Ruth 3 Bible Study (Ruth and Boaz at the Threshing Floor) | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (Ruth Series)

If you've been with us, you realize that we have been introduced to a new character in the study by reading about a man named Boaz. And Boaz is an interesting figure because not only was he a man in history, but he is a picture of Christ in many ways. And we can safely interpret that through the New Testament lens. But the introduction to Boaz also provided a shift in the attitude of a woman named Naomi, who was so discouraged and beaten by life and sin, her own sin, the sin of her husband and the consequences that led from their decisions, that she actually changes her name to bitter. She actually changes her name and asks people to call her Bitter, which signifies the depth of her sorrow.

But Naomi now is being healed, being worn by a revelation of hope through this man Boaz, as we discovered last week. And this melting of her heart is so significant that she begins to change in how she deals with others, including Ruth. Because we see here that she wants to now express a desire for her to have a safe and secure future. And what's amazing is that you and I already see this mutual compassion and love that these two women have for one another, which is incredible because they come from different backgrounds and different generations, yet are bound by grace. And look quickly at the last verse of chapter two.

So she kept close, this is Ruth, to the young woman of Boaz, gleaning until the end of the barley and wheat harvest. And she lived with her mother-in-law. So we know that after this encounter between Boaz and Ruth, some significant time has passed and Ruth is tirelessly working week after week by providing food for herself and her mother-in-law. And by witnessing this and knowing that she met Boaz and there's a hope there in light of the law of what that that means, she now begins to treat Ruth in a special way and wants to extend mercy and grace to her. She wants to do what she can for her daughter-in-law.

And what does she wanna do? Well, we're gonna read it here in verse one of chapter three. Then Naomi, her mother-in-law said to her, my daughter, should I not seek rest for you that it may be well with you? Is not Boaz our relative with whose young woman you were? See he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor.

Wash therefore and anoint yourself, and put on your cloak and go down to the threshing floor, but do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. But when he lies down, observe the place where he lies. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down, and he will tell you what to do. And she replied, all that you say I will do. You realize that her desire to find rest was actually desired from chapter one verse nine.

Do you remember that request? If you go back, you'll see it here. It was for both her daughters in law. The Lord grant you that you may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband. And she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept.

That was her prayer then. It was her desire now, and I believe that it provides a wonderful insight of what a true relationship should provide. What a true marriage relationship should produce, what a home should look like, and what it should look like is a place that provides security. A place that provides tranquility, a rest. One of the strongest longings of women, my brothers, is that she wants something to be satisfied in a relationship with a man, and that is a trust that she will be taken care of.

For a woman to flourish in a relationship, for her to flourish in a home, she needs to have the assurance that she will not be abused or neglected, spiritually, emotionally, psychologically, or physically, and that is something that we have to understand. But the sense of rest here that Naomi wants for Ruth is not just a reality for for women. It's a reality and a desire for men as well. Men wanna come home. Men want a wife, a partner that they can rest with, And trust that they will not add more sorrow or grief, but will propel them and give them wings and not wait.

Proverbs talks about this in so many ways and you know this verse. I love it because it's repeated twice in two different ways in the same chapter. In Proverbs twenty one nineteen, this is what men are told. It is better to live in a desert land than with a quarrelsome and fretful woman. Earlier, he said it's better for you to live on the corner of your house, on the roof of your house.

And then he goes on after he shares a few more problems, he goes, you know what? Let me take that back and say it's better to actually live in the desert, than to live with a fretful and argumentative woman. So how do we ensure, whether you are in a relationship now or you're striving and praying for a relationship, how do we ensure that you and I can know what Naomi desired for Ruth? That at home, that a relationship can actually be a blessing and not a burden. That there would be a place of peace, and that there would be prosperity in the soul.

Well, one simple truth, both the man and the woman must have the prince of peace ruling their hearts already. If you don't have the prince of peace ruling your heart, it will not rule your home. That peace will not be a reality. Do you remember the miracle in Cana? The first recorded miracle of Jesus.

What was the issue? What did they run out of? Wine. And it provided what? Misfortune, disappointment, discouragement early on in a wedding.

I mean, we haven't even reached the honeymoon and you already have disappointment between a man and a woman in their festive event of celebrating one another. And who came to Jesus and brought that news? Who came to Jesus and provided the insight? There's no more wine here. Mary.

Right? Mary said, hey, there's no more wine. Implying you gotta do something about it. And what's amazing about this is how Mary responds. She operated up with a revelation.

