See God's Mercy and Kindness and Trust in him

Text Ruth 1:19-2:23 Time 09 03 22 Place Childs Hill Baptist Church (Zoom)

We began to look last week at the Book of Ruth. We began by giving a number of reasons why we should study it - Because it's in the Bible; it's a wonderful story; it's from the days of the judges and shows you can be godly even in dark times; it's about the conversion of a Gentile; it is obviously pro-female; it shows us something about the ancestry of Messiah - these are his people.

Last week we looked at the first 18 verses and we said three things

1. Don't be surprised when bad times come and when bad times turn worse

2. Don't be surprised if when bad times become good there is still heartache

3. Don't be surprised when God brings you good in the midst of trouble

This week we will go on to look at Naomi's return to the Promised Land after her exile in Moab and what we find from Chapter 1 verse 19 through to the end of Chapter 2. Again, there are three main things to say.

1. Refrain from making the mistake of judging your situation by appearances

We read in Chapter 1 verse 19 how the two women Naomi and Ruth went on until they came to Bethlehem. The distance would have been perhaps about 60 or 70 miles, so it was quite a journey but the writer skips over that part.

When they arrived in Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them, and the women exclaimed, "Can this be Naomi?" Ten years had passed and Naomi has been through a lot. No doubt her appearance had changed. This verse suggests that she and her family had been wealthy and well known in the town.

In verses 20 and 21 Naomi speaks. She says "Don't call me Naomi, ... which means "pleasant" Call me Mara, bitterness because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I went away full, but the LORD has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? The LORD has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me."

As far as Naomi is concerned she is trying to tell it like it is but in the very next verses she is contradicted. Verse 22 says So Naomi returned from Moab accompanied by Ruth the Moabite, her daughter-in-law, arriving in Bethlehem as the barley harvest was beginning towards the end of April.

Naomi is describing it all wrong. Yes, she left Bethlehem years before with her husband Elimelek who has died but to say she went away full is not totally accurate as the reason she went away was because of the famine in the area. She was not full at that time.

Further, when she says that the LORD has brought her back empty, she is again not accurate. She is forgetting that Ruth her daughter-in-law at great self-sacirifice has committed herself to Naomi and come with her to Bethlehem.

This is not an isolated example of a believer making a false assessment of a situation. We can cite other examples.

• Genesis 15:1, 2 After this, the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: "Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward." But Abram said, "Sovereign LORD, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?" Eliezer did not inherit, of course, but Abram could not see it at the time.
• Or what about Jacob in Genesis 43:26 when he says "... Joseph is no more and Simeon is no more, and now you want to take Benjamin. Everything is against me!" None of that proved to be true, although we understand why he could say such a thing.
• There is an outstanding example in 2 Kings 7. At the beginning of the chapter we read how despite the city being under siege Elisha said, "Hear the word of the LORD. This is what the LORD says: About this time tomorrow, a seah of the finest flour will sell for a shekel and two seahs of barley for a shekel at the gate of Samaria." The officer on whose arm the king was leaning said to the man of God, "Look, even if the LORD should open the floodgates of the heavens, could this happen?" "You will see it with your own eyes," answered Elisha, "but you will not eat any of it!" And that is exactly how it turned out. The city was relieved and as the final verses of the chapter remind us It happened as the man of God had said to the king: "About this time tomorrow, a seah of the finest flour will sell for a shekel and two seahs of barley for a shekel at the gate of Samaria." The officer had said to the man of God, "Look, even if the LORD should open the floodgates of the heavens, could this happen?" The man of God had replied, "You will see it with your own eyes, but you will not eat any of it!" And that is exactly what happened to him, for the people trampled him in the gateway, and he died.

God was more gentle with Naomi. At the end of the book her grandson is born and we read (4:14-17) The women said to Naomi: "Praise be to the LORD, who this day has not left you without a guardian-redeemer. May he become famous throughout Israel! He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth." Then Naomi took the child in her arms and cared for him. The women living there said, "Naomi has a son!" And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.

So when we make our interim judgements, just remember what Paul says (1 Corinthians 4:5) judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. Things we think are working against us are working for us. It is like the workings of a clock - some wheels are going this way, some that, but they are all combining to give the right time. In the same way God works all things together for the good of his people.

