Est
5:1-2 "1 Now it came to pass on the third day, that Esther put on her
royal apparel, and stood in the inner court of the king's house, over against
the king's house: and the king sat upon his royal throne in the royal house,
over against the gate of the house. 2 And it was so, when the king saw Esther
the queen standing in the court, that she obtained favour in his sight: and the
king held out to Esther the golden sceptre that was in his hand. So Esther drew
near, and touched the top of the sceptre."
After
the period of prayer and fasting Esther approaches the king as he sits upon his
royal throne facing the entrance, he then he sees Esther appear in it. She
presents herself in the court in front of the throne for him to see she wishes
audience with him, she is dressed as the queen in all the Royal Apparel.
This
brings to mind that how we present ourselves to the King of Kings is very
important especially when we desire His favor, there is for us the wearing of “The
Royal Apparel”. I want to say something about our own approach to the King of
Kings. If we are born-again we are cleansed and made pure by the blood of Jesus
and it gives us boldness to enter the throne of grace, clean pure and white.
However, as we see, Esther is not just entering clean and white she is wearing
the royal apparel which is gold, blue, purple etc. This visit by Esther is not
a simple "I wish to visit with you and be in your presence" visit;
this is going to be the most serious request any queen can make of her king and
it will mean the lives of many.
We
will need to spend some time on this royal apparel because there is a beautiful
spiritual truth here that relates to a believer as they seek Gods favor. This
truth concerning the Royal Apparel is going far beyond basic salvation message
and being clothed upon with white robes. There is a beauty that is created by
this Royal Apparel and it will cause Esther to find great favor.
In
our own experience there is a favor that comes unmerited, it is simply because
we are covered in the blood, however, there is a favor that goes beyond this,
it is the favor that comes upon an obedient son or daughter who has pleased
their father, this is the favor we are addressing as we speak of the Royal
Apparel (not only unmerited favor but favor due to great beauty of character).
Esther is going to find such favor with the king and as a result he will extend
his Royal Scepter to her and offers to her half of the kingdom.
Esther
comes to the king in Royal Apparel and in true humility. This act of humility
and beauty is going to produce favor which is going to spare not just herself
but an entire kingdom. This is not the influence of one who has just experienced
salvation but this is the intervention of a mature saint who has been clothed
upon with the Royal Apparel. This is not basic garments but they are royal
garments.
The Royal
Apparel:
These
garments produced beauty in Esther and caused her to find favor with the king.
We are speaking in typology here as it relates to these garments because God is
a Spirit and is impressed with spiritual garments more than earthly ones.
This
truth concerning the Royal Apparel is a truth that speaks of the garments the
Bride of Christ is clothed with when she takes on the characteristics of Christ.
We need to understand that in the natural these are not the garments Esther was
born with in the house of Mordecai but rather the garments she was clothed with
when she was brought into the royal house. They were provided for her by the
king and she was made worthy of these garments during the time of her
preparation and so when we build a spiritual truth on these garments it must be
understood they are not garments we are born with but rather ones given to us
over time by the Holy Spirit.
This
truth needs to be embraced by the Bride of Christ if she is to become the Bride
without spot or wrinkle (Eph. 5:25-27), we are not clothed upon with such royal
garments simply by being saved we must go through periods of cleansing,
purification and preparation. As we submit to the preparations of God in our
lives He clothes us with such garments.
On
at least one occasion I had my eyes opened in the Spirit and I saw a minister
clothed upon with spiritual garments. What I saw was priestly garments of the
Zadok priesthood, it was a white robe a white bonnet and the breastplate of
judgment and over his head appeared the word "Zadok". I understood by
this that this man was a faithful priest in the kingdom of God. So these
spiritual garments are very real. Spiritual garments are talked about many
places in the Word of God.
- Rev
3:4 "Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their
garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy."
- Rev
16:15 "Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth
his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame."
- Jud
1:23 "And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even
the garment spotted by the flesh."
- Isa
61:3 "To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty
for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of
heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of
the LORD, that he might be glorified."
Let
us consider the message in these Royal Garments:
1)
Blue – in typology this speaks of the Word of God (Num.15:38-39 – blue was to
remind them of the commandments), or even the prophetic word. We are clothed
upon with the color blue in our spiritual garments as we walk in obedience to
the Word (commands) and allow the Word of God to fill us, to work in us, to do
this we need to feed perpetually on the Word of God.
