Esther 3:1 After these things did king Ahasuerus promote Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him, and set his seat above all the princes that were with him. 2 And all the king's servants, that were in the king's gate, bowed, and reverenced Haman: for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence. 3 Then the king's servants, which were in the king's gate, said unto Mordecai, Why transgressest thou the king's commandment? 5 And when Haman saw that Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence, then was Haman full of wrath.
This passage of scripture reveals the firm stand for principle Mordecai took, by not bowing down in reverence to a mere mortal man. Even though he was pressured by his peers to do the unthinkable, yet he stood firm as a rock in the strength of God, and refused to be intimidated or bullied into sinning against Christ, and against his own conscience. The law of God should always inform the understanding of the Christian, and when we have read or heard what the will of The Lord is on a particular point, we should not hesitate to stand up for right, even though all those around may be capitulating for various reasons.
Mordecai was just following what The Lord had already commanded through Moses, that reverential worship belongs to God alone, and that any violation of the commandment to refrain from this form of idolatry would eventually meet with stiff and signal punishment. Let's read:
Exodus 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; 6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
The superior results of a faithful adherence to the laws of God will be manifest in thousands of generations of the faithful, for the Bible tells us that the law is life, and wherever it is reverenced and obeyed consistently through the grace and power of God, there is seen longevity, moral soundness and every good work. On the contrary, those who choose to oppose the instructions of Jehovah are like a ship adrift, tossed upon the billows of life with no hope of tomorrow.
A person may excel in the temporal affairs as Haman did for a while, yet at the end of life's journey, when all the chips are tallied, it will be found that those who stood for righteousness by obeying the voice and word of God, will be ushered into the immortal inheritance that fadeth not away, whilst those who walked contrary to Gods' wise instructions will be left without a future and eternal life. This is exactly what took place with Haman after he repeatedly tried to avenge himself of the wounded pride he suffered by Mordecai's steadfast refusal to bow to him in reverence. Let's read:
Esther 7:7 And the king arising from the banquet of wine in his wrath went into the palace garden: and Haman stood up to make request for his life" ....... "for he saw that there was evil determined against him by the king. 9 And Harbonah, one of the chamberlains, said before the king, Behold also, the gallows fifty cubits high, which Haman had made for Mordecai" ..... "Then the king said, Hang him thereon. 10 So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then was the king's wrath pacified.
The Bible says in Proverbs 16:25 "There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death". Therefore, whenever we are faced with hard choices between good and evil, let us choose the good regardless of how popular and fashionable the evil may seem, for our lives are in God's hands and He is able to turn the tide in our favor, only if we diligently follow His commands. May this be the essence of our experience, both now and in the future. God bless!