2. Realise that God is full of mercy and kindness towards all who come to him

As we come into Chapter 2, we learn what happens next and how God sustained Naomi and Ruth over the early months back in Bethlehem. These verses are a reminder to us that God provides for his own. He is full of mercy and kindness and even at what seem to us the most difficult and demanding times, he is there with his love and kindness, ready to deliver us from our troubles and to bless us in every way, if we will only look to him.

We can say a number of things from verses 1-17. We can say

1. Do not forget the mercy and kindness found in God's law

In verses 1 and 2 two things come out that today need to be explained a little to be understood but they are the first proofs that God is not going to abandon Naomi but has already planned long ago how he will minister goodness to her. So first

1 Now Naomi had a relative on her husband's side, a man of standing from the clan of Elimelek, whose name was Boaz.

So not only did Naomi have Ruth but there was a man in Bethlehem who was going to prove to be a saviour to Naomi and to Ruth too. He is simply mentioned here but his role is going to be crucial as the story unfolds. We are told that he was a relative on Naomi's husband's side and a man of standing from the clan of Elimelek. His name, Boaz, means strength and that was a little clue too in its own way.

We sometimes find the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy a little boring but they contain the laws that God intended his people to live by from their entrance into the Promised Land under Joshua through to the coming of Messiah. Among those laws were rules that meant there was a strong onus on the people to care for each other and particularly for those they were most closely related to. Elimelek had died but, as we shall see, Boaz was one of his closest living relatives and so under an obligation, according to God's law, to provide for Elimelek's remaining family.

So in his law God had already provided a way out of this mess for Naomi. Then secondly we read

2 And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, "Let me go to the fields and pick up the leftover grain behind anyone in whose eyes I find favour." Naomi said to her, "Go ahead, my daughter." Now if you know the laws in the Books of Moses as Naomi did and as Ruth clearly had come to know them, this makes sense.

In Leviticus 19:9,10 God says to the people When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings the left over grain of your harvest. Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the LORD your God.

The same thing is in Deuteronomy 24:19-21 When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf, do not go back to get it. Leave it for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow, so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you beat the olives from your trees, do not go over the branches a second time. Leave what remains for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow. When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, do not go over the vines again. Leave what remains for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow.

Because of this provision in the law and the fact that the law was being kept by at least some, there was hope for Ruth and Naomi as poor as they were.

It reminds us how God's Word is stored with such laws for his people and when they are put into practice they are a means of mercy and kindness to those who are in need.

Isn't that what is happening with the Ukrainian refugees for the most part now? People know that law Love your neighbour as yourself and so, although not all involved are Christians, they are obeying God's law and it is proving a blessing to many.

2. Do not forget the mercy and kindness found in God's providence

We read next (3, 4) how Ruth went out, entered a field and began to glean behind the harvesters. As it turned out, she was working in a field belonging to Boaz, who was from the clan of Elimelek. That As it turned out is said perhaps a little tongue in cheek. The only other place it comes up in the Bible is in Ecclesiastes 2:14 which speaks of the wise and the foolish and how the same fate overtakes them both. It is clearly God's providence that leads her to this very field.

In verse 4 we get to meet this man Boaz. Just then Boaz arrived from Bethlehem and greeted the harvesters, "The LORD be with you!" "The LORD bless you!" they answered. From the start you get the impression of the sort of man this is, a man who walked with God and who was a good employer, respected and even loved.

In verses 5-7 we read that he asked the overseer of his harvesters, "Who does that young woman belong to?" The overseer replied, "She is the Moabite who came back from Moab with Naomi. She said, 'Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves behind the harvesters.' She came into the field and has remained here from morning till now, except for a short rest in the shelter."

Alongside God's laws there are his daily providences which also reveal his mercy and kindness. It is true that his providences are sometimes dark - the famine, the death of Elimelek and their sickly boys down in Moab - but the general trend is positive and we see it here in the field that Ruth chose. God will provide for you if you rely on him. Do not doubt it. He may not give you a Mercedes Benz but he will give you what you need.

