As a refresher, we can look back over the last two chapters of Ruth pretty quickly and see 2 things regarding satisfaction:
1. In Ch. 1 Naomi lost everything: her home, husband, sons, and one daughter in law. She returned to Bethlehem bitter but still trusting the Lord. It is possible to be satisfied, have inner peace, even in the difficult and bitter days of life. This peace comes through intimacy with God, through Jesus Christ.
2. In Ch. 2 Naomi begins to see hope, and Boaz enters their lives and provides for Naomi and Ruth as a channel of God’s blessing. Boaz is a man who loves God and it is evident in his generosity, concern, and relationships with his workers. (2:4-5) Boaz had a materially abundant life, but his satisfaction wasn’t tied up in it – as seen in his generosity. Satisfaction cannot be had with money. It is an inner reality that is expressed outwardly – just as Boaz was generous.
For Naomi, Boaz became a blessing during bitterness. His attitude was “God, use me” and he gave generously to Ruth and Naomi. The clouds of bitterness began to rain with blessings.
In chapter 2 Naomi experiences a change in her spirit that leads us in to chapter 3.
Read Ruth 3
Naomi has experienced a change – she is no longer down and depressed. How did she get over it? I don’t think there’s a 2 step plan, but what is clear is that she was unwavering in her faith with the Lord. She believed His sovereignty and trusted His word. Psalm 119:28 says “My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to your word.” Let there be no doubt – Christ satisfies, His word strengthens, and even the darkest of days we can find ourselves in the shadow of His wing: trust, believe, and act.
Naomi went from bitterness to relief to ch. 3 she is starting to plan. Naomi has shown trust (the Lord’s hand caused this bitterness – she still trusted), she’s shown belief (2:20: The Lord bless Him! Boaz – he’s God’s provision today), and in ch. 3 she starts to act.
I. Depression and Paralysis
a. Have you ever made a plan to do something: whether it’s take a trip with your kids, pull off an event, a home project, a class project?
b. What’s the planning like? It’s normally the fun time, the energetic time. It can be stressful, but it’s the time to dream. Depression, which can rob us of satisfaction in Christ if we let it, kills dreams. Dreams turn into “I wish I had…” with no effort or purpose to follow through, and that only feeds the depression.
c. Ruth and Naomi have trusted and settled in the sovereignty of God, and the depression is beginning to be lifted and the satisfaction of their souls is giving them light.
i. Compare: 1:21 – “the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me” and 2:19 “Where did you glean today! Where did you work! Blessed be the man who took notice of you!” There is an attitude shift from depression to exaltation.
ii. They’ve trusted God the whole way, and now they can see His provision in real time.
d. We can look back over the past of our lives, believers, and see God’s working: preserving us, challenging us, growing us, encouraging us, lifting us, providing for us. Why is it so hard to trust this same provision for the future? Naomi, a great woman of faith, was no different; at the end of chapter one her world was hopeless for the future despite her satisfaction in God.
e. Clouds come; it takes faith to trust that good rain will fall.
f. When we’re stuck in an attitude of depression, we’re paralyzed. We can start to question God: does His word really promise this or that? We start to doubt our testimony, and we become silent with our witness.
i. Can Satan have a better day than to depress the people of God and silence the witness? Trust on those dark days the sovereignty of God, may it be His wing that is creating the shadow in your life and may you see the purpose he has for you in the difficult time. When I spent 28 days in the hospital, I did not go in anticipating meeting Christ in a life changing way – but praise God I did.
g. To keep trusting, even though you have serious questions, shows you believe in God’s sovereignty: his ability to preserve you, answer you, and his Love for you. Keep trusting. Naomi did and it led her to a day when she could plan (3:1).