And she said this in John two five. His mother said to the servants, do whatever he tells you. Do whatever he tells you. If you want to know how like in the miracle of Cana, you can see a miracle in your marriage, in your relationship. Whenever you come into a place of strife or long seasons of of warring with one another, or whatever misfortune there is between you and your wife or your husband.

Here's the secret. You individually have to do whatever Jesus tells you to do. Okay? You know why there is a lot of marriage counseling? Because of that simple fact.

Either the husband or the wife will not do what Jesus asked them to do. But when you have two people that will say, yes we will do what you say Lord, and they take personal responsibility, miracles can happen like it did in Cana. You have a rejuvenation, a rejoicing, a revival in your relationship. But if you just have one party that won't do it, you won't see a miracle. Only when both.

So what's important to find in somebody? A person that fears what God says. Because you can't do what he says unless you honor what he says. And only then will you see perpetual blessing. And so we see here that Naaman wants this for Ruth and she has a strategy in mind.

And what's her strategy? We read it. Is not Boaz our relative? See on the surface, we all know the book of Ruth. I'm sure if you grew up in the church and this is what stirs us with this book.

It seems like a love story. A love story of a young unlikely woman trying to stir and lure the heart of a prestigious prince like man through the calculated means of a wise older woman. Right? But we have to understand that this plan for Ruth to come and secretly meet with Boaz, is framed by a motivation. And the motivation is what?

We just read it. Is not Boaz, verse two, a relative? A relative. Meaning what? That this is this is inspired by a law in the Old Testament.

Naomi's bringing to Ruth's attention. Hey, do you realize that according to the law, because you're a widow and Boaz is a relative, you have the ability to to come together and he can marry you and redeem you from your situation. And so I'm sorry if that disappoints you and viewing this as a love story, because now it almost sounds like it's a legal thing more than it is a love thing. Right? But don't be too discouraged because there's still a level of charm in this narrative.

The charm in this narrative is very obvious because we later learn on learn that there are other relatives closer to Ruth that had the claim to have her and her property. Boaz is not the nearest kinsman. And so this is a strategy based on a desire from Ruth. I want that guy. I want him.

I know there are men that are closer and she's gonna discover that in a moment, but I really like Boaz. And what did we learn about the law of redeeming somebody, especially a wife, of of a brother who lost, who's lost by death and has left property and and a woman? What was the law? That it was your duty to take her, to continue the family line and the family name. But Deuteronomy 27, rather 25 verse seven tells us this, that the man has a choice not to do so.

And if the man does not wish to take his brother's wife, then his brother's wife shall go up to the gate of the elders and say, my husband's brother refuses to perpetrate his brother's name in Israel. He will not perform a duty, the duty of a husband's brother to me. So Boaz had a choice too. This is not something that he was forced to do. I guess I'm a redeemer and I gotta do this.

I don't really like you. I don't think you're that cute, but let's just do this so I can obey God. If he really didn't want Ruth, he didn't have to have Ruth. So guess what? It's still a love story.

And it's a beautiful one in that. You know why? Because we can pull out practical tips for relationships like many people do with the book of Ruth. But more importantly, we can glean prophetic truths about the most important relationship you can ever have with Christ. So what do we see here?

Let's consider a few things. First, why get Boaz's attention? Why this man? Why not a near near relative? Why not somebody else?

Why not explore different options? And we have reason to believe that it's because of chapter two. You saw who Boaz was. You saw what kind of man, what kind of character, what kind of caliber this man was that he possessed. Especially the last verse.

Right? Long period of time where Ruth continually came to the field where Boaz owned, and she got to know him over time. She got to understand him. She got to study him. She got to see him.

She got to hear him dealing with other people, dealing with her. And we know from chapter two that for a woman to meet with a man in the threshing floor, the threshing field was a dangerous thing. Remember that? She's like, don't go anywhere else because it was a common thing, especially in a day where, what? Everybody was doing right in their own eyes according to chapter one verse one.

For her to give the the inspiration to meet with him alone in the dark in a field, implies what? She trusts the man. She has confidence in Boaz. She knows that he's a trustworthy individual to conspire such a scheme knowing that she will not be mistreated if she obeys it faithfully. And so Boaz was a catch.

He was different. He stood out. And here's an important point. Experiencing the rush of romance does not mean you have to make a rushed decision in that relationship. Experiencing the rush of romance doesn't mean that you have to make rushing decisions.

Even in this, we see that they took time to understand who they were, who this man was. And those overwhelming emotions, they are a gift. They are to be cherished. They are to be enjoyed, but they are also to be managed with wisdom. See, what you need to do and what you need to understand is that you have to look past the butterflies.

