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All right, let's Let me put this here.
We will pray and then we will get started Lord Jesus again
as we open your word.
We ask that through your Holy Spirit that we may rightly understand what you have revealed there.
So that we may have comfort and assurance and confidence in the forgiveness of sins and our great salvation Won for us
by our Savior our Redeemer our sanctifier and our Lord.
We also ask that through the Holy Spirit that would you you would continue to strengthen us to
mortify our sinful flesh and its Passions and to bear fruit in keeping with repentance and produce in us the
fruit of the Spirit of love joy peace patience kindness gentleness Self -control.
We ask this in Jesus name.
Amen.
Okay, so I am looking in the chat to see if there any questions that arose
as a result of the Of the sermon and just a reminder for everybody and that is is that
we are a question asking congregation we do not trust pastor
Roseboro just because pastor Roseboro says something pastor Roseboro's only right if what he says agrees with the Word of
God and If something I've said in the sermon or in the Sunday school Brings up a question
that you would like answered.
I assure you we will not do the touch not God's anointed thing.
Instead we will properly address the question.
And if I don't know the answer and you actually stumped the pastor then I have homework to do that's just how this goes.
You know.
Homework's a good thing.
All right, so.
Yes.
Okay.
Sure.
So, all right, so one of our adult catechumens Ashley.
She is a question in regard to the one of the primary differences between the historic
liturgy and some of the modern liturgies.
And you'll note that I am I'm going to use a word That seems like I'm misusing it.
So when we talk about the historic liturgy, basically.
Yeah, basically.
Yeah.
Yeah based.
Yeah, we are recording.
So basically every church has a liturgy and a liturgy is basically an order of service.
It's the things that you do in Particular order and every church kind of falls into some kind of
traditions as it relates to their liturgies.
So if you attend big box megachurch here in Grand Forks in town
then the service is going to begin with 30 to 35 Minutes in a dark room of the
praise band people on their feet.
Offering a sacrifice of praise.
All right, and I was I Gotta admit I've always struggled with that beginning
for any kind of a church service because here's the deal.
We if you've been in those services, you know how this goes.
You got the lady in the front that kind of on the edge crazy lady that you don't really want to talk about and maybe You think she might have nine
cats?
Okay, she's she's standing at the front of the service with her hands way up in the air and she's
swaying back and forth.
And you you're not comfortable with the situation.
And so maybe by song too.
You've got your hands up here.
But it's it's the super holy people who are like totally surrendered and all this kind of stuff.
And the reality is is that you feel like you're being manipulated and you probably are
I?
Would note that there have been studies that have shown that the same You know brain chemistry
that is released during a dark room praise and worship service is the exact same Brain
chemistry that's released at a really good secular rock concert.
All right.
I'll be.
Yeah, you know.
Or at the casino, right?
But you know, I you know, I remember oh man, I'm dating myself now I I saw you two
at the Los Angeles Coliseum and that was the rattle and
hum tour and it was just Spectacular and at the time I saved up like
every penny I could so that I was sitting on you know I'd like row 50 so I could still kind of see but
that was the best.
Oh, oh that concert just went on and on and on forever and there were times just in the middle of it it was just
complete goosebumps best concert ever and.
You know what?
There's no functional difference between that and what goes on in a praise and worship service in a big -box Church.
So what's the big primary difference then between the historic liturgy and I'm gonna use that that
phrase Historic liturgy and and then modern liturgies today in
many evangelical churches and the big difference is That the assumption is very
different primary assumption you go to church in today's evangelicalism for the.
Purpose of.
Beginning by you Offering a sacrifice of praise to God you are there to
serve God and God is kind of sitting up on in heaven on the sidelines with his arms crossed and
if you surrender enough and Maybe if the atmosphere gets charged enough with the Holy Spirit
then, you know, like the Pillsbury Doughboy He'll he'll he'll touch you and give you go goosebumps, right?
We call them ghost bumps, right?
You know, the Holy Spirit touches you and go like, you know, yeah, right and then and so the
big Dwayne said not to do that again.
Okay, right but here's the thing Based on the historic liturgy.
That's all backwards.
And so in in the modern liturgies, you're there to serve God.
You're there to offer your sacrifice of praise you're there to bring your tithes and your offerings and you're gonna get
information on how if you apply yourself if you use your free will and you Obey these things and your life will get
better and everything's really is geared on law the historic liturgy Assumes something
totally different and that is is that The primary mover in the the divine
service in the historic liturgy is Christ not you and This is why
Everybody has a role.
There is no audience in the historic liturgy.
Everybody is a participant and Christ is there to serve you.
So it begins then with the invocation the words in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit and
notice the Pastor doesn't say these words.
We begin in the name of the Father Son and Holy Spirit.
We begin nothing Christ begins.
So we just say in the name of the Father Son and the Holy Spirit and Christ promises.
We're two or more gathered in his name.
He is present.
So we recognize that Jesus is present and he's here to serve us.
So, how do we begin then?
Well, we we got to deal with that sin thing.
