Do you know you have an enemy who is hoping to destroy you? But there’s good news! The book of Esther is where we find this truth and it’s our fourth entry of the word hope:
Esther 9:1 “Now in the twelfth month (that is, the month Adar), on the thirteenth day when the king’s command and edict were about to be executed, on the day when the enemies of the Jews hoped to gain the mastery over them, it was turned to the contrary so that the Jews themselves gained the mastery over those who hated them.” NASB
Do you know Satan believes, (maybe you could call it “hopes”) he will kill, steal and destroy you and the good which God intends for you. John 10:10 says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” The Enemy wishes evil but Jesus desires your good.
Satan wants to do everything he can to mess up your life, make you fall to temptation, distrust God, and make sinful and unwise decisions. Not only does he want to do that, he tries to do that. He is alive and active; just as alive and active as the enemy’s plans that the Jews faced in the time of Esther.
One man in particular, Haman, was the source of a deceitful plan to destroy all Jews because he hated them. But God intervened and through Esther”s obedience, He protected, delivered, and actually prospered the Jews. And of course, we have the magnificent and powerfully inspiring surrender of Esther when she said, “If I perish, I perish.” She went in before the king at her own deadly risk. If you haven’t read this book of the Bible, you will find an amazing story, which by the way, doesn’t mention God at all but clearly, His fingerprints are all over everything that happened.
You are being attacked even more effectively than you realize and more often than you realize. Our eyes need to be opened to see the enemy’s fingerprints, who hopes to destroy everything. We fight him by recognizing his efforts through the principle of 2 Corinthians 10:5: “…we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,” (NASB). That means we examine our thoughts and compare them to the truths of Scripture. For instance, if we’re hearing, “I can’t do this even though God wants me to,” take it captive with “I can do all things through Christ” (Philippians 4:13).
For this principle in my speaking, I pass out rubber bands for everyone to put on their wrists. If they agree with a thought that isn’t in line with Scripture, they are to snap themselves with the rubber band.
When you see the rubber band on your wrist it can also be a reminder to ask, “Have I been thinking the truth or believing Satan’s lie?”
Satan hopes to destroy you; but through God’s truth we will conquer him.