A Bold Introduction

                     “Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ,” Jude 1

        What a way to introduce yourself, a bondservant of Jesus Christ! A bondservant was a slave. Who wants to be a slave? We all want our freedom. Didn’t Christ set us free? Didn’t Jesus say that if we were set free, we would be free indeed? So, what is this bondservant nonsense? Well, there is a lot to it. Paul calls himself a slave, or bondservant of Jesus Christ in Romans 1. Are both Scripture writers nuts, or are we missing something? Mostly, we’re missing something.

        We are more likely to attach ourselves to the Jesus sets us free part without realizing He sets us free to become slaves. What? Jesus sets us free from slavery to Satan and death by giving Himself for us that we in turn become His bondservants. However, too many of us like to dwell only the free part. Free now to live and do as we want. Uh-uh. We are free from death, but we are alive in Christ to live as bondmen to Him. Jude gives us a good introduction.

      Dear Father, Help us to understand our right relationship to Christ. Amen

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The Story Goes On

“Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king.” Matthew 1:3-4

Here it is, the culmination for the story of Ruth. She was of a despised race, just like her mother-in-law, Rahab. She was an outcast from Israel, like Rahab. Like Rahab she had thrown herself on the mercy of God who excludes none who will come unto Him in faith. And what an outcome it was for both of these outcasts. Here they are in the direct genealogy of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, our Savior. (And theirs)

The story of Ruth did not end in the book bearing her name. It has not yet ended and never will. Ruth “believed God and it was counted to her for righteousness”. Ruth is still alive and well and if we know her Son, we will meet her face to face one day. That is a glorious conclusion to a book that began so dismally. It began with sinful man but ends with a faithful and loving God. That is how our lives through Jesus Christ read as well.

Dear Father, Thank You that our story through Christ will never be done. Amen.

  The Friday Benediction

Until Monday, my friends, may the good God envelop you with His grace; may you prove the common confession of faith, “I believe in the holy Christian church and in the fellowship of the saints”, and may you be enriched with joy and hope as you exercise that confession this weekend.  Amen

 

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Jesus Loves Us So Much

“So, Boaz too Ruth for his wife; and when he went in to her, the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son.” Ruth 4:13

Paul says that in Christ all the promises of God are yea and amen. Boaz, Christ’s ancestor, takes Ruth as his bride and begins a family with her. She who had been barren is now fully blest with a son. Naomi, who had lived in such disappointment and despair, now rejoices with Ruth and the other ladies of the village who congratulate her as well as Ruth. Happy ending? You bet!

Jesus said in John 16 that in this world we would have tribulation, but to be of good cheer for He had overcome the world. Paul said, “For me to live is Christ, to die is gain.” That is a good forward thinking view. It can only come from Christ who has fully overcome sin and death. Boaz the wonderful prefiguring of our Savior, has loved Ruth and now fulfilled his promises to her. She will not ever find herself alone in this world. Jesus loves us so much. We can’t forget that.

Dear Father, Help me rejoice in the love of Christ. Amen

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He Took Care of It All

“On the day that you buy the field of Naomi, you must marry Ruth and raise up a child in her dead husband’s name.” Ruth 4:5

Boaz has gone to the city gate and called for the nearer kinsman of Ruth to due his duty as kinsman redeemer. Boy, what a deal the other guy thinks. More land! Yes, now he could become a real gentleman farmer like Boaz. He greedily agrees to buy Naomi’s field. But wait, there is more. He must also marry Ruth, the Moabite widow of Naomi’s son. Now that is just too much. He wanted the land but not the lady. He was a miserable excuse for a redeemer.

But Boaz will do anything for Ruth and he has just proven the other man to be an unfaithful redeemer. Boaz is the picture of Christ who is the only Redeemer. Many others have presented themselves as the solution to all our problems. They all lie. Only Christ can and will deliver. Boaz told Ruth he would take care of things, and he did. Christ promised to take care of us, and He will.

Dear Father, Help us hold fast to Christ, our only Redeemer. Amen.

