ruth chapter 1 sermon

ruth chapter 1 sermon

The Lord's kindness has not forsaken the living (Naomi and Ruth) or the dead (Elimelech and Chilion). It's a story for people who wonder whether a life of integrity in tough times is worth it. This message deals with the things that happen which don't seem to make sense. It was God who preserved a kinsman to continue Naomi's line (2:20). The first chapter of Ruth … He is the all-encompassing, all-pervading reality. She is an amazing worker. 3. Behind a frowning providence Ruth 3:7 18And she took it up and went into the city; she showed her mother-in-law what she had gleaned, and she also brought out and gave her what food she had left over after being satisfied. And she said to her, "Go, my daughter." If you are here today and you have not yet accepted Jesus’ offer to redeem you, then please don’t wait. She does not resent this, but accepts it. O, that Bethlehem might breed that kind of woman! Humble people are made even more humble by being treated graciously. | 1,508 views. The second reason for verses 8–13 is to prepare us for a custom in Israel which is going to turn everything around for Naomi in the following chapters. And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink what the young men have drawn." Ruth knows how to take initiative, but she is not pushy or presumptuous but meek and humble. Not so, Naomi! Let's see how this unknown author, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, teaches it to us. He hides a smiling face. Naomi Loses Her Husband and Sons. One of the main messages of this little book is that God is at work in the worst of times. 17So she gleaned in the field until evening; then she beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. She has set her heart on God for hope and joy. In primitive cultures, famines occur naturally due to … If God calls, you can leave family, you can leave your job, you can leave Minnesota, and you can make radical commitments and undertake new ventures. And where have you worked? So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked, and said, "The man's name with whom I worked today is Boaz." In order to do so, one must make a firm decision to stay and salvage the relationship. 5. The amazing words of Ruth are found in 1:16–17. "And behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem; and he said to the reapers, 'The Lord be with you,' and they answered, 'The Lord bless you.'" He greeted them with God. Let's be like the women of faith in the Old Testament. And they answered, "The LORD bless you." Listen to or download for free sermons from Ruth by Alistair Begg. Week 1: August 10, 2014 Preaching text: Ruth 1:1-22; accompanying text: Matthew 5:3-9. She knows how to take initiative without being presumptuous. When God Allows Bad Things To Happen Ruth 1:1-5 [1] Now it came to pass, in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. A famine, a move to pagan Moab, the death of her husband, the marriage of her sons to foreign wives, and the death of her sons—blow after blow, tragedy upon tragedy. Fourth, it was a commitment even more radical than marriage: "Where you die I will die and there be buried" (v. 17). God Of the Ordinary. So now back to Ruth's question in verse 10, "Why have I found favor?" Ruth Proposes To Boaz. She works till sundown. The problem with Naomi is that she has forgotten the story of Joseph who also went into a foreign country. Her two daughters-in-law, Ruth and Orpah, go with her part way it seems, but then in verses 8–13 she tries to persuade them to go back home. But they would not. the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me." 13Then she said, "You are most gracious to me, my lord, for you have comforted me and spoken kindly to your maidservant, though I am not one of your maidservants. The book of Ruth gives us a glimpse into the hidden work of God during the worst of times. And it was God who constrains Ruth to stay with Naomi. 16And also pull out some from the bundles for her, and leave it for her to glean, and do not rebuke her.". No falling on their face before Jesus. His providence extends from the U.S. Congress to your kitchen. Pastor Cari continues the series we’ve been working through at New Hope; looking at Old Testament narratives. Chapter. The book of Judges comes just before Ruth in our English Bibles and you can see from its very last verse what sort of period it was. Most people in the world have no experience of lasting joy in their lives. Naomi is unshaken and sure about three things: God exists. May the Lord do so to me and more also if even death parts me from you. Let me conclude with four summary lessons. John Piper is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. Then she fell on her face, bowing to the ground, and said to him, "Why have I found favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, when I am a foreigner?". The key lesson in Genesis 50:20 is this: "As for you, you meant it for evil against me [Joseph says to his brothers]; but God meant it for good." For example, verse 1 says that he is a man of wealth. So the relation between taking refuge under God's wings on the one hand and leaving home to care for Naomi on the other hand is that being under God's wings enabled Ruth to forsake human refuge and give herself in love to Naomi. The