Bibledoorajar Looks at the Depth of Mordecai's Humiliation

  "...yet You have made him a little lower than God and

You crown him with glory and majesty."

Psalm 8:5

"You have made him to be a little lower than the

angels, You crowned him with glory and honor."

Hebrews 2:7

      Mordecai held a public office in the kingdom; some say he sat on the Superior Court. The Bible records that he sat at the king's gate indicating his role was one of public closeness to the king. The time came when he had to make a choice. He determined that he could not bow to Haman as the king directed. He felt compelled to take some action. The action would be for the people, whom though  ignorant of their impending plight, stood in need of salvation. Mordecai was compelled to action, but he knew that the magnitude of what needed to be accomplished would take God. So Mordecai took action to make himself acceptable to God and His Holiness by sitting by the gate in sackcloth and ashes. This descendant of the first king of Israel humbled himself and took on a lowly state in a very public way to demonstrate his faith that God alone could do the mighty work necessary to save his people from certain death. He loved God and his people more than he loved his own lofty position. There he sat wailing to God for his people.

..."and going a little farther He fell on His face

and prayed,  My Father, if it be possible, let

the cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will,

but as you will."

Jesus in Matthew 26:39

 

"I'm giving you my heart and all that is within,

I lay it down for the sake of you, my king

I'm giving you my dreams,

I'm laying down my rights,

I'm giving my pride for the promise of new life."

 

Song by Seventh Day Slumber

Hope each and everyone had a grateful time of Thanksgiving and now it's on to the next celebration!

Bibledoorajar Watches As Haman Pursues His Beliefs

"IT'S A LIE THAT WOULD NOT DIE; believed to be true by

Adolph Hitler, Henry Ford, and the late Osama bin Laden. It

was introduced by the Russian secret police in an attempt

to bolster the reign of Tzar Nicholas II. It erroneously 

exposed his enemies as co-conspirators with the Jews in

a plot to take over the world. This fabricated document

was embraced by a religious fanatic, Sergei Nilus, and

published in 1905 in Russia. He published three separate

versions of the book, and the last in 1917 indicated that 

Theodor Herzl was the writer of the mythical conspiracy

theory. The book birthed the pogroms in Russia, and

was used by Hitler as an excuse to exterminate six million

Jews in Europe. Many Muslim leaders worldwide keep it within 

reach as the most revered book, after the Quran.

Quoted from backflap of The Protocols

Haman has been successful in convincing the king that the Jews are a danger worthy of annihilation. His argument erupted from a steady diet of antisemitic thought within his family. The thoughts became beliefs that led to action. Now the king is ecstatic with Haman's proposed rescue of his kingdom and they have sat down to have a drink and be merry.

When the news of the pogrom to exterminate the Jews was found out by the Gentile peoples of Shushan, they were perplexed and when the news found the Jews they were extremely fearful. Their people had been at this very place before many times. This thought of exterminating them would just not go away. Every time they became productive in a society, antisemitic elements arose to do them harm. 

The pogrom date established through the occult was now eleven months away. That's the time Mordecai had to defeat Haman in this tense clash of values. Soon, if action was not taken, it would be more than a clash of values, people would be suffering and dying. Nothing could help his people unless someone responded to the issue at hand. Fortunately Mordecai could. And, more importantly, his God WOULD.

Bibledoorajar continues to look at hatred of the Jews

The Jew has always been

a people with definite

racial characteristics and

never a religion.

Adolph Hitler, Mein Kampf

Haman's hatred of the Jews had mushroomed to the point that armed with the date received via occultism, he was ready to approach the king. He started out benignly: "There is a people." But then he moved on. These people: "Their laws are different from the rest of us." And on: "They do not keep the king's laws." And sire: "It is not good for the King to tolerate them." And then the bribe: "I'll give 10,000 talents of silver to the treasury if you decree their death."

It is interesting to consider evil and it's role in the world and even in God's church. Consider those leaders who believe dictatorial edicts against selected peoples is within their rights as leaders. Hitler's negative thoughts against the Jews escalated over time. When he became Chancellor of Germany, he took the title, Der Fuhrer. This title (one that had been long debated in Germany even prior to Hitler's rise to power) held within its meaning the ability to be a dictatorial guide. This evil title coupled with Hitler's growing antisemitic thought, lead the Germans (even the church) to seek to annihilate the Jews.

