Journey Life: Lesson 30

We're in the book of ruth,

and we began it last week.

I I described it last week as the

hallmark movie of the old testament.

It's 4 little short chapters, not very long

at all. But in these 4 chapters, you

get you get all of this drama taking

place. It begins with just really tragedy.

Like most hallmark movies do, You know? I

mean, if you ever watched the hallmark movies

years of girl and she's having to come

back home because your father's died, and there's

nobody run the ranch anymore. And she's in

New York trying to be a lawyer, but

now she's gotta go back and run the

farm and And, you know you're like, wow.

What a terrible story and then of course,

all at once, you know, Prince charming shows

up and everything ends happily ever after. Right?

Well, there... There's more to ruth than that.

But in many ways that is the story

of of the book of ruth.

And last week, we began by looking at

the first 3 verses very quickly in the

days when the judges ruled, there was a

famine in the land. So a man from

Bethlehem and Judah together with his wife and

2 sons went to live a while in

the country of Moa app. Now, this the

second generation of people that have come into

the land of Can. We know that from

the fact that Bo

is the son of Ray,

who was the prostitute

that Tim mentioned in the devotion a while

ago that was, you know, a part of

Jericho at the time. So we can actually

date the story

within just a few years. That And so

it's the second generation, and and there's a

famine that showed up.

And 1 of the things last week I

mentioned was the fact that God had warned

Israel.

You turn your back on me,

and I'm gonna get your attention.

I may get it with pest. I may

get it with another a nation sub you.

I may get it from famine, but I'm

gonna get your attention. And so it's very

likely that this famine that hits Israel at

this time is because they're turning their back

on god.

And and what happens is this family, the

man's name is,

which means My god is king.

It's wife's Naomi me 2 sons or Mai

and Kill, and they were ever fights from

Bethlehem Judah. Okay?

Mean, there they're are people who have been

giving

a part of the land as Joshua divided

the land. They've got their land in Bethlehem.

And what do they do when the first

famine strikes.

They leave the land.

I mean, I mean, knowing what God had

promised through Moses

instead of the 1 who says my god

is king

and relying upon him. He says family is

time to move, and they had to moa

out.

And of course, when they get over to

Moa,

Dies.

And all it once Naomi left with her

2 sons, Now we know in the text

and we're gonna see this, they live there

for 10 years.

Okay? There's a 10 year span.

And so when they go into the land,

their 2 sons are very likely

somewhere in their, you know, maybe mid teens,

maybe late teens,

Now that's gone.

And so the question is, okay. Now what's

going to happen.

And what what you see happening is once

again Now, again, the story is going end

well.

But it end well it ends well simply

because God is working through the story.

And and that's 1 of the points that

we've made in multiple lessons is that even

when we make bad choices,

if we're part of God's plan, he works

through even our bad choices to accomplish his

will.

And so we need to understand that.

As and so I noticed the next bad

mistake that they make.

They married more about women,

1 name Or upon the other ruth. Now

because we know who ruth is, we're like

that's not bad.

Ruth is a wonderful person,

but you need to realize not when they

get married.

She's a moa.

And you go, okay, what's the problem with

being a moa.

And the problem is is that God had

warned the Israelites.

Be careful when you go into the land,

not to give your sons to the people

of the lands,

Daughters are are your daughters to their sons

don't do that.

Because if you choose to marry, do not

estimate,

underestimate the importance of whom you marry.

I cannot

emphasize this lesson

enough.

I mean, who we marry if we choose

to marry

is going to affect

the rest

of our lives.

Now how they married back then and how

we married today was vastly different.

Back then, marriages were arranged to marriages.

In other words, your dad got together with

someone else in the community and began to

negotiate and, you know, for this price,

I'll I'll take your daughter for a wife

for my son or for this price, I'll

give my daughter to your son. I mean,

they were pre arranged marriages.

And it worked for thousands of years.

I'm glad they gave up on in a

few generations ago. Right?

Because as much as I love my mom

and dad,

who, I would not want my mom involved

in who I married.

I mean, when I was in high school,

mother would say, you know, that's a pretty

girl right there. And I go mom.

Man alive.

By the way, she wouldn't point in June.

Okay? Just make sure things are clear.

You know, when I brought June home, mom

was like, oh, yes. That's good.

