Pentecost 20c Ruth 1:1-19a Following Christ

2 Timothy 2:1-13 Luke 17:11-19

Our lesson for today is taken from the book of Ruth. By her faithfulness, Ruth is a great example for every Christian. Ruth is important because she was faithful in keeping her promises and steadfast in the way she met and overcame crisis. God bestowed abundant blessings on her to demonstrate his overflowing grace. The book of Ruth is not only about Ruth however. It is filled with symbolism and it intertwines the lives of many other people as we see God’s plan carried out.

 The last verse in the book of Judges tells us that “In those days, Israel had no king and everyone did as they saw fit.” (Judges 21:25) Among the people of Israel, there was an attitude of, “This is a free country. I can do anything I want as long as I do not hurt anyone else.” Now, it seems to me I’ve heard those some words spoken in our country. And Rather than obeying God, everyone did as they pleased.  

Their disobedience caused neighboring countries to invade and conquer parts of Israel which led to famines.  Israel repeatedly turned away from God and God, in His mercy however, raised up Judges who would lead the people out of disobedience and back into divine deliverance.  

Even so many in Israel forgot about the miraculous acts of God that had brought His people across the Jordan River and had established them in His promised land. Consequently, people turned to false gods and idols.  They changed their religious beliefs to what was more appealing and socially acceptable at that time. When God chastised them for their apostasy, some rather than asking God for help, sold their land and moved to foreign countries.

Such was the case with Elimelech. He lived in Bethlehem with his wife Naomi.   As the people stopped blessing God, God’s blessings also stopped. Elimelech sojourned with his wife Naomi and family and crossed back over the Jordan into the country of Moab.

Sojourn means to stay somewhere for a short time. Elimelech stayed for 10 years and the family may have stayed longer if he would not have died.

My friends, there is a lesson here for all of us. We are foolish to believe that we can escape the crosses that are placed in our lives by moving away from God and His care. Moving to a new location to escape our problems seldom results in a mending of our ways. I have often heard people say, “As soon as I get my life straightened out; when my finances are better, when my sorrow has ended or when my children have learned to be quiet and sit still, then I will return to church.”  Notice how they are saying “I” rather than tuning to God and asking HIm to help them. How foolish it is to stay away from the very One who can give the most help! How foolish it is to stay away from the one who can perform miracles in your life!

Elimelech’s desire to provide for his family was not to be blamed; but his sojourn into the country of Moab could not be justified. Those who bring young people into bad surroundings, and take them out of the way of God’s word and take them away from God’s people are setting them up for a great fall.  Even though the people in Israel were far from perfect, He and his family paid a high price for entering into a place full of low morals, and unbelievers.   Elimelech and his sons died before they returned to the Promised Land and left behind three widows. They cut themselves off from God by denying that He would help those who remained faithful.

 Those who cut themselves off from Christ now and who face him on the last day must not expect that Christ will be equally false and will then confess that they belong within the gates of heaven.

Christ cannot contradict Himself, cannot prove false to Himself, and in the end deny what He has said. Men expect Christ to act in the same way on Judgment Day: deny all his warning threats, and giving them entrance into heaven as his faithful believers.  But Jesus is not able to deny Himself. Otherwise, we could have no faith, no trust and no hope in one whose word and promise is not certain.

Jesus has made a commitment to you and to me; a commitment that He took to the cross and willingly died there to assure you who remain faithful of eternal life. Therefore you can count on the changeless Christ for all eternity.

  Ruth shows us that kind of commitment and love in our lesson.  She said to Naomi, “Do not urge me to leave you or to return 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. Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the Lord do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you.” And when Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more.”

You can See Ruth’s resolution, and her good affection to Naomi. Orpah was reluctant to part from her; yet she did not love her well enough to leave Moab for her sake. Thus, many have a value and affection for Christ, yet come short of salvation by him, because they will not forsake other things for Him. They love Christ, yet leave Him, because they do not love him enough, but love other things better. Ruth is an example of the grace of God, inclining her very soul to choose the better part.

