First Baptist Church Wiggins, FBC Wiggins

Esther is the story of how God worked subtly... in a big way.

God does big things behind the scenes that we don’t even understand or perceive until he wants us to.
- This is why we cannot get to enthralled with fear when things appear bad… and why we cannot get to excited with confidence when things appear good.

God is on the throne and is working in every season.

I. When the kingdom appears prosperous, God is on the throne. 1-9

- Ahasaurus was glorifying himself.
- The kingdom of Persia really was blessed indeed. They were blessed because God was on the throne, and it was a part of His providential plan for Persia to be prosperous during this time in history.

God was about to deal a huge blow on the enemies of His people and cause His people to rise up even higher in world power.

When things appear to be good and when things appear to be bad, God is working behind the scenes to accomplish His providential plan.

Through the lens of faith we can know that there is always a bigger plan that God is working out.

It is extremely important that we acknowledge Him in good seasons because we never know what the future holds or what is coming next in God’s plan.

He is on the throne in both the times of feasting and the times of fasting.

This acknowledgement wasn’t happening at all with Susa in Esther 1.

The king and the kingdom were getting all the glory. But that didn’t change the fact that God was on the throne.

II. When the Kingdom appears divided, God is on the throne. 10-12

During the feast, seeds of division came to the surface for this very prosperous kingdom.

It was a big deal for Vashti to disobey the king’s orders, because by having her own followers, her refusal was seen as an act of subversion and treason.

This turmoil was really a part of God’s plan… to create a void in the King’s court… one that would soon be filled with a faithful Jewish girl named Hadassah… who’s Persian name was Esther.

God blesses and God removes blessing, He prospers and He divides, He builds up and He tears down and He does so as He pleases.
- He does so to accomplish His perfect plan.

God will still be on the throne no matter who gets elected in November.
God will still be on the throne even if you are abandoned by your spouse.
God will still be on the throne if you lose your job tomorrow.
God will still be on the throne even if all your friends walk away.

If we wake up tomorrow and EVERYTHING is gone...

III. When the Kingdom appears lost, God is on the throne. 13-22

The defiance of Vashti spelled doom for the women of Persia.
- They now became the property of their husbands… virtually slaves.
- All the beautiful women of the kingdom were to get snatched up by King Ahasuerus.
· Even so… God was on the throne.

- God was controlling the king of Persia, all the wise men, and all his advisers, like a master puppeteer. And they didn’t even know it. Nobody knew it.
- What looked to be a terrible event in the life of Esther, was really God working out prosperity for her, her people, and the glory of her God.

We see in the stories of the Old Testament and the life of Christ in the new testament that when situations are the hardest and when the cause seemed lost forever THOSE were the times that when the greatest victories were won and when God was most glorified.

Jesus held on to his confidence to the very end. He was faithful right up to the point of death. And he calls us to do the same.

Our calling to believe in Jesus and follow him is to do so even when it doesn’t make sense.

God is on the throne, working out His providential plan, despite however it might appear.

The question is, do you trust him?