II. Active and Passive Faith
a. Naomi no longer is thinking about herself: her concern and her plan is for Ruth. All through this book, Ruth has shown devotion to Naomi: at the end of ch. 2 she even lives in poverty with Naomi rather than staying with Boaz’s servant girls. Now Naomi, having seen light and come up out of bitterness – starts to think of others.
b. All along she has held faith in God, but a trap of depression or bitterness is to keep thinking about ourselves. Instead of blessing God for what we have, we dream of what we don’t have. We think, “If only I had – a husband, or a wife, or a day off – or whatever” when needs abound all around us.
i. Thursday our small group gave up the night to serve our community at Crossroads. IT took our focus and put it outward for a night – it was a challenge, but it certainly grew us.
ii. Naomi puts a plan in motion for Ruth. On the surface this seems crazy for a woman of faith: it’s doing all the things you shouldn’t do – go late at night, uncover a man and offer yourself to him. It’s dangerous and risky. But it’s also rooted in the righteousness that Ruth and Boaz have shown, and the trust that God will watch over the entire interaction.
iii. There will be risk when we live our faith actively. If you are a Christian, there are 2 ways that believers live: actively and passively.
1. Obviously, passive faith is easier: John Piper calls it passive righteousness: it is encompassed in avoiding evil when it appears.
a. This is the Christian who claims Christ, walks the good walk, but isn’t necessarily actively seeking to advance the kingdom and work for God’s renown. They’re passive, indulged – but not active.
2. Active faith makes plans and hopes and dreams. It’s more risky, but in the end it will result in growth of the Kingdom. Mt. 11:12 “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.”
3. When you rest in the sovereignty of God, you are freed to dream and hope and plan and act.
c. Naomi is not sending Ruth into a situation of adultery, though it looks that way. Read v. 9. This phrase occurs one other time in the Bible: Ezekiel 16:8 (the Lord Is speaking) “Later I passed by, and when I looked at you and saw that you were old enough for love, I spread the corner of my garment over you and covered your nakedness. I gave you my solemn oath and entered into a covenant with you, declares the Sovereign Lord, and you became mine.”
i. In Ez. God is declaring his marriage to His people, the bond would not be broken, just as today Christ is the Groom, and the Church is His bride. So Ruth is offering herself for marriage to Boaz, her kinsman-redeemer.
ii. Why at night? Why after he works, eats, and sleeps – all this presents problems because a tired person is not on guard, and it could be an easy time to fall into temptation. Yet the man who said “May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge” to Ruth, who became a channel of blessing for Ruth and Naomi, now realizes he is God’s possible agent to overshadow Ruth.
1. A satisfied man does not fall prey to simple temptation. You get the since that Boaz could use the internet productively and not to feed an addiction. That he could work for money to give it all away. Why? Because He is satisfied in Christ. Naomi is satisfied, Ruth is satisfied, and Boaz is satisfied – so the temptation that could be the downfall wasn’t even acknowledged in the text. How righteous! Read v. 10-13. Boaz let’s her know that he will only redeem her if the closer relative will not. In other words, he will do it the way the Lord wants it done.
a. But Boaz is also active, he will find out first thing in the morning.
Active faith is preferred in the kingdom. Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz all show it. Their satisfaction in God secures them despite the risks involved. They are righteous to the end – Ruth leaves before anyone can recognize her (her best clothes, shawl) – avoiding the hint of sexual immorality – Eph. 5.
But active faith does not mean life will always be good. Despite all the provision, the success of their plan, Ruth and Naomi and Boaz must now wait to see if this other guy, the closer kinsman redeemer who, for some unknown reason all of us are now rooting against, will take his lawful place.
There is no reward without risk. Satisfaction comes at a Price: Jesus on the cross and you laying down your life. But the reward is great. If you go a step further with Christ and take an active faith – and many of you are just by being involved in a church plant, the risks grow, but so do the rewards. I pray and hope that Grace Harbor grows active disciples, is a refuge for the lost and hurting like Ruth and Naomi were, and is actively advancing the kingdom. But that starts with each of us and the decisions we make:
1. Are you Satisfied?
2. Are you passive or active?
Pray.
For expansion see John Piper’s sermon on this text:
4.24.2006
4.04.2006
Everyday Life
Everyday Life
Ruth 2:14-23
Do you find much opportunity to rejoice in everyday life? Or to be happy? Sometimes funny things happen to us, or we get into a humorous situation – a friend this week was describing to me how he bought his wife a new car, and promptly backed into with his old truck. He smashed the grille and had to take it in because the hood was damaged. After taking it in, they realized the damage was worse than they thought because some other panels were smashed out of alignment. They got the car fixed, got it home and she took it to work the next day – where it got keyed and the paint job is ruined. He laughed about it – which is a good attitude, and promised to never buy a new car again.
