Seizing Your Divine Moment
(Ruth 3)
Introduction:
As we begin today I would like to read a true account of an experience that pastor, speaker, and author, Erwin McManus had in the early years of his ministry. Listen to what he says…
“I got a message through the urban grapevine that I was dead. It might surprise you that in the dark corridors of the urban jungle there are many prophets – mostly prophets of doom. This angel of death went by the name William. Through my work in one of the projects, his common-law wife had come to a personal faith in Jesus Christ. He was in prison and heard the news of her conversion. He did not consider this good news. I had trespassed onto his territory. A crime punishable – yes, that’s right, you got it – by death. So I got the word – several times actually – that when he got out of prison, I was going to be his first stop. He had spent most of his adult life behind prison walls, and by his own description he had broken all of the commandments. This time he had gone to prison for slitting a man’s throat. That mans was the brother of his common-law wife, whom we will call Lupe.
“When I heard he was released from prison, I decided to find him before he found me. He lived in a small apartment complex surrounded mostly by dilapidated houses and run-down storefronts. The complex was walking distance from the skyscrapers downtown and sat in the middle of what had once been one of the city’s most prestigious neighborhoods. You don’t ever forget meeting someone like William. He was in some ways an ethnic anomaly. He was a white guy in the middle of a Latin community who had a reputation for being good with a knife. He was in his mid-thirties, and life had made him as hard as stone.
“We sat face-to-face in a dingy apartment filled with loud children and usually inebriated neighbors. But before I knew it, we were there alone – just William and me. I don’t recall how it happened. I never noticed the exodus. It was only the silence and discomfort of the moment that made me aware of how everything had changed. Metal bars on the windows, the door soundly shut. We were alone.
“He swiftly reached into his jacket, pulled out a knife, and with a quick move of his wrist opened it were its position made the metal gleam in my direction. Like someone remembering a secret pleasure he smiled and said, ‘This is the knife I slit his throat with. The police never got it.’
“A thousand thoughts were rushing through my mind. But I really didn’t have any material in the category of ‘witty responses to use shortly before dying at knifepoint.’ I remember entertaining the thought that Lupe’s brother didn’t die; William just cut off his vocal cords. That thought was not at all comforting. I knew my next, my first, perhaps my last sentence was of utmost importance. And then the words came. It was as if I heard them for the first time even as he heard them.
“‘William, that knife is going to send you to hell!’ I looked straight into his eyes, and I knew he was shocked that I said it. To be really honest, I was shocked that I said it. But I was still breathing, which allowed me to gain courage. And so I proceeded: ‘You think you’re tough…’ Halfway through my sentence I heard a scream in my head, What are you thinking? So I adjusted. ‘Well, William, you are tough, but you’re not free. You’re not in prison, but you’re still a prisoner. Behind every shadow there’s someone waiting to kill you.’
“Somehow William’s normal approach to life, one of violence and retaliation, was restrained that day. He listened, and we established a strange kind of friendship. I wish I could tell you that William’s life changed that day or that it changed some other day in the future, but best I can tell, William’s life never changed. But what did happen I’ll never forget. William became my John the Baptist, who would prepare the way for me throughout the streets of south Dallas. He often boasted that he and I were friends because, as he would put it, he was radical for evil and I was radical for God” (Erwin R. McManus, Seizing Your Divine Moment (Thomas Nelson Publishers: Nashville, Tennessee, 2002), 128-130).
McManus took a risk. Rather than cowering at the threats of impending death by a crazy-man, he confronted William head-on. Now you may think that he’s out of his mind – that he’s just plain stupid for doing what he did – but the reality is he faced his fears with the boldness and strength that can only come from God. McManus seized a divine moment that was given him by God, and the result was an open door of opportunity for the gospel to spread into the inner city of Dallas, Texas.
There’s another person that we’re going to be talking about today that took a calculated risk, and seized a divine moment given her by God, and her name is Ruth.
