HealingStrong's Around the Word

Episode 53 - The Esther Series: The Danger of Obsession (Esther 5:9-14 NIV)

• HealingStrong • Episode 53

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The story of Haman and Mordecai in Esther 5:9-14 reveals how pride destroys joy while faith builds strength in difficult circumstances. We explore how Haman's obsession with one small slight poisoned his perspective despite his many blessings.

• Haman leaves Queen Esther's banquet joyful but quickly becomes enraged when Mordecai refuses to bow
• Mordecai shows growing faith as he moves from mourning in sackcloth to standing firm at the king's gate
• The toxic influence of surrounding yourself with negative voices who encourage destructive actions
• How focusing on minor problems can steal joy from major blessings
• The circular nature of enemy-influenced thinking that always centers on self
• Dangers of comparison and obsession with control
• Finding strength by fixing our eyes on God rather than problems

Suggested Resources:

BIBLE PLAN - Trusting God's Plan When You Don't See Him: Lessons From the Book of Esther

PODCAST - Genesis to Revelation Bible Reading

TOOLS - Refresh Your Spirit through God's Word


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Speaker 1:

Like have you ever met people that they've had a lot of good stuff going on in their lives, but they focus on this one little minor thing. This guy is not bowing down to him. This is minor. He could be like whatever, it doesn't matter.

Speaker 2:

Well, when you follow the voice of the enemy. It is circular, it's never ending.

Speaker 1:

Hi, my name is Cheryl and you're listening to Healing Strong's Around the Word. We're friends sitting around the table who love the Lord and love digging deep into His Word. Each day you'll hear me reading a Bible passage and then we'll chat about what we're learning from it. Today I'll be reading Esther, chapter 5, verses 9 through 14. So join us Around the Word, 9-14. So join us around the Word. Esther 5, verses 9-14.

Speaker 1:

Haman went out that day happy and in high spirits, but when he saw Mordecai at the king's gate and observed that he neither rose nor showed fear in his presence, he was filled with rage against Mordecai. Nevertheless, haman restrained himself and went home, calling together his friends and Zeresh, his wife. Haman boasted to them about his vast wealth, his many sons and all the ways the king had honored him and how he had elevated him above the other nobles and officials. And that's not all. Haman added I'm the only person Queen Esther invited to accompany the king to the banquet she gave, and she has invited me along with the king tomorrow. But all this gives me no satisfaction as long as I see that Jew Mordecai sitting at the king's gate.

Speaker 1:

His wife Suresh and all his friends said to him have a pole set up reaching to a height of 50 cubits and ask the king in the morning to have Mordecai impaled on it. Then go with the king to the banquet and enjoy yourself. This suggestion delighted Haman and he had the pole set up. You just heard our Bible passage for the day. Now let's listen in on what we were chatting about around the word, starting off this reading, with Haman skipping for joy, all happy and stuff, because he just got to be invited to Queen Esther's banquet and he's very boastful about it and he bragged to his family and friends about how he was so special.

Speaker 2:

He was the only one going to be invited to the banquet.

Speaker 3:

But even before that, as he's leaving the party, the dinner party, he's all filled with joy, a little more spirited, I guess because of the wine and all of that. That's right, yeah, and I love what it says about. Mordecai did not stand or retreat or tremble before Haman. There was no hiding how Mordecai disdained Haman and Haman had the same kind of disdain for him, but he controlled himself. The scripture says so. He didn't say anything. They just kind of knew these two will never get along.

Speaker 2:

I don't know. I don't get that Jeff Mordecai to me is he's not bowing to him because he's Jewish and he can't bow to anybody else. So I don't know. My read on it is that Mordecai doesn't really have a beef with Haman. The only beef Haman has with Mordecai is he won't bow to me, and the reason Haman won't bow to him is because he's Jewish and you can't bow before any other idols.

Speaker 4:

But you know what, though, just shortly before that, mordecai was in sackcloth and sad, but what's happened since that time is he has seen a plan put in place, he has seen prayer, and Esther has petitioned the king and things have gone in her favor. So I just see this growth of faith for Mordecai that he has. No, I see it.

Speaker 2:

I see like but they don't know the plan Susie Esther has said come to my house for dinner. They're still in the throes of great anxiety and anguish, but Esther could have been killed so that's in their favor. She still could be, though.

Speaker 4:

Man. But for me, if I start seeing things start going like, okay, lord, you got this. Okay, if Esther wasn't killed, I'd be like, okay, that gives me a little more faith, a little more strength.

Speaker 1:

Well, he's now at the king's gate too, which I thought he couldn't even be at the king's gate too, which I thought he couldn't even be at the king's gate if he's in sackcloth. So he's moved his position. The sackcloth is gone. So that is interesting. Maybe it's because they finished their fast and they knew she was going in so you're three days.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, she went in yeah, so then he may have meet maybe, like you're saying, suzy, with a um, an example of faith taking off the sackcloth. We're not mourning now because God's about to do something. That's right, because he knew.

