Becoming a Worthy Man
Ruth 2:1
Rev. Brian Bill
June 15-16, 2024
I came across a quote by G. Michael Hopf which I can’t get out of my mind: “Hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times.” It certainly seems like we’re living in hard times right now. I wonder how much of that has to do with the weakness of men today. At the same time, I’m thankful for the growing number of strong men I see who are growing as faithful fathers during these hard days.
For instance, the National Center for Fathering has recently declared a “fatherhood awakening,” citing evidence that men are rediscovering what it means to be a father. A recent Pew Research Study revealed 85% of dads with children under 18 say being a parent is the most important aspect of who they are as a person. More than 75% of men say they would trade rapid career advancement for more time with their families. The author of another study writes: “We found that today’s dads spend more time, provide more care, and are more loving toward their kids than ever before.”
For some of you, Father’s Day is difficult because your dad is no longer here or has dropped the ball somehow. The U.S. Census Bureau reports we have become a fatherless nation as nearly 1 in 4 children live without a father in the home. Some of us have been blessed with tremendous models of what fatherhood was meant to be: a reflection of our relationship with our Father in Heaven. But there are others who have been ignored, neglected, abused, or abandoned. And for you, Father’s Day is anything but happy.
I sincerely hope that you will allow our Heavenly Father to meet what is lacking in your life. May you experience the truth of Psalm 68:5: “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy dwelling.”
Since there is a lot of confusion in our culture today about the definition of a man, it’s important for us to understand what a man is. In addition, it’s critical for men to have a model to follow.
One of our four men’s groups is our Thursday Night study called “BetterMan,” led by Nino Saldivar. Recently, this group dug deep into the definition of a man because it’s hard to become what you can’t define.
• A real man courageously follows God’s Word.
• A real man loves and protects God’s woman.
• A real man excels at God’s work.
• A real man betters God’s world through his children, his church and his community.
I’m reminded of what King David passed on to his son Solomon right before he passed away as captured in 1 Kings 2:2: “I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, and show yourself a man.” 1 Corinthians 16:13-14 says, “Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.”
To help us see how to be strong men who act like men, I want us to draw some life lessons from a dude named Boaz who models what it means to be a worthy man. We’re introduced to Boaz in the Book of Ruth.
As a way to help familiarize us with this brief book, I’ve asked our Youth Assistant Micah Kongkousonh to share a summary which centers on Boaz’s role. You may recall that Micah shared a summary of this book on Mother’s Day as we focused on Ruth and Naomi.
The book of Ruth is one of the great love stories of all time. It is a romantic drama of a destitute young Moabite widow who marries a wealthy and compassionate Israelite named Boaz.
Ruth’s devotion to Naomi and her decision to forsake Moab for the people of Israel and their God allowed God to use Ruth strategically to further His covenant purposes. The second chapter records Ruth’s sovereign meeting with her future husband and family redeemer, Boaz. Ruth “happened to come upon a portion of land belonging to Boaz,” but God leaves nothing to chance. Boaz was a noble man and a relative of Naomi’s late-husband and owner of the field that Ruth was working in. Upon learning Ruth’s identity as the Moabite who clung to Naomi, Boaz did everything in his power to assist her considering it repayment from the Lord for her sacrifice. He instructed Ruth to remain on his property as he had instructed the workers to leave extra barley for her and to not bother Ruth. In protecting and providing for Ruth, Boaz already sensed his responsibility to his relative, Naomi. When Ruth returned and told Naomi of what had happened, Naomi recognized Boaz as their family redeemer and as a worthy man.
Naomi knew she was too poor to buy back her property and too old to have children to continue her family’s name, so Boaz as the family redeemer could remedy these two situations by marrying Ruth. So, Naomi hatched a plan for Ruth to propose marriage. This plan involved Ruth sleeping at Boaz’s feet and uncovering them, symbolizing an interest in marriage. Ruth executed this plan, further verifying her devotion to Naomi, and upon doing this, Ruth’s spirituality is recognized by Boaz’s comments of Ruth’s virtue and character. Boaz expressed his joy at Ruth’s request and signified his intent of doing right by giving grain to Ruth to take back to her mother-in-law. Yet Boaz was aware of a closer relative who had the claim as Naomi’s family redeemer and Boaz would need to request taking the role. Upon returning to Naomi, she counseled Ruth to have patience as she waited to see if Boaz would act as her family redeemer. Ending the chapter, the older and wiser Naomi assured Ruth that Boaz would not rest unless he resolves this that very day.
The final chapter begins with Boaz taking action by inviting the closer family redeemer and elders to sit with him to sort this business out. Boaz informs the closer relative that he can buy Naomi’s property and the relative agrees to do so. It is then that Boaz informs him he would also be taking Ruth as the family redeemer. When the relative was told that his role would not only include buying back Naomi’s property but the responsibility of marrying Naomi’s foreign daughter-in-law, he declined out of fear of losing his family inheritance and passed this off to Boaz. This decision would free Boaz to become Ruth’s husband at last. This marriage reversed the emptiness that Ruth had experienced with the death of her husband, and the Lord would give them a child named Obed who would be the grandfather of King David.