And you have to look past the the the physical appearances and the fun that you have when you go out with that individual and begin to actually analyze and study who is this person. Like what are they at the core? What they can't Do they withstand troubles and trials? Do they trust God in all seasons? Or they just cute when they look at me in a certain way?

And so as as lovely as Boaz was, they discovered who he was and who he could be and will be in the long run. And looking at Boaz as a type of Christ, we learned something beautiful. That when you really know who he is, you can trust that you're safe with him. Naomi had no doubt that Ruth could give herself in this way and that Boaz would not handle her inappropriately, with disappointment, with selfish ambition. And when you look at verse four, you see that Naomi assures Ruth that Boaz will have all of this under control.

Right? He will tell you what to do. He has your future in mind. You put it into his hand. You put your dilemma into his hand, your heart into his hand, your life into his hand, and you can have complete trust that he will take care of it.

And that's the same assurance, a greater assurance, a greater trust and confidence you can have in Christ. There's no need to fear what he will do with your life when you abandon yourself to him. There there's no need to reserve a part of your life. You give it all to him, and you can trust that he will lead you faithfully. There's no need to fear what he will do with your future, what he will let go, what he will hold on to, what he will refuse to give you.

You can have complete assurance, complete assurance that he is perfect in all of his ways. And another thing in light of Boaz being a type of Christ, we learned something else. The only thing that can bring Ruth to the place where she would seek him as a redeemer is when she realized that she was in need of redemption. It was only when she realized her her impoverished state, her predicament, her sorrowful future, the lack of a husband and lack of children, only then realizing I can't redeem myself, that she would now come to the feet of him who could. Christian, in your attempt to evangelize, it is very important that you make sure that you wisely proclaim the desperate spiritual state of the sons and daughters of Adam before you provide them the news of the Redeemer.

Because the gospel is not good news until there is bad news. And people will not even be remotely curious of understanding the depths of the gospel if they don't realize why they need it. Much of the gospel that's being preached today is just to add something to your life, not realizing that it is the source of life. We don't talk about the gospel like that anymore. It's like, oh, you don't have something else to do on Sunday?

Add Jesus. He'll make your life a little better and he's something that you can look to when you have some little trouble. And what what's trouble in America? But instead, like Ruth, realizing how desperate we are and that there's only one source and one man and one person that can help us, and deliver us, and save us, and take us under his wing. So it is with Christ.

So it is with Christ. And so she realizes this. And she now comes to the point where she says as we read, I will do what you tell me to do. So she gives her three instructions. Ruth receives three instructions of how to approach Boaz.

You know why that's encouraging? It discourages the notion that when you trust God, it means that you do nothing. She prayed for this in chapter one. Naomi prayed for her to find a husband. And now there seems to be a providential door open and she's not sitting in her room, not planning and praying and seeking a way to potentially entertain the possibility of it being true.

And so trusting God doesn't mean you sit on your hands and say, well God will do it, and I don't do anything. And so she gives her rules. She gives her instructions. She gives her practical steps and that is what it means to trust God. It's an active trust.

You obey the Lord. You put yourself out there not just in the sense of relationship, but in all things. You explore, you call, you ask questions, you meet with your counselors and you figure things out while you prayfully ask the Lord to guide you and protect you from the wrong ones. That's how it works. You have many people sitting on their hands in their rooms, locked, closing the blinds saying the Lord will do it, the Lord will do it.

Well, you gotta get up and do something too. And that's what we're seeing here. Trust, but an active trust. And here's the first thing that Ruth is supposed to obey. What are we told?

Verse three. Wash therefore, and anoint yourself, and put on your cloak, and go and meet the guy. Isn't that encouraging? This was a law, and you know what Ruth could have done? Well, since it's already on paper, she could have gone on her work clothes and her hair all messed up, and all sweaty and tired, and knocked on Boaz's door and says, hey, look, there's this whole redemption thing that you're supposed to help me out on, so can we just sit down and talk?

I know I just came in the middle of the night, but let's just talk. No. You know what Naomi says? Take a shower, Put on some perfume. Look nice and presentable for the guy.

That's encouraging. You know why? Because you being super spiritual doesn't mean that you don't take care of yourself. Not a profound thought. There's a world out there, there's a legalistic world out there that don't believe what I just said.

I know you're not dealing with that, that's why you're giggling, but if I preach this in certain areas, they would cringe in their seats. Fascinating. Take care of yourself. Make yourself presentable. Come and meet the guy and look look somewhat pretty.

And she obeys. And thankfully, she does. And here's what's important is that, ladies, you're not more spiritual if you completely neglect that aspect of your existence. Men also. This is where it becomes dangerous when you put too much emphasis on it, about body and dress, and you don't consider anything concerning your spiritual condition.