In discussion over the past several weeks we’ve come to learn more and more about Ruth; about how she had lost her husband, father-in-law, and brother-in-law, about how she remained faithful to her mother-in-law, Naomi, about how she left everything familiar behind by trekking off into a foreign land away from her homeland and family, and about how she resorted to gleaning in the fields of harvest for left-behind grain as the poor of the day often did.
But today, we’re going to learn even more. Let’s take a look as Ruth’s story continues…
Ruth 3:1-18 (NLT)
One day Naomi said to Ruth, "My daughter, it's time that I found a permanent home for you, so that you will be provided for. [2] Boaz is a close relative of ours, and he's been very kind by letting you gather grain with his workers. Tonight he will be winnowing barley at the threshing floor. [3] Now do as I tell you—take a bath and put on perfume and dress in your nicest clothes. Then go to the threshing floor, but don't let Boaz see you until he has finished his meal. [4] Be sure to notice where he lies down; then go and uncover his feet and lie down there. He will tell you what to do."
[5] "I will do everything you say," Ruth replied. [6] So she went down to the threshing floor that night and followed the instructions of her mother-in-law.
[7] After Boaz had finished his meal and was in good spirits, he lay down beside the heap of grain and went to sleep. Then Ruth came quietly, uncovered his feet, and lay down. [8] Around midnight, Boaz suddenly woke up and turned over. He was surprised to find a woman lying at his feet! [9] "Who are you?" he demanded.
"I am your servant Ruth," she replied. "Spread the corner of your covering over me, for you are my family redeemer."
[10] "The Lord bless you, my daughter!" Boaz exclaimed. "You are showing more family loyalty now than ever by not running after a younger man, whether rich or poor. [11] Now don't worry about a thing, my daughter. I will do what is necessary, for everyone in town knows you are an honorable woman. [12] But there is one problem. While it is true that I am one of your family redeemers, there is another man who is more closely related to you than I am. [13] Stay here tonight, and in the morning I will talk to him. If he is willing to redeem you, then let him marry you. But if he is not willing, then as surely as the Lord lives, I will marry you! Now lie down here until morning."
[14] So Ruth lay at Boaz's feet until the morning, but she got up before it was light enough for people to recognize each other. For Boaz said, "No one must know that a woman was here at the threshing floor." [15] Boaz also said to her, "Bring your cloak and spread it out." He measured out six scoops of barley into the cloak and helped her put it on her back. Then Boaz returned to the town.
[16] When Ruth went back to her mother-in-law, Naomi asked, "What happened, my daughter?"
Ruth told Naomi everything Boaz had done for her, [17] and she added, "He gave me these six scoops of barley and said, 'Don't go back to your mother-in-law empty-handed.' "
[18] Then Naomi said to her, "Just be patient, my daughter, until we hear what happens. The man won't rest until he has followed through on this. He will settle it today."
As we dissect this section of scripture today there are two specific things I want us to look at: 1) Ruth was a risk-taker. 2) How we can become risk-takers like Ruth.
So let’s jump right in…
• Ruth the risk-taker:
1. Ruth took initiative.
Ruth had been taking initiative all along. Though Naomi helped her, and even instructed her in many things, Ruth’s desire to do what was right led her to make several choices to secure food and a stable home for herself and Naomi. From the beginning of her story, it was Ruth who took the initiative to stay with her mother-in-law, even when Naomi pleaded for her to go back home. It was Ruth who approached Naomi about gleaning in the fields for food. It was Ruth who took her left-over lunch to Naomi when she could have eaten the whole thing. And finally, it was Ruth who determined to take a risk her mother-in-law had proposed and follow through with the bold act of offering herself in marriage to a much older man – their family redeemer, Boaz.
