WEBVTT 00:00:00.170 --> 00:00:05.169 Our text this morning is Ruth chapter one. Ruth 00:00:05.169 --> 00:00:09.689 chapter one. It's after the book of Judges before 00:00:09.689 --> 00:00:15.949 you get to first Samuel. In the days when the 00:00:15.949 --> 00:00:19.149 judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. 00:00:19.489 --> 00:00:22.949 And a man of Bethlehem and Judah went to Sojourn 00:00:22.949 --> 00:00:26.210 in the country of Moab. He and his wife and his 00:00:26.210 --> 00:00:29.190 two sons. The name of the man was Elimelech. 00:00:29.280 --> 00:00:32.560 and the name of his wife, Naomi, and the name 00:00:32.560 --> 00:00:36.299 of his two sons were Malon and Chillion. They 00:00:36.299 --> 00:00:39.479 were Ephratites from Bethlehem and Judah. They 00:00:39.479 --> 00:00:42.119 went into the country of Moab and remained there. 00:00:42.759 --> 00:00:46.060 But Elimelech, the husband of Naomi, died, and 00:00:46.060 --> 00:00:50.799 she was left with her two sons. These took Moabite 00:00:50.799 --> 00:00:53.780 wives. The name of the one was Orpah, and the 00:00:53.780 --> 00:00:56.409 name of the other was Ruth. They lived there 00:00:56.409 --> 00:00:59.109 about 10 years in both Malon and Chile on Dine. 00:00:59.509 --> 00:01:02.250 So the woman was left without her two sons and 00:01:02.250 --> 00:01:07.590 her husband. Then she arose with her daughters 00:01:07.590 --> 00:01:09.930 -in -law to return from the country of Moab. 00:01:10.409 --> 00:01:12.510 For she had heard in the fields of Moab that 00:01:12.510 --> 00:01:15.310 the Lord had visited his people and given them 00:01:15.310 --> 00:01:19.730 food. So she set out from that place where she 00:01:19.730 --> 00:01:22.450 was with her two daughters -in -law, and they 00:01:22.450 --> 00:01:24.950 went on the way to return to the land of Judah. 00:01:25.370 --> 00:01:28.370 But Naomi said to her two daughters -in -law 00:01:28.370 --> 00:01:31.689 go return each of you to her mother's house May 00:01:31.689 --> 00:01:34.930 the Lord deal kindly with you as you have dealt 00:01:34.930 --> 00:01:37.909 with the dead and with me The Lord grant that 00:01:37.909 --> 00:01:40.849 you may find rest each of you in the house of 00:01:40.849 --> 00:01:43.930 her husband Then she kissed them and they lifted 00:01:43.930 --> 00:01:46.989 up their voices and wept and they said to her 00:01:46.989 --> 00:01:50.010 No, we will return with you to your people. But 00:01:50.010 --> 00:01:53.629 Naomi said turn back my daughters. Why will you 00:01:53.629 --> 00:01:56.920 go with me? Have I yet sons in my womb that they 00:01:56.920 --> 00:01:59.780 may become your husbands? Turn back, my daughters, 00:01:59.959 --> 00:02:03.680 go your way, for I am too old to have a husband. 00:02:04.540 --> 00:02:07.760 If I should say I have hope, even if I should 00:02:07.760 --> 00:02:10.039 have a husband this night and should bear sons, 00:02:10.520 --> 00:02:13.000 would you therefore wait till they were grown? 00:02:13.539 --> 00:02:16.360 Would you therefore refrain from marrying? No, 00:02:16.400 --> 00:02:18.960 my daughters, for it is exceedingly bitter to 00:02:18.960 --> 00:02:21.780 me for your sake that the hand of the Lord has 00:02:21.780 --> 00:02:24.819 gone out against me. Then they lifted up their 00:02:24.819 --> 00:02:27.860 voices and wept again and Orpah kissed her mother 00:02:27.860 --> 00:02:31.419 -in -law But Ruth clung to her and she said see 00:02:31.419 --> 00:02:35.120 your sister -in -law has gone back to her people 00:02:35.120 --> 00:02:38.060 and to her gods Return after your sister -in 00:02:38.060 --> 00:02:41.180 -law, but Ruth said do not urge me to leave you 00:02:41.180 --> 00:02:44.039 to return from following you For where you go, 00:02:44.060 --> 00:02:47.379 I will go and where you lodge I will lodge your 00:02:47.379 --> 00:02:50.379 people shall be my people and your God my God 00:02:50.750 --> 00:02:53.669 Where you die, I will die, and there I will be 00:02:53.669 --> 00:02:57.590 buried. May the Lord do so to me, and more also, 00:02:57.750 --> 00:03:00.389 if anything but death parts me from you. And 00:03:00.389 --> 00:03:03.050 when Naomi saw that she was determined to go 00:03:03.050 --> 00:03:07.289 with her, she said, no more. So the two of them 00:03:07.289 --> 00:03:10.349 went on until they came to Bethlehem. And when 00:03:10.349 --> 00:03:13.030 they came to Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred 00:03:13.030 --> 00:03:15.689 because of them. And the women said, is this 00:03:15.689 --> 00:03:18.629 Naomi? She said to them, do not call me Naomi, 00:03:19.229 --> 00:03:22.030 call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very 00:03:22.030 --> 00:03:25.830 bitterly with me. I went away full and the Lord 00:03:25.830 --> 00:03:28.490 has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi 00:03:28.490 --> 00:03:31.750 when the Lord has testified against me and the 00:03:31.750 --> 00:03:34.849 Almighty has brought calamity upon me? So Naomi 00:03:34.849 --> 00:03:37.090 returned and roofed the Moabite, her daughter 00:03:37.090 --> 00:03:39.409 -in -law with her, who returned from the country 00:03:39.409 --> 00:03:42.610 of Moab. And they came to Bethlehem at the beginning 00:03:42.610 --> 00:03:48.060 of barley harvest. The story of Ruth is one of 00:03:48.060 --> 00:03:51.319 great trials. And I actually want to begin this 00:03:51.319 --> 00:03:53.900 morning by having you close your eyes for just 00:03:53.900 --> 00:03:58.039 a second. And I want you to think back to a trial 00:03:58.039 --> 00:04:01.759 in your life. Maybe it was a time when you lost 00:04:01.759 --> 00:04:05.020 your job and you did not know how the Lord would 00:04:05.020 --> 00:04:08.479 provide for you. Or maybe you were facing a surgery 00:04:08.479 --> 00:04:12.860 that had many variables to it. Or maybe you had 00:04:12.860 --> 00:04:15.569 lost a home. and you did not know where you would 00:04:15.569 --> 00:04:18.910 live or your family would live, or maybe you 00:04:18.910 --> 00:04:23.149 lost someone near to you, dear to you. And I 00:04:23.149 --> 00:04:27.250 want you to think, who was there with me? What 00:04:27.250 --> 00:04:31.009 did they do? How did they act? How did they represent 00:04:31.009 --> 00:04:35.230 God in my life? And how did God work through 00:04:35.230 --> 00:04:40.050 that friend? And what did God ultimately teach 00:04:40.050 --> 00:04:44.199 you in that trial? This scenario that I just 00:04:44.199 --> 00:04:47.579 put forth is the very story of Ruth one. You 00:04:47.579 --> 00:04:51.800 may open your eyes now It's a story of much trial, 00:04:51.800 --> 00:04:54.899 but a trial that is not endured alone a trial 00:04:54.899 --> 00:05:00.339 that has a friend and So we need to examine this 00:05:00.339 --> 00:05:02.639 trial because there's much that the Lord has 00:05:02.639 --> 00:05:05.120 to teach us with it But the Lord has much to 00:05:05.120 --> 00:05:09.279 remind us with it And verses one through five 00:05:09.279 --> 00:05:13.360 will actually see that we can find God's discipline 00:05:13.360 --> 00:05:17.620 and glory in the midst of our trial. And the 00:05:17.620 --> 00:05:19.980 background of this text is actually found in 00:05:19.980 --> 00:05:23.279 verse chapter one. This text opens with a trial. 00:05:23.939 --> 00:05:26.100 And the days when the judges ruled and there 00:05:26.100 --> 00:05:29.620 was famine in the land. The days of the judges 00:05:29.620 --> 00:05:33.079 was a time of chaos. It was a time after Joshua 00:05:33.079 --> 00:05:36.180 had passed and before the coronation of Saul. 00:05:36.410 --> 00:05:39.410 It was a time that should have been prosperous, 00:05:39.470 --> 00:05:42.069 a time of Israel going forth into the promised 00:05:42.069 --> 00:05:45.410 land and being obedient to the words of God that 00:05:45.410 --> 00:05:49.689 had came through Joshua. But instead Israel began 00:05:49.689 --> 00:05:53.589 a cycle, a cycle where they fell into pagan worship 00:05:53.589 --> 00:05:57.709 and rejected God. They were fearful to go into 00:05:57.709 --> 00:06:00.569 the land that God had promised to them. And so 00:06:00.569 --> 00:06:03.149 God in the midst of this trial would hear their 00:06:03.149 --> 00:06:05.310 cries and upon hearing their cries he would be 00:06:05.310 --> 00:06:08.689 merciful and he would send them a judge. And 00:06:08.689 --> 00:06:10.509 then that judge would deliver them and bring 00:06:10.509 --> 00:06:15.529 them back to peace with God. But Ruth takes place 00:06:15.529 --> 00:06:18.810 in what's most likely the beginning of Gideon's 00:06:18.810 --> 00:06:21.720 life. Because at the beginning of the Gideon 00:06:21.720 --> 00:06:24.819 story we find that the Israelites did evil in 00:06:24.819 --> 00:06:27.360 the sight of the Lord and for seven years he 00:06:27.360 --> 00:06:30.079 gave them into the hands of the Midianites. And 00:06:30.079 --> 00:06:32.920 the Midianites destroyed the land, they ravished 00:06:32.920 --> 00:06:35.579 it. They claimed everything for themselves and 00:06:35.579 --> 00:06:38.439 they left no living thing. And so that's where 00:06:38.439 --> 00:06:42.250 we find ourselves in the story of Ruth. We see 00:06:42.250 --> 00:06:45.910 Israel's in chaos. Bethlehem, which literally 00:06:45.910 --> 00:06:48.470 means house of bread because it was a place of 00:06:48.470 --> 00:06:51.949 plenty, a place of much wheat and grain and oil 00:06:51.949 --> 00:06:56.230 and olives, was desolate. It had much famine. 00:06:57.170 --> 00:07:02.290 And we get introduced to this family of Bethlehem. 00:07:02.920 --> 00:07:06.420 And we see in verse two that they are Ephratites. 00:07:06.600 --> 00:07:09.899 So this is actually a wealthy family. The Ephratites 00:07:09.899 --> 00:07:13.360 descended from Caleb, one of the spies that Moses 00:07:13.360 --> 00:07:17.759 had sent into the land to discover it and see 00:07:17.759 --> 00:07:20.360 what was there. And Caleb was one of the godly 00:07:20.360 --> 00:07:23.680 men who encouraged the people. And so this is 00:07:23.680 --> 00:07:26.399 most likely a family of aristocrats that should 00:07:26.399 --> 00:07:30.160 be well off. But they end up going into the land 00:07:30.160 --> 00:07:35.600 of Moab. And Moab is enemy territory. The Moabites 00:07:35.600 --> 00:07:39.399 came from Lot and his daughters. They came from 00:07:39.399 --> 00:07:43.120 a sinful relationship. The Moabites were one 00:07:43.120 --> 00:07:46.040 of the main enemies that Israel faced as they 00:07:46.040 --> 00:07:51.379 came out of Egypt. The Moabite men or women in 00:07:51.379 --> 00:07:55.639 Numbers 25 seduced Israelite men and had their 00:07:55.639 --> 00:07:58.850 way with them. And Deuteronomy, the Lord says 00:07:58.850 --> 00:08:01.769 that the Moabites, in particular, are excluded 00:08:01.769 --> 00:08:05.569 from my assembly. And even at the beginning of 00:08:05.569 --> 00:08:08.430 Judges, before we get to Gideon, the Israelites 00:08:08.430 --> 00:08:12.810 were suppressed by Aglon, the king of the Moabites. 