Because all you are is what Proverbs says, a gold ring on a pig. And so, you should not believe that the appearance does not hold any value, especially in a relationship with a man. So here's a second rule. She brings up that she should not approach Boaz while he is eating or before he eats and has a drink. Why?

Because men know what it's like to be very hungry. Right? Women as well. And men, you can testify that when you have not eaten your breakfast on Sunday morning and when you stayed extra late to serve at the church and you hadn't had an early lunch, it's very difficult to have a serious conversation, isn't it? It's very difficult to think rightly, right, before being agitated by the smallest things?

And imagine making a decision in that kind of a condition. Here's what Naomi is saying. She's being very, very wise. She's saying he's gonna work all day, make sure that he has a nice meal, and he satisfies his appetite, so that when you bring up this important subject, he can be fully engaged in it. Isn't that wonderful?

Consider these things. She's operating in great practical wisdom. I know that you're not very impressed with the profound thoughts that are being presented from chapter three thus far. But you'd be amazed to know how many people, professing Christians, lack practical wisdom in life. It's not just what you say that's important, it's when and how you say it.

Whether that's in correction, whether that's in approaching somebody with an idea, whatever it may be, what's so important, and Proverbs talks so much about the use of the tongue, is the timing of what you say and the manner of how you say and whom you say it to and when you say it. And that is a rule for all context of life. But I would like to narrow the application to this in the realm of relationship. That timing on how you approach someone or express your feelings is vital. Vital.

Just because you have emotions for that person in that moment doesn't mean you have to jump on them. You can wait and you can pray and you can ask counsel and you can you can just hold off. And sometimes there are people that hold off too long and they don't want to make a move at all or ask questions or explore the possibility or seek counsel on the matter. It's important to understand the timing of things. Ecclesiastes is clear about the seasons of all matters, including nitty gritty details such as this.

And so what does she do? I love it. She receives counsel from an older woman of how to do it right. People in the season of looking for a spouse, would you do the same and seek counsel and not just operate by your emotions that are driving you to make a decision? And lastly, we see here that she gives kind of a strange final instruction.

After she obeys the first two, here's the final one. It's in verse four. But when he lies down, observe the place where he lies. Make sure it's Boaz. Make sure it's the right guy.

Go to him, and when you go to him, uncover his feet. Uncover his feet. I'm seeing few smiles now because you've heard of an interpretation of what that means. Right? Maybe you haven't.

Some take issue with this phrase because they believe it implies that this is Naomi instructing Ruth to be inappropriate and provocative by attempting to seduce the man. Does anybody have an idea why they would get that kind of an interpretation? Anybody have an idea? You you got it. In the Old Testament, especially in the book of Leviticus, and I want you to see it in Leviticus 18 verse seven, The I the word uncover is an is an idiom.

It's a way of explaining sexual relations that is veiled and not explicit. You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father, which is the nakedness of your mother. She is your mother. You shall not uncover her nakedness. So what happens is they take that interpretation and they bring it to this chapter and they think that what Naomi is telling Ruth is, go and have sexual relations.

Persuade him and pursue him in this manner. And then they would go on to say that, when it says here uncover his feet, the word feet there is a euphemism of male private parts. I don't know where they got that from. But how do we how do we know that that is not the case? Because you'd be surprised to know how many people believe that about this.

And they think this is scandalous and how can Ruth do such a thing and attains her testimony. All you need to do is read on to see that this is not the case at all. Look at verse seven. When Boaz had eaten and drunk and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain. Then she came softly and uncovered his feet and lay down.

At midnight, the man was startled and turned over and behold, a woman lay at his feet. He said, who are you? And she answered, I am Ruth your servant. Spread your wings over your servant for you are a redeemer. How out of those verses do you know that that common interpretation of what Naomi instructs Ruth is not true?

Any ideas? Any ideas from those verses? You got it. Because it literally says that he was startled, he woke up, and she was literally at his feet. This is not some blurred way of saying something else.

If it is, then verse eight makes complete lack of sense. He woke up. There she is at my feet. Secondly, when she opens her mouth and explains why she's there, then you understand this is a symbolic act. What does she say?

Verse nine, spread your wings over your servant for you are a redeemer. So this is exactly what's taking place. There's Boaz after a long day of work, tired and weary, he ate. He's not drunk. His heart is merry.