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Revived with a Purpose

“Sit still, my daughter, for the man will not rest until he has concluded the matter.” Ruth 3:18

Today we see the second thing that stands out about Naomi. She is not only changed, but she has been changed to serve. Her comfort from God has affected her attitude toward others. From bitter complainer, she has become the encouraging helper. The one who couldn’t even see the great blessing God had given her through Ruth, now finds that she can be a blessing to Ruth. The tables are turned. Ruth is wondering what will happen. Naomi assures her that Boaz, the picture of Christ, will not rest until the will of God is fulfilled.

Paul told the Corinthians that they had suffered in order to be able to succor those who are suffering. We have been given an assignment by God, lift up those who are broken. Undergird those whose minds are filled with discouragement. Be Christ to someone near to you. Naomi, the transformed woman, does just that. God mends us to mend others.

Dear Father, Use us to help someone else find their hope and comfort in the promises of Christ. Amen.

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Revived

“Sit still, my daughter, for the man will not rest until he has concluded the matter.” Ruth 3:18

Andre Crouch sang, “I don’t worry, I don’t fret, my God has never failed me yet. I’ve got confidence, God is going to see me through.” This was Naomi’s advice to Ruth in the early morning hours after Ruth’s meeting with Boaz. Two things stand out in Naomi’s comment. One for today and one for tomorrow.

Remember Naomi, the depressed and distraught woman of Ruth chapter one? Remember the woman who felt she had lost it all, the woman who wanted to change her name to “Bitter”? Remember the sad woman who, although she had a devoted daughter-in-law, felt that the future was hopeless? Look at her now!

Our times of misery, disappointment, yes, even anger at God do not have to be our defining moments. Misery, disappointment, and wondering where God is are part of our sinful human condition. But look at Naomi now! She has settled again in Bethlehem, the house of the bread of God, and her soul is revived. Praise God, she’s not where she was yesterday.

Dear Father, Refresh us in the presence of Your grace. Amen.

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Serious About Our Soul

“He measured six ephahs of barley and laid it on her.” Ruth 3:15

As a token of his promise to Ruth, Boaz gave her an abundant blessing before sending her home to Naomi to await the outcome of her future. Since their first meeting, Boaz had been caring for Ruth and her needs. He gave her constant assurances of his care. This last gift was six times greater than she had received the first day of her acquaintance with him. He had withheld nothing she needed from her. Such was the love of Boaz for Ruth.

Christ loved us enough to make the sacrifice needed for our souls. He has already secured our hand for eternity. Satan, as always, despised responsibility, and willingly let another suffer for us. Ruth did not yet know the outcome of her future, but she knew the one who promised and was content. The six ephahs of barley showed her he was serious. He would take care of her. The cross of Christ proved He was serious. He will take care of us.

Dear Jesus, Thank you for being serious about our souls and dying to give us eternal life. Amen.

  The Friday Benediction

Until Monday, my friends, may the good God envelop you with His grace; may you prove the common confession of faith, “I believe in the holy Christian church and in the fellowship of the saints”, and may you be enriched with joy and hope as you exercise that confession this weekend.  Amen

 

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Who Will Make the Sacrifice

“If he will not perform his duty, then I will perform the duty for you.” Ruth 3:13

The contest is now on. There is Boaz, the defender of Ruth’s purity, the provider of Ruth’s needs, the one who truly cared for Ruth’s life. There is the other claimant to her hand. He has first dibs, so to speak, but can he do it? Will he do it? This was what Ruth must wait to find out until the next day came. But during that waiting, she still had the promise of Boaz, “I will perform it for you.”

A sacrifice of self was required of the claimant for Ruth’s hand. When confronted the next day with the offer, the other claimant said, “Yes, I’ll take her.” But when reminded of the sacrifice he said, “No, I won’t take her.” Boaz accepted he sacrifice. Like Boaz, Christ made the sacrifice for us. He gave Himself in our place, died our deserved death for us, that we might have forgiveness of sins and hope forever. Satan is never willing to make any sacrifices for us. Only our loving Savior would do so.

Dear Father, Thank You for the sacrifice of Your Son, Amen.

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Who Will Be the Champ?

