen, I will go into the king.î

ìAnd if I perish, I perish.î

Some things are worth dying for.

I donít urge anyone to give up their life.

But if risking our life could save the lives of fifteen million men, women and Ý

children, we should be willing to lay our life on the line.

The third day came.

Queen Esther dressed in her finest garments.

She went to the palace.

She entered.

She stood in the inner court near the throne room.

She didnít know whether she would live or die.

The king sat on the throne with a golden scepter in his hand.

If he raised his golden scepter toward her, she could live.

She could approach the throne.

But if he didnít raise his golden scepter toward her, she would be killed on the spot.

They would drag her body out the door.

The king looked at Queen Esther.

She was beautiful.

He knew she wanted something important.

Otherwise, she wouldnít be there.

He raised his golden scepter.

She could live.

She could approach the throne.

ìWhat wilt thou, queen Esther?î

ìAnd what is thy request?î

ìIt shall be even given thee to the half of the kingdom.î

This seems like a perfect time to explain things to the king.

But Queen Esther just invited him to lunch.

And she asked him to bring Haman along.

They joined her.

ìAnd the king said unto Esther at the banquet of wine,î

ìWhat is thy petition?î

ìAnd it shall be granted thee:î

ìAnd what is thy request?î

ìEven to the half of the kingdom it shall be performed.î

She was probably very nervous;

She could still be killed.

She invited the king and Haman to eat with her again the next day.

She said she would make her request known at that time.

Haman left the room puffed up like a hot air balloon.

He had just dined with the king and queen.

He even got an invitation to dine with them again the next day.

He now thought he was in a position to get---or do---anything he wanted.

But then, he walked past Mordecai.

And Mordecai didnít bow down.

Haman was angry.

He wanted to wring Mordecaiís neck.

But he restrained himself.

He went home.

He began to brag:

He bragged about his great wealth;

How many children he fathered;

His high position in the kingdom;

His influence with the king and queen.

Notice, his priorities in life: He judged his life by his wealth, his sexual prowess,

his power, and the fact that he exercised influence over women especially the ÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝ

queen.

There was just one thing in the whole world that he couldnít do.

He couldnít get Mordecai to bow down to him.

His wife and friends suggested that he build a gallows.

They said, ìHang Mordecai.î

He liked that idea.

He ordered the gallows built immediately.

And he went to bed with a big smile on his face.

It was different over at the palace.

The king was troubled about what Queen Esther wanted.

He couldnít sleep.

He sent for the records of the kingdom.

He wanted his servants to read him to sleep.

One of his servants flipped open the records.

ÝHe began to read.

And guess what he read?

He read about the time Mordecai saved the kingís life.

ìWhat have we done to reward him,î the king asked.

ìNothing,î they replied.

ìHe must be rewarded,î the king said.

Morning came.

There was someone in the courtyard.

It was Haman.

The king said, ìSend him in.î

Haman entered.

He had come to tell the king that he was building a gallows to hang Mordecai.

But before he could say anything the king asked, ìWhat shall be done unto the man

whom the king delighteth to honor?

The king didnít mention Mordecai by name.

He just wanted to honor Mordecai for saving his life.

The problem was the big-headed Haman thought the king wanted to honor him.

He wondered, ìWhat should I advise the king to do for me?î

Then, he got an idea.

He said, ìLet him wear the kingís clothes, and ride the kingís horse, and wear the ÝÝ

kingís crown, and go through the streets with someone shouting this is the man

the king wants to honor.î

The king said, ìGood! Go and do that for Mordecai.î

Haman was flabbergasted.

He meant to hang Mordecai.

But he did what the king said.

Then, the moment of truth arrived.

It was time to dine with Queen Esther.

The king and Haman arrived.

The king asked Queen Esther what she wanted.

She told him that Haman had tricked him into signing a decree to kill all the Jews;

That she was a Jew.

And that Hamanís actions meant that she would soon be killed.

Haman was terrified.

He fell at the queenís feet.

He begged for mercy.

Then, one of the kingís servants told the king about Hamanís plan to hang ÝÝÝ

Mordecai.

Haman had built a gallows to hang the man who saved the kingís life.

This was more than the king could tolerate.

He said hang Haman on that gallows.

Give Hamanís job to Mordecai;

Divide Hamanís wealth among Mordecai and Queen Esther.

He couldnít revoke his decree to have all the Jews killed.

So he issued a second decree.

If anyone kills a Jew, they will be killed.

Now, what does this have to do with us?

I believe it shows that God is in control.

It was no accident that the king got drunk;

No accident that Queen Vashti was deposed;

No accident that Esther entered the beauty contest.

No accident that Esther won it;

No accident that Esther was made queen.

No accident that Haman didnít figure out that Queen Esther was a Jew;

No accident that he lost favor with the king;

No accident that he cast lots to determine when to kill the Jews;

No accident that the lot fell on the last month of the year;

No accident that Mordecai had time to discover the plot.

No accident that Mordecai had time to do something about it;

No accident that the king couldnít sleep;

No accident that he sent for the records of the kingdom;

No accident that his servant opened the records to the time when Mordecai saved ÝÝ

the kingís life;

No accident that Haman couldnít kill all of the Jews [REPEAT].

Why?

Because God has a role for the Jews at the end of this age.

And no weapon formed against them will prosper.

Perhaps, you have a problem right now.

Youíre wondering why?

You canít figure it out.

But two, three or five years from now you will look back and say, ìGod was in ÝÝÝÝÝ

control.î

ìGod was working in my life.î

ìIt was bad at the time.î

ìBut good came from it.î

ìIím attending Church more regularly.î

ìIíve been more humble.î

ìIíve prayed more often.î

ìI have a better understanding of whatís important in life.î

ìI have my priorities straight.î

I want to show you something.

The Bible says, ìBe not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man ÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝ

soweth, that shall he also reapî (Gal. 6:7).

Haman planned to hang Mordecai.

He was hanged instead.

He reaped what he sowed.

Hereís something else.

The Bible says, ìBoast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day Ý

may bring forth.î (Prov. 27:1).

Haman went to Queen Estherís banquet boasting about his wealth,Ý his sexual ÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝ

prowess, his power, and the fact that he exercised influence over womenÝ especially

the queen.

It never occurred to him that his life was over;

That he was attending his last supper.

If we need to make some changes, we need to make them now.

We never know when weíve had our last chance.

Hereís something else.

The Bible says, ìPride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fallî ÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝÝ

(Prov. 16:18).

Haman was proud.

He had a haughty spirit.

He expected people to bow down to him.

Pride led to his downfall.

He did humble himself at the last minute.

He begged for his life.

But he had waited too long.

Finally, I want to take you back to the scene where Queen Ester dressed in her ÝÝÝÝÝÝÝ

finest clothing;

She stood in the inner court of the Kingís palace hoping that he would raise his ÝÝÝÝÝÝ

golden scepter;

If he raised his golden scepter, she could live.

If he didnít raise his golden scepter, she would die.

I want you to remember this because something similar to it will happen to us.

The day will come when we will stand before the King who sits on the throne in ÝÝÝÝÝ

heaven.

We will need to be dressed in our finest clothing.

Our finest clothing is the righteousness of Christ.

When we go before the King in our life, we will want Jesus to raise His golden ÝÝÝÝÝÝÝ

scepter.

But He wonít raise His golden scepter, if we donít do something about the sin of ÝÝ

Haman that all of us have in our life.

What is the sin of Haman?

Itís pride.

Iím saying we have to humble ourselves.

We have to accept Jesus as our Saviour.

And we better not wait too long.

Have you done that?

Are you clothed in the righteousness of Christ?