WEBVTT 00:00:01.000 --> 00:00:06.140 Tonight I want to begin our study of Restored by sharing a little of my personal story. 00:00:06.140 --> 00:00:11.200 I've been a follower of Jesus for about a year, not quite a year, I guess. 00:00:11.859 --> 00:00:12.419 ! 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:45.100 And in that moment, as I prayed, I just prayed a simple prayer, but honestly, I think it 00:00:45.100 --> 00:00:48.000 was one of the most sacred moments in my life with the Lord. 00:00:48.700 --> 00:00:52.120 And the prayer was, God, please heal my broken heart. 00:00:52.960 --> 00:00:56.879 Now, what's ironic about that is that I didn't know I had a broken heart. 00:00:56.980 --> 00:00:59.100 I didn't know that I had brokenness in my life. 00:00:59.100 --> 00:01:00.300 I was a new Christian. 00:01:00.539 --> 00:01:07.180 I didn't have a very well-formed theology of suffering, and I didn't understand what 00:01:07.180 --> 00:01:09.019 brokenness looked like in our life. 00:01:09.480 --> 00:01:14.359 And so when I prayed that prayer, God, please heal my brokenness, it wasn't because I thought 00:01:14.359 --> 00:01:14.960 I was broken. 00:01:15.079 --> 00:01:18.780 In fact, if you had looked at me, and as I would have looked at my life, I would have said, 00:01:19.159 --> 00:01:20.799 you know, I kind of have my act together. 00:01:20.980 --> 00:01:22.960 I had a lot of good things in my life. 00:01:23.020 --> 00:01:24.340 I was doing well in my career. 00:01:25.159 --> 00:01:27.079 I had lots of friends. 00:01:27.079 --> 00:01:28.520 I had my family. 00:01:28.519 --> 00:01:33.739 And so there wasn't anything that was obvious to me at that point that I was broken. 00:01:34.479 --> 00:01:40.579 However, I have prayed that prayer multiple times over the years with the Lord. 00:01:40.920 --> 00:01:46.840 And I really wish that you had known me back then. 00:01:46.840 --> 00:01:53.079 Because if you could have known me back then, you would see just how amazing God is and how 00:01:53.079 --> 00:01:58.500 committed He is to restoring not just our spiritual life, but every part of our life. 00:02:00.040 --> 00:02:06.100 Since then, I have had the opportunity for more than 20 years to pastor and to shepherd women. 00:02:06.099 --> 00:02:08.539 And so I've walked with a lot of women through life. 00:02:08.979 --> 00:02:15.900 And based on my own experience and based on the time of walking with women, I can say this without any hesitation. 00:02:16.719 --> 00:02:22.439 The greatest disservice that a Christian woman can do to herself is to pretend that she's not broken. 00:02:23.579 --> 00:02:24.859 Let me say that again. 00:02:24.860 --> 00:02:35.280 See, none of us are exempt from brokenness. 00:02:35.400 --> 00:02:40.560 But the good news of the gospel is that God delights in restoring broken things. 00:02:40.920 --> 00:02:46.180 Our souls, our relationships, our purpose, our identity, our God-given humanity. 00:02:46.180 --> 00:02:54.920 He does this in His own time and in His own way as we learn to live our lives more and more from the reference point of God's story. 00:02:55.719 --> 00:03:00.300 God wants us to understand the gospel story as a restoration story. 00:03:00.620 --> 00:03:04.200 Where He restores all things that have been broken through the fall of humanity. 00:03:05.420 --> 00:03:13.080 In Scripture, we learn that God's plan of restoration began before Genesis 1-1 and before the fall in Genesis 3. 00:03:13.080 --> 00:03:18.400 We are told that God determined two things before the world was created. 00:03:19.080 --> 00:03:25.480 First, He determined Christ's sacrificial death as the Lamb of God, that Christ would die for us. 00:03:26.040 --> 00:03:33.380 And second, God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and without fault in His eyes. 00:03:34.040 --> 00:03:40.280 From these verses, we see God's plan has always been to restore broken, sinful humanity. 00:03:40.580 --> 00:03:42.960 Through Christ, God saves us. 00:03:43.080 --> 00:03:44.500 And gives us His righteousness. 00:03:44.860 --> 00:03:49.040 We are fully accepted by God and fully acceptable to God. 00:03:49.840 --> 00:03:54.439 Therefore, we never have to worry that God is looking at us with eyes of judgment. 