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Salt + Light Community is a SOMA church plant in the heart of Fort Worth, TX. Here you’ll find teaching and discussions from our gatherings on Sundays.
All right, what do we
think of this chapter?
Weird.
Weird.
Weird.
Weird.
From there.
Weird from here.
So unanimously, the only word is weird.
Um, you've heard the phrase,
high risk, high reward.
That, that feels like the
theme of this chapter.
Um, and if you've read this before,
uh, you know, it's one of those
verses so one of those chapters
that's like, all right, man, we're
committed to like, preach through the
scriptures as they're presented to us.
Um, be easier to dance
around some of this one.
Um, we can debate whether Naomi's advice
to Ruth was wise or not, but at the
end of the chapter it worked out and.
It didn't work out because Naomi was wise.
It didn't work out
because Ruth was obedient.
It didn't even work out
because Boaz was faithful.
It worked out because all
three, two women and one man,
all three of them trusted God.
And so it was God who worked it out.
Yes.
And so that's the theme I want us
to camp out and we'll get into a
little bit of the detail for sure.
But before we jump into the story, I just
want to take 10 seconds and just invite
you in silence to think of a situation
where you had a choice to make where
like there was a, a decision and, and you
had no way to be certain of the outcome.
Maybe you didn't even
know all the factors.
In those situations, which we've all had.
Yes.
No matter the age, no matter,
no matter how, how long we've
been walking with Jesus.
Like we all have those moments, we all
have those choices, that kind of stuff.
What do you do when you
come to those choices?
Do you try to, you try to control
the situation and go into chess mode?
That's what I do.
I'll try to play, play the odds
until I can figure it out myself.
Um, do you run away from
making the choice out of fear?
Pretend it's not there.
Or do you jump blindly for getting to
check maybe for parachutes on at all?
Just like, Hey, here we go.
Let's go.
Or this third option, fourth option.
Excuse me, do you, do you trust God?
Do you pray?
Do you seek what God would have you do?
And then go in that direction?
So I just wanna give you just, again,
10 seconds, what's the situation where
you've had to make a choice, had to make a
decision, don't have all the information.
What do you do in those moments?
So just 10 seconds, God, bring
something to mind for us to keep
in the back of our minds today.
All right, so again, what do you
do when you face those situations?
You control it.
Do you run away from it?
Do you jump blindly or do you seek the
Lord and then trust him to take the risk?
Because it's that that last
option of the four Pray, ask God's
will trust God, take that risk.
That's what we see in all three characters
in Ruth three today, and that's what
gives us an example to follow whether
we find ourselves in this specific
situation, which none of us will.
Or any other of the thousand decisions
we have to make through life.
So Father, will you meet us today?
Will you guide us?
Will you help us to see Ruth and Naomi and
Boaz's example as truly examples to us?
And will you help us to hear
from you as we press into that?
It's in your son's name.
Amen.
All right, so there's this important old,
old, old ancient concept that we have
to get before we jump into these verses.
It's all the way back in
Deuteronomy chapter 25.
Um, God establishes the law or the
principle of a kinsman redeemer.
Now, it's a not a term we use very
often today, um, but a kinsman redeemer,
the law, the principle of kinsman
redeemer, said that if a man was to
die without an air, without a sun.
Then that man's brother was required
to marry his widow, and, and the goal
was to carry on his brother's line.
The goal was to carry
on his brother's legacy.
And so if, if the man didn't have
a brother who can marry his widow,
then it became the job of the closest
relative to marry the widow, and
thus, again, kind of perpetuate
the lineage, perpetuate the legacy.
There's a lot about that, that seems
very strange for our sensibilities today.
Um, there's also, if you wanna go back
to Deuteronomy 25, you can read it and
like, there's a lot of shame that would
happen if the person didn't do that.
Like if they refused to marry the widow.
Um, I believe it says that the
widow can go and spit on his
face and shame him publicly.
Like it's a great moment in scriptures.
Write spit on his face, right?
I can see you're listening.
Um.
It was not a popular thing though.
Like this concept was not popular.
I mean, think about it, like to, to
invite somebody else into your family.
