The Road to Bethlehem

UPDATE: Due to the massive amounts of snow we've been receiving ... this series has been moved back to March 7-28 to ensure everyone has equal opportunity to hear all four messages.

Coming this February [now March] ... a four part message series on the book of Ruth. The widow from Moab was converted to faith in the one true God on a road somewhere between Moab and Bethlehem. And her story puts the rest of Old Testament history on the road to Bethlehem, too. Hopefully, Ruth's story will set you and I on that path as well. Join us as we study and worship together in this fascinating little book.

Redeemer

For three weeks we've been studying the book of Ruth in this little column. And in each of the three main characters, we have noticed a foreshadowing or reminder of the coming Savior. But we have yet to notice the primary way this little short story points forward to Jesus.

In the Old Testament, God made careful provisions for how a widow was to be cared for—particularly one who had no male children. Since women in ancient times were very hard-pressed to earn a living, this was a stroke of pure mercy from the LORD. The plan went like this: When a man died, leaving behind a wife (and no sons to care for her and continue the family name) his closest male relative (usually, but not always, a brother) was obligated to take the widow as his wife, care for her, and raise a family with her to keep his brother’s name alive. This closest male relative was called the “kinsman redeemer” (“closest relative” in the NASB).

This is what Ruth chapter 4 is all about. Ruth was childless and had been widowed. She had now way to provide for herself (thus she is in the fields picking up stray kernels of grain in chapter 3). She also had no son to keep her husband’s family name alive. But she had come back to her husband’s home town. Surely there would be a kinsman redeemer in Bethlehem who could take her in and raise up children in her husband’s name. And guess who that closest relative happened to be? Boaz—the man who had already showed her such kindness in his fields! God moves in a mysterious way!

Boaz was the kinsman redeemer! Boaz was the one man who had the authority and ability to redeem Ruth from her distresses. And in this sense, he is an amazing reminder for us of Jesus, our Redeemer. Sin has left us as destitute spiritual widows. We cannot rescue ourselves. We have no lasting inheritance. And Jesus Christ is the only one with authority and ability to pay the necessary price to redeem us from our spiritual widowhood! And He has done it! On the cross he paid the redemption price; He betrothed us to Himself; and He is, in heaven, preparing a wedding feast and a house for His beloved bride!

So Boaz is another tiny Old Testament arrow pointing us forward to Jesus! He redeemed Ruth. And through Ruth, he redeemed her mother-in-law, Naomi. But in a much greater sense, Jesus has redeemed His bride! So let it be said of Christ as it was of Boaz:

Blessed is the LORD who has not left you without a redeemer today, and may his name become famous in Israel (Ruth 4.14)!

Woman of Excellence

Here we are in our third week of looking closely at the book of Ruth…and we have yet to say very much about the girl for whom the book is named! But there is much to say about Ruth—and there is a reason why history knows this little short story by her name. She absolutely shines in these four brief chapters. And she is rightly called (3.11) “a woman of excellence.” But what was so excellent about Ruth?

First, notice her commitment (ch.1). Her husband had died. Her mother-in-law was moving to a foreign land. She had every reason to cut ties with Naomi and her married family. In fact, her sister-in-law had not needed much persuasion to cut the cord (v.14). But Ruth would not be swayed. By marrying Mahlon, Ruth had made a commitment to care for his mother, too. As Naomi grew older, it would be Ruth’s job to be the mother of the household—and the support of her aging in-laws. But now she had a good excuse to lay all that responsibility aside. Instead, she kept her vow. And her speech to Naomi, in 1.16-17, is such a beautiful poem of commitment that we often use it today in ceremonies that mark the greatest human commitment—weddings!

Second, notice Ruth’s ingenuity (ch.2). Now both she and Naomi were hungry upon arriving back in Bethlehem. One of them was going to have to start pounding the pavement in search of some income. Now you would think, given that Bethlehem was her hometown, that Naomi would have taken the initiative. Even if she herself was too old to work, it seems she would have been the one directing Ruth as they sought daily bread. But notice verse 2. It was Ruth who approached Naomi with a work-proposal. And, as you read on in the chapter, you find that Ruth was quite the industrious worker, too (v.17). She worked the same long hours as the robust farmhands! Ruth was a hard-worker!

