The Characteristics of Love
Ruth 3:1-18
-So far in the book of Ruth we have learned a lot about Ruth and Naomi, we have looked at Ruth's commitment to Naomi we have looked at how God had a plan for Ruth's life to take her from poverty to riches, to take her from the land of Moab to being in the family tree of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Last week we looked at how Boaz is a type of Christ seen in the Old Testament, we learned all about redemption because Boaz is the kinsman redeemer of Naomi & Ruth. We compared that to how Christ is our redeemer today and what that means in light of scripture.
In this passage today we are reminded that the book of Ruth is also a love story between Boaz and Ruth. Which fits nicely into scripture because the whole Bible is a story of Gods love for us. The Apostle Paul even drew the connection when he said
Eph 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,
This passage is so important for our society today because we are living in a world that does not have a biblical understanding of love. My wife has had teenagers come into her office telling her that they were in “Love” with a boy or girl that they just met and they don't even know their last name.
We laugh at that buts it true. I thought it would be interesting in this message to share with you just a few lyrics of songs I found about love- from these lyrics you will be able to see how far from a bibical understanding of love we have come
I knew I loved you before I met you, I've been waiting for you all my life...- Savage Garden
I don't care who you are
Where you're from
What you did
As long as you love me -Backstreet Boys
I hate you
Then I love you
Then I love you
Then I hate you
Then I love you more
For whatever you do
I never, never, never
Want to be in love with anyone but you
You treat me wrong
You treat me right
You let me be
You make me fight with you / I could never live without you - Celine Dion
Carrie Underwood- “It started off he cuttle “where are you from “: it turned into “oh no what have I done” “and I don't even know his last name.”
Since God created Love the Bible is the only place you can really go to understand it. If we go to these songs or what man has to say about it all we get our opinions about love. In this passage today we are going to see what real love looks like
and its important because all relationships are based on love(not the same type of love their is brotherly love and agape love and a romantic love) but they are all based on love including our relationship with God
and this book of Ruth is a book about Love. The Love that Naomi has for Ruth and Ruth for Naomi. The love that Elimelech had for his family and the love that Boaz has for Ruth and Ruth for Boaz
in this passage here we find a very practical and clear bible explanation about what love is. Today I want to share with you three characteristics of love found in this chapter that I believe if you put into practice can change every relationship that we have with other people and also the relationship we have with God Almighty.
Love Seeks what is Best
Look in verse 1, Naomi says to Ruth, “My daughter, should I not seek rest for you, that it may be well with you?
Naomi has already said that she has no intention whatsoever of remarrying, but Ruth was younger and what Noami is saying here is “shall I not find you a good husband so that you will not have to spend the rest of your life in this current condition.”
see Ruth and Noami coming upon Boaz and remembering that he is a close relative has changed Naomi's outlook on the whole situation. She sees in Boaz a change of marriage between Boaz and Ruth a marriage that will bring redemption and change everything for them.
Naomi is looking our for her daughter-in-law, Ruth she wants what is best for her and what will better her in this life and bring her rest.
One of the awesome characteristics of love is that true Biblical love seeks the best for the other person.
Naomi was not being a bit selfish when she said this. She completely had Ruth's best interest in mind in this chapter.
It would be impossible to preach a sermon about love and not some how tie in 1 Corinthians chapter 13, the great love chapter in the Bible. But listen to verses 4&5 in 1 cor 13,
1Cr 13:4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant
1Cr 13:5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;
I propose today that the problems in every family, the problems in every marriage and in every church would go away overnight if everyone would put into practice this one simple concept, but too often we allow pride and selfishness to rear it's ugly face and we live by the motto “what's in it for me” instead of being like Naomi and asking “how can I better someone else”
This same principle is taught in the book of Romans
Rom 12:10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.
The Bible condemns selfishness and pride and tells us to put it to death and in humility serve one another look out for one another best interest and when we do this we are practicing love
Phl 2:3 Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.
Phl 2:4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
Phl 2:5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,
This is a lot easier said that done, which is why the scripture tells us time and time again to be humble and prefer others and love one another as Christ loved us.
When we first moved to Mooresville we were at the Kroger store for the first time doing our weekly shopping so our cart was full and we were in line, remember it was our first time at this store, While in line a lady behind us in a not so pleasant way informed us that we were in the express check out line and that we had more than 15 items. I wish I could say that I practiced Christian love and witnessed to her, but I didn't instead I got upset and refused to move because she which made her more upset.
The reality is she embarrassed me by pointing out what I did wrong and my reaction was anger. And my response was wrong, as followers of Christ we should seek the best for others.
How many times does this same type of scenario play its self out in church board meetings and in families and even marriages.
The whole reason that Christ came to the earth was not for his own good, but ours.
Jhn 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
Jhn 10:11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
He came so that we might have our sins forgiven and be reconciled back to God. He came that we might be brought from death to life and not just any life, but abundant life
abundant life- literally means above and beyond what is necessary more than enough. He didn't just barley fill our cup up like he was afraid he was going to run out he fills our cup until it runs over and begins to affect the people around us. Just like he told the woman at the well I have water that once you drink from it you will never thirst again, he has satisfied our every desire and because of that our lives our better and we can find rest.
The first characteristic of love is that love seeks the best
Naomi out of love was seeking the best for Ruth, God out of love was seeking the best for us
When we act out of love should always seed the best for others whether its in our marriage, our family, our church or even the lady behind us in the check out line at the grocery store.
