Sometimes in life, things don’t go the way we planned. In those moments, we have two options. We can get upset and say something like, “that’s not fair.” Or, we can not necessarily like what is happening, but we can express our trust in God. This is why believing in the sovereignty of God is such a comfort to the believer. Believing in God’s sovereignty doesn’t mean that we like everything going on in life, but rather it is trusting that God is in control of every situation whether it is good or bad and that He can change any situation. This is what our text today reminds us of. In the last chapter of Nehemiah, Nehemiah is remembering Israel’s history, including a story from the book of Numbers about a prophet for hire named Baalam. Nehemiah 13:1-2 says, “On that day they read from the Book of Moses in the hearing of the people, and in it was found written that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever come into the assembly of God, because they had not met the children of Israel with bread and water, but hired Baalam against them to curse them. However, our God turned the curse into a blessing.”

Baalam was hired by a king named Balak. Baalam had one job, curse Israel. However, every time he went to speak, God would cause Baalam to bless Israel instead of curse them. I am sure that God was making sure that Israel was reading this portion of the Book of Moses, which is the first five books of the Old Testament in our Bible today. He wanted to remind them of His power to change people and situations. But it was also serving as a warning to the children of Israel. Later in the chapter, Nehemiah comes in and essentially cleans house, because Israel had started going back to their old way of living. Nehemiah asks why would they do that, knowing that it was this type of living that caused God to punish them in the first place. As a side note, this is one of the biggest reasons that we need to remember our history, both the good and the bad, and preserve it. It’s not about celebrating everything we have ever done; rather, it is about learning from the mistakes we have made.

You and I have two choices, we can either believe that God is in control or believe that someone else is. Now, even if you choose to believe that God is not in control, it doesn’t mean that He isn’t in control. In our fallen condition, we like to think we can be in control, and that everything would work out great if we were. However, I want to give you a few reasons why God being in control is comforting.

1. He is eternal, we are finite. There has never been a time in which God didn’t exist. We see this in John 1:1 and other places. However, there was a time in which you and I didn’t exist.
2. He is all-powerful. God spoke creation into existence. By His word, everything is held together. He can shut the mouth of lions, protect people thrown into a fiery furnace, and rise from the dead. Because of His power, He can change a bad situation and make it into something good.
3. He is all-knowing and wise. There is nothing that God doesn’t know. Yet, we only know what we know. The prophet Isaiah said that God knows that “end from the beginning.” Before God spoke the first words of creation, He already knew how He was going to end it and make all things new. I don’t even know what all is going to happen in my life today.
4. He is loving and gracious. While we may not think this way when we are going through a loss of something or someone, God is still loving and gracious. His plan for His children is for His glory and our good. Maybe we had to lose something or someone to learn how valuable He is to us. God being sovereign is a comfort to a believer because we know that although things might not be good right now, He can change it all around if He wants to and if He knows it is best for us. On the other hand, We also know that if God chooses not to change the situation, there is a plan and a purpose for it. Either way, He is worthy to be praised, and He is doing what He knows is best for me.

Therefore, relax today and know that God already knows what is coming, why it is happening, and how it is all going to play out. There is a loving, gracious God who can change any person or situation He desires to. Everything that is happening is to help us love Him more and the world less.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

Very few things are as contagious as a smile and someone who is genuinely happy. When someone is laughing, it is really hard not to start laughing yourself, or at least crack a smile. Joy is contagious! As Christians, we should be the most joyful people in the world, not because everything is going right in our life, but because God is good and He is faithful and our eternity is secured in Him. I heard a pastor say this the other week, “what we celebrate is what we replicate.” People want to have joy in their life, especially in these times.

Life wasn’t perfect in Israel during Nehemiah’s time. They had encountered difficulties and difficult people. Yet, when the Temple and the wall of Jerusalem is finished, we see the people celebrate. Nehemiah 12:43 says, “Also that day they offered great sacrifices, and rejoiced for God had made them rejoice with great joy; the women and the children also rejoiced so that the joy of Jerusalem was heard afar off.” Despite their difficulties, Israel rejoiced for God’s faithfulness and His goodness to them. The remedy for a sour attitude is to remember God’s goodness and faithfulness to you. We have to train our brain to look and remember our blessings. In our sin condition, it is natural for us to see the bad things in life. Most people, if nine out of ten things went well, they would remember the one that went bad longer. If we want to find dirt in a snowstorm, we can certainly find it. However, we can also see the faithfulness and goodness of God in every circumstance if we look for it. That is true even in difficult times, because as bad as things might be, they could be a lot worse. My mentor, Ken Butterworth, preached a sermon probably 15+ years ago. It was titled, “Your Attitude Determines Your Altitude.” The apostle Paul reminds us to set our minds on the things above, and not on the things below. Next time you find yourself in a mental funk, take time to list all the blessings God has and is giving you, and see what it does for your attitude.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