Thirdly, notice Ruth’s submissiveness (ch.3). Naomi gave her some strange instructions at the beginning of chapter 3. ‘You want me to sneak down to the threshing floor at night, uncover Boaz’s feet, lie down on the floor, and suggest a marriage arrangement?’ ‘That’s right.’ ‘OK. “All that you say I will do”’ (v.5). Isn’t that great? Don’t you wish your kids would obey like that? Don’t you wish you obeyed God so quickly and unquestioningly? I do…but, somehow, I don’t obey as I should. And Ruth’s submissiveness—under much stranger requests than most of God’s requests of me—rebukes me.

So, Ruth was indeed “a woman of excellence.” And, as such, she is an example, not only to women, but to us all. Women can learn from Ruth’s excellence as they seek to relate to in-laws, husbands, and so on. But all of us could stand to have a little more Ruth in our relationship to the LORD! Are we as committed to Him as she was to her mother-in-law? Are we working for His glory as hard as Ruth worked? Are we as submissive to our Head as she was to hers? Probably not. So we have some growing to do as we think about Ruth!

But let us also think about Jesus! No, we are not fully committed, passionately working, or totally submissive to our God. But Jesus is! And He Himself is our righteousness! So…let us learn from the good example of Ruth. But let us look beyond her to the One who not only sets for us an example, but who is also able to save those of us who do not follow it as we should!

The Kindness of Boaz

Every time I read Ruth chapter 2, I find myself again amazed at the character and kindness of Boaz. Lately I have been thinking to myself, ‘O, I hope my Julia will someday meet and be loved by such a strong, yet gentle man.’ In fact, as I read the entire Old Testament, there seem to be few more Christ-like characters in all its pages. So, inasmuch as he is like Jesus, Boaz deserves our imitation.

Isn’t it amazing that Ruth just “happened to come to the portion of the field belonging to Boaz” (v.3)? Surely this was God’s doing! In fact, I think the phrase “happened to” in the Bible is like God’s signature, written in small letters, at the bottom of His most beautiful works of providential art! Ruth “happened to” come into Boaz’s field because God had a wise and loving plan for her life. And Ruth “happened” into Boaz’s field because God had a wonderful plan for sending the Messiah through her family line! And Ruth “happened” into Boaz’s field because God knew that Boaz was just the type of man whom He could use to further His good plan. So what kind of man was Boaz?

Well, notice how he treated his employees. When Boaz, the owner of the farm, came into his fields to check on his workers, he was not sour, or exacting, or strictly business-like. His first words were not: ‘How is the work going?’ or ‘What kind of crop are we looking at?’ His first words to his employees were: “May the LORD be with you” (v.4). Apparently this was his custom. And, therefore, Boaz was loved and respected by his employees. When the bossman came into the field, they didn’t all begin to murmur, or act busy. They called out to him, from their hearts, “May the LORD bless you” (v.4b)! What a pattern for Christian businessmen, supervisors, and employees! And what a man for God to graft into the Messiah’s family tree!

But notice something else about Boaz. He was not only concerned about his own workers and crop. As soon as he had greeted his men, he immediately noticed a poor young girl, gathering up the leftovers from the ground so that she might feed her family. Watch what happened: He noticed her (v.5); he showed a genuine interest in her (v.6); he spoke to her (v.7); he protected her (v.8a); and he provided for her (v.8b). All of this is noteworthy! How many large business owners take time to get to know the common folk around the factory? In fact, how many of us actually notice the needy or lonely people around us? And, of those of us who notice, how many take a general interest in them? Precious few, I would guess!

But Boaz was observant, generous, and genuinely interested in this timid young woman. Verses 15-16 tug at my emotions every time I read them: “Boaz commanded his servants, saying, ‘Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not insult her. Also, you shall purposely pull out for her some grain from the bundles and leave it that she may glean.’” In other words: ‘Do you see that lass who is picking up our leftovers? You make sure there are plenty of them for her to pick up!’

What mercy! What compassion! What an example for us all! And what a reminder of the even greater kindness of Jesus Christ to us poor sinners!