00:08:14.149 --> 00:08:16.689 And so we approach the story of Ruth beginning 00:08:16.689 --> 00:08:21.490 with a fairly detailed setting, actually, but 00:08:21.490 --> 00:08:25.259 it's a setting of much trial. And we learn that 00:08:25.259 --> 00:08:28.439 these people's names are Elimelech, whose name 00:08:28.439 --> 00:08:32.039 actually means my god is king. See, in the ancient 00:08:32.039 --> 00:08:35.340 world, names often reflected certain characteristics 00:08:35.340 --> 00:08:38.980 or personality traits of people. And so Elimelech's 00:08:38.980 --> 00:08:41.740 name, meaning my god is king, means he was most 00:08:41.740 --> 00:08:45.019 likely known for his faith. He was a man who 00:08:45.019 --> 00:08:48.419 loved God and represented God well. And then 00:08:48.419 --> 00:08:51.539 his wife, Naomi, her name means pleasantness. 00:08:52.080 --> 00:08:54.870 In the midst of trial, we find Pleasantness we 00:08:54.870 --> 00:08:57.789 find Naomi and this means that she was most likely 00:08:57.789 --> 00:09:00.830 known for her godly character as well Someone 00:09:00.830 --> 00:09:03.490 that people enjoyed being around someone that 00:09:03.490 --> 00:09:06.610 represented the love of the Lord But we have 00:09:06.610 --> 00:09:09.389 some foreshadowing and their son's names and 00:09:09.389 --> 00:09:11.970 these could be nicknames We're not exactly sure 00:09:11.970 --> 00:09:15.149 but it's the names the author has given us Maylon 00:09:15.149 --> 00:09:19.149 his name most closely Would resemble the word 00:09:19.149 --> 00:09:22.549 for sick or sickness and then Chile on his name 00:09:22.549 --> 00:09:27.029 means consumption which ironically represents 00:09:27.029 --> 00:09:29.529 exactly what's going on in this text, sickness 00:09:29.529 --> 00:09:33.490 of the land, consumption of the land, much suffering. 00:09:35.309 --> 00:09:38.309 And so this is the first phase of hardship that 00:09:38.309 --> 00:09:41.649 this family faces. And that brings us to the 00:09:41.649 --> 00:09:44.649 second trial that they will face in verses three 00:09:44.649 --> 00:09:49.110 to five. Elimelech, this godly man who seems... 00:09:48.960 --> 00:09:51.120 He would be the main character of our story. 00:09:51.600 --> 00:09:53.980 He's someone sojourning in enemy land, which 00:09:53.980 --> 00:09:57.279 should remind us of Abraham, who is in enemy 00:09:57.279 --> 00:09:59.840 land, who God provided for, who had much faith. 00:10:00.559 --> 00:10:05.279 But he ends up dying. And this might very well 00:10:05.279 --> 00:10:09.639 be the Lord's punishment for him going into enemy 00:10:09.639 --> 00:10:13.879 land and not trusting the Lord. The Lord provides, 00:10:13.919 --> 00:10:18.570 and in times of famine, he is always there. So 00:10:18.570 --> 00:10:21.769 this could be the consequence of his disobedience 00:10:21.769 --> 00:10:26.769 of taking his family into this enemy land. Now 00:10:26.769 --> 00:10:28.750 I think that's just one of the reasons that God 00:10:28.750 --> 00:10:31.450 has given this hardship. I also think it's for 00:10:31.450 --> 00:10:34.129 his glory and we'll see that as we work through 00:10:34.129 --> 00:10:38.570 the story. And so now Naomi, who was the wife 00:10:38.570 --> 00:10:43.549 of Elimelech, becomes the main character. Elimelech 00:10:43.549 --> 00:10:46.490 becomes the husband of Naomi and the sons become 00:10:46.490 --> 00:10:50.269 her sons. And so now we know that we're going 00:10:50.269 --> 00:10:52.710 to follow Naomi through the story and we're going 00:10:52.710 --> 00:10:55.350 to see her as she faces her hardship and she 00:10:55.350 --> 00:10:59.570 faces these trials. But there's actually a blessing 00:10:59.570 --> 00:11:04.049 of sorts in these trials. There is a wedding, 00:11:04.149 --> 00:11:07.789 two weddings actually, both of her sons get married. 00:11:08.370 --> 00:11:12.450 One of them marries Orpa and another marries 00:11:12.450 --> 00:11:17.850 Ruth. And both. Orpah's name and Ruth will come 00:11:17.850 --> 00:11:20.769 into play as we go through this story, as we 00:11:20.769 --> 00:11:23.389 go through this piece of history. And so there's 00:11:23.389 --> 00:11:26.389 this sense of blessing that they have, a sense 00:11:26.389 --> 00:11:30.190 of peace, and this lasts for 10 years. They dwell 00:11:30.190 --> 00:11:33.389 in this land without a limelight, and Naomi with 00:11:33.389 --> 00:11:36.529 the safety of her sons, they dwell in this foreign 00:11:36.529 --> 00:11:40.389 land. But there's even a sense of hardship even 00:11:40.389 --> 00:11:43.539 within this blessing. within the trial, another 00:11:43.539 --> 00:11:45.539 trial within the trial and within the blessing. 