A Very Present Help
A Very Present Help During Troubles
Mike Vinson
Psa 46:1 <To the chief Musician for the sons of Korah, A Song upon Alamoth.> God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Psa 46:2 Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
Psa 46:3 Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.
Introduction
It is my purpose today to acknowledge the fact that we are living in perilous times which are affecting us all. At the same time I hope to demonstrate how God gives us the peace of mind that comes with knowing that our trials are all the work of an all powerful God, who is also a loving Father, who can and will see us through any and every trial into which He brings us. As we come to see how this is done within our own lives, we will also be able to see how God will, through us, do the same thing for the whole world at His appointed time.
To the natural man within each of us, it would appear that the hand of the Lord has determined to do things this past year which have not been done since I have been on this earth, and if we are not rooted and grounded in the Word, which ‘Word’ is Christ, then we will be shaken, because anything that can be shaken will be shaken.
Heb 12:26 Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.
Heb 12:27 And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.
“Those things that are shaken” tells us that our earth and our heavens “are shaken.” The earth is shaken first and then the heavens are shaken, and if you are of the mind that you cannot know the truth, then you do not know the truth, and the heavens will be shaken. When our “heavens are shaken” all the ‘stars’ that fall, meaning all the false messengers with their false messages, will be destroyed out of the heavens and the heavens will be cleansed, and then “you shall know the Truth and the Truth will set you free.”
Heb 9:19 For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people,
Heb 9:20 Saying, This [ is] the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you.
Heb 9:21 Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the ministry.
Heb 9:22 And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.
Heb 9:23 It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.
Heb 9:24 For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:
Joh 8:31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
Joh 8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
God is in the heavens, of which the tabernacle and temple were but a figure. That tabernacle is you and me if He is now dwelling in us. It is the cleansing and “purifying” of “heaven itself” for which Christ came and died and was resurrected. It was all “for your sakes,” which is literally ‘through you.’
2Co 4:15 For all things are for your sakes [ Greek, dia humas – through you], that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.
1Co 10:11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples [ Greek, typically, typical of us]: and they are written for our admonitio n, upon whom the ends of the world are come.
There is a very widely held doctrine which prevails in all of orthodox Christianity. That doctrine teaches that all these things happened to them so that you and I would never make the same mistakes. Nothing could be any further from the truth. That is a false and disheartening doctrine. The word ‘ensamples’ is the Greek word ‘tupos,’ and what Paul was saying is that Israel’s experience is a ‘tupos’ or a type of our experience. Here is the Concordant Version of that verse:
1Co 10:11 Now all this befalls them typically. Yet it was written for our admonition, to whom the consummations of the eons have attained.”
That is why Paul tells these Corinthians, in his next epistle to them, that God’s chastening grace works “through you” but only “ through thanksgiving:”
2Co 4:15 For all things are for your sakes [ Greek, dia humas – through you], that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.
Why must the world suffer as it is suffering?
Look at what has happened this past year. There has been a collapse of the housing market, and there has been a meltdown in the financial markets worldwide. If you are invested in a 401K retirement account, you have watched as that account has shrunk, and there was nothing you could do to stop it. The coming year could see the same thing happen in the commercial real estate market and that would be even harder on the economy.
This library we are privileged to use is a brand new building and is on the grounds of a huge subdivision called Sterling On The Lake. We watched houses going up almost overnight two years ago, but this past year that has all come to a screeching halt, and nothing has been being built. Property values have gone down and cities and counties and states across the nation are strapped for cash. The state of Georgia is laying off 25,000 people. At least two states, California and Kansas, cannot even give taxpayers back their state income tax returns, and president Obama was admonished by former President Clinton last Tuesday night to stop being so ‘doom and gloom’ about the economy.
It appears that some very large banks are in the process of actually being nationalized, and several others have already been taken over by larger and supposedly healthier banks. Now there are concerns on the evening news about the government nationalizing the entire banking system. So while it is easy enough to point to even worse statistics in the past, and to say that the homes in foreclosure are only 5% of all the mortgages being paid, none of that does anything at all to comfort the man who is facing mounting bills and the prospect of not being able to house and feed his family. We have within our own fellowship those who have lost their jobs and who cannot see where they will find employment.