2. Ruth stood alone.
As we’ve discussed, Ruth was willing to be a foreigner in the strange and distant land of Judah, and as a Moabite woman whose husband was no longer living, this would have been a very difficult thing to do. We’ve also read that Ruth was willing to go into the fields to glean, but she did this alone. She didn’t take her mother-in-law; she took on the daunting and risky task of gathering the leftover grain by herself as a stranger in the fields of harvest. Ruth also went by herself to the threshing floor and lay at the feet of Boaz. Naomi didn’t go with Ruth to the threshing floor where Boaz was staying, she wasn’t waiting on pins and needles behind the nearest pile of grain to see what would happen and run to Ruth’s rescue if things went awry. In the darkness of night, after the evening meal when Boaz had bedded down on the threshing floor, Ruth took her chances – she took a risk – and uncovered Boaz’s feet and lay next to them. She was completely alone.
3. Ruth ignited passion and her life was a representation of the heart of God.
Ruth’s reputation had become very well known in the local community where she and Naomi lived. She had become known as a woman of honor.
Boaz’s foreman and harvesters knew her as a hard worker as we read in…
Ruth 2:6-7 (NLT)
And the foreman replied, "She is the young woman from Moab who came back with Naomi. [7] She asked me this morning if she could gather grain behind the harvesters. She has been hard at work ever since, except for a few minutes' rest over there in the shelter."
Boaz soon came to know her as a woman of irrefutable character and integrity and treated her with kindness and generosity.
Ruth 2:10-12 (NLT)
Ruth fell at his feet and thanked him warmly. "Why are you being so kind to me?" she asked. "I am only a foreigner."
[11] "Yes, I know," Boaz replied. "But I also know about the love and kindness you have shown your mother-in-law since the death of your husband. I have heard how you left your father and mother and your own land to live here among complete strangers. [12] May the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge, reward you fully."
Boaz later came to know her as honorable when she offered herself to him in marriage.
Ruth 3:10-11 (NLT)
"The Lord bless you, my daughter!" Boaz exclaimed. "You are showing more family loyalty now than ever by not running after a younger man, whether rich or poor. [11] Now don't worry about a thing, my daughter. I will do what is necessary, for everyone in town knows you are an honorable woman.
In each of these instances, Ruth’s character and integrity spoke volumes, and because of this the way she lived her life left positive impressions on those she came in contact with. When Ruth was around a passion was ignited that drove others to want to become better. Though she was among the poorest of the poor, Ruth had riches beyond compare. Ruth was a woman whose heart oozed with passion and honor, and everyone around her knew it.
• Becoming a risk-taker:
In order to become risk-takers I think there are several things involved. As we’ve learned from Ruth already, in order to be a hero of the faith…
1. We should be taking more initiative.
Like Ruth, we must take initiative. We must do more than put our best foot forward, we must put both feet forward toward action and purpose. But the problem I see with most of the church today (and for most people in general) is that we’re too afraid to try anything new because we’re too afraid of failure. We’re too afraid to get our feet wet for fear we might catch cold. We’re too afraid to fly for fear the plane might crash or be taken over by terrorists. We’re too afraid to speak in front of a group of people for fear we’ll make a fool of ourselves.
Erwin McManus in his book Seizing Your Divine Moment, ponders this notion,
“Maybe you’ve been afraid to get in the game because you’re afraid to lose. In the kingdom of God, victory comes the instant you refuse to simply watch life happen and you get in the game. For too many of us, because we fear failure, we are afraid to try. Sometimes we live vicariously through the lives of others. Instead of being life voyagers we become life voyeurs. I think it’s one of the reasons we entertain ourselves to death. We fin our romance in You’ve Got Mail, and we fight our battles through William Wallace and Maximus Aurelius. And there might as well be a glass screen between real life and us because the closest we get to fulfilling our life’s dreams is watching them. We’ve accepted our lace, our lot in life, as sideliners” (Seizing Your Divine Moment, 46).
True heroes of the faith take initiative and do the right thing even when it involves great risk.
2. We shouldn’t be discouraged when we stand alone.
It’s never fun to stand alone, but if we’re ever going to stand for what is right, we may ultimately find ourselves isolated from the flow of the rest of the crowd. If we’re ever bold enough to stand for truth – if we’re ever bold enough to stand for God – we will inevitably find ourselves in a very lonely place at times.