This
walking in obedience includes keeping His commandments and walking in his
statutes and judgments; they are the Word of God and then we are clothed in
blue as we obey His Word. We will see in Verse Two that as a result of this
Royal Apparel the king will extend His scepter of favor to her. This is only
done to those who walk in His commands and are obedient. The Word will clothe
us and the prophetic aspect of the Word will work in us (as we see in Joseph -
until his word was fulfilled the Word tried him Psa 105:17-19). I have
encountered many a saint over the years whose relationship with the Word of God
was causal at best, their obedience to it was tepid. This will not do. Col 3:16
"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and
admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with
grace in your hearts to the Lord." We want to be so clothed with the Word
of God in so much that there is a prophetic anointing on what we say. We will
want to develop this garment by having a more than superficial relationship
with the Word of God. By being clothed in this blue garment it is reflecting
that the saint is clothed with the Word of God, they are walking in obedience
to it. Jas 1:22 "But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only,
deceiving your own selves."
The
idea of having this garment clothe us means also that we have experienced the
Word, we have been dealt with by the Word of God and our hearts have been
exposed: Heb 4:12 "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper
than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and
spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and
intents of the heart." We can consider Joseph where the Word of the Lord
tried him (See Psa 105:17-19) or Mary whose walking in obedience to the Word
over her life pierced her own heart (See Luke 2:34-35). Joseph was given a
prophetic promise and it caused him to suffer in order to be prepared. We must
be willing to pay the price to fulfill the word God has spoken over us. Mary,
what a price she paid to fulfill Gods promise and the Word of the Lord over
her. Her heart was pierced as many accused her of raising an illegitimate child
(the hearts of many were indeed revealed as they pointed the finger and accused
an innocent woman). We need to allow the Word to work in us and deal in us in
order for us to be clothed with this blue garment that plays a part in finding
great favor with the King of Kings.
2)
White - this speaks of purity and it too is a garment that should clothe us.
There can be two aspects of white garments. This first has to do with being
covered with the Blood of Jesus and being clean before God the Father because
of the blood that was shed for the forgiveness of our sins. However, this, I
feel goes beyond that point to the place where we are more than simply forgiven
but that we have been cleansed deeply from unholy desires that are common to
the old man. This I believe is a pure heart (moral purity) not just a forgiven
one. What is written upon our hearts before we come to know Christ (and
residues can remain long after we know Him) are the flaws of the fallen nature
that pertain to body, soul and spirit. The desires of the world and the flesh
which can, if we are not careful, give license to the devil to come in and
manipulate our lives even as a believer.
Believers
must not naively think that the devil can have no influence over their lives.
In some cases those believers who have serious character flaws can be greatly
manipulated by the devil. Peter was not a man who was disobedient or sinful and
yet Jesus, speaking to Peter, warned him twice about the devil. Once when He
said the devil desires to sift him as wheat and once when he said "Get
thee behind Me Satan" and was addressing Peter who inadvertently spoke for
the enemy. Let us be wise to this fact and be careful; God wants to so work in
us that even our very desires have changed from corruption to holiness. Purity
is the antidote, it makes us untouchable by the devil. Jesus, in the Beatitudes,
said "Blessed are the Pure in Heart for they shall see as God" (Matt
5). The goal of the Holy Spirit is to erase the sinful desires we were born
with and replace it with the laws of God (Writing His laws on the fleshly table
of our hearts is what the New Covenant is all about, See Jeremiah 31). The
beauty of this truth on purity is that it is a component of the Temple of God,
we see this in the Temple of Solomon where God commanded lilies to be represented
(See 1 Kings 7 & 2 Chronicles 4), lilies speak of purity and the truth
is this that God’s temple (which we are) is a place of purity. God desires
purity in His sanctuary, He desires His saints to be pure. God wants to make us
pure on the inside and as this work is completed we are clothed upon with these
white garments.
We
are informed that without holiness no man will see the Lord. Oh, this needs to
be our life long quest, our passion. When we speak of purity and holiness they
are synonymous. Esther went through a period of cleansing and purification and
this made her worthy to wear white garments:
Est
2:8-9 "8 So it came to pass, when the king's commandment and his decree
was heard, and when many maidens were gathered together unto Shushan the
palace, to the custody of Hegai, that Esther was brought also unto the king's
house, to the custody of Hegai, keeper of the women. 9 And the maiden pleased
him, and she obtained kindness of him; and he speedily gave her her things for
purification, with such things as belonged to her, and seven maidens, which
were meet to be given her, out of the king's house: and he preferred her and
her maids unto the best place of the house of the women."
3)
The Golden Crown - This speaks of having authority but also of the divine
nature. Gold is a material that speaks of divinity and the crown rests over the
head (The head governs the whole body). It is a crown which speaks of authority
and it is made of gold; those who partake of the divine nature are also crowned
with authority.
Out flowing from the working of Hegai the chamberlain (in type, The Holy Spirit) Esther
found favor above all the other maidens and as a result she was crowned with
the golden crown: Est 2:16-17 "16 So Esther was taken unto king Ahasuerus
into his house royal in the tenth month, which is the month Tebeth, in the
seventh year of his reign. 17 And the king loved Esther above all the women,
and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; so
that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of
Vashti." This puts us in mind of the Proverbs 31 woman: Pro 31:29
"Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all."
