WEBVTT 00:00:01.600 --> 00:00:04.799 Matthew chapter 21, beginning of verse 28. 00:00:06.400 --> 00:00:07.599 What do you think? 00:00:07.839 --> 00:00:14.480 A man had two sons, and he went to the first and said, Son, go and work in the vineyard today. 00:00:14.640 --> 00:00:16.800 And he answered, I will not. 00:00:17.039 --> 00:00:19.920 But afterward he changed his mind and went. 00:00:20.160 --> 00:00:22.480 And he went to the older son and said the same. 00:00:22.640 --> 00:00:26.719 And he said, answered, I will go, sir, but did not go. 00:00:27.199 --> 00:00:30.160 Which of the two did the will of his father? 00:00:30.480 --> 00:00:32.159 They said, The first. 00:00:33.039 --> 00:00:41.280 Jesus said to them, Truly I say to you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes go into the kingdom of God before you. 00:00:41.520 --> 00:00:46.000 For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him. 00:00:46.320 --> 00:00:49.600 But the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. 00:00:50.079 --> 00:00:55.679 And even when you saw it, you did not afterward change your minds and believe him. 00:00:56.159 --> 00:00:57.679 The word of the Lord. 00:00:57.920 --> 00:00:59.280 Thanks be to God. 00:00:59.520 --> 00:00:59.920 Amen. 00:01:00.159 --> 00:01:01.280 Let's pray. 00:01:02.880 --> 00:01:08.480 Heavenly Father, we believe that you inspired these words that we find in the book of Ruth. 00:01:08.719 --> 00:01:14.799 We believe that they had power in their day, and we believe, Lord, that by your Holy Spirit they have power in our day as well. 00:01:14.959 --> 00:01:21.120 So, Father, we pray that you would open our hearts and open our minds for the word that you have for us. 00:01:21.359 --> 00:01:28.959 Lord, that we would be renewed and transformed from one degree of glory to another in the likeness of our Lord and our Redeemer. 00:01:29.200 --> 00:01:31.519 And it's in his name we pray. 00:01:31.840 --> 00:01:32.480 Amen. 00:01:32.799 --> 00:01:33.439 Amen. 00:01:36.719 --> 00:01:43.359 So, here we are in Ruth chapter 3, after well, going through the first two chapters, that makes sense. 00:01:43.439 --> 00:01:46.480 The last two weeks, we've been looking through the book of Ruth. 00:01:46.640 --> 00:01:51.519 Now we come to Ruth chapter 3, which is a very puzzling part of Ruth indeed. 00:01:51.760 --> 00:02:13.919 In fact, things might seem to get a little PG-13, and we might be getting a little PG-13 in the sermon, not because there is anything explicit that happens in the text, but that we are going to go to where the text goes, to what might be suggested here, and we're going to explore and see what exactly is happening at this threshing floor scene. 00:02:15.039 --> 00:02:16.479 So you've been warned. 00:02:17.599 --> 00:02:25.039 So I'm probably not the first preacher, probably not the first Christian to say something like, God has a wonderful plan for your life. 00:02:26.080 --> 00:02:29.199 I'd like to say I coined that, but I didn't. 00:02:29.520 --> 00:02:30.639 I think that's true, though. 00:02:30.719 --> 00:02:36.479 I really think that God has a wonderful plan for your life, and I believe that God has a wonderful plan for my life as well. 00:02:36.639 --> 00:02:43.759 And part of that hope is what draws us together and community as the church and draws us to his word to understand what that plan is. 00:02:44.000 --> 00:02:47.199 God has a wonderful plan for your life. 00:02:47.439 --> 00:02:56.000 But if I'm perfectly honest with myself, if I'm brutally honest with myself, God's not being the only person with a plan for my life. 00:02:56.240 --> 00:03:01.840 In fact, he's not necessarily been the only one with what I would call a wonderful plan for my life. 00:03:02.159 --> 00:03:06.159 Creighton has had many wonderful plans for his life. 00:03:06.400 --> 00:03:12.639 Creighton has, at many different ages and stages, looked ahead and thought, this is what I want my life to look like. 00:03:12.800 --> 00:03:14.240 This is what's going to be good. 00:03:14.400 --> 00:03:18.879 This is what's going to provide me with security or provision or identity. 00:03:19.039 --> 00:03:22.159 This is where I'm going to find my rest, we might say. 00:03:22.639 --> 00:03:25.199 We take that word right here from chapter 3, verse 1. 00:03:25.280 --> 00:03:26.800 This is how I'm going to find rest. 00:03:26.960 --> 00:03:30.080 This is how it's going to be well with Creighton. 00:03:30.240 --> 00:03:31.120 Have you ever done that? 00:03:31.199 --> 00:03:32.719 Have you made plans, thought ahead? 