You know? But anyway, they were pre arranged

marriages. Today we marry very differently. And I've

got be honest, I don't think we're any

better than our parents used to be.

I mean, let's be honest.

How good are we when we're 17 18,

19 20, whatever our age is.

If picking out someone spend the rest of

our lives with?

I mean, how do we make those decisions?

And that becomes a big issue in this

particular text. You know, if you go back

to Gene 7, Moses is warning them when

you... When God brings you into the land,

and he's gonna drive out the head tops

of the Go shots, the emma, the can,

parasites, hip bites, ji.

And then you have the command. Do not

mary with them.

Don't do it.

Now, you you quickly notice that among the

tribes here, you know, the more robots are

not listed and they're not.

But if you read own D, I mean

I've got the wrong,

text up here. So I'm gonna correct it.

This is not d 7. This is d

23.

Okay? And so if you go to Jet

me 23,

here's what Moses says about the ammo and

the moa. Now the ammo and moa are

like cousins.

Okay? Am and Moa were the sons of

lot,

Abraham

nephew.

And and so these are very

distant cousins. Now when I say distant, I

mean,

major dis.

You know, I know how many how many

of y'all I've done ancestry, Dna,

Anybody, Handful of you. You know, I'm a

gene epidemiologist and And so I sent in

my Dna a long time ago. Y'all, I

have got, like,

5000 thousand cousins it's been identified through Dna.

And And I look and I see, okay.

Now how am I accustomed to this person.

And boy, when I, you know, go, oh,

I share the same fifth great grandfather.

Well, we may be cousins, but we need

cousins much. Right?

And that was the way with the ammo

and the moa bites.

They were cousins

from the family of, you know, Abraham dia,

but they'd had gone off and followed other

gods. And so no am I or I

moa or any of their descendants may enter

the assembly. The assembly hears worship.

And basically, Moses says, listen.

Don't let them in.

And by the way, 1 of the reasons

was when they came up out of Israel,

the Moa. I mean, they're were the ones

that that that hired Ba to curse the

Israel israelites. Their own cousins trying to get

someone to curse them.

And so Moses says listen. They cannot come

in worship with you. Not only that do

not seek a treaty of friendship

with them as long as you live.

Now I don't know about you, but if

marriage can be called anything. Should be a

treaty friendship.

And so why, the text doesn't say do

not marry moa.

It says don't make a treaty friendship with

them, and it probably

pushes that over into that category.

Going back to chapter 7,

do not inter interfere with them. Why?

For they will turn your children away from

following me to serving other kinds.

That was always god's concern.

Now now you gotta understand something here. We're

we're not talking about

the difference between, you know,

Let's say, you know, my mom and dad.

My my mom and mom had grown up.

When I asked mom. I said, what do

you grow up religiously?

And my mom said, well, I grew up,

baptist methodist

presbyterian Church Christ Pent.

I said, okay.

Mom said, I just went to church with

my friends and so wherever the my current

friends were. That's where I went to church.

My dad on the other hand grew Up

I've in churches of Christ.

And and when they got married, neither the

1 of them were Christians.

And and, you know,

I looked back and I think boy God's

grace was at work through that because shortly

after they got married. They both became Christians.

But we're not talking about people who grow

up, you know, and in groups of people

who claim allegiance to Jesus. We're talking about

pagan groups.

We're talking about groups that were horrendous

I mean, when you go back and you

look at B the God Moe. 1 of

the ways you worship Mole was literally take

your child and just been born to you.

And offer it as a sacrifice

to Moe as a God.

I mean, these people were incredibly wicked.

And God knew that if you inter married

with them,

everything he had done at Sinai, the covenant

that he entered into with Israel, all of

it would be in vain.

And so there's the prohibition.

Talking about the God of the Moa.

Here's here's what happened to Solomon. Solomon, and

you know,

violated God's commitment. He interfered with all these

people.

And as a result of that, his heart

was taken away from the Lord. I will

do this because they have forsaken me, and

they've worship Astra and the goddess of the

Sid.

Key the God of the Moa

that would have been the God of ruth

and Or

and Moe the God of the Ammo I

and Have not walked in obedience to me.

And so you have god saying to them.

Don't enter mary. Why because it's gonna lead

you a astra.

