I hurriedly left from preaching at my home church in Chattanooga, Tennessee, to fulfill another ministry engagement in another city. My family was unable to travel with me, giving me an opportunity to spend extra alone time with the Lord.
I began to pray, and I felt His weighty glory fill my car.
I began weeping, almost uncontrollably. In fact, I had to pull my car over two different times because I was barely able to drive as I experienced the splendor of the Lord. He spoke to me and said very clearly, “My church is in an Esther moment. There is a spirit of Haman that is opposing My bride. The Haman spirit is seeking to bring destruction to My people. My church must be vigilant, sober-minded and clear-focused. A war is raging. Refuse to look at distractions coming from the left or the right, but keep your eyes on Me and your ear tuned to My voice. Remember that which I have declared.”
The book of Esther begins with the king of Persia calling for his bride, Queen Vashti, to come to show her great beauty. When she refused, she was banished from his presence. Even as Vashti, the bride of Christ is being called at this time in history to display the glory and splendor of the King.
To replace Vashti as queen, a new one had to be selected, so it was suggested by the counselors of the king of Persia that a beauty contest should be held to find her, to which the king agreed. Mordecai the Jew, an officer in the king’s courts, entered his cousin, Esther, into the beauty contest. He instructed her not to reveal her race, and she followed his orders. When Esther appeared before the king, he loved her more than all the other women, and she was made queen.
Haman was promoted above all the other princes (Esth. 3:1). He was an Agagite, identifying him as a descendant of Agag, the king of Amalek, whom Saul did not kill, which resulted in the kingdom of Israel being stripped from him. Because of Saul’s disobedience, future generations suffered the consequences. The Amalekites were the enemies of God. Everyone at the king’s gate would bow in reverence to Haman—except Mordecai. He refused to bow to what God had cursed.
“When Haman saw that Mordecai neither bowed nor paid him homage, he was filled with rage. But he disdained to lay hands on only Mordecai, since they had told him of the people of Mordecai. So Haman sought to destroy all the Jews throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus” (Esth. 3:5-6).
The spirit of Haman is anti-God, and its true intent is to exterminate God’s people, as was demonstrated when Haman manipulated and bribed the king into decreeing the destruction of the Jews. The spirit of Haman is a spirit of pride and destruction and is unleashed when someone stands, refusing to bow to what it has been deemed the standard. This is the spirit that we believers are warring against today.
According to Hitchcock’s Bible Dictionary, the name Haman means “noise; tumult.” That spirit makes a lot of noise and tumult when believers refuse to compromise to its demands. What is behind all the tumult? The spirit of Haman. In fact, it is behind everything in our society today, including the media, entertainment and even some churches that are screaming for us to bow to that which has been deemed acceptable.
Nevertheless, there is a remnant of God’s people who, like Mordecai, have remained standing, refusing to bow to what God has cursed, fearing God more than they do man.
Mordecai, along with all the other Jews, began fasting and wailing. He then charged Esther that she should go before the king and petition him for the lives of her people.
“Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, ‘Do not think that in the king’s palace you will be more likely to escape than all the other Jews. For if you remain silent at this time, protection and deliverance for the Jews will be ordained from some other place, but you and your father’s house shall be destroyed. And who knows if you may have attained royal position for such a time as this?'” (Esth. 4:13-14).
“Now it came to pass on the third day, that Esther put on her royal apparel, and stood in the inner court” (Esth.5:1a, KJV).
Notice she put on her royal apparel. She put on her mantle. This is the time for the bride to wear her mantle and come to petition the king for this generation. With Mordecai’s refusal to bow, the spirit of Haman was released, but on the other hand, it also caused the activation of the Esther anointing which had been undercover until the proper time.
“When the king saw Queen Esther standing quietly out in the courtyard, she gained favor in his sight, so the king held out the golden scepter in his hand to Esther. Esther approached and touched the top of the scepter” (Esth. 5:2, MEV).
When the king saw Esther standing, she received his favor. Then he held out his golden scepter. He extended to her what was in his hand. The same is true for you and me. As we petition His throne, He will release what He has in His hand. Esther exposed the spirit of Haman, and when she did, the king reversed the evil plot of Haman.
The very gallows he had built on which to hang Mordecai were, in fact, the very same upon which Haman died. Furthermore, Mordecai was given all of the land and riches of Haman. I prophesy to you, “God is exposing and overturning every plot, plan and scheme that the enemy has devised against you. The verdict will be overturned and ruled in your favor.” {eoa}
Andrew Towe is an emerging prophetic voice to this generation. Andrew preaches the Word of God with fire, inviting God’s manifested presence to fall, with signs and wonders occurring in his services. Andrew and his wife, Brooke, are the lead pastors of Ramp Church Chattanooga, and they reside in Chattanooga, Tennessee, along with their two children. Andrew travels extensively, preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. Wherever he ministers, lives are changed, faith is strengthened and expectation is ignited.