00:03:32.879 --> 00:03:42.319 Maybe we're in the midst of making plans right now or at the cusp of a major life decision or something that will affect a considerable part of how we live our life. 00:03:42.639 --> 00:03:51.120 Maybe we're at that point where we're trying to discern what is my plan for my life and what is God's plan for our life? 00:03:51.360 --> 00:03:53.360 We all want things to be well. 00:03:53.599 --> 00:04:00.000 We all want to discover and realize that kind of rest that Naomi desires for Ruth here. 00:04:00.159 --> 00:04:01.199 What does that look like? 00:04:01.360 --> 00:04:09.919 Do we ever feel the tension between our wonderful plans for our life and God's wonderful plan for our life? 00:04:10.159 --> 00:04:14.080 Do we ever feel a little bit at a loss to reconcile the two? 00:04:14.719 --> 00:04:17.199 Maybe it's not just been you with a wonderful plan for your life. 00:04:17.360 --> 00:04:21.439 Maybe you know what it's like for someone else to have a wonderful plan for your life. 00:04:21.680 --> 00:04:32.720 Maybe it's been a parent or a teacher or a guidance counselor or an employer who's had a wonderful plan for your life mapped out for the next five years, ten years, however long. 00:04:32.959 --> 00:04:45.759 Maybe, like Ruth, you know what it's like for someone else to have a wonderful plan for your life, and maybe you experience that tension between our man-made plans and God's divine plan. 00:04:46.800 --> 00:04:55.279 What we see in Ruth chapter three is we see a restlessness that comes with trying to realize our own plans for what they are. 00:04:55.519 --> 00:04:59.519 We see the danger of things going sideways really quickly. 00:04:59.759 --> 00:05:10.240 But what we see put on display in Ruth chapter three, shining like a light, is the kind of assurance, the kind of unique assurance that we can rest in. 00:05:10.800 --> 00:05:14.639 We can rest assured in our Redeemer's arms. 00:05:14.879 --> 00:05:16.160 That's true for Ruth. 00:05:16.319 --> 00:05:17.920 I think that's true for us today. 00:05:18.079 --> 00:05:22.560 For those of us who feel restless, trying to understand what the plan is. 00:05:23.680 --> 00:05:31.759 Those of us who feel weary and heavy laden, trying to understand how things are going to unfold, there's good news for us today. 00:05:32.000 --> 00:05:37.759 And that good news is that we can rest assured in the arms of our Redeemer. 00:05:38.160 --> 00:05:40.160 So here we are, Ruth chapter three. 00:05:40.240 --> 00:05:46.079 We've been going through these chapters, and we've met Ruth and we've met Naomi in chapter one. 00:05:46.399 --> 00:06:02.959 Both have endured famine, they've endured hardship, they've lost their husbands, they've lost their security, they've lost every safety net they thought that they had in the land of Moab, and now they're coming back to Naomi's hometown of Bethlehem because maybe, just maybe, there's hope to find food. 00:06:03.040 --> 00:06:06.800 There's hope to find enough provision to make it through the day. 00:06:07.120 --> 00:06:10.480 And then in chapter two, we met a guy named Boaz. 00:06:11.120 --> 00:06:15.519 Boaz, chapter two tells us, chapter two, verse 20 tells us, is a Goel. 00:06:15.920 --> 00:06:18.800 He's a kinsman redeemer, or he's a redeemer. 00:06:19.439 --> 00:06:31.839 He's a relative of Naomi's late husband Elimelech, who is in a unique position to provide security and provision for Ruth and Naomi both. 00:06:32.399 --> 00:06:37.279 That's why we see in chapter 3, verse 1, he's called a relative of them both. 00:06:37.600 --> 00:06:52.480 This kinsman redeemer comes from uh um parts of the Old Testament, Leviticus 25, Deuteronomy 25, that talk about God's provision for uh childless widows, those who don't have means to provide for themselves. 00:06:52.720 --> 00:07:11.920 This uh this meant that an available uh relative of a deceased husband could step into their place and make sure that these widows were cared for, make sure that they had the provision that they needed to live and thrive and flourish, and to make sure also that their property wasn't just parsed out, it stayed in the family. 00:07:12.160 --> 00:07:19.040 This was someone who could step in in such a critical moment of need and provide exactly the provision and security that was needed. 00:07:19.199 --> 00:07:23.360 This was God's intention for the kinsman redeemer. 00:07:23.519 --> 00:07:29.839 Here we find Boaz in this unique position to step in for Ruth and Naomi, and we already know that coming out of chapter two. 00:07:30.160 --> 00:07:38.319 Here we enter into chapter three and we find three scenes in chapter three, much like chapter two unfolded, we see three scenes that parallel that. 00:07:38.560 --> 00:07:41.600 We see Naomi briefing Ruth on the plan. 00:07:41.759 --> 00:07:48.959 We see that Naomi has a wonderful life for or plan for Ruth's life, and how Ruth's life is going to unfold here. 00:07:49.279 --> 00:07:59.680 Scene two, we see Ruth and Boaz, and we see what unfolds is a powerful shining light for just how amazing Cod's redemption is. 00:07:59.839 --> 00:08:07.839 And then we conclude with scene three where Ruth goes back to Naomi and reports what's uh happened between she and Boaz. 00:08:08.240 --> 00:08:11.040 Chapters three and chapter two are similar in that way. 00:08:11.199 --> 00:08:22.959 So let's walk through these three scenes and let's discover the unique kind of rest, the unique kind of, the unique kind of assurance that we can have in our Redeemer's arms. 00:08:23.199 --> 00:08:26.480 So, scene one, Naomi has a wonderful plan for Ruth's life. 00:08:26.560 --> 00:08:28.079 Here's the first five verses. 