WEBVTT 00:00:00.160 --> 00:00:00.800 Well good morning. 00:00:00.880 --> 00:00:03.600 My name is Brian Robinson, and I'm one of the elders here. 00:00:03.680 --> 00:00:06.959 And I wanted to start with a little bit of audience participation. 00:00:07.120 --> 00:00:11.039 So this is the last Sunday before school starts back up. 00:00:11.199 --> 00:00:16.719 I don't know where you are, but some of the Robinson family is not super excited about this. 00:00:16.960 --> 00:00:21.760 So, um, how many of you guys went to the beach this summer? 00:00:21.920 --> 00:00:22.640 Just raise your hand. 00:00:22.800 --> 00:00:24.719 If you went to the beach, raise your hand. 00:00:24.879 --> 00:00:26.079 Okay, fair amount. 00:00:26.320 --> 00:00:30.640 How many of you went to the Atlantic Ocean part of the beach? 00:00:30.960 --> 00:00:32.799 All right, that's a fair amount. 00:00:32.960 --> 00:00:35.119 All right, what about the Gulf of Mexico? 00:00:35.280 --> 00:00:37.119 How many went to the Gulf of Mexico? 00:00:37.280 --> 00:00:38.240 I think more. 00:00:38.479 --> 00:00:39.359 I think more. 00:00:39.920 --> 00:00:44.560 So if you've lived in Marietta long enough, you know this is a bit of a rivalry. 00:00:44.719 --> 00:00:49.119 You got the Atlantic Ocean people and the Gulf of Mexico people. 00:00:49.280 --> 00:00:51.759 And the Atlantic people, they're a little old school. 00:00:51.840 --> 00:00:54.719 They got the big beach, it's not so crowded. 00:00:55.520 --> 00:01:03.359 The Gulf of Mexico, a little bit more of a kind of a smaller beach, but clear water, fluffy sand. 00:01:03.520 --> 00:01:07.280 And things, like I said, you you know as well as I do, it gets heated. 00:01:07.359 --> 00:01:10.000 I've seen it get heated in my dental office. 00:01:10.239 --> 00:01:20.480 I think the only rivalry I can think to compare this to, and you're you're probably thinking it too, is the hip-hop rivalry of the mid-90s. 00:01:20.719 --> 00:01:25.599 Um East Coast, West Coast, Biggie and Puff. 00:01:25.760 --> 00:01:34.879 And that culminated, um, as most of you also know, in the 95 Source Awards, where Puff, where I'm excuse me, Snoop Dogg gave an amazing speech. 00:01:35.040 --> 00:01:38.719 Um, and I just think it's important just get that out there. 00:01:38.959 --> 00:01:45.920 Um as for me and my family, we roll with the Gulf Coast, and you need to know that about me. 00:01:46.159 --> 00:01:54.159 Um my mom grew up in Panama City, and my dad grew up in Alabama, so I like to say I'm pretty purebred redneck. 00:01:54.560 --> 00:02:01.840 Um, which I think explains my fascination for Airbrush and Brad O'Kelly sermons. 00:02:02.079 --> 00:02:10.080 So when Manny and I first got married, we we went down to Seaside. 00:02:10.159 --> 00:02:11.599 We took our family to Seaside. 00:02:11.680 --> 00:02:15.439 We just had Cindy and Meg, and we had great memories there. 00:02:15.520 --> 00:02:20.719 This is all along the Gulf Coast, just two little kids there that have grown up a lot. 00:02:20.879 --> 00:02:27.599 Um, as Seaside became more crowded, we started going to Rosemary Beach, which was um it's a beautiful place. 00:02:27.840 --> 00:02:38.960 We have like more kids now, but I just have great memories of like teaching kids how to ride bikes and going snorkeling and um just a lot of fun at those beaches. 00:02:39.120 --> 00:02:43.840 And that's also we're at Rosemary Beach, we saw this fig vine there. 00:02:44.000 --> 00:02:52.080 And the fig vine was something that Manny and I both saw as like at this nice house, and we kind of wanted to bring that back to Marietta. 00:02:52.319 --> 00:02:52.879 Yeah, there it is. 00:02:52.960 --> 00:02:54.080 That's kind of what we saw. 00:02:54.240 --> 00:03:01.759 And so I'm gonna come back to the fig vine, but before I do, I wanted to tell one last story about one of my favorite places on 30A. 00:03:01.840 --> 00:03:04.159 Has anyone ever been to the restaurant George's? 00:03:04.319 --> 00:03:05.520 Have you ever heard of George's? 00:03:05.599 --> 00:03:06.879 It's in Alice Beach. 