first chapter of Ruth tells of choices made and their consequences. Ruth 1:19 . The Lord is kind. Ruth was not their model. And Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her. This is the first sermon in a series from the book of Ruth. This was playing with fire. Nothing—from a toothpick to the Taj Mahal—is rightly understood except in relation to God. That's not the image the writer wants to create in our minds. A famine in Judah, a move to Moab, the death of her husband, the marriage of her two sons to foreign wives, the death of her sons. What would she say if she could see that in Ruth she would gain a man-child, and that this man-child would be the grandfather of the greatest king of Israel, and that this king of Israel would foreshadow the King of kings, Jesus Christ, the Lord of the universe? She is like another foreign woman who came to Jesus and said, "Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs," to which Jesus responded by extolling her faith. Leviticus 26:3–4 says. Boaz says in verse 12 that God is really the one who is rewarding Ruth for her love to Naomi. Lowliness. She says, "Blessed be he [Boaz] by the Lord, whose kindness has not forsaken the living or the dead." SermonAudio.com - Ruth 4 Sermons. No bowing down. For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. She takes initiative to care for her destitute mother-in-law. No astonishment at grace. Does this mean that the writer wants us to think of Ruth's love for Naomi as a work that merits Boaz's favor and the favor of God? So a man from Bethlehem in Judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while in the country of Moab() 2 The man’s name was Elimelek, his wife’s name was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion() They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem, Judah 7She said, 'Pray, let me glean and gather among the sheaves after the reapers.' Faith in God that sees beyond present bitter setbacks. Radical commitment in the relationships appointed by God. And again the hand of God falls. If you plead God's value as the source of your hope instead of pleading your value as the source of God's hope, then his unwavering commitment to his own value engages all his heart for your protection and joy. Don't come with me because God is against me. (10-13) Naomi pleads with her daughters-in-law to stay in Moab. The Paperback Bible presents the Bible by the Book and is designed to be portable, readable, and truly personal with ample margins for notations. Ruth 1:1-15 Blind unbelief is sure to err; Ruth 1:16-18 The great commitment of Ruth; ... chapter. God the Almighty reigns in all the affairs of men. He gives her an amazingly devoted and loving daughter-in-law to accompany her. In verse 6 Naomi gets word that "the Lord has visited his people and given them food." Finally, we learn that if you trust the sovereign goodness and mercy of God to pursue you all the days of your life, then you are free like Ruth. Why should God show mercy to Ruth? SermonAudio.com - Ruth 1 Sermons. Count the cost … It was God who broke the famine and opened the way home (1:6). ... READ Ruth 3:1-5. He is looking for people who will leave father and mother and homeland or anything else that may hold us back from a life of love under the wings of Jesus. DEREK THOMAS Sermons . Look at the last verse of Ruth (4:22). But Naomi is so embittered by God's hard providence that she can't see his mercy at work in her life. Now in verses 8 and 9 Boaz approaches Ruth and shows her great kindness, even though she is a foreigner. Judge not the Lord by feeble sense Verse 5 sums up Naomi's tragedy after ten years of childless marriages: "Both Mahlon and Chilion died, so that the woman was bereft of her two sons and her husband." The most likely suggestion is that Ruth was able to leave the refuge of her father and mother in Moab because she had found a refuge under the wings of God which was far superior. But why doesn’t that call ring out in the rest of the New Testament? Paying attention to what the early church prayed for can help keep your prayer life from falling into a rut. Ruth 1:1-23 Some Graces Grow Best in Winter; Ruth 1:1-2:23 When Life Tastes Bitter; GEOFF THOMAS. I went away full, and the Lord has brought me back empty. Please consider this request from John Piper and become a monthly partner by December 31. 1 In the days when the judges ruled, # 1:1 Traditionally judged there was a famine in the land. Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, The light of God's love has finally broken through bright enough for Naomi to see. He provides food by telling her to work in his field and stay close behind his maidens. And it reminds us that one can build or recover his or her relationships if he is willing to respond properly to the problems that strain them. If we want a steady heart in an unsteady world, among unsteady people, during unsteady days, we need to be upheld by God. In fact, she is so oppressed by God's bitter providence in her life that she can't see any of the signs of hope as they start to appear. This was a 400-year period after Israel entered the promised land under Joshua and before there were any kings in Israel (roughly 1500 BC to 1100 BC). 