00:08:28.319 --> 00:08:31.040 Naomi, we know wants rest for Ruth. 00:08:31.199 --> 00:08:33.840 She wants things to go well for Ruth. 00:08:34.000 --> 00:08:36.480 And that rest doesn't just mean relaxation. 00:08:36.720 --> 00:08:44.480 At this point, we we know that this biblical word rest goes so much deeper than just, you know, I hope you get to put your feet up once in a while. 00:08:44.639 --> 00:08:50.639 I hope you get to, you know, lie down in a recliner chair next to an in-ground pool and sip a mojito from time to time. 00:08:50.799 --> 00:08:53.440 This this kind of rest goes way deeper than that. 00:08:53.600 --> 00:09:01.200 This is a kind of rest that comes from a security, from an identity, from having what we need to flourish and thrive. 00:09:01.360 --> 00:09:04.080 That's what Naomi is talking about for rest. 00:09:04.159 --> 00:09:05.759 It's the kind or for Ruth. 00:09:05.919 --> 00:09:13.679 She wants a kind of rest that makes Ruth secure, that makes sure that Ruth has what it needs for things to go well. 00:09:13.840 --> 00:09:32.799 And the language that's used here in the first six verses, that it may go well with you, and then in verse six we see uh Ruth performing all that Naomi's commanded, it kind of echoes the language that we see in Deuteronomy chapter six, which the people of God, Israel, understood was sort of the heartbeat of God's law. 00:09:32.960 --> 00:09:35.360 Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God, the Lord is one. 00:09:35.519 --> 00:09:37.120 That's right in Deuteronomy six. 00:09:37.360 --> 00:09:46.320 And right before that, we see God giving these commands to his people and saying, to perform these commandments so that it may go well with you. 00:09:46.559 --> 00:09:57.679 It's kind of like Naomi stepping into this role, saying to Ruth, if you do this, Ruth, in a way that God's people perform God's commandments and goes well for them, if you do this, Ruth, it's it's gonna go well for you. 00:09:57.759 --> 00:09:58.799 This is gonna work out. 00:09:58.960 --> 00:10:01.840 You're gonna thrive, you're gonna flourish. 00:10:02.240 --> 00:10:03.440 And how is that gonna work? 00:10:03.519 --> 00:10:06.000 What's Naomi's wonderful plan for Ruth? 00:10:06.240 --> 00:10:09.759 She says this number one, I want you to wash and anoint yourself. 00:10:10.000 --> 00:10:13.120 Number two, put on your cloak or put on your mantle. 00:10:13.360 --> 00:10:19.279 Number three, go and find where Boaz is lying down and lie down next to him and uncover his feet. 00:10:19.519 --> 00:10:23.279 And then part four, let him make the next move. 00:10:23.759 --> 00:10:35.360 Now, this is Naomi's wonderful plan, but for a sensitive reader, we see at least one significant way this can go sideways real quick. 00:10:35.519 --> 00:10:39.120 And this is a bit of the dramatic tension that's being introduced at this point. 00:10:39.360 --> 00:10:47.039 A reader who reads Naomi's plan, whether in the first century or maybe you're thinking it as we heard the reading, you're kind of going, where is this going? 00:10:47.679 --> 00:10:49.759 You know, so there's a bit of dramatic tension here. 00:10:49.840 --> 00:10:51.679 Where's how is this gonna play out for Ruth? 00:10:51.759 --> 00:10:53.360 What what what's Ruth going to do? 00:10:53.440 --> 00:10:55.840 What's Naomi asking her to do? 00:10:56.080 --> 00:11:03.600 Because there's a best case scenario that we see, beyond a best case scenario we see realized, but there's a worst case scenario as well. 00:11:03.840 --> 00:11:10.159 One biblical commentator says that Naomi's uh instructions to Ruth here are so ambiguous. 00:11:10.240 --> 00:11:12.480 There are there's so many different ways to interpret this. 00:11:12.639 --> 00:11:17.600 How is it that Ruth is supposed to understand what Naomi's asking her to do? 00:11:17.919 --> 00:11:30.240 See, because the worst case scenario here is that Naomi either could could intend or Ruth could misinterpret Naomi's instructions to mean, Ruth, here's the wonderful plan for your life. 00:11:30.399 --> 00:11:35.440 We're gonna secure rest, we're gonna secure provision, because you're going to go and seduce Boaz. 00:11:35.840 --> 00:11:37.279 That's what's gonna happen here. 00:11:37.440 --> 00:11:43.120 You're gonna go and you're gonna present yourself to him, you're gonna look desirable, you're gonna put on your fanciest dress. 00:11:43.360 --> 00:11:48.240 You're gonna go and wait until dark, disguise yourself, make sure no one sees you. 00:11:48.480 --> 00:12:03.919 You're gonna lie down next to him and you're gonna uncover his feet, which it's true is is a is a bit of a Hebrew, can be a Hebrew euphemism for, you know, uncover his lower half, his lower parts, start with his feet and you know keep uncovering. 00:12:04.080 --> 00:12:07.200 Uh and part four, you know, we'll we'll see where what develops. 