Ruth 4

124.

It's the season of Advent.

We're looking at the book of Ruth.

Today we come to the conclusion of our series.

The book of Ruth is set in a dark time.

In a society of turmoil.

Due to violent attacks.

Family brokenness.

Cross-cultural suspicions.

The time of God's people.

Individually and corporately battled

depression, grief,

and loneliness.

This is a world not

so different.

But in the midst of this dark and broken world

we see God's merciful intervention

on behalf of three otherwise unknown people.

Naomi,

Ruth,

and Boaz.

But God's provision for these three

otherwise unknown people

is part of the larger story of God's provision

for his people as a whole.

God brings life and hope to a broken family

and God's also bringing life and hope

to his broken people.

And as we see through the events of this book

God was raising up a king

to lead his people Israel,

David.

But God was also preparing the way

to the greatest king of all

for the Messiah,

Jesus.

Who came from the lineage

of Ruth and Boaz.

So we've entitled this sermon series

Prelude to the King.

If you enjoy this series,

if you want to dig deeper,

if you want to share

the message of this book

with someone you love

and care about,

I want to recommend

the book I recommended

three weeks ago,

Paul Miller's book,

A Loving Life.

It sold out,

but we ordered more copies.

So they're down in the book stall,

five bucks each.

They're more expensive online.

But it's,

I just found a really insightful book

into looking into the book of Ruth

and meditating on what it means

to live a life of love

as Christ has loved us

and has broken the world.

Alright,

let's read Ruth chapter four.

We're going to be looking,

I'm going to sort of take

a big picture approach today

to the book of Ruth.

So we're not only going to be looking

at chapter four,

but this is the conclusion

to the story

and what we haven't read already.

So,

Ruth chapter four.

Now,

Boaz had gone up to the gate

and sat down there

and behold,

the Redeemer,

of whom Boaz had spoken,

came by.

So Boaz said,

turn aside,

Fred,

sit down here.

And he turned aside

and sat down

and he took ten men

to the elders of the city

and said,

sit down here.

So they sat down.

Then he said to the Redeemer,

Naomi,

who has come back

from the country of Moab,

is selling the parcel of land

that belonged to our relative

Elimelech.

So I thought I would tell you

of it and say,

buy it in the presence

of those sitting here

and in the presence

of the elders of my people.

If you will redeem it,

redeem it.

But if you will not tell me

that I may know,

for there is no one

beside you to redeem it

and I come after you.

And he said,

I will redeem it.

Then Boaz said,

the day you buy the field

from the hand of Naomi,

you also acquire

Ruth the Moabite,

the widow of the dead,

in order to perpetuate

the name of the dead

and his inheritance.

Then the Redeemer said,

I cannot redeem it

for myself.

Lest I impair

my own inheritance,

take my right of redemption

yourself,

for I cannot redeem it.

Now this was the custom

in former times in Israel,

concerning redeeming

and exchanging.

To confirm a transaction,

the one threw off his sandal

and gave it to the other

and this was the matter

of attesting in Israel.

So when the Redeemer

said to Boaz,

buy it for yourself,

he drew off his sandal.

Then Boaz said to the elders

and all the people,

you are witnesses this day

that I have bought

from the hand of Naomi

all that belong to Elimelech

and all that belong

to Kilion and to Malon,

also Ruth the Moabite,

the widow of Malon,

I have bought to be my wife

to perpetuate the name

of the dead

and his inheritance.

That the name of the dead

may not be cut off

from among his brothers

and from the gate

of his native place

to your witnesses this day.

Then all the people

who were at the gate,

the elders said,

we are witnesses.

May the Lord make this woman

who is coming into your house

like Rachel and Leah

who together built

the house of Israel.

May her back worthily

in Ephrata

and be renowned

in Bethlehem

and may your house

be like the house

Perez

who take our war

to Judah

because of the offspring

that the Lord

will give you

by this young woman.

So Boaz took Ruth

and she became his wife

and he went into her

and the Lord

gave her conception

and she bore a son.