And we shouldn't be surprised when you get

to the new testament. You find Paul basically

saying the same thing. Now this is not

specifically about marriage.

But it definitely applies to marriage.

Do not be yoke together with un.

I mean, Paul's talking here. He's not saying

don't be friends with un.

We've got to be friends with un believers,

but he's saying, be careful, those of you

in business.

From becoming partners with someone who have... Has,

you know, no regards to God. Whatsoever?

Be careful on that.

You know, because because it can draw you

away. It can compromise your values when you're

getting married, be careful

that you don't take someone who doesn't believe

in God

and marry someone who does believe in God,

In fact, when you get over to first

Corinthians 7, he's talking about widows in particular.

And he says a woman is is bound

to our husband as long as he lives,

but her if husband dies, she free to

marry anyone she wishes,

but then look what Paul says, but he

must belong to the Lord.

He's gotta be a follower of Jesus. He's

And in that ancient world where

oftentimes women had very few rights.

Paul's concern is if you're a Christian woman.

Don't don't marry someone that's not a believer

in Jesus because I mean,

because of your lack of rights, it may

just literally pull you away from Jesus.

I've done a lot of

counseling in my days.

John Micah has, Brian Shepherd has.

And 1 of the things you you figure

out doing

counseling

is that you quickly realize that some people

shouldn't get married.

Even if

they both believe in God, even if both

go to church, sometimes even then, you're like,

now I know as a accounts. The last

thing y'all ought be doing, Brian is telling

with somebody that they should or should not

get married. Maybe you should. But, you know,

I try to stay away from that. But

on 2 occasions, Brian, I've told people, don't

get married.

And guess what?

Think got married.

You know,

And and and I remember 1 guy that

came up to me and asked me if

he would marry him in his Fiance and

I said no.

I'm not marrying you. I knew him. I

knew him well.

And he said, juan, and I said because

you won't make it.

And he said, well, will, you at least

do my counseling and I'm like, I'll do

you counseling, but I'm telling you, I'm not

pro... I'm not performing the wedding ceremony. I

can't I can't do that myself.

And so this couple got married that had

a child and 5 years later, He's standing

in the church building, looking at me going,

How'd you know?

And I said, how would anybody not know?

I mean, it was so obvious. Y'all y'all

did not need to marry each other, and

and they went their separate ways.

Folks,

your value system.

Needs to be a value system that matches

the person you're marrying.

If you're a committed follower to Jesus Christ,

the biggest mistake you can make is to

be yoke with someone who is not.

Now is it sinful? No. I'm not saying

it sinful. This is wisdom material.

And and and of course, I tell people

all the time. Neither my mom or dad

were Christians when they got married.

And yet, they made the same decision on

the same not. Apologies jesus christ for which

I'm eternally grateful.

But why if they had not?

What would my life have been like.

And so we need to seriously think about

this as as they should, but then didn't.

And didn't notice what happens. After they had

lived there about 10 years, both Mai and

Kill also died.

Here's the tragedy continuing.

How long were they married, we don't know.

We know however, wasn't long enough to have

children or else God intervened so that they

wouldn't have children.

But now the 2 sons die, and naomi

only is left with their 2 daughter in

laws.

And boy you think about that situation in

the ancient world.

Again,

we live in a different world today.

You know, it's kinda like my grandmother, years

and years and years ago. My grandmother grand

had married over 60 years.

Grandmother was 14 when she got married.

K? Had my day at a week before

she turned 15. Grand was 17.

And I sat down as as grandmother was

nearing the end of her life, and I'm

just asking her all these questions about herself.

And I said, grandmother, did you ever once

think about divorcing grand dead.

And she said, and do what?

She said,

Back in my day, you couldn't go and

get a job at Walmart?

I mean, there was nobody who would hire

you. Why would I divorce your grand day.

You know. And and I think that was

the way it was in the ancient world

and so here are these 3 women now

left by themselves.

And so Naomi hears that the

famine has finally

broke in in back home in Jude And

so she and or daughter loss prepared to

return home from there. But what you find

very quickly

is that Naomi is thinking through this process.

And as she thinks through the process,

she makes a decision. Then naomi only sent

to her 2 daughter laws, go back.

Each of you to your mother's home. May

the Lord may y way pronounce a blessing

in the name of the God of Israel.

