We See A Redeemer When We Need Redeemed

Ruth and her mother-in-law, Naomi, were in need of help.  They could not pass down the land their husbands owned from generation to generation.  They could not continue the family name, either.  The only provision that the law gave them was to find a redeemer.  The redeemer needed to be a family member who was willing to buy the land to at least keep it in the extended family.  Boaz was a family member who was close enough that he could be just such a redeemer.

One day Ruth's mother-in-law Naomi said to her, "My daughter, I must find a home for you, where you will be well provided for. Now Boaz, with whose women you have worked, is a relative of ours. Tonight he will be winnowing barley on the threshing floor. Wash, put on perfume, and get dressed in your best clothes. Then go down to the threshing floor, but don't let him know you are there until he has finished eating and drinking. When he lies down, note the place where he is lying. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down. He will tell you what to do." (Ruth 3:1-4 NIV)

Continuing the family name, however, would require more than just paying Naomi for some land.  It would require marrying Naomi (or Ruth) and sleeping with her in hopes that she would bear a male child.  That male child would not take the redeemer’s name.  Instead, he would take his late father’s name.  He would also, then, inherit his father’s land.  Naomi was too old to hope for such a child to be born.  So, she sent her younger daughter-in-law, Ruth, instead.

When Boaz had finished eating and drinking and was in good spirits, he went over to lie down at the far end of the grain pile. Ruth approached quietly, uncovered his feet and lay down. In the middle of the night something startled the man; he turned--and there was a woman lying at his feet! "Who are you?" he asked. "I am your servant Ruth," she said. "Spread the corner of your garment over me, since you are a guardian-redeemer of our family." "The LORD bless you, my daughter," he replied. "This kindness is greater than that which you showed earlier: You have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor. (Ruth 3:7-10 NIV)

Boaz was apparently not a young man anymore.  Clearly he didn’t consider himself a “catch.”  This is why he was surprised Ruth was willing to approach him to be their guardian-redeemer.  This was an act of humility, faithfulness, and trust on Ruth’s part.  Ruth and Naomi both knew that they needed a kinsman-redeemer. And, they had found one.

And now, my daughter, don't be afraid. I will do for you all you ask. All the people of my town know that you are a woman of noble character. Although it is true that I am a guardian-redeemer of our family, there is another who is more closely related than I. Stay here for the night, and in the morning if he wants to do his duty as your guardian-redeemer, good; let him redeem you. But if he is not willing, as surely as the LORD lives I will do it. Lie here until morning." (Ruth 3:11-13 NIV)

The next day Boaz approached the other potential redeemer as he had promised.  When the other potential redeemer thought it was just a business-land deal, he was willing to buy the land.  When it included a wife, siring a son on behalf of another man, and giving up the land to that potential heir; the other potential redeemer backed out.  Boaz won the right to be their kinsman-redeemer.  He married Ruth.  They did have a son.  And, Naomi’s family name continued.  She needed a redeemer.  She saw a redeemer.  She was redeemed.

How about you?  Do you see the need to be redeemed from the shackles of sin?  Do you need someone to pay the price to redeem you?  Do you see how God sent a potential redeemer for all of us in Jesus?  Is Jesus your redeemer?

We See God’s Faithfulness When We Are Faithful

Yesterday, we left the story with Ruth meeting Boaz for the first time.  He is a man of God who is providing for Ruth from his abundance.  Ruth is surprised to have a man show her such kindness.

She asked him, "Why have I found such favor in your eyes that you notice me--a foreigner?" Boaz replied, "I've been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband--how you left your father and mother and your homeland and came to live with a people you did not know before. May the LORD repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge." (Ruth 2:10-12 NIV)

His answer: faithfulness.  Ruth has been showing faithfulness to her mother-in-law, Naomi.  Through Naomi, Ruth has been showing faithfulness to Naomi’s God as well.  God blessed this faithfulness by sending Boaz to be a blessing to both women.

"May I continue to find favor in your eyes, my lord," she said. "You have put me at ease by speaking kindly to your servant--though I do not have the standing of one of your servants." At mealtime Boaz said to her, "Come over here. Have some bread and dip it in the wine vinegar." When she sat down with the harvesters, he offered her some roasted grain. She ate all she wanted and had some left over. (Ruth 2:13-14 NIV)

Boaz continued to show Ruth and, through Ruth, Naomi kindness.  Boaz knew that he was representing the LORD in these transactions.  He wanted Ruth to see the LORD through him.  She did.

When Ruth went back to work again, Boaz ordered his young men, "Let her gather grain right among the sheaves without stopping her. And pull out some heads of barley from the bundles and drop them on purpose for her. Let her pick them up, and don't give her a hard time!" So Ruth gathered barley there all day, and when she beat out the grain that evening, it filled an entire basket. (Ruth 2:15-17 NLT)

Ruth was being faithful to God, so God showed his faithfulness to Ruth.  Boaz was the instrument of God’s faithfulness.  We see God’s faithfulness when we are faithful.  God is faithful whether we are or not.  God is faithful whether we see it or not.  The rain falls and waters the crops of the faithful and the unfaithful alike.  But, when we are faithful we see the hand of God at work much more.