00:03:54.939 --> 00:03:58.320 Or that He's ever surprised or disappointed by our brokenness. 00:03:59.080 --> 00:04:02.060 Instead, He is committed to restoring our lives. 00:04:02.220 --> 00:04:05.300 And He does that as we walk in relationship with Him. 00:04:05.300 --> 00:04:09.300 Well, starting in the Old Testament, restoration takes on... 00:04:10.719 --> 00:04:14.980 It was primarily seen in the context of Israel's story. 00:04:15.600 --> 00:04:20.660 We see they are delivered out of Egypt, go into the Promised Land. 00:04:20.759 --> 00:04:28.220 Once they're in the Promised Land, of course, they begin to worship the pagan gods of the nations that surround them. 00:04:28.220 --> 00:04:36.120 And God had told them ahead of time, if you turn away from me and worship other gods, I will bring judgment. 00:04:36.520 --> 00:04:37.980 Which is exactly what He does. 00:04:38.080 --> 00:04:40.600 He sends Judah into exile. 00:04:41.120 --> 00:04:43.320 They're there for 70 years or longer. 00:04:43.680 --> 00:04:46.100 And then they return from exile. 00:04:46.180 --> 00:04:48.200 And you see the restoration process begins. 00:04:48.199 --> 00:04:49.399 So they return from exile. 00:04:49.399 --> 00:04:50.740 They rebuild Jerusalem. 00:04:51.339 --> 00:04:54.860 And they renew their covenant relationship with God. 00:04:55.259 --> 00:05:02.099 When we get to the New Testament, restoration takes on a more personal and spiritual dimension through the ministry of Jesus Christ. 00:05:02.740 --> 00:05:07.159 His ministry is often described as one of restoration as He heals the sick. 00:05:07.500 --> 00:05:08.519 He raises the dead. 00:05:08.620 --> 00:05:09.599 He forgives sins. 00:05:09.680 --> 00:05:13.339 And He brings individuals back into a right relationship with God. 00:05:13.339 --> 00:05:23.919 The apostolic writers continue to emphasize restoration within the context of the church and in the individual believer as we are being conformed to the image of Christ. 00:05:24.399 --> 00:05:30.839 They point to the ultimate restoration at the end of the age when Christ returns for His people. 00:05:31.579 --> 00:05:33.779 God's plan will be fulfilled. 00:05:33.779 --> 00:05:43.019 The renewal of all creation and the establishment of God's eternal kingdom where sin, death, and suffering are no longer part of our reality. 00:05:43.339 --> 00:05:48.799 Full restoration with God has been His plan all along. 00:05:49.739 --> 00:05:58.739 And as we saw last week through the redemption of Christ, we are bought back and released to a new life in God through Jesus. 00:05:59.439 --> 00:06:03.899 When Christ saves us, He begins to restore our brokenness. 00:06:04.959 --> 00:06:12.179 Restoration actually refers to the act of returning something to its original state, but better than what it was before. 00:06:12.180 --> 00:06:18.780 It is reclaiming what was broken or what was lost and restoring what has been broken. 00:06:19.240 --> 00:06:21.340 Our relationship with God, broken. 00:06:21.500 --> 00:06:22.660 Our lives, broken. 00:06:22.800 --> 00:06:24.759 Our relationship with other people, broken. 00:06:25.000 --> 00:06:27.180 And our relationship with creation, broken. 00:06:27.720 --> 00:06:32.220 So no matter where we are today, we can be assured that however God is working, 00:06:32.220 --> 00:06:39.540 and whatever He is doing in your life or in my life today is part of His plan of restoration. 00:06:40.280 --> 00:06:46.120 He promises us in 2 Corinthians 5-7 that if anyone is in Christ, she is a new creation. 00:06:46.440 --> 00:06:50.280 The old is gone, has passed away, and behold, the new has come. 00:06:50.680 --> 00:06:53.060 So in Christ, we know everything has changed. 00:06:53.380 --> 00:06:56.360 There has been a clean break with the old. 00:06:56.360 --> 00:06:58.639 But you may think, well, how is this possible? 00:06:59.000 --> 00:07:00.460 I still struggle with sin. 00:07:01.560 --> 00:07:04.860 The point isn't that the old man is gone. 00:07:05.060 --> 00:07:11.360 The point is the new man or the new person, which previously did not exist, now exists. 