00:03:07.039 --> 00:03:08.879 As the kids say, Bosson. 00:03:08.960 --> 00:03:10.560 I mean, it is good. 00:03:10.719 --> 00:03:12.240 It is a good restaurant. 00:03:12.560 --> 00:03:19.280 So, um, about several years back, something happened to me at George's that I that I need to share with y'all. 00:03:19.439 --> 00:03:22.080 Um, we had had a busy day at the beach. 00:03:22.319 --> 00:03:28.560 Manny's mom came and um was babysitting our kids that night, and Manny and I had a date night at the at George's. 00:03:28.719 --> 00:03:34.479 And I think we had ordered our food probably at that point, and it had been raining outside. 00:03:34.639 --> 00:03:36.639 Okay, that's an important detail in the story. 00:03:36.800 --> 00:03:40.080 I had on flip-flops, not great traction in the rain. 00:03:40.319 --> 00:03:43.280 And we ordered our food, and I went to go use the restroom. 00:03:43.520 --> 00:03:48.879 Well, another thing you need to know about George's at that point was it's different, it's changed now. 00:03:49.199 --> 00:03:51.840 The restroom at George's was outside. 00:03:52.000 --> 00:03:54.800 You had to enter outside, like a gas station or something. 00:03:54.879 --> 00:03:55.599 It was weird. 00:03:55.840 --> 00:04:04.800 So I went to the restroom, and the restroom at George's, you also need to know, was probably about as big as like this this area right here up on the stage. 00:04:04.960 --> 00:04:05.360 I don't know. 00:04:05.439 --> 00:04:10.000 And then it had really important detail one sink, one commode. 00:04:10.159 --> 00:04:11.919 Okay, you men know what that means. 00:04:12.080 --> 00:04:14.479 It's a one, it's a one-person bathroom. 00:04:14.719 --> 00:04:20.319 So I don't know if anyone's ever compared the stage to a restroom, um, but that's what just happened. 00:04:20.480 --> 00:04:23.839 So I'm coming in hot into the restroom at Georgia's. 00:04:23.920 --> 00:04:25.120 Remember, it's wet. 00:04:25.279 --> 00:04:26.800 I have on flip-flops. 00:04:27.040 --> 00:04:33.040 So I come in and I open the door and notice a gentleman is sitting on the commode. 00:04:34.160 --> 00:04:41.519 So I put on the brakes pretty hard and flipped into the bathroom. 00:04:42.959 --> 00:04:46.480 I'm on my back in George's bathroom. 00:04:46.720 --> 00:04:51.199 I think my flip-flops were touching this man's wadded-up pants at that point. 00:04:54.079 --> 00:04:57.120 And I was saying, I'm sorry. 00:04:57.680 --> 00:04:58.959 I'm sorry. 00:04:59.439 --> 00:05:00.639 I'm sorry. 00:05:00.959 --> 00:05:07.199 And then um I left, I left the restroom and came back, and Mandy's like, what in the world just happened? 00:05:07.360 --> 00:05:08.399 Because I was crying. 00:05:08.560 --> 00:05:10.480 I was crying, laughing. 00:05:10.800 --> 00:05:14.560 Um, so that's who's preaching today. 00:05:14.959 --> 00:05:17.600 Again, that's who you have in front of you. 00:05:17.759 --> 00:05:20.639 That was probably one of the most embarrassing moments of my life. 00:05:20.879 --> 00:05:24.879 The other involves a push card on the golf course that I'll tell another time. 00:05:25.040 --> 00:05:28.079 But um let's let's pray and get into Ruth. 00:05:28.160 --> 00:05:29.759 Um, if you'll bow your heads with me. 00:05:29.839 --> 00:05:33.839 Uh Heavenly Father, I'm so thankful for this church. 00:05:34.079 --> 00:05:47.680 I'm thankful for you continuing to provide for us through staff, through buildings, but most of all, um, just that you've kept your you in front of us, that our plans wouldn't get in the way. 00:05:47.920 --> 00:05:50.399 I pray that you would preach through me this morning. 00:05:50.560 --> 00:05:52.160 That is my only hope. 00:05:52.240 --> 00:05:53.839 Uh in Jesus' name I pray. 00:05:54.079 --> 00:05:54.720 Amen. 00:05:55.040 --> 00:05:59.759 So if you haven't been here in the month of July, we've been going through the book of Ruth. 00:06:00.000 --> 00:06:08.240 And Sam and Matt have done an awesome job going through that book, but they left me, thank God, they're the professional Christians. 