00:12:07.279 --> 00:12:13.279 I mean, it doesn't take a stretch of the imagination to think where this could go so horribly wrong. 00:12:14.000 --> 00:12:15.679 Some interpreters take it this way. 00:12:15.840 --> 00:12:18.799 Some interpreters read Ruth and say, this is what's happening here. 00:12:18.879 --> 00:12:25.679 Ruth and Naomi are securing for themselves the rest they're looking for by taking matters into their own hands. 00:12:25.919 --> 00:12:34.960 And then they would point further, interpreters who would take this line of reasoning would point further and say, Look, in verse 7, Boaz has been very merry. 00:12:35.200 --> 00:12:38.720 He's coming and he's he's he's so he's had such a merry time. 00:12:38.879 --> 00:12:41.519 He's coming home and he passes out in his workplace. 00:12:41.679 --> 00:12:46.240 He's been out partying with the boys, and here he comes back drunk, and he's passed out in his workplace. 00:12:46.399 --> 00:12:50.720 And not only that, when he sees Ruth there, he tells her, you know, why don't you spend the night? 00:12:50.879 --> 00:12:55.039 And then before he sends her home, he says, Oh, it shouldn't be known that you were here. 00:12:55.200 --> 00:12:57.679 How about uh here, how about you take some barley? 00:12:57.759 --> 00:13:03.679 This will be a great alibi, and when people wonder where you were, he said, Oh, I was doing some late-night, you know, threshing and gleaning, right? 00:13:03.919 --> 00:13:05.840 Some interpreters take that line of thought. 00:13:06.000 --> 00:13:08.960 I'm I'm here to say that that is not what's happening in this text. 00:13:09.200 --> 00:13:20.879 That is not what's happening in this text for a number of reasons that we'll discuss, but the primary reason is this is this does not represent the character, the godly character of Boaz and Ruth that we see here. 00:13:21.360 --> 00:13:22.879 So what is happening? 00:13:23.120 --> 00:13:25.279 What's happening here on the threshing floor? 00:13:25.440 --> 00:13:27.840 What is happening between Boaz and Ruth? 00:13:28.000 --> 00:13:30.320 Has Naomi's plan gone sideways? 00:13:30.559 --> 00:13:35.279 Is this a door that Naomi wanted to open or just unintentionally left open? 00:13:35.440 --> 00:13:36.399 What's going on here? 00:13:36.720 --> 00:13:44.559 See, if we read it and we read it along those lines, I think we what I mean, I don't I think we've got so much reason. 00:13:44.799 --> 00:14:04.720 When we open up the headlines today to see something like that happening, I think we can look through the lens of what we see in headlines, what we see through the lens of something like a like the Me Too movement, which calls our attention rightly to the way men with influence and men with wealth and men with with means can exploit their power over vulnerable women. 00:14:04.879 --> 00:14:06.960 Is that what's happening here? 00:14:07.279 --> 00:14:14.399 Is Boaz exploiting Ruth to get what he wants so that Ruth can get a little bit of what she needs to survive? 00:14:14.559 --> 00:14:16.080 Is that really where this is going? 00:14:16.240 --> 00:14:23.279 Because if we if we take that line of reasoning, if we see this as a seduction, really we're going to see this as exploitation. 00:14:23.440 --> 00:14:28.080 And suddenly this happy ending that we see in Ruth is not so happy. 00:14:28.240 --> 00:14:32.000 It's another chapter in the exploitation and oppression of women. 00:14:32.159 --> 00:14:33.919 And that is not what's happening here. 00:14:34.159 --> 00:14:40.720 What is happening, what is happening at the threshing floor, what is happening, friends, is the gospel. 00:14:41.120 --> 00:14:45.519 What is happening here is not Naomi's plan going sideways. 00:14:45.759 --> 00:14:50.399 It is Ruth resting assured in the arms of her redeemer. 00:14:50.639 --> 00:14:51.600 Here's what's happening. 00:14:51.679 --> 00:14:54.480 Here's how we know that a seduction isn't happening, by the way. 00:14:54.639 --> 00:15:00.080 Let's just look at some textual evidence and say for sure that a second seduction is not happening. 00:15:00.399 --> 00:15:14.320 One, when not Naomi tells Ruth to wash and anoint herself, she is not saying, look like a million bucks to Ruth, so that you know Boaz will go after you. 00:15:14.480 --> 00:15:18.799 No, she's saying to wash and anoint because that is what a bride does on her wedding day. 00:15:18.960 --> 00:15:20.879 She's using the language of a wedding day. 00:15:21.039 --> 00:15:25.120 Go prepare yourself like a bride to present yourself to Boaz. 00:15:25.679 --> 00:15:30.639 And wait until dark, not because this is some kind of clandestine secretive meeting. 00:15:30.799 --> 00:15:37.200 I mean, it it is private, but this is an important private conversation that can't wait any longer. 