Esther 8 - The One Who Has The Power To Save

Intro: Who are the people who make rules in your life? What power do they have to make you keep the rules? How can you tell if a rule is good or not? How might a rule save someone?

Reading: Esther Chapter 8

Discussion Questions:
v1-2 Whose power is increasing?
v3-6 What is Esther asking for? Is it different to what she has already asked for?
v7- 10 Who writes the new rule that will save the Jews? And who’s authority means it is followed?
v11-14 How does the new rule help the Jews? Why couldn’t the old rule be overturned? What are the differences between this rule and the one that Haman made?
v15-17 What’s the difference between how rule is recieved and the one that Haman made? Do the non-Jewish people in Persia react in a way you’d expect?
Are there any parallels between how this rule is made and how Jesus reigns?

Extra Time: Try and play a game without telling anyone what the rules are. How well does that go? Why do we need rules? Get your group to try to design a game without rules.