Haman had the king's ear. He was the king's trusted servant. So far the king was not privy to Haman's undercover plans. And so, the king fearing problems within his kingdom, decreed the death of a selected people. Destruction was to supersede life. Haman, a doorkeeper in the kingdom, was far from a righteous one. 

King David said he would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. Our king in our story has been outwitted and it is as if he has chosen the tents of the wicked. I am sure in his heart he desired to be a good king, but in this instance, evil counsel has lead him astray and justice will not be served in his kingdom.

Christ has given us His Spirit to help the church live justly so that all peoples might be able to seek the Lord. It is a terrible thing when church leadership takes on  "Der Fuhrer"  characteristics because many can be left out and unable to partake of the fruits of the kingdom. "Riffraff" are not wanted. Different viewpoints are not tolerated. Decisions are made in secret and evil counsel is considered. 

"Holy Spirit, search our hearts and deliver us from such evil ways. Particularly, help our leaders be broken before you, seeking the best for all who wish to be a part of your kingdom. Amen."

Bibledoorajar abhors Haman's hatred

"Even if you were to knock my head off, 

God would still exist."

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

"Unless your faith is firm,

I cannot make you stand firm".

God in Isaiah 7:9

     We have been looking at the difference between Haman and Mordecai. We have seen that both men have obsessions of great magnitude. Haman lives and dreams of eradicating God's people, the Jews. Mordecai lives and dreams of God's people prospering. Haman trusts in himself and the occult and Mordecai trusts in Jehovah God. In Mordecai we see the human spirit uplifted and magnified. In Haman, the human spirit is shrunken by flaring hatred. Old wounds have festered for generations in his preoccupied family. 

     As a counselor, I was often called upon to try to help people who were nursing long held anger. We have all been angry and often for good reason. But long held anger usually manifest in all other types of problems and often does more damage to the one holding it than they realize. Like the comedian, Jim Labriola has said:

    "I thought I was giving the poison to them,

but all of a sudden I was drinking it!"

Haman's long held anger is spilling over everywhere. He is burdening his wife with it. She doesn't help him deal with the root of his anger which is his obsession that Mordecai refuses to bow down to him.  Instead, she suggests ways that he can channel his anger against Mordecai and still promote himself with the king. Her husband is screaming and yelling and apparently she feels the penalty would be too great if she challenged his anger at the root. They are both caught in the anger trap. Instead of helping her husband deal with his anger within himself, she explores ways he can express his anger externally with harm as its' goal. No insight there.

      This is the same anger our great enemy, Satan, has for Jesus. He simply cannot stand Him and goes to great lengths to recruit others to assist in harming Jesus or those that love Him. Fortunately, many  Christians have learned to recognize his ways and have learned helpful ways to stop him in his tracks.

And that's a good thing. Let's all be dedicated to helping each other find healthier ways to handle our anger. Like Bonhoeffer said, God is not going anywhere and if we have faith, He can help us stand firm for the right.

Bibledoorajar remembers godly heritage in the face of danger

     I recently had a conversation with a young woman who told me that her ex-husband sent her and her son a letter from the prison where he is incarcerated. He signed the letter with a common skinhead closure which included lightning bolts around his signature. The son was infuriated that he would send a letter to them that reflected such hate for certain peoples. Though young, her son confronted his father. I find this a brave act, but a sad one, that a son would have need to correct his father. The mother and I spoke about how good it was that the son recognized racism at such a young age and
about how sad it was to know this about one's father. I silently prayed that the son would be safe in his father's presence and that as he grew he would continue to condemn his racist behavior.
     When we think of Mordecai being so hated by Haman, it is good to remember his godly heritage. Moses had prophesied over his tribe's (Benjamin) future:
    

       The BELOVED of the Lord shall dwell in

SAFETY by HIM, and the LORD shall

cover him all day long, and he shall

stand between HIS SHOULDERS.

