Esther: Courage, Beauty, and Selfless Love
Devotional
Sermon Summary
Bible Study Guide
Sermon Clips
### Quotes for Outreach
1. "Oftentimes, when we discuss things like bravery, when we talk about things like courage, it's really easy to think that somehow being brave means that you're just simply no longer scared or afraid, right? That being courageous means that you face things with resolve. You face things without fear, without anxiety, without worry. And I got to say, that's not how being brave actually works. It sounds good in fairy tales, but in real life, it's a little different. Because being brave, it's not about pushing out all the fear, but being brave is about walking forward in the face of fear." [27:35]
2. "Being brave means doing things scared. Walking forward, even though you're terrified, even though you're petrified, even though, man, your fear and your anxiety, it makes you not even want to lift your foot up. Being brave means doing it anyways, despite the fear facing you. So if you're here today, church, and I don't know, maybe you're in the midst of a battle. Maybe you're in the midst of a storm. Maybe you're in the midst of some, some petrifying fear in front of your eyes. Maybe you need to make a decision. Maybe, maybe it's, it's something like deciding to, to change careers or I don't know. It could be a million different things. But if you're here, being brave doesn't mean not being scared. Being brave means going forward anyways." [28:48]
3. "We live in a world that oftentimes, it judges you based off your appearance. I just read a study the other day that a single inch can increase your salary by $10,000 a year. That's what they've realized, that even just a single inch can give you that much, that much, that much, that much. That's like a leg up in your life. This is true, whether you're a man or a woman of any age, but I think this is especially true for young boys and young girls. In fact, it's such a prominent problem that we even end up doing this to ourselves sometimes. We look in the mirror, we think things like, I'm too tall. I don't think anyone's ever said that. I'm too short. I'm too skinny. I'm too heavy. My nose is too big. Man, I miss my hair." [17:56]
4. "We take selfies at just the right angle, we use photoshop to give us better figures, we use filters on Instagram or Snapchat to hide those wrinkles or those pimples, all for the sake of views, all for the sake of likes. And I bring this up because even though the world oftentimes judges you by your appearance, I want you to know today God doesn't. In First Samuel 16:7, we're told this, that people look at the outward appearance but the Lord looks at the heart." [18:48]
5. "Have you ever taken a risk for somebody? Anybody here? Or better yet, has anyone taken a risk for you before? When I was in sixth grade, when I was a kid, I tell a lot of stories about being a kid, but anyways, when I was a kid, when I was in sixth grade, a friend of mine, he took a crazy huge risk and he actually ended up taking the blame for something dumb that I did. Well, something dumb we did. You see, in sixth grade, I had a friend named Brad, and starting that year, something that our school started to do was they were actually letting sixth graders join the wrestling team, the middle school wrestling team." [01:20]
### Quotes for Members
1. "The book of Galatians, it tells us in chapter 6, verse 2, that we need to carry each other's burdens. Can we say that together today, church? We need to carry each other's burdens. In this way, you will fulfill the Lord. The law of Christ. What it boils down to is when we start following the teachings of Jesus, and I say that like this, when we start actually following the teachings of Jesus, I believe we start to experience the kingdom of God the way he always intended us to. By sharing the weight of the challenges of this life, we begin to pick each other up and carry each other. When we can't carry ourselves, what happens is actually twofold. Number one, we get to make a positive impact in others' lives. I think that's important. We're told to be the salt and the light of the world. That's an important thing for us that we need to pursue." [14:05]
2. "Thanks to the boldness, thanks to the bravery of this young girl, an entire nation of people were spared. Thanks to the selflessness and the sacrifice that she had made, she was prepared to make an entire people was saved from annihilation. The king ended up reversing the law. The Jews were spared. And as a result, Esther, she joined the ranks of the hall of faith because she bravely risked her own lives to save others." [27:01]
3. "Esther's beauty was more than skin deep because she honored God in her heart. She was beautiful both inside and out. And when King Xerxes finally met Esther, he was instantly captivated, the Bible says. In verse 17, we're told that the king loved Esther more than any of the other young women. He was so delighted with her that he set the royal crown on her head and declared her the king. Through both her inner beauty and her outer beauty, Esther won the favor of everyone she met, including the king of Persia. And as a result, she became the queen of one of the largest empires the world had ever seen at that moment." [20:00]
4. "Esther, she knew that there was no other way. Sure, she could have hung back, and she could have, you know, could have, you know, hit her head and let all this go down, right, and still be safe herself. But she decided, you know what? No, I can't. I can't do that. There was no other way. And she couldn't just wait for him to summon her either, so she agrees to help Mordecai. And full of fear and dread, Esther, she resolved to be bold." [24:46]
5. "But thankfully, it's not a burden that Esther had to bear all by herself. We're told that Esther's cousin, Mordecai, he actually stepped up. He took her in. He adopted her as his own daughter. He gave her love and protection. He provided for her every need. He helped her learn how to cope with this heavy burden that was placed on her shoulders. And as a result, I believe Mordecai is the reason that Esther's burden, it didn't destroy her and it didn't define her. Thanks to Mordecai, Esther was able to grow into a capable and courageous woman." [13:30]
