TITLE: Life's Choices
TEXT: Ruth 1:16-17
INTRO: A sign on the door of a classroom reads: "We are not born losers, we are born choosers."
The outcome of our lives is determined, not just by what happens to us, but by the choices we make. Everyday we are making choices and building, one brick at a time, our future. Today, we are going to look at how some people made their choices and how their choices determined their destinies.
I. THREE WIDOWS & THEIR CHOICES
A. Naomi's Choice
1. During a drought, Elimelech and Naomi had moved
to Moab
2. Living in the land of Moab, their two sons married
Moabite women
3. Then in the passing of time, the father and both
sons died
4. Naomi was left desolate and bitter in a foreign land
5. She decided to return to the land God had given his
people (v.6)
6. She went from Brokeness to Blessedness
B. Orpah's Choice
1. Orpah & Ruth were also widows, they had no husband,
no hope, no future
2. Naomi counseled both of them to return to their
home & family
3. Both hesitated, but finally made their choices (v.14)
4. Orpah chose to return to Moab, to the old life that was
familiar to her
5. Having made her choice, she is never heard from again
C. Ruth's Choice
1. Ruth was faced with the same dilemma
2. Ruth chose to leave her old life behind
3. To find a new home and a new life
4. To follow God
5. She is remembered today as the Great Grandmother
of King David & was included in the genealogy of
Jesus, found in the Gospel of Matthew
II. ONE MAN'S CHOICE
A. When Naomi & Ruth Returned to Bethlehem
1. It was the season of the barley harvest
2. Ruth gleaned in the fields of Boaz
B. Boaz Chose to Follow God's Plan
1. He loved her
2. He protected her
3. He fulfilled the requirements of a Kinsman Redeemer
-He paid the price of her redemption
-He married her - a new life, a new home
III. CHOICES DETERMINE DESTINY
A. Our Kinsman Redeemer is Jesus
1. He loved us & paid the price for our sins on the cross
2. The church, the redeemed, are the bride of Christ
3. He gives us a new life & a new home
B. We Can Make our Choice
1. To turn back to the old life, like Orpah
2. To make a commitment like Ruth
3. God has a Plan for You
4. God has a Place for You
CONCL: Today, the choice is yours.
You can choose to stay with the life you have and live a life of defeat.
Or, you can choose to invite Jesus into your heart and life and follow Him.
Amen