“I am a close relative, but there is another closer than I.” Ruth 3:12

Perhaps you have said to someone, “Do you want the good news first, or the bad?” What must Ruth have felt when Boaz finished his promise with the codicil that there might be someone else with a better claim to Ruth? All the time she had spent following him. the blessings he had bestowed upon her, the joy she had felt in getting to know him, and the hope for a future with him as her provider, and now the words some out, “There is another closer than I”.

There is another claimant for our soul that is Jesus Christ. That claimant is our great adversary, the devil. Satan, our accuser lays his claim as well. We are born in sin and that condemns us to separation from God. By birth we are his and without an intercessor, we remain his for eternity. But Boaz continued, “I will see to this matter myself.” He would confront the opponent for her claims. Christ has done that for us. Praise God.

Dear Father, Thank You for sending Jesus as our champion. Amen.

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Promise Guaranteed

“And now I will do for you all that you request.” Ruth 3:11

God tells us to call upon Him and He will answer us and show us great and mighty things. He says that He will hear our appeal and righteously answer it. Jesus calls on us to bring our prayers to the Father in Jesus’ name. He is our kinsman redeemer and He has promised to hear our prayers. James told the church that they “had not because they asked not, and that they had asked amiss.” (James 4:3) Ruth had asked clearly according to the word of God, and Boaz answered her with a promise of his own.

“From whence comes our help?” the psalmist asks. Then he tells us, “My help comes from the Lord.” Boaz told Ruth that she had come to the right place to receive the answer she needed. We often go to God after all other helpers fail to help. Ruth took the right course first and Boaz blessed her for proper thinking and actions. We can do the same.

Dear Father, Help us to realize from whom our true help comes. Amen.

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Who to Follow?

“Blessed are you of the Lord, for you did not go after young men, whether poor or rich.” Ruth 3:10

How many offers does the world make to us each day to tear our attention away from Christ? There are the old Greek philosophies that get recycled every generation. There are the pagan cult options from ancient Canaan that focus on sexual immorality. There are the intellectual calls from a crowd apparently too well informed to believe in God. There is the newer and dramatically demanding call of sports to consume our time, attention, and resources.

Then there is Christ, our creator, savior, and keeper. From eternity past He has loved us and calls us to faith in Him. When Ruth went to Boaz to appeal to his relationship, He responded to her with praise. There were so many other options she could have sought out, but she sought out the one that God had designed in His word as the right choice. She had chosen the kinsman redeemer. We need, like Ruth, to heed only the call of Christ for our worship and devotion.

Dear Father, Help us to keep our hearts tuned only to the call of Christ. Amen

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I Want to Be Wholly Yours

“Now when Boaz laid down to sleep, Ruth quietly laid down at his feet.” Ruth 3:9

I always tell people that my beloved bride proposed to me. And, she really did, sort of. We were at a Christian meeting and a group was singing a song that soon became common for use at weddings. As they sang, she took my hand and said, “I want that song sung at our wedding.” I consider that a true proposal. I had shown great interest in her up to that point. We had seen a lot of each other. We had even kissed (once) and now she proposed.

Ruth’s actions toward Boaz were a simple proposal. You have cared for me. You are my kinsman redeemer. I am willing to accept all the love you have shown me and would like to become your wife. This is the attitude that the Church should take every day towards Christ. We are His bride, but do we want to actually act like it? Ruth did. Here again this young woman brings home to us the true calling of our faith.

Dear Father, Help us to truly desire to act like the bride of Christ. Amen.

  The Friday Benediction

Until Monday, my friends, may the good God envelop you with His grace; may you prove the common confession of faith, “I believe in the holy Christian church and in the fellowship of the saints”, and may you be enriched with joy and hope as you exercise that confession this weekend.  Amen

 

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The Obedient Servant

“And Ruth said to Naomi, ‘All that you have said to me, I will do’.” Ruth 3:5

As always, Ruth shows herself to be the obedient servant. She served her mother-in-law by providing for her. She had daily encouraged Naomi by her steadfast willingness to glean and bring home the provision for their lives. She had obeyed Boaz in staying by his reapers. She had done what she was supposed to have done. Really, she had done nothing more than this. It seems extraordinary to us, but it was just what needed to be done. She had taken no short cuts. She had done what she should have done.