Right.
Um, and then presumably to, to be
able to conceive and have another kid.
The family was now bigger.
Costs were higher.
Relational dynamic.
Can you imagine the
relational dynamics of that?
Um, there's all sorts of things that
would, that would make it hard while
the kinsman redeemer was alive.
And then after the kinsman redeemer
died, the inheritance would be split
in more ways so everybody gets a
smaller pocket and that kind of thing.
And so this, this was
not a popular concept.
It required sacrifice, but it's
really important for today's verses.
So good.
That's what a kinsman redeemer is.
Or a kin's, a guardian
redeemer is how Ruth puts it.
All right, with that, let's
jump into these verses.
Um, 'cause first we see Naomi.
Trust God and take a risk.
It's the first risk we see.
Naomi trusts God and takes a risk.
Here's the first verses, the dally red.
One day Ruth mother-in-law, Naomi
said to Ruth, my daughter, I must
find a home for you where you will be.
Well provided for.
Again, Naomi's old, she's a widow herself.
Um, she doesn't have anything to offer,
so she's looking out for Ruth's good.
Now Boaz with whose woman you
have worked, women you have
worked is a relative of ours.
And tonight he'll be winnowing
barley on the threshing floor.
Again, concept we can all immediately
bring to mind 'cause we've done
so much winnowing of barley.
Um, wash put on perfume, get
dressed in your best clothes and
go down to the threshing floor.
But don't let him know that you're there
until he is finished eating and drinking.
When he lies down, note the place where he
is lying and go and uncover his feet and
lie down and he will tell you what to do.
All right, now humanly, humanly speaking,
Naomi is trusting Ruth to follow her, her
advice, and Naomi is trusting Boaz a lot.
If Boaz is a man of of low integrity,
which we haven't seen any glimpse of,
but if he's a man of low integrity, like
Naomi's sending Ruth into an incredibly
vulnerable, dangerous situation,
so she trusts on the human level.
Ruth, she trusts Boaz, but whose
trust is Naomi ultimately in who
she ultimately putting her trust in?
Not, not either human.
She's putting her trust in God.
God has protected and provided for
both women since their husbands died,
since they returned to Bethlehem.
God's history of goodness and character
gives Naomi the confidence to take
this calculated risk, and that's what
we're gonna see over and over again.
Is this true for you?
Can you look back at God's history and
goodness and character, and would it give
you confidence to take a calculated risk?
That's where Naomie's
trust ultimately laid.
And so Naomi, again, her risk is, is
going, I've gotta find some provision
for Ruth once I, once I die, once
I'm too old to take care of her.
So the risk here is where,
where do I send her?
Where do we go?
And so she sent Ruth into this
nighttime meeting with Boaz.
And, and again, for context,
remember you haven't been
with us the last couple weeks.
This is the first harvest that
Bethlehem has had in years.
There's been a drought.
So there's much celebration here.
There's grain, there's, there's wheat
to be threshed and, and working hard and
late into the night and celebrating with
the team, going, God's finally provided.
He's giving us food.
He's giving us grain.
This was a citywide celebration,
so it went late into the night.
Boaz proverbial slept at his office
that night, and so it's easy to
think that Naomi's setting up
this incredibly risque situation.
And maybe if you've heard Ruth
talked about before, that's been
the angle that you've heard.
But I wanna, I wanna work against
that a little bit for two reasons.
One, the glimpses of Boaz that
the narrator's given us is that
he's a generous and proper and
God-fearing man, that's who we know
Boaz to be, and the glimpses of
God that the narrator has given us.
Is that he's shown favor
to these poor widows.
He's redeemed Naomi, and he's brought
her back to a place of trust in him.
And last week, if you weren't
here, um, Naomi went from cursing
God to praising God for all of
her pain, for all of poverty.
Naomi seen glimpses of God's promise.
Us and that was enough for Naomi.
Seeing glimpses of God's promise was
enough for her to take this risk,
but Naomi's not the other,
the only woman to take a risk.
Ruth also trusts God
enough to take a risk.
Verse five, she says, I
will do whatever you say.
