Uncommon Love: Ruth
Ruth 1:1-22
Live an uncommon life.
Jesus Prayed for us: John 17:15-18 NIV
My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.
Week 1 Uncommon Faith – Hebrews 11:1
Faith is confidence – Trust firm
Faith is assurance - certainty and promise
Week 2- Uncommon Purity: “Turn my eyes from worthless things; preserve my life according to your word.” Psalm 119:37
What is true biblical love?
1 John 4:17 gives us the best answer to that question:
This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus.
The best way to be love in this world is to be like Jesus.
In our passage Ruth demonstrates an uncommon love:
1. An Uncommon love is humble
a. The humility of Ruth is substantial.
i. The culture said that after your husband died, you would marry your brother in law. If there was not brother in law, you were to go back to your parents and then marry again.
ii. But here Ruth chooses to stay with her mother in law, although it may mean homelessness, starvation and death.
iii. She also had to leave her homeland and travel to a place where she did not know the people or the customs.
iv. This kind of Uncommon humility, says, I will choose to place myself in a lower position, for the good of others.
b. 1 Peter 5:5-6- All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud
but shows favor to the humble.” Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.”
i. 1 Peter tells us to be Humble, and not proud.
2. An Uncommon love protects others
a. In this situation as a widow with nothing, Ruth could have said in her pride, “let me go home to my family and start over. This way, I will look better to the world around me.”
i. This kind of Uncommon Love is about saying, I am more interested in others, than I am in how I look.
b. We have to choose people over situations
i. This means, that we have to recognize that people count for something.
ii. It would have been easy for Ruth to say, “Naomi has nothing to offer me, so I will go.”
1. Our Uncommon love has to help us see that people are not an ends to a means.
2. They are not there to satisfy us.
3. They are God’s creation and deserve to be treated that way.
4. We have to stop looking at people as though they are there simply to meet our needs.
c. Titus 3:1-2 - Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, 2 to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and always to be gentle toward everyone.
i. No slander – sadly for many of us, talking about people is our favorite activity.
1. Even if it is true, is it necessary ?
ii. Peaceable – the literal translation is avoid fighting
1. Some of us are not happy till we are unhappy with someone else.
2. We should be working to be avoid conflict and choosing to live at peace.
a. This is a different instruction than Jesus to us in the Sermon on the Mount – Being a peacemaker is not about avoiding necessary conflict.
b. Here Paul is telling Titus, avoid unnecessary conflict
c. In other words don’t pick a fight to have a fight.
i. Sometimes we have to let stuff roll off our shoulders
iii. Considerate – Fruit of the spirit – “KINDNESS”
1. It is really a way of life
iv. Gentle – Our society is way too harsh with each other.
3. An Uncommon love makes God the Center
a. It would be real easy to think, that an Uncommon love would be about other people, and that is what we have talked about so far.
b. BUT the truth it: it has to be about God first.
c. Ruth says, “Your People will be my people, Your God will be my God.”
i. This was a statement of belief.
ii. And a statement of surrender to God.
1. For us to have real Uncommon Love, we must surrender to God
2. Jesus said
a. Matthew 6:24 - No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
3. WE CANNOT serve both the world and God at the same time.
a. Although we try very hard to do so.
b. We will never be able to love the world the way that it needs to be loved until: WE LOVE GOD FIRST.
c. A true Uncommon love, starts with an unconditional surrender to Christ and a whole hearted desire to serve Him.
4. Have you made that kind of decision? A whole hearted surrender?
4. An Uncommon love demonstrates the Grace of Christ
a. First, what is grace: simply put Unmerited favor and forgiveness
b. This is where this lesion of Uncommon Love becomes practical.
c. Up to this point, it was all about what we think, and although changing our though patterns are the first step, we also have to change our behavior.
i. There is often a disconnect between what we say and what we do.
1. For example, I want to live a healthy life, but I choose to eat fast food every day.
2. We do this in the practical application of how we live our lives.
d. Are you really demonstrating the grace of Christ in the world?
i. The same grace that was afforded to you by God?
ii. I wish all of us acted toward people, the way we expected people to act toward us.
1. Often times we place a much higher expectation on others behavior than we do on our own.
2. And in turn, we refuse to offer the same kind of forgiveness to others that God has offered to us.
3. To demonstrate an Uncommon love, we have to be people of GRACE.
a. Are you offering people forgiveness even when they don’t ask?
b. Are you willing to give people the benefit of the doubt?
5. An Uncommon love is fruitful.
a. Colossians 1:10 - so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God
b. In every aspect of our lives, we should see fruit produced.
c. Ruth produced fruit by saving Naomi
d. What kind of fruit are you producing?