So why is this all happening? Hard as it is to accept, “it is happening for our sakes…[ through us], upon whom the ends of the world [ Greek, aion] are come.” It is all for our good, so we can be prepared to be God’s conduit for the salvation of all men.
Gen 50:20 But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it [ your evil, all evil] unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.
That is the purpose and the function of all evil. From the first sin against God by eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, to the heinous death of Christ on the cross, it is all what “God meant unto good… to save much people alive.”
Act 4:27 For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,
Act 4:28 For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.
So why would I even mention all of these outward displays of our trials and tests? Are we given any scriptural reason to address the outward state of our brothers and sisters in Christ? Yes indeed we are, and we need to be aware of the admonitions in God’s Word concerning this part of our walk. Look at how the apostles dealt with this very same situation in their day:
Gal 2:9 And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.
Gal 2:10 Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do.
Rom 15:26 For it hath pleased them of Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor saints which are at Jerusalem.
What you and I need to always know and believe and remember is that God is love:
1Jn 4:8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.
1Jn 4:16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
Never allow the Adversary to ever cause you to doubt the Truth of these words.
Gen 50:20 But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.
Gen 50:21 Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them.
Those words are true, and we must never doubt their veracity, but if we have learned anything about God’s Word, it should be that when God says ‘Do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil,’ He says so simply because He already knows that is exactly what we will do, and when He says “fear not” He says that because He already knows full well that also is exactly what we will do. Here is what happens to us all at its appointed time.
Luk 21:25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;
Luk 21:26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.
We have spent many years now showing that all of this was fulfilled in “that generation,” and it has been being fulfilled in every generation of mankind since Christ was crucified and resurrected. It was after this statement was made that Christ also made this statement:
Luk 21:32 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled.
Or more precisely in Matthew:
Mat 24:34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.
So let no one ever say that we are not aware of the primary inward application of these words. But the scriptures themselves acknowledge the ‘was’ and the ‘will be’ character of the words of prophecy, so today we are acknowledging the outward and the ‘will be’ character of prophecy, and in doing so we will find the same loving Father who chastens and scourges every son He receives, so as to make that ‘son’ the very best he can be, and to prepare that son to be the king and priest which is the function of all those who are made worthy of that blessed and holy first resurrection to which we aspire. We will take what we have learned about the inward and apply it outwardly.
Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
How God will turn “the kingdoms of this world,” over to the dominion of His very elect?
That is what we are called to have part in. That is why we are here. “All things are for our sakes,” meaning ‘through you,’ to prepare us for that position as a king and priest in that blessed and holy first resurrection. But how will that be accomplished? How will the governments of the kingdoms of this world be given over to God’s elect? It will be accomplished without just as it is accomplished within. It was be accomplished through God’s hand troubling our spirits and our lives, and it will be the same with the leaders of this world. God will trouble their spirits, and then he will put it in their own hearts to let ‘Joseph,’ the type of God’s elect, deal with the solution.
I am asked from time to time what will be the mechanics of the transition of power from the kingdoms of this world to the kingdom of God. I think by now you all know that the scriptures are not designed to be specific about the details of how and when God will come to rule, either to chasten and scourge us individually and inwardly, or to rule the kingdoms of this world outwardly with a rod of iron. The scriptures are designed to edify, exhort and comfort us, but they do this in a way that requires the trial of our faith in things that are not seen.
Heb 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Joh 20:29 Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and [ yet] have believed.
That is the principle that will see us through the days, weeks and months which are before us. That is the spirit which will always remind us that God truly is a very present help in time of trouble. Notice what James says about our faith in God’s Word.
Jas 1:1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting.
Jas 1:2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
Jas 1:3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
Jas 1:4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
Jas 4:13 Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain:
Jas 4:14 Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.
Jas 4:15 For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.
Jas 1:12 Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.
And so God has given all men an evil experience, and He sends evil spirits which bring us into trials. It is through those trials and through gratitude for those trials that we are prepared to be priests and kings with Christ.
Ecc 1:13 I applied my heart to inquiring and exploring by wisdom concerning all that is done under the heavens: it is an experience of evil Elohim has given to the sons of humanity to humble them by it.