She did.
She went down to the threshing, hold
the threshing floor, and did everything
her mother-in-law told her to do.
Is that a risk?
Absolutely.
When Boaz had finished eating and drinking
and was in good spirits, he went over to
lie down at the far end of the grain pile.
Ruth approached quietly and
uncovered his feet and laid down.
And in the middle of the night,
something startled, the man he turned
and there was a woman lying at his feet.
I just love that verse.
Whoa, who are you?
He asked, I'm your servant, Ruth.
She said, spread the corner of your
garment over me since you are a guardian.
Redeemer, kinsman, redeemer of our family.
All right, so same, same pattern here.
Humanly speaking, Ruth put
a lot of trust in Naomi.
I mean twice here I'll do
whatever you say Ruth answered.
She did everything her
mother-in-law told her to do.
That's, that's trust More than that, Ruth
put a lot of trust, humanly speaking in
Boaz, who she's come to know a little
bit and, and come to see all the things
the narrator tells us to be true of Boaz.
But y'all, I mean, Boaz could
have easily taken advantage, taken
advantage of, of Ruth in this moment.
Boaz could have easily
misread the situation,
but as much as she was trusting
Naomi and Boaz, where did
Ruth ultimately put her trust?
Not in any P person, similar to to
Naomi, her ultimate trust was in God.
'cause like Naomi Ruth has seen
God protect and provide for
herself and her mother-in-law.
And so God's character and
goodness and history, just like for
Naomi, that that was good enough.
That was enough to give Ruth the
confidence to take this calculated
risk, to obey Naomi, to wake up Boaz
in the night, and then to go above and
beyond and make this bold ask of boas.
And so in this passage, Boaz, who
again, thank God he's an upright
man, he's full of integrity.
He wakes up to a double shock.
Um, first he has literal cold feet, okay?
So presumably he had a garment, had a
blanket, he's laying on the grain pile.
Um, his feet get cold.
This has happened to you.
You're ever camping, right?
Your feet get cold, you wake up.
There's a shock there.
But that wasn't the biggest shock.
There's a woman in this room.
And there's plenty of
literature out there.
I'd advise you against a
lot of Googling this week.
There's plenty of literature out there
that would explain a lot of, we'll
say for the sake of the audience,
romantically charged language in
this passage, given there's some,
some different aged people in here.
Some would even say that uncovering
his feet is the euphemism for
what she actually uncovered.
Um,
but while this is definitely a risky move
and just even, even culturally at the
time for, for a woman to walk into a,
you know, essentially a man's bunkhouse
kind of stuff, massively culturally
out of the ordinary, while it was risk,
while it was out of the ordinary, even
still given everything we've seen of
Ruth and Boaz and their character so far.
This is probably less sensually charged
and more an opportunity for Ruth to
talk to Boaz in a non-public setting.
'cause this would've been equally out
of the cultural norm for her to walk
up and have this conversation with
him while other people are arounds.
So she goes up to him in this
non-public setting, boldly seeks his
provision and, and, and protection.
And so you can find all sorts of fun art,
very soft, you know, glamor shots, kind of
portraits, versions of art that, that are
this beautiful romantic marriage proposal
essentially between Ruth and Boaz.
Here, this is, this is not.
This is not ultimately romantic.
They're surrounded in grain.
They've been sweating all day.
She's gotten herself ready.
We'll talk about why here in just
a sec, but, but marriage at the
time again, was much more about
family and protection and legacy and
care, and that was true for anyone.
That's especially true for a
widow and her aged mother-in-law.
So what is Ruth seeking?
She's seeking redemption.
She's seeking protection,
she's seeking provision,
and she's asking Boaz if he would be
the means that the Lord would provide
for her and for her mother-in-law.
And so again, look at the,
the human side of this.
Naomi is calculating the risk.
She knows the facts.
Ruth prepares herself.
Again, you can go into a lot of
the, the, the strange imagery here.
She's not making herself sexy, though.
Here's what we know of widows is that
widows had a certain cloak, had a
widow's garb, and so many theologians
would say, this is the first time that
maybe Ruth is putting off her widowhood.