So first assumption you have spent the entire week Tempted by
the devil the world your own sinful flesh and any other Ridiculous things that have
come along and you have not emerged for them those temptations.
Unscathed none of you came walking on water to get to the church.
You've all been bruised bullied beaten and defeated by the unholy
Trinity and Christ's number one thing is to assure you of the forgiveness of your sins and
So you confess and then you hear the absolution and I always have to point this out.
If you've never heard an absolution before it can be a little jarring and the reason why it's jarring is to sit there and go.
Did the pastor just say I?
Forgive you all of your sins.
Who does he think he is?
I mean does he only God can forgive sins and a good Lutheran pastor will sit there and go exactly.
Well, then why did you use I because Jesus told me to okay and so in in
in the gospel of John chapter 20 Jesus says to the Apostles and he gives to the church.
He says the sins you forgive will have already been forgiven.
It's a perfect tense verb, which means that if you put it on a timeline you confess your sin.
Jesus is up in heaven and he says I forgive you then pastor Roseboro says I forgive you.
He said at first I just get to say it for him.
I always like to use the analogy and you know in courtrooms.
So when you go to court, all right.
Let's say let's say I decided that I was gonna Really see how fast my truck could go, you know.
You know and so I I was driving out on highway one and I got it up to 107
right until.
Right, you know at 107 you're not just getting a ticket at this point.
You're gonna you're gonna actually spend a little bit of time in jail.
So this is a hypothetical issue those of you thinking.
Oh, no pastor Roseboro's been in jail.
No, he hasn't.
But but if I were put in jail, right I would have to stand before the judge and maybe because
you know I'm such a nefarious character when I stood before the judge I have handcuffs on right?
So there I am in handcuffs and how do you plead?
Not not guilty, sir.
Say it in the form of a question, right?
Not guilty and and the judge is looking at my rap sheet and going, you know Roseboro.
This is the first time you've ever done anything like this.
Tell you what I'm going to make a decision.
I'm gonna drop the charges.
All right, and he says I'm gonna drop the charges.
I'm Releasing you right?
Will the judge get down off the bench and come and undo my handcuffs and let me go.
No, okay, who gets to do that?
The bailiff right the police officer in the courtroom.
So the bailiff comes up to me.
He takes his keys.
He says I'm releasing you.
All right, is he right?
Is he releasing me?
Oh, yeah, he is.
But is he doing that on his own recognizance?
No, the judge dropped the charges.
I'm free to go.
So when the bailiff comes and says I'm releasing you He's doing the work of the judge same
thing with an absolution.
So because the text says the sins you forgive will have already been forgiven Christ the judge has
slapped the gavel down and he said not guilty.
You are forgiven my job.
I'm the bailiff.
I get to unloose the the handcuffs or open up the cell.
But I'm doing that on his authority.
He's the one who said it first.
Does that make sense?
So, you know first order of business is You know Christ is there To forgive
you and assure you of the forgiveness of your sins and when somebody gives you a gift like that How do we respond?
Thank you and praise so we immediately go into the Kyrie and Then what do we hear?
We hear the Word of God.
We hear God's Word.
We hear the Old Testament reading.
We hear the epistle text we hear the gospel and one of the one of the most telling things I've
ever heard people say and I hear it with some Frequency is that people who attend our services for the very first time
either in person or an online ethic having spent time in.
And some of the churches that call themselves churches today that I've had people literally say they hear more Bible
in one.
Service.
In one service at Kongsvinger than they do over months or a year in a different congregation and.
That's crazy to me.
That's just crazy, you know and always and again people will thank me for my sermons and it's like listen I'm just
totally ripping off the scriptures.
You think Mark Driscoll was a plagiarist?
Come on.
Listen to Rose, bro.
Man, all he ever does is read those scriptures, right?
All right, but at least I'm honest about it.
It's not my work.
All right, so you hear the Word of God and then we respond in thanks and praise.
So note that the there's no there's no time in the historic liturgy where God basically
says All right, let's get you you need to perform here.
Get busy offer me that sacrifice of praise.
For what.
Well because I'm God, okay.
No, instead every time we respond in praise and in worship in
the context God has moved first.
And so what happens is is that the historic liturgy one of the reasons why I Personally believe
it is a superior Vehicle for conveying the faith is because
of that aspect.
It actually works very well in long gospel and a right understanding of who's doing the doing
and it gives a context for our responses rather than you know I just need to
sway my hands in the air and say seven words eleven times and really mean it.
You know that instead when I say thank you Lord I actually have something to thank
him for does that make sense?
So and unfortunately much of today's modern liturgies really really do not make the proper
distinction between law and gospel and at its fundamental level it
reinforces a concept of salvation or self -righteousness by works and Even though it doesn't
say it it's more conducive to that.
And so the the early church fathers They actually had a concept that they've they've written about a very famous Latin phrase and
the Reformers picked it up again At the time of the Reformation and the phrase is Lex Arendi Lex Credendi
Lex meaning law.
So the law of prayer is the law of belief and it's this interesting thing
what you pray what you sing what you do is going to impact what
you believe and It really fundamentally works out that way.