2Ch 20:6 And said, O LORD God of our fathers, art not thou God in heaven? and rulest not thou over all the kingdoms of the heathen? and in thine hand is there not power and might, so that none is able to withstand thee?
There it is. It is God who is also “ruling over the kingdoms of the heathen.” Here is how that is expressed inwardly:
Rom 7:15 For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.
Rom 7:16 If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that [ it is] good.
Rom 7:17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Rom 7:18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but [ how] to perform that which is good I find not.
Rom 7:19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
Rom 7:20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Twice we are told “It is no more it that do it, but sin that dwells in me.” What do we think “I create evil means? (Isa 45:7). So too, does God “rule in the kingdoms of the heathen.” He gives the nations “an evil experience to humble them by it.” And that humbling will come to them just as it comes to you and to me. It will come through a troubled spirit. Only then are we willing to turn our lives over to He who Joseph typified. And only through a ‘troubled spirit’ will the nations turn to God’s elect and give them the reigns of power, to rule with a rod of iron.
Three examples of how God works to bring His glory upon His elect
1) God troubles Pharaoh with a dream
Gen 41:1 And it came to pass at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh dreamed: and, behold, he stood by the river.
Gen 41:2 And, behold, there came up out of the river seven well favoured kine and fatfleshed; and they fed in a meadow.
Gen 41:3 And, behold, seven other kine came up after them out of the river, ill favoured and leanfleshed; and stood by the [ other] kine upon the brink of the river.
Gen 41:4 And the ill favoured and leanfleshed kine did eat up the seven well favoured and fat kine. So Pharaoh awoke.
Gen 41:5 And he slept and dreamed the second time: and, behold, seven ears of corn came up upon one stalk, rank and good.
Gen 41:6 And, behold, seven thin ears and blasted with the east wind sprung up after them.
Gen 41:7 And the seven thin ears devoured the seven rank and full ears. And Pharaoh awoke, and, behold, [ it was] a dream.
Gen 41:8 And it came to pass in the morning that his spirit was troubled; and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt, and all the wise men thereof: and Pharaoh told them his dream; but [ there was] none that could interpret them unto Pharaoh.
What are God’s words to Pharaoh? They are words of comfort and peace:
Gen 41:15 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I have dreamed a dream, and [ there is] none that can interpret it: and I have heard say of thee, [ that] thou canst understand a dream to interpret it.
Gen 41:16 And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, [ It is] not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.
And what is the result of all of these trials? What is the outcome of it all?
Gen 41:38 And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?
Gen 41:39 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, [ there is] none so discreet and wise as thou art:
Gen 41:40 Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou.
If you and I are in Christ, we too, will be given to rule all Egypt, meaning “to rule over the nations.”
2) Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylon- Troubled in spirit by a dream.
Dan 2:1 And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled, and his sleep brake from him.
Dan 2:2 Then the king commanded to call the magicians, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans, for to shew the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king.
Dan 2:3 And the king said unto them, I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was troubled to know the dream.
Again God gives the leader of the world a strong sense of foreboding by means of a dream. A “troubled spirit” is a tormented soul with a terrible sense of impending disaster. But this time the king has forgotten his own troubling dream, and his actions reveal just how troubled he was:
Dan 2:4 Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in Syriack, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation.
Dan 2:5 The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, The thing is gone from me: if ye will not make known unto me the dream, with the interpretation thereof, ye shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made a dunghill.
Dan 2:6 But if ye shew the dream, and the interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honour: therefore shew me the dream, and the interpretation thereof.
Now notice how the spirit goes about separating the false prophets from the true:
Dan 2:7 They answered again and said, Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation of it.
Dan 2:8 The king answered and said, I know of certainty that ye would gain the time, because ye see the thing is gone from me.
Dan 2:9 But if ye will not make known unto me the dream, [ there is but] one decree for you: for ye have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time be changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that ye can shew me the interpretation thereof.
Dan 2:10 The Chaldeans answered before the king, and said, There is not a man upon the earth that can shew the king’s matter: therefore [ there is] no king, lord, nor ruler, [ that] asked such things at any magician, or astrologer, or Chaldean.