Have you ever made a promise not fully sure if you would be able to keep your word? Its not that you didn’t have good intentions. You just weren’t sure you would be able to do what you were promising you were going to do. We do it as parents. We do it as friends. Sadly, we are probably even guilty of doing it with God.

What we are going to see in today’s text is the nation of Israel after a time of worship which included confession make a vow about their behavior going forward. Nehemiah 10:29 says, “These joined their brethren, their nobles, and entered into a curse and an oath to walk in God’s Law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the Lord our Lord, and His ordinances and His statutes.” This vow comes after the reading of their history as a nation. They had not been faithful to God in the past, but they were vowing this time would be different. Sound familiar? The vow and oath they are referencing is found in Deuteronomy 28. In Deuteronomy 28, God promised that Israel would be blessed if they obeyed, but He also warned them of the consequences of their disobedience to the Law. In fact, the 70 year captivity that the nation had come out of before this was the direct result of Israel’s disobedience. What this shows us is as W.A. Criswell said, “One of the strangest things about the human nature is that man has not been changed because of punishment.  He may desist evil because he is afraid, but his heart is still evil. He would do evil if he could get by with it.  A man is really changed only by the Gospel.”

We all have the best of intentions most of the time; however, we must come to understand that our intentions are not enough. If we are going to truly obey the Lord, we must depend on the Lord to work in us, to change us. It is also worth noting that our desire to obey God should not be that God will love us or save us. God already loves us, even while we are sinners Romans 5:8 tells us. And no amount of good works will merit our salvation. We are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. Instead, our obedience should be motivated by love and gratitude. Jesus said the greatest commandment is to love the Lord our God with “all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind” (Mt. 22:37). We should be grateful that God has saved us in spite of us. Therefore, we seek to obey and do good works as a way to show our love for God and our gratitude to God for who He is and what He has done for us. So before you go and make some rash promise that you know you stand a very slim chance of actually keeping; save the promise, learn to love God more. Because the more we love God the more we will desire to obey Him, and in the end that is what God wants.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

Have you ever felt like you were stuck in an endless cycle? Maybe you have some victory for a time, but then it seems that inevitably you fall back into old patterns? Why does this happen? The simple answer is, it happens because of our sin nature. Apart from God saving us and changing us, we will find ourselves stuck in this endless cycle.

This was certainly the case for Israel. In today’s text, while there is worship and celebration happening, some of the Levites, the priestly tribe, recount the history of Israel. Nehemiah 9:28 says, “But after they had rest, they again did evil before You. Therefore You left them in the hand of their enemies, so that they had dominion over them; yet when they returned and cried out to You, You heard from heaven; and many times You delivered them according to Your mercies.” This section of the recounting of Israel’s history is from the book of Judges. You see the same cycle repeating itself in that book. God was blessing Israel, then they would rebel against God, He would send punishment on them in the form of oppression from another nation or people, Israel would cry out to God in confession, God would restore, and then it would start all over again. Feel familiar? Is there any hope to breaking and ending this cycle once and for all? The answer is, yes there is hope. But it must be done God’s way, on God’s terms. How can you break free from this cycle?