Let’s lock into what is said about Boaz in Ruth 2:1: “Now Naomi had a relative of her husband’s, a worthy man of the clan of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz.” The word “worthy” means, “a mighty warrior, a noble man of standing, character, and integrity.” The root word refers to “something brought forth out of travail and pain,” meaning Boaz became a man of standing by going through suffering. This takes us back to the opening quote: “Hard times create strong men.”
1 Samuel 10:26 refers to men like Boaz as: “Men of valor, whose hearts God had touched.” Valor means, “strength and moral courage.” In contrast to men of valor, the very next verse speaks of “worthless fellows,” which refers to “wickedness which leads to worthlessness.” Men of valor, when God touches our hearts, we become worthy and not worthless! In Ruth 4:11, all the people urged Boaz to “act worthily.”
Here’s our main idea: A worthy man is a worshipper who acts worthily.
As I read through this brief book, I wrote down 10 ways Boaz exhibited integrity by acting worthily. We’ll go over these quickly because I have some exciting staff updates to share at the end. When I told my wife Beth the message was shorter this weekend, she said, “Good. It’s about time!”
Before jumping in, let’s remember the cultural context as described in Judges 21:25: “In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” We live in a similar society, don’t we?
As men of valor, let’s be unshaken in our faith and unashamed of the gospel by holding to the truth of the Bible while our culture caves in on itself. Let’s strive to swim against the tsunami of relativism, reductionism, and redefinition of terms. Let’s be like Boaz and do what is right in God’s eyes, even if everyone else is doing what is wrong.
1. Live on mission at work. The first time we see Boaz he is in the fields blessing his workers in Ruth 2:4: “And behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem. And he said to the reapers, ‘The Lord be with you!’ And they answered, ‘The Lord bless you.’” Boaz was a believer who lived out his faith in the workplace by being genuinely concerned for the spiritual welfare of his workers. Men of valor are spiritually vibrant while they live on mission wherever they are.
Since most men spend the majority of their time at work, it’s important to look for intentional ways to be a blessing in the workplace. Actually, let’s begin each day by giving a blessing to our family, to our classmates, to our co-workers, to our neighbors, and ultimately to the nations. If we’re not sure what to say, we could use the words of Boaz, “The Lord be with you!” or the words of his workers, “The Lord bless you!”
2. Protect the vulnerable. As an unmarried foreigner, Ruth was very vulnerable. Listen to what Boaz says to her in 2:8-9: “Now, listen, my daughter, do not go to glean in another field or leave this one, but keep close to my young women. Let your eyes be on the field that they are reaping, and go after them. Have I not charged the young men not to touch you? And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink what the young men have drawn.”
A worthy man acts worthily by protecting the little, the least, and the lost. In our culture, it’s time for men to step up and speak out on behalf of the most vulnerable, the preborn, as we’re challenged to do in Proverbs 31:8-9: “Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.” As we’ve said before, the person with the greatest power to prevent an abortion is the father of the child. When dad steps up and speaks out, mom will choose life more often than not.
A worthy man is a worshipper who acts worthily.
3. Walk with God. After hearing all that Ruth did for her mother-in-law, Boaz blessed her in 2:12. Listen to how many times he refers to God in just this one verse: “The LORD repay you for what you have done, and a full reward be given you by the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge!” When we walk with God, the words we speak will flow from our faith. Luke 6:45 puts it like this: “For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”
4. Give generously. Boaz practiced hospitality and he also gave from his heart to meet the needs of someone who was hurting. Boaz was strong enough to provide, tough enough to protect, but also kind enough to care. We see this in 2:14-16: “And at mealtime Boaz said to her, ‘Come here and eat some bread and dip your morsel in the wine.’ So she sat beside the reapers, and he passed to her roasted grain. And she ate until she was satisfied, and she had some left over. When she rose to glean, Boaz instructed his young men, saying, ‘Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not reproach her. And also pull out some from the bundles for her and leave it for her to glean, and do not rebuke her.’”
Normally, foreign gleaners were on their own and were given no food to eat. Instead, Ruth was taken to Johnny’s Steakhouse where she was invited to dip her bread into the olive oil! Boaz also personally served her roasted grain, which she ate until she was full and left with a doggie bag to take home. When she headed back to the fields, Boaz instructed his workers to let her take grain from the standing sheaves and to even pull some out of their bundles and drop it on the ground for her to pick up. The KJV says the workers were to throw down “handfuls on purpose.”
Men, are you stingy with what God has given to you or do you look for ways to be generous to others?
A worthy man is a worshipper who acts worthily.