Naomi could not have been more pleased with the solemn declaration Ruth made. God is pleased when we confess our faith and gives us the resolve to live out our faith. The power of resolve silences temptation. Those that are religious but not faithful stand like a door half open, which invites a thief; but resolution shuts and locks the door to temptation, resists the devil and forces him to flee.

Those who trust in Christ alone will give up their idols, horoscopes and other such practices that go against Christ’s Lordship. A true believer will strive to yield His life to Christ when made aware of any area of his life that is not in step with God even when they face trails and temptations to follow an easier path.

Because of their afflictions, Naomi and Ruth Journeyed to Bethlehem. Afflictions will make great and surprising changes to those who undergo them. Naomi was now a woman of a sorrowful spirit. She had come home empty, poor, a widow and childless. The cup of affliction is a “bitter” cup, but she knows that she can turn to God’s mercy. There is a cup of fullness from God which cannot be emptied for believers; it is filled by those whom God puts in your life to help you. 

Through the Church and those people of God there is a faith that cannot be shaken when trials come and there is a steadfastness that helps one endure those lean times. The commitment made by those who trust in God eases the bitterness of any and all afflictions.

Your commitments to family, work, and all the other things do not have to divide you when they become a part of your commitment to Christ. His commitment to you includes all parts of your life. True, he came to be your Savior so you can go to heaven, but he is also with you now. Your faith in Christ becomes a part of your family life. It is a part of your work, your education, your hobbies, and your social life. These things do not divide you, rather they strengthen you. They give you a way to live a life in Christ in which all aspects of it are incorporated into a steadfast commitment to God.

Following Jesus is not a contract with every detail mapped out. It’s not a matter of, “If you follow me, this is what I will ask you to do, and this is what I will give you in return.”  Instead, the Lord places in front of us an unwritten book that is completely blank except for one word. That word is grace.  In Baptism, He writes our name in the book. His promise is simply that he will remain beside us and fill in the details day by day, as each day comes, all according to that one word: grace. What will the Lord ask of you? I don’t know. Ask Him what he would have of you, on each and every day as it comes.

That takes a lot of trust, but the Lord himself has shown himself to be completely trustworthy and full of love and kindness, just as he was toward Ruth. He has made His commitment to us not with pen and ink, but with water and his Word, and with the body and blood of His Son, given and shed for the forgiveness of your sins. Following Christ means, truly living. Life happens and it rarely happens the way we think it should.

 Being faithful and steadfast does not mean a joy ride to heaven; it does not mean that there are no trials and no burdens. But it does mean peace in your soul and joy in your heart, and a very real spiritual sense of knowing that the Lord is with you. Jesus is willing to go with you wherever you go.  He has told you, “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you. You shall be my child and I shall be your God.”

Living in faith is living as His disciple. We follow Him to the cross. We die to this world and live a new life with Him in our baptism.  We follow Him by acknowledging Him to be our Lord and Savior through worship and prayer. And discipleship means that you use your time on earth to the best possible advantage for His Kingdom.

We are all on a journey to Bethlehem, to Calvary, and to life everlasting in the New Jerusalem. Where we go, he will go with us; where he goes, we will go also, always by His grace and by His promise. And on our journey through this life we always trust that He will work out everything for the good of those who love Him. It worked out for the good of Ruth and it also worked out to the joy of Naomi. The book of Ruth ends with these words:

    “So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. And he went in to her, and the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son. Then the women said to Naomi, "Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a redeemer, and may his name be renowned in Israel! He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age, for your daughter-in-law who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has given birth to him." Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her lap and became his nurse. And the women of the neighborhood gave him a name, saying, "A son has been born to Naomi." They named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.”  (Ruth 4:13-17) 

Surely God works in mysterious ways! May He who has begun a good work in you carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Amen.