1. Surrender to the grace of God. We are all sinners, alienated from God in need of deliverance. Only the Gospel can save you. What is the Gospel? It is Jesus Christ coming to the earth, dying on the cross to satisfy God’s wrath against sin, and rising the third day. Many people say they believe the Gospel. However, the Bible makes it abundantly clear that if we believe it, then it will change our lives. That is because when we surrender to God’s grace, He not only saves us, but He also gives us the Holy Spirit to live inside of us. Paul would say in 2 Corinthians 5:17 that we are made a new creature, the old has passed away and the new has come. It is the work of the Holy Spirit inside of us that begins to change us. It is the work of the Holy Spirit that breaks the cycle. You can try all the techniques you want, you can have as much will power as you can muster. But unless the Holy Spirit is in you, working to change you from the inside out, the cycle will start again. It may be a different sin, but it will be there nevertheless.
2. Pray for strength and deliverance. Paul makes it crystal clear in Ephesians 6 that there is a spiritual war being waged against us. Satan knows our weaknesses, and even if he didn’t, we still have those areas of our life that we are weak in. Therefore, we need to pray and ask God for help. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 10:31 that God will give us a way of escape so that we do not give in to the temptation. However, we must ask for it, look for it, and then take it. Some days are going to be easier than others. Some days you are going to have to pray about it more than others. However, God can give you victory.
3. Have people hold you accountable. One of the reasons that many Christians continue to suffer in this cycle of sin is because they go at it alone. They don’t pray and ask for God’s help. They actually believe they can have victory if they just try hard enough. Or, they try to hide it from other Christians instead of asking for help. If you want victory, you can’t conceal it from God or others. You need to have people of the same sex preferably, that you can confide in, and know that they will pray with you and for you. They will ask you the tough questions.
4. Remember God’s grace and mercy. Listen, victory won’t come easy. It won’t necessarily come quickly. There will be days when you fall back into the sin cycle. On those days, Satan will be right there to accuse you. And where he doesn’t accuse you, you will accuse yourself. When you sin, remember that God’s grace and mercy don’t depend on you being perfect or getting it right. God’s grace and mercy is given because of who He is. If God was going to give up on anyone, I feel like the nation of Israel would have been it. I feel like I would have been it. Yet, every morning God’s grace and mercy is renewed, and it is sufficient for that day and its trials. The glory of the Gospel is not the you deserved to be saved and so you were. The glory of the Gospel is that despite our sinful nature and our frequent failures, God loves us, died in our place, rose again to promise us victory, and will still love us in spite of us. This isn’t a free pass to sin. Rather, it is a glorious reminder of who God is, what He has done, and what He will do in and through His children.

Victory is possible. It’s not about wanting it bad enough. It’s not about trying hard enough. It’s about surrendering all of you to all of who God is. Then, enlist the help of other brothers or sisters in Christ, and fight every day to die to yourself and live for Christ.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

If you are a baseball fan, then you have probably seen some small guys come up and hit some big, long home runs. When that happens, have you ever wondered, how did they do that? You can understand some big, strong players hitting it that hard and far; but it doesn’t make sense when someone like a Jose Altuve comes up and hits a mammoth blast. What power hitters will tell you is that the power is in the wrists and forearms. You don’t have to have 16″ biceps. You have to have a good eye, solid timing, and powerful forearms and wrists. That is the recipe for hitting home runs. But let’s talk about the power of change in something different. Have you ever seen someone who was in the throws of addiction get clean, but someone who you thought would have an easier time breaking a habit, continuously fall into that habit? There is a difference between will power and God’s power.

In today’s text in Nehemiah, we have come to the point where the wall is complete. Ezra the priest gets up on a wooden platform and begins to read the Law to the people. He reads for about six hours. While Ezra was up on a wooden platform reading, there were men of the priestly tribe, the Levites, out in the crowd and they were helping explain what was being read to the people. There were two things that were happening during this time of reading the Law. The people were saddened on one hand. Then we read the other reaction in Nehemiah 8:12, “And all the people went their way to eat and drink, to send portions and rejoice greatly, because they had understood the words that were declared to them.” The people were encouraged as the Law was being read to them, and as they were given understanding.

The difference between our will power and God’s power, is the difference between genuine change versus temporal change. Our will power can be amazing. However, the same will that can power us to do incredible things, can also be very weak and cause us to fall back into sinful habits. However, God’s power not only saves us, but it also changes us, and it keeps changing us until we are in the presence of Jesus for all of eternity. The power that we see in our text is the power of the Word of God. It can bring sorrow to us, because it points out our sin. However, it can also give us great encouragement. Either use of that power brings about genuine, lasting change in our lives. The power isn’t in the giftedness of a pastor or teacher. The power is the Spirit of God using the Word of God to change the child of God. That is what we should all crave. It is something that is available to each Christian. You don’t need a seminary degree to understand the Bible. You need a humble dependence on the Holy Spirit. He is the best teacher of the Bible there is, because He is the One who inspired the Bible. Therefore, if you want to see the power of God at work in your life, be intentional about getting alone with the Word of God. Take your time in reading the Bible, and ask the Holy Spirit to teach you what it means, and how to live it out. He will do it if we ask. The greatest curriculum we can ever use in our walk with God is a Bible, a pen, and a notebook. We don’t need more Bible studies, we don’t need better teachers. We need more desperation for God, and a dependence upon the Holy Spirit.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

