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“Enter The Redeemer” • 10.26.14 •
Calvary Christian Fellowship, Sunday Morning Service
Intro.
- We noted last week, that the book of Ruth
provides us with a tremendous example of God's active intervention in human
affairs.
- Naomi's family had left Bethlehem because of
a severe famine and only Naomi and her widowed, Moabite daughter-in-law
returned more than a decade later, having lost everything.
- In the midst of incredible heartache and
difficulty, God has allowed them to follow the bread crumbs of a rumor of bread
in Bethlehem, which puts them into a position that reveals His goodness.
- It happens as unexpectedly to them as it does
to us! Let's examine Ruth 2 and I'll tie things up in our conclusion.
Text
•
Ruth 2:1 : "There was a relative of Naomi’s
husband, a man of great wealth, of the family of Elimelech. His name was Boaz." : Naomi and Ruth had returned to Bethlehem at the beginning the
barley harvest, a season with great promise for employment.
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This verse represents better news. Elimelech had a near relative who was very
well off. Other translations add color to the picture. He was a "mighty
man of wealth." (KJV)
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He was an "influential man," (NLT)
a "man of standing," (NIV)
a "worthy man," (ESV) a
"prominent man," (HCSB)
and "hombre rico" in the Reina Valera!
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Every where else that this word is employed, it is translated "mighty man
of valor!"
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What a wide range of concepts, all of which are aspects of men who have
generated great wealth. Prominence, influence, et all, are by-products.
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What's interesting is that he saw this happen while remaining in the land of
Bethlehem. He stayed when Elimelech left and is living the exact opposite
reality.
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Please don't misunderstand: Obedience to God is not a recipe for riches. God
chose to bless this man and He did so in spite of a devastating famine.
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Boaz was a faithful man to the Lord and is living proof that when our resources
are gone, the Lord's resources haven't even been tapped!
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The name "Boaz" means "Fleetness." The word was associated
with sea vessels that could traverse great distances with great speed.
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It appears and I believe that the text bears this out, that he was the sort of
man that saw a deal and had it finished within the day. Whatever needed to be
done, was done quickly!
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How did Naomi not know of his existence? Did she assume that Boaz had also fled
from Israel when the famine overcame the nation?
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We're left without an answer though it's important that we know that she didn't
know!
- The Holy Spirit shows
us that there is already a person in place to more than meet Naomi's need!
Notice also that He does not inform her of this!
-
How many times has God purposed to meet our need and it's just around the
corner? They don't know about Boaz and they don't know to look for him, but God
has already planned it!
• Ruth
2:2,3 : "So Ruth the Moabitess
said to Naomi, 'Please let me go to the field, and glean heads of grain after
him in whose sight I may find favor.' And she said to her, 'Go, my daughter.' Then she left, and went and gleaned
in the field after the reapers. And she happened to come to the part of the
field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech." : After Naomi and Ruth settled in somewhere, Ruth was immediately
minded to join the harvesters, without a definitive plan or place in mind.
- She has no idea where to look and no idea
what she will find.
- What she does know is that not moving is the
quickest way to not eating! God's provision is there, but Ruth sought to find a
place where she would discover it.
- It's no faith that waits for provision to
come our way! Ruth sprung into action and Naomi readily encouraged her. Go out
and do what you can, then watch to see what God will do.
- She could glean in the field after the
reapers. The Mosaic law allowed for the poor to come into a harvested field, to
pick the corners of the fields and that which was left behind!
- Leviticus
19:9, Leviticus 23:22 and Deuteronomy 24:19-21 expressly,
explicitly commands the people to allow this on account of the poor, the
Fatherless and the widow!
- Ruth fit into each of those categories, so
she gleaned freely. Where did she find herself? The author tells us that she
happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz!
- How about that!? It just so happened that she
came to the very field of her Mother-in-Law's near relative!
- If we would only begin to move toward
obedience in the Lord's will, we'll find these exact circumstances! Things
begin to fall into place. Inexplicable connections are made.
- For those living in the will of God, there
can never be such a thing as a coincidence!
•
Ruth 2:4-7 : "Now behold, Boaz came from
Bethlehem, and said to the reapers, 'The Lord be with you!' And they answered him, 'The Lord bless you!' Then Boaz said
to his servant who was in charge of the reapers, 'Whose young woman is this?' So the servant who was in charge of the reapers answered and
said, 'It is the young Moabite woman who came back with Naomi from the country
of Moab. And she said, ‘Please let me glean and
gather after the reapers among the sheaves.’ So she came and has continued from
morning until now, though she rested a little in the house.'" : Boaz was coming from the city center out to his part of the
field. Notice his kind disposition toward his workers. "The Lord be with
you!"
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Here he is, in the the time of the Judges, and he stands proudly to declare
that the Lord be with them. This was and is a particular way to say, "God
strengthen your cause."
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The Lord be with you. Let His presence give you what you need, whether that be
strength to continue working or wisdom to know how you should work.
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Boaz pronounced this blessing and this charge upon his workers, knowing that it
was best for them and ultimately best for him. Their reply shows their respect:
"The Lord bless you!"