00:07:11.819 --> 00:07:13.400 And that is who we are now. 00:07:14.139 --> 00:07:18.780 Because we are in Christ, we begin to be different than we were before. 00:07:18.779 --> 00:07:24.000 Well, God also tells us in Romans 8-28 that for those who love God, 00:07:24.199 --> 00:07:28.959 all things work together for good for those who are called according to His purpose. 00:07:29.219 --> 00:07:34.819 So no matter what has happened, what is happening, or what will happen in our lives, 00:07:34.959 --> 00:07:40.379 those all things are tools in the hand of God who is committed to fulfilling His purpose, 00:07:40.619 --> 00:07:42.619 which is to make us like Jesus. 00:07:43.399 --> 00:07:46.279 And you may be thinking, Pamela, if you only knew me, 00:07:46.279 --> 00:07:48.779 that you would know that I am nothing like Jesus, 00:07:49.599 --> 00:07:51.979 my answer to you is, I do know you. 00:07:52.119 --> 00:07:53.000 I am you. 00:07:53.639 --> 00:07:58.919 And yet, I am confident that God will make good on His promise. 00:07:59.659 --> 00:08:01.739 He tells us this in Philippians 1-6, 00:08:01.839 --> 00:08:03.799 being confident in this very thing, 00:08:04.239 --> 00:08:06.379 that He who began the good work in you 00:08:06.379 --> 00:08:11.619 will carry it on to completion until the day of Jesus Christ. 00:08:11.620 --> 00:08:16.840 Well, thankfully, God does not wait to begin that work. 00:08:17.220 --> 00:08:19.500 He starts the work of restoration immediately, 00:08:19.980 --> 00:08:24.060 and He promises that if there's anything that's left undone when Christ returns, 00:08:24.259 --> 00:08:25.340 it will be finished. 00:08:26.000 --> 00:08:26.319 Why? 00:08:26.560 --> 00:08:27.680 Why does He do this? 00:08:28.199 --> 00:08:30.759 Because God delights in restoring broken things, 00:08:30.980 --> 00:08:32.500 our souls, our relationships, 00:08:33.019 --> 00:08:34.600 our purpose, our identity, 00:08:34.980 --> 00:08:36.180 and our God-given humanity. 00:08:36.179 --> 00:08:38.899 From our perspective, 00:08:39.599 --> 00:08:42.979 God's process of restoration is called our journey of faith. 00:08:43.679 --> 00:08:47.500 And while God could immediately heal and restore our broken lives, 00:08:47.639 --> 00:08:53.120 and there may be places in your life where He did immediately restore you, 00:08:53.699 --> 00:08:55.679 but for the most part, 00:08:55.799 --> 00:09:00.139 the pattern throughout the Scripture is that of a journey of walking with God, 00:09:00.240 --> 00:09:01.079 or as Paul says, 00:09:01.139 --> 00:09:04.459 it's where we are being transformed from glory to glory. 00:09:04.460 --> 00:09:10.100 Our faith journey is story after story and experience after experience 00:09:10.100 --> 00:09:16.660 of you and me as God's people being restored as we walk with Him in a relationship. 00:09:17.460 --> 00:09:21.240 So tonight, we want to look at Naomi's story in the Old Testament 00:09:21.240 --> 00:09:27.139 because it is a story of her walk with God and how He restored her life. 00:09:27.620 --> 00:09:30.920 So if you have your Bibles, open up to Ruth 1, 00:09:30.920 --> 00:09:33.139 and we're going to read verses 1 through 5. 00:09:34.460 --> 00:09:38.700 In the days when the judges ruled, 00:09:38.840 --> 00:09:40.160 there was a famine in the land, 00:09:40.320 --> 00:09:44.540 and a man of Bethlehem and Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, 00:09:44.820 --> 00:09:46.680 he and his wife and his two sons. 00:09:47.040 --> 00:09:48.900 The name of the man was Elimelech, 00:09:48.940 --> 00:09:50.460 and the name of his wife, Naomi, 00:09:50.720 --> 00:09:53.540 and the names of his two sons were Malon and Kilion. 00:09:54.019 --> 00:09:56.420 They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem and Judah. 00:09:56.900 --> 00:09:59.500 They went into the country of Moab and remained there, 00:09:59.500 --> 00:10:04.919 but Elimelech, the husband of Naomi, died, and she was left with her two sons. 00:10:05.299 --> 00:10:07.100 These took Moabite wives. 00:10:07.779 --> 00:10:10.840 The name of one was Orpah, the name of the other Ruth. 00:10:11.220 --> 00:10:15.500 They lived there about ten years, and both Malon and Kilion died, 00:10:15.879 --> 00:10:20.340 so that the woman was left without her two sons and her husband. 