Dan 2:11 And [ it is] a rare thing that the king requireth, and there is none other that can shew it before the king, except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.
That was indeed the case until Christ came in the flesh, and now what Daniel typifies has arrived with “Christ in you the hope of glory.” It is Daniel who God gives the dream and its interpretation. It will also be God’s elect who will reveal the unknown but wonderful Truth to the leaders of this world. That Truth is Christ and His words, and He is “a very present help in trouble.” What was the result when he who typifies God’s elect revealed the Truth to Nebuchadnezzar? It was the same as it was with Joseph.
Dan 2:41 And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters’ clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay.
Dan 2:42 And [ as] the toes of the feet [ were] part of iron, and part of clay, [ so] the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken.
Dan 2:43 And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.
Dan 2:44 And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, [ but] it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.
Dan 2:45 Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to p ass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.
Dan 2:46 Then the king Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face, and worshipped Daniel, and commanded that they should offer an oblation and sweet odours unto him.
Dan 2:47 The king answered unto Daniel, and said, Of a truth [ it is], that your God [ is] a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, seeing thou couldest reveal this secret.
Dan 2:48 Then the king made Daniel a great man, and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief of the governors over all the wise [ men] of Babylon.
Dan 2:49 Then Daniel requested of the king, and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, over the affairs of the province of Babylon: but Daniel sat in the gate of the king.
Even when our rulers are led to persecute us, we come out the victors:
Dan 3:22 Therefore because the king’s commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flame of the fire slew those men that took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
Dan 3:23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.
Dan 3:24 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, [ and] spake, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king.
Dan 3:25 He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.
Dan 3:26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, [ and] spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the most high God, come forth, and come [ hither]. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth of the midst of the fire.
Dan 3:27 And the princes, governors, and captains, and the king’s counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them.
Dan 3:28 [ Then] Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, Blessed [ be] the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the king’s word, and yielded their bodi es, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God.
It is only “by the church,” “through you,” “through your mercy” that God will make known His truth.
Eph 3:10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly [ places] might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,
God troubled Nebuchadnezzar in a dream again, just two chapters later, with the same result of giving God’s elect even more power over the kingdom:
Dan 4:4 I Nebuchadnezzar was at rest in mine house, and flourishing in my palace:
Dan 4:5 I saw a dream which made me afraid, and the thoughts upon my bed and the visions of my head troubled me.
Nebuchadnezzar is driven from men for seven years, and Daniel rules the kingdom of Babylon.
King Darius advances Daniel and destroys Daniel’s enemies when God delivers him from the lion’s den. Then God destroys Daniel’s accusers with the very lions they had hoped would destroy Daniel.
Dan 6:21 Then said Daniel unto the king, O king, live for ever.
Dan 6:22 My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions’ mouths, that they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before him innocency was found in me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt.
Dan 6:23 Then was the king exceeding glad for him, and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he believed in his God.
Dan 6:24 And the king commanded, and they brought those men which had accused Daniel, and they cast them into the den of lions, them, their children, and their wives; and the lions had the mastery of them, and brake all their bones in pieces or ever they came at the bottom of the den.
Dan 6:25 Then king Darius wrote unto all people, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth; Peace be multiplied unto you.
Dan 6:26 I make a decree, That in every dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel: for he [ is] the living God, and stedfast for ever, and his kingdom [ that] which shall not be destroyed, and his dominion [ shall be even] unto the end.
Dan 6:27 He delivereth and rescueth, and he worketh signs and wonders in heaven and in earth, who hath delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.
Dan 6:28 So this Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius, and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian.
3) King Ahasuerus – Could not sleep, and was lead by God’s spirit to want to reward God’s typical elect:
Est 2:5 Now in Shushan the palace there was a certain Jew, whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite;
Est 2:6 Who had been carried away from Jerusalem with the captivity which had been carried away with Jeconiah king of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away.