And the woman said to Naomi,

blessed be the Lord

who has not left you

this day

without a redeem.

And may his name

be renowned in Israel.

He shall be to you

a restorer of life

and a nourisher

of your old age.

For your daughter-in-law

who loves you,

who is more to you

than seven sons

has given birth to him.

Then Naomi took the child

and laid him on her lap

and became his nurse.

And the women

of the neighborhood

gave him a name,

saying,

a son has been born to Naomi.

They named him Obed.

He was the father of Jesse,

the father of David.

Now these are the generations

of Perez.

Perez fathered Hezron,

Hezron fathered Ram,

Ram fathered Aminadab,

Aminadab fathered Nashon,

Nashon fathered Solomon,

Solomon fathered Boaz,

Boaz fathered Obed,

Obed fathered Jesse,

and Jesse fathered David.

The book of Ruth begins

with famine,

death,

and bitterness.

If you look back

at the beginning

of chapter one,

we see a famine

in the land.

In the town of Bethlehem,

which means house of bread,

the baskets were empty.

And the famine,

as we saw,

was a sign

of the spiritual dryness

and chaos

of the time of the judges.

What everyone did

is they saw fit

when there were no

moral and spiritual boundaries.

We also see

a family dying off.

first,

the family of Malemalem,

first spiritually

as they left

the promised land,

settled in Moab,

gradually lost

their distinctive identity

as a people of God,

and then physically

as the husband

and the two sons

passed away.

And then we see

a bitter old woman,

Naomi,

left alone,

destitute,

invulnerable,

far away from her native land,

complaining against God.

But the book of Ruth ends,

not with famine,

death,

bitterness,

but with blessing,

life,

and fullness.

Bitter Naomi

is now blessed.

Her empty hands

are now full

as she nurses

her grandson,

Moab.

Where she had once

been a destitute

and vulnerable widow,

she was now

honored as mother

in Israel.

And instead of bitterly

complaining against God,

she's the recipient

of a joyful blessing.

We also see

that the dying family

of Malemalek

has been restored

to life

and hope.

Chapter 4,

verse 10,

Boaz promises

to perpetuate

the name of the dead,

that is,

Malemalek,

in his inheritance,

that his name

may not be cut off.

To the family

that once seemed

to have no future,

now has a future

with hope.

There's also a future

for God's people.

His family,

the stricken people,

have been provided

not only with food,

not only with a good

barley harvest,

and all the rejoicing

that resulted

from consuming

barley products,

but with a new leader,

David.

The book begins

with the name

of the Malemalek

and his family,

who die off

of Moab.

The book ends

with the name

of Perez

and his descendants,

prophetly Boaz,

and culminating

with David,

the son of Jesse.

So we see a journey

from bitterness

to blessing,

from despair

to hope,

from famine

to fullness.

But of course

the question is,

how do we get

from bitterness

to blessing,

from despair

to hope,

from famine

to fullness?

Maybe you're asking

that question

on an individual

level like Naomi.

Maybe you feel like

you can relate to her

in some way

or other.

At the beginning

of the book

she was emptied out,

embittered,

vulnerable,

grieving,

alone.

Maybe the world

looks bleak,

like some of the

cloudy, foggy days

we've had this week.

Maybe you're getting

older.

You look back

on your life

and there are

regrets

and unfulfilled

desires.

For one reason

or another

some opportunities

seem to have

come and gone

and there doesn't

seem to be much

hope of a bright

future.

Maybe you're asking

that question

not just for yourself

but for your family.

If your family

has been inflicted

by sickness

or loss.

Maybe it's

relational conflict,

emotional baggage

that has a long

and unresolved

history.

Maybe you weep

and pray

over your

prodigal sons

and daughters

who have drifted

so far away

from the Lord.

Maybe you struggle

to honor your

parents

when their flaws

are painfully

evident.

Maybe you wonder

what does it mean

to be an agent

of God's redemption

in my family.

Maybe you've

stopped

weeping,

praying,

struggling

and wondering.

You simply

resigned yourself.