Our life of service for Christ should be modeled on Ruth’s life. She had decided to follow Naomi’s God. She had stepped out in faith to do it. She had labored hard in the harvest fields and not shirked her commitments. And here, at the end of the harvest season, she is still willing to do what she needs to do. Every pastor wishes he had a congregation of Ruths. God calls us all to be Ruth.

Dear Father, Let my life be like Ruth’s in faithful service to You. Amen  

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Unexpected Help

“Then said Naomi to Ruth, ‘Shall I not seek security for you’?” Ruth 3:1

Ruth had been Naomi’s security, her encouragement and support, since the two of them left Moab. Ruth’s profession of her commitment to Naomi had never faltered. But now the harvest season was over and there would be no more gleaning. Naomi now sees that she can be the one to make a difference for Ruth. She has a plan that will secure Ruth’s future and she has a little sit down talk with her daughter-in-law.

God’s law to the Jews was that a near kinsman must take the wife of his relative if that relative died without a child. Boaz was Ruth’s dead husband’s near kinsman and Naomi fully believed that he would be willing to be the kinsman redeemer. Naomi turns the tables on Ruth and now becomes her provider. Her broken spirit has been revived and she remembers the law of God and shares that good news to Ruth. Roles do change in our Christian lives. The supporter can often become the supported. We can rejoice in this.

Dear Father, Help me to receive comfort as well as give it. Amen.

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Finishing the Task

“So Ruth stayed by the young women of Boaz until the end of the barley and wheat harvests.” Ruth 2:23

Jesus talked finishing the task assigned to us. He likened our lives to a servant who was put in charge of others until his master came back. The servant did it for a while, but then grew tired of the task and slacked off in his work. That servant was condemned by his returning master. The tiring work of gleaning, the painful, back breaking work of gleaning, must have worn on Ruth, but she stayed the course. Season after season of hard labor did not change her mind or her intent to do what both Boaz and Naomi had told her to do.

God has given us plenty of work to do for Him. It is not easy work, or everyone would want to do it. It isn’t highly rewarding work in the world’s eyes, or everyone would want to do it. But He as called us to do it and if we are faithful servants, we will. The reward will come.

 Dear Father, Help us to not let our hearts grow faint, but to be faithful. Amen

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Refreshing News

“And Naomi said to her Ruth, ‘Blessed be he of the Lord who has not forsaken His kindness to the living and the dead’.” Ruth 2:20

A little good news can go a long way. In a world where bad news predominates, good news is as welcome as a cool drink on a hot day. It refreshes. It strengthens. It revives. Ruth’s news to Naomi about where she gleaned and in whose field she worked was the cool drink on a hot day for Naomi. She had returned to Bethlehem and wanted to be called “Mara”, or Bitter. She had seemingly lost everything. and things looked so dim that she felt abandoned by God. But she wasn’t.

God may be occasionally hidden from our clear vision, but He is never gone. That Ruth had found favor from Boaz, a near relative, was the cool drink on a hot day. God was there after all, God doesn’t forget us. We are His. That the clouds of this world sometimes obscure our eyes doesn’t change the fact that God is there. This is good news.

Dear Father, Thank You for always being there. Amen

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Fed to Feed

“So, Ruth brought out what remained of her lunch and gave it to Naomi.” Ruth 2:18

Great grace had been extended to Ruth. Abundant Grace had been given to her. She, an outcast from God’s people, had been embraced by the ancestor of Christ and welcomed into his family circle. She had feasted at his table. She had been given handsful of purpose. And what did she do with it? She shared it! That’s right. She shared it. She didn’t hide from Naomi the nearly one bushel of grain she had gleaned. She willingly shared with Naomi the food she had been given.

So here it is. The perfect picture of what our lives should be like. We should not be hoarding the grace of God for ourselves. There is a world starving for the grace of God, and we have been given it in abundance. People die in a state of spiritual hunger every day, and they pass into a hopeless eternity. We have the Bread of Life in our hands. We need to share it. God will hold us accountable if we don’t.

