*Recently a "Husband Shopping Center" opened in one of our major cities*, where women could go to choose a husband from among many men. It was laid out with five floors, with the men increasing in positive attributes as you ascended up the floors. The only rule was once you opened the door to any floor, you must choose a man from that floor, and if you went up a floor, you couldn’t go back down except to leave the place, never to return. A couple of girlfriends went to the place to find men. On the first floor the door had a sign saying, "These men have jobs and love kids." The women read the sign and said, "Well, that’s better than not having jobs, or not loving kids, but I wonder what’s further up?" so up they went. The second floor said, "These men have high-paying jobs, love kids, and are extremely good-looking." Hmmm," said the girls. "But I wonder what’s further up?" The third floor: "These men have high-paying jobs, are extremely good-looking, love kids and help with the housework." “Wow!" said the women. "Very tempting, BUT there’s more further up!" and up they went. Fourth floor: "These men have high-paying jobs, love kids, are extremely good-looking, help with the housework, and have a strong romantic streak." "Oh, mercy! But just think what must be awaiting us further on!" So up to the fifth floor they went. The sign on that floor said, "This floor is empty and exists only to prove that women are impossible to please."
This morning, I want us to look at one of the greatest love stories ever written. It is found in the book of Ruth. Hopefully, I will open your eyes to a different part of the story than you may have focused on before. Although we will talk about the whole story in the book of Ruth, I want to focus on the scripture passage that many people have in their homes. Due to time constraints, I will summarize the character development that has occurred prior to our passage.
A Hebrew man named Elimelek left Bethlehem, where he was from, because there was a severe famine in the land. He went to live for a while in the land of Moab. His wife’s name was Naomi and he had two sons. Elimelek died and left his wife with their two sons, who eventually married Moabite women. After ten years, the two sons died without having any children. Naomi was left without her husband and her sons. Financially and emotionally, this would have been devastating. Without any means of support, Naomi had no other choice but to return to Bethlehem and look to her extended family for some means of help.
Another great source of sorrow was the absence of any grandchildren. It was the custom that if a married son died without having provided any heirs, the next eligible son would be required to marry his brother’s wife and provide an heir in his brother’s name. However, there were no more sons to fulfill this obligation and Naomi was too old to fulfill this requirement in the future.
Naomi heard that God had provided for His people and had given them food, so she and her daughters-in-law packed up to return to Bethlehem. I want us to now begin to read in Ruth 1:8-18, because I believe that this part of our story is one of the most vivid examples of true love that you will ever read.
Then Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go back, each of you, to your mother’s home. May the Lord show you kindness, as you have shown kindness to your dead husbands and to me. May the Lord grant that each of you will find rest in the home of another husband.” Then she kissed them goodbye and they wept aloud and said to her, “We will go back with you to your people.” But Naomi said, “Return home, my daughters. Why would you come with me? Am I going to have any more sons, who could become your husbands? Return home, my daughters; I am too old to have another husband. Even if I thought there was still hope for me—even if I had a husband tonight and then gave birth to sons—would you wait until they grew up? Would you remain unmarried for them? No, my daughters. It is more bitter for me than for you, because the Lord’s hand has turned against me!” At this they wept aloud again. Then Orpah kissed her mother-in-law goodbye, but Ruth clung to her. “Look,” said Naomi, “your sister-in-law is going back to her people and her gods. Go back with her.” But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.” When Naomi realized that Ruth was determined to go with her, she stopped urging her.
First of all, I feel required to tell you that Orpah obviously loved Naomi. She wept at the prospect of leaving her mother-in-law. Naomi seems to have been a loving woman that inspired the people around her to love her. Now, neither of the daughters-in-law are required to go any further, but both of them show great sorrow at the prospect of separation from Naomi.
However, I want you to see the difference between Orpah’s response and Ruth’s response. Orpah ends up doing what Naomi says and goes back home, while Ruth adamantly refuses to leave Naomi. If you don’t remember anything else from this sermon (which is quite likely), I want you to remember that true love takes action! It requires more than words! True love is not so much a noun as it is a verb. You can tell someone that you love them all you want, but until you take that step and do something about it, you will never see the real beauty of love. I believe that only when you take action in love will the real blessings be realized.
When I told Paula’s boss that I was going to marry her, he told me to stand in line. I found out that Paula had been dating someone for quite a while, but you know what? He had never taken that one action that is all-important. He had never asked her to marry him. That lack of action on his part became one of my greatest blessings.
