kayte
Jun 18th 2004, 04:02 PM
Ruth part 11
Chapter Eleven
Worship Springs Forth
Ruth 4:11(a): And all the people who were at the gate, and the elders said, "We are witnesses.”
When a person comes to Christ seeking redemption it is a private matter--whether it's done alone in the middle of the night or in a church with ten thousand people present. The business between God and a man or woman takes place inside where no other eyes can see.
Many have made public professions of faith, wanting to please people, but have never had that private meeting with God.
How are we to tell if someone has been redeemed or if they are simply public professors?
By the results we see… "We are witnesses."
When a person comes to Jesus asking Him to redeem them, Jesus' love and acceptance of that person brings about a radical change. Just as in the marriage of Boaz and Ruth… so is the change in our relationship with the Lord.
When a man and woman make their vows to one another it is usually said publicly. But the importance, the hugeness of the declaration is in the heart.
Witnesses see the outward change.
The man and woman immediately live together. They begin working together. And they discover new things about each other. They learn how to serve one another and consult each other in the daily matters of life. They give up things for each other and take on new responsibilities.
Those are some of the things that witnesses can see.
So it is in our relationships with the Lord.
We suddenly live with Him. We begin working with Him instead of against Him. All the while discovering new things about Him. We learn how to serve Him. We consult Him daily. We give up things for Him and we take on new responsibilities.
In Ephesians 5:25 the Lord tells husbands to “love their wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for it.”
The Lord doesn't instruct wives to love their husbands. Why not?
Because when a man loves his wife with that kind of love she can't help but respond in love.
When we know how Jesus loves us, it is a deep need of our hearts to love Him in return.
1 John 4:19 "We love Him because He first loved us.
Witnesses can see the inside to a degree. They can see if there is abundant love, affection and nurturing in a marriage. They can see if there is harshness, selfishness and bitterness.
When people witness your personal relationship with God, what do they see?
Ruth 4:11(b): The Lord make the woman who is coming to your house like Rachel and Leah, the two who built the house of Israel; and may you prosper in Ephrathah and be famous in Bethlehem.
When Boaz married Ruth there was a shift in her standing in the community. Boaz has redeemed her and we don't find the witnesses murmuring about what Ruth was before. (You know what I mean don't you? Saying things like...did you see her when she first came to town? Oy vey! What a mess she was! You know I heard about some of the things those Moabite women do… wonder if she still does those things… hmmm, Boaz could have done so much better. Why just look at my daughter!)
Rather, we see them rejoicing with Ruth about who she is now! Encouraging, accepting and blessing her as one of their own '…like Rachel and Leah…' the mothers of Israel.
Our words are so important. They either build up or they tear down.
This is a major change from referring to her as Ruth the Moabitess. The witnesses recognize that she has been grafted into the nation of Israel, the chosen people. Her past is not important.
Verse 12: May your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, because of the offspring which the Lord will give you from this young woman.
Boaz is from the tribe of Judah.
Fascinating little story about Judah. Remember he married a Canaanite woman named Shua. They had three unruly, ungodly sons, Er, Onan and Shelah.
In Genesis 38 Judah took Tamar to be Er's wife, but Er was so wicked that the Lord killed him. (This was one really, really bad guy! Was 'Er' short for 'Error'?) When Er died Judah sent Onan in to Tamar to marry her and raise up a son to Er. But Onan refused to be a kinsman redeemer to Tamar.
So the Lord killed him too.
Instead of acknowledging the wickedness of his sons and repenting, Judah blamed Tamar. He refused to give his son Shelah to be her kinsman redeemer. He publicly disgraced her and sent her back to her father's house a childless widow. (Would you want to be sitting very close to Judah? I'm looking around for lightning bolts here!)
The Lord, however, wasn't about to let the tribe of Judah disappear. God had a plan that would prevail. His only begotten Son, The Great Kinsman Redeemer would come through the lineage of Judah.
And God in His grace used Tamar to see His Eternal plan fulfilled.
Judah did not know the heart of God, nor understand His ways. It is so comforting to know that God will work out His plan with us… or without us.
Judah had not taught his sons the ways of God and therefore God's plan hung by a thread. That is, the Thread of Redemption which is woven through history from Adam to Noah to Abraham to Isaac, to Judah to Perez, to Salmon who married Rahab (a Jerichoan Canaanite), to Boaz who married Ruth (the Moabitess.)
Salmon and Rahab knew God and taught their son well. Their marriage and devotion to God prepared Boaz to receive Ruth as his wife. Imagine the welcoming arms of Rahab to her daughter-
in-law! Boaz had been prepared from childhood to become Ruth's kinsman redeemer by his parent's reflection of God.