00:11:46.860 --> 00:11:50.720 There's no children. Part of marriage is children 00:11:50.720 --> 00:11:53.700 and God does not bless them with children. Now 00:11:53.700 --> 00:11:55.759 in the Old Testament, well throughout scripture 00:11:55.759 --> 00:11:59.500 actually, the lack of children tends to mean 00:11:59.500 --> 00:12:01.840 something. And it could mean that there needs 00:12:01.840 --> 00:12:05.299 to be a growing of faith. Like in the story of 00:12:05.299 --> 00:12:07.320 Hannah when she was barren and she prayed and 00:12:07.320 --> 00:12:10.399 the Lord gave her Samuel. who's the main character 00:12:10.399 --> 00:12:13.559 immediately following Ruth. But it could also 00:12:13.559 --> 00:12:16.940 be a sign of judgment. Michael, one of David's 00:12:16.940 --> 00:12:20.919 wives, and Samuel as he dances through the streets 00:12:20.919 --> 00:12:24.519 tells him to stop. And for the rest of her life, 00:12:24.779 --> 00:12:28.740 she was barren. And so there's more trial that's 00:12:28.740 --> 00:12:32.659 maybe self -inflicted here again. But again, 00:12:32.740 --> 00:12:34.480 this also could have a dual meaning. There's 00:12:34.480 --> 00:12:40.179 judgment, yet it's a way to grow faith. And this 00:12:40.179 --> 00:12:43.039 trial and hardship brings us to a third hardship, 00:12:43.200 --> 00:12:46.899 a third trial within this trial. This is a time 00:12:46.899 --> 00:12:50.740 of many trials within the lives of Israel. Naomi, 00:12:50.820 --> 00:12:54.000 who has left her land, who has lost her husband, 00:12:54.440 --> 00:13:00.580 now will lose her sons. Her sons die, and now 00:13:00.580 --> 00:13:03.100 her daughters -in -law join her in her widowhood. 00:13:03.659 --> 00:13:07.000 And they are stuck in this land of enemies. They 00:13:07.000 --> 00:13:09.860 are stuck in a land that was believed to be ruled 00:13:09.860 --> 00:13:13.799 over by a god of war, Kimosh, the main Moabite 00:13:13.799 --> 00:13:16.399 deity who actually required child sacrifice. 00:13:17.000 --> 00:13:21.720 And it's a foreign land. So Naomi, in this time, 00:13:21.879 --> 00:13:27.159 would have faced great depression, a great sense 00:13:27.159 --> 00:13:31.350 of loss. And we do not know exactly how much 00:13:31.350 --> 00:13:33.889 of this was self -inflicted and how much of it 00:13:33.889 --> 00:13:36.450 is the will of God or even how much of it is 00:13:36.450 --> 00:13:39.429 just facing a sinful world, living in a sinful 00:13:39.429 --> 00:13:44.429 world. But Naomi feels how all of us have felt 00:13:44.429 --> 00:13:47.769 at some point in our life. She feels hopeless, 00:13:47.809 --> 00:13:50.990 she feels abandoned. She has no husband to provide 00:13:50.990 --> 00:13:53.169 for her any longer or children to provide for 00:13:53.169 --> 00:13:56.090 her. This was a male -dominated society where 00:13:56.090 --> 00:13:58.759 if there was no man, you had no protection, you 00:13:58.759 --> 00:14:01.779 had no way to provide for yourself or for your 00:14:01.779 --> 00:14:04.960 family. There was no husband or children to protect 00:14:04.960 --> 00:14:08.259 her from the thieves and bandits that roamed 00:14:08.259 --> 00:14:11.360 the streets or for the lions and the tigers and 00:14:11.360 --> 00:14:14.620 the bears, oh my, that threatened her every day 00:14:14.620 --> 00:14:17.980 in the wilderness, in the fields where she would 00:14:17.980 --> 00:14:22.080 have been vulnerable. I know that we all have 00:14:22.080 --> 00:14:24.940 felt this way at some point in our lives. We 00:14:24.940 --> 00:14:27.519 feel hopeless, we see much loss, and maybe it 00:14:27.519 --> 00:14:30.139 was a time that should have been plentiful, just 00:14:30.139 --> 00:14:32.340 like the time of judges. It's a time that should 00:14:32.340 --> 00:14:35.639 have been plentiful, but it was filled with many 00:14:35.639 --> 00:14:39.159 trials. I know for myself this time actually 00:14:39.159 --> 00:14:42.799 happened as I graduated college. I faced a great 00:14:42.799 --> 00:14:45.720 trial in my faith as the system, what I believed, 00:14:46.159 --> 00:14:48.720 how scripture was structured was broken apart. 00:14:49.359 --> 00:14:52.500 I believed Israel was essential to the people 00:14:52.500 --> 00:14:55.259 of God and even to this church today. But that 00:14:55.259 --> 00:14:58.080 was slowly broken apart. And I realized that 00:14:58.080 --> 00:15:00.820 Jesus is the true Israel and He embodies everything. 00:15:02.200 --> 00:15:04.779 And that was a big deal because as you graduate 00:15:04.779 --> 00:15:06.759 college, especially as a man, you're looking 00:15:06.759 --> 00:15:09.340 into your full -time job. What are you going 00:15:09.340 --> 00:15:12.340 to do for the rest of your life? And I had desired 00:15:12.340 --> 00:15:15.120 to do ministry. And you cannot do ministry well 00:15:15.120 --> 00:15:17.960 if your system of faith is being slowly broken 00:15:17.960 --> 00:15:21.830 apart. And so I did something that I did not 00:15:21.830 --> 00:15:24.090 want to do, and I returned to my homeland. I 00:15:24.090 --> 00:15:28.889 did the opposite of Ruth and Naomi. I went back 00:15:28.889 --> 00:15:31.389 home, but this was not where I wanted to be. 00:15:31.850 --> 00:15:34.350 I wanted to be somewhere doing full -time ministry, 00:15:34.590 --> 00:15:37.230 praying and worshiping with people, but I was 00:15:37.230 --> 00:15:41.149 driven into a spiritual wilderness where I did 00:15:41.149 --> 00:15:45.049 not understand confidently what I once thought 00:15:45.049 --> 00:15:49.179 I understood confidently. And so a time where 00:15:49.179 --> 00:15:51.259 I thought I'd be coming into my manhood, into 00:15:51.259 --> 00:15:53.779 everything that the Lord had for me, it was taken 00:15:53.779 --> 00:15:57.340 away or at least it felt like this. But thankfully, 00:15:57.340 --> 00:15:59.779 I found friendship and that's actually what we 00:15:59.779 --> 00:16:02.700 see in verses six through 18 of Ruth chapter 00:16:02.700 --> 00:16:06.480 one. Finding friendship in the midst of trials. 