00:15:37.679 --> 00:15:42.320 And when she says to uncover him, to uncover his feet, really she means just that. 00:15:42.559 --> 00:15:43.840 Uncover his feet. 00:15:44.080 --> 00:15:45.600 And why does she say that? 00:15:45.919 --> 00:15:49.600 Because cold feet in the middle of the night wake us up. 00:15:50.080 --> 00:15:51.679 It wakes me up every time. 00:15:51.919 --> 00:15:56.799 Partly my the our cat is attacking my feet and it drives me nuts. 00:15:56.960 --> 00:15:58.720 But cold feet wake us up. 00:15:59.039 --> 00:16:00.080 Naomi knows this. 00:16:00.240 --> 00:16:03.120 Uncover his feet so that he wakes up at the right time. 00:16:03.279 --> 00:16:07.759 And if you think, well, that that seems kind of weird, why wouldn't you just kind of just poke him? 00:16:08.000 --> 00:16:11.440 Well, here's what we know for sure is going on. 00:16:11.600 --> 00:16:16.960 Uncover his feet, unravel his garment, because you're going to press the question of marriage. 00:16:17.200 --> 00:16:19.759 You're going to make sure that Boaz knows what's on your mind. 00:16:19.840 --> 00:16:21.519 And here's why I say that. 00:16:22.080 --> 00:16:25.919 When I was getting engaged to Rachel, two things happened. 00:16:26.000 --> 00:16:27.600 One is I gave her a ring. 00:16:27.759 --> 00:16:30.960 And that's a gift that we're used to see given at an engagement. 00:16:31.120 --> 00:16:34.480 I'm going to give you this symbol of my intention to marry you. 00:16:34.639 --> 00:16:42.080 And, you know, and I and whenever I see Rachel's ring, she's flashing at me right now, I'm reminded of that wonderful day when I asked Rachel to marry me. 00:16:42.159 --> 00:16:44.080 That's the gift that I gave her. 00:16:44.320 --> 00:16:49.679 In the ancient Near East, if you intended to marry someone, you spread your cloak over them. 00:16:49.840 --> 00:16:51.679 You put your garment over them. 00:16:51.919 --> 00:16:57.600 And a way of translating what Ruth says to Boaz, spread your wings over your servant. 00:16:57.840 --> 00:17:04.480 She can also be translated and accurately translated, spread your garment over your servant. 00:17:04.960 --> 00:17:12.559 So people ask me sometimes when I propose to Rachel, if I was nervous, if I was nervous that she'd say no, I hope you don't mind me sharing this, because here's where we're going. 00:17:12.960 --> 00:17:16.319 If I was nervous, I the truth is, by God's grace, I really wasn't nervous. 00:17:16.880 --> 00:17:26.480 I was confident what Rachel had to say because Rachel had the courage of making her intention very much known to me for weeks and months heading into the engagement. 00:17:26.640 --> 00:17:29.759 You know, subtle things like, hey, so when are you gonna ask me to marry you? 00:17:29.920 --> 00:17:38.640 You know, that that really helps to kind of cement what Rachel's got in her mind, and it really just gave me the confidence that I needed to make that plan happen. 00:17:38.799 --> 00:17:40.480 So what's Ruth doing here in this scene? 00:17:40.640 --> 00:17:44.799 She's uncovering his feet, she's you know, pushing up the rope, she is pressing the question. 00:17:44.960 --> 00:17:47.599 Hey, when are you gonna spread your garment over me? 00:17:47.920 --> 00:17:48.400 Right? 00:17:48.640 --> 00:17:50.720 My, I'd love, I want to marry you. 00:17:50.960 --> 00:17:53.440 Are you going to spread your garment over your servant? 00:17:53.599 --> 00:17:57.440 I mean, she's making it so clearly known what her intention is. 00:17:58.240 --> 00:18:02.400 But not only that, she's quoting Boaz's words back to him. 00:18:02.480 --> 00:18:03.680 Did you notice that? 00:18:03.920 --> 00:18:10.319 Because when Boaz meets Ruth in last week's chapter, chapter two, Boaz blesses her. 00:18:10.720 --> 00:18:20.400 He says this, um, chapter two, verse 12, the Lord repay you for what you've done, and a full reward be given to you by the Lord, the God of Israel. 00:18:20.559 --> 00:18:24.000 That he's talking about the faithfulness that Ruth has shown to Naomi. 00:18:24.559 --> 00:18:31.519 May a reward be given to you by the Lord the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge. 00:18:31.759 --> 00:18:37.119 And just as accurately we could translate that, under whose garment you've come to seek refuge. 00:18:38.079 --> 00:18:43.039 What Ruth is saying to Boaz is not just this question of marry me. 00:18:43.200 --> 00:18:50.240 She's saying, Boaz, you've wished that the Lord, you've blessed me by saying the Lord will put his garment over me. 00:18:50.400 --> 00:18:54.799 Boaz, I want you to the agent of God's rescuing faithfulness. 00:18:54.960 --> 00:18:57.920 You've blessed me with this word of God's rescuing faithfulness. 00:18:58.079 --> 00:19:00.640 Will you be the agent that realizes that? 00:19:00.799 --> 00:19:12.319 Will you be the one to show me that rescuing faithfulness by marrying me, by acting as my kinsman redeemer, by saving my family, by making us one? 00:19:12.640 --> 00:19:21.920 Boaz, will you show me the heavenly kindness of the Lord that you've blessed me with, that you've that you've spoken over me. 00:19:22.480 --> 00:19:25.920 See, this scene is so far from a seduction. 