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You can almost see Boaz scanning the crowd of workers that he knew, but
something was different this morning. He noted a new young lady among the
workers and wondered about her.
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His foreman testified of the story that he knew, that she as a Moabite and was
related to Naomi. She asked to glean the fields and worked hard with only a
little break.
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It's not likely that Ruth knew that she was being watched, but she was. While
taking in the information, Boaz immediately began to look for ways to assist
her.
•
Ruth 2:8-12 : "Then Boaz said to Ruth, 'You will
listen, my daughter, will you not? Do not go to glean in another field, nor go
from here, but stay close by my young women. Let your eyes be on the field which
they reap, and go after them. Have I not commanded the young men not to touch
you? And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink from what the young
men have drawn.' So
she fell on her face, bowed down to the ground, and said to him, 'Why have I
found favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since I am a
foreigner?' And Boaz answered and said to her,
'It has been fully reported to me, all that you have done for your
mother-in-law since the death of your husband, and how you have left your
father and your mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a people
whom you did not know before. The Lord repay your work, and a
full reward be given you by the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for
refuge.'" : Boaz put the narrative together
from what he had heard over the previous days.
-
"This was the woman who came back with Naomi! She's in my field!"
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When he came to her, he directed her to remain right where she was, right in
his field and in no other. She would have been tempted to think that the field
had been picked over.
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He opened provision before her, allowing her to reap, not simply to glean. She
could pick up from the ground with those who were reaping. She was not resigned
to leftovers!
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He actively protected her, instructing the men not to go near to her in a way
that would compromise her ability to work. A woman faced the same dangers in
that day as she does today.
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He made sure that she got to the good drinking water when the heat of the day
became too much. His eye had looked upon her and sought to cover every
contingency she could face.
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This wasn't lost on her for a moment! In profound gratitude, she fell before
him and wondered aloud why it was that he had favored or graced her.
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"Why should you take notice of me, since I am a foreigner!" Remember,
Ruth has not read her own book! She hasn't seen Boaz inquiring about her.
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She's had her head down, busily trying to collect all that the reapers had left
behind along the sides of the field. As she faces the ground, Boaz speaks to
her.
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He speaks of his knowledge of her situation. He's completely aware, again,
either through putting the pieces together or further inquiry. By this time, he
knows what she has done.
-
Each of us has a story that we wish others knew. In this life, there are
employers and people of influence that surround us that have no idea who we
are. Boaz knew and understood her.
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He knew of her concern for her Naomi after the death of her own husband. Listen
to that.
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It's enough to care for yourself in a state of widowhood. After Ruth was
widowed, she put her arms under Naomi, who was bereaved of husband and
children!
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He knew that that had taken a lot of compassion, not to mention a great deal of
courage!
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She had left her familiy's home and her own country to a country of foreigners,
people she had likely been taught to marginalize, perhaps even to hate!
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She was a woman of compassion, courage and commitment! Boaz knew that the
greatest reason for her coming, that which undergirded her decision, was to
come under the Lord's wings!
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Ruth had left every hint of security behind her. She had ventured forward with
no real earthly promise to sustain her.
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She went believing that living under the protection of Naomi's God was better
than any security she could have had at home.
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Boaz desires that the Lord would repay her work. Boaz was unaware at this time
that he was going to be the answer to his own prayer, but he prays that she'd
be well provided for!
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Beyond her need, He prayed that God would prepare a full reward for her! What a
moving passage? Why do you think Boaz was so compassionate?
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According to Matthew 1:5, in the
boring old genealogy of Jesus Christ, we find that the Father was Boaz was
Salmon and that his Mother was Rahab!
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Boaz knew what it was like for a woman to leave her own country and family and
go out to join some other nation that she knew not!
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He knew the work that it took and the toll that it took emotionally upon such a
person, as he watched his own mother live it! No wonder he had compassion!
•
Ruth 2:13-18 : "Then she said, 'Let me find favor
in your sight, my lord; for you have comforted me, and have spoken kindly to
your maidservant, though I am not like one of your maidservants.' Now Boaz said to her at mealtime, 'Come
here, and eat of the bread, and dip your piece of bread in the vinegar.' So she
sat beside the reapers, and he passed parched grain to her; and she ate and was
satisfied, and kept some back. And when she
rose up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying, 'Let her glean even
among the sheaves, and do not reproach her. Also
let grain from the bundles fall purposely for her; leave it that she may glean,
and do not rebuke her.' So she gleaned in the
field until evening, and beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an
ephah of barley. Then she took it up and went
into the city, and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. So she brought out and gave to her what she had kept back
after she had been satisfied." : Boaz
continues his kindness toward her, even though Ruth was unlike the other
maidservants. Her foreign status would not have garnered favor with other land
owners.
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Boaz was different than other land owners. At the afternoon meal, Boaz looked
out especially for her, inviting her to take of the bread from his own table,
dipped in the vinagrette or wine mixture.
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This was a seat of honor. Ruth had taken her place, likely at the very back of
the room, embarrassed by the possibility of even getting the chance to eat in such
a place.