So and I remember years ago I had a lady come up to me after a service and she goes, you know, Pastor Rose I just figured that it's out.
What'd you figure out?
You assume that we're all Christians here.
That's kind of the other that's the other funky thing.
So in these other liturgies these modern liturgies, not only are you required to perform for God?
But even the way they speak they always assume that the person who is there is a potential
believer or really isn't a believer.
And it's a very subtle Difference but it's one that really begins to erode
any confidence you have that I can be forgiven You know or that I am saved and and
and these are these are very subtle differences.
But the the historic liturgy assumes you is a Christian.
Yes, Marilyn.
Right.
So so now that the the the question comes up and and so the question was why do we
use old -school? terminology for these sections of the liturgy.
Answer because every discipline requires you to have a vocabulary and.
Changing the names of these things doesn't even make any sense.
I would note that you cannot even order a coffee at Starbucks without learning a different language.
So.
I'm just saying Okay, you know I so the idea then here is is that rather than saying?
Okay, we're not we're no longer gonna call it the intro.
We're gonna call it the I don't know what I don't even want.
We would call it.
So the idea then is is that we just keep the terminology and then you're gonna have to make your pastor
explain to you.
What that means?
Yeah, it's but my job.
Okay, just so you know, I Was gonna remind people this is a slave shackle.
Okay, my job.
I am the slave of the congregation.
I am NOT here to rule and to reign.
I am here to serve.
Full stop.
So my job is to teach and if you need to know something, it's my job to teach you.
So Yeah, what was?
Yeah, yeah, I actually so on our on the Kongs of Inger Lutheran Church website if you go
into the Not the sermon section, but the Bible teaching section.
I did an entire series on the liturgy pull it apart piece by piece and
Explain what all the pieces are and why they and why they exist in you know.
The function that they serve so you can actually find that on the website.
But I don't know if I ever went into like the actual the intro.
It is the Latin for this.
I don't think I've ever done that.
So I I might have some work to do.
I have to go back and rework some of my terminology.
Yeah, what was that after Esther?
We'll get there so we have a special request for.
You.
Have no faith in me.
None whatsoever.
Now, hang on a second I'm gonna I'm gonna take a look at questions in the chat box real
quick.
I know there are some comments.
There was a conversation in there about Digital cobbler and somebody
gave a very very funny response that digitals are out of season right now.
That was really funny Louise that I I'm actually impressed.
I'm sort of kind of jealous.
I didn't say that anyway, okay.
Let's see here Kells family.
Kells and Rick glad that you're able to join us.
Yes, we are recording and then that's a great.
Let's see if there is no heaven in heaven.
How did the devil sin correction if there's no sin in heaven?
How did the how did that work?
Okay, so the the old you're dealing with what's called the the
philosophical conundrum known as the Odyssey if God created everything is good and I
would note that even in the book of Genesis after God created everything he
said of it all it is Tov my own.
Not not just good like really really good really good.
Where does then evil come from?
And so the idea then is is that and this is where if we're going to have a discussion about free will.
You have to put it into its proper context.
So human beings born after the fall do not have free will as it relates to God.
They have a bound will but prior to the fall.
This is going to include the devil as well as Adam and Eve prior to the rebellion against God.
They had the ability of their own volition to obey God's commands and
we learned that that the the tree of the knowledge of good of in evil that God had given
basically one command to Adam and Eve and That was don't eat from that tree.
Because the day you eat of it, you will surely die and Adam said stop calling me Shirley.
So Thank You Elizabeth.
That's right, yeah, you know the movie sir, that's right.
He picked the wrong day to stop sniffing glue.
That's right.
So but the idea then is is that we learned from one of
the minor prophets that that was an actual covenant that God was in with Adam and Eve and That Adam and Eve broke
that covenant and they did so of their own volition.
So the way to think of it then is is that.
There are.
Legitimate consequences to disobeying a good God.
And God then turns them over to the opposite of what is
good.
So if if God is good and we kind of exemplify good.
Maybe in a in like a list of the fruit of the Spirit love joy.
Peace patience kindness Self -control gentleness, right things like this.
Evil would be the exact opposite of that and that's the and that's the intended consequence of abandoning and disobeying
God.
So rather than joy you have.
Just.
Anxiety, right.
Grief.
Rather than self -control you have no control at all.
And so the idea then when we talk about evil we see it in Scripture as the
natural consequence of disobeying God.
And In some ways evil is a punishment for the disobedience
against God.
You know, so that that's really in and the ever -increasing Magnitude of it
is when God basically takes his hands off and lets the thing run its course.
So, you know, so the idea then is is that sin and evil do not have their origin in
Sin ultimately has its initial origin in Satan and then it for humanity.
Sin has its origin in Adam and Eve, but not in God.
And so you'll note then that the Christian gospel teaches us that not only did Christ die for all of our
sins in the punishment That we deserve but that Christ is saving us.
Through.
Death.
Which means that we all better become accustomed to suffering.
Because Christ isn't saving us from our suffering.
He's not saving us from death.
He's not saving us from the from our bodies getting old and breaking down or anything like
that.
He's saving us through it.
Yeah, that's why I always keep pointing out to you guys.
Just look at me do the comparative work week after week after we take a look at photos from me three years ago.
Look at me now and go.
It's getting worse, okay, you know, but if I can note that, you know when I'm in the pulpit I can see you guys.
It's worse for you, too.
So, you know.
The only exception are the youth, but don't worry once you hit like 24 Everything starts to come apart.
Let's see here.
Carmen talks about feral cats.
All right, I did make a mention of the cat lady, okay, I think you're in the clear Carmen.
All right, let's see here.
Did you do to.
Rachel says Jeff got pulled over in Minnesota for speeding a few Sundays ago.
Well, hopefully that'll teach him Up the true story here.
My wife for years went without getting a Ticket at not a single
ticket and of course, I I have a few to my name.
But what ended up happening was this hilarious?
Okay, we were on a family vacation and we were driving through, Utah and Josh
was an infant at the time and he was he was in the backseat in his car seat and Barb was driving.
She was doing a stint and here's the funny thing.
My wife always volunteers one one family driving trips to drive for me for a little bit so I can get some rest.
I can't.
She drives like a bat out of hell.
All right, and and all right.
There was one time we were in Arkansas and I was in the backseat and no kidding.
She was ripping around all the curves that were in the road.
My head got smashed up against the side of the truck and and then I I'm trying to sleep.
Oh, you can't sleep.
No, I can't you know, so here's what happened.
We're in Utah and we and I'm trying to get some rest and all of a sudden whoo.
No joke, no joke.
I sit there and go yes.
Because my wife's continual mantra was I have a perfect driving record.
You don't okay.
So I'm sitting there going justice.
Can't defeat the long arm of the law.
And the police officer comes up and goes license and registration and She hands him over and he looks in
the backseat and sees Joshua in the car seat and goes Oh, I see that you have your toddler in a car seat.
Yes, sir.
We obey the law regarding that sir.
Okay, and the cops said here's your license and registration.
I'm gonna let you go.
Good job.
Keep at it.
I.
Notice I'm doing group therapy right now.
The best part of this though was decades later when we got a we got a ticket in the mail.
It was in my name because the car was registered in my name and my wife takes a look at and she goes I know what.
This is it's a ticket.
You got a ticket didn't you.
You ran a red light?
I'm all I Don't know she and she's she's kind of digging on me, right?
She opens the thing up.
It's a photo of her.
To this day.
She says she was framed but I Will say this no low no longer a
perfect driving record.
Yay.
Oh There is a God in heaven
above.
Best 200 bucks I ever paid.
Sorry.
The most important subject in the Bible was authority, but I was brushed to the side because he was a pastor.
Someone one person says my former pastor once began a sermon by saying the most
important subject in the Bible was authority.
Boy, I got to tell you when somebody starts a sermon like that with a statement like that.
We got a big problem big problem.
And so you're gonna know that Christ makes it clear in the Gospels.
I pointed this out in a recent video.
That as Jesus is getting ready to go to the cross.
He's getting he's going to go to the cross he says to his disciples.
We're going to Jerusalem.
The chief priests are gonna hand me over to the Gentiles.
They're gonna crucify me and on the third day I'm gonna rise.
Then the mother of the Zebedee boys comes up and says Jesus do for me whatever I ask.
What are you asking when you come into your kingdom?
Let me let my sons one sit on your right and the other on your left and Jesus literally says to her you don't know what
you're talking.
But you don't know what you're asking for and I always like to point out that.
The guys who got to be on Jesus's right and his left.
Those are the two thieves while Christ was on the cross right and Jesus
pulls the disciples aside and has to have a little conversation with him.
He says that the the Gentiles lord it over you not so with you.
Right the greatest among you will be the servant of all.
The greatest among you will be the servant of all pastors do not rule or reign.
They do not cast vision.
They are slaves of the congregation full stop.
And if he thinks he's more than that, you need to have a chat with your pastor.
Now granted.
I'm I was put placed into an office, but I will tell you I used to have power.
I know what powers like I was a CEO in the corporate world and Power in the corporate world kind of goes something like
this.
I'm looking at your performance and I expect you to get your numbers up.
If you don't get your numbers up and you don't start playing well with the other teammates.
Then we're going to invite you to play on somebody else's team, which is a polite way of saying we're gonna sack you.
I had power like that those kinds of meetings by the way in the corporate world.
They have a phrase that they go by the term is to come to Jesus meetings.
I wasn't a pastor when I was a CEO.
I had come to Jesus meetings with people and boy.
They either towed the line or they found another place to work.
That's power.
At the power to cut someone's pay to give them an increase give them more responsibility take away
responsibility.
When I became a pastor, holy smokes.
Okay, I was placed into this office and I was given a Bible a pitcher of water a glass,
you know a bottle of wine and some bread.
What am I supposed to do with this?
Okay, I got nothing.
I got seriously.
I might as well be naked in the pulpit now.
That would not be blessing anybody.
But the whole point is is that when it comes to power?