Dear Father, Help me share the Bread of Life with a hungry world. Amen

  The Friday Benediction

Until Monday, my friends, may the good God envelop you with His grace; may you prove the common confession of faith, “I believe in the holy Christian church and in the fellowship of the saints”, and may you be enriched with joy and hope as you exercise that confession this weekend.  Amen

 

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It Can't Get Any Better Than This

“And let fall some of the handsful of purpose for her.” (KJV) Ruth 2:16

We have arrived at my favorite verse in my favorite book of the Bible. In my book, The Gospel According to Molly, I wrote an entire chapter on this verse. This verse should bring tears to our eyes and a rush of unspeakable joy to our hearts. It is Jesus Himself saying to us, “I am leaving plenty for you, purposefully for you, food that is mine alone to give to you. I command the very angels of heaven to drop them for you.”

Boaz did not put the handsful of purpose in the bag for her. She still bent to the labor that was her assigned task. The provision was made by his grace. It became a reality as she followed his workers through the field. The apostles and prophets have given us plenty of food in God’s Word to pick up and nourish ourselves. We have no need to be hungry in body or in heart or in spirit, for God still leaves us handsful of purpose.  

Dear Father, Thank You for the generous provision You make for us. Amen.

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Come to the Feast

“Boaz said to her, ‘Come here and eat of the bread and dip it in the vinegar.” Ruth 2:14

Blessed assurance was offered by Boaz to Ruth in the form of meal with His people. He invited her to the table of fellowship and provision. At our church we have this table of fellowship and provision twice each month. It is called Holy Communion. It is where the body of Christ, the Church, is invited by Christ to take part in the feast of His Bread and His Blood. The people in the next field over were not invited. But Ruth was. She had believed Boaz’s promise and now she got to feast at His table.

I believe this passage is the first and clearest Old Testament picture of Communion. Boaz had made a generous offer to a complete stranger. Ruth had believed his offer and stayed in his field. He invited her to come and dine on his bread and vinegar which was an unleavened wine. Jesus offers the same invitation to all who believe. Come and dine.

Dear Father, Thank You for the invitation to the table of Your Son. Amen

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Blessed Assurance

“Ruth said, ‘Let me find favor in your sight, for you have comforted me’.” Ruth 2:13

Ruth accepted Boaz’s gracious invitation. She was comforted by his grace. She was refreshed by his grace. The grace of Boaz was “Abundant Grace”. Ruth’s plea was not for more grace, but for the simple assurance that what Boaz had offered he would deliver. It seems a simple request, a request that Jesus understands and gladly gives us.

In the Gospel of John, Jesus said to His disciples, “I will not leave you as orphans.” In their sorrow he offered them comforting assurance. After they abandoned Him after His arrest in the Garden, He appeared to them while they cowered in fear in the Upper Room. When He was ready to ascend into heaven He told them, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Jesus know we need assurance and He graciously gives it every day. Ruth’s request was simple, and Boaz graciously fulfilled his word. Jesus will do no less for us.

Dear Father, Thank You for the many assurances of Your grace. Amen

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Focus Is Important

“Let your eyes be on the field which they ‘my workers’ reap.” Ruth 2:9

Is staying focused hard for you? It is often hard for me. Constant demands, the needs of the day or the needs of the job, beckon me to distraction. I find myself often saying, “Now, where was I?” Ruth had to provide food for her mother and herself. She might have noticed that reapers in other fields weren’t as conscientious as the servants of Boaz. They might have been sloppy in their work and dropping lots of barley, and she saw a bigger prize, more food, in another field. But Boaz said, “Don’t look over there, stay focused.”

The world has many allurements. They appear in all places in all designs and in all temptations. “Come over here,” Satan calls. “It will be easier and more fun.” But Satan is and always has been and always will be a liar. Jesus calls us to stay steadfastly in His field following the way of His disciples as taught in His word. We don’t want to get distracted.

Dear Father, Help me to stay focused on the prize of Jesus. Amen

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