Laughing isn’t always natural. Pessimism is always easier than optimism. Many of you know that Mandy and I work for the BCNE as collegiate ministers, our boss, the state director of collegiate ministries is undergoing a kidney transplant on Tuesday. It’s a pretty fearsome thing, but throughout the entire process – which we’ve been praying about for months – he’s maintained a thankful and optimistic spirit. To the point that his wife wrote an email announcing the retirement of Bob the kidney and hiring of Bill the kidney.
Sometimes we think optimists don’t live in the real world – kidneys don’t retire. But our attitudes and actions directly connect with this desire of our hearts to be satisfied. In our journey through Ruth we’ve seen how our relationship with God, our understanding of the transforming power of loving Jesus Christ, brings satisfaction in even the hard times. Last week we looked at the role that gratitude plays: grateful people are satisfied people. If you can cultivate thankfulness in your heart: thankfulness to God and to people you will cultivate satisfaction.
Last week we also saw the integrity of Boaz, his attitude of graciousness and love for God. He is a satisfied person: not because of fields or money or employees or productivity, but ultimately because of His love for God. Money won’t satisfy. Only a satisfied person can give money away: when we take up an offering we declare to God “You satisfy me” not the GW’s.
Ruth and Naomi are showing satisfaction and trust in God. Boaz shows the same: they are at 2 different points in life, but God has brought them together and neither despises the other. How easy for one class of people to say to another: you’re not like me, you’re not in my situation, therefore you can’t know me, we can’t be friends, we don’t need to relate. James 2:1 “Don’t show favoritism.” Boaz was full of love, and it overflowed.
We meet Boaz and Ruth and Naomi this week when their lives have come together, and it’s a normal day. Nothing extraordinary, nothing unusual, just a chance for people of faith to live out that faith. Everyday we have the opportunity to worship God: in our attitudes and actions: do we take it? Do we honor God?
Read Ruth 2:14-23.
Christian living cannot be from mountaintop to mountaintop. We can go on a mission trip and get a high, or on a retreat or conference or hear a really spirit-empowered speaker. Those times are great – but if it is just an emotional experience it will not last.
Tough times come in life – we’ve seen this illustrated in the journey of Naomi and Ruth: two widows who have left their homeland for a foreign land, and who have forged a commitment to God and each other. Naomi’s all-encompassing relationship with God opened Ruth’s eyes to His power, and now Ruth serves the living God, the God of Israel.
But life did not remain easy for them. This glimpse of a normal day – Ruth setting out to find food shows a lot of their attitude and keys to life. They found satisfaction first in God, and we see in this passage 2 keys to satisfaction.
I. Rest in God’s Provision (14-17, 22).
A. Ruth worked steadily till lunchtime, and Boaz invited her to lunch. She joined Boaz and was accepted into the group. Already 2x Ruth has expressed gratitude to Boaz, and Boaz made clear that he wants her to trust in the Lord, in “whose wings she has come to take refuge” (v. 12).
B. Ruth did not wander away to another field, or ignore Boaz’s generosity. I’m sometimes left bewildered when someone refuses generosity. It can be for good reasons:
1. They don’t know you or trust you. Ruth had to take a step of faith here – she just met Boaz that day. My mom told me never to take candy from a stranger – and here is Ruth eating grain and drinking wine vinegar. To be satisfied we must trust. We trust God to provide for us, and we express that trust by willingly accepting what he has provided. We also thank Him for it.
2. They don’t need what you’re offering. A poor person who turns down a penny doesn’t need a dollar. A rich man who gives a penny is stingy. Meet the need. If your friend needs a ride and you can meet the need, do it.
3. Pride. Pride can keep us from accepting generosity, and God’s provision. Ruth could have walked away saying – I don’t need you; I’ll make my own way. But she trusted this man who talked about the Lord. She was also humble and grateful – we saw here gratitude last week. She is satisfied, and now she eats all that she wants.