We
must understand this crown was not a right Esther had, it was an honor bestowed
upon her because of the favor she found with the king. This favor was obtained
because of the meekness and humility she possessed during her time of
preparation; she allowed the work to be done, she paid the price required in
her preparation, it was an act of submission of her will. I do believe that
some Christians feel they have a right to the authority and advantages of the
crown without paying the price (The price is simple, in humility and meekness
obey the scriptures and allow the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives - this
we represented by the Blue and White garments we looked at first).
It
is true that we are the heir apparent through Christ and will wear a crown
Christ and the grace of God purchased for us but bear in mind what Paul says
about the heir apparent: Gal 4:1-2 "1 Now I say, That the heir, as long as
he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; 2
But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father."
He is under tutors and governors and is no different than the servants, he must
submit to them during this time of preparation. This tutelage and govern-ship
is where the Word of God works in us and the Holy Spirit makes us surrender
areas that might not be pleasing to the Lord. This is where the meekness and
humility come in, we can reject His dealings and chafe at it but then the work
does not get done and we should not expect to find favor with the King nor wear
the crown that endows us with a certain authority.
One
of the foundational problems Calvinism has it is declares there is no price for
us to pay Jesus paid it all and all we have to do is claim it (we understand
this today as Hyper-Grace) They suppose Jesus paid it all and we will not have
to pay any price. One little verse deals a fatal blow to this doctrine as Jesus
Himself says "buy of Me gold tried in the fire". The message He is
conveying is: allow me to take you through trials that you may learn the
lessons of overcoming: Rev 3:18 "I
counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and
white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness
do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see."
When we begin to think that we are entitled to the throne and the crown with no
dealings or outworking of grace in our hearts then we err considerably and will
fall short of God plan for our lives. Gods plan is to crown us indeed and make
us worthy to wear it.
4)
Fine Linen - This would have been part of the Royal Apparel and spiritually we
already have the interpretation of this garment. Revelations 19 informs us this
is the righteousness of the saints. Rev 19:7-8 "7 Let us be glad and
rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his
wife hath made herself ready. 8 And to her was granted that she should be
arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness
of saints." Fine Linen is the righteousness of the saints, this is an
imparted righteousness that is a part of their garment. We have some
organizations that are so worried about their works being interpreted in
connection with their salvation that they down play the works of the saints but
this should not be a fear we have; God is looking for us to have righteous
works, it is a reflection of the Christ within and should be visible.
Whilst
the message is clear, our works will not save us, yet it is incumbent upon us
to work the works of God as an indication that He is in us and works through
us. In that spirit let me say that this Fine Linen represents just that, the
righteous works of the saints. It is what has been worked out in them as the
Life of Christ is more fully realized in them. They are not only standing
behind the righteousness of Christ (as one who sins but hides to prevent punishment)
but rather they have come to the fullness of the stature of Christ, which is
the goal. Rom 8:29 "For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to
be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many
brethren." Eph 4:13 "Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and
of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the
stature of the fulness of Christ:"
This
is a classic truth and very well understood. Imputed versus imparted
righteousness. Imputed righteousness is talked about in the book of Romans (Rom
4:3-8) and it is a righteousness that we obtain at salvation when Jesus Christ
took all the punishment that we deserved upon Himself and we believed in that
sacrifice and accepted it. This form of righteousness was made very real to me
on a flight from Chicago Illinois, we had reached altitude when I was aware of
the Lord in the plane, He had come to me and I felt the joy of having the Lord
with me on the plane. He drew very near to me and I knew it was for me that He
had come. Oh the joy of Him being so near but my joy was turned into public
weeping (I had to turn my face toward the window to maintain my private
weeping) when these words came out of my spirit, I could not restrain them, the
Lord willed for me to say it: "Punish Him for my crimes". I could
hardly believe this came out but I could not refuse to say it. As I did I
realized that Jesus Christ had been beaten tortured and killed for my sins, for
me personally. The hardest part was that the penalty I deserved, it was my
crime and it was my punishment He took upon Himself and I could go free without
wrath, without punishment although I had been the offender. I hid behind the
sacrifice Christ bore for me. It was heart breaking and yet it could be no
other way.
Imputed
Righteousness - This is how we start the journey and is accounted to us, we do
nothing to merit it, we simply believe Jesus Christ died for our sins and we
receive it. Rom 4:3-8 "3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed
God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. 4 Now to him that worketh
is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. 5 But to him that worketh
not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for
righteousness. 6 Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto
whom God imputeth righteousness without works, 7 Saying, Blessed are they whose
iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. 8 Blessed is the man to
whom the Lord will not impute sin."
This righteousness is imputed, no works. This is saving grace, it is how
we start off in this race. The work of God is to believe (Joh 6:29). However,
there is a greater work of righteousness and it is imparted righteousness, this
is conveyed through the Bride of Christ.
Imparted
Righteousness - this is what is being identified in Revelations 19 and the
truth associated with the linen garments of Esther. The Bride, who, like Esther
in her fine linen garments has made herself ready and is clothed in the Royal
Apparel. She is clothed upon with righteousness that has been imparted to her
by the king. She is not simply standing behind the righteous sacrifice of
another, she has put away sin and disobedience and stands in the righteous
garments provided to her by the king. She has put on righteousness, she possesses
this quality and stands in righteousness before the king and all of heaven.
Those who make up this bride will be clothed upon with the same righteousness
that Christ is clothed with. There is no unrighteousness in her, she is not
standing behind the righteousness One, she is clothed with the righteousness of
Christ.
Justification
- This same thought is conveyed to us in the Book of Romans where Paul talks
about being justified by faith (Rom 5:1 KJV "Therefore being justified by
faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:"). This
thought of justification is twofold, first it is instantaneous then it is also
progressive. We are justified by faith without works and yet God wants to so
work in us to make us straight and so the work of justification is ongoing.
This is best understood by several scriptures:
In
Hosea 14 the backsliding nation will return the Lord and say: Hos 14:8 KJV
"Ephraim shall say, What have I to do any more with idols? I have heard
him, and observed him: I am like a green fir tree. From me is thy fruit
found." As it says in verse one, "I will heal their backsliding and I
will love them freely. God has brought them back but He has also dealt with the
sins that led off the path in the first place. Not just covering for their sin
but removing it altogether.
We
are told in Isaiah that Jerusalem's iniquity is pardoned and yet there is a
further work whereby God deals with her wrong ways. God makes straight in the
desert a highway for God, this has a natural application but the spiritual
application is the best; the highway of God is in our hearts and the way must
be made straight. Isa 40:1-5 KJV 1 Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your
God. 2 Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is
accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the
LORD'S hand double for all her sins. 3 The voice of him that crieth in the
wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a
highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and
hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough
places plain: 5 And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh
shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it."
5)
Purple (See Jdg. 8:26; Lk. 16:19; Jn. 19:1-3) - this color speaks to us of
royalty, not just in title but clothed upon with royalty or in other words
character, behaving like a king or queen (Esther's behavior was impeccable,
obedient to authority, submissive, pleasant, etc...).
The
idea that we are the “Kings kids” and can remain His royal children while unchanged
by the Word of God and the Holy Spirit is not quite true. God wants us to
mature in Him to grow up and learn to walk in a way pleasing to Him, to put on
the character of Christ. All of the attributes of the Holy Spirit (Fruits of the
Spirit) mentioned in Galatians 5 correlate in one fashion or another to the
qualities of the Royal Apparel. Galatians 5:22-25 “But the fruit of the
Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, (23)
Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. (24) And they
that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
(25) If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” We
must not remain as babes. Jesus Christ did not suffer, die and resurrect in
order to produce a kingdom of babes; He wants true Sons and Daughters. He wants
to give us the power to become the sons of God (Joh 1:12).
When
we are born again the Father listens to all His children’s prayers but the man
or woman of influence such as the modern heroes of faith we read about in our
books; those like John Wesley, William Booth, Hudson Taylor, George Whitefield,
William Carey, Elizabeth Elliot, Brian J. Bailey and countless others whose
lives impacted the nations are men and women who have been refined and polished
by the Holy Spirit and they are men and women of great influence in heaven.
They were not babes but men and women of great distinction and influence.
We
can also add Meekness to this list of Royal Qualities because Esther, we are
told, required nothing other than what was provided by the king (Est 2:15).
This is beautiful description of meekness, no demands, no criticism, not needy.
This is beauty in the eyes of the King. We have confirmation of this in the
Psalms: Psa 149:4 "For the LORD taketh pleasure in his people: he will
beautify the meek with salvation." These garments produced beauty in
Esther and caused her to find favor with the king. We are speaking in typology
here as it relates to these garments and the believer because God is a Spirit
and is impressed with spiritual garments more than earthly ones.
In
conclusion to this study on the Royal Apparel we will make this comment. The
book of Leviticus was considered a hand book for the priesthood because it
showed the way of approach to a holy God. The spirit behind these royal
garments can be found in that great book because both these messages, the approach
of Esther to Ahasuerus and the approach of the priest to God Himself in
Leviticus reveal that God desires to cloth His people with spiritual garments as
they approach a holy God. Let us not think, as many do, that we can come just
any old way. That is fine for salvation but as we grow and mature in the Lord
He expects the bride to make herself ready.