The Devotional

Psalm 32:10

Many sorrows shall be to the wicked; but he who trusts in the LORD, mercy shall surround him.

Ever watch an old west movie? Covered wagons all in a circle, the smoke of gun fire belching out at the Indians as they circle. Arrows flying in every direction. A picture of the sorrows of the wicked and it makes no difference if your the one inside or outside the circle. But those who allow the grace of the LORD to surround them, will also trust Him with other needs. Matthew 6:25-34

Ruth

Ruth 2:14-18 If you live in Rhode Island you will notice that most of the good Italian Restaurants will serve a dish of olive oil and bread before the meal. Sort of wetting the appetite. Boaz does not provide a box lunch, or yesterday's leftover food for his hungry crew. Wines and oils have always dressed the table of kings and those of influence. Boaz has a real concern for his workers. He is fulfilling the two commandments that Jesus commands each of us to do as well. Matthew 22:36-40

When our heart is right with God we will be so filled with the joy of the LORD that the cup of material blessing will overflow into the lives of those who do not expect it. Boaz knows the needs of Ruth and Naomi. He is prepared to establish their well being. Ruth, even in her submission to his mercy is weighing the odds, keeping some of the food and making provision for Naomi. Unknowing to her, Boaz is instructing the others to give her aid. Truth is made real when those of us like Ruth, see that the people of God do what God has called them to do.

I hope we see the out pouring of grace and the out working of faith. The grace of God is always one step ahead of our work of faith. In fact; if God were not providing a path of grace, as Boaz provides for Ruth, there would be no work of faith for us to do, as Christ Jesus would not have gone to the cross. I hope we can see this clearly. You cannot serve God by works, if you are not following His grace. The Truth of gleaning in the Book of Ruth is the Truth of Jesus when a group of Greeks came looking for Jesus. John 12:20-26.

The Devotional

Psalm 32:9

Do not be like the horse or like the mule, which have no understanding, which must be harnessed with bit and bridle, else they will not come to you.

It is generally common to mankind to reflect the image of a horse or mule when confronted by His Creator. Like a wild person we race through life, trampling people we know and love. Our understanding is centered on self-worth rather than the worthiness of others. The bit and the bridle of life are the directionals to get us back on course. What course is that you ask? Proverbs 3:1-8

Ruth

Ruth 2:13 There is this tendency to look back at the stories in the Old Testament and think, “Well if the stories are real then the people must be uneducated and out of touch with reality” What could be further from the truth? Believing that these events never happened and that the Bible is nothing more than “folk lure”, that would be much worse! Ruth grew up in a land that entertained idolatry. She was familiar with the sinful character of both male and female relationships and she knew how to play all the angles that people play today.

Boaz is an educated man, a leader in his community. He is responsible for large portions of real estate, a counselor in matters pertaining to purpose of life. He is also a godly man. People like Boaz will always reach out to people like Ruth and offer grace and encouragement. His offer to her in earlier verses are designed to neutralize the worldly approach that may be in the mind of Ruth. She perceives that his intention is honorable and she submits to his authority, but reminds him that she is not like anyone else he may have met till now.

I remember when Jesus saved me and I said something like this to the LORD. “I am not like the others LORD, I am more like a broken television, I am turned on to You, but I have no picture, no sound and all of my parts are burnt out and black. Maybe You could replace those parts with new ones, maybe You could make me a picture of your grace and give me words to say”. I did not know it then, but His grace was already at work and His encouragement was His Hand on my shoulder leading me along a new path. Psalm 31:1-5

The Devotional

 Psalm 32:8

I will instruct you and teach you in the way that you should go; I will guide you with My eye.

Where can you go in the world around you and find a safe passage? Before you leave on this journey, consider this. God who made the world, who knows your very being, is willing to teach and guide you, to provide you with purpose of life. Then He says; “If this is not enough, I will provide a watch care over your day, if you let Me; I will guide your every move”. Proverbs 29:25

Ruth

Ruth 2:5-12 Here again we see Boaz blessing his laborers. What boss would ever have a problem with his employees who starts his work force with a blessing? This was a daily function for Boaz, and a open the door for information regarding the work force. Those who were out sick, those looking for work and personal information needed to maintain a good working relationship with those under his watch care and guidance.