00:06:08.319 --> 00:06:10.639 They left Amateur Hour, the best part. 00:06:10.720 --> 00:06:13.519 So this is kind of the gospel part of Ruth. 00:06:13.839 --> 00:06:18.240 Um I'm going to focus more on Naomi's perspective in this story. 00:06:18.480 --> 00:06:23.120 So the book is called Ruth, but a lot of it is really about Naomi. 00:06:23.439 --> 00:06:30.800 And Naomi, in this, in these four chapters, experienced a death and a rebirth. 00:06:30.959 --> 00:06:33.839 And that's going to be the theme of this sermon. 00:06:34.160 --> 00:06:41.120 And it seems to me that God's pattern is often to work through death and then rebirth. 00:06:41.279 --> 00:06:51.920 And we don't just see that in our own lives, we see it in nature, we see it in his son, uh, sending his son to die and then to be reborn for us. 00:06:52.480 --> 00:06:55.199 Why does God work in this way? 00:06:56.079 --> 00:06:58.800 Well, the honest answer is I don't know. 00:06:58.959 --> 00:07:06.399 Um, but it does seem to be a very effective way to get me to trust in him and depend on him. 00:07:07.199 --> 00:07:10.959 So, first let's talk a little bit about Naomi's death. 00:07:11.199 --> 00:07:19.360 So, Naomi, in the earlier books of this of Ruth, she experienced a famine in her hometown of Bethlehem. 00:07:19.759 --> 00:07:24.639 She and her husband left their hometown with her two sons and moved to Moab. 00:07:25.360 --> 00:07:29.920 In Moab, her husband dies, and then her sons both die. 00:07:30.720 --> 00:07:36.079 So, to recap, famine, death of a spouse, death of her only two children. 00:07:36.399 --> 00:07:41.600 She decides to go back to Bethlehem, and her daughter-in-laws both go with her. 00:07:41.680 --> 00:07:48.480 Um, Ruth, and then Orpah, which is one of my favorite biblical names, Orpah I don't think we have any Orpas in the house today, probably. 00:07:48.639 --> 00:07:52.319 But Ruth, Orpah eventually decided not to go. 00:07:52.639 --> 00:07:56.560 So we read this story, and it's like five minutes of our lives. 00:07:56.800 --> 00:08:02.000 But this was like years of Naomi's life, all of this death. 00:08:02.639 --> 00:08:08.560 And what I want to know when I'm experiencing trials like this is why so long? 00:08:09.040 --> 00:08:11.920 Like, speed it up, right? 00:08:12.560 --> 00:08:16.000 Um, one of my favorite books is called The Green Letters. 00:08:16.160 --> 00:08:17.600 I'm gonna read a quote from there. 00:08:17.759 --> 00:08:26.959 It says, When God wants to make an oak, he takes a hundred years, but when he wants to make a squash, he takes six months. 00:08:27.279 --> 00:08:34.480 There are idle days, days apparently useless, when even prayer and holy service seem a burden. 00:08:34.799 --> 00:08:38.720 Are we in any sense renewed in these days? 00:08:39.360 --> 00:08:50.639 Yes, for any experience which makes us more aware of our need of God must contribute to spiritual progress unless we deny the Lord who brought us. 00:08:51.600 --> 00:09:01.039 So God's basic ingredient for growth is our need, and I have plenty of that. 00:09:02.159 --> 00:09:06.960 But death is not the end of Naomi's story, or yours, or mine. 00:09:07.440 --> 00:09:09.919 Naomi also goes through a rebirth. 00:09:10.000 --> 00:09:13.600 So this is kind of the verses that were read this morning. 00:09:13.840 --> 00:09:18.399 So her daughter-in-law, Ruth, eventually found a kind and wealthy man. 00:09:18.559 --> 00:09:29.279 His name was Boaz, and he's known as the Kinsman Redeemer, which Sam and Matt have both done an excellent job preaching on, and that just means he kind of points us to Jesus. 00:09:29.440 --> 00:09:30.639 He redeemed her family. 00:09:30.720 --> 00:09:32.559 He was a Christ-like figure. 00:09:32.879 --> 00:09:36.960 So then Ruth and Boaz have a son named Obed. 00:09:37.120 --> 00:09:43.519 I'm going to read two of the verses from the end of Ruth, Ruth 4, verses 14 and 15. 