6And the servant who was in charge of the reapers answered, "It is the Moabite maiden, who came back with Naomi from the country of Moab. Better, far better, to be quiet and undemonstrative like Ruth, and to have the root of the matter in us, than to be impulsive and demonstrative like Orpah, and in the hour of trial to fail. (v. 21). I think that's the message of Ruth. When you think he is farthest from you, or has even turned against you, the truth is that he is laying foundation stones of greater happiness in your life. . It was the Lord who preserved Boaz for Ruth. Do not call me Naomi (i.e., pleasant or sweet), call me Mara (i.e., bitter), for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. First (1:1), there is a famine in Judah where Naomi and her husband Elimelech and her sons Mahlon and Chilion live. It's going to get bigger and bigger. Why else would the story-teller pause to record the way Boaz greeted his servants? Then, there is the decision to sojourn in Moab—a pagan land with foreign gods (1:15; Judges 10:6). But trust him for his grace. And he preserves a kinsman of Naomi's husband who will some day marry Ruth and preserve Naomi's line. 9Let your eyes be upon the field which they are reaping, and go after them. 2 And the name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife Naomi, and the name of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehemjudah. Cancel {{#items}} {{/items}} Ruth 1. She knows there is a God. God had dealt bitterly with Naomi—at least in the short run it could only feel like bitterness. 1Now Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's, a man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. 15 And she said, “See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law.” 16 But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. 2:1 ¶ And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband’s, a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech; and his name was Boaz.. Alright, so with 2:1 we have the end of the introductory material. As a non-Israelite she does not expect any special treatment. And they said to her, “Surely we … Then (in 1:4), her two sons take Moabite wives, one named Orpah, the other named Ruth. If we find ourselves in a time of darkness, trouble or despair, then Jesus Christ will be to us what Boaz was to Ruth. So she came, and she has continued from early morning until now, without resting even for a moment. In him we live and move and have our being. In the Gospels, Jesus repeatedly tells people to follow him. He is good to all who take refuge under his wings. A famine in Judah, a move to Moab, the death of her husband, the marriage of her two sons to … If you want to know a man's relation to God, you need to find out how far God has saturated to the details of his everyday life. Charlotte and I lived in Texas for right at 15 years. All the Pharisees had to do was to take refuge under the wings of Jesus. We do not think the same or act the same because we serve a different Master. Ruth 1:1-5 HCSB Any Jew of the ancient world would have picked up a few things in between the lines that easily escape us in our present-day culture - historical aspects that open windows of insight into the plight of this family. Ruth 1:16-17 shows the type of commitment that should be standard for families and marriages today. The answer is God—the merciful providence of God guiding Ruth as she gleans. We continue in our Ruth 2 commentary… Ruth 2 Commentary: Verse 1. It's a story that shows how "God moves in a mysterious way, his wonders to perform." And it came about when they had come to Bethlehem, that all the city was stirred because of them, and the women said, 'Is this Naomi?' And so like all the other Scriptures, as Paul says (Romans 15:4, 13), Ruth was written that we might abound in hope. Be merciful to me, for in thee my soul takes refuge. God has afflicted her. Whatever else they doubted, they never doubted that God was involved in every part of their lives and that none could stay his hand (Daniel 4:35). An impulsive religion is not always real religion; nay, is very often the reverse. Because she has sought refuge under his wings. In chapter 1 of Ruth God's hand fell hard upon Naomi and her family. Ruth did not just happen to come to Boaz's field. Initiative. This was a very brave, outspoken confession of faith. But not necessarily. They are not paying her wages for her work. I think the kindness she refers to is the Lord's kindness. If Ruth has earned the favor of Boaz, then we must think of her as a kind of employee rendering service to Boaz, her employer, which is so valuable that he is indebted to repay her. This seems a fair way to handle it. Naomi's experience of God was bitterness. So she concludes at the end of verse 13, "No, my daughters, for it is exceedingly bitter to me for your sake that the hand of the Lord has gone forth against me." That makes the story doubly encouraging because it shows that God is willing and able even to turn his judgments into joys. In All Things God Works. Naomi Widowed. Family, there are three Funerals, there is great Fearand there is a Finalgoodbye. He is author of. 19And her mother-in-law said to her, "Where did you glean today? Now we come to the most important interchange in the chapter—verses 10–13. God uses our suffering to accomplish His purpose. 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