McManus says,
“Whenever God is doing a new thing, He does it through people. And those He chooses to lead the way are often considered fortunate only in retrospect. The reality in the moment is often quite different. It is a privilege to be called to go first even when it means you are the first to suffer and the only one at risk. It means you must bear the weight of responsibility and accept the consequences that come with the privilege.
“Whenever God moves forward, it is in conflict with many other forces. The kingdom of God can expand only out of conflict with the kingdom of darkness. Hate does not surrender easily to love, nor does evil submit quietly to good. When you seize a divine moment, there is a spiritual collision, and a part of seizing that moment to the fullest is a willingness to bear the initial impact alone” (Seizing Your Divine Moment, 185).
3. Our passion should be ignited, and our lives should be representations of the heart of God.
I believe at the heart of every person is either a smoldering ember or a blazing fire. I also believe that we have the potential within us to help others passions to be ignited and burn with a radiance of revival, renewal, and hope. If we were to take the view that everyone of every nationality, of every ethnic group, of every background and life experience had limitless potential, I believe the church could set the world on fire with God’s message of Good News and truth.
We have the fuel of truth to light the fires of passion in others’ lives, but all too often we keep the fuel for ourselves. And not only this, we become weighted down by the excess fuel that we keep on board and all to often become spiritually obese.
Just recently in a meeting with leaders of numerous parachurch ministries “Dr. Keith Phillips, the founder of World Impact, was among the group… He summarized that World Impact was created to start churches among poor people because the church didn’t care enough to go. We have a lot of great assemblies that we call churches, yet the very word church means “to be called out.” No football team has ever won a Super Bowl on the strength of the huddle. It’s what happens after the ‘ready, break’ that brings the victory” (Seizing Your Divine Moment, 236).
Passionless people don’t produce passion, they just remain huddled up in the comfort of familiar surroundings. But those who are inflamed with passion ignite the hearts of those around them. Like a wildfire, those who are passionate about life and who take risks have the ability to connect others with the life-giving truth of Christ.
Conclusion:
So, what’s it going to take to get you to take more risks for God? When was the last time you can remember stepping out on faith to do the seemingly impossible? Are you really living life to the fullest? Are you taking the difficulties in stride?
I think we do well to reflect on the response of Nadine Stair of Louisville, Kentucky, who was 85 years old when she was asked what she would do if she had her life to live over again. Listen to what she said,
“‘I’d make more mistakes next time. I’d relax. I would limber up. I would be sillier than I have been this trip. I would take fewer things seriously. I would take more chances. I would climb more mountains and swim more rivers. I would eat more ice cream and fewer beans. I would perhaps have more actual troubles, but I’d have fewer imaginary ones.
“‘You see, I’m one of those people who live sensibly and sanely hour after hour, day after day. Oh, I’ve had my moments, and if I had to do it over again, I’d have more of them. In fact, I’d try to have nothing else. Just moments, one after another, instead of living so many years ahead of each day. I’ve been one of those persons who never goes anywhere without a thermometer, a hot water bottle, and a raincoat. If I had to do it over again, I would travel lighter than I have.
“‘If I had my life to live over, I would start barefoot earlier in the spring and stay that way later in the fall. I would go to more dances. I would ride more merry-go-rounds. I would pick more daisies’” (Bits & Pieces, January 5, 1995, 13-14).
I close with this prayer by Sir Frances Drake…
“Disturb us, Lord, when we are too well pleased with ourselves, when our dreams have come true because we have dreamed too little, when we arrive safely because we have sailed too close to the shore.
“Disturb us, Lord, when with the abundance of things we possess, we have lost our thirst for the waters of life; having fallen in love with life, we have ceased to dream of eternity; and in our efforts to build a new earth, we have allowed our vision of the new Heaven to dim.
“Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly, to venture on wider seas where storms will show your mastery; where losing sight of land, we shall find the stars. We ask you to push back the horizons of our hopes; and to push into the future in strength, courage, hope, and love” (Sir Frances Drake Quoted in OC Missionary Prayer Letter of Jeanie Curryer, September, 1997).