If Mordecai was of those Nebuchadnezzar had carried into Babylon, then he had to have been a contemporary of Daniel. But Mordecai came to prominence after Daniel, via his niece, Esther, who replaced the King’s wife and the fact that he had overheard a plot to assassinate the king. It should be noted that none of those who typify God’s elect are ever seen to be withstanding the powers that be, and are in time promoted. They are not promoted because they are in agreement with the powers that be. They are promoted because they are in agreement with Him who decides who will be those powers. Both Daniel and his three friends refuse to obey the King’s orders to dishonor their God, but they never resist the will of the King otherwise. In God’s time they are all promoted to rulership in the kingdom, as we see also here with Mordecai.
This is the third time God delivers his elect out of their trials and into a position of authority over the greatest nation on earth. But this time the stakes are even higher than the threats of King Nebuchadnezzar. This time it is the fate of all of God’s people that is in the balance. They are hated simply because they refuse to place unity over truth. This always makes God’s people appear to be the problem. Here is what faces God’s people to this very day:
Est 3:8 And Haman said unto king Ahasuerus, There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the people in all the provinces of thy kingdom; and their laws are diverse from all people; neither keep they the king’s laws: therefore it is not for the king’s profit to suffer them.
Love God and keep his command to love your enemies makes God’s elect “different from all people.” But here is why we are where we are, regardless of where that is:
Est 4:10 Again Esther spake unto Hatach [ who the king had assigned to tend to Esther’s needs], and gave him commandment unto Mordecai;
Est 4:11 All the king’s servants, and the people of the king’s provinces, do know, that whosoever, whether man or woman, shall come unto the king into the inner court, who is not called, there is one law of his to put him to death, except such to whom the king shall hold out the golden sceptre, that he may live: but I have not been called to come in unto the king these thirty days.
Est 4:12 And they told to Mordecai Esther’s words.
Est 4:13 Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther, Think not with thyself that thou shalt escape in the king’s house, more than all the Jews.
Est 4:14 For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, [ then] shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father’s house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?
There are so many types and shadows of our own place with God and why we are “come to the kingdom.” Esther replaces a rebellious wife, as we obey our husband and replace Babylon as His wife, and like Esther we are not being saved for our own benefit alone, but to be used as the channel of salvation for all the rest of God’s creation.
Rom 11:30 For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
Rom 11:31 Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.
Without the sacrifice of Haman, without Haman’s unbelief, Mordecai would never have been exalted to rulership, and so it is to this day. Our blessing are delivered to us through the persecutions of those who hate us, and our exaltation is always at the expense of our enemies. But we simply must put God’s kingdom and His righteousness first as did Esther and Mordecai
Est 4:15 Then Esther bade them return Mordecai this answer,
Est 4:16 Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king, which [ is] not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish.
Only then will our curse become our blessing and our enemies become our servants:
Est 6:1 On that night could not the king sleep, and he commanded to bring the book of records of the chronicles; and they were read before the king.
Est 6:2 And it was found written, that Mordecai had told of Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king’s chamberlains, the keepers of the door, who sought to lay hand on the king Ahasuerus.
Est 6:3 And the king said, What honour and dignity hath been done to Mordecai for this? Then said the king’s servants that ministered unto him, There is nothing done for him.
Est 6:4 And the king said, Who [ is] in the court? Now Haman was come into the outward court of the king’s house, to speak unto the king to hang Mordecai on the gallows that he had prepared for him.
Est 6:5 And the king’s servants said unto him, Behold, Haman standeth in the court. And the king said, Let him come in.
Est 6:6 So Haman came in. And the king said unto him, What shall be done unto the man whom the king delighteth to honour? Now Haman thought in his heart, To whom would the king delight to do honour more than to myself?
Est 6:7 And Haman answered the king, For the man whom the king delighteth to honour,
Est 6:8 Let the royal apparel be brought which the king [ useth] to wear, and the horse that the king rideth upon, and the crown royal which is set upon his head:
Est 6:9 And let this apparel and horse be delivered to the hand of one of the king’s most noble princes, that they may array the man [ withal] whom the king delighteth to honour, and bring him on horseback through the street of the city, and proclaim before him, Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delighteth to honour.
Est 6:10 Then the king said to Haman, Make haste, [ and] take the apparel and the horse, as thou hast said, and do even so to Mordecai the Jew, that sitteth at the king’s gate: let nothing fail of all that thou hast spoken.