She's getting herself cleaned up,
not for Boaz, but for a return to
life, for return from death, from
mourning into life and goodness.
And so this was the cloak and the,
the perfume and the the getting ready.
It was less for Boaz and more
to say, God's not done with me.
And then she makes this big ask.
Ruth takes a risk.
And then finally, Boaz trusts
God enough to take a risk.
Here's his response to finding this
woman in the darkness at the foot
of his bed, foot of his grain pile.
The Lord bless you, my daughter.
He replied.
There's another, another phrase
that reminds us that maybe this is
a little bit less sensually charged.
It's hard to move into sensuality.
If you're calling someone a daughter.
This kindness is greater than,
that's what you showed earlier.
You've not run after the younger
men, whether rich or poor.
And so now my daughter, don't be afraid.
I will do for you all that you ask.
All the people of my town know that
you are a woman of noble character.
Another hint that this was not that
charged, although it is true that I'm
a guardian, redeemer, kinsman redeemer
of our family, there is another
who's more closely related than I.
And so stay here for the
night and in the morning.
If he wants to do his duty as
your guardian redeemer, good.
Let him redeem you.
That's how the law would work.
Whoever was next closest.
Was supposed to do it, but if he
is not willing, then as surely
as the Lord lives, I will do it.
So lie here until morning and she lay
at his feet until morning, but got up
before anyone could be recognized for.
He said, no one should know that a
woman came to the thrashing floor.
Four.
All right, humanly,
Boaz is trusting Naomi.
They have this distant relative.
Naomi was the point of
relational connection.
Uh, Boaz was part of a UX clan.
Her, her ex-husband, not ex-husband,
her deceased husband's clan.
And so she knows, he knows Boaz knows
that Naomi knows this Old Testament law.
Boaz is trusting Naomi, at
least by reputation, and
Boaz is also trusting Ruth.
Cool.
He's trusting Ruth's purity.
He's trusting Ruth's motives.
He could have made a huge scene
if he thought that Ruth was
there for inappropriate reasons.
We don't like this, but culturally
it was often the woman who was
punished and stoned for things like
adultery and, and propositions in
this kind of stuff in that day.
So he could have made a huge scene.
He could have sent Ruth out
into the darkness and danger
rather than saying, no, stay.
Culturally very inappropriate.
If someone recognizes that she
leaves in the morning, today, we
would call it a walk of shame,
he took the risk and said,
stay and blessed her so
humanly, he's trusting Naomi.
He's trusting Ruth.
But yet again, where does
Boaz's ultimate trust lie?
Also in God?
And so his big risk
isn't even saying stay.
His big risk is his willingness
to become the kinsman redeemer
that Ruth's asking him to be.
Again, it takes sacrifice to do that.
It wasn't easy.
There's even legal complications here.
You see in verse 12.
There's a process.
You gotta talk to this person
first and see if they'll do it.
They're supposed to do it, but
if they won't do it, I'll do it.
But similarly, God's character and
goodness and history to Boaz gave him
the confidence to take a calculated
risk in the moment to invite Ruth to
stay till morning and and provide some
protection for her, and then second
and far larger to say yes, Ruth.
If this other person
doesn't, I will marry you.
I will provide and protect
you and your mother-in-law.
And so the big question for Boaz
in this moment is, will he play
that difficult role that he already
attributed to God In chapter one,
if you missed this, he said that God
is the one who's gonna care for you.
God is the one who's gonna protect you.
God is the one who's gonna
cover you we'll, we'll.
Will Boaz now play that role and be
God's hand of care and protection
and provision and covering?
Will, will he fulfill the
difficult kinsman redeemer duty?
Will he marry this widowed relative, Ruth?
Yeah.
So again, this is such a foreign concept.
Us, I, I think the closest we can
understand is you've seen all those
movies where a kid shows up at a door
of a dad who didn't know he had a kid.
And sets 'em off on this massive,
huge disruptive life plan.
That's a little bit of what this
would be like, but for all the ways
Boaz could have responded and you
see some of the potential responses.
