Spiritual Formation. It’s one of our core values at Redeemer Rockwall.

The story of Esther forces you to think that maybe Christianity is way more than you signed up for. You might have even been taught that following Jesus was supposed to make you healthier and wealthier. Or maybe that the gospel was there to make you cozy and happy on this side of heaven? But the gospel message in Esther looks less like comfort and a lot more like a cross.

The story of Esther points back to Eve and Bathsheba, but it also points forward to Mary! They were put in just the right time and place to deliver God's people!

The story of Esther is reaching a boiling point. Esther and Mordecai bide their time waiting for exactly the right time to make their moves. But the story of Esther is connected to the rest of Scripture in a unique way. The only way to understand the significance of this story is to find Jesus in this passage.

Esther 4 is one of the most epic passages in the Old Testament. We see a radical transformation in Esther as she goes from being a complicated bride to a consecrated queen. Her transformation and courage stem from her decision to consecrate and devote her life to God and God transformed her to be used in her time and her place.

In Esther 3, Haman gets the power to kill all the Jews. He sends out an edict to proclaim that every Jewish man, woman, and child, is to be killed, and everything they own is theirs for the taking. The Serpent is still at work trying to stomp out the seed of the woman before the one who will come and crush the serpents head can be born. But the Lord is at work too. And in the face of total annihilation, He is miraculously preserving them through this woman.

Esther is one of the most misunderstood characters in the Bible. Most think she is either a victim, a coward, or a sellout. The author of Esther gives us a complicated and compromised view of Esther. But those typical views of Esther look at her in isolation from the rest of the grand story of God. Maybe we should ask what does God think of Esther and what does he think of us?

As we begin a new series in the book of Esther, we consider the story in the context of the whole Bible and consider how it ultimately points to Jesus.