Esther 5 … Consider the Glory of His Riches

Originally posted: 7/29/2020

Then Haman recounted to them the glory of his riches, and the number of his sons, and every instance where the king had magnified him and how he had promoted him above the princes and servants of the king, (5:11).

Poor, pitiful Haman. God’s plan is unfolding while the deluded Haman is recounting, and counting on, the glory of his riches. What a foolish venture fueled by pride, to count on the glory of flesh.

“Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed,
And all flesh will see it together;
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
⁶ A voice says, “Call out.”
Then he answered, “What shall I call out?”
All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field.
⁷ The grass withers, the flower fades,
When the breath of the Lord blows upon it;
Surely the people are grass.
⁸ The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever, (Isaiah 40:5-8).

Because we are so prone to chasing vanity, the Lord in His gracious lovingkindness, has provided us with His Word that stands forever. His Word is clear: the glory of earthly riches will never satisfy, and the pursuit of such worldly pleasures is an absolutely futile endeavor towards fulfillment.

He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves abundance with its income. This too is vanity, (Ecclesiastes 5:10).

And His Word also provides much instruction and warning about worldly wealth.

Riches do not profit in the day of wrath,
But righteousness delivers from death, (Proverbs 11:4).

A good name is to be more desired than great wealth,
Favor is better than silver and gold, (Proverbs 22:1).

And Jesus, looking around, said to His disciples, “How hard it will be for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God!” (Mark 10:24).

Jesus didn’t say it would be impossible for the wealthy to enter His kingdom, but that it would be hard. Why? Because possessions that the world counts as riches, in any form, whether it be money, fame, beauty, prestige, power, etc., camouflage our need for the Glory of His Riches.

Then He said to them, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions,” (Luke 12:15).

Because the truth is, we were created to worship. And the truth also is, we will worship something and give our allegiance to that one master.

No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth,” (Luke 16:13).

He does not calls us to serve Him because He needs anything. Everything in the world belongs to God; He is not in need of anything. His wealth supersedes anything we can imagine.

The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains,
The world, and those who dwell in it, (Psalm 24:1)

His Riches are truly Glorious; and He calls us to serve Him, that we might be placed in the perfect position to receive. And God is no hoarder. He has lavishly shared His Riches with His creation.

The heavens are the heavens of the Lord,
But the earth He has given to the sons of men, (Psalm 115:16).

Consider the Glory of His Riches

• The Glory of His Riches in His Great Power
  • “Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Yours is the dominion, O Lord, and You exalt Yourself as head over all. ¹² Both riches and honor come from You, and You rule over all, and in Your hand is power and might; and it lies in Your hand to make great and to strengthen everyone,” (1 Chronicles 29:11-12).

• The Glory of His Riches in His Peace
  • “‘I will shake all the nations; and they will come with the wealth of all nations, and I will fill this house with glory,’ says the Lord of hosts. ⁸ ‘The silver is Mine and the gold is Mine,’ declares the Lord of hosts. ⁹ ‘The latter glory of this house will be greater than the former,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘and in this place I will give peace,’ declares the Lord of hosts,” (Haggai 2:7-9).

• The Glory of His Riches in His Wisdom
  • O Lord, how many are Your works!
    In wisdom You have made them all;
    The earth is full of Your possessions, (Psalm 104:24).

• The Glory of His Riches in His Blessing
  • It is the blessing of the Lord that makes rich,
    And He adds no sorrow to it, (Proverbs 10:22).

• The Glory of His Riches in His Kindness that Leads to Repentance
  • Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance? (Romans 2:4).

• The Glory of His Riches in His Blood that Purchased Our Redemption
  • In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, (Ephesians 1:7).

• The Glory of His Riches in His Gift of Salvation
  • For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; ⁹ not as a result of works, so that no one may boast, (Ephesians 2:8-9).

• The Glory of His Riches in True Wealth and Life
  • storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed, (1 Timothy 6:19).

• The Glory of His Riches through the Resurrection of Jesus Christ
  • Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴ to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, (1 Peter 1:3-4).

• The Glory of His Riches in His Presence
  • And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, ⁴ and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away,” (Revelation 21:3-4).

How do we respond to the Glory of His Riches?

Oh, let us learn well the lesson of Haman’s misplaced confidence. We must never count on the abundance of our possessions; we can only count on the Glory of His Riches to meet our every need.

And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus, (Philippians 4:19).

And we must stay alert, remembering that compared to knowing the Glory of His Riches, everything the world tries to pass off as gain, is just plain garbage.

What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ, (Philippians 3:8 NIV).

But the devil is always tempting us with the tangible, trying to convince us that all that glitters is in fact gold, and more satisfying than the Glory of His Riches.

After all, if he would try to pull that on Jesus, you think he’s going to try anything less on us?

Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; ⁹ and he said to Him, “All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.” ¹⁰ Then Jesus said to him, “Go, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only,’” (Matthew 4:8-10).

We must follow our Savior’s example, and fix our mind on our true hope, the certainty we have in the Glory of His Riches; and also like Jesus, we are to be rich in good works.

Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. ¹⁸ Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, ¹⁹ storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed, (1 Timothy 6:17-19).

As He grows us in generosity and good works, we will accumulate the great wealth of treasures stored for us in heaven, where we will enjoy the Glory of His Riches for all eternity.

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰ But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; ²¹ for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also,” (Matthew 6:19-21).

Oh, that we would desire the Glory of His Riches far beyond anything the world has to offer. For as we fall more and more in love with Him, and grow to pursue Him with passion, He will be faithful to provide everything else we need.

“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you,” (Matthew 6:33).

Let’s Grow Together!