00:10:20.340 --> 00:10:25.860 Well, with the fall, evil skewed the way that we understand life 00:10:25.860 --> 00:10:30.080 by shifting the primary reference point from God to ourselves. 00:10:30.840 --> 00:10:34.259 And probably one of the most evident places that we see this in Scripture 00:10:34.259 --> 00:10:36.879 is in the book of Judges and even here in Ruth. 00:10:37.600 --> 00:10:40.280 Because the time of the Judges, if you've read that book, 00:10:40.360 --> 00:10:43.080 then you know it is described as a time 00:10:43.080 --> 00:10:46.259 when everyone did what was right in their own eyes. 00:10:46.259 --> 00:10:50.600 And so we read here that there's a famine in Bethlehem. 00:10:51.439 --> 00:10:55.519 Now, that tells us, because this is the period of the Judges, 00:10:55.620 --> 00:10:58.460 that tells us that Israel is under God's judgment. 00:10:58.639 --> 00:11:01.700 So apparently they have once again turned away from God, 00:11:01.960 --> 00:11:03.600 worshiping the false gods. 00:11:03.919 --> 00:11:07.759 God sends a natural disaster, a famine, to get their attention, 00:11:08.019 --> 00:11:09.500 to bring them back to repentance 00:11:09.500 --> 00:11:12.360 so that they can be restored to a right relationship with Him. 00:11:13.159 --> 00:11:15.919 Because there was a famine in the land and there was no food, 00:11:15.919 --> 00:11:19.559 Naomi's husband chooses to move from Israel to Moab, 00:11:19.879 --> 00:11:20.979 where food was available. 00:11:21.899 --> 00:11:23.919 You know, on the one hand, I want to say, 00:11:24.179 --> 00:11:26.659 let's give him a little bit of a break. 00:11:26.919 --> 00:11:29.099 He is trying to provide for his family. 00:11:29.360 --> 00:11:32.579 But the problem is, he is not seeking God 00:11:32.579 --> 00:11:34.379 and trying to provide for his family. 00:11:34.659 --> 00:11:37.019 So nowhere do we find him asking God what to do. 00:11:37.419 --> 00:11:39.719 And because it is the time of the Judges, 00:11:39.879 --> 00:11:42.039 he defaults to what everyone else is doing. 00:11:42.379 --> 00:11:44.039 He does what he thinks is best. 00:11:44.039 --> 00:11:47.419 The result of living life on their own terms 00:11:47.419 --> 00:11:50.279 is loss, death, and an empty life. 00:11:51.059 --> 00:11:54.939 Naomi is forced to face the reality of the fall in her own story 00:11:54.939 --> 00:11:56.899 through her own brokenness. 00:11:57.519 --> 00:11:58.819 But that is God's mercy. 00:11:59.779 --> 00:12:04.199 God's mercy in our lives is the ability for us to see our brokenness. 00:12:04.719 --> 00:12:08.039 Without Him opening our eyes and without His grace, 00:12:08.139 --> 00:12:12.919 we are faint-hearted and unwilling to look at the broken areas of our lives. 00:12:12.919 --> 00:12:18.099 Instead, we would prefer to pretend or to stick our head in the sand. 00:12:18.699 --> 00:12:23.039 We would prefer to get busy so we don't have to think about it. 00:12:23.360 --> 00:12:27.399 We do things for God rather than focusing on being with God. 00:12:27.779 --> 00:12:32.000 And we refuse to let God show us what we need to see 00:12:32.000 --> 00:12:35.379 until life happens. 00:12:35.379 --> 00:12:40.980 And in the midst of hardship or struggle or difficulty or life falling apart, 00:12:41.659 --> 00:12:47.120 we begin to look up rather than looking inward or looking around. 00:12:48.600 --> 00:12:51.379 For Naomi, life happened in Moab. 00:12:52.200 --> 00:12:54.399 Naomi's husband and her two sons died, 00:12:54.519 --> 00:12:59.139 leaving her and her two daughters-in-law as destitute widows. 00:12:59.139 --> 00:13:04.279 But God delights in restoring broken things and broken people, 00:13:04.500 --> 00:13:07.720 and we see His restoring hand of grace. 00:13:08.220 --> 00:13:12.720 We're told in verse 6 of chapter 1 that Naomi is in the fields of Moab. 00:13:13.179 --> 00:13:18.179 She's likely there trying to glean to get food, 00:13:18.360 --> 00:13:21.980 but she's in this field in Moab when she hears a report. 