He's not intoxicated. He's just glad after a wonderful harvest, after a long famine. And there he is with his arms behind his head probably looking into the blackness of the sky praising God for his faithfulness. He falls asleep and in the shadows Ruth comes and she walks tiptoe with her perfume on and her new cloak. And she comes and as she comes, she lifts the end of his garments by his feet and she covers part of who she is in a physical way and she lies there.

And she lies there, and then when the man wakes up, he sees this and he realizes that this symbolic act is almost a proposal on Ruth's part. Bringing to his attention an opportunity that probably he missed or didn't understand himself. God uses this language with Israel. In Ezekiel 16 verse eight, look what he says in a poetic way to his own people And you'll see the relationship between what Ruth is saying here to Boaz. In Ezekiel 16 verse eight, when I pass by you, God is speaking.

When I pass by you again and saw you, behold behold you were at the age for love and I spread the corner of my garment over you and covered your nakedness. I made my vow. This is a covenant. This is a marriage covenant. I made my vow to you and entered into a covenant with you declares the Lord God and you became mine.

So even God uses this language for his own people, Ruth is doing the same with Boaz. She takes the physical garment and says, would you cover me through the covenant of marriage? Would you bring me into yourself? And now we're left with the answer from from Boaz. But here's what's so beautiful about this is that she's doing so in complete humility.

I mean, she comes to the feet of the man. She comes as a lowly servant and even declares, I am your servant. So instead of reducing the scene to some controversial thing which some people are are satisfied with, look past that and understand that's not the interpretation and understand that this is a display of utter beauty that can radiate from an individual, especially a woman. You know what Ruth could have done? Because this is this is legal.

She could have come even with her perfume and with her nice outfit, and she could have demanded. She could have been much more aggressive. She could have been so desperate with her condition that she wanted to twist his arm and make sure that he would do what he was called to do. Boaz, do you realize that you're a redeemer? Do you realize that you've been waiting too long?

Verse 23 of chapter two, it's been way too long since you've approached me. Let's get this going. No. She doesn't do any of the things like that. She comes before him, humbly, softly, and she, like a servant, echoes her request that Naomi presents, and she waits for his answer.

And if you have any doubt that she's operating with a gentle and quiet spirit, look at verse five again. When she answers Naomi, she replied, all that you say, I will do. Sisters, that is more attractive than any perfume or cloak you put on. It's more attractive than anything else. And a true godly man will appreciate how you handle, how you handle things even if you're in the right.

She has a right. It's hers. There's a delay and she wants to move forward. And guess what? She does so with utter patience and grace and humility and tenderness.

And that's gonna stir this man's heart. And a true godly man will see how you handle disagreements, how you express what you desire, how you communicate your point even though, like Ruth, you're in the right. Yeah. And it's easy for men to desire that. Right?

It's easy for men to look at a woman like Ruth and then look up and start to criticize those in their own lives or not in those lives. They say, why aren't you like this and why aren't you like that? May you be reminded, brother, what kind of man drew this woman? We're not talking about a random fellow here. We're we're not talking about those who were doing right in their own eyes like in the day they were living.

We're talking about a man who was a man. A man. A man of integrity. A man who loved God. A man who initiated and led us.

We're about to find out. A true man. And so before we start thinking that we deserve such a thing, we should ask God to make us worthy men. And that's what Boaz mentions next. He he he realizes that she is approaching him when she had other options.

Look here in verse 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. 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.

There is a lot in those verses. And I'll say this first point, it is obvious here that by the request being made by Ruth to Boaz and in his language towards her that there is a considerable age gap here. We see here that he is obviously much older. From what? What do we see here that implies that?

What does he call her? My daughter. My daughter. Now he's not an old frail man that that's like a grandfather sort. No.

He he his work ethic proves otherwise, But there is an age gap. And this age gap is obvious not in just her refer him referring to as daughter, but also referring to the fact that she could have chose those that are closer to her age. Right? Isn't that what he says? You have not gone after young men.

You have not gone after young men, whether poor or rich. And so there there might be an idea there that the reason why Boaz hasn't even approached her because he thought, she wouldn't even be interested in a person like me, some would say. I think there's a different reason for that. But look what what he discovers about this woman. Ruth did not have to submit to the law as a Moabitess.

She didn't. She could have chosen any man in Israel. She could have gone back to Moab. She could have done anything for her simple desires. But she looks past the youthful passion.

She looks past the prosperity. And what is she operating under? What is her motive even for such a serious decision such as marriage? Loyalty to the will of God. Loyalty to the will of God.

And this is what he notices here. That you're willing to bypass all your other options because you have a supreme desire and your supreme desire is to have what? God's will accomplished. God's will accomplished. And he realizes this and he is moved by this.