As I have written here previously, I deal with and often struggle with focus issues. If you are around me for more than five minutes you can tell if I took my medicine that day, if it is working or if it has worn off. My mind goes what feels like 100 mph. Therefore, it is easy for me to be doing something and then….oh look squirrel. Therefore, it is something I have to pray about often, and have people keep me in check because I can do ministry as erratically as other parts of my life. That is why I find certain parts of Nehemiah and other parts of Scripture not only fascinating, but also so helpful. In today’s text, we are going to see Nehemiah stay focused despite attempted distractions.

The work on rebuilding the wall is underway and moving along. This only frustrates and angers Israel’s opponents. Therefore, they spring into action. Their first devious attempt is to distract Nehemiah. Nehemiah’s response is this, “So I sent messengers to them, saying, ‘I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and go down to you’ (Nehemiah 6:3)?” At first glance that response may seem rude or even arrogant. However, later in the chapter we read why Nehemiah refused to go down. It says that he “perceived that they wanted to do him harm” (Neh. 6:3), and that they were “trying to make us (Israel) afraid” (Neh. 6:9). How could Nehemiah have known that at the time? The answer is really found in what Nehemiah did starting in Nehemiah 6:10. Nehemiah prayed. What we learn about Nehemiah in the first six chapters of the book is that he is a man of prayer. Four of the nine recorded prayers in the book of Nehemiah are contained in the first six chapters of the book.

In a world that is full of distractions, the people of God must be known as people of prayer. While it is necessary and even encouraged in Scripture for us to pray about our needs, and for those in our families and others who are sick; this isn’t the type of prayer that I’m talking about. The prayer I am talking about is a prayer for wisdom and discernment. Would their have been anything wrong with Nehemiah leaving someone in charge, coming down off the wall, and going to the plain of Ono to talk with Sanballot and Tobiah? No, there wouldn’t have been anything wrong with it. Nehemiah wasn’t arrogant, he knew that God didn’t need him to do this work. Some of you might be thinking right now, if Nehemiah would have just gone down and talked to them, then maybe he could have convinced them to stop harassing Israel and things wouldn’t have escalated as much as they did. However, it is clear that Nehemiah had been talking to God, and God let Nehemiah know that these guys aren’t interested in talking, they just want to stop the work. One of the biggest reasons that we need to pray more is because our knowledge of a person or a situation is finite. We can only see and know, what we see and know. However, nothing is hidden from God. Therefore, when we ask for wisdom and discernment, we can trust that God is going to lead us in the right direction. This was a situation for Nehemiah in which there were two seemingly good choices. However, only one of them was the best choice. Where do you need discernment in your life right now? Is it in your time management? Your finances? Your marriage or family? Job situation? Ask the Lord! He has promised to give us wisdom when we ask (see James 1:5). Go ahead, spend some time asking the Lord for His wisdom to help you in what you are facing.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

Have you ever been in charge of doing something that seemed overwhelming? It just seemed like there was too much to do for one person. One thing that we often learn at an early age is individualism. The message of “don’t depend on anyone else” is reinforced into our minds over and over again. I honestly believe that is one of the most damaging and at times demonic messages we tell ourselves and teach our children. The state convention that Westlake Baptist is a part of, Southern Baptist Convention of Virginia, has a running theme of “not alone.” It is a great reminder for us that as Christians we are never alone. God is with us and He has given us a church family as well as a state and national convention to belong. When we work together for the glory of God, we accomplish more together than we ever could individually. Where do we learn this? There are many places in the Bible, but the book of Nehemiah shows it to us very clearly.

Nehemiah had been called by God to go back to Jerusalem, and God was going to use Nehemiah to lead the people to rebuild the city walls around Jerusalem. It was a monumental task. However, we see in the book of Nehemiah that it was done in record time. That doesn’t mean it was always easy. There was intense opposition at times to what they were doing. But from Nehemiah, we can see three essential elements for our own personal spiritual growth as well as the building up of God’s kingdom. The big key to them is that none of them can be done in isolation. These three ingredients not only helped Israel build the wall, but they will help you grow in your walk with God and will aid in the building up of His kingdom. These three key ingredients form the basis for why every Christian should be a part of a discipleship group. What are these ingredients?