How about you?  Do you see the hand of God at work in and around you?  Have you been faithful to God?  Do you see God’s faithfulness to you?

We Remind Each Other: God Provides

Last night we had our family Christmas Program at Life Bridge (You can click here to watch).  It was a lot of fun and everyone did great.  There was music, singing, dancing, acting, sets, props, and everything you would expect from a Christmas Program.  Several families served in the show together in some way, shape, or form and, as I’ve come to love at Life Bridge, we all worked together as family – Christ’s Body.  It was a joy to participate.   More than anything, though, it was all about Jesus Christ being our King and Lord.

Just then Boaz arrived from Bethlehem and greeted the harvesters, "The LORD be with you!" "The LORD bless you!" they answered. (Ruth 2:4 NIV)

I love this line in the book of Ruth.  I guess that’s because I keep remembering the first line of the book of Ruth.  Remember what it said?

In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. (Ruth 1:1a NIV)

Notice the setup for the story.  It was the days of the Judges when people did whatever they wanted because Israel had no King.  Yet Boaz arrives from Bethlehem, saying, “The LORD be with you!”  Clearly this isn’t the first time he’s done this because his workers replied, “The LORD bless you!” as if this were a normal part of their workday.  This was a place in Israel where people did what the LORD wanted, not just what they wanted.

Check the first line again.  It says there was a famine in the land.  The land was starving for food and water, yet Boaz arrives from Bethlehem to greet his harvesters.  They have plenty of food.  Why?  Simple. God provides.

Boaz is going to inquire about Ruth, since she is new to his fields.  He will find out about Ruth’s faithfulness to Naomi and the LORD, even though she not an Israelite.  So, he makes sure he helps her see that God provides, too.

So Boaz said to Ruth, "My daughter, listen to me. Don't go and glean in another field and don't go away from here. Stay here with the women who work for me. Watch the field where the men are harvesting, and follow along after the women. I have told the men not to lay a hand on you. And whenever you are thirsty, go and get a drink from the water jars the men have filled." (Ruth 2:8-9 NIV)

Ruth doesn’t completely understand the kindness of this stranger or the faithful provision of his God.  So, she asks and Boaz explains.

At this, she bowed down with her face to the ground. She asked him, "Why have I found such favor in your eyes that you notice me--a foreigner?" Boaz replied, "I've been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband--how you left your father and mother and your homeland and came to live with a people you did not know before. May the LORD repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge." (Ruth 2:10-12 NIV)

So, how about you?  Do you see God’s provision all around you?  Do you see God providing in a special way to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose?  Do you have friends, family, or relatives to remind you of this?  Do you remind others, too?

We Face Struggles Better Together

Up until this time, we’ve been focusing on the book of Judges throughout this series.  Today, as we prepare for Christmas, we will shift to another book that took place in the same time period: the Book of Ruth.

In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. 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. 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. And they went to Moab and lived there. Now Elimelek, Naomi's husband, died, and she was left with her two sons. They married Moabite women, one named Orpah and the other Ruth. After they had lived there about ten years, both Mahlon and Kilion also died, and Naomi was left without her two sons and her husband. (Ruth 1:1-5 NIV)

Naomi and her daughters-in-law were facing a very difficult situation.  They had all lost their husbands.  That was bad enough.  In their day, though, there was an added problem: the land and the family name were passed down through the men.  While Naomi still had the land that her husband possessed, it would have been passed down as an inheritance to her boys.  Now that she does not have any boys, the land will be lost to whomever takes it.  It will stay in the tribe of Judah, but her land and Elimelek’s family name will be lost forever.  When Naomi dies, the daughters-in-law will have no place to stay and no way to support themselves.  So, Naomi sends them back home.

"Go back, each of you, to your mother's home. May the LORD show you kindness, as you have shown kindness to your dead husbands and to me. May the LORD grant that each of you will find rest in the home of another husband." (Ruth 1:6b-9a NIV)

The two daughters-in-law begin to protest, but Naomi insists.  They have a better chance of survival, even thriving, if they go back to their birthplaces and find other husbands.  That way, they will have means for living and even passing family heritage down from generation to generation.  Orpah finally gives in and goes back home.

But Ruth replied, "Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me." When Naomi realized that Ruth was determined to go with her, she stopped urging her. (Ruth 1:16-18 NIV)

Ruth was faithful to Naomi.  Ruth was willing to be faithful to a God, a culture, and a people that she did not understand yet.  Ruth knew that we face struggles in life better together.

How about you?  Do you have people you turn to as friends, family, or Church family when you face struggles in life?  Do you face struggles alone or do you agree that we face struggles better together?