Ruth will always be known as a Moabite. But should this be a problem to be labeled for our national heritage? When we come biblically to faith in Christ as Ruth has, we gain another label from the world around us. We are spiritually a foreigner as she calls herself in verse ten. Please look at Hebrews 11:13-16. Boaz as the kinsmen redeemer will provide for Ruth's future, just as the True Kinsmen Redeemer will provide for the future of all who accept the “grace/faith” gift of God. Ephesians 2:1-10 parallels our study passages this morning.

Coming to God, we might have a bunch of questions like, “what can I expect to happen if I trust God”? Or; “I've heard how the people of God are treated. I treated some of them in my past with ridicule and sometimes anger, so can I survive this? Boaz, knowing her concerns as God knows ours, plainly says that our reward in time and eternity is protected under the safety of HIS wings. Psalm 63:7-8

The Devotional

Psalm 32:7

You are my hiding place; You shall preserve me from trouble; You shall surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah

David has confidence in the threefold protection that comes from the hand of God. Sin is not the answer to the way or character of anyone's life. When our confidence is in God, He provides a hiding place (Psalm 64:2), He sustains us in times of trouble (Psalm 55:22). Then for the finishing touch, our repented heart is filled with His joy. Not one fleeting moment of any pleasure on the earth compares to this joy of the LORD. (Psalm 30:5).

Ruth

Ruth 2:1-4 One thought about scripture that we all seem to fail at from time to time is that the words of the bible are “God breathed” or “Spirit filled” (John 6:63). If we read based on our human ability to understand, then the words become confusing, unbelievable and sometimes offensive. So the only way to be blessed with proper understanding is to make sure you are seeking to know Him and that you are willing to be spiritually involved in a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ.

The Bible is a letter of Love to everyone. Here in this small book the Love of God is explained by the Holy Spirit in the lives of two “real” people of the past who are Boaz and Ruth. So we will journey with them for a while, leaving Naomi to give advice to Ruth from time to time and watch their love grow. This is how it is to be for all of us. God calls us by showing us the Love of Christ on the Cross of Calvary, then He assigns someone to give spiritual advice and we learn as Ruth how to draw close to the lover of our soul.

The Hebrew name “Boaz” means; “In him is strength” again this meaning of the name demonstrates to us spiritually that in order to please God we must have faith in the spiritual strength of His Word. We must hold to the truth that our Saviour; the LORD Jesus is the Living expression of God's Word. (John 1:14).

The laws of God found in Leviticus 25 will govern the developing relationship between Boaz and Ruth. (Leviticus 25:2-4; 21-23 compare Matthew 6:31-33)

Elimelech, Naomi's husband failed to keep this law as did many others. This one reason of many that a famine came to Israel. Boaz was not among those that failed to keep the law. He is in the land, he is godly and he treats his laborers with dignity and blesses them, (Ruth 2:4). In our continuing studies we will see that faith of Boaz in God leads to Spiritual blessings that reach far into the future of time and eternity.

The Devotional

Psalm 32:6

For this cause everyone who is godly shall pray to You in a time when You may be found; Surely in a flood of great waters they shall not come near to Him.

If you are godly and alert there will always be a right time and method of escaping the grip of controlling sin (1 Corinthians 10:12-13). But in the overwhelming flood of crippling temptation it is usually to late to escape since there is this strong sweeping current that carries us away. (Isaiah 55:6-7)

Ruth

Ruth 1:18-22 Spiritual prosperity for Naomi and Ruth are on two paths. For Naomi, she has been longing for the joy of the LORD, her depression over the loss of her husband and sons is not resolved, but she is counting on change as she returns home. Ruth on the other hand is experiencing the fresh new life she has in the LORD and we will see how these two conditions of the heart work to restore Naomi's heart and encourage the new life growing in Ruth's.

There are a few stumbling blocks to overcome for Naomi and Ruth as they arrive in Bethlehem. Naomi hears the excitement in the voices of the women who know her. Maybe some the of talk is gossip, some are concerned about her loss and others are concerned about who Naomi brings with her. All of this is overwhelming for Naomi and she makes a serious mistake. She blames God for all that has happened to her. Like her, our bad decision making is not the fault of God. It is a character fault of transgressing the will of God in the human heart called “self will”. It is sin, a word we seldom hear.

What is Ruth up against? Read Deuteronomy 23:3-4. I remember when I got saved, my reputation was ahead of me. When the LORD led me to my first church, there was a couple of sailors who were members there. One of them came up to me and very sternly warned me that the women of the church were not like those that I were accustomed to. At first, I was not sure what he meant. Did they come from Mars or some other planet? No, but they did know Jesus and that was the difference.