1. Unity. After Nehemiah had arrived in Jerusalem, and spent three days there; he went and shared with others what God had laid on his heart. We read in Nehemiah 2:18 that he told the others how he knew this was from God, and how they could trust that it was from God. God had truly blessed Nehemiah in putting him in a position of influence in the kingdom, giving him a leave of absence from his service to the king of Persia, and having the king of Persia provide what they would need to build the wall. The people’s response to Nehemiah was “Let us rise up and build.” The Bible is full of passages on the need for unity. The “we” has to be more important than the “me.” As Amos 3:3 reminds us, “Can two walk together unless they agree?” Within a discipleship group there is unity in your relationship with Jesus, and a desire to grow in that relationship.
2. Accountability. Accountability is something that we often give lip service to, but seldom do we truly want it in our lives. Why? Because it can be painful. However, the Bible states the case the accountability is necessary for a Christian. Without accountability, we will give into temptation time and time again, and we will never reach the spiritual maturity that God desires for us. There are many texts that show us this and give us the benefits of accountability. One text is Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 we read, “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor. For it they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up. Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; but how can one be warm alone? Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. A threefold cord is not quickly broken.” Then there is Galatians 6:2 where we are told to “bear and share one another’s burdens and so fulfill the Law of Christ.” Finally, we can see in James 5:16, “Confess your faults to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effectual prayers of a righteous man avails much.” There is strength in numbers, and we can help each other learn to resist the temptations that come at us. However, if there is no one watching over our souls and our lives, we are “prone to wander and leave the God we love” as the hymn says. In Nehemiah, there was built in accountability, because as we read in Nehemiah 3, each person was responsible for building the portion of the wall that was directly in front of their house. Therefore, it would be easy to see if someone wasn’t doing what they were supposed to be doing. The same is true in a discipleship group. In a small setting, it is easier to be open and honest with each other. After all, even if you attend a church that has only 100 people in it, how well do you know those 100 people? How well do they know you? Even in a Bible study of 10-12 people, there isn’t the depth of accountability that is needed for us. However, in a small group of 3-5, there can be intimacy and accountability that will help each member of that group thrive spiritually.
3. Protection. In Nehemiah 4:17 we read, “Those who built on the wall, and those who carried burdens, loaded themselves so that with one hand they worked at construction, and with the other hand held a weapon.” Each person had two tools in their hand. Each tool had a specific use, but both of them served the same purpose. With the trowel, they worked on building the wall, which would protect them when it was finished. Until the wall was a finished, they each needed a weapon in their hand in case of an attack. When it comes to our discipleship groups, we use the trowel of love and encouragement to build one another up. With the sword we as the writer of Hebrews says, “provoke one another to love and good works” (Heb. 10:24). Sometimes, we like to put it on cruise control, but our members of our discipleship group can lovingly poke us to keep us moving along. The other way the sword can be used in your discipleship group is to help each other cut out the sins in our lives

We need each other if we are going to be who God has called us to be. If we are going to reach the nations with the Gospel, we must be intentional about having unity, accountability, and protecting the Gospel and one another. It’s time to rise up and build God’s kingdom!

By His grace and for His glory

Pastor Justin

I think the church could learn a lot from studying what the nation’s elite special forces in the military do prior to a mission. There is an incredible amount of reconnaissance done. There is defining the objective as well as developing the path to achieve that objective. There is also a studying of the enemy and any potential pitfalls that could jeopardize not only the mission, but also the lives of those carrying out the mission. If I have to sum it up in a sentence it would be this; preparation is the key to success. With that being said, there are specific ways that Christians should prepare themselves for the mission. The book of Nehemiah has always been one of my favorite books when it comes to studying biblical principles of leadership. Between Nehemiah and Joshua, there is a plethora of material on how to be a godly leader. What we will see in today’s text from Nehemiah is what comes after the preparation. Before we look at it, let’s get the back story.

