NAOMI: FROM PLEASANT TO BITTER TO BETTER
Ruth 1:1-2:1
1. THE PLEASANT WIFE AND MOTHER.
Ruth 1:1-2 Now it came about in the days when the judges [a]governed, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem in Judah went to sojourn in the land of Moab [b]with his wife and his two sons. 2 The name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife, Naomi; and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem in Judah. Now they entered the land of Moab and remained there.
Naomi- Hebrew name “pleasant”- Imagine Naomi as a little girl playing outside with her Barbie Dolls. She has a Barbie house, her boyfriend Ken, and a pink Barbie sports race donkey to ride. Naomi is happy and pleasant, filled with hopes and dreams about how wonderful her life will be when she meets her “Ken doll” and gets married.
She marries Elimelech and begins her fairytale marriage.
“life happens”- famine throughout Judah. Difficult times.
Her husband is doing the best he can. He decides it’s time to move where he can find work to support the family.
* Notice that Naomi is devoted to and supportive of her husband. She is faithful to him. She follows her husband. Life is still good.
** Ladies the first advice from Naomi’s life I can give you is this:
Always honor your husband and be faithful to him. Trust him as the leader of your family. Do not ever marry a man that you cannot honor, cannot trust, cannot submit yourself to, cannot be faithful to.
** As a mother, your children should NEVER hear you disrespect your husband or cut him down in any way. They should be taught to respect their father by following that example from their mother.
The best gift that you can give your daughter is to live your life as an example of a submissive wife! The best gift you can give your son is an example of the kind of woman he should look for in a wife.
Even though things are difficult, it’s still a pleasant life.
2. THE BITTERNESS OF A BROKEN HEART.
Ruth 1:3 Then Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left with her two sons.
Notice that even though Naomi’s heart is broken, she hasn’t just checked out. She is their for her sons. She continues to be there for them. It’s difficult. Probably very lonely times without her husband, but she does her best to give her sons a good life.
Ruth 1:4 They took for themselves Moabite women as wives; the name of the one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. And they lived there about ten years.
Joy and life have returned to her home and she must have been an awesome Mom for her sons and her daughters-in-law.
* How do I know? Later you will see how much they loved her.
Your ministry as a parent continues even if you lose your spouse or suffer from a broken heart.
Advice: After going thru hard times, seize each and every day and find the joys life has to offer you. You only get 1 life, you can choose to wallow in bitterness, anger, and depression or you can take the hand that has been dealt you and do the best you can.
Also, Show the same love for the people your children marry as you do for your own children.
Ruth 1:5-7 5 Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died, and the woman was bereft of her two children and her husband. 6 Then she arose with her daughters-in-law that she might return from the land of Moab, for she had heard in the land of Moab that the Lord had visited His people in giving them food. 7 So she departed from the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah.
There is nothing left for Ruth in Moab except a cemetery, a broken heart, and broken dreams. But there is still hope!
* God’s Grace was poured out on her as He sends news that the famine is over in Israel. Even through her funeral tears, she hears God’s voice.
* Advice. In your darkest hour, keep your eyes focused on God, listen for Him, trust His Word, and obey and follow Him.
Ruth 1:8-15 8 And Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go, return each of you to her mother’s house. May the Lord deal kindly with you as you have dealt with the dead and with me. 9 May the Lord grant that you may find rest, each in the house of her husband.” Then she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. 10 And they said to her, “No, but we will surely return with you to your people.” 11 But Naomi said, “Return, my daughters. Why should you go with me? Have I yet sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands? 12 Return, my daughters! Go, for I am too old to have a husband. If I said I have hope, if I should even have a husband tonight and also bear sons, 13 would you therefore wait until they were grown? Would you therefore refrain from marrying? No, my daughters; for it is [d]harder for me than for you, for the hand of the Lord has gone forth against me.” 14 And they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.
15 Then she said, “Behold, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and her gods; return after your sister-in-law.”
Naomi’s heart is broken. She is ranting and irrational. She is saying things that ought not to be said to her daughters.
* There is hope in Jerusalem, but she is telling her daughters to go the other way. She isn’t trying to hurt them. She is feeling sorry for herself and giving bad advice.