00:09:43.840 --> 00:09:52.159 Blessed be the Lord who has not left you in this day without a redeemer, and may his name be renowned in Israel. 00:09:52.480 --> 00:10:00.559 He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age. 00:10:00.879 --> 00:10:06.879 For your daughter-in-law who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has given birth to him. 00:10:07.919 --> 00:10:12.080 So he has not left you this day without a redeemer. 00:10:12.240 --> 00:10:21.200 I mean, isn't when I really kind of strip away all my prayers, that's really my ultimate prayer, is that he will be with me. 00:10:22.080 --> 00:10:27.200 This is not how Naomi felt a few chapters earlier when she came back to Bethlehem. 00:10:27.519 --> 00:10:33.519 The people of Bethlehem saw Naomi coming back and they said to her, Naomi, and she said, Don't call me that. 00:10:33.759 --> 00:10:36.159 Call me Mara, which means bitter. 00:10:37.519 --> 00:10:40.559 But these verses say that's not true. 00:10:40.960 --> 00:10:46.720 He will be to you a restorer of your life and a nourisher of your soul. 00:10:47.039 --> 00:10:48.240 So this is the gospel. 00:10:48.399 --> 00:10:51.120 This is the good stuff in Ruth. 00:10:51.600 --> 00:10:53.120 Restorer of life. 00:10:53.440 --> 00:10:55.919 What does that look like in our lives? 00:10:56.399 --> 00:11:00.799 Well, it doesn't look like what I think it's going to look like usually. 00:11:01.120 --> 00:11:05.759 Um literally, restorer of life means rebirth. 00:11:05.919 --> 00:11:12.080 And I think this kind of rebirth is like the abundant life that Jesus talks about in John 10. 00:11:12.879 --> 00:11:15.600 Nourisher of your old age. 00:11:16.080 --> 00:11:19.679 Well, the older I get, um, I think that looks like peace. 00:11:19.840 --> 00:11:21.679 I think that looks like freedom. 00:11:21.840 --> 00:11:26.320 Uh in the midst of hard things, I think it's possible to have this. 00:11:26.720 --> 00:11:29.679 And we will have it in heaven. 00:11:30.799 --> 00:11:37.600 Naomi's grandson, Obed, was David's great's grandfather, not great-grandfather. 00:11:37.759 --> 00:11:43.600 And David was a man after God's own heart, and then was also in the lineage of Jesus. 00:11:43.840 --> 00:11:55.279 And I think God is showing us by including that little line at the end that he's using Ruth and Naomi in his greater redemptive plan of his son. 00:11:56.960 --> 00:11:59.679 So a few things in conclusion to wrap up. 00:11:59.840 --> 00:12:04.879 Um, we're all in some type of death and rebirth. 00:12:05.039 --> 00:12:11.840 And that may be a literal death, or it may be the death of a goal, or the death of your plans. 00:12:12.799 --> 00:12:15.519 Um, and it may not have even been happening to us. 00:12:15.679 --> 00:12:18.000 It could be happening to someone close to us. 00:12:18.559 --> 00:12:24.720 So, how is it possible to have joy or peace in the midst of that? 00:12:26.159 --> 00:12:40.080 James 1, 2 through 4 say, consider pure joy whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 00:12:40.399 --> 00:12:47.279 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing. 00:12:47.759 --> 00:12:56.559 Mature and complete sounds like something that I need and that I would love to have, but I would like a shortcut through the trials. 00:12:56.720 --> 00:13:00.799 I don't really want to go through the hard things. 00:13:01.279 --> 00:13:11.200 Um, I remember studying these verses with my friend Bo, and he pointed out the verses say, consider it joy when you face trials. 00:13:11.600 --> 00:13:20.159 The Brian Robinson revised standard version would say, one year after you face the trials, consider it joy. 00:13:20.799 --> 00:13:22.960 So, how does this happen? 00:13:23.120 --> 00:13:25.519 I mean, how is this possible? 00:13:26.080 --> 00:13:27.600 Well, I know it's possible. 00:13:27.759 --> 00:13:31.440 I've seen it, I've seen it in my life, I've seen it with my friend's life. 00:13:31.519 --> 00:13:33.120 I was talking to my friend Matt Hooper. 