Est 6:11 Then took Haman the apparel and the horse, and arrayed Mordecai, and brought him on horseback through the street of the city, and proclaimed before him, Thus shall it be done unto the man whom the king delighteth to honour.
Est 6:12 And Mordecai came again to the king’s gate. But Haman hasted to his house mourning, and having his head covered.
Est 6:13 And Haman told Zeresh his wife and all his friends every [ thing] that had befallen him. Then said his wise men and Zeresh his wife unto him, If Mordecai [ be] of the seed of the Jews, before whom thou hast begun to fall, thou shalt not prevail against him, but shalt surely fall before him.
Est 6:14 And while they [ were] yet talking with him, came the king’s chamberlains, and hasted to bring Haman unto the banquet that Esther had prepared.
And this is the truth of the fate of all who withstand God’s elect:
Isa 54:17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.
So Haman is destroyed and Mordecai is promoted and exalted:
Est 8:1 On that day did the king Ahasuerus give the house of Haman the Jews’ enemy unto Esther the queen. And Mordecai came before the king; for Esther had told what he [ was] unto her.
Est 8:2 And the king took off his ring, which he had taken from Haman, and gave it unto Mordecai. And Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman.
Est 8:15 And Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal apparel of blue and white, and with a great crown of gold, and with a garment of fine linen and purple: and the city of Shushan rejoiced and was glad.
Est 8:16 The Jews had light, and gladness, and joy, and honour.
Est 8:17 And in every province, and in every city, whithersoever the king’s commandment and his decree came, the Jews had joy and gladness, a feast and a good day. And many of the people of the land became Jews; for the fear of the Jews fell upon them.
And for the third time, the troubling of the king results in the promotion to rulership of God’s elect:
Est 10:2 And all the acts of his power and of his might, and the declaration of the greatness of Mordecai, whereunto the king advanced him, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia?
Est 10:3 For Mordecai the Jew was next unto king Ahasuerus, and great among the Jews, and accepted of the multitude of his brethren, seeking the wealth of his people, and speaking peace to all his seed.
Conclusion
What does all of this tell us about what God is doing? Let’s go back to Isa 54 and look again at the verse that precedes verse 17, quoted above.
Isa 54:15 Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake.
Isa 54:16 Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy.
Isa 54:17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.
“I have created the smith that blows the coal in the fire, and that brings forth an instrument for his work.” ‘His work’ is the work of destruction, and it is all being worked and orchestrated by God, who declares that those He gathers against you will fall. No weapon formed against you will prosper. Every tongue that rises against you in judgment, you will condemn. “This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.”
As God’s elect, your old bosses Potiphar and the keeper of the prison become your servants. You are advanced in the kingdom when you are accused by your detractors, while your detractors are shamed and destroyed by the fire of the furnace which was designed to destroy you and by the lions which were intended to destroy you. The gallows intended for you will destroy your enemies, and you will be “next to the king.”
What is the sum of it all?
Rom 8:37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
Rom 8:38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
Rom 8:39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Do you have any needs at all?
Php 4:19 But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
This coming year may very well be even worse than this past year, and your faith may well be tried, but you will be delivered and made to prosper even as you endure the prisons of Egypt, the fiery furnace, the lions den and the gallows of Haman. In Christ we are “more than conquerors”, we are kings and priests. Believe and claim your relationship with Christ. If you will not claim that relationship, then it is not yours. If you can claim it, then you know you are not under the law and this here is what you are. We are all under the law in our own time, but “at the time appointed of the Father we too, can say with the apostle:
Heb 12:18 For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest,
Heb 12:19 And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more:
Heb 12:20 (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart:
Heb 12:21 And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:)
Heb 12:22 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,
Heb 12:23 To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
Heb 12:24 And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.
Heb 12:25 See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more [ shall not] we [ escape], if we turn away from him that [ speaketh] from heaven:
Heb 12:26 Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.
Heb 12:27 And this [ word], Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.
Heb 12:28 Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:
Heb 12:29 For our God [ is] a consuming fire.
2Co 4:15 For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.
2Co 4:16 For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.
2Co 4:17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;
2Co 4:18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.
Our God really is a very present help:
Psa 46:1 … God [ is] our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Psa 46:2 Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
Psa 46:3 Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.
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