I haven't got any and You know what?
This is a good thing.
Now I have to obey Christ and I have to fulfill the duties of the office and there's where it's interesting
the pastoral office has Duties that are outlined by Scripture.
So I have to actually do those things.
All right, then that's not me sitting there going.
I insist that I do it my way.
Uh -uh.
No.
Uh, I don't want to do this my way.
Okay, cuz I have to explain all this to Jesus at the end.
All right, and I don't want to have that kind of come to Jesus meeting with Jesus himself.
Okay, so there are duties of the office.
I have to fulfill and dispense those duties.
I cannot depart from them and on top of it all ordained pastors they have ordination vows
and What I find really alarming is that among the churches that still have ordination
vows guys don't take them seriously.
At all.
They break them and nobody cares.
I Mean that would be like breaking your wedding vow and nobody care, you
know, that's it's that serious.
So as a servant then I serve within an office that has duties and it's not me insisting on
doing those duties.
Christ is insisting that I serve by dispensing those duties.
Yep.
Yeah, all right.
All right, let's go ahead and do a little bit of work in Esther because we're getting close to wrapping
Esther up now if you remember last week, oh boy.
Things did not go so well for Haman.
Okay, the guy who was able to make a 50 cubit high gallows overnight ended
up hanging on it and The the the real interesting thing was
Again, I still crack up that he was coming to see the king for the purpose of getting the
king's permission to hang Mordecai On the gallows that he had made and he shows
up just as the king had finished reading the chronicles of the great deeds that have been done in his kingdom and decides
he wants to honor Mordecai and you know and Still is so
so rich that Haman got to come up with the way in which the Mordecai was to be honored.
But now that now that Haman is dead.
We've noted last week that the king's edict as it relates to killing the Jews Cannot
be undone according to the laws of the Medes and Persians.
That type of edict that has the signet ring on it cannot be revoked.
So now we've got to find a way For these
people to not perish and so this is where an actual
conversation can and really biblically should take place as it relates to
self -defense.
Now we recognize The commandment you shall not
murder.
You shall not murder.
Which begs the question is all killing murder?
No, it is not and there are those who with who reside within the
visible church Who do not make this distinction and they should?
They absolutely should so We have a few veterans here.
The military exists for the purpose of what?
What what?
Defense yeah, or or offense in a just war.
Yeah, make the other guy die for his country as Patton famously said right.
Your job is not to die for your country.
Your job is to make the other guy die for his country.
Great line, right?
But all of that being said We do make a distinction between what are considered just and unjust
wars.
We have to make that distinction.
So when the Nazis invaded Poland.
Was that just?
No, no.
What.
Nazis invaded Poland.
No way.
Okay, when the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor was that just?
When the Nazis rolled into France and took Belgium and the Netherlands.
Nope, not just that is an unjust war and.
Then we make a distinction along these lines and that is is that when such a war takes place?
Christians must conscientiously object to participating in them and Here's the thing.
You sit there and go well if I conscientiously object to this because it's an unjust war.
They're gonna put me in front of a firing squad.
Yeah, so what.
What's your point?
Was he drafted into the military.
He volunteered for the military and then became a conscientious objector.
And then he volunteered to be on the sub and then he became a conscientious objector after volunteering.
Yes, what was his.
Okay, were we at war at the time Cold
War.
Yeah, I.
When I was born we were in the Cold War, you know, nothing.
All right that that seems a little bit.
How do they say a day late a dollar short, you know, that doesn't sound like it.
It can hold water.
Okay, all right, so all right, yeah.
So that being the case then, all right, so the military so we would then make a distinction.
We would argue that the Nazis they were waging an unjust war and the soldiers that
participated in that unjust war were actually then the Mechanism by which Hitler committed mass
That's true.
That's absolutely true.
And so here with this this edict that we have of Haman's that King Ahasuerus put out
Ahasuerus has sanctioned murder.
He's sanctioned murder and Because he can't undo that The only thing he can
sanction that that is going to kind of begin to undo it is self -defense.
And.
You're gonna note that this story isn't over yet because the story is going to end with a lot of people
dead a lot of people dead and That's one
of the horrific consequences of our sin is That sometimes the only way out of
a situation is a bad Way, and so I would note when it comes to self
-defense sometimes it is necessary.
In order to save a life you have to take one and this
is not done.
Lightly, it is done knowing that this is a terrible tragic thing and then you
have to stay measured within it and So, you know, so if you haven't figured out I'm
I'm absolutely a believer that That here in the United States You have a right to
defend yourself and the Second Amendment gives you a right to bear arms not just to possess them But to bear them.
So if you are if you are like in North Dakota We have constitutional carry and you're carrying a
firearm I'm gonna say this you have the responsibility to learn how to handle that
firearm.
Properly to learn the right rules of safety and not only that to be properly trained on
when and not to discharge that firearm because
there's there are every now and then stories that come up of somebody who
Discharges a firearm in self -defense and somebody gets hurt that shouldn't have.
It does happen.
You know, but I will say this that politically there are people who?
Really lose their minds when a responsible citizen who knows what he's doing Dispenses his
firearm and it ends up saving people's lives.
And he does so rightly but I will note that that that is something that will end up scarring a person
you know, I remember years ago not that many years ago watching a news story about a police
officer a highway patrolman and I Think it was in New Mexico he had pulled a fellow over for a traffic stop
and the fellow was a was a felon and he got the better of the of the state trooper and
Had him on the side of the road and was about to execute him and a citizen stopped and
who had a concealed carry license and he discharged his weapon and killed the fellow who was about
to execute the officer and When he was on the television doing
some interviews He couldn't talk about the event without having
Without shaking and really being upset it was it still haunted him.
You know weeks later that he had taken the life of another human being even though justifiably so
It's this is one of these things that you recognize that in the world that were brought that were in
sometimes the only way out is to do something terrible and It's not a sin to
defend yourself or take another life in self -defense legitimate self -defense.
It is a sin to murder but understand that when we do so It's it's gonna leave
an impression.
It'll probably be something you think about for the rest of your life.
So let's read Esther.
So on that day King Ahasuerus gave to Queen Esther the house of Haman the enemy of the Jews.
Mordecai came before the king.
For Esther had told what he was to her and the king took off his signet ring Which he had taken from Haman
gave it to Mordecai and Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman.
Then Esther spoke again to the king.
She fell at his feet and wept and pleaded with him to avert the evil plan of Haman the Agagite and the plot that he
Had devised against the Jews when the king held out the golden scepter to Esther.
Esther rose and stood before the king and she said if it pleased the king.
And if I have found favor in his sight.
And if the thing seems right before the king I am and I am pleasing in his eyes.
Let an order be written to revoke the letters devised by Haman the Agagite the son of Hamadatha.
Which he wrote to the destroy the Jews who are in all the provinces of the king for how can I bear to see the?
Calamity that is coming on my people or how can I bear to see the destruction of my kindred?
Then King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther and to Mordecai the Jew behold I have given Esther the
house of Haman and they have hanged him on the gallows because he intended to lay hands on the Jews.
But you may write as you please with regard to the Jews in the name of the king and seal it with the
king's ring.
For an edict written in the name of the king and sealed with the king's ring cannot be revoked.
The king's scribes were summoned at that time in the third month, which is the month of Sivan.
On the 23rd day an edict was written according to all that Mordecai commanded concerning the Jews to the
satraps the governors the officials of the provinces from India to Ethiopia 127
provinces to each province in its own script and to each people in its own language and also to the Jews in their
script in their language.
And he wrote in the name of King Ahasuerus and he sealed it with the king's signet ring and then he sent the letters by Mounted
couriers riding on swift horses that were used in the king's service bread from the royal stud.
Saying that the king allowed the Jews who were in every city to gather and to defend their lives to destroy
To kill and to annihilate any armed force of any people or province that
might attack them children and women included and To plunder their goods.
Now, you're gonna note something here.
This little detail is not a throwaway detail.
Not only they have the right to defend themselves.
But they also have the right to take the property of those who they killed.
But you're gonna see that the Jews did not do.
That.
They would not break the commandment thou shall not steal and So in self -defense
self -defense doesn't give you the right then to steal somebody else's property that doesn't belong to you.
And so they defend themselves in a very measured way, even though the king gave them Authority if they
wanted to plunder the people who attacked them if they overcame them.
So on one day throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus on the 13th day of the 12th month Which is the month of Adar
a copy of what was written was to be issued as a decree in every province being publicly Displayed to all peoples.
And the Jews were to be ready on that day to take vengeance on their enemies.
So the couriers mounted on their swift horses that were used in the king's service rode out hurriedly
Urged by the king's command and the decree was issued at in Susa the Citadel.
Then Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal robes of Blue and white with a
great golden crown and a robe of fine linen and purple and the city of Susa shouted and rejoiced.
The Jews had light had light and gladness and joy and honor.
And In every province in every city wherever the king's command and his edict reached.
There was gladness and joy among the Jews a feast and a holiday.
And many from the peoples of the country declared themselves Jews for fear of the Jews had fallen on them.
I think James Prash was among that group, but sorry.
Now in the 12th month Which is the month of Adar on the 13th day of the same?
When the king's command and edict were about to be carried out on that very day when the enemies of the Jews hoped to gain The
mastery over them the reverse occurred.
The Jews gained mastery over those who hated them.
The Jews gathered in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus to lay hands and those who
sought their harm No one could stand against them for the fear of them had fallen on all the
peoples.
All the officials of the provinces and Satraps and the governors and the royal agents also helped the
Jews for the fear of Mordecai had fallen on them.
For Mordecai was great in the king's house and his fame spread throughout all the provinces.
For the man Mordecai grew more and more powerful.
The Jews struck all their enemies with the sword killing and destroying them and Did
as they pleased to those who hated them.
In Susa the citadel itself the Jews killed and destroyed 500 men and also killed.
And this is.
These are not Hebrew names.
These are these are Persian names.
Parshana Datha Dalfan.
Ah.
Patha.
Poratha Adalia.
Aradatha Parmasha.
Parmashta.
Arasai.
Aradai and Vizatha and the ten sons of Haman the sons of Hamadatha the enemies of the Jews.
But they laid no hand on the plunder.
So note the sons of Haman all of them died that day.
And here's the important bit the Jews laid no hand on the plunder not at all,
they defended themselves and They refused to break the commandment.
You shall not steal.
They were not guilty of murder.
What they did they did in self -defense and what I find interesting is that
When we discuss the topic of self -defense biblically, this is not a text that often comes
up, but it should because it is one of the clearest instances of
Believers in the one true God in a very measured way
Defending themselves even with lethal force and Then not taking advantage of the
situation but doing so and this is and you'll know they're not condemned here by God.
In fact, this becomes the means by which God saves their bacon say well Sorry, you can't
say bacon because they're they're kosher.
So I'm.
But you get the idea right?
That saves their lives by them defending themselves.
So that very day the number of those killed in Susa the Citadel was reported to the king and the king said to Queen Esther
In Susa the Citadel the Jews have killed and destroyed 500 men and also 10 sons of
Haman.
What then have they done in the rest of the king's provinces?
Now what is your wish it shall be granted to you and what further is your request?
It shall be fulfilled and Esther said if it pleased the king let the Jews who are in Susa be allowed to Tomorrow
also to do according to this day's edict and let the ten sons of Haman be hanged on the gallows since
they're already dead.
I guess we're just gonna hang their their bodies up as a kind of a Warning sign
to those who would take up their cause.
So the king commanded this to be done.
A decree was issued in Susa the ten sons of Haman were hanged.
The Jews who were in Susa gathered also on the 14th day of the month of Adar and they killed 300 men in
Susa.
But they laid no hands on the plunder.
Now the rest of the Jews who were in the king's Provinces also gathered to defend their lives and they got
relief from their enemies and they killed 75 ,000 of
Those who hated them and note what the text says
They gathered to defend their lives.
They are not censored or censured by Scripture.
They are specifically held up as having defended their own lives and
They got relief.
Notice the passive from their enemies and they killed 75 ,000 of them.
The got relief infers that God is the one who gave them relief.
God is the one who gave them victory.
God is the one who assisted them in their self -defense.
This is the third time.
We've seen that refrain.
They may did not make themselves wealthy at all on this although they had The right to if they
wanted by the king, but not by God so this was on the 13th day of the month of Adar and on the
14th day they rested and Made that a day of feasting and gladness.
But the Jews who were in Susa they gathered on the 13th day and on the 14th and Rested on the 15th
day making that a day of feasting and gladness.
Therefore the Jews of the villages who live in the rural towns hold the 14th day of the month of Adar as a day for
Gladness and feasting as a holiday and as a day on which they sent gifts of food
to one another.
So they they celebrated their victory and this becomes then what's known as the feast of Purim
In so Jews still celebrate this to this day.
Mordecai recorded these things sent letters to all the Jews who were in the provinces of King Ahasuerus both near and
far Obliging them to keep the 14th day of the month of Adar and also the 15th day of the same year by
year as The days on which the Jews got relief from their enemies and as the
month that had been Turned for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into
a holiday.
That they should make them days of feasting and gladness days for sending gifts of food To one another
and gifts of the poor.
Now a little bit of a note in.
All told.
75 ,000 Men were killed.
How many Exiles were there initially
of the Jews that survived.
The time of Jeremiah and Nebuchadnezzar.
Less than 5 ,000.
Now this is probably several decades later.
But the total number of Jews Was far less than the number of men who lost their lives.
Clearly a miraculous event.
So the Jews accepted what they had started to do and what Mordecai had written to them.
For Haman the Agagite the son of Hamadathah the enemy of the Jews had plotted against the Jews to destroy them and it
cast the Pur that those are lots to crush and to destroy them.
But when it came before the king he gave orders in writing that his evil plan that he had devised against the Jews
should return On his own head and that he and his son should be hanged on the gallows.
Now a little bit of a note and that is is that this is a theme that you see in Scripture if we look like something like
Psalm 35.
Watch this theme.
Contend oh Yahweh with those who contend with me.
Fight against those who fight against me.
Take up take hold of shield and buckler and rise for my help.
Draw the spear and the javelin against my pursuers.
Say to my soul.
I am your salvation.
Let them be put to shame and dishonor who seek after my life.
Let them be turned back and disappointed who devise evil against me.
Let them be like chaff before the wind with the angel of Yahweh driving them away.
Let their way be dark and slippery with the angel of Yahweh pursuing them for
without cause.
They hid their net for me.
Without cause they dug a pit for my life.
Let destruction come upon him when he does not know it and let the net that he hid and snare
him.
Let him fall into it to his destruction.
Then my soul will rejoice in Yahweh exalting in his salvation.
All my bones shall say Oh Yahweh who is like you delivering the poor from him who is too strong for
The poor and the needy from him who robs him malicious Witnesses rise up and
they ask of me things that I do not know.
They repay me evil.