Many parents today make the same mistake. We dump way too much negativity on our children. Often it makes them vulnerable and insecure or, even worse, makes them bitter and resentful.
* Advice. Be careful what you say when your heart is broken, especially in front of your children. Naomi sees a glimmer of hope in Jerusalem, but her broken heart is causing her to be bitter and negative.
Ruth 1:16-18 16 But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. 17 Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may the Lord do to me, and worse, if anything but death parts you and me.” 18 When she saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.
Here we see “choice”. And it’s a big choice. Both of the daughters were given the same bad advice. Going back to Moab and living with her parents meant immersing herself in their religion again and worshiping a false god. Ruth made the wise choice.
No matter how they are raised, children are responsible for their own spiritual decisions. If they die without Christ, they won’t be able to blame their fate on their parents, but we as parents have the ability to either bless our children or curse our children by the lifestyle that we raise our children in.
Advice: If you want to bless your children:
(1) Live a godly life before your children as an example.
(2) Be a loving and faithful spouse and parent.
(3) Bring your kids to church instead of sending them. When you send them and don’t come yourself, you’re telling them it’s not important.
(4) Speak blessings upon them.
If you want to curse your children:
(1) Be a drunk/drughead. Curse and swear in front of them. Teach them to live like trash.
(2) Be immoral. Live your life like a dog in heat going from sexual partner to sexual partner. How can you expect or demand your kids live morally pure when they see you sleeping around or shacking up?
(3) Always have an excuse for not going to church yourself. You are teaching them that worship is not important.
(4) Curse your children by speaking negative all the time. You’re dumb...you’ll never amount to anything....just like your father...
In the end, though, every person is responsible for their own spiritual decisions. But, as a parent, you can either be a source of blessings or a curse to them.
Ruth 1:19-21 19 So they both went until they came to Bethlehem. And when they had come to Bethlehem, all the city was stirred because of them, and the women said, “Is this Naomi?” 20 She said to them, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. 21 I went out full, but the Lord has brought me back empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has witnessed against me and the Almighty has afflicted me?”
Naomi’s life started out pleasant. Even her name means pleasant. She has had a tough life, no doubt. Every time someone says her name, she is reminded of the things that has happened to her.
She tells them to call her “Mara” instead.... means “bitter”.
Naomi is at the bottom. She is hurting. She feels hopeless.
BUT, she is standing at the edge of a miracle. God is about to bless her socks off and she doesn’t even know it or believe it yet.
Maybe this morning you feel just like Naomi. You’ve had some really bad days that have made of some difficult years. Maybe all the joy has been sucked out of your life.
Advice: Naomi had to travel back to God to find her blessings. You, also, must Find your way back to God. ** Here is how Naomi did it.
3. THE BETTER LIFE WITH GOD’S BLESSINGS
Ruth 1:22-2:1 22 So Naomi returned, and with her Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, who returned from the land of Moab. And they came to Bethlehem at the beginning of barley harvest.
2:1 Now Naomi had a kinsman of her husband, a man of great wealth, of the family of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz.
Naomi has left a land of idolatry and returned home. She has returned to where God wanted her to be. Now God can pour out His blessings on Naomi and Ruth.
* Notice God’s Providence.
(1) The Harvest- the pour can glean the fields for food. The Barley harvest is going on and soon the Wheat Harvest
(2) Kinsmen Redeemer- Boaz. In their society, widows were not to be neglected. A widow could be “redeemed” and wed to a close relative of her husband so she would suffer in poverty.
The end of the story is that Ruth marries Boaz, they have a child named Obed. And, 3 generations later, David is born who becomes king of Israel. And, even better, is that Ruth is an ancestor of Jesus!!
All of these blessings began when Naomi and Ruth made the choice to come back to God.
My advice: Maybe your life is a bitter struggle.
* you’ve made mistakes in raising your children.
* you’re not where you need to be spiritually.
Here’s what you do:
(1) Admit it to God, your children, and yourself.
(2) Ask for forgiveness from God, children, and even yourself!
(3) Return to God and allow Jesus to be your Redeemer and bless you.