C. Resting in God’s provision also means that we realize that what we have is not our own.
There are 2 examples of this in the passage:
1. Boaz: he did not keep all the grain for himself, or save up the best grain for himself, but invited even Ruth to his table. He trusted God and just as God was gracious to Him, so He was gracious to others. In the Hebrew, v. 14 the NIV says he offered her grain. The Hebrew is more like: he heaped grain on her. He didn’t hold back his grace. He gave it to her. Here is a man who rests and trusts in God and is freed from the slavery of ownership to give to others. When we think of things as ours, they’re hard to let go of. People often chide me for letting others drive away in my car. I even let some of you here today drive my Jeep, when God let me have one. If we can separate ourselves and our tentacles from our possessions and believe that God has provided, we can see that we are much more free to give. We can spend money on ourselves extravagantly – don’t do it. Don’t be a slave to your money or your belongings: use them to honor God. That is resting in God’s provision.
2. Nor did Boaz hoard the grain. He told his workers: don’t embarrass her, even pull out some stalks from the already gathered sheaves for her. He is being graciously kind. Extravagance is meant for others, not yourself.
a. One of the tragedies we experienced in Russia was touring the armory museum in Moscow. The Armory holds the treasure of the tsars – rulers of Russia before Communism. The tsars oppressed the people and used people for their own end. We saw Bibles 3 feet tall and 10 inches think encased in gold. Never opened, just a decoration. We saw hand painted china, riches galore, and yet the people of Russia are poor. The rulers used all the wealth for themselves. That is not the kindness of God, who didn’t even spare His own son to show you love.
3. The 2nd example is Ruth. She takes the leftover grain and all she works for to Naomi, and gives to her. She doesn’t forget about Naomi when she’s eating. She’s caring for her. If your friend is hungry, feed them. Do you think about the others you live with when you’re eating without them? Would you order something they like to take the leftovers back to them? Resting in God’s provision is an attitude that says: the Lord gives, the Lord takes away, blessed be the name of the Lord. We saw this in the hard times of Naomi and Ruth’s lives, and now we see it in the good. Enjoy the good from God! Rest in Him.
II. The 2nd key toward satisfaction: Return Kindness (17-23)
A. v.17 – Naomi gave Ruth her blessing to go and gather from the harvest (v. 2). Ruth only asked to harvest.
1. When I was a kid, if it involved work like this and my dad had asked me to do it or if I had even thought of it myself, I would only have done what was asked of me. I would have brought back a lot of grain stalks, unthreshed. I would’ve said – “you only said to gather grain, not thresh it.” It’s like the worker who is digging a ditch and the water main is burst, water is pouring out everywhere, and their standing there watching it. You ask them: are you going to do something about it? And they say “I was only hired to dig the ditch, not fix the main.” A key to satisfaction is returning kindness: going the extra mile for the good of the other person.
B. Ruth returned Kindness to God: as the Lord provided for her she gave to Naomi. She returned kindness to Naomi, who was sheltering her, by bringing home ready to use grain. She took the blessing of God, through Boaz, and passed it on. We are not to be a store house of God’s blessing but a well-spring of God’s blessing: pouring into others what He has poured into us. Satisfaction, found in God, is evident when we return kindness to others.
C. Naomi blesses Boaz (v.19, 20). She again roots this blessing in God. She calls on Yahweh to bless Him. She has nothing to give, but such a relationship with God that she gives him everything she can!
D. Naomi accepts the kindness of Boaz and tells Ruth: stay there with his girls, they will look out for you. So Ruth stays: she in effect says to Boaz: “Thank you, I accept your offer and protection.” Again, Boaz recognized what he could do to be God’s advocate in her life, and he did it. He didn’t leave her in v. 12 with a blessing but acted on it. God was kind to all in this passage, and each showed it as they could.
E. A final note to this key: kindness doesn’t stop: Ruth lived with Naomi. She didn’t leave her for a full time life with Boaz’s girls, but stayed with her. The prospects may have been better in Boaz’s house, but she determined to honor her commitments.
There is a lot of integrity in this one-day glimpse into the lives of Boaz, Ruth, and Naomi. Remember the 2 keys: Rest in God’s provision, and return kindness.