It is what it is.

I'll just keep

my distance.

Maybe you're

asking that question

about church.

Is it possible

to move from

famine to fullness?

Maybe you've seen

churches literally

self-destruct

due to internal

conflict.

Maybe you've been

burned out

from serving

in church ministries

where you've been

frequently criticized

and rarely encouraged.

Maybe you're weary

of superficial

small groups,

close friends

have all moved away

or passed away

or had babies

or just don't seem

interested in spending

time with you anymore.

So your inclination

is to withdraw,

to remain

at arm's length

in the local church.

Maybe you were

once a church leader

and you have vowed

never again.

Maybe you're happy

to attend

but you resist

that step

of joining

and committing.

Maybe you float

around from one church

to another

every couple of years

but you never really

settle down anywhere

looking for

an elusive fullness

for love

and truth

and glory

for the spirit

of the word

but

just doesn't seem

to be there

or anywhere.

Is there a path

for individuals,

for families,

for churches,

from bitterness

to blessing,

from despair

to hope,

from family

to fullness?

the book of Ruth

addresses this

very question

and it gives

the answer

yes.

It shows us

the path

that God

and his province

laid out

for Naomi,

for a little

lunch family

and for the people

of God as a whole

during the time

of the judges.

And this very

same God

who made

a path

way back

then

made a way

for us today

in his son

Jesus Christ.

So what I want

to do this morning

is I want to

trace the path

from bitterness,

despair,

and famine

to blessing,

fullness,

and hope.

I want to trace

the path

through the storyline

of Ruth.

If you weren't

here in the last

three weeks

this will serve

as a review.

If you weren't

here I hope

this will put

the whole book

in perspective.

So I want to

sort of do

an overview

of the storyline

of reason

and progression.

Second I want

to consider

the implications

for us

as individuals

and families

and as a church.

So first

what's the path

that we see

throughout the

storyline of this book?

Well from beginning

to end in this book

there are four

movements

that correspond

to the four chapters.

Now the chapter

of the first

divisions

in the Bible

were added

hundreds of years

after the Bible

was written.

So they were

added in the

Middle Ages

for the sake

of easy reference

so you could

easily find

the same spot

as someone else.

And sometimes

you know the

chapters and

verses just

sort of divide

up the text

into manageable

chunks.

But here

in Ruth

the chapters

and divisions

are exactly

where they

should be

to mark

the progression

of the story.

There are four

clearly defined

episodes in this

story and so

it's nice.

Now if you read

each of the four

chapters carefully

what you will

notice is that

in each chapter

there is a key

word that appears

over and over

in that chapter

but not at all

or not much

in the rest of

the book.

And if you're

reading the ESB

the Bible

translation that's

in the pews

it's very consistent

in how it

translates the words

so you can see

it without having

to read Hebrew

just by reading

your English

Bible

we can see

these things.

So I'm going

to point out

these four key

words

which will see

the progression

of the story.

Chapter 1

you remember

right?

Chapter 1

the key word

is return

12 times

in this chapter

only 3 times

in the rest

of the book.

Chapter 1

emphasizes God's

initiative.

Naomi's far

away in Moab

but God's

kindness

leads Naomi

to return

home

from exile.

Chapter 1

verse 6

Naomi arose

with her

daughters-in-law

to return

for

why does she

return?

She had heard

in the fields

of Moab

that the Lord

had visited

his people

and given

them food.

It's God's

kindness

that leads Naomi

to return

God's initiative

that gets the

whole story

going.

in fact

Naomi says

in verse 21

chapter 1

she says

I went away

and the Lord

has brought me

back.

It's actually

the same word

the Lord

has returned

to me.

So we see

God's initiative

to return

Naomi back

home.

Now Naomi

at this point

she's empty

she's bitter

she's vulnerable

she's grieving

she probably

wasn't the easiest

person to hang

around with

because she

was prompted

by the good

news of

God's kindness

so she

returned home

to God's

people

and the land

of God's

promises.

We also

saw that

in her return

God's steadfast

love didn't

leave Naomi

alone.