00:16:07.919 --> 00:16:10.919 Naomi, this hardship seems like it's going to 00:16:10.919 --> 00:16:13.299 end. She's in the fields and she's working and 00:16:13.299 --> 00:16:16.139 as she's working, she actually hears good news 00:16:16.139 --> 00:16:19.269 from Israel. that the Lord has shown them mercy 00:16:19.269 --> 00:16:22.409 is grace. We have no record of Israel's repentance, 00:16:22.789 --> 00:16:25.350 but we do know that there is a blessing that 00:16:25.350 --> 00:16:28.529 the Lord is pouring out. Bethlehem, the house 00:16:28.529 --> 00:16:31.169 of bread, is now filled with grain again. It's 00:16:31.169 --> 00:16:33.350 filled with wheat again, everything that Israel 00:16:33.350 --> 00:16:37.190 needs to end this trial, to bring them out of 00:16:37.190 --> 00:16:41.669 this famine. And so Naomi rightfully wants to 00:16:41.669 --> 00:16:43.769 go home. She wants to go back to her people. 00:16:43.919 --> 00:16:46.460 They were sojourners in the land of Moab. They 00:16:46.460 --> 00:16:49.580 were meant to be temporary residents. They always 00:16:49.580 --> 00:16:52.700 wanted to go back home. She wants to be back 00:16:52.700 --> 00:16:54.879 with her friends and with any relatives that 00:16:54.879 --> 00:16:59.419 she has left. But her family in Moab does not 00:16:59.419 --> 00:17:02.419 abandon her. Orpah and Ruth and Naomi actually 00:17:02.419 --> 00:17:07.359 take off towards the land of Judah. And as they 00:17:07.359 --> 00:17:11.000 get to the edge of Judah, or the edge of Moab, 00:17:11.180 --> 00:17:16.420 sorry, Naomi stops, maybe sits them down, and 00:17:16.420 --> 00:17:21.519 she begins to make a plea to Ruth and Orpah. 00:17:22.140 --> 00:17:25.440 She makes a plea that they should return home. 00:17:26.740 --> 00:17:29.099 Go, return each of you to your mother's house. 00:17:29.500 --> 00:17:31.660 May the Lord deal kindly with you as you have 00:17:31.660 --> 00:17:35.619 dealt with the dead and with me. Naomi tells 00:17:35.619 --> 00:17:37.299 them to return to their mother's house, which 00:17:37.299 --> 00:17:40.400 is a very interesting phrase in Scripture, actually. 00:17:40.519 --> 00:17:43.240 Normally in Scripture, when someone's told to 00:17:43.240 --> 00:17:45.339 return, they're told to return to their father's 00:17:45.339 --> 00:17:49.299 house. It's a place of provision and protection 00:17:49.299 --> 00:17:55.140 and family. But the word of your mother's house 00:17:55.140 --> 00:17:57.599 only occurs a couple other times in Scripture. 00:17:58.180 --> 00:18:01.619 And primarily in the Song of Solomon, where a 00:18:01.619 --> 00:18:04.799 wife waits for her husband to come and take her 00:18:04.799 --> 00:18:08.309 to his dwelling, to his house. And so Naomi is 00:18:08.309 --> 00:18:10.970 telling them to go home and do what a woman should 00:18:10.970 --> 00:18:14.609 do. Go and find a husband. Go and find safety 00:18:14.609 --> 00:18:17.529 for yourself. This is not an unreasonable plea. 00:18:17.670 --> 00:18:20.809 It would seem to be the wise thing for the daughters 00:18:20.809 --> 00:18:23.410 to go and do. They were Moabites. They would 00:18:23.410 --> 00:18:27.289 not have been readily welcomed in Israel. And 00:18:27.289 --> 00:18:29.250 so they should go back to their people, go back 00:18:29.250 --> 00:18:32.390 to their mother's house and find a husband. And 00:18:32.390 --> 00:18:35.529 Naomi actually gives them a blessing. She says, 00:18:35.690 --> 00:18:39.730 may the Lord deal kindly with you. And this kindness 00:18:39.730 --> 00:18:42.490 is the word hesed. I've mentioned it before. 00:18:43.109 --> 00:18:46.130 It's a word of covenantal love. It addresses 00:18:46.130 --> 00:18:50.029 everything that God is. It addresses his being, 00:18:50.569 --> 00:18:53.950 his safety, his love, his grace, his mercy, his 00:18:53.950 --> 00:18:57.289 full kindness. And Naomi's giving this blessing 00:18:57.289 --> 00:19:00.880 to Moabite women, to foreign enemies. And I think 00:19:00.880 --> 00:19:04.039 Naomi really does believe in the Lord and trust 00:19:04.039 --> 00:19:07.200 that the Lord will show them kindness, will provide 00:19:07.200 --> 00:19:12.220 for them because these daughters -in -law actually 00:19:12.220 --> 00:19:15.240 showed her this kind of hesed, this kind of love 00:19:15.240 --> 00:19:18.359 that comes from their inmost being. They dealt 00:19:18.359 --> 00:19:21.059 kindly with her. They never abandoned her. They 00:19:21.059 --> 00:19:23.099 stayed beside her. They even had traveled with 00:19:23.099 --> 00:19:28.180 her for miles as she began leaving Moab and was 00:19:28.180 --> 00:19:31.480 returning home. And so she asked that the Lord 00:19:31.480 --> 00:19:35.660 give his grace as they have given theirs. And 00:19:35.660 --> 00:19:38.720 that they should find rest in the house of their 00:19:38.720 --> 00:19:43.059 husband. And she does what any of us do when 