Love Commits
Naomi tells Ruth to wash, anoint herself and to make herself known to Boaz after he is done eating and drinking. So Ruth does this and at she lays herself at his feet
and all of this sounds strange to us , but so does the fact that Naomi was arranging this marriage, but that's just because we live in a different time and a different culture.
This is where the story gets really interesting in verse 9, “He said, Who are you? And she answered I am Ruth, your servant. Spread your wings over your servant for you are a redeemer.”
Ruth was probably about half the age of Boaz and what she did in verse 9 was pop the question. She asked Boaz to marry her since he is their redeemer.
Ruth is letting Boaz know that she wants a committed relationship with him.
Boaz begins his response by praising Ruth. He says in verse 10, “May you be blessed by the Lord, my daughter. You have made this last kindness greater than the first in that you have not gone after young men, whether poor or rich. And in verse 11 he calls her a worthy woman with a good reputation among the other people in town
But there is a snag in verse 12, “Yet there is a redeemer nearer than I.”
There was a relative that Ruth was not aware of that would have first say in marrying Ruth, but in verse 13 Boaz says, “But if he is not willing to redeem you, then as the Lord lives I will redeem you.”
Ruth makes a commitment to Boaz and then Boaz makes a commitment back to Ruth that he will redeem her.
I'm sure if we called up all the relationship experts they would say that Boaz and Ruth are moving too fast in their relationship, since within one minutes time he was asking her name and then in the next sentence she was asking him to marry her.
That reminds me of a couple in the first church I pastored. I preached the wifes funeral, and they had been married for 60 years. A few weeks after the funeral I went by the mans house and we sat on the front porch and he told me the story about how he and his wife met. He met her one week and then he went out of town the next and when he got back he ask her to marry him. After two weeks but they stayed married for 60 years.
The only way a couple stays together for 60 years is not that they never have a disagreement, its because they are both committed to making it work.
The only way a church survives for a 100 or 200 years without a major split is not because they never disagree or have any problems but its because the people are committed to the cause.
True Biblical love is not afraid to commit.
In that great love chapter in 1 cor 13 the Apostle Paul says,
1Cr 13:7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. ( to put it simply love stays commitment through thick and thin)
In America today the average church attendance is 60 and on any given Sunday less than 50% of the church membership show up for worship. Charles Stanley says the reason for this is because God's people have made a decision about Jesus...But have never made a commitment to Him (Confronting Causal Christianity)
I believe that commitment is one of the areas that we struggle in the most when understanding love. Yet commitment is exactly the way that Jesus expressed the meaning of love to us in his ministry.
Listen to what the Bible says about Christ commitment
Jhn 15:13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.
Hbr 13:5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."
Christ commitment himself to us all the way to the cross and today he says to us I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
look around this room today. Are you committed to your brothers and sisters in Christ that are here today? Are you committed to seeking the best in their life? Helping them when they are down? Rejoicing when they rejoice, concerned when they fall out of the fellowship not because your nosy but because you want us to all step over the finish line and hear God say well done.
And then what about to Christ? Are you committed to him enough to serve him. The Bible says the only way that we can be saved is to call upon the name of the Lord (romans 10:13). This means to give Christ the Lordship of our life. To commit ourselves to him.
The Bible says that it's not too much for God to ask us to commit ourselves to Him
Rom 12:1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
KJV in this verse says which is your “reasonable service”
That song we sing in the church titled “We are climbing Jacobs Ladder” ask the same question
If you love Him, why not serve Him?
If you love Him, why not serve Him?
If you love Him, why not serve Him?
Soldiers of the cross.
Love seeks the best, love is not afraid to commit
and lastly
Love meets the Need
Boaz did not send Ruth back to Naomi empty-handed. Even though there was a temporary snag that he had to work out before he could marry her she still had a need to eat so he met that need.
Rth 3:16 And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said, "How did you fare, my daughter?" Then she told her all that the man had done for her,
Rth 3:17 saying, "These six measures of barley he gave to me, for he said to me, 'You must not go back empty-handed to your mother-in-law.'"
When we love our brothers and sisters in Christ we want to meet their needs
When we love our spouse we want to meet his or her needs.
When Christ came he came to meet our greatest need. Sin had brought death into the world and Christ came to give us life. “I have come that you might have life....” I am the way the truth and the life...”
Jhn 3:36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.
And here is how great the love of God is....Not only has God met our greatest need of eternal life but his love also meets our daily needs.
Just like Boaz didn't send Ruth home empty-handed God gives us the things that we need to make it through everyday.
Jhn 16:23 In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.
Mat 6:31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'
Mat 6:32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.
Mat 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Mat 7:11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
Love meets the need, is not afraid to commit and always seeks the best......
John summed it up best when he said
1Jo 4:8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.
Closing
In closing today let me ask some thought provoking questions to those of you here today
are you showing true biblical love to your brothers and sisters in Christ? Or are you always wanting your way
How about to you spouse?
How about to God? Did you make a decision for Christ or did you commit your life to Him?
If you are here this morning and have come to realize maybe that you need to change, you need to repent and come to Christ this morning. Not just come and walk the aisle but come and commit yourself to Christ and you want to do that today I urge you to do it today.
Maybe you are here this morning and this message has caused you to see some area in your life where you aren't practicing Biblical love and you want to change today, I encourage you to come this morning and do business with God. We have to be able to say just what I did in that grocery store that day was wrong it wasn't the type of love Christ wants me to show to the world.
You might be one here today that needs a church home a place to serve and be held accountable and to show the love of Christ at and you would like for Mt. Pleasant to be your church home. I invite you to come this morning and do that