And we can't make the the decision to interpret it where we think that she is stuck and this is her only option. Because we know that even within the family, she had different choices. So this confirms also that this isn't a forced thing and she just wants some security so that she doesn't have a poor future like she's experiencing in the moment. No. She wants Boaz.

She desires Boaz and Boaz realizes that. And we realize here that according to this verse, he was attracted to Ruth as well. And what was it that attracted him? For all my fellow townsmen know that you are a worthy man, a woman, a worthy woman. And that is the same phrase used in Proverbs 31.

Ruth embodies the Proverbs 31 woman. And what is he attracted to? Again, let me remind you that not one thing is mentioned in the book of Ruth concerning her appearance, other than the perfume and the cloak. But the character, and the character was so rich and had such a fragrance that the men and the woman that knew her in Bethlehem said, she's a worthy woman. There's something about her.

And this is what's drawing Boaz. Her character, obvious fear of God, her obvious love for the Lord and his word, to even dismiss what might be more convenient and pleasurable for her. She goes, what makes me more happy than anything else is to serve this God that I have just discovered. And if that means that I come to you, then let it be. And Boaz is moved by this.

And we think that this story now is is reaching a climax. It's reaching a moment where it's like, wow, this is a love story in the making and it's happening so quickly, all for this to come with a conflict. And what's a conflict? We'll read here in verse 12. And now it is true that I am a redeemer, yet there is a redeemer nearer than I.

And so everything just comes crashing down in that moment. You can imagine, you can imagine the gasp or the the the heart stopping thought after all of this and you agreeing and I agreeing and we're confirming this, you're telling me that that this might not even work? And you know what's incredible about this is how he continues. Verse 13, 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. I see a man who's a man for many reasons, and here's an additional reason. There is no reason to doubt that he had genuine affection and interest in Ruth.

And I believe this is a stronger reason why after that long period of time, he didn't approach Ruth because he knew that there were the closer redeemers. I'm not gonna approach it. This is not my responsibility primarily. There are others in line who are supposed to pursue her, I'm backing off. Once he realizes that she wants him and they realize that they can actually make this work, it's a beautiful sign that he desires her.

If he didn't I mean, look, if he didn't, I'm sorry. I'm not in line. See you later. I I gotta go. You smell really nice, but I gotta go.

And he could have just left the scene. But no, there's genuine attachment and desire. But there is no provision at this moment. There's no answer. There's no connection.

There's no finality. And you know what he's doing as a man? You know what he's doing as a man? He's laying his emotions on the altar for the sake of the will of God being done, even if it would cost him what he really wants. Even if it cost him what he really wants, he's already determined, if this is God, then let it be.

If it's not, then I'd rather God's will being done, than my desire is being satisfied. I mean, he's moved on in life. He's not married yet. I'm sure that as many people who move on in life desire to be married could have could have made it happen his own way. But no, he says, there's something that reigns.

There's something that is more important than what I want and that's what God wants. And if there's somebody before me, let it be. You have to determine something brother. You have to determine something sister. If you wanna advance in the will of God, if you want to know how, because the one of the most difficult things in this life, in this Christian life, is when emotions get involved in sacrifice.

And you realize that what God is calling you to do will require you to sever what you feel. How do you overcome that? How do you make sure that as strong as those ties are, as great as those endearments are, the history that you have, whether it's a person, or a place, or or property, whatever it is. How do you know that you can overcome whatever he asks you to give up? One simple solution.

Make sure that your affections for Christ are greater. Make sure that you nurture, you discover his beauties, you pursue his person and that your heart testifies that I love my Lord more than anything or anyone. And then when it comes to the point that your emotions are even involved in the decision making process of sacrifice, You have the fuel to say yes to the will of God. And so we see that with Abraham, as you know the story very well, that after twenty five years of a promise and that promise finally coming to pass, in those short years of enjoying and delighting in that miracle, God says, give him up. Give him up.

And Abraham doesn't argue with heaven. He doesn't stomp his feet to Moriah. He doesn't complain. He doesn't raise his fist to God while he drags Isaac by the cloak. He walks for three days.

I love God's wisdom in that. He could have said, just do it outside of your tent. He goes, no. Walk three days. I wanna let you think about it.

And he walks and he walks and he thinks and he meditates and he contemplates and he he he how can this be? I can make a turn right now. We can make a run for it. No. Three days.

And he's still sure that he will do what God will call him to do. And when he does perform it to the extent that God wanted him to, he says, now I know that you love me more than you love Isaac. How was he able to do that? Because he loved God more than Isaac. It's as simple as that.

