Ruth The Caregiver - Sermon I: Committed Caregiver Series

RUTH: WOMAN OF DEVOTION – SERMON I: COMMITTED CAREGIVER

Most of us at one time or another during our lifetime served as a caregiver for someone else. If you were a mother, you were the caregiver for your children; or perhaps you found yourself having to care for your parents; or you might have had to care for a disabled spouse or child; and I wouldn’t rule out the probability that some of you might have been employed in a medical facility where you cared for patients – perhaps as a doctor, nurse, an aide or a therapist.

My hope would be that, if you served at any time in your lifetime in the capacity of caring for another person, you did so with a sense of love and loyalty toward that person rather than grudgingly. The Bible links love for God with caring for those who cannot care for themselves.

My wife is a good example of a person who cared for another with no thought of reward or remuneration; although there are those who earn their living as a caregiver – and that’s okay.

When my father-in-law became disabled at the age of eighty-five, having been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, it was necessary for my wife to become his guardian and to be responsible for his care. Even though she had sisters and others who helped from time to time, she was his primary caregiver for six years out of the goodness of her heart.

Perhaps you have “been there, done that” yourself and you know first hand what it means to devote many months or years to caring for a loved one. If so, you are to be commended; likewise, if you are on the receiving end of needing to be cared for, your caregivers are to be commended.

Ruth in the Bible was one of the women of devotion whose stories we read for inspiration, but also as an example of one of God’s helpers who served graciously in their role as caregivers. The story of Ruth not only inspires us, but we learn from her story that God the Father is pleased with those who are willing to serve Him by serving others.

Ruth made an unconditional commitment to care for her widowed mother-in-law Naomi. When I use the word “unconditional” it means that a person so loves another person that he or she is willing to do whatever needs to be done, whenever it needs to be done, for as long as it needs to be done.

Such was Ruth’s commitment to Naomi. Her unselfish devotion to her mother-in-law was expressed in a passage of scripture that is one of the best-known scriptures in all the Old Testament; and part of the passage is often read during wedding ceremonies.

This beautiful portion of scripture is recorded in the first chapter of the Book of Ruth, verses 15 and 17: “Naomi said to Ruth, ‘Behold, thy sister-in-law is gone back unto her people, and unto her gods; return thou after thy sister-in-law.’ And Ruth said to Naomi, ‘Entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following thee; for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge; thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God; where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried; the Lord do so to me, and more also, if aught but death part thee and me.’”

This famous story occurred at a time when famine in Palestine forced many Jewish families to take drastic measures. One such family, made up of Naomi, her husband and two sons, left Bethlehem and moved to the land of Moab. The two sons married Moabite women, one of whom was Ruth.

Then tragedy struck this family within a decade. Naomi’s husband and both of her sons died. So, their untimely deaths left Naomi and both of her daughters-in-law widowed.

Not long after the three women became widows, Naomi received word that the famine in Palestine had ended, so she made plans to go back home to live with her extended family. Being a person who wanted what was best for not only herself but also her two daughters-in-law, Naomi suggested to both that they go back home to live with their families just as she was going back home to live with her family.

To make a long story short, one of Naomi’s daughters-in-law did exactly as Naomi suggested and went back home to live with her Moabite kinfolks. On the other hand, Ruth decided to leave her native land and go back to Bethlehem with her mother-in-law Naomi.

Ruth’s moving words reflect the characteristics of a commitment of one person to another. First: Ruth’s commitment was voluntary. She was not forced to go with Naomi. Naomi exerted no pressure, either verbally or financially, on Ruth. To the contrary, Naomi tried to persuade Ruth to stay in her homeland. Nonetheless, Ruth’s love for Naomi would not let Naomi go without Ruth going with her.