Ruth 2:14-23
Do you find much opportunity to rejoice in everyday life? Or to be happy? Sometimes funny things happen to us, or we get into a humorous situation – a friend this week was describing to me how he bought his wife a new car, and promptly backed into with his old truck. He smashed the grille and had to take it in because the hood was damaged. After taking it in, they realized the damage was worse than they thought because some other panels were smashed out of alignment. They got the car fixed, got it home and she took it to work the next day – where it got keyed and the paint job is ruined. He laughed about it – which is a good attitude, and promised to never buy a new car again.
Laughing isn’t always natural. Pessimism is always easier than optimism. Many of you know that Mandy and I work for the BCNE as collegiate ministers, our boss, the state director of collegiate ministries is undergoing a kidney transplant on Tuesday. It’s a pretty fearsome thing, but throughout the entire process – which we’ve been praying about for months – he’s maintained a thankful and optimistic spirit. To the point that his wife wrote an email announcing the retirement of Bob the kidney and hiring of Bill the kidney.
Sometimes we think optimists don’t live in the real world – kidneys don’t retire. But our attitudes and actions directly connect with this desire of our hearts to be satisfied. In our journey through Ruth we’ve seen how our relationship with God, our understanding of the transforming power of loving Jesus Christ, brings satisfaction in even the hard times. Last week we looked at the role that gratitude plays: grateful people are satisfied people. If you can cultivate thankfulness in your heart: thankfulness to God and to people you will cultivate satisfaction.
Last week we also saw the integrity of Boaz, his attitude of graciousness and love for God. He is a satisfied person: not because of fields or money or employees or productivity, but ultimately because of His love for God. Money won’t satisfy. Only a satisfied person can give money away: when we take up an offering we declare to God “You satisfy me” not the GW’s.
Ruth and Naomi are showing satisfaction and trust in God. Boaz shows the same: they are at 2 different points in life, but God has brought them together and neither despises the other. How easy for one class of people to say to another: you’re not like me, you’re not in my situation, therefore you can’t know me, we can’t be friends, we don’t need to relate. James 2:1 “Don’t show favoritism.” Boaz was full of love, and it overflowed.
We meet Boaz and Ruth and Naomi this week when their lives have come together, and it’s a normal day. Nothing extraordinary, nothing unusual, just a chance for people of faith to live out that faith. Everyday we have the opportunity to worship God: in our attitudes and actions: do we take it? Do we honor God?
Read Ruth 2:14-23.
Christian living cannot be from mountaintop to mountaintop. We can go on a mission trip and get a high, or on a retreat or conference or hear a really spirit-empowered speaker. Those times are great – but if it is just an emotional experience it will not last.
Tough times come in life – we’ve seen this illustrated in the journey of Naomi and Ruth: two widows who have left their homeland for a foreign land, and who have forged a commitment to God and each other. Naomi’s all-encompassing relationship with God opened Ruth’s eyes to His power, and now Ruth serves the living God, the God of Israel.
But life did not remain easy for them. This glimpse of a normal day – Ruth setting out to find food shows a lot of their attitude and keys to life. They found satisfaction first in God, and we see in this passage 2 keys to satisfaction.
I. Rest in God’s Provision (14-17, 22).
A. Ruth worked steadily till lunchtime, and Boaz invited her to lunch. She joined Boaz and was accepted into the group. Already 2x Ruth has expressed gratitude to Boaz, and Boaz made clear that he wants her to trust in the Lord, in “whose wings she has come to take refuge” (v. 12).
B. Ruth did not wander away to another field, or ignore Boaz’s generosity. I’m sometimes left bewildered when someone refuses generosity. It can be for good reasons:
1. They don’t know you or trust you. Ruth had to take a step of faith here – she just met Boaz that day. My mom told me never to take candy from a stranger – and here is Ruth eating grain and drinking wine vinegar. To be satisfied we must trust. We trust God to provide for us, and we express that trust by willingly accepting what he has provided. We also thank Him for it.
2. They don’t need what you’re offering. A poor person who turns down a penny doesn’t need a dollar. A rich man who gives a penny is stingy. Meet the need. If your friend needs a ride and you can meet the need, do it.
3. Pride. Pride can keep us from accepting generosity, and God’s provision. Ruth could have walked away saying – I don’t need you; I’ll make my own way. But she trusted this man who talked about the Lord. She was also humble and grateful – we saw here gratitude last week. She is satisfied, and now she eats all that she wants.