Verse 13-16: So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife; and when he went in to her, the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son.
Then the women said to Naomi, "Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a near kinsman; and may his name be famous in Israel!
“And may he be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, who is better to you than seven sons, has borne him."
“Blessed be the Lord, who has not left us without a Kinsman Redeemer. May His name be known throughout all the earth! May He be to you a restorer of life and the nourisher of your soul.”
Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her bosom, and became a nurse to Him.
God has worked. Life has been brought out of death.
The witnesses have confirmed and encouraged.
Naomi is restored. The Lord has renewed her and given her service. She is needed. Naomi takes the child to her heart and loves him as a grandson.
God has put in each of us a heart that can respond to need. When we reach out to someone else it can work the miracle of getting our eyes off our poor pitiful selves.
Do you see a shortage of people in need? If that's the case, how needy do you perceive yourself to be? Where do you generally find your focus centered?
Have you ever asked the Lord to show you someone else's need and to use you to fill it? Go for a walk in your neighborhood, or look, really look at the faces of those you go to church with each week. Take in the underlying aches of your co-workers. Take a moment (or two or three) to listen to each person in your family. I guarantee you'll find people that need you.
The multitudes are hungry for love. Jesus tells us to feed them.
Naomi found one small child to take to her heart. She did well.
Ruth 4:17: Also the neighbor women gave him a name, saying, "There is a son born to Naomi." And they called his name Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.
Let's look again at the meaning of names here.
Elimelech marries Naomi. They have two sons, Mahlon and Chilion.
God is King (Elimelech) walks away from God and seeks Pleasure (Naomi). The result is sickness and pining away (Mahlon and Chilion).
Pleasure (Naomi) turns to bitterness (Mara).
Ruth (friend) seeks redemption from Boaz (strength), the kinsman redeemer.
Naomi turns from bitterness to find pleasure again and through the redemptive work of Boaz, Ruth gives birth to Obed (Worshipper).
Mankind turned away from God to seek his own pleasure. The result is a fallen world. Sickness and death. Mankind is bitter toward God--except those that have sought redemption through Jesus Christ who alone has the strength and power to save. They become the children of God. Worship springs forth from them.
Ruth 4:18: Now this is the genealogy of Perez: Perez begot Hezron; Hezron begot Ram, and Ram begot Amminadab; Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon; Salmon begot Boaz, and Boaz begot Obed; Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David.
The rest of the genealogy is in Matthew 1:15.
Matthew 1:16: And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ.
Matthew 1:21-23: And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.
Now all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying:
"Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which is translated, "God with us."
#
Jesus we Thank You for coming for us. For making Yourself the sin offering needed to redeem us. You have paid the full purchase price of our redemption. You have loved us with an everlasting love that is too awesome for us to comprehend. Thank You for showing us Your ways. Thank You for giving us Your Word.
Lord, help each one of us to grow in our hunger and in our understanding as we read Your word. Help us to handle Your word
carefully, that we can grow in our knowledge of You. Father help us to never go to Your word simply to look for loopholes to do as we please. But teach us to go with our hearts… to learn of Your heart.
Keep us.
In Jesus name we stand
Amen
#
Study questions
1) Do you 'live' with Christ now? Is your relationship with Him vital, alive and growing?
2) If you are married, how does your relationship with your husband or wife reflect your relationship with the Lord? If it is better for a man to live in the corner of the attic than in a house with a nagging contentious woman, (Proverbs 21:9) where does your husband prefer to sit?
3) When you view the life of one that makes a profession of faith but there is no evidence of relationship, how do you think you are to respond?
4) In what ways has the Lord used you to serve others? Have there been times when you stepped out to fill a need and discovered you had no idea what you were getting into?
5) Since you have been walking with the Lord, what types of service are you most suited for? Why? Has the Lord ever surprised you by using you in ways you had never considered?
6) When is the last time you stepped outside your comfort zone and reached out to someone else? Have you befriended someone and tried to make life a little easier or more pleasant for him or her, whether Christian or unbeliever?
7) When you reach out, are you taking people into your heart? Or are you just taking on jobs and projects?
8) List some of the things you've learned in this study of Ruth. Have you been encouraged? Have you been convicted? How? What things do you need to apply to your personal walk with the Lord? How will you go about doing that?
Philippians 4:13: I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
#
This ends our study in the book of Ruth. I pray you have enjoyed it and gleaned much. That you have found things that encourage you to walk more closely with God, to feast on His Word and know Him better. To be like Him, as Ruth and Boaz were. And above all, that you know His great love for you as you grow in His grace.