00:19:43.059 --> 00:19:45.220 we're leaving someone or maybe saying a final 00:19:45.220 --> 00:19:48.859 goodbye. Naomi kisses them. And this becomes 00:19:48.859 --> 00:19:51.920 a moment of great sorrow as they weep together 00:19:51.920 --> 00:19:54.019 and cry together and they recall all that they 00:19:54.019 --> 00:19:59.039 have been through together. And these daughters 00:19:59.039 --> 00:20:02.380 now, we see some of their friendship come into 00:20:02.380 --> 00:20:06.599 play. They respond quickly, no, we will not return, 00:20:07.700 --> 00:20:12.539 or we will return with you to your people. They 00:20:12.539 --> 00:20:15.099 sound like many disciples that Jesus found in 00:20:15.099 --> 00:20:18.180 the New Testament. Lord, I want to follow you, 00:20:18.180 --> 00:20:20.819 I want to go with you, and I will go with you. 00:20:21.480 --> 00:20:25.119 And the question now is, will they go with her? 00:20:25.609 --> 00:20:28.509 Will they be like Peter? And in a moment of great 00:20:28.509 --> 00:20:31.369 confidence, they actually speak rashly, and they 00:20:31.369 --> 00:20:36.630 end up rejecting her. And so we see a response 00:20:36.630 --> 00:20:41.190 of Naomi to their response. Naomi begins reasoning 00:20:41.190 --> 00:20:45.309 again, trying to give them wisdom again, and 00:20:45.309 --> 00:20:49.369 she begins asking them questions. You know, why 00:20:49.369 --> 00:20:52.049 should you go with me? You have no reason. There's 00:20:52.049 --> 00:20:55.819 no family I have that you can marry. My people 00:20:55.819 --> 00:20:58.140 are not your people. My land is not your land. 00:20:58.220 --> 00:21:02.819 You're our enemies. So turn back and go." And 00:21:02.819 --> 00:21:06.220 then she makes a hyperbolic statement of, even 00:21:06.220 --> 00:21:09.339 if I could find a husband, I'm too old to have 00:21:09.339 --> 00:21:11.619 children, it would take a miracle for me to conceive 00:21:11.619 --> 00:21:15.839 again. But even if I did conceive again, you 00:21:15.839 --> 00:21:18.940 would not want to wait. They would have to wait 00:21:18.940 --> 00:21:22.779 18, 20 years before the husbands would be marriageable 00:21:22.779 --> 00:21:26.210 material. And at that point, Ruth and Orpah would 00:21:26.210 --> 00:21:28.849 face their own barrenness. They would not be 00:21:28.849 --> 00:21:32.369 able to have kids, to have children. Their legacy 00:21:32.369 --> 00:21:37.349 would cease to exist. And so Naomi is asking 00:21:37.349 --> 00:21:39.309 them question after question, trying to get them 00:21:39.309 --> 00:21:42.089 to realize that the most reasonable thing for 00:21:42.089 --> 00:21:44.829 them to do is go back home, to go back to their 00:21:44.829 --> 00:21:47.230 people. It's the safest thing for them to do. 00:21:48.559 --> 00:21:51.019 And Naomi actually sounds like Paul in First 00:21:51.019 --> 00:21:53.900 Timothy, who says it's wise for widows to be 00:21:53.900 --> 00:21:56.920 married, to remarry, because it's a place of 00:21:56.920 --> 00:22:00.400 protection. It's a place of safety, a place where 00:22:00.400 --> 00:22:04.539 you're provided for. And with Naomi, it comes 00:22:04.539 --> 00:22:08.460 with a blessing of the Lord. It's a very, it's 00:22:08.460 --> 00:22:11.880 an awesome and the most literal sense of the 00:22:11.880 --> 00:22:14.299 word moment that Naomi has given to them. Go 00:22:14.299 --> 00:22:17.940 back to safety, but don't go back. as a pagan 00:22:17.940 --> 00:22:21.200 woman, go back with the blessing of the Lord. 00:22:23.119 --> 00:22:26.940 And then we return to these girls. We need to 00:22:26.940 --> 00:22:29.299 see their response. They have already responded 00:22:29.299 --> 00:22:31.599 once with boldness that we will not go back. 00:22:32.140 --> 00:22:34.500 What do they ultimately do? Do they prove faithful 00:22:34.500 --> 00:22:38.380 or do they prove to break what they said, what 00:22:38.380 --> 00:22:44.049 they pledged? And what we see is two different 00:22:44.049 --> 00:22:49.650 reactions. We see a split reaction. Oprah, or 00:22:49.650 --> 00:22:54.329 Orpa, goes back to her people. She kisses Naomi. 00:22:54.430 --> 00:22:58.009 She returns this goodbye kiss, this goodbye farewell 00:22:58.009 --> 00:23:02.109 well, and she goes back. She listens to this 00:23:02.109 --> 00:23:05.049 wisdom of Naomi, and she goes to the place of 00:23:05.049 --> 00:23:10.730 safety. But Ruth, whose name actually means friendship, 00:23:11.779 --> 00:23:17.019 clings to Naomi. She holds fast to her. She grabs 00:23:17.019 --> 00:23:23.119 her and does not let her go. And so Naomi tries, 00:23:23.480 --> 00:23:27.480 one more time, to tell Ruth. She uses peer pressure 00:23:27.480 --> 00:23:30.359 this time. Ruth, look at your sister -in -law. 00:23:30.500 --> 00:23:33.079 Look at your family. She's going back to her 00:23:33.079 --> 00:23:35.819 people. And not just her people, but her gods. 00:23:36.299 --> 00:23:42.200 She's going back to be a Moabite. She's doing 00:23:42.200 --> 00:23:45.460 what's easy, what makes the most sense. You should 00:23:45.460 --> 00:23:52.440 go with her. And Ruth now responds to Naomi's 00:23:52.440 --> 00:23:55.480 plea with her own plea. She says, do not urge 00:23:55.480 --> 00:23:58.799 me to leave you or to return from following you. 00:23:59.680 --> 00:24:02.619 And then Ruth follows it up with one of the best 00:24:02.619 --> 00:24:05.380 statements in all of scripture. For where you 00:24:05.380 --> 00:24:08.720 go, I will go. Where you lodge, I will lodge. 