C. Resting in God’s provision also means that we realize that what we have is not our own.
There are 2 examples of this in the passage:
1. Boaz: he did not keep all the grain for himself, or save up the best grain for himself, but invited even Ruth to his table. He trusted God and just as God was gracious to Him, so He was gracious to others. In the Hebrew, v. 14 the NIV says he offered her grain. The Hebrew is more like: he heaped grain on her. He didn’t hold back his grace. He gave it to her. Here is a man who rests and trusts in God and is freed from the slavery of ownership to give to others. When we think of things as ours, they’re hard to let go of. People often chide me for letting others drive away in my car. I even let some of you here today drive my Jeep, when God let me have one. If we can separate ourselves and our tentacles from our possessions and believe that God has provided, we can see that we are much more free to give. We can spend money on ourselves extravagantly – don’t do it. Don’t be a slave to your money or your belongings: use them to honor God. That is resting in God’s provision.
2. Nor did Boaz hoard the grain. He told his workers: don’t embarrass her, even pull out some stalks from the already gathered sheaves for her. He is being graciously kind. Extravagance is meant for others, not yourself.
a. One of the tragedies we experienced in Russia was touring the armory museum in Moscow. The Armory holds the treasure of the tsars – rulers of Russia before Communism. The tsars oppressed the people and used people for their own end. We saw Bibles 3 feet tall and 10 inches think encased in gold. Never opened, just a decoration. We saw hand painted china, riches galore, and yet the people of Russia are poor. The rulers used all the wealth for themselves. That is not the kindness of God, who didn’t even spare His own son to show you love.
3. The 2nd example is Ruth. She takes the leftover grain and all she works for to Naomi, and gives to her. She doesn’t forget about Naomi when she’s eating. She’s caring for her. If your friend is hungry, feed them. Do you think about the others you live with when you’re eating without them? Would you order something they like to take the leftovers back to them? Resting in God’s provision is an attitude that says: the Lord gives, the Lord takes away, blessed be the name of the Lord. We saw this in the hard times of Naomi and Ruth’s lives, and now we see it in the good. Enjoy the good from God! Rest in Him.
II. The 2nd key toward satisfaction: Return Kindness (17-23)
A. v.17 – Naomi gave Ruth her blessing to go and gather from the harvest (v. 2). Ruth only asked to harvest.
1. When I was a kid, if it involved work like this and my dad had asked me to do it or if I had even thought of it myself, I would only have done what was asked of me. I would have brought back a lot of grain stalks, unthreshed. I would’ve said – “you only said to gather grain, not thresh it.” It’s like the worker who is digging a ditch and the water main is burst, water is pouring out everywhere, and their standing there watching it. You ask them: are you going to do something about it? And they say “I was only hired to dig the ditch, not fix the main.” A key to satisfaction is returning kindness: going the extra mile for the good of the other person.
B. Ruth returned Kindness to God: as the Lord provided for her she gave to Naomi. She returned kindness to Naomi, who was sheltering her, by bringing home ready to use grain. She took the blessing of God, through Boaz, and passed it on. We are not to be a store house of God’s blessing but a well-spring of God’s blessing: pouring into others what He has poured into us. Satisfaction, found in God, is evident when we return kindness to others.
C. Naomi blesses Boaz (v.19, 20). She again roots this blessing in God. She calls on Yahweh to bless Him. She has nothing to give, but such a relationship with God that she gives him everything she can!
D. Naomi accepts the kindness of Boaz and tells Ruth: stay there with his girls, they will look out for you. So Ruth stays: she in effect says to Boaz: “Thank you, I accept your offer and protection.” Again, Boaz recognized what he could do to be God’s advocate in her life, and he did it. He didn’t leave her in v. 12 with a blessing but acted on it. God was kind to all in this passage, and each showed it as they could.
E. A final note to this key: kindness doesn’t stop: Ruth lived with Naomi. She didn’t leave her for a full time life with Boaz’s girls, but stayed with her. The prospects may have been better in Boaz’s house, but she determined to honor her commitments.
There is a lot of integrity in this one-day glimpse into the lives of Boaz, Ruth, and Naomi. Remember the 2 keys: Rest in God’s provision, and return kindness.
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