Ruth

returned

with her.

Chapter 1

verse 22

Ruth returns

swearing

in holy

loyalty

not only

to Naomi

but also

to Yahweh

to the God

of Israel

who made

promises

that through

this one

nation

he would

bless

all the

peoples

of the

earth.

What we

see in

chapter 1

is that

Ruth is

a living

embodiment

to Naomi

of the

steadfast

love

and covenant

mercy

of God

himself.

So that's

the first

move in

the story

return.

Chapter 2

the key

word is

glean.

He appears

12 times

only in this

chapter.

Now this

chapter 1

emphasizes

God's

initiative

bringing

Naomi

home.

Chapter 2

we see

Ruth's

initiative

in going

out to

the field

to glean.

Now the

word glean

simply means

to gather

leftover

grain

during

harvest

time

out from

someone's

field.

And it

was hard

work.

Ruth left

the house

early in

the morning.

She probably

left the

house at

6 a.m.

and says

she worked

until sundown

gathering

grain

in Boaz's

field

leading

over.

It was

back

breaking

work.

And then

she beat

out the

grain

to separate

the part

that we

really want

to keep

from just

the stocks.

and she

carried

up home

30 pounds

of stuff

all the

way in

the dark

by herself.

She probably

left the

house at

6 a.m.

and got

home around

9 or

10 at

night.

It was a

long hard

day of work.

Ruth went

out to

glean,

to gather,

to seek

food for

her and

Naomi to

sustain

them.

And in

this chapter

we saw

how God

provided.

God provided

for Ruth and

Naomi from

his law

which explicitly

allowed

foreigners

and widows

and the

poor to

glean in

people's

fields.

To pick

up the

leftovers

in order

to have

enough food

for them

to live

on.

But we

see that

God provided

not just

what they

needed for

that day.

God provided

generously

through

Boaz.

By his

providence

he brought

her Boaz's

field.

By Boaz's

kindness,

she went

home with

two weeks

worth food.

There's

another sign

that God

was beginning

to fill

Ruth and

Naomi's

emptiness.

We see

these glimmers

of hope

from famine

to fullness

there now.

They have

enough to

eat and

more to

spare.

A sign

of hope

for the

future.

Chapter

3,

moving on,

we've seen

God's

initiative to

return Naomi

home,

Ruth's

initiative to

glean.

Chapter

3 we see

Naomi's

initiative.

Naomi

proposes

an elaborate

and unconventional

plan to

send Ruth

up with

Boaz.

Go to

the threshing

floor late

at night,

notice where

he lies down,

uncover his

feet,

lie down

near him

and wait

and see

what happens.

Ooh,

if you've

listened to

last week's

sermon,

you want to

hear more

about that.

Now the

key word

in chapter

3 is

lie down.

Here's

eight times

only in

this chapter.

Lie down

at his

feet.

But we

can summarize

the theme

as petition.

In the

ancient world,

man's feet

represented his

authority.

Bowing down

before someone's

feet was a

recognized gesture

of humble

supplication

and submission

and petition.

Boaz awoke

in the middle

of the night

and saw

Ruth lying

at his

feet and

said,

Who are

you?

Ruth boldly

made her

petition clear.

She said,

Spread your

wings over

your sermon

for you

are a

redeemer.

Chapter

3,

verse 9.

Ruth wasn't

simply asking

for Boaz's

general protection.

She was

asking for

his particular

loyalty in

marriage.

Of course,

it was a

risky plan.

It was an

uncertain outcome.

But it was

motivated by

well-founded

hope.

You see,

Naomi had

seen how

God had

honored Ruth's

initiative to

seek food,

to seek

nourishment for

her family,

for her

Naomi.

And God

had abundantly

provided even

more than

they needed.

Naomi had

also seen

evidence of

Boaz's

character.

Ruth wasn't

just pursuing

some guy who

she barely

knew.

Naomi saw

Boaz's

loyalty,

to the

Lord,

his

diligence to

protect a

vulnerable young

foreign woman,

for being

part of his

kindness in

inviting Ruth

to join him,

and to join

his young

women,

and then his

table.