If you think back to the initial responses
of the dads in those movies, no way.
Get out.
There's gotta be a mistake.
I don't want this.
For all the ways Boaz could have
responded, how's he respond?
He honored her.
He thanked her for her
righteousness and her kindness
for her boldness.
He thanked her for the opportunity
to be this kinsman redeemer.
And so that's what's happening
in most of this chapter.
Naomi and Ruth and Boaz
are all taking risk.
No one knew exactly
what would've happened.
It could've turned out very
poorly for all of them.
Ruth and Boaz could have let Naomi down.
Naomi and Boaz could have let Ruth down.
Naomi and Ruth could have let Boaz down,
but each one ultimately trusted
God and their trust in him
freed each one to take a risk.
Is that good news?
And I think that's why, why Ruth three
is, is uniquely helpful for us when
we take risks, when we have choices,
when we don't know what's gonna happen.
Because whether you're facing this
today or whether you will tomorrow or
some point soon, we all have had times.
And we all will have times, and some
of us do right now, have times where
there's kind of the two proverbial
paths diverging in the yellowwood.
Whether it's this job or that job, whether
it's marry this person or not, whether
it's move here or there, whether it's
buy a house or rent a condo, whether
it's what do we do for spring break,
whatever it is, we all have these choices
that feels like if we go this direction,
it's gonna take life in this path.
If we take that direction, it's gonna
take life in a totally different path.
And if we're left to ourselves, then
based on a whole lot of different factors,
we often approach those risks and those
choices in one of three different ways.
And again, it's not dissimilar to
like the fight, flight, freeze kind of
mentality, but, but first, some of us,
when we're faced with choices, faced with
risk, don't know what's gonna happen.
We become paralyzed.
Yes, you don't have to raise your hand,
but if you're faced with a choice,
is your first response paralysis.
I don't wanna take a first step
until I know the outcome is that
you, it's, it's perhaps overvaluing
calculation, it's feeling frozen
until God writes some direction in
the sky and makes it ultimately clear.
Is that a common response to
choices and risk for anyone?
Some of us, uh, take that a step
further and, and aren't just paralyzed.
You're your, your.
Terrified.
You're fearful.
You don't even want to consider that.
There could be a change in front of you.
You'd much rather bury your head
in the sand like the ostrich.
Does that take the change or risk away?
It does not, but you're just
pretending it's not there.
You might be more willing to be
stuck in a current situation,
even if you know it's not great.
Just because it's easy,
because it's known.
It's a, it's an entity.
You can wrap your mind around.
Again, don't raise your hand, but
if this's anyone's first response,
when faced with risk and change,
others of us are more prone to just
bulldoze right through it and get our,
get our will, whether it's God's or not.
And in this, this is a picture of, of
taking a step without counting the cost.
If the paralysis comes from overvaluing
calculation, the the bulldozer
might undervalue calculation, look,
there's a new adventure, let's go.
And it seems like we can put this
in, in super spiritual language.
We're just trusting God.
But often what's happening instead is
we're asking God to bless our will.
I'm going, I'm gonna do this.
I'm gonna kind of tag God's goodness.
On top of it, that anyone's response, when
you're faced with a decision and risk,
those are the, those are the
US that all figure it out.
The, the, the, my, my, uh, acumen,
my emotions, my willingness, my
unwillingness, my, my, my, my, my.
This is, this is where we go.
If there is no God, when we're
faced with risk and choice.
But there is a God.
And so there's a fourth option
here, and this is true for
those of us who follow Jesus.
And if you're here and you don't follow
Jesus, I wanna challenge you to try this.
Next time you face some decision,
next time you have some risk to take.
Even if you don't believe that there's
a God listening, what do you pause
and ask God, what do you want in this?
For those of us who, who do follow Jesus.
This is, this is part of what prayer is.
It's not just saying things to God,
it's, it's seeking his face, seeking
his direction, asking him to meet
us, listening and paying attention.
So will you ask God what choice to make?
And as you ask, will you look
around and consider the seemingly
natural quote unquote factors?
That he's put around you, that he's
put in you, that he's put in others.
