FYI 1. Esther was a sex slave. She was kidnapped by a forei…

2. The “One Night With the King” was not an romantic evening, it was an evening of desperation whereby she had to do all she could to win over the King are have a terrifying and unknown future. She won over the King, & her later fear to speak was wrapped up in this context.

3. When Mordecai warned her that if she didn’t speak God would raise up another, wasn’t Mordecai rebuking her for faithlessness. Esther was Queen, but she was a slave to that position; this wasn’t a Disney movie situation. Her fear of being killed was legit & Mordecai knew this.

4. The story of Esther includes 2 women.

1. A Queen (Vashti) who risked death by refused to be objectified & was ultimately sent away. Her exile made way for another woman.

2. Queen (Esther) who was objectified, but whose circumstances made possible salvation of God’s people.

5. So what was the “such a time as this?”

God in his cosmic wisdom that transcends space & time raised up two strong women who would stand against the violent misogyny of a Pagan world. Thru their courage & insistence to rise above circumstances their moves prevented a genocide.

6. The story of Esther is not a story of Romance. It’s a tragic story of slavery, sexual oppression, misogyny, and loss. Remember, Esther had to abandon her Jewish identity in Order to stand a chance in that society (original name Hadassah)....

7. One of the applications we can receive from Esther is that even sexual oppression does not define a survivor’s life or legacy. We are so much more than our loss, oppression, & trauma. Though our experiences may leave what is like toxic soil, From it God can still sprout roses

8. Beloved, HOW you read the story of Esther, the story of David and Bathsheba, the story of Abraham and Hagar reveals much of your heart & your posture towards men & women. In all of these stories, women are being sexually oppressed & in two of the cases are even sex slaves...

9. God shows up for Hagar. Though we don’t read any specific engagement b/t God & Bathsheba it is clear whose side He is on; it is Bathseba whose son is blessed by God & who is part of the line to the Messiah, & Esther is remembered thru canonized Holy Scripture.

10. If we truly desire churches to be safe places for women, where they can flourish and abound in all God desires them to be; we must understand various biblical stories rightly. We must be able to see the heroes where tradition only saw side-characters to the stories of men.