So Naomi's

plan wasn't a

foolish risk.

It wasn't just

wishful thinking.

Sometimes our

hopes are

actually not

well-founded,

but Naomi's

hope here was

a bold risk

motivated by

well-founded hope,

what we see is

that God

honors his

people when

they take

bold and

unconventional

risks that

are motivated

by well-founded

hope.

Like Tamar,

Genesis 38,

though that's

another story

for another

day,

and Brahab and

Joshua 2,

also another story

for another day,

but they're both

the same

principle.

They take

bold risks

motivated by

well-founded hope

in God,

and his

promises.

So even by

the end of

chapter 3,

we see the

movement in

Naomi from

despair and

inaction to

hopeful action.

And you see

this process

from bitterness

to blessing,

from despair

to hope,

from famine

to fullness,

but we're not

done yet.

Now we come

to chapter 4.

We see God's

initiative to

return Naomi

home,

Ruth's initiative

to glean,

Naomi's initiative

to set Ruth's

up,

and 4.

We see

Boaz's initiative

to redeem.

The word

redeem or

redeemer appears

13 times in

chapter 4,

8 times earlier

in the book.

Now what does

redeeming mean?

Probably when I

read this at the

beginning of the

passage,

thinking what

exactly does this

mean?

Do you know

redeeming,

redeeming,

redeeming,

the redeemer?

What's going on?

Sometimes we

think of

redeemer,

I think probably

the most common

way we define

redeem is to

purchase someone

out of slavery.

But that doesn't

completely make

sense in this

context.

Nobody's a slave

here who's

involved in the

story.

And in the

multisput context,

the meaning of

redemption or

redeeming was

even broader and

richer than that.

So Paul Miller

summarizes it this

way.

He says a

redeemer was a

male member of

the clan who

rescued another

member, often a

woman, who had

fallen on hard

times.

A redeemer could

restore property,

for example,

property that

had been sold

in order to

pay a debt.

A redeemer could

purchase a relative

out of slavery.

A redeemer could

marry a brother's

widow in order to

raise him a child

bearing a brother's

name.

A redeemer could

avenge a relative's

killing, assist in a

lawsuit, and ensure

that justice is served

for a relative.

Now, interestingly,

as far as we know,

this idea of a

redeemer was unique

to ancient Israel.

It wasn't a common

thing in the ancient

world.

It was a specific

provision of God's

law.

And the key aspect

that distinguished the

redeemer from other

kinds of helpers was

that the redeemer took

personal ownership of

the situation of the

person in need and of

their problems.

So a redeemer didn't

just give someone

advice or tell them

where they could get

help.

A redeemer didn't just

make referrals or

write a one-time

check.

A redeemer could

sustain ownership of

a person in distress

and all their

problems.

Now, in Boaz's case,

Ruth asked him to

marry her, and she

said, and she asked

him to do that on the

basis that you are a

redeemer.

In other words, it was

a relative in the clan

who was eligible to

fulfill this office,

this responsibility of

redeeming.

Now, as we saw last

week, Boaz's initial

response was, if I

could, I would.

But there's a

redeemer nearer than

I.

In other words, there's

a closer relative who

by law or custom has

first dibs.

And so, finally we get

to chapter 4.

Right?

Chapter 4, verse 1

through 6, we have

this extended

conversation between

Boaz and this

potential redeemer.

And you might, again,

you might wonder what

is going on here.

But remember back to

chapter 1.

There's this extended

contrast between

Orpah and Ruth,

the two Moabite

widows of

Naomi's sons.

At first, Orpah

says, Naomi, I'll

go back with you to

Bethlehem.

I'll join you on your

journey.

And then Naomi says,

well, that's very

generous.

But you realize what

it's going to cost you.

You'll probably never

get married.

You'll never have the

security of a husband

or the hope of a

legacy through having

children.

You'll be alone and

vulnerable in a foreign

land.

Go back home to your

mom and dad's house

and you'll have a bright

future.