00:13:33.200 --> 00:13:37.759 It is happening for him right now in the midst of some really hard things. 00:13:38.320 --> 00:13:40.720 And I want it more and more. 00:13:41.440 --> 00:13:50.000 We know what from what's preached here every week, there's not anything that we can do to like behave our way into it or earn it. 00:13:50.320 --> 00:13:54.399 I think the Holy Spirit has got to be the active agent in this. 00:13:55.440 --> 00:13:58.720 I think it may have to do more with our perspective. 00:13:59.039 --> 00:14:14.960 Scotty Smith says we move from the general of John 3.16, which says God loved the world, to the specifics of Galatians 2.20, which say Jesus loved me and gave his life for me. 00:14:15.840 --> 00:14:24.000 So I think we have to shift our perspective from ourselves to God, and that can feel like freedom. 00:14:24.559 --> 00:14:36.320 Dane Ortonland, in his newest book, Deeper, he says, we grow in Christ no further than we enjoy his embrace of us. 00:14:38.480 --> 00:14:48.559 There are times when I don't really believe that Jesus could love me, as I know the depths of my sins, and that's probably true for you too. 00:14:48.879 --> 00:14:52.879 But I think that's actually when Jesus wants to love us all the more. 00:14:53.759 --> 00:14:59.600 Dan Ortland also writes, in those times, and hear these words, these are so good. 00:14:59.759 --> 00:15:04.240 Jesus lovingly tells us, you know you're a mess. 00:15:04.639 --> 00:15:08.879 Your entire existence has been built around you. 00:15:09.519 --> 00:15:12.240 Step in out of that storm. 00:15:13.039 --> 00:15:16.159 Let your heart crack open to joy. 00:15:16.559 --> 00:15:20.639 Plunge your parched soul into the sea of my love. 00:15:21.360 --> 00:15:28.480 There you will find the rest and relief and embrace and friendship that your heart longs for. 00:15:29.759 --> 00:15:32.000 I need to hear that like every morning. 00:15:32.159 --> 00:15:37.840 Um, what about that fig vine that I brought up earlier after the weird bathroom story? 00:15:38.080 --> 00:15:44.399 Um, so about 10 years ago, I planted a fig vine in the back of our driveway. 00:15:44.639 --> 00:15:52.240 And it took a little while for it to finally start spreading, and it's at the end of my driveway that I see every day. 00:15:52.480 --> 00:15:59.120 And uh back in December of this past year, we had like a deep freeze, and my fig vine started to die. 00:15:59.200 --> 00:16:00.720 It started turning brown. 00:16:00.960 --> 00:16:06.720 And I was kind of thinking, like, ugh, it's it's taken over kind of this whole black uh brick wall. 00:16:06.879 --> 00:16:08.799 It's gonna be a mess to clean up. 00:16:09.039 --> 00:16:18.080 But then I noticed spring came, and you can see on the on the photo that I took, so the brown is like the dead part. 00:16:18.240 --> 00:16:22.080 If you look really closely, kind of on the top, there's some dark, dark green. 00:16:22.159 --> 00:16:32.159 That was kind of the normal size leaves, all those like greenish yellow, that was like new life or new leaves coming out. 00:16:32.639 --> 00:16:49.360 And it just occurred to me like this is God telling me, what looks dead to us, God may be um creating rebirth that's even more abundant than we could have ever dreamed of or imagined. 00:16:50.080 --> 00:16:53.759 And I think that's how God works. 00:16:53.919 --> 00:17:04.240 Um, and I think our job is to remember he is the vine, and he's the ultimate restorer, nurturer, and redeemer. 00:17:04.400 --> 00:17:08.640 And we are the branches, and our job is to abide and to look to him. 00:17:09.359 --> 00:17:10.480 Let me pray for us. 00:17:11.519 --> 00:17:26.319 Heavenly Father, I'm so thankful for this book of Ruth, where you assure us that you are with us and that you will take care of us, and that Jesus lives inside of us, and that is all we need. 00:17:26.640 --> 00:17:27.680 In his name I pray. 00:17:27.839 --> 00:17:28.240 Amen.