And Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household.”
Mark 6:4

And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”
Mark 4:41

And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables.
Mark 4:11

And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Mark 2:17

They were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.
Mark 1:22

Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” And immediately they left their nets and followed him.
Mark 1:17-18

So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, “Behold the man!”
John 19:5

In this passage we learn something interesting about the source of our strength and the strategy of our enemy. First we are told to put on the armor of God. For many of us who grew up in Sunday School the whole idea of the armor of God might sound too familiar or even childish. The reality is that we are in a real battle every day.

God wants us to be wise and not foolish. He wants us to understand his will. Often times we ask the question, “What is God’s will for my life?” One of the things we know for sure is that it is God’s will for you to look more and more like his Son each day.

Ephesians 4:30 helps us understand the personhood of the Spirit. He has emotions and feelings. In this passage we learn that the Spirit can feel grief. We are warned in fact not to grieve the Holy Spirit. What is it that causes the Spirit to feel this deep sorrow?

As Christians we are called to unity. How is that possible when we are all so different? There are so many types of people and personalities. How can we possibly live as one people? The key is imitation. Our call is to live like Christ, following his example and being transformed into his image.

The best part of any mystery story is when the mystery has been solved. Sometimes you’re able to figure it out before the detective, but the best mysteries are the ones containing a twist you don’t see coming. God has revealed to us a great mystery that no one saw coming!

Someone once told me this story and it has stuck with me for years. There was Bible professor one time who went to an athlete on the university football team and asked him how many push ups he could do. The professor brought the football player into his Bible class along with a box of donuts.

Mordecai became someone who the Jews both respected and loved. The reason why is amazing. Verse three of the passage said, "he sought the welfare of his people and spoke peace." The reason the people like him was because he truly cared for them.

Jewish Halloween? Yes... You read that right... I should probably mention that one of my friends is a Jewish Rabbi. To this day the Jews still celebrate the holiday of Purim. My Rabbi friend once invited me and my buddy to come to the synagog for their Purim festivities and well... It felt like Halloween...

What I love most about Esther here is that we see her pleading and weeping over the lives of her people. How much do we do that? We have been granted the privilege of bowing before the throne of the King of Kings! How often do we approach him to plead for the lives of others?

The moment has finally come for Esther to make her request to the king. She reveals Haman's plot and Haman is executed on the very gallows he built to hang Mordecai. It's not only the ultimate irony of the story, but it's also the moment where everything is made right.

This has to be one of the best ironies in the whole story so far. Right before Haman tells the king about the gallows built for Mordecai the king decides to honor Mordecai. Haman is forced to honor the man that he is planning on executing!

I have a feeling that if Esther had decided to walk up to the king and tell him her concerns immediately, that it probably wouldn't have gone well. As you already know, timing is everything! Let's admit it, you've probably wanted something from your parents before but decided to wait until the right moment to ask them.

Here in chapter 4 we reach the heart of the story. The Jewish people stand on the brink of destruction and something must be done to save them. Mordecai immediately recognizes the importance of Esther's position. Mordecai knew that Esther could be used by God to save them but he also recognized that God would be the one who would do the saving.

Mordecai, like many other people in scripture lived his life faithfully observing the laws of God. It was important to him that he honored and worshiped God alone. This simple principal set him apart from everyone else.

The search for a queen begins! Historians tell us that they brought in 400 women for this! Think about how small the chances were for Esther! The criteria that the king’s servants came up with at the beginning of the story was pretty shallow. They were simply looking for a woman who is beautiful.

Imagine the wealth of King Ahasuerus (Xerxes)... the lavish decorations, the gold, the fabrics, the gardens, the marble. It would have been something incredible to behold. Many times we like to imagine what it must be like to be rich and famous, but the King's party reveals something about him.