And so Orpah sees what

the cost is and Orpah

makes the sensible,

reasonable, logical

choice.

She weeps, kisses

Naomi goodbye, and

goes back to Moab.

Now the Redeemer here

in chapter 4 is very

similar to Orpah.

At first, he's very

happy to buy the land,

take care of elderly

widow Naomi for

probably a few more

years, the rest of her

life.

And it's not a bad

deal for him in the

long run.

When Naomi dies, the

land will belong to

him.

But then Boaz says in

verse 5, do you

realize what it will

cost you?

The day goodbye the

field from the hand of

Naomi, who also

acquired Ruth the

Moabite, the widow of

the dead, in order to

perpetuate the name of

the dead and his

inheritance.

Now what does that

mean?

That means if he

marries Ruth, he

supports Ruth for the

rest of her life.

He supports her

children.

Her children get

Ruth's dead husband's

last name, not his.

And when the children

are grown, this guy

would have to give

them the land.

He doesn't come out

with anything for

himself in the long

run.

And so suddenly, he

backs down.

He sees the cost, and

he says, hmm, not

quite worth it.

And Boaz steps up to

steal the deed.

See, in both of these

cases, why is there

this extended contract,

right, this long

dialogue?

It's about the

costliness of

redemption.

The costliness of

redeeming love.

In chapter one,

Ruth counted the

cost.

She made the rare,

risky, restrictive

decision to be loyal

to Naomi and to

Naomi's God, leaving

everything behind in

in order to go with

her to Bethlehem, and

God honored her

decision.

Chapter four, here,

Boaz is counted the

cost.

And he chooses to

redeem Naomi, to

marry Ruth, and carry

on the name of the

family of a little

life.

He's not just

pursuing what will be

good for himself.

He's not even just

pursuing what he and

Ruth would enjoy

with the others.

And Eric, he's

carrying, he's

stepping into this

responsibility of

being a redeemer for

the family, for the

whole family.

God honors Boaz's

decision.

I threw Boaz

and Ruth.

God came to

redeem his people by

raising up a son who

would be the

grandfather of King

David.

And of course, we

can see in hindsight,

God was preparing the

way for a greater

redeemer to come.

For Jesus, the Son of

God, who became our

brother, to deliver

us from bondage, to

redeem us in every

sense of the word, to

take ownership of

our deepest problem, to

bind himself to us in

covenant love and

faithfulness, and say,

I will be yours and

you will be mine, and

I will give you all

that I have, all my

riches and

righteousness and

joy, and I will take

all of your sin and

all of your despair and

all of your bitterness,

and I will be yours and

you will be mine forever.

So we come to the

conclusion of our

story.

Forbitterness, despair,

famine, to blessing,

hope, and fullness.

God's initiative to

return Naomi, Ruth's

initiative to glean,

Naomi's initiative to

petition, and Boaz's

initiative to redeem, and

God's blessing at the

end.

So that's the

storyline of Ruth in

a nutshell.

Now, what are the

implications for us?

I want to consider some

implications of this

storyline for us as

individuals in our

family relationships, and

for us as members of

God's church as people

who belong to Jesus.

So first, as

individuals and as

families, how do we

move from bitterness to

blessing and from

despair?

Now, one of the things

that the book of Ruth

shows us is that this

is an ongoing process,

not an instantaneous

transformation.

Naomi's journey from

bitterness to blessing

does not happen in one

night, or one week.

It takes a year, right?

And when she arrives

home at the beginning

of barley harvest, that

will be April, to the

end of barley wheat

harvest, when she plots

to set up a roof with

Boaz, probably late

June, and then at least

nine more months after

they get married, until

baby Obed is born, and

she's precipitating this

blessing at the end.

And even at the end, if

you read chapter 4, verse

15, there may be a

subtle hint that Naomi's

journey isn't quite

finished yet.

She still doesn't fully

recognize the depth of

Ruth's sacrificial love.

And so the women of the

town have to remind her

of that, and how valuable

Ruth has been to her.