Ask a question about this sermon
1. "Oftentimes, when we discuss things like bravery, when we talk about things like courage, it's really easy to think that somehow being brave means that you're just simply no longer scared or afraid, right? That being courageous means that you face things with resolve. You face things without fear, without anxiety, without worry. And I got to say, that's not how being brave actually works. It sounds good in fairy tales, but in real life, it's a little different. Because being brave, it's not about pushing out all the fear, but being brave is about walking forward in the face of fear." [27:35]
2. "Being brave means doing things scared. Walking forward, even though you're terrified, even though you're petrified, even though, man, your fear and your anxiety, it makes you not even want to lift your foot up. Being brave means doing it anyways, despite the fear facing you. So if you're here today, church, and I don't know, maybe you're in the midst of a battle. Maybe you're in the midst of a storm. Maybe you're in the midst of some, some petrifying fear in front of your eyes. Maybe you need to make a decision. Maybe, maybe it's, it's something like deciding to, to change careers or I don't know. It could be a million different things. But if you're here, being brave doesn't mean not being scared. Being brave means going forward anyways." [28:48]
3. "We live in a world that oftentimes, it judges you based off your appearance. I just read a study the other day that a single inch can increase your salary by $10,000 a year. That's what they've realized, that even just a single inch can give you that much, that much, that much, that much. That's like a leg up in your life. This is true, whether you're a man or a woman of any age, but I think this is especially true for young boys and young girls. In fact, it's such a prominent problem that we even end up doing this to ourselves sometimes. We look in the mirror, we think things like, I'm too tall. I don't think anyone's ever said that. I'm too short. I'm too skinny. I'm too heavy. My nose is too big. Man, I miss my hair." [17:56]
4. "We take selfies at just the right angle, we use photoshop to give us better figures, we use filters on Instagram or Snapchat to hide those wrinkles or those pimples, all for the sake of views, all for the sake of likes. And I bring this up because even though the world oftentimes judges you by your appearance, I want you to know today God doesn't. In First Samuel 16:7, we're told this, that people look at the outward appearance but the Lord looks at the heart." [18:48]
5. "Have you ever taken a risk for somebody? Anybody here? Or better yet, has anyone taken a risk for you before? When I was in sixth grade, when I was a kid, I tell a lot of stories about being a kid, but anyways, when I was a kid, when I was in sixth grade, a friend of mine, he took a crazy huge risk and he actually ended up taking the blame for something dumb that I did. Well, something dumb we did. You see, in sixth grade, I had a friend named Brad, and starting that year, something that our school started to do was they were actually letting sixth graders join the wrestling team, the middle school wrestling team." [01:20]
### Quotes for Members
1. "The book of Galatians, it tells us in chapter 6, verse 2, that we need to carry each other's burdens. Can we say that together today, church? We need to carry each other's burdens. In this way, you will fulfill the Lord. The law of Christ. What it boils down to is when we start following the teachings of Jesus, and I say that like this, when we start actually following the teachings of Jesus, I believe we start to experience the kingdom of God the way he always intended us to. By sharing the weight of the challenges of this life, we begin to pick each other up and carry each other. When we can't carry ourselves, what happens is actually twofold. Number one, we get to make a positive impact in others' lives. I think that's important. We're told to be the salt and the light of the world. That's an important thing for us that we need to pursue." [14:05]
2. "Thanks to the boldness, thanks to the bravery of this young girl, an entire nation of people were spared. Thanks to the selflessness and the sacrifice that she had made, she was prepared to make an entire people was saved from annihilation. The king ended up reversing the law. The Jews were spared. And as a result, Esther, she joined the ranks of the hall of faith because she bravely risked her own lives to save others." [27:01]
3. "Esther's beauty was more than skin deep because she honored God in her heart. She was beautiful both inside and out. And when King Xerxes finally met Esther, he was instantly captivated, the Bible says. In verse 17, we're told that the king loved Esther more than any of the other young women. He was so delighted with her that he set the royal crown on her head and declared her the king. Through both her inner beauty and her outer beauty, Esther won the favor of everyone she met, including the king of Persia. And as a result, she became the queen of one of the largest empires the world had ever seen at that moment." [20:00]
4. "Esther, she knew that there was no other way. Sure, she could have hung back, and she could have, you know, could have, you know, hit her head and let all this go down, right, and still be safe herself. But she decided, you know what? No, I can't. I can't do that. There was no other way. And she couldn't just wait for him to summon her either, so she agrees to help Mordecai. And full of fear and dread, Esther, she resolved to be bold." [24:46]
5. "But thankfully, it's not a burden that Esther had to bear all by herself. We're told that Esther's cousin, Mordecai, he actually stepped up. He took her in. He adopted her as his own daughter. He gave her love and protection. He provided for her every need. He helped her learn how to cope with this heavy burden that was placed on her shoulders. And as a result, I believe Mordecai is the reason that Esther's burden, it didn't destroy her and it didn't define her. Thanks to Mordecai, Esther was able to grow into a capable and courageous woman." [13:30]
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