00:24:08.880 --> 00:24:11.579 Your people shall be my people, and your God 00:24:11.579 --> 00:24:14.720 my God. Where you die, I will die, and there 00:24:14.720 --> 00:24:18.359 I will be buried. May the Lord do so to me, and 00:24:18.359 --> 00:24:21.599 more also, if anything but death parts me from 00:24:21.599 --> 00:24:26.480 you." Ruth says that she's going to follow Naomi 00:24:26.480 --> 00:24:29.700 to the ends of the earth. Wherever Naomi lays 00:24:29.700 --> 00:24:32.420 her head at night, Ruth will be there lying down 00:24:32.420 --> 00:24:36.420 next to her. I will forsake my people. I will 00:24:36.420 --> 00:24:40.079 let them go. My identity as a Moabite is dead 00:24:40.079 --> 00:24:43.619 to me and I'm now an Israelite. And I will worship 00:24:43.619 --> 00:24:47.599 your God as you worship. And in this moment, 00:24:47.619 --> 00:24:50.799 I think we begin to see Ruth's faith in the God 00:24:50.799 --> 00:24:53.900 of Israel. Maybe she had heard the many stories 00:24:53.900 --> 00:24:57.839 of Joshua and the conquest, the capturing of 00:24:57.839 --> 00:25:00.900 this foreign land. She probably saw it firsthand 00:25:00.900 --> 00:25:05.460 as a Moabite even. as the kingdom began to fall 00:25:05.460 --> 00:25:10.019 apart after the death of Aglon. And so she ties 00:25:10.019 --> 00:25:14.059 herself to Naomi. In almost a wedding ceremony, 00:25:15.680 --> 00:25:19.720 since she says, my family is now with your family. 00:25:20.200 --> 00:25:22.079 Now this is not an actual wedding, but it's that 00:25:22.079 --> 00:25:26.579 sense of two families becoming one. They're merging 00:25:26.579 --> 00:25:29.740 into one. And that is what Ruth is doing here. 00:25:30.960 --> 00:25:35.140 And Ruth, goes so far to not just make the statement, 00:25:35.779 --> 00:25:39.559 but she actually invokes the covenant curses 00:25:39.559 --> 00:25:42.400 of the Lord. May the Lord do so to me, and more 00:25:42.400 --> 00:25:45.779 also, if anything but death parts me from you. 00:25:46.380 --> 00:25:49.480 Ruth, as she was making the statement, calling 00:25:49.480 --> 00:25:52.220 out on the covenant of the Lord that she would 00:25:52.220 --> 00:25:56.160 follow the God of Israel and become an Israelite, 00:25:56.519 --> 00:25:59.900 was most likely. dragging her thumb across her 00:25:59.900 --> 00:26:02.440 throat showing the cutting of the covenant that 00:26:02.440 --> 00:26:06.539 we saw in Abraham where animals were placed up 00:26:06.539 --> 00:26:08.859 and the Lord passed before them making a covenant. 00:26:09.259 --> 00:26:12.119 This was a normal covenantal ritual where animals 00:26:12.119 --> 00:26:15.160 were killed and placed and a person would walk 00:26:15.160 --> 00:26:17.700 through it signifying the making of a covenant. 00:26:18.559 --> 00:26:22.019 Ruth is pointing to this and Ruth says that if 00:26:22.019 --> 00:26:24.160 I break this covenant that I am making with you 00:26:24.160 --> 00:26:28.279 today and with the Lord may he kill me. May I 00:26:28.279 --> 00:26:36.900 face the consequences for my own sin." And Ruth 00:26:36.900 --> 00:26:41.640 models what a true disciple looks like and a 00:26:41.640 --> 00:26:45.539 true friend. See, I myself in my own trial needed 00:26:45.539 --> 00:26:49.019 friends. As I was lost and the world felt like 00:26:49.019 --> 00:26:51.319 chaos and even my faith felt like chaos to some 00:26:51.319 --> 00:26:55.519 degree, God gave me two friends. One named Conrad 00:26:55.519 --> 00:26:59.380 who I met actually on a Facebook group who diligently 00:26:59.380 --> 00:27:01.839 as a brother in Christ actually would text me 00:27:01.839 --> 00:27:04.500 daily and was willing to answer any question 00:27:04.500 --> 00:27:08.140 I had. And then another pastor, Pastor Bruce 00:27:08.140 --> 00:27:11.259 came alongside me and we met weekly to talk about 00:27:11.259 --> 00:27:13.779 scripture and about the Westminster Confession 00:27:13.779 --> 00:27:17.579 so that I could find peace in my soul. And I 00:27:17.579 --> 00:27:20.940 do not know what I would have done if it was 00:27:20.940 --> 00:27:23.470 without those friends. They showed me Christ, 00:27:23.490 --> 00:27:26.089 they showed me his love, and they ended some 00:27:26.089 --> 00:27:29.430 of my confusion. Just like Ruth has done here, 00:27:29.769 --> 00:27:32.849 she has been a faithful friend to Naomi. She 00:27:32.849 --> 00:27:36.029 becomes family with her. She represents God to 00:27:36.029 --> 00:27:41.329 her throughout this text. She is a faithful disciple. 00:27:42.950 --> 00:27:45.750 And thankfully, Naomi at this point is wise enough 00:27:45.750 --> 00:27:49.930 to shut her own mouth. And her and Ruth begin 00:27:49.930 --> 00:27:52.799 their journey again. They take off towards the 00:27:52.799 --> 00:27:57.539 land of Israel. And then they end up finding 00:27:57.539 --> 00:28:00.700 hope, finding peace in the midst of the trial 00:28:00.700 --> 00:28:05.900 in verses 19 through 22. They begin walking into 00:28:05.900 --> 00:28:09.880 the main town of Bethlehem, a town that is now 00:28:09.880 --> 00:28:14.799 prosperous. It's a time of harvest. Naomi and 00:28:14.799 --> 00:28:17.180 her family left in a time of trial and a time 00:28:17.180 --> 00:28:20.079 of desolation, but are now returning at a time 00:28:20.079 --> 00:28:22.759 of great rejoicing and of great praise and of 00:28:22.759 --> 00:28:27.299 great plenty. And as they get into the town of 00:28:27.299 --> 00:28:29.500 Bethlehem, her friends begin to recognize her, 00:28:29.539 --> 00:28:32.900 her family begins to recognize her. Is that Naomi? 00:28:34.019 --> 00:28:36.259 See, Naomi at this point would have looked greatly 00:28:36.259 --> 00:28:40.440 different. It's been at least 10 years. And maybe 00:28:40.440 --> 00:28:43.380 15 or 20, we don't exactly have the full timeline, 00:28:43.460 --> 00:28:46.480 but we know for a fact it was at least 10 years. 00:28:46.500 --> 00:28:49.200 She has aged. And not just aged, in the midst 00:28:49.200 --> 00:28:52.640 of sorrow her body had changed. Her face that 00:28:52.640 --> 00:28:55.460 was once pleasant is now maybe drooping and filled 00:28:55.460 --> 00:28:59.619 with sorrow. And she's hard to recognize. And 00:28:59.619 --> 00:29:02.799 as women begin to call out for Naomi, it actually 00:29:02.799 --> 00:29:05.519 stirs up the whole town. It's a great celebration 00:29:05.519 --> 00:29:10.819 as she comes back. But Naomi stuck in her own 00:29:10.819 --> 00:29:17.819 sin in her own Flawed faith Rejects them calling 00:29:17.819 --> 00:29:20.599 her pleasant. She does not want to be called 00:29:20.599 --> 00:29:23.160 pleasant. She wants to be called bitter She wants 00:29:23.160 --> 00:29:27.440 to be called Mara Because the Lord the Almighty 00:29:27.440 --> 00:29:31.680 has dealt bitterly with me See Naomi, we know 00:29:31.680 --> 00:29:35.119 Naomi has faith She sees God's sovereignty, not 00:29:35.119 --> 00:29:37.339 just in the good and the blessings in her life, 00:29:37.599 --> 00:29:40.980 but even in these moments, she knows that the 00:29:40.980 --> 00:29:45.900 Lord is in control. But she has forgotten his 00:29:45.900 --> 00:29:48.940 grace. She has forgotten that God is sovereign 00:29:48.940 --> 00:29:51.700 and has much grace, that he is all powerful, 00:29:51.700 --> 00:29:55.119 but he has compassion, that he does judge us 00:29:55.119 --> 00:29:57.720 for our sins, but it's only for a time because 00:29:57.720 --> 00:30:02.200 he has great mercy for us. But nonetheless, she 00:30:02.200 --> 00:30:06.079 does recognize the Lord's hand in this. She says 00:30:06.079 --> 00:30:08.700 that she went away full, she went away with family. 00:30:09.420 --> 00:30:11.240 That's what the word full means there, that she 00:30:11.240 --> 00:30:14.539 went away with a full household. But the Lord 00:30:14.539 --> 00:30:17.700 has brought her back empty. I wonder what Ruth 00:30:17.700 --> 00:30:20.799 was thinking in this moment. Did I not just maybe 00:30:20.799 --> 00:30:23.759 a couple days ago tell you that I am now your 00:30:23.759 --> 00:30:27.460 family, your people are mine? But she stays silent. 00:30:27.500 --> 00:30:31.380 The story is not focused on Ruth right now. It's 00:30:31.380 --> 00:30:36.880 focused on this flawed faith of Naomi. But this 00:30:36.880 --> 00:30:40.299 trial, and this is why I say that I don't think 00:30:40.299 --> 00:30:42.799 that the trial that Naomi faced in this time, 00:30:42.819 --> 00:30:45.140 or even in our own trials, that's just because 00:30:45.140 --> 00:30:47.880 of our sin. It's because as we go through the 00:30:47.880 --> 00:30:50.839 whole story of Ruth, we'll see that it's ultimately 00:30:50.839 --> 00:30:54.660 to the glory of God. Ruth finds a husband in 00:30:54.660 --> 00:31:00.079 an Israelite man. Ruth ends up being in the family 00:31:00.079 --> 00:31:04.329 line of Jesus. She's marked out in his lineage. 00:31:05.390 --> 00:31:08.329 She's marked out to the greatest blessing of 00:31:08.329 --> 00:31:15.930 all. And what we learn from this is that it's 00:31:15.930 --> 00:31:19.029 ultimately not the end when God is our friend 00:31:19.029 --> 00:31:23.309 and when God sends us a friend, we have the greatest 00:31:23.309 --> 00:31:27.329 friend of all. We have a man named Jesus who, 00:31:27.329 --> 00:31:32.339 again, Ruth was in line for. He died for us. 00:31:32.579 --> 00:31:35.859 He sacrificed for us when we were not his friends, 00:31:35.859 --> 00:31:39.359 when we were his enemies, when we were the Moabites 00:31:39.359 --> 00:31:45.180 to the true Israelite. Christ died for us. And 00:31:45.180 --> 00:31:47.480 he will not always discipline us. He disciplines 00:31:47.480 --> 00:31:50.220 us for a time that we can learn his ultimate 00:31:50.220 --> 00:31:53.000 love and we can learn to walk in his footsteps. 00:31:53.980 --> 00:31:57.440 And so we should not be like Naomi where we allow 00:31:57.440 --> 00:32:00.200 in the midst of trial to become lost in our sorrow. 00:32:00.380 --> 00:32:03.720 And even to try to push away friendships that 00:32:03.720 --> 00:32:06.180 the Lord has brought to us, we should embrace 00:32:06.180 --> 00:32:08.819 them and allow the Lord to work in our lives 00:32:08.819 --> 00:32:11.539 in the midst of trial. And we should remember 00:32:11.539 --> 00:32:14.319 his mercy and remember his grace and ask him 00:32:14.319 --> 00:32:18.579 for his help. We are never without a friend because 00:32:18.579 --> 00:32:22.119 we have a friend in Jesus. Let us pray.