Have you ever heard the phrase, “someone is in a blind rage”? Most people have. I think that is an accurate description of Haman in the story of Esther. Haman essentially had it all. The king had blessed him, he was married, he had children; Haman seemingly had it all. He had everything except the one thing he seemingly wanted the most, complete respect from those around him. If you remember back to last week, we saw that one man refused to bow to Haman or even stand up to show him respect when he walked past. That man was Esther’s uncle, Mordecai. What Haman didn’t know was who Mordecai was, and who he was related to. Despite being blessed, Haman had anger against Mordecai. Haman’s anger was going to be his downfall. One day, after getting invited to a banquet with the king and Esther, Haman was in a great mood until he passed by Mordecai. His mood soured quickly, and he went home and vented about it to his wife and his advisors. They came up with the idea to build some gallows, and tomorrow Haman could ask the king to let him have Mordecai hung on those gallows. What Haman didn’t know is that God was sovereignly working behind the scenes, and the gallows being built wouldn’t be for Mordecai. The next day, at another banquet requested by Esther, Haman was found out. When Esther told her husband, the king, Haman’s plan to kill all the Jews in the land, Haman had a big problem. The end result was this, the gallows that Haman planned to hang Mordecai from would be used to hang Haman himself.
It is vital that you and I learn to lean on the Holy Spirit and allow Him to help us control our emotions. Because, if we don’t control our emotions, then our emotions will control us. Nothing good happens when we fly into a blind rage. Instead of being content with all the ways he was blessed, Haman longed to have the one thing he was never going to get. There are many things in life that frustrate us. When those things come up, we have two options. We can either focus on them, and allow them to most likely lead us into a dark place where bad decisions are made. Or, we can focus on God’s blessings, pray about them, and trust that God will help us see clearly on how to deal with our frustrations. Haman’s biggest downfall was his pride. In his pride, he felt that he was entitled to respect, and anything else he wanted. A lot of times, that is our downfall as well. If we aren’t careful, if we allow our pride to go unchecked, soon enough the things that are meant to be blessings to us will seem more like a curse. Are there some deep emotions or feelings of hurt or betrayal under the surface in your life? If so, now is the time to take them to the Lord in prayer. Ask for His help in laying them down. Ask the Lord to undo these sinful, harmful feelings before they undo you.
By His grace and for His glory,
Pastor Justin