Do you see beauty in Boaz? Do you see in him hope and compassion? Do you see in him all that is right in the world? Then imagine how loving, compassionate, kind, and merciful Jesus is! Imagine how beautiful Christ is! And don’t just imagine. Let Boaz’s story push you forward a few hundred pages…to the stories of his greater ancestor, Jesus! And don’t just read about the kindness and compassion of Jesus. By faith, receive it; experience it; revel in it! Let handsome, strong Boaz make your heart pound for the even more lovely Bridegroom of the church, Jesus or Lord!

Naomi or Mara

As I make my annual trek through the Bible, I have come to the book of Ruth. Of course, it will only take a day or two to read through it in my daily devotion; but I thought, this year, it deserved a little more attention. So, for the next four weeks, this column will be my attempt to give a little more attention to the book of Ruth. I am not going to attempt anything like a verse by verse commentary…just a devotional thought or two from each of the four chapters, a chapter a week. You will be greatly helped if you read along with me as we walk through Ruth together…starting today with some thoughts on chapter 1.

Naomi was having a hard go of it. She had, presumably, grown up in Israel. Perhaps she had a happy life—caring for her husband and raising two boys. But then famine came. Famine so severe that Naomi and her husband were forced to uproot their little family and move to another country. All that she’d ever known was left behind. She was dropped in the middle of a strange place, with strange people, who carried on strange customs, and worshipped strange gods. Perhaps she eventually got used to it all. But if she did, her comfort zone was again rudely interrupted—this time by death. The death of her husband and both of her sons, to be specific. Did they all die at once in some accident or plague? What a shock to the system that would have been. Or perhaps they all died at varying times and seasons—prolonging Naomi’s pain. However they died, it was not convenient. Death never is.

So how did Naomi, a daughter of Israel, respond? With grace? Perhaps by reminding herself that God works all thing for the good of His people? Not exactly. Actually, she blamed God (“the hand of the LORD has gone forth against me” v.13). She murmured (“Don’t call me Naomi [Hebrew for pleasant]; call me Mara [Hebrew for bitter], for the LORD has dealt very bitterly with me” v.20). And then she murmured and blamed God some more (v.21)!

‘What a pathetic old sourpuss!’ you might be thinking to yourself. ‘Blaming God? Complaining? What is the matter with this woman?’ Not a bad question. But before we go asking it in our judgmental tones, let’s try and place ourselves in her shoes for just a moment or two. How strong would you be if you lost your whole family all at once? What would be going through your mind? Would you want someone to record all your innermost thoughts for the whole world to read? I wouldn’t! So let’s not be too hard on old Naomi.

But after we have walked a mile in her shoes, it is important to ask: ‘Why did Naomi respond so bitterly…and why might so many of us respond similarly if put in her place?’

Naomi’s problem seemed to be that she did not take the long view of the providence of God. She was right in saying (v.13) that the LORD’s hand had “gone forth” and caused the death of her husband and boys. God is always in control of who lives and who dies (1 Sam 2.6), and Naomi understood that. But she was only looking at the here and now. She had forgotten that , in the long-term, the LORD always has good purposes for everything He does—whether he makes alive or kills. That is why she could say: “The hand of the LORD has gone forth against me” (v.13). She was measuring the LORD only by what she could see now.

Thus, her judgment was not true. The hand of the LORD was not against Naomi. Yes, He brought about unimaginable difficulty for a season. But in the long run, this difficulty worked for her good! In the long run, Naomi got a very loyal daughter-in-law in Ruth (v.16-18). She got a new family and a brighter future back among the people of God (v.19). She got a grandson who continued the family name (ch.4)—which she was noticeably without before “the hand of the LORD” had “gone forth.” And, through that grandson, she got to perch herself on a little branch in the family tree of the King David (ch. 4)…and thus, of Messiah Jesus, the Savior of the world!

So…it wasn’t just Naomi’s long-term good that God had in mind in the midst of her sufferings. It was also yours and mine! The death of Naomi’s husband and sons, and all the sorrow that came with it, was a wisely placed domino in God’s plan to send a Savior—bother for her and for us! Without the bitterness of Ruth 1, we would not have the joy of Revelation 22!

So, next time you are tempted to murmur against the Lord, or to question His dealings with you—remember the bittersweet providence of Ruth 1. And ask yourself: ‘Am I going to be Naomi or Mara?’