They repay me evil for good and my soul is bereft.
But I when they were sick, I wore sackcloth.
I afflicted myself with fasting.
I prayed with head bowed on my chest.
I went about as though I grieved for my friend or my brother as one who laments his mother.
I bowed down in mourning, but at my stumbling they rejoiced and gathered.
They gathered together against me.
Wretches whom I did not know tore at me without Ceasing
like profane mockers at a feast they gnash at me with their teeth.
How long Oh Lord, will you look on rescue me from their destruction my precious life
from the Lions?
I will thank you in the great congregation and the mighty throng.
I will praise you let not those who rejoice over me who are wrongfully my foes and
Let not those wink the eye who hate me without cause for they do not speak peace.
But against those who are quiet in the land, they devise words of deceit.
They open wide their mouths against me.
They say aha.
Aha.
Our eyes have seen it.
You have seen.
Oh Yahweh be not silent.
Oh Lord be not far from me awake and rouse yourself for my vindication for my cause
my God and my Lord Vindicate me.
Oh Lord my God according to your righteousness and let them not rejoice over me.
Let them not say in their hearts.
Aha our hearts desire.
Let them not say we have swallowed him up.
Let them be put to shame and disappointment altogether who rejoice at my calamity.
Let them be clothed with shame and dishonor who magnify themselves against me.
Let those who delight in my righteousness Shout for joy and be glad and say evermore
great is Yahweh who delivered who delights in the welfare of his servant.
Then my tongue shall tell of your righteousness and of your praise all the day long.
So you get this idea here that this is this is a major theme in Scripture and.
So if you find yourself in a situation, you know where you are suffering in
Ways that you shouldn't be suffering your evil your good has been returned to you with evil and people are plotting against you pray Psalm
35.
Pray that that those who contend against you that the evil that they have devised against you would spring back on their own heads.
That's kind of what we see going on here.
So they call these days Purim purred therefore because of what was written in this letter and of what had they had
faced in this Matter and of what happened to them the Jews firmly obligated themselves and their offspring and all who joined them
that without fail They would keep these two days according to what was written at the time appointed every year.
And that these days should be remembered and kept throughout every generation in every clan province city and that these days
of Purim Should never fall into disuse among the Jews nor should the commemoration these days cease among their
descendants.
Then Queen Esther the daughter of Abba Hale and Mordecai the Jew gave full written authority.
Confirming this letter about Purim letters were sent to all the Jews to the 127
provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus in the words of peace and truth that these days of Purim
should be observed at their Appointed seasons as Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther obligated them and
as they had obligated Themselves and their offspring with regard to their fasts and their lamenting the command of
Esther confirmed these practices of Purim.
And it was recorded in writing King Ahasuerus imposed tax on the land and on the coastlands of the sea
and all the acts of his power and might in the full account of the honor of Mordecai To which the king advanced him
are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia?
For Mordecai the Jew was second in rank to King Ahasuerus and he was great among the Jews and popular with the
multitude of his Brothers for he sought the welfare of his people and he spoke peace to all his people.
There was a man in the land of Uz.
Oh, that's it that there that the end.
All right, as is worth where Job begins all right, let me check any kind of like
final questions on the topic here and.
Okay, let's see my church is the one lady often praying tongues in the service everyone would fall silent.
Wow.
By the way.
Kells family speaking in tongues without interpreters forbidden by scripture and they're not really speaking tongues.
It's gibberish.
So Matthew asked what's a bound will.
A bound will means you don't have freedom.
So because of sin when it comes to God We do not have the ability to choose God or will is bound.
The the only thing we will do is not choose God so God has to choose us.
God has to regenerate us.
God has to give us a new will and.
So that's it's that's the simple answer for now, but we can talk about it in a future study.
I was a part of a church for years where you needed to be louder clap more shout more
raise your hands serve the Lord more attend every time the doors were open and
They were open a lot if or you weren't serious about God.
They also had early morning prayer.
I felt burnout being there for all these things going to my full -time job and sometimes services were late
night all night prayer sometimes and I was struggling with some of the effects of the sleep deprivation
mentally and.
Physically when I attended less for the sake of my health and sanity, I would hear about how you're not
doing enough from the pulpit.
Yeah, that's a cult.
I'm sorry, yeah.
Yeah, you'll know we don't take attendance here at Kong's finger.
And if you show up for the Bible studies great if you don't that's great.
These are opportunities not obligations.
Wow, that's terrible.
Yes, what.
You attended a church where nobody was allowed to leave until the Holy Spirit said it was okay to leave.
I'm sitting here going.
Holy Spirit.
I got to get to work in like five minutes, you know.
Whoa.
That is that ain't the Holy Spirit.
That's a controlling spirit.
Holy smokes.
Okay, I Do like this comment.
Stephen said that Barb says that she was framed and pastor framed the photo.
You bet I did.
All right, I apologize but I'm going to have to log off at this point and
Lord willing we will see you all next time and again.
Save up your questions and in you know.
And bring them to the catechism or to the bins, but our women's Bible study we can go from there.
Peace to you brothers and sisters.