00:19:26.079 --> 00:19:32.720 This is Ruth and Boaz realizing the heart of the gospel, anticipating the gospel in real time. 00:19:32.880 --> 00:19:37.039 This is about making manifest the rescuing faithfulness of the Lord. 00:19:37.200 --> 00:19:44.799 Because let's remember that Ruth in chapter one hasn't just pledged herself to Naomi, she's pledged herself to Yahweh, she's pledged herself to the Lord. 00:19:44.880 --> 00:19:47.759 Your God will be my God, is what she said. 00:19:48.000 --> 00:19:49.519 Your people, my people. 00:19:49.759 --> 00:19:52.799 Boaz, show me that rescuing faithfulness of the Lord. 00:19:52.960 --> 00:19:54.640 And how does Boaz respond? 00:19:54.880 --> 00:19:56.640 He responds with kindness. 00:19:56.880 --> 00:20:05.599 He responds with genuine care and compassion, not with exploitation and oppression, but he says, My daughter, which might seem strange to us in this moment. 00:20:05.839 --> 00:20:16.240 But one, it draws our attention to maybe how much older Boaz is, but two, it draws our attention to the care and compassion that Boaz genuinely feels for Ruth. 00:20:16.480 --> 00:20:18.960 You, this last kindness is greater than the first. 00:20:19.119 --> 00:20:24.079 He celebrates and honors Ruth's faithfulness to Naomi. 00:20:24.640 --> 00:20:33.359 And he calls her a worthy woman, which should really tip us off that what's happening here is not something that's unworthy of God's people. 00:20:33.680 --> 00:20:35.279 She's a worthy woman. 00:20:35.599 --> 00:20:39.920 She is an example of a Proverbs 31 woman. 00:20:40.000 --> 00:20:41.599 Have we ever heard that phrase? 00:20:41.839 --> 00:20:51.920 In the Hebrew scriptures, in the Hebrew ordering of the scriptures, which is a little bit different than our Christian ordering of the Old Testament, Proverbs happens right before Ruth. 00:20:52.000 --> 00:20:53.359 It comes right before Ruth. 00:20:53.519 --> 00:21:00.799 So you've just read about the excellent wife, or in uh the exact same translate words can be translated as worthy woman. 00:21:00.960 --> 00:21:05.519 You've just read about the excellent wife, the worthy woman, and now you're coming to Ruth. 00:21:05.680 --> 00:21:09.680 We are seeing that lived out in real time in Ruth's life. 00:21:09.920 --> 00:21:13.839 Ruth, you are a worthy woman. 00:21:14.559 --> 00:21:20.240 And so Boaz makes known his intention to marry her by sending her home with barley. 00:21:20.319 --> 00:21:22.240 That's an engagement present. 00:21:22.400 --> 00:21:27.599 And the fact that he says, let it not be known, is not because he wants to keep a secret, something shady has happened. 00:21:27.759 --> 00:21:30.000 He wants to protect Ruth's reputation. 00:21:30.160 --> 00:21:31.599 Because there's a complication. 00:21:31.759 --> 00:21:44.079 And the complication is this is yes, Boaz can act as a redeemer, but there's a closer relative who has a first say in whether or not he's going to step into that role as the redeemer. 00:21:44.480 --> 00:21:55.039 Boaz wants to make sure that Ruth's reputation is protected, that there's nothing that's going to sway this potential redeemer from stepping into this act of redemption. 00:21:55.119 --> 00:21:56.160 And why is that? 00:21:56.319 --> 00:22:04.880 It's because Boaz, more than anything else, Wants to see Ruth protected and provided for. 00:22:05.039 --> 00:22:09.599 He wants to see rest realized for Ruth and for Naomi both. 00:22:09.680 --> 00:22:12.480 He wants to see it go well for Ruth. 00:22:12.640 --> 00:22:26.240 And so he acts in her best interests, not in his, even at great personal expense, because Boaz is not under obligation to do this, but he does it out of a generous kindness and a genuine love for Ruth. 00:22:26.400 --> 00:22:28.880 Friends, do we start to see what's emerging here? 00:22:29.119 --> 00:22:31.519 This goes way beyond Ruth and Boaz. 00:22:31.759 --> 00:22:35.200 This goes way beyond a supposed one night of passion. 00:22:35.519 --> 00:22:38.079 That is just so far missing the point. 00:22:38.240 --> 00:22:40.480 What's happening here is the gospel. 00:22:40.880 --> 00:22:49.839 What's happening here is God's redeeming love and rescuing kindness towards his people, his covenant union. 00:22:50.000 --> 00:22:56.559 I'm just going to read a passage here from Ezekiel 16, and I'm going to read it from my computer because I forgot to print it out. 00:22:56.799 --> 00:23:07.440 Ezekiel 16 gives us the same language we see right here in the book of Ruth, and it talks about God's rescuing faithfulness, his redeeming kindness to his people. 00:23:07.599 --> 00:23:12.319 Let's see if we can look through this passage and we can see Ruth and we can see the gospel itself. 00:23:12.480 --> 00:23:17.119 Ezekiel 16, what does the Lord think about his where how does the Lord think about his wayward people? 00:23:17.279 --> 00:23:19.279 He thinks about them like an adoring husband. 00:23:19.519 --> 00:23:29.680 When I passed by you, says the Lord, again, and I saw you, behold, and you were at the age for love, which like Ruth means you were, you know, eligible to marry. 