He says, let God's will be done. And we're thinking, what a beautifully crafted love story, leaving us in suspense, especially if you haven't read this book. So what happens? Verse 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.

And he said, bring the garment you are wearing and hold it out. So she held it and he measured out six measures of barley and put it on her. Then she went into the city. And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said, how do you fare, my daughter? Some translations say, who are you, my daughter?

Right? Do some translations say that? Some believe that what that means is she's saying, who are you? Not know not saying she didn't know who it was but saying, hey, are you still Ruth the single woman or are you now missus Boaz? Then she told her all that the man had done for her saying, these six measures of barley he gave to me.

For he said to me, you must not go back empty handed to your mother-in-law. Isn't that incredible? What a man of character. She replied, wait, my daughter, until you learn how the matter turns out. For the man will not rest, but will settle the matter today.

And so she says, okay. If he said it, we trust his character enough that he will initiate it. He will lead men. Pay close attention. Pay close attention to what makes this man so special.

He took a step of leadership. He made decisions. He initiated. He moved. He planned.

This is a great essence of what it means to be a man, where you lead. You lead in different spheres in different ways and that's what women are looking for as well. They're not looking for a boy. Doesn't mean that you have to have all the answers. It just means that even if you don't have the answers, you're willing to ask questions to make sure you do.

So Boaz is on the move now. Right? Here you have this scene where they stay overnight in a pure fashion. He doesn't want her to go out in the middle of the night. He doesn't want people to see.

He doesn't want there to be this false rumors, just stay, wake up, we'll move on. He goes to the city gates to figure this out. She goes back home and waits in anticipation. And here's how I wanna close. We're left with so much in this chapter.

Again, I said it last week, there's so much in every single verse that you can learn from. But I wanna end with this, in light of understanding Christ. Boaz had the right to reject this woman. He had the right to say, no thank you. I I am a I'm appreciative of what you're asking me, but I'm not interested.

And what I see here is a reflection of the heart of Christ who promised something very precious to any single person who would approach him for redemption. You know the words, right, in John six thirty seven? What did he say in that precious, precious text that reveals so much about the the heart of Christ and the heart of the father? Well, here's what it says. All that the father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me, I will never cast out.

I've heard people actually tell me that they don't know if they can come to Christ because they don't know if Christ will accept them. And here's Jesus telling you assuredly, I will never cast out anyone who comes to me. Do you know what that means? It means like Boaz, he does not consider your past like he didn't consider Ruth's past. It means like Boaz, Christ will honor our decision to respond to his gospel when we choose, like Ruth, to forsake all other options in life and say, I I want this Redeemer.

Unlike the story of Boaz, there are no other options for redeemers. Christ is the only one. Christ is the only one. See, in this text, we read that there are other persons that she could have approached. In the reality of the redemption of your soul, there is only one man.

Only one source, only one person, only one gospel that can bring you to that place. And here's the promise. You come with all your mess and all your junk and all your sin and all your garbage and all your filth and the record of your sin that would make people cringe at just hearing the stories in detail, and he will not cast you out. He'll accept you as you are, and he will heal you, and he'll restore you, and he'll fill you, and he'll launch you. That is what we see here in this story concerning Boaz, pointing to the greater Boaz who is Jesus Christ.

Here's my question. Are you that person tonight that refuses to come to him because you feel like you need to wash yourself before he washes you? Do you hear the contradiction of your thoughts? Do you hear how illogical it is? Do you hear how it is an offense to the saving work of Jesus Christ?

Let me clean myself up. You know who a lot of people a lot of people who do this before baptism, they don't want to get baptized because they want to obey God better so that they can obey God in baptism. Think about it. You don't want to obey God in baptism because you want to obey God better in different ways. So you wanna disobey baptism so that you can obey in different ways.

Right? So we think, who thinks like that? Many people think like that. And if it's with baptism, how much more the gospel? Because man's nature is tied up in understanding redemption this way.

There must be a reason for me to be redeemed. I must do something to be worthy to be redeemed. And this is the offense of the gospel that you can't do anything and he doesn't want you to do anything except embrace him. Come to his feet. Come humbly.

Come to him with your condition and your need and trust that he will do something about it like Boaz would do something for Ruth. So have you done that? Are you calculating still? See, unlike Ruth, you don't have to perfume yourself. And you don't have to put on your own cloak of righteousness.

And you don't have to wash yourself so that you can make yourself more presentable. That might work in your dating life. But what Christ wants in your relationship with him is to come as you are. Filthy, dirty, stinking in sin. Not that he would receive you and keep you that way, but that he would receive you and wash you in his blood.