Nehemiah was one of the Jews who was still living in Shushan after the Jews had been set free years before by decree of Cyrus the Persian. Nehemiah had risen in the king’s palace to a place of importance. At the end of chapter 1, Nehemiah says he was the king’s cupbearer. In those days, this was a very trusted position. One day Nehemiah had some visitors from Jerusalem. When he asked how things were back “home”, he got a sad report from them. It broke his heart, and led him to being praying and fasting for God’s wisdom. After some time, Nehemiah knew what God wanted him to do. There were still some obstacles, but as God always does, He took care of them so that His servant could obey him. After arriving at Jerusalem, Nehemiah took another three days to pray, and then one night he went out of walked where the walls were to be. Only after Nehemiah had a clear understanding of the mission, did he ever tell someone what God had put into his heart. This may have been because he didn’t fully know, or maybe he just wanted to have as many details as he could before telling people why he had come to Jerusalem. Either way, when Nehemiah started sharing why he was back, he began by telling others how good God had been to him. By doing this, Nehemiah was communicating to those, who may have been skeptical, that what he was about to tell them was truly from God. After doing this, we read in Nehemiah 2:18, “And I told them of the hand of God which had been good upon me, and also of the king’s words that he had spoken to me. So they said, ‘Let us rise up and build.’ Then they set their hands to this good work.” So, what are the lessons for us in this text?

I think the biggest lesson to take away is the power of God to move in the hearts not only of His children, but also in others. Nehemiah was a Jew, of course he wanted what was best for Jerusalem and his people. But God also moved in the heart of the king to allow one of his most trusted advisors to leave him for a time. Not only did the king approve this leave of absence, but he also made it possible for Nehemiah to get the supplies he would need to accomplish the task. These things don’t happen unless God is in it, and working through the situation. Another lesson is to pray more and speak less. Nehemiah was troubled by the report he received. Many of us, myself included, would have been more likely to want to jump up and start doing something. We would have wanted to rally people to a cause that we didn’t fully understand yet. However, Nehemiah spent time praying and fasting first. Fasting isn’t something that is talked about often in Christian circles anymore, but I believe it is a spiritual discipline that needs to be recovered. Fasting is a physical way of showing our spiritual dependence and desperation for God. By abstaining from food so that we can pray and read more; we are saying that being with God and hearing Him is more important than even the food we eat. The final lesson that I see is how God will build a coalition of the willing. When we have truly heard from God, and we are doing God’s work in God’s way, He will provide the necessary help. Our responsibility is to share who God is, and what He is saying with others. Then, trust that God will move in hearts to bring people around you to accomplish what God has called you to do. God didn’t just save you from sin, He saved you to Himself for a purpose (see Eph. 2:8-10). Do you know what it is? Are you doing it? If you don’t know what it is, spend time in prayer asking God. His kingdom is too important for us to sit on the sidelines or to be doing things that He hasn’t called us to do. And know that you won’t have to do it alone, God will be with you, and He will send others around you.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

One thing that I love about reading through the Bible is how you can see the main storyline develop. We encounter the same themes over and over, in different settings. It reinforces the truth that the Bible truly has one central message. In today’s text, we are going to see how God turns what looks to be a bad situation into something for His glory by saving some of the unsaved.

Yesterday, we saw how Haman’s anger and discontentment caused him to lose his life. As great as that is, there is still a problem. The king signed the decree saying that people could kill the Jews on the 13th day of Adar. Since the law of the Medes and Persians can’t be altered, the Jews were still in great danger even though Haman was no longer around. However, queen Esther is able to convince her husband the king to write a second decree. This second decree allowed the Jews to defend themselves against anyone who would come after them. Not only was God protecting His children as He promised He would, but He had another reason for this as well. We see it in Esther 8:17, “And in every province and city, wherever the king’s command and decree come, the Jews had joy and gladness, a feast and a holiday. Then many of the people of the land became Jews, because the fear of the Jews fell upon them.” Not only did God save His children, He saved many who were previously far from Him. I see at least two important lessons in this text.

First, we must learn to trust God with every aspect, and every detail of our life. We may not see what God is doing in the moment. It may not always make sense. It may not always be comfortable. But God is always working His plan out for His glory and our good. The other lesson I see in the text is that how we as God’s children suffer matters. Here is the thing, it doesn’t just matter for us, but it also matters to those around us who are not saved. I think of James 1:2 which says in part, “Count it all joy when you fall into various trials.” James goes on to say that trials produce patience and endurance which makes us a more spiritually mature Christian. However, when people see Christians joyfully suffer, and praising God through their various difficulties in life, it does make a difference. God can use what you and I are going through to draw other people to faith in Himself. On the other hand, when they see us moaning, grumbling, and complaining about everything; it does cause people to question the power of God, especially when we talk about how good God is and that He is a comforter to the afflicted. We have to be careful to make sure that we are not just talking the talk, but that we are also walking the walk. When we do that, God can and will work in us and through us in amazing ways. It doesn’t make suffering fun or easy, but it does remind us that there is a purpose that is bigger than us.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin