HAGAR VS ESTHER PT4 - ATTITUDE TO THE LAWS OF THE LAND MATTERS

MEMORY VERSE: All the king's servants, and the people of the king's provinces, do know, that whosoever, whether man or women, 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 scepter, that he may live, Esther 4:11a.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 2 Sam 10, 2 Cor 3, Ezek 17, John 18

In part three of these series, we saw that one of the factors behind Hagar’s failure as a wife was her attitude to rebuke. We also saw that her attitude to the poor or less privilege played a significant role in her demotion. Hagar lost her advantage as a result of her attitude to those who were not as favored as her. The Lord decided to demote her and promote those she considered as less privileged.

We have be comparing and contrasting the life of two young women – Hagar and Esther. Both from humble beginning rose to prominence. Hagar lost her advantage but Esther was elevated. While one was demoted, the other was celebrated. One of the reasons behind Esther’s success as a queen was that she used her position to bring joy. Haman hated the Jews with a passion. Since he was close to the king, he used his position to petition the king to pass out a law that will give everyone the right to kill the Jews. Esther got a wind of what Haman was up to, she went before the king and pleaded for mercy. Been a merciful king he agreed and permitted the Jews to defend themselves also. The Lord was with the Jews and they destroyed all their enemies. In the case of Hagar, she used her position to cause pain. She used her advantage as a means to torment Sarah for been childless. The Lord decided that if this is how she is going to use her advantage, I will demote her and promote someone else. She was demoted and the person she was victimizing was promoted.

Another reason behind Hagar’s failure was her attitude to the law of the land. In the days of Abraham it was acceptable for mistresses to raise children through their maid servants. On no occasion should a maid servant disrespect her madam. Hagar disobeyed the laws of the land by disrespecting her madam. Romans 13:1 -2 says all governments are ordained by God, by refusing to obey the laws of the land one is refusing to obey God. Hagar refused to obey God by refusing to obey the law of the land and she was relegated. Esther on the hand respected the laws of the land. The first thing she said when Mordecai prompted her to go before the king was the law of the land states that on no occasion should any one go before the king except he calls them , Esther 4:11a. The fact that one is in position does not mean he can do and undo. Men may not be able to discipline a fellow for transgressing the law but the God who instituted the law can. Because Esther respected the laws of the land, the Lord used the laws of the land to deliver her and her people from the hands of evil Haman.

NOTE: Failure to obey the laws of the land is failure to obey God

HAGAR VS ESTHER PT 2

MEMORY VERSE: so Esther’s maid and eunuchs came and told her, and the queen was deeply distressed. Then sent garments to clothe Mordecai and take his sackcloth away from him, but he would not accept them, Esther 4:4

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 2 Sam 7, 2 Cor 1, Ezek 15, John 16

Hagar and Esther started as slaves in a foreign land. They both enjoyed God’s favor –. Out of all the maid servants Hagar found favor before Sarah. Out of all the virgins in the land Esther found favor before king Ahasuerus. The both rose to prominence- Esther became the wife of a great king and Hagar became the wife of one of the richest man at that time. Later in life, Hagar was sent away with nothing from her husband’s house but Esther was celebrated. In these series we will be investigating the reasons behind Hagar’s failure and Esther’s success.

In part one of these series; we discussed one of the reasons that led to Hagar’s failure and Esther’s success. James 4:6 says God gives grace to humble but resists the proud. Immediately Hagar got to the top she became proud. Sarah became despised in her eyes. On the other hand the higher God took Esther, the humbler she became. Before you know it Hagar fell from grace and was sent out of the house while the king held a big feast for Esther.

Another reason behind Hagar’s failure was she never appreciated her helpers but Esther did. The Lord used Sarah to lift Hagar up; when she got to the top she became a thorn in her flesh. It got to a point; Sarah had to report Hagar to Abraham. When Esther got to the top, she appreciated her helpers. She heard that Mordecai (her helper) was sitting at the king’s gate in sackcloth, she quickly sent him garments. Esther 4:4 says so Esther’s maid and eunuchs came and told her, and the queen was deeply distressed. Then sent garments to clothe Mordecai and take his sackcloth away from him, but he would not accept them. Brethren, no one is obliged to help you. They are within their rights not to but when they do appreciate them. No matter how small the help appreciate your helpers. The fellow who rendered a small assistance today has the potential to render a bigger one tomorrow. Appreciate those the Lord has used to bring help to you. You may think you will never need them again and later need them at a crucial hour. When Abraham finally decided to send Hagar away, the only person who could have pleaded for her was Sarah but she could not to turn her because she failed to appreciate her earlier.

REMEMBER: You may think that you will never need that fellow’s help again, but something might happen in the future that will require you to run back to him for help.

Bro Samuel – Reaching the world for Jesus

HAGGAR VS ESTHER PT 1

MEMORY VERSE : Esther had not yet shewed her kindred nor her people; as Mordecai had charged her : for Esther did the commandment of Mordecai, like as when was she brought up with him, Esther 2:20

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR : 1 Sam 4, Rom 4, Jer 42, Luke 11

There are a lot of similarities between the Haggar ( hand maid of Sarah) and Esther. For example both of them came from humble beginnings. Their parents were so poor, the bible did not even bother to mention about their families. Not only that, both were slaves in a foreign land. Both were young girls who did not know where they were heading in life. Both were very humble. For Sarah to have given Haggai to Abraham, she must have demonstrated humility. If Esther had been a proud girl, Mordecai would not have bothered enrolling her for the beauty contest that saw her become the queen.

In one way or the other, the story of these girls changed. Haggar became the wife of one of the richest man in the world at that time and Esther became the Queen of one the most of prosperous nation at that time. Later in life, Haggar was sent out of the house and Esther was celebrated.

In these series we will be investigating the reasons behind Haggai’s failure and Esther’s success. One of the factors that led to Haggar’s Failure was her attitude when she got to the top. The bible records that immediately Haggar saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes, Genesis 16:4. Haggar used to be very humble suddenly but the spirit pride entered into her . Haggar who was the hand maid of Sarah suddenly began to look down on her mistress. Esther on the other hand became humbler. The higher God lifted her the humbler she became. The fact that she was the queen did not affect how she related to Mordecai. According to Esther 2:20,Esther did the commandment of Mordecai, like as when was she brought up with him. Please don’t ever allow any promotion or blessing to affect your relationship with the people who used to counsel you or people you used to look up to. Since Haggai refused to humble herself she was demoted while the king threw a feast for humble Esther. Haggar became an ex – Madam while Esther remained a queen all her life.

PRAYER POINT :Father, help me not loose my advantage .