The Lord bless you and keep you.
copyright 2002 tkc
Chapter Eleven
Worship Springs Forth
Ruth 4:11(a): And all the people who were at the gate, and the elders said, "We are witnesses.”
When a person comes to Christ seeking redemption it is a private matter--whether it's done alone in the middle of the night or in a church with ten thousand people present. The business between God and a man or woman takes place inside where no other eyes can see.
Many have made public professions of faith, wanting to please people, but have never had that private meeting with God.
How are we to tell if someone has been redeemed or if they are simply public professors?
By the results we see… "We are witnesses."
When a person comes to Jesus asking Him to redeem them, Jesus' love and acceptance of that person brings about a radical change. Just as in the marriage of Boaz and Ruth… so is the change in our relationship with the Lord.
When a man and woman make their vows to one another it is usually said publicly. But the importance, the hugeness of the declaration is in the heart.
Witnesses see the outward change.
The man and woman immediately live together. They begin working together. And they discover new things about each other. They learn how to serve one another and consult each other in the daily matters of life. They give up things for each other and take on new responsibilities.
Those are some of the things that witnesses can see.
So it is in our relationships with the Lord.
We suddenly live with Him. We begin working with Him instead of against Him. All the while discovering new things about Him. We learn how to serve Him. We consult Him daily. We give up things for Him and we take on new responsibilities.
In Ephesians 5:25 the Lord tells husbands to “love their wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for it.”
The Lord doesn't instruct wives to love their husbands. Why not?
Because when a man loves his wife with that kind of love she can't help but respond in love.
When we know how Jesus loves us, it is a deep need of our hearts to love Him in return.
1 John 4:19 "We love Him because He first loved us.
Witnesses can see the inside to a degree. They can see if there is abundant love, affection and nurturing in a marriage. They can see if there is harshness, selfishness and bitterness.
When people witness your personal relationship with God, what do they see?
Ruth 4:11(b): The Lord make the woman who is coming to your house like Rachel and Leah, the two who built the house of Israel; and may you prosper in Ephrathah and be famous in Bethlehem.
When Boaz married Ruth there was a shift in her standing in the community. Boaz has redeemed her and we don't find the witnesses murmuring about what Ruth was before. (You know what I mean don't you? Saying things like...did you see her when she first came to town? Oy vey! What a mess she was! You know I heard about some of the things those Moabite women do… wonder if she still does those things… hmmm, Boaz could have done so much better. Why just look at my daughter!)
Rather, we see them rejoicing with Ruth about who she is now! Encouraging, accepting and blessing her as one of their own '…like Rachel and Leah…' the mothers of Israel.
Our words are so important. They either build up or they tear down.
This is a major change from referring to her as Ruth the Moabitess. The witnesses recognize that she has been grafted into the nation of Israel, the chosen people. Her past is not important.
Verse 12: May your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, because of the offspring which the Lord will give you from this young woman.
Boaz is from the tribe of Judah.
Fascinating little story about Judah. Remember he married a Canaanite woman named Shua. They had three unruly, ungodly sons, Er, Onan and Shelah.
In Genesis 38 Judah took Tamar to be Er's wife, but Er was so wicked that the Lord killed him. (This was one really, really bad guy! Was 'Er' short for 'Error'?) When Er died Judah sent Onan in to Tamar to marry her and raise up a son to Er. But Onan refused to be a kinsman redeemer to Tamar.
So the Lord killed him too.
Instead of acknowledging the wickedness of his sons and repenting, Judah blamed Tamar. He refused to give his son Shelah to be her kinsman redeemer. He publicly disgraced her and sent her back to her father's house a childless widow. (Would you want to be sitting very close to Judah? I'm looking around for lightning bolts here!)
The Lord, however, wasn't about to let the tribe of Judah disappear. God had a plan that would prevail. His only begotten Son, The Great Kinsman Redeemer would come through the lineage of Judah.
And God in His grace used Tamar to see His Eternal plan fulfilled.
Judah did not know the heart of God, nor understand His ways. It is so comforting to know that God will work out His plan with us… or without us.
Judah had not taught his sons the ways of God and therefore God's plan hung by a thread. That is, the Thread of Redemption which is woven through history from Adam to Noah to Abraham to Isaac, to Judah to Perez, to Salmon who married Rahab (a Jerichoan Canaanite), to Boaz who married Ruth (the Moabitess.)
Salmon and Rahab knew God and taught their son well. Their marriage and devotion to God prepared Boaz to receive Ruth as his wife. Imagine the welcoming arms of Rahab to her daughter-
in-law! Boaz had been prepared from childhood to become Ruth's kinsman redeemer by his parent's reflection of God.