3. Do not forget the mercy and kindness found in God's people

Most often God's mercy and kindness will come by means of human beings or at least that is what we are most likely to notice. Here it is Boaz. Boaz says to Ruth (8, 9) My daughter, listen to me. Don't go and glean in another field and don't go away from here. Stay here with the women who work for me. Watch the field where the men are harvesting, and follow along after the women. I have told the men not to lay a hand on you. And whenever you are thirsty, go and get a drink from the water jars the men have filled.

Boaz clearly has a concern for Ruth and a concern that goes beyond mere laws. He is determined to look after her and is willing to do all he can to make things easier for her.

It is reminder to us that we ought to be showing such kindness to others also.

4. Do not forget the mercy and kindness found in God himself

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

This is the broader point. In coming to the Promised Land, Ruth has left her father and mother and her homeland and is now living with a people she did not know before. However, in so doing she has come to take refuge ... under the wings of the God of Israel and Boaz prays that the LORD will repay her for what she has done, that she will be richly rewarded by the LORD which is exactly what happens to Ruth.

We cannot go to the Promised Land today. There is no such place. However, we can trust in the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ and if we do, we too can expect to be richly rewarded.

5. Do not forget that his mercy and kindness goes above and beyond the law

In verse 13 Ruth says to Boaz May I continue to find favour in your eyes, my lord, ... You have put me at ease by speaking kindly to your servant - though I do not have the standing of one of your servants. She speaks humbly and thankfully then. This is the spirit we ought to be cultivating in ourselves.

We read that at meal time Boaz said to her, "Come over here. Have some bread and dip it in the wine vinegar." When she sat down with the harvesters, he offered her some roasted grain. She ate all she wanted and had some left over. This was not required by the Law. Here Boaz is going above and beyond what the Law required.

It is the same in verses 15-17 As she got up to glean, Boaz gave orders to his men, "Let her gather among the sheaves rather than behind the harvesters and don't reprimand her. Even pull out some stalks for her from the bundles and leave them for her to pick up, and don't rebuke her." So Ruth gleaned in the field until evening. Then she threshed the barley she had gathered, and it amounted to about an ephah. That is about 25 kg or 54 pounds, quite a load.

We are urged always to go the extra mile and not simply follow the letter of the law. That is certainly the way the Lord deals with us. He does far more for us than we deserve. Rejoice in his grace, mercy and kindness to us all.

3. Recognise God's daily provision for his people by means of his guardian-redeemer Christ

To close we will look, thirdly and finally, at verses 18-23. Here we read how Ruth carries back to town the load she has harvested. Ruth also brought out and gave her what she had left over after she had eaten enough. Naomi asks "Where did you glean today? Where did you work? Blessed be the man who took notice of you!" And so Ruth explains what happened and tells Naomi that she was in the field of a man called Boaz. Naomi is excited

20 "The LORD bless him!" she says "He has not stopped showing his kindness to the living and the dead." She added, "That man is our close relative; he is one of our guardian-redeemers."

Ruth adds (21) that he had said to her to Stay with my workers until they finish harvesting all my grain.

Naomi wisely concludes that It will be good for Ruth to go with the women who work for him, because in someone else's field she might be harmed. And so that is what happens (22) So Ruth stayed close to the women of Boaz to glean until the barley and wheat harvests were finished. And she lived with her mother-in-law.

The key thing here then is that by Gods grace Naomi and Ruth have found a kind hearted, loving man who will look after them in their time of need. More than that, this man, Naomi knows, is one of our guardian-redeemers. He has the power and obligation to redeem Elimelek's land for Naomi and Ruth and, as we shall see, that is just what he does. Indeed, he does a whole lot more.

This points us to the Lord Jesus Christ. First, we notice his kindness and love. We realise he is a loving Saviour. But then we realise that he is more than that. He has the power to redeem us through his death on the cross on our behalf. And so we put our trust in him - or we ought to. He not only shows us kindness and saves us but he does a whole lot more for us too, as is pictured later in this Old Testament book. We will come to that we hope but for the moment think of the Saviour, the one who shows us such kindness and who alone can save us, as we trust in him.