Speaker 4:

He told Esther, he gave Esther instructions and he said if you don't do this right, God's going to raise somebody else up, and if you don't do it then you and your father's household are going to perish. But Esther did it, so she took it on. She took Mordecai's advice and she has walked this out with great faith. And so now Mordecai, I believe, is responding with great faith to encourage, and he's back in his position again. There's no sackcloth, there's no fear. He is standing with great faith in the midst of what they have going on. That's what I'm seeing.

Speaker 1:

I think it's funny, too, that Haman is like restraining himself, like he sees that guy who's supposed to get up and show him some honor and bow, based on the king's edict, you know, honoring the man that I have chosen and he's just like yeah, whatever, I got a plan now, I got a plan. Yeah, he'll be bowing in a different way very soon.

Speaker 2:

That's what I think he's thinking Because he's ordered the gallows to be built In verse 14.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, and guess who tells him to do that? By the way, did you notice him? His?

Speaker 4:

wife Come on. Why did they have to put that in there? Did you notice him? His wife Come on. What if I have to put that in there? Did you see that? Right? But his wife is like oh, my husband, he's annoyed. So why don't you just build gallows and get rid of him and then go be happy with the king?

Speaker 1:

You know how sometimes wives will just be like you've been complaining about this dude long enough. Just go do something.

Speaker 3:

Just go do something.

Speaker 1:

Go build some gallows. You know that'll take care of him.

Speaker 4:

No, we laugh about it. But I think for me, what I saw is there's so much evil that he, how evil is Haman, but also the company that Haman keeps. There's so much evil there, evil in their hearts, evil in their thoughts, evil in their actions.

Speaker 1:

Look at the grudge too that he holds against Mordecai. It's not like all these Jews are going around not bowing to him. It's this one guy and he literally says in verse 13, but all this gives me no satisfaction, as long he had had something really good happen to him he was honored by the king, couldn't celebrate that, that at all. It's just this one guy that won't bow down to him and it's made him so mad he's like. None of this gives me satisfaction as long as I see that jew mordecai sitting at the king's gate like, have you ever met people that they've had a lot of good stuff going on in their lives but they focus on this one little minor thing. This guy is not bowing down to him, this is minor. He could be like whatever.

Speaker 2:

It doesn't matter. Well, when you follow the voice of the enemy, it is circular, it's never ending.

Speaker 1:

And it's about you, it's always about you. You're the king of your kingdom. He just had a it's about me party just a few minutes ago with his wife and his family. I'm the best, I'm awesome, yeah, and it's it's amazing to see, though, just as good as it's going for him, he still he's. He wants to be in control, just like the enemy wants to control us, and until he, he can't control mordecai, and that's a problem. Problem for him.

Speaker 4:

Don't we all, though, get in a funk like that? I think about that. Like you know, God tells us what does his word tell us to do with our thoughts? To think on things that are pure and lovely and trustworthy and wholesome, and what he's doing is he has, like you said, Sheryl is all these things that have happened that he could rejoice about and celebrate, but yet he gets in his head about the ugly things. This Mordecai is not bowing down to me, he's not paying any respect for me, and so his joy is being stolen because of what he's focusing on Now. He's evil, though I mean, let's just face it he is.

Speaker 1:

But when we focus on the evil one or we just focus on ourselves, influenced by, like, the evil one, I don't have this. I wish I had that this person did this to me. Whatever, we're not fixing our eyes on Christ, you know. We're focusing on the problem, just like in the story of the disciples on the water in the boat, and it was in a storm and they were freaking out because they were looking at the waves, the ocean. They thought they were gonna die, and Jesus, all the while, is on the boat with them sleeping.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, and the New Testament is full of. Jesus is trying to teach us in the New Testament that don't focus on what somebody else has, don't focus on stuff, don't focus on your fame or fortune. So that doesn't lead to life, that leads to death, as we see. But sometimes, even if we're in the Mordecai position, where we're trying to do what's right, we're trying to follow what God tells us to do, we look at others and we go God, it looks like you've got it made, you know. It looks like you're living in the palace and you've got it all. We don't know. Look at these two guys did not know what the next few days were going to hold for them at all. Yeah, and oh boy, do they find out?

Speaker 1:

Comparisons. That is such an evil trap and that's what, you see, haman has been doing and we, like Angie was saying, can even fall into that trap too, comparing what other people have and not even knowing the backstory or what's really going on in their lives. Great lessons for today. Thank you so much for joining us for Healing Strong's Around the Word podcast. We hope that you were encouraged to read and explore God's Word. Please visit us at healingstrongorg where you'll find out more about our mission and our community groups. Until next time, remember, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.