5. Recognize God’s provision. If you’re married, see your wife as God’s blessing to you. Boaz did this in 3:10: “And he said, ‘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.’” Let’s admit what is obvious to everyone around us – most men have married up! In my case, I married way up! Let’s make sure we’re blessing our bride and expressing our thankfulness to God and to her on a regular basis.
6. Do the right thing. Boaz could have cut corners or just given up in his pursuit of Ruth. Instead, he did the right thing, even though it was difficult to do. In short, he followed the dictates of his faith, not his fickle feelings according 3:11-13: “And now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you all that you ask, for all my fellow townsmen know that you are a worthy woman. And now it is true that I am a redeemer. Yet there is a redeemer nearer than I. Remain tonight, and in the morning, if he will redeem you, good; let him do it. But if he is not willing to redeem you, then, as the LORD lives, I will redeem you. Lie down until the morning.”
7. Practice purity. Boaz had the opportunity to be immoral, but instead he practiced purity as we see in 3:14: “So she lay at his feet until the morning, but arose before one could recognize another. And he said, ‘Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.’” Boaz acted honorably instead of pursuing his own pleasure. Job 31:1 gives this challenge to men: “I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I gaze at a virgin?”
If you don’t have a web blocker, I recommend Covenant Eyes. If you’re ready to experience freedom and forgiveness, our Celebrate Recovery Ministry offers a purity group for men on Friday nights.
8. Point people to the ultimate redeemer. The word “redeemer” is used 22 times in this brief book. It means, “to restore, to repair, and to ransom.” We see how Boaz redeemed Ruth in 4:6: “Then the redeemer said, ‘I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I impair my own inheritance. Take my right of redemption yourself, for I cannot redeem it.’” In the Old Testament, a redeemer had to be related by blood, he must be able to redeem, and he must be willing. Jesus took on flesh and blood so that He could relate to us. He is able to redeem because He has paid the price for our redemption, and He is more than willing. Are you willing to receive Him as your Redeemer right now?
9. Make a public marriage commitment. In our language, Boaz “put a ring on it.” Listen to 4:13: “So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. And he went into her, the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son.” Marriage is a covenant commitment before God between one man and one woman for life.
According to the Pew Research Center, as marriage rates have declined, the share of U.S. adults who have cohabitated with an unmarried partner has risen. Among adults ages 18 to 44, 59% have lived with an unmarried partner at some point in their lives.
Christian couples are called to be countercultural by refusing to live together before marriage. In light of all that is happening in our culture, I’m encouraged by a new movement taking place during June called, “Fidelity Month.” It’s time for men to show themselves as men and lead well in this regard. Hebrews 13:4 says, “Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.”
10. Launch a legacy of faithfulness. The Book of Ruth ends in 4:21-22 with a genealogy: “Salmon fathered Boaz, Boaz fathered Obed, Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered David.” Boaz’s mother was Rahab the prostitute and his son Obed became his legacy. When we come to Matthew 1:2-16, we see the lineage of Boaz and Ruth from Bethlehem leading to David’s greater Son, born of a virgin in a stable in Bethlehem so you and I can be born again.
Let’s go back to our opening quote: “Hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times.”
When hard times came, Elimelech became unfaithful to God by fleeing with his family to the pagan land of Moab. Because he was a weak man, he ended up creating hard times for his family. On the other hand, those same hard times strengthened Boaz and he remained faithful in the place God had called him. Elimelech went his own way while Boaz went the way of Yahweh! In short, Elimelech was on a search for meaning and purpose and ended up dying without obtaining it. BTW, we’re beginning a new series next week on the Book of Ecclesiastes called, “Searching for Significance.”
The third man mentioned in the narrative was an unnamed kinsman redeemer who counted the cost and chose not to pay the price. Because Boaz was a worshipper who acted worthily, he gave what he had to redeem Ruth and Naomi, thus creating a legacy of faithfulness that extended all the way to Christ, our ultimate kinsman redeemer.
Boaz exhibited integrity at every opportunity, which is what made him a strong and worthy man. Men, every decision you make in a dark culture reveals whether you are a worthy man or a worthless man. Every setback you go through is an opportunity to believe God or to bail on Him. In every success, you have an opportunity to bless others through generosity or to hoard what you have.
A worthy man is a worshipper who acts worthily.
When David Platt preached on Ruth 2, he called it “the gospel according to Boaz.” While Boaz is a man worth modeling our lives after, the main character in this narrative is God, with His name used 23 times in 85 verses! If Boaz points us to Jesus Christ, the ultimate redeemer, then Ruth the outsider represents all of us.
As one pastor puts it, “If we read this story and think, ‘I need to be more like Boaz,’ we’ve missed the point. He’s a good man and we ought to emulate his actions…but we’re more like Ruth in that we’re all homeless, hopeless, and hungry…just as Boaz provided what Ruth needed but did not deserve, even so the Lord Jesus comes to us and opens the door of Heaven…whatever we need, we find in Christ who is the greater Boaz.”
Invitation