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Boaz won't let her be ashamed! He invites her to sit next to him. When she knew
that she was free to do so, she ate the best of what was before them and was
satisfied.
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She was utterly and completely full without the possibility of eating more!
What a wonderful word to use! Satisfied. How often have you felt that truly in
this life?
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The author notes that she was satisfied but that she also kept some back, a
token that would go to Naomi when she returned.
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Boaz wanted her to go home as satisfied in her work as she was in her eating.
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He made sure that his harvesters let a good amount drop out of their bundles
around her.
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"Don't make her feel bad about it!" You can almost see the men just
enjoying the opportunity to be gracious! Usually, a Master would stringently
hold fast to what the harvesters brought in.
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They were never told to drop anything! Generally, they could expect a thorough
chastening if they acted with such little care. But today, they could drop the
Master's crop carelessly!
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I'm certain that Ruth never knew because she just kept gleaning and gathered an
ephah, which if my calculations turn out to be right, 77 pounds of barley to
bring home!
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Just to give a perspective, when the Manna fell in the desert, it was measured
at 1/10th of an Ephah, or about 7 pounds a day! In one day, she brought home a weeks
worth of food!
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When she came home, she didn't have to use any of it, as she was able to fill
Naomi's belly with food from what she had kept back from her luncheon! It was
enough to satisfy her need as well!
-
It seems that Naomi ate first and then began the federal investigation!
•
Ruth 2:19,20 : "And her mother-in-law said to her,
'Where have you gleaned today? And where did you work? Blessed be the one who
took notice of you.' So
she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked, and said, 'The man’s name
with whom I worked today is Boaz.' Then Naomi
said to her daughter-in-law, 'Blessed be he of the Lord, who has not forsaken
His kindness to the living and the dead!' And Naomi said to her, 'This man is a
relation of ours, one of our close relatives.'" : There was no way to know how effective Ruth would be in her
first day, but it never crossed Naomi's mind that she would have been this
successful!
-
I could just see Ruth beginning to relax after the day, just casually noting
that the man's name was Boaz. It's at this exact moment that Naomi's eyes
brighten.
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She pronounces this second blessing upon the one who has not forsaken His
kindness.
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In other words, this man, among all the men of the time of Judges, had not left
behind one of God's virtues! Others would have looked away or let Ruth have the
minimal, legal requirement.
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But Boaz had acted in accordance with the kindness that was a part of God's
character! In an even better turn, Naomi realizes that Boaz is a relative, even
a close relative!
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We lose the effect in the NKJV. The ESV and the NLT get it right when they
translate the word "close relation" as "redeemer."
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Naomi, in the midst of all of her grief, either forgot or completely
disregarded the existence of Boaz, thinking that he had left Bethlehem or that
he had come to ruin himself.
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She's amazed to hear of his existence and surprised to hear of his success.
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The concept of a "Goel" Kinsman-redeemer follows along a few biblical
lines. A "Kinsman Redeemer" was an avenger of blood when a family
member was killed.
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Without a police force in the land, the responsibility to seek justice was his
to undertake.
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The perameters of his legal actions in seeking justice are clearly defined in
the law, especially in Numbers 35:15-28,
where the same word is translated "Avenger of blood."
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From a business standpoint, a Kinsman Redeemer also served to redeem property
that had been surrendered in times of financial hardship.
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Leviticus 25:23 and following
instructs the people to understand that no land sale was final and that a
Redeemer could come and buy it back for his family.
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The final responsibility of the Kinsman Redeemer was found in the practice of
Levirate marriage, as spelled out in Deuteronomy
25:5 and following.
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If a man died without reproducing, a brother would step in the gap and help
produce a male heir to keep the name of the deceased from dying out. Boaz was
their Kinsman-Redeemer!
•
Ruth 2:21-23 : "Ruth the Moabitess said, 'He also
said to me, ‘You shall stay close by my young men until they have finished all
my harvest.’' And
Naomi said to Ruth her daughter-in-law, 'It is good, my daughter, that you go
out with his young women, and that people do not meet you in any other field.' So she stayed close by the young women of Boaz, to glean
until the end of barley harvest and wheat harvest; and she dwelt with her
mother-in-law." : Naomi could not concur
more. "You stay right where you are! There is no need to go anywhere
else!"
-
Beyond the plentiful support that was already pledged, going anywhere else
would have posed a safety threat to Ruth. This was a win-win all the way
around.
Conclusion
- Historically, God is moving people into place
who will eventually bear the Messiah, Jesus Christ, a Person that we would not
have known or looked for had it not been for difficulty.
- We knew we needed saving and would need a
Savior. But a Savior with such great kindness and grace, who looks upon us and
knows our story? Who would have believed it?
- Who would have believed that this Redeemer
would actively seek our good, providing for us and protecting us from moving
out from under His wing?
- But even greater, one that would invite us to
His very table, offering us the very meal symbolizing the covenant that He has
made with us, bread and wine!
- Jesus Christ is our Kinsman-Redeemer, our
near relative by shared humanity, who promises His people eternal life by His
deity, leaving us perfectly satisfied in Him.