Now, why do I believe that this passage is the greatest example of love, when we haven’t even gotten to the part of the “love story?” Because far too often, we mix up the agape love that God calls us to, with the eros love that we find much easier. Agape love is a selfless love and is given without condition. The love that Ruth shows Naomi is much closer to pure agape love. It is not influenced by Naomi’s beauty or the lack thereof. It isn’t hindered by Naomi’s age or her lack of money or means. It reaches out beyond social, economic, and ethnic boundaries. It speaks more about the one who loves than the one who is loved. This story is an example of God’s love for us. Agape has absolutely nothing to do with the state of the receiver but is wholly dependent on the heart of the giver.
Jesus Christ tells us (John 15:13) “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
In the case of Orpah and Ruth, they would think that they were essentially throwing away the rest of their lives for Naomi, since they had little chance of ever having a family.
In spite of the bleak future that must surely await her, Ruth gives that reply that is so beautiful (Ruth 1:16-17):
But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.”
How incredible that proclamation is. What selfless love Ruth had for Naomi. I believe that it is expressly because of this selfless love for her mother-in-law that Ruth is so blessed in the continuation of this story.
So Ruth and Naomi head back to Bethlehem. The women in the town start their gossiping the second they arrive. “Is this really Naomi” they ask?
Now I want you to see something else about this story. Naomi tells the women (verse 20) not to call her Naomi (which means pleasant), but to call her Mara (which means bitter) because God has made her life very bitter.
We have several people that have had some really tough things going on in their lives. It seems like they never get anything but rain. The sun hasn’t shone on them in a long time. We can get so depressed by the terrible things that have happened in our lives that we can’t see the great things that God has done. Naomi has had some really tough things go on in her life. We don’t know why. They might have occurred because Elimelek chose to leave the land that God had provided in order to maybe find something better in Moab. It could have been because the sons chose to marry outside of the Jewish lineage, which God had previously told the Hebrews was wrong to do. It could also have occurred just so that God could show His loving kindness to Naomi, Ruth, and the rest of us that have read this story.
Whatever the reasons for the hardships in her life, Naomi had lost the ability to see God’s love in it. We need to remember that no matter how tough things get, God has given us great blessings and will continue to bless us because He loves us. Remember the verse in Romans 8:28?
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
You see, God had a plan that Naomi couldn’t see and that is the way it is in each of our lives. God can take the things that we think are ugly and horrible and make something beautiful out of them.
Let’s finish this story, because I want us to see where God makes something beautiful because of Ruth’s faithfulness and love. We don’t have time to read the entire story here, but Ruth begins to gather barley in the field owned by Boaz, a relative of Naomi’s. It is quite obvious by the way the story is laid out that when Boaz sees Ruth, it is love at first sight. In addition to that, Boaz has heard of Ruth’s selfless love for her mother-in-law and knows that Ruth is as beautiful inside as she is outside.
He goes out of his way to make sure that she and Naomi are fed. He is the second closest relative to Naomi, and could fulfill that familial obligation that I told you about earlier, but he had to convince the one eligible man in front of him to give up his right to Ruth, which he does (I encourage you to reread this story in its entirety). In the end, Ruth and Boaz are married.
Ruth and Boaz may be two of the most honorable, loving people ever mentioned in the Bible. Both of them risk it all for the love of another and both of them are richly rewarded for the love. How are they rewarded? (Matthew 1:1 & 5-6)
This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham:
Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of King David.
So you see, Ruth’s undying love for Naomi, and Boaz’ steadfast and generous love for Ruth, was rewarded because they became the great-grandparents of King David and the eventual ancestors of our Great and Glorious King Jesus, the Messiah.
Ruth was honored as one of the few non-Jewish ancestors of Jesus because of her selfless love. Many times, it is difficult to love without wavering. It can be hard to love when you know that you may be risking a lot. Ruth and Boaz were willing to do that. Are you?
So often, we get down about the things that have happened in our lives, but God has already promised us that He will make something good out of our circumstances. Trust Him in all things. The Apostle Paul said to rejoice in all things, not just to grin and bear it. God has promised us that He has plans for us; plans for a future. Open your heart to Him and give Him all of the burdens that life has placed on you. Jesus said (Matthew 11:28-30):
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Picture yourself struggling up a hill with a huge pack on your shoulders. Jesus is saying, “drop the pack. You weren’t meant to carry this load.” …
Naomi felt that her life was nothing but bitterness. She didn’t even see the blessing that was Ruth. Imagine how she feels now, in heaven. She knows how richly blessed she truly was. God turned her sorrow into joy. Let God do that in your own life…
(Prayer)