May the Lord show you kindness.

If you've shown kindness

to your dead husbands and to me, may

the Lord. Once again, grant that each of

you will find rest in the home of

another

husband.

Jim had been married

just a couple years.

And his wife welcomed their first son.

But about a year after their son was

married. Excuse me was born.

Jim's wife came down with a sickness that

doctors couldn't figure out.

And then suddenly died.

Leaving jim with a 1 year old child

as a sole parent,

grieving for his his wife and his son's

mother.

About a year passed,

and Jim's telling me the story, said my

father! Came to see me.

And father law came in and said, Jim,

I know you missing your wife

just like we miss our daughter.

But you need to hear me very carefully.

Your son needs some mother.

It's time that you move on.

You'll not honor our daughter

by marrying someone else.

And I'm asking you for the sake of

our grandson to do that.

And Jim told me that's what he needed.

What he needed to hear to be able

to say,

time to move on.

And he did. And he married a wonderful

lady who became a wonderful mother to his

son.

In so many ways that's exactly what Naomi

is doing.

It's time, girls to move on. She was

more concerned about her daughter law's when she

was about herself. I mean, you think about

that. If they leave her, here is a

woman, probably in her mid forties,

who has now left by herself in a

foreign country traveling all the way back through,

you know, uncharted territory

to.

And yet she is willing to do it

because she loved her daughter laws that much.

She knew how difficult it would have been

for them. Moa bites going to live in

is free.

People who had been Israel's enemy now living

amongst them.

And then, you know, how would the people

in Bethlehem responded?

And so she was concerned about them.

Then she kissed them, goodbye and they we

alone and said to her, we will go

back with you to your people Naomi said,

no, you returned home my daughters. Why would

you come with me? Am I gonna have

any more sons who could become your husband's

return on my daughters. I am too old

to have another husband.

And me have you got to point where

you say I'm too old to do such

and such. And y'all done that beside me?

By the way, about 5 years ago, I

got on top of my house to blow

the leaves off.

I'd done that every year for years and

years and years.

Only problem is by 5 years Got got

up on top head my blower went to

stand up and I couldn't stand. Up.

You're like, why?

I scared to death.

I mean, I ease back down.

And I said, okay, I'm too old to

climb up on and walk on top of

roofs.

And in about 2 hours later, I climbed

down off that roof.

I'm serious. Y'all. I'm inch itching down that

roof think I am able to fall off

this thing.

And then June will be able to rem

and get all that insurance money and

so last year, my son came in, my

youngest son. I said I need the leaves

float off, and he said, okay. And he

got up and he blew off the leaves.

He came down and said, dad. That's the

last year for me. Yeah. I'm like, oh,

sometimes you get too old to do certain

things.

She said, I... I'm too old to Marry

again.

Lending 2 families not always easy.

And they only knew that.

Taking these daughter laws back, it's gonna be

hard.

And so she told them, you need to

go back home.

Following Philippians chapter 2, do nothing out of

Philippians 2 · chapter mention

selfish ambition, bank can see in humility value,

others above yourselves. That's exactly.

What Naomi was doing.

She went looking out after her interest. She

was looking out after interest of her 2

daughter loss.

It is more bitter for me than for

you because the Lord's hand has turned against

me.

You say you get you get down now

into that hardship that kind of book of

Job. If you remember the book of Joe.

That's the way Job fell. Oh that I

had someone to hear me. I signed now

my defense. Let the almighty answer me. Let

my accuser. By the way, his accuser is

God. Least in his mind. Let my accuser

put his indictment in writing.

In so many ways naomi filling the same

thing. God for some reason is against me.

I don't know why but he is.

And yet, I think Naomi me and Joe

both got it right. You know, Job said

this, though he slay me yet will I

hope in him. The easy translations literally says

even if god kills me, I'll still trust

him.

And they naomi owe me trustee.

Not understanding why,

but trusting him to be the 1 true

god.

And sometimes it looks like even God is

against but we need to remember he's is

not.

I I love this passage out of psalms.

The Lord is on my side. I'll not

fear. What can man do to me? The

Lord is on my side as my helper.

And yet if you read the rest of

the psalms

oftentimes, the Psalm himself says, God, where are

you?