     This is a wonderful heritage because Mordecai and his people are indeed standing in need of covering. Haman is trying everything he knows to do to kill God's people. He consulted the occult (PUR) about a successful date on which the Jews could be killed. The occult spoke: "In the month of Adar on the 13th day, you can successfully annihilate God's people". Haman's confidence soared.

     Another son of Benjamin covers us. We are his beloved because we love Him. We can dwell safely in Him and He will cover us all day long.

Bibledoorajar Looks at Discerning God's Will About People

     For Christians, each of us has to decide which people (kingdoms) to honor. When Saul was leading the Jews in the battle for God's will among people, he was called upon to distinguish among the peoples. Amidst the battle against the Amalekites (Agagites), Saul paused to make sure he and the Jews did no harm to the Kenites who were descendants of Jethro who so aided Moses as he led the children of Israel from Egypt. This was a noble and absolutely right thing to do. However, Saul did not show the same wisdom when he captured Agag. God's will was that he be completely annihilated because of the degree of his evil toward the purposes of God. I think Saul's problem was that he did not know his God intimately enough to absolutely do his will on all occasions. "Know the king intimately and enjoy Him forever---Ps. 16:11." Saul knew his God but did not always want to pursue mutual enjoyment with Him. Consequently, he made a terrible mistake that not only interrupted his relationship with God, but placed God's people in continuing peril.
     Just as Esther was seeking the king with all her heart, with all her mind and with all her soul knowing that he was sovereign and in control, so Mordecai was pursuing God. Mordecai incensed Haman because he refused to worship anyone or thing above God. We must realize that there are just some  people like Haman who are going to be incensed about our devotion to the will of God. It is of more interest to them that we worship differently. But, faith in God often calls for sacrifice. Honor of some peoples and their ways simply cannot take place. Christians are called to give honor to whom honor is due. This is a key component to victory.
     So evil were the Amalekites, that God had sworn perpetual war with them. Now, everyone was bowing down to Haman except Mordecai. This infuriated Haman. When "friends" encouraged Mordecai to follow through and bow down, Mordecai proclaimed that he was a Jew and as a Jew he could not dishonor his God in that way. Be careful what you tell so called "friends" because, as we will see in our story, the "friends" went straight to Haman with the news that Mordecai was a Jew. Everyone was watching to see who would be victorious in the battle, Mordecai or Haman. But here's some of the difference.

Mordecai                                        Haman

resolved and brave                    prideful and evil

Our heavenly Mordecai was resolved and brave that day that Satan came to Him and tempted Him. He withstood the prideful evil Satan by proclaiming the truth of God's word. God help us to be so resolved and brave when our enemies tempt us.

Bibledoorajar Admires Esther's Calm Spirit

     After the purification process, Esther was pleasant to be with and was not a silly young girl. The king realized how special she was and set the royal crown on her head making her his queen. He gave a great feast in her honor throughout His kingdom. Then, just when it seemed that things were going so well for Esther, intrigue entered her life. It seems that Mordecai overheard two of the king's doorkeepers planning a plot to assassinate the king. Mordecai advised Esther and she was able to tell the king what her uncle Mordecai had overheard. The plot was exposed and the plotters were hanged. The failed event and the name of the man who had exposed it were recorded in the king's chronicles. At about this same time, the king elevated a man named Haman who was an Agagite (Amalekite) to be his prime minister. He was the king's number 1 person and he could act in the king's absence. The fact that Haman was even on this scene was due to Israel's unwillingness to obey God to the letter. Amalek was a grandson of Esau. His clan attacked the children of Israel as they came out of Egypt on the way to the mountain of God. They became eternal enemies of Israel. Agag (the ancestor of Haman) descended from this clan. King Saul was told by God to kill Agag after he was captured but Saul did not. Before the prophet Samuel could catch up to Agag and kill him,  Agag had had opportunities to sire more children. Now Haman, his descendent, was poised against Mordecai, Saul's descendent.

Saul Vs. Agag                                 Mordecai Vs Haman

Partial Victory                           Full Victory over Agag's seed

     How will the victory be won?