'cause very often we don't, we don't
recognize that in certain situations,
God's been already weaving an answer
if we just have eyes to see it.
And so for, for you, he's given you a
specific personality, like he's given
you a story and experience and he is
given you certain giftings and passions.
Do you think those should
matter as you make a decision?
Absolutely.
It's part of how God's already shaped you.
Sometimes he'll call you ultimately out
of something, or ultimately into something
that's so far removed from your giftings.
But very often God goes, no, this is, this
is the path 'cause I've made you for this.
Do we consider that those things are
from God, God's at work in other people?
Yes, he shows up in dreams and visions
and, and causes verses in scripture
to, to, to jump out at us, but also
one of the most common ways that God's
voice is heard, if we're willing to
consider this, is through trusted
friends and family and church community.
What do they see?
What are they saying?
What will they affirm?
What will they challenge?
And as an exploitation for all of
us if we're not willing to step
in and go, I see this in you.
I have a question about this though.
Like we might be disengaging.
Part of what God calls us to be a
community for, which is to offer
perspective and offer wisdom and come
alongside each other and pray and seek
and affirm and yes, ask, and then God's a
work in, in, in different circumstances.
What doors does he seem to be opening?
What doors does he seem to be closing?
So this is a question, church,
do you believe that God
works in all of these things?
Do you believe he works
in how he's made you?
Do you believe he works in
and through other people?
Do you believe he works
through life circumstances?
I'll take your silences of resounding
yes, that we believe these things.
And so what does this look like for you?
What has this looked like for you?
I'll give you two examples for me.
Um, with all my heart.
When I graduated college, I wanted
to leave Texas and I spiritualized
it and said, I want to go for this
per this, people this, this reason.
But really, I just wanted
to get to the mountains.
Anyone else ever wanna go to Colorado?
Just get outta Texas every August.
I also graduated in August,
so yes, we still, every, every
August try to find some reason to
spiritualize God letting us move.
I just wanna get to the mountains.
So I applied to grad school in Denver.
It's where the mountains
are for the record.
Um, I looked for a job.
I looked for housing and for months
I got into the school, but there
was zero movement as far as job
or housing and this kind of stuff.
At the same time, I was
getting scholarship offers
from a school in Dallas.
I was offered a job
and I got free lodging.
Now is that circumstance or is that, God,
I wanna submit The answer is yes.
My risk in that moment was to say no
to my desire and to trust that God
was orchestrating me staying in DFW.
Is that hard if you face things like that?
Absolutely.
There's no mountains
in DFWA different time.
Uh, I was in a staff role that
was downsized after about 10
years of training church leaders.
Um, and so as I was let go, I had
an opportunity from two different
organizations to come and do
a similar role, um, for them.
And that would've been
the easy move to make.
I knew the organizations
would've been the same role.
They were established,
they were trusted entities.
They had little things
like Paychex to offer.
Those are good.
But as Jess and I prayed through it, the
theme that kept rising to the surface
was going, if, if multiple organizations
are asking for the same kind of help.
Would it be better to start a a
different organization and then serve
multiple organizations rather than
just being tied in and limited to one?
And y'all, that was terrifying.
That was a much harder path.
It was.
I mean, starting anything is utterly
unknown still to this day means
we have to raise, get to raise.
God provides, and it's always
amazing, but we raise half of our
funding and this kind of stuff.
It's a risk.
There's a much larger risk if you look
at all the factors, all the calculations.
It's, and again, I'm the chessboard guy,
so I like to figure it all out first.
I couldn't figure it all out first.
That was the risk for that situation.
But I absolutely love it.
And it doesn't mean that every second
following both of those decisions
have been rainbows and unicorns.
But the good is far outweighed the
bad, and I can look back and go, God
was clearly leading in both of them.
Again, those are just two examples of a
very average human in a very average life.
That's, that's me.
What does it look like for you?
When have you taken a risk?
When have you taken a risk, both
without stopping and seeking the
Lord, and when have you taken a risk
after stopping and seeking the Lord?
'cause yes, God can work in all of that.
But the thing we say every time
we do a birthday blessing is true.
