07.31.2011 Ruth - Part 1 - God's Restoration When thing go Wrong

07.31.2011 Grace Summit Sermon - Ruth, p1 from Grace Summit on Vimeo.

Ruth is very short (that’s not why I’m doing it) – if you haven’t read it yet, I encourage you to – it takes 10-15 minutes to read 4 chapters. Some have said it is a four act play. There are many elements we would be used to – there is tragedy – the story starts with a woman losing her husband and sons, there is drama, there is romance…
It starts with ‘once upon a time’ – kinda’ like a story that we’ve told forever. And it pretty much ends with, ‘they all lived happily ever after’ – but unlike Disney, this is real people suffering real hardship and persevering through it.
Ruth 1:1 In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land, and a man from Bethlehem in Judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while in the country of Moab. 2 The man's name was Elimelech, his wife's name Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem, Judah. And they went to Moab and lived there. 3 Now Elimelech, Naomi's husband, died, and she was left with her two sons. 4 They married Moabite women, one named Orpah and the other Ruth. After they had lived there about ten years, 5 both Mahlon and Kilion also died, and Naomi was left without her two sons and her husband. 6 When she heard in Moab that the LORD had come to the aid of his people by providing food for them, Naomi and her daughters-in-law prepared to return home from there
There is a famine (and it does not say this specifically, but it might be judgment on the land) - in the days the judges ruled – In the book of Judges, it is after Israel had conquered the land of Canaan – and there was unfaithfulness to God and the nation started to fall. There was judgment on the nation. The judge would lead the nation back to God, and they would have another slide (worse than the first) – and they would slide farther and farther down.
There was a famine. And they temporarily move to Moab. They were descendants of Lot – distant relatives of Israel – like 3rd cousins 4 times removed. They go to Moab and tragedy strikes – this poor woman loses everything. And she desires to return back to Israel, and there God restores and renews and redeems this woman and her life. She plays an extremely important role in the life of Israel.
She is from Bethlehem. There are two famous people who were born there. David and Jesus. This has historical and eternal consequences. We see God, He takes Naomi’s mess and redeems and turns it into a masterpiece.
What we will look at today – that is God’s desire for us – to show us that in times of great struggle – there is great hope, and the end of the story is not written. What we have – if we look at the end here –
Ruth 4: 15 He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth." 16 Then Naomi took the child, laid him in her lap and cared for him. 17 The women living there said, "Naomi has a son." And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.
Through this woman’s life and tragedy, God restores the nation of Israel. Beyond that, we see God redeeming and restoring the world – through this woman’s descendant – all brought about through this tragedy, Jesus Christ one day is born in Bethlehem.
We don’t ever really see God acting directly in this story. He speaks indirectly ad he speaks behind the scenes. It is like God is unseen, in the background, and yet the entire story is about what He does, even though we don’t see Him exactly. And that is how life is! It would be nice to see Him directly, but most of the time, God is working – working in the background of our lives, bringing about hope and restoring purpose. We don’t often see the work of God until much much later.
The story goes on – Elimilech leaves his city – comes to Bethlehem – and ends up staying there. In this- a lot of times, - many say he got into the situation because of bad decisions – but God never says that it is right or wrong – but we can surmise – people do that all the time, but when we do that, we miss a point – God is working in the hope of His people in spite of their behavior.
He still acts, even if we fail. And somehow, He is able to bring about His purposes in our lives for our good.
4 And 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. 5 Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died; and the woman was bereft of her two children and her husband.
This was tragedy – it gives 3 verses to this poor woman’s loss – and it moves on.
Whether it was from bad choices – or just because we live in a fallen world, we will face tragedy, but in all of that, God is working in and through our lives.
There is a beginning of restoration
If you look at our situation today – all that is going on with the budget crisis – it is having a major affect on peoples’ lives. People have been making terrible choices for decades – and all this is coming upon us – to a crisis point. And it is like what happened to this family – they tried to do it right – and yet, people are losing jobs – and we are not immune. We are not immune to things going wrong.
In v. 6, the restoration begins – there is this sorrow – and we think – how could someone go through this?
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. 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.
Naomi had her own issues, but there are three characteristics – of how she responds here.
1) She fulfills her responsibilities in spite of her circumstances – unbelievable circumstances.
When my parents got married, my mom was Italian, and my dad was not. It caused a big stir. And how does Naomi respond in the same situation? She loves these Moabite women – and it is amazing what takes place in their relationship. She shows tremendous character.
Then she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. Many daughters in law would rejoice to see their mother-in-law return! But they were really sad to see her go.
They had nothing. He didn’t have AFLAC.
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 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.
She lays out the case that this won’t work for them – Naomi had their best in mind.
Naomi’s tragedy caused her to be a person of grace and mercy. She really understood the plight of those who go through difficulties. God wants us to learn and understand and to be gracious and merciful. Through those challenges, God has a ministry and a work for us to do.
There was a sense of compassion that developed in Naomi’s heart.
Our focus should not be on the bad decisions people make, but on having a heart of compassion.
Some of us have been going up to help with the ministry to children in Cleveland.
It is hard to describe. They are working with the kids who have been rejected from every other program – usually because of behavior. It was very eye opening – very difficult. But as you work with these kids and hear their story… Two kids got in a fight – “He bent my glasses – my dad is going to kill me!” And my heart broke for him. So I helped to straighten his glasses and told him that he would be okay.
No, my daughters; for it is harder for me than for you, for the hand of the Lord has gone forth against me. "
I think what is happening – we see a grieving woman who is beginning to look to God in her pain – and that is the third thing Naomi does – at some point, she turns to God.
There is this ray of hope – a slight light at the end of the tunnel – and I think at times, that light is barely there. But when we begin to turn our focus back to God, our eyes will catch that light and there will be hope