But let me point out four

steps along Naomi's

journey that might be

helpful for us to keep

in mind.

journey at an individual

and family level.

So first, repentance.

Naomi's journey began with

God's kindness leading her

to repentance.

She felt bitter toward God.

She was angry at her

misfortunes, perhaps, but she

immediately left behind the

paganism of Moab and returned

home to God's people and God's

promises.

See, the path of bitterness

to blessing begins with

repentance prompted by God's

grace.

Returning to God's promises

and God's people, even if

there's still a lot of

bitterness and questions and

doubts there.

So repentance.

Second, Naomi's journey

continued with God's provision

of a loyal relative, Ruth.

Ruth's loyalty.

At first, we saw that Naomi

didn't even acknowledge

Ruth's presence.

But Ruth kept on loving her

nonetheless.

Despite Naomi's expressions

of bitterness and hopelessness,

Ruth stuck with her.

At the beginning of chapter 2,

Ruth and Naomi have come back

to Bethlehem.

This is Naomi's home turf.

Naomi knows how things work

here.

But Naomi, but Ruth, has to

take the initiative.

Even though she's a foreigner,

Ruth has to get up and say,

let me go to the field and

glean.

Let me seek food for us so that

we can live and survive.

Naomi's despair fostered idleness.

Ruth's initiative became a means of

God's sustaining grace.

Ruth's prayer.

Ruth's prayer.

Brothers and sisters, let me

encourage you not to give up

loving someone who is stuck

in a season of bitterness and

despair.

They may not thank you now,

but you are a means of God's

sustaining grace for them,

as Ruth was, or named.

Third, there's repentance.

Naomi's repentance for his

loyalty.

Third, there's surprising

provision.

Boaz's surprising generosity.

And we actually see that God

releases Naomi from at least some

of her cloud of bitterness by

surprising her with generous

provision in a time of great

need.

When Ruth came home that day,

carried 30 pounds of barley and

a whole plate of leftovers from

dinner with Boaz and his family,

Naomi's spirit revived.

Chapter 2, verse 19, she says,

Blessed be the man who did

notice of you.

May he be blessed by the Lord,

whose kindness is not for

sake from the living and the

dead.

Naomi begins to see beyond

herself.

Instead of merely lamenting her

emptiness for Naomi,

blesses God for somebody else's

kindness.

Sometimes God's surprising,

generous provision releases us

from bitterness and despair.

It gives us new joy and hope.

There's been a few times in the

past year when someone or some

group of people has caught me off

guard as an unexpectedly generous

and undeserved gift.

These expressions of generosity have

lifted my spirits and renewed my

joy.

Sometimes they tend to come to miss

the most stressful times.

But brothers and sisters, maybe

delight in surprising others.

Consider if you can surprise with an

expression of generosity that's not

just the bare minimum of what they

need, but as Boaz did for Ruth,

laugh is provisional.

Because this is part of how God

releases his people from bitterness

and fills us with hope.

Fourth, unselfish love.

Naomi's journey from bitterness to

blessing continued as she looked

outside of herself, as she considered

Ruth's future more highly than her own.

You see, the journey from bitterness to

blessing is not just about God

changing our external circumstances,

or even bringing surprisingly generous

people into our life.

It's also a developing internal

resolve, nourished by the Holy Spirit

to love as Christ has loved us.

And we see that in Naomi's initiative on

Ruth's behalf in chapter 3.

Naomi said, should I not seek rest for you?

That it may be well with you.

Naomi wasn't plotting to advance her own

status.

She wasn't clinging to Ruth and saying,

don't you ever dare leave me.

She was seeking what would be best for

Ruth.

looking outside herself

and loving unselfishly,

even when her own future

was precarious and uncertain.

You see, the basic pattern of Scripture is this.

Our faith is rooted in the love of God for us.

That's where it starts.

It doesn't start with us loving God.

It starts with God loving us.

We love because He first loved us.

But our faith matures in part

when we extend ourselves in Christ's love to others.