That God made you and God knows you
and that God, what is it leads you.
Hey, I love that you know that good
work and God loves you, but the leading
part I think is the hardest for us.
Go back and go.
Of course God made me.
Of course he knows me.
Of course he loves me, but
he is always inviting You.
Follow me, trust me.
Look to me.
I have answers for you.
God leads you.
All right, so back to this
high risk, high reward thing.
Back to the text.
God may not pour out millions of
dollars on you if you follow him.
Let's just acknowledge that.
Uh, in fact, the the life, the life in
Christ is full of suffering and hardship.
Jesus suffered more than anyone on Earth.
And yet through the Bible, God makes it
clear that he does bless our obedience.
He blesses our trust in him.
The very first word of any psalm
in Psalm one is blessed is he whose
delight is in the law of the Lord.
I'm skipping a little bit, but
in all he does he'll prosper.
Blessed or you.
If your delight is in the Lord
and all you do, you'll prosper.
It may not be prosperous in exactly
the way that you think it should.
God's gonna provide.
God's gonna protect.
God's gonna care.
God's gonna lead.
God's gonna comfort
multiple Psalms, multiple
Proverbs say the same thing.
Jesus himself in, in Luke, chapter 11
said, blessed are those who hear the word
of the Lord and obey it, and on and on.
This is a theme throughout
scripture for Ruth and Naomi.
Next week, we'll see how God bless
their trust and obedience even more
through boaz's trust and obedience.
But I'm gonna close with
just a glimpse of it today.
Boaz said, bring me the shawl that
you're wearing and hold it out.
And Ruth did so and he poured
into it six measures of barley
and placed the bundle on her.
Then he went back into town.
He's starting to do the things
he said he was gonna do, and
Ruth came to her mother-in-law.
Naomi asked, how did it go, my daughter?
And she said, uh, she told her
everything Boaz had done and
then added grace upon Grace.
Bonus here.
He gave me these six measures of
barley saying, don't go back to
your mother-in-law empty handed.
And Naomi said, wait my daughter,
until you find out what happens
for the man will not rest until
the matter is settled today.
Now, some people say this barley,
this, this six measures is a dowry.
I don't know, maybe, but for
sure it's a first glimpse.
It's a guarantee.
It's a a, a down payment of sorts.
BOA is saying, I'm going to do
what I said I would do for you.
I'm going to fulfill my commitment.
And more than that, it's God's blessing
and providing what are they seeking?
They're seeking provision and protection
and God is giving them provision.
God is giving them literal sustenance.
He's blessing their trust and obedience.
And so church, God loves
to bless his people.
Jesus reminds us that God is
a good father who desires to
give his children good gifts.
Yes, but like every child, we don't
always obey, like every child, every
human, we will fight or fly or freeze.
When we face a risk, we will all trust
in ourselves and our own desires and
our own means of figuring things out.
We'll all do that more
than trusting God, right?
And so maybe the biggest blessing,
the biggest good gift that God
gives us is his grace, not if,
but when we don't follow him.
And that's what we get to celebrate
at communion, is that the death
and resurrection of Jesus is the
greatest gift that God's ever given.
Jesus took the greatest
risk in all of history.
He gave up his very throne to
become your ultimate redeemer.
And so if you're wondering what,
who, who are we in this story?
We, we are essentially Ruth and Naomi.
We're needy.
We're broken.
Yes.
We'll take risks for God.
Yes.
We'll try to obey.
Yes, we'll try to follow God,
but we can't solve things.
We can't fix things.
We can't heal things.
We can't make things right.
And so Jesus is represented by Boas.
He's the one who in a far bigger,
far better way, is the, is is
the one who covers us with his
perfect life and covers us with his
perfect death and brings us home.
But unlike Boaz, there's, there's
no other relative who can redeem us.
Unlike Boaz, Jesus' cost was his own life.
But it was worth the risk to Jesus
because his sacrifice was for God's
ultimate glory and your ultimate good.
And so if you trust that redemption,
if you trust that he is your brother
and redeemer, that God is your good
father, then come to the table.