Verse 13-16: So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife; and when he went in to her, the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son.
Then the women said to Naomi, "Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a near kinsman; and may his name be famous in Israel!
“And may he be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, who is better to you than seven sons, has borne him."
“Blessed be the Lord, who has not left us without a Kinsman Redeemer. May His name be known throughout all the earth! May He be to you a restorer of life and the nourisher of your soul.”
Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her bosom, and became a nurse to Him.
God has worked. Life has been brought out of death.
The witnesses have confirmed and encouraged.
Naomi is restored. The Lord has renewed her and given her service. She is needed. Naomi takes the child to her heart and loves him as a grandson.
God has put in each of us a heart that can respond to need. When we reach out to someone else it can work the miracle of getting our eyes off our poor pitiful selves.
Do you see a shortage of people in need? If that's the case, how needy do you perceive yourself to be? Where do you generally find your focus centered?
Have you ever asked the Lord to show you someone else's need and to use you to fill it? Go for a walk in your neighborhood, or look, really look at the faces of those you go to church with each week. Take in the underlying aches of your co-workers. Take a moment (or two or three) to listen to each person in your family. I guarantee you'll find people that need you.
The multitudes are hungry for love. Jesus tells us to feed them.
Naomi found one small child to take to her heart. She did well.
Ruth 4:17: Also the neighbor women gave him a name, saying, "There is a son born to Naomi." And they called his name Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.
Let's look again at the meaning of names here.
Elimelech marries Naomi. They have two sons, Mahlon and Chilion.
God is King (Elimelech) walks away from God and seeks Pleasure (Naomi). The result is sickness and pining away (Mahlon and Chilion).
Pleasure (Naomi) turns to bitterness (Mara).
Ruth (friend) seeks redemption from Boaz (strength), the kinsman redeemer.
Naomi turns from bitterness to find pleasure again and through the redemptive work of Boaz, Ruth gives birth to Obed (Worshipper).
Mankind turned away from God to seek his own pleasure. The result is a fallen world. Sickness and death. Mankind is bitter toward God--except those that have sought redemption through Jesus Christ who alone has the strength and power to save. They become the children of God. Worship springs forth from them.
Ruth 4:18: Now this is the genealogy of Perez: Perez begot Hezron; Hezron begot Ram, and Ram begot Amminadab; Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon; Salmon begot Boaz, and Boaz begot Obed; Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David.
The rest of the genealogy is in Matthew 1:15.
Matthew 1:16: And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ.
Matthew 1:21-23: And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.
Now all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying:
"Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which is translated, "God with us."
#
Jesus we Thank You for coming for us. For making Yourself the sin offering needed to redeem us. You have paid the full purchase price of our redemption. You have loved us with an everlasting love that is too awesome for us to comprehend. Thank You for showing us Your ways. Thank You for giving us Your Word.
Lord, help each one of us to grow in our hunger and in our understanding as we read Your word. Help us to handle Your word
carefully, that we can grow in our knowledge of You. Father help us to never go to Your word simply to look for loopholes to do as we please. But teach us to go with our hearts… to learn of Your heart.
Keep us.
In Jesus name we stand
Amen
#
Study questions
1) Do you 'live' with Christ now? Is your relationship with Him vital, alive and growing?
2) If you are married, how does your relationship with your husband or wife reflect your relationship with the Lord? If it is better for a man to live in the corner of the attic than in a house with a nagging contentious woman, (Proverbs 21:9) where does your husband prefer to sit?
3) When you view the life of one that makes a profession of faith but there is no evidence of relationship, how do you think you are to respond?
4) In what ways has the Lord used you to serve others? Have there been times when you stepped out to fill a need and discovered you had no idea what you were getting into?
5) Since you have been walking with the Lord, what types of service are you most suited for? Why? Has the Lord ever surprised you by using you in ways you had never considered?
6) When is the last time you stepped outside your comfort zone and reached out to someone else? Have you befriended someone and tried to make life a little easier or more pleasant for him or her, whether Christian or unbeliever?
7) When you reach out, are you taking people into your heart? Or are you just taking on jobs and projects?
8) List some of the things you've learned in this study of Ruth. Have you been encouraged? Have you been convicted? How? What things do you need to apply to your personal walk with the Lord? How will you go about doing that?
Philippians 4:13: I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
#
This ends our study in the book of Ruth. I pray you have enjoyed it and gleaned much. That you have found things that encourage you to walk more closely with God, to feast on His Word and know Him better. To be like Him, as Ruth and Boaz were. And above all, that you know His great love for you as you grow in His grace.
The Lord bless you and keep you.
copyright 2002 tkc