That's the gospel. That's what we see and learn here. And that's the invitation that you have. But you're not gonna know it until you realize that you're in need of redemption because you think you're good. Right?

And you think that you have everything under control. And you feel like like many people do if you evangelize today on the streets, that if you stand before God, that you have a pretty good record to impress him. You're bankrupt. You're bankrupt. You have nothing to impress God with.

In fact, the Bible is clear. The thing that you think will impress him will actually be an offense to him. You're gonna come what does that mean? It means something about his holiness. You're gonna come to me and try to prove to me that you are worthy to be in my presence based on your apparent deeds and thoughts, and actions, it does not even come close to my holiness.

In fact, in light of my holiness, they are filthy rags. That's how holy he is. And so the sinner that receives grace is the sinner that lets go of his own righteousness. Says I have nothing. I come to you the way I am.

That's the beauty of the gospel. And so may that be the message out of Ruth chapter three amongst many other messages. That's the beauty of bible study. You can hear some dating tips and at the same time feel convicted for the gospel. And that is that is for every person in this place.

And let me make a point that's not related to any verse of this chapter. I know it's getting very lonely in this pandemic age for people who don't have somebody to to do life with. But let me reassure you that unless Christ is the one that you find your source of love in, it doesn't matter who you're with. It doesn't matter who you're with. Trust me.

Look, if you really think that you're gonna be saved from that sense of loneliness and that sense of wanting ecstasy and romance and you're gonna be disappointed. Not that another person can't offer that and not not there's no gift in marriage or thrill in marriage, but it's so much better when the Prince of Peace rules in your heart already. It is. And so make sure that as long as this season is, just love him. Love him more and more and more.

And do what Ruth did. No matter how crazy it is in the world as it was in the days of Judges, no matter how crazy it is in your own life where you feel like death is having a heyday in your family, in your finances, in your health, just obey the Lord. Just obey the Lord. Lord, I'm gonna obey you to the extent in which I can obey you. And you know what Ruth was?

She wasn't a priest. She wasn't a prophetess. She wasn't someone special. She just obeyed God with her condition. What was her condition?

I'm poor. You're telling me to go to the field to glean? I'll do it. And she goes and obeys the Lord. And you know what God does?

What I will leave with you, God providentially did something wonderful without obedience. God took the ink of her obedience and drew a master piece as we are discovering week after week. You give God your obedience and he'll write your story. Don't try to write the story yourself and convince God that he should make it happen. Just obey the Lord Jesus Christ.

Love him, cherish him. Those moments you feel those urges and those aches, you express it and you get back to loving the Lord. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for Ruth chapter three. And thank you, Lord, that you can speak in so many ways from the same text.

Thank you, Lord, that you wet our appetites every Friday, but you invite us to discover more. Thank you that we can hear this and in in hearing one point, our minds explode with 10 other thoughts. Surely you speak, Lord. Surely you speak. Thank you that you've provided us a story that we can all relate to, a story that is void of the miraculous and the supernatural, though you are able to do that today.

You are showing us how you can providentially work in our lives, And how you can lead and guide and how we are to partner with you with active obedience as you write out this testimony for your glory through our existence. God, in this place, we as a church ask you to make Christ the most desirable thing in our lives. Yes, god. And from that place, lord, to know how to enjoy the gifts that you've given us, including the gifts of relationships and marriage. Lord, for those in this place that are planning to get married, they found the one that you have provided them.

May they remember the rule in John chapter two, that when there's a lack of wine, a lack of joy, a lack of excitement, a lack of peace, that their call is to do whatever you tell them to do, and you've made that clear in your word. May they never ever forget that rule, that principle. For those that are longing for that, they desire that they wanna be with somebody. Lord, we pray that they would know that you know their desire, and that you are still worthy of obedience despite despite this season of singleness. And that they would trust you with their future and their tomorrows.

Lord, for those in here who are happy in every way, but do not know you, may they realize that their happiness is in vain, that it is temporal, It is for this life alone and will wither when they give their final breath. And that you allow trials and temptations and disappointments to point us to something more important than anything else. May they realize the gospel through Ruth chapter three. Lord, may they see you calling them, hear you calling them. May they see, firstly, their need for redemption.

Bankrupt without you. Now you alone can provide the check that deals with the debt of our sin, and that they would come to you and receive that payment freely. And so Lord, in this place, do the work that only you can do where you take one message, one loaf of bread, and you multiply it. And that, Lord, you would multiply these truths in our hearts exactly for what we need for this season. Lord, we bless you.

We honor you. We worship you tonight. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen and amen.