00:23:30.000 --> 00:23:43.440 I spread the corner of my garment over you, I spread my wings over you, the Lord is saying to his people, and I covered you, I covered you in your nakedness, which like Boaz means I provided for your need. 00:23:43.920 --> 00:23:51.920 I made my vow to you, and and I entered into a covenant with you, declares the Lord God, and you became mine. 00:23:52.400 --> 00:23:56.960 Then I bathed, washed, anointed, clothed, adorned you. 00:23:57.279 --> 00:24:05.519 Going over a couple verses here, you grew exceedingly beautiful and advanced to royalty, and your renown went forth among the nations. 00:24:05.680 --> 00:24:13.599 You were a worthy woman, known by all because of your beauty, for it was perfect through the splendor that I bestowed on you. 00:24:13.920 --> 00:24:24.400 Do we see this moment between the Lord and his people, between Ruth and Boaz, pointing us to the love that goes beyond all loves, the rescuing faithfulness beyond all faithfulness. 00:24:24.559 --> 00:24:29.119 This is God's love for his people, and this is the good news, friends, for us. 00:24:29.440 --> 00:24:33.039 We can rest assured in the arms of our Redeemer. 00:24:33.359 --> 00:24:41.039 This good news finds us as restless people who, like Naomi, have been left in want, have come back empty. 00:24:41.200 --> 00:24:42.400 We are without what we need. 00:24:42.480 --> 00:24:44.160 We are without peace with God. 00:24:44.319 --> 00:24:46.079 We are without security. 00:24:46.319 --> 00:24:48.160 We are without eternal security. 00:24:48.319 --> 00:24:52.640 And like Naomi, we are weary, heavy laden, and empty. 00:24:52.880 --> 00:24:56.559 But here the redeeming love of God meets us in Christ. 00:24:56.799 --> 00:25:03.759 In Christ we see not just a redeemer, but the Redeemer, the rescuing faithfulness we've always needed. 00:25:03.920 --> 00:25:17.839 In his incarnation, in his becoming man, in his uh in his taking on our human nature, he is, as it were, spreading his garment over us, so that what is his by nature can be ours by grace. 00:25:18.240 --> 00:25:30.640 Jesus is spreading his wings over us, spreading his garment, as it were, over us, and by his passion and death, Jesus goes to the greatest length he could to redeem us at great personal cost. 00:25:30.880 --> 00:25:33.759 He is our near kinsman, redeemer. 00:25:34.000 --> 00:25:37.039 And now by his resurrection we have a hope for a new rest. 00:25:37.839 --> 00:25:48.559 We have uh through the gift of the Spirit and through the promises in his word and through a hope for an eternal kingdom, we are not left empty-handed. 00:25:48.720 --> 00:25:56.559 Just like Naomi recognizes Boaz has not left us empty-handed, or pardon me, Boaz says to Ruth, you're not going to go home empty-handed. 00:25:56.880 --> 00:25:58.400 We are not left empty-handed. 00:25:58.480 --> 00:26:05.920 We have the promises of God and a hope for eternal life to carry away from our encounter with the Redeemer. 00:26:06.160 --> 00:26:10.720 So like Ruth and Boaz, we're starting to see the real love story emerge. 00:26:10.960 --> 00:26:14.960 This is not a love story between just two people, Ruth and Boaz. 00:26:15.039 --> 00:26:18.000 This is a love story between God and his people. 00:26:18.319 --> 00:26:20.640 It's a love story that we see in the gospel. 00:26:20.720 --> 00:26:22.960 It's a love story that we see through Scripture. 00:26:23.200 --> 00:26:39.920 It's a love story that we see displayed in Christian marriage, where one man and one woman become one flesh, and they display this mystery of faithfulness, fidelity, love, and trust between God in Christ and his church. 00:26:40.079 --> 00:26:42.240 That's what we see in Ephesians chapter 5. 00:26:42.400 --> 00:26:50.640 That's why faithfulness in marriage is so important, because it points beyond just our marriage, to the very faithfulness of God towards his people. 00:26:51.119 --> 00:27:00.960 And then we end up in Revelation 19 at the very end of Scripture, where all God's people are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb, of which Holy Communion is just a foretaste. 00:27:01.039 --> 00:27:07.039 We get to feast with our bridegroom who's redeemed us from sin and from death. 00:27:07.440 --> 00:27:08.799 Friends, we have a hope. 00:27:09.039 --> 00:27:14.799 We restless people can rest assured in the arms of our Redeemer. 00:27:15.279 --> 00:27:17.359 Well, Creighton, that's really nice. 00:27:17.680 --> 00:27:20.400 I get to rest in the arms of my Redeemer. 00:27:20.720 --> 00:27:23.359 But I'm still in the middle of a decision here, Creighton. 00:27:23.519 --> 00:27:30.400 I still have something on my plate, and I gotta figure out what God's will for my life, his wonderful plan for my life is, and what my wonderful plan for my life is. 00:27:30.480 --> 00:27:33.519 And if I'm honest, I'm not sure I know which one's which. 