Jesus said, the one who loves me

will be loved by my Father

and I will love him

and manifest myself to him.

Paul Miller put it this way.

He said, love deepens faith.

And he says this.

He says, many Christians,

which I found,

I thought it was quite insightful,

he said, many Christians get stuck

trying to grow their faith

by growing their faith.

Practically, this means

combining spiritual disciplines,

reading the Word,

praying,

with reflecting on the love of God for them.

But he says,

that will only get you so far.

In fact, sometimes it can lead

to spiritual moodiness,

where you're constantly taking your calls,

wondering how much you know

the love of God for you.

Or you go on an endless idle hunt,

trying to uncover

ever deeper layers of sin,

oddly enough.

He says this can lead to

a kind of spiritual narcissism,

self-centeredness.

But he says,

Naomi and Ruth discover God's blessing

and grow in their knowledge of him

as they obey.

As they extend themselves

in unselfish love

for the other people

that God has put right in their lives.

So he says,

instead of running

from the really hard thing

in your life,

embrace it as a gift from God

to draw you more deeply

into his life.

Into the life of Christ.

So these are four parts

of Naomi's journey.

Repentance,

her own repentance,

Ruth's steadfast loyalty,

Boaz's surprising generosity,

and God's work in her heart

to make her a person

of unselfish love.

So that's some of the individual

and family journey.

What about as a church?

What's the path of family

to fullness?

You know,

we live in a time,

in many ways,

it's increasingly like

the time of the judges

when Ruth and Boaz

and Boaz lived.

In some people's minds,

the future of the church

in the West is bleak.

What does the book of Ruth

have to say to us

as a church?

Well,

at one level,

it reminds us

that renewal,

revival,

is a gift from God.

There are two explicit statements

of God's action

in this book.

At the beginning,

chapter 1,

verse 6,

the Lord visited

his people

and gave them food.

God's kindness

sets the whole story in motion.

If the famine hadn't ended,

Naomi would have stayed

in Moab

and none of this

would have happened.

At the end,

chapter 4,

verse 13,

the Lord gave Ruth

conception

and she bore a son.

Again,

if Ruth had remained

childless

and it seems

that she had been married

for 10 years in Moab

and had no children there,

if she had remained

childless,

the family of the limelight

would have died off

and King David

never would have been born.

As the psalmist says,

if the Lord doesn't

build the house,

the builders labor

and vain.

But while the book

of Ruth affirms

God's sovereignty

over all things

and our utter dependence

on Him,

the emphasis of Ruth

is that God

accomplishes His purposes

through people who love

and people who pray.

That God works

through human agents.

God's activity

is hidden,

yet He is continuously

present and continuously

working out His purposes

through the initiative

of Ruth to glean,

through the initiative

of Naomi

to petition Boaz,

through Boaz's initiative

to redeem.

The story is framed

by two,

only two statements

of God's explicit action,

the beginning and the end,

not because God is absent

from the rest of the story,

but to show that the whole story

is framed

by God's guiding presence

and sovereignty.

In all these things,

God is at work

for the good of His people.

We also see

in the book of Ruth,

God's plan is carried forward

by prayer.

There's not a lot of statements

that explicitly talk about

what God does,

but there's a lot of statements,

there's a lot of expressions

calling on God

to bless people.

Chapter 1,

Naomi blesses

Ruth in Orpah.

May the Lord deal kindly with you,

the Lord grant

that you may find rest.

Chapter 2,

Boaz blesses Ruth.

The Lord repay you

for what you've done.

A full reward be given you

by the Lord

under whose wings

you have come

to take refuge.

Chapter 2,

Naomi blesses Boaz.

May he be blessed

by the Lord.

Chapter 4,

verse 11,

the elders of Bethlehem

and the people

at the city gate

bless Ruth and Boaz.

was a blessing

that through them

the house of Israel

would be built up.

And finally,

the women of Bethlehem

blessed Naomi

in 4, 14 and 15.

Now what's the point

of all these prayers

of blessing?

You know that

every one of these prayers

in the book of Ruth

is answered.