And so you have this sense of distance

sometimes and yet in the background is always

this confidence that God is on our side.

And so with this, they we aloud Or,

kissed her mother all, Good bob at Ruth

Plum tour.

I I love this passage here. Cl to

her. Look said naomi me. Your sister always

is going back to her people, to her

god, go back with her.

And what follows

is the most quoted passage

in the book of ruth?

And and and it's a precious passage to

me

because 45 years ago,

on 05/13/1979.

June and I stood in a church building,

04:00 in the afternoon,

in June quoted these words.

Don't urge me to leave you

or to turn back from you

Where you go, I will go, where you

stay, I will stay

Your people will be my people, your God,

my God,

where you die, I will die there I

will be buried may the lord deal with

me. Be it ever so severely if even

death separates you and me.

Now in this case, it was between a

daughter and law and a mother law.

My case, it was between my

wife to be.

And and the worst part is, the preacher

nor June told me they were doing that.

I just made my valves,

and then the preacher turned to June and

said, quote,

And I thought, what does that mean?

And then June started quoting this, and I

almost said, would you stop and let the

preacher do this?

That close?

Because I had no clue what they were

doing until I realized what she was quoting.

1 of the most amazing commitments

of a daughter law to a mother law

or any loved 1 to the other person.

And boy, that's exactly what naomi needed. That

encouragement.

First thessalonians, you get multiple texts in here.

Therefore, encourage 1 another with words.

Sometimes we need that pick me up.

Chapter 5 verse 11. Therefore encourage 1 another

and build each other up, just as in

fact, you're doing.

Chapter 5 verse 14, and we urge you

brothers and sisters encourage the dish disheartening.

And that's exactly what the words of ruth

did to Naomi.

And off they went.

So the 2 went on until they came

to Bethlehem and when they arrived in Bethlehem,

the whole town was stirred because of them

and the women explain, can this be Naomi?

Now by the way, do you notice who's

absent?

I don't even see ruth?

They see Naomi?

And could this be naomi? I mean, have

you ever seen someone who you haven't seen

in 10:12 years, and you don't have a

clue who they are.

I was over at the Red Rooster last

Friday morning and a guy walks up to

me, and I could tell he knew me,

and I stood up her you know, shake

his hand, and he said, you don't know

who I am do you.

And I said, I don't.

And then he told me who he was,

and I said, you gotta be kidding me.

Had seen him in 20 years.

I mean, didn't recognize him. But as Susie

told me who he was. I'm like, oh,

man. A lie. It's spend so long.

That's the way they were. Could this be

Naomi?

And yet what Naomi does

is describe where she's at.

Don't call me naomi me. By the way,

Naomi means pleasant.

Don't call me naomi me.

Call me Mara. Mara means bitter.

Because almighty has made my life very bitter.

I went away full, but the Lord has

brought me back empty.

Why call me Naomi me?

Lord afflicted me. The almighty brought mis fortune

upon.

And 1 of the things we all know

if we live long enough in this world

is life can be incredibly be bitter.

I mean, there are moments that we're just...

I mean, literally

crying our eyes outgoing God. Why?

And like I said, if you're old enough,

I mean, I I've been down don't know

how many times,

literally falling to the floor weeping.

Just setting down and disbelief, What do you

mean the news that just came in?

I mean, we all experienced this sometime?

But I love the way chapter 1 ends.

Watch how ends.

So Naomi returned from Moa a company by

ruth the moa her dalton law

arriving in Bethlehem

as the Barley harvest

was the beginning.

And whether you realize it or not,

there,

it's where it begins the good news.

And if you wanna know what that is,

you'll have to come back next week. Alright.

Ruth experienced, many of the things that we

experienced.

Excuse me, naomi experienced many of the things

we experienced.

And oftentimes god almost to the edge of

saying God. I just I just don't get

it. Why.

And yet she continued to trust him.

And that's what God calls a bone all

of us,

continue to trust.

And then for some, you you may be

like ruth,

who had not been raised with the God

of Israel.

And yet through her mother law's, she saw

something that she just thought, I wanna be

a part of whoever these people are because

of the way my mother loss treated me.

And she became 1 who said your god

will now be my god.

If you'd like to make Jesus Christ, the

Lord of your life. We're here to help

you. Can income right now if you'd like

to as go we stand see.