00:27:34.079 --> 00:27:46.720 Well, I don't think that Ruth chapter 3 gives us a perfect how-to and how to figure out what is God's wonderful plan for our life that points us towards that redeeming story and what maybe is a substitute plan, like Naomi's plan. 00:27:46.880 --> 00:27:55.440 I don't know if Ruth chapter 3 gives us that perfectly, but I do think Ruth chapter 3 points us towards the importance of godly character. 00:27:55.759 --> 00:28:02.960 See, in Ruth chapter 3, we don't see a perfect litmus test, but we see a few things put on display about Ruth and Boaz. 00:28:04.079 --> 00:28:10.640 We know that Ruth and Boaz know the character, promises, and word of their Redeemer. 00:28:10.799 --> 00:28:12.480 That's where they're banking on. 00:28:12.640 --> 00:28:17.920 They know that their Redeemer has a good plan and is trustworthy. 00:28:18.079 --> 00:28:27.119 And so, more than anything else, they're willing to hand over whatever plan they may have for this evening or for their lives together right over to him to see his plan realized. 00:28:27.279 --> 00:28:35.200 That's why Boaz is willing to let this other Redeemer step in because at the end of the day, he wants the best for Ruth, not just the best for himself. 00:28:35.359 --> 00:28:37.440 They know the character of their Redeemer. 00:28:37.599 --> 00:28:42.400 And two, we know that they are honorable, that they're worthy, that they're godly people. 00:28:42.640 --> 00:28:45.119 And that doesn't just happen by accident, I think. 00:28:45.279 --> 00:28:55.440 I think that takes a lifetime of relying on grace and cooperating with a grace-based effort towards growing in holiness and godliness. 00:28:55.759 --> 00:29:02.000 But here Ruth and Boaz are the kind of people that God is calling his people to be. 00:29:02.640 --> 00:29:13.759 They're like, it's, it's, they're like foreigners, they're like God is putting them on display and saying, this is my intention, this is my love for the bride, this is my desire for my people, this is the kind of people I want them to be. 00:29:14.000 --> 00:29:23.839 And friends, I think when we are striving after being the kind of people God wants us to be, we are in the better, we are in a better position to discern what God is calling us to do. 00:29:24.079 --> 00:29:24.720 Do you find? 00:29:24.799 --> 00:29:31.440 I find, I get so caught up on what is it that God wants me to do that I so often lose sight of who God is calling me to be. 00:29:31.680 --> 00:29:33.839 Ruth and Boaz know who they are. 00:29:34.000 --> 00:29:39.680 They know who their Redeemer is, and they know what their Redeemer is asking them to do. 00:29:40.079 --> 00:29:52.720 So, friends, we strive to be the kind of people that God wants us to be, to show the kind of rescuing faithfulness that God shows us, to show us the kind of generous love that He shows us in Christ. 00:29:52.880 --> 00:29:57.359 And friends, it's why I get really excited about things like the women's Bible study, which is happening. 00:29:57.519 --> 00:30:04.880 Because here women will gather together around God's word and spur each other on in faith and in good works, like Ruth. 00:30:05.359 --> 00:30:24.400 And it's why I'm really excited about this men's ministry that's getting going, because brothers will gather together and spur each other on in faith and in good works to grow in Christ-likeness, like Boaz, to be the kind of rescuing faith, to show the kind of rescuing faithfulness that we've received in Christ. 00:30:24.559 --> 00:30:30.319 So if you're not a part of a close community like that, pray, consider being a part of that. 00:30:30.480 --> 00:30:35.359 Pray to be formed into the kind of person God desires you to be. 00:30:36.319 --> 00:30:42.960 So, friends, we come to scene three where Ruth comes back to Naomi and reports everything that's happened between she and Boaz. 00:30:43.519 --> 00:30:46.880 And Ruth has this, or pardon me, Naomi has this to say. 00:30:48.240 --> 00:30:55.920 She says that she says, wait, my daughter, until you learn how the matter turns out. 00:30:56.079 --> 00:31:00.960 We're gonna see if this new Redeemer steps in and redeems her or not, or if it's gonna be Boaz. 00:31:01.279 --> 00:31:07.119 Wait and see how this turns out, for the man will not rest until the matter is settled today. 00:31:07.599 --> 00:31:15.920 Friends, here we are waiting for our Lord to return in glory, to consummate his kingdom, to inaugurate his eternal reign. 00:31:16.160 --> 00:31:23.359 Our Redeemer will not rest until we are in his arms fully and completely for all of eternity. 00:31:23.519 --> 00:31:26.799 That is the rest we can, that is the assurance we can rest with. 00:31:26.960 --> 00:31:28.319 We can bank on it. 00:31:28.559 --> 00:31:31.440 We can rest assured in our Redeemer's arms. 00:31:31.599 --> 00:31:43.440 So, Father, we give you thanks for the faithfulness of Ruth and Boaz, for the rescuing kindness, for the rescuing faithfulness you put on display through their lives. 00:31:44.720 --> 00:31:50.400 Lord, would that we would show that same rescuing faithfulness to the world around us in Jesus' name. 00:31:51.200 --> 00:31:51.839 Amen.