00:13:21.980 --> 00:13:26.899 And the report is that the Lord has visited His people in Bethlehem 00:13:26.899 --> 00:13:28.120 and given them food. 00:13:28.120 --> 00:13:32.200 So Naomi makes the decision that she's going to return to Bethlehem 00:13:32.200 --> 00:13:33.720 along with Orpah and Ruth. 00:13:34.139 --> 00:13:35.940 But once they start out on the journey, 00:13:36.060 --> 00:13:39.960 it seems that Naomi realizes that two Moabite women 00:13:39.960 --> 00:13:42.259 being welcomed into an Israelite community 00:13:42.259 --> 00:13:45.100 and finding husbands is highly unlikely. 00:13:45.759 --> 00:13:50.639 And once again, we see her default to doing what is right in her own eyes. 00:13:51.279 --> 00:13:54.600 She tells them to return to their families and to their gods 00:13:54.600 --> 00:13:56.759 so that they can find husbands. 00:13:56.759 --> 00:14:01.960 Well, to Orpah, this sounds reasonable, and it makes sense. 00:14:02.159 --> 00:14:05.480 So she does what Naomi says, and she goes back to Moab. 00:14:05.899 --> 00:14:11.779 But Ruth refuses to go, saying in verses 16 to 17 of chapter 1, 00:14:11.779 --> 00:14:27.059 And for the second time, we see the restoring grace of God 00:14:27.059 --> 00:14:43.979 when Ruth refuses to leave Naomi and accompanies her to Bethlehem, 00:14:44.779 --> 00:14:51.059 completely aware that she may never marry because she is a Moabitess. 00:14:51.059 --> 00:14:57.719 And yet, Ruth is willing to trust God, even when Naomi isn't or couldn't. 00:14:58.919 --> 00:15:03.139 When Naomi arrives in Bethlehem, life has beaten her down. 00:15:03.819 --> 00:15:08.219 And it's her fractured relationship with God that Naomi attributes 00:15:08.219 --> 00:15:09.939 as the cause of the problem. 00:15:09.940 --> 00:15:13.740 In verses 19 through 21, we read, 00:15:13.740 --> 00:15:43.720 What we see is interstitial. 00:15:43.720 --> 00:16:07.820 Well, rather than being offended by Naomi and her accusations, 00:16:07.820 --> 00:16:13.140 again, we see the restoring grace of God in our life. 00:16:13.820 --> 00:16:17.879 Because where sin increase, grace abound all the more. 00:16:18.920 --> 00:16:23.920 He gives her grace to be honest, to be raw, to lament. 00:16:24.920 --> 00:16:31.120 When she tells those women not to call her Naomi anymore, 00:16:31.200 --> 00:16:34.980 to call her Mara, and explains how life has happened to her, 00:16:34.980 --> 00:16:36.980 there is no hiding there. 00:16:36.980 --> 00:16:37.539 There is no hiding there. 00:16:38.039 --> 00:16:42.399 She is raw, honest, even if she is bitter. 00:16:43.060 --> 00:16:47.080 She recognizes God's hand in her suffering, and she's able to communicate that. 00:16:47.560 --> 00:16:49.680 And while Naomi feels that God is against her, 00:16:49.779 --> 00:16:53.779 the larger narrative shows God's mysterious providence. 00:16:53.779 --> 00:17:01.000 He will use that very hardship to set the stage for his greater plan, 00:17:01.240 --> 00:17:03.699 and that will lead to the future Messiah, 00:17:04.259 --> 00:17:09.299 and one that will actually result in Naomi's own restoration. 00:17:10.460 --> 00:17:14.279 Naomi's honesty, though bitter, brings her back to God, 00:17:14.720 --> 00:17:16.980 demonstrating that even in deep despair, 00:17:16.980 --> 00:17:20.259 turning toward God rather than away is crucial. 00:17:21.500 --> 00:17:26.120 Because her deepest need was for a restored relationship with her Redeemer, 00:17:26.579 --> 00:17:27.880 not just food. 00:17:28.680 --> 00:17:32.099 We learn from her story that God can handle honesty. 00:17:32.680 --> 00:17:35.339 He can handle our rawness and our bitterness. 00:17:35.940 --> 00:17:37.120 I always say it this way, 00:17:37.180 --> 00:17:39.440 He has big shoulders, so bring it on. 00:17:39.960 --> 00:17:40.759 Be honest. 00:17:41.200 --> 00:17:42.900 Talk with the Lord about your brokenness. 00:17:43.240 --> 00:17:45.599 Talk with the Lord about your hurt. 00:17:45.599 --> 00:17:48.959 Even if you're mad at Him, tell Him about it. 00:17:51.519 --> 00:17:55.939 We also learn from Naomi that God uses her deepest despair 00:17:55.939 --> 00:17:58.939 in those places of brokenness to accomplish restoration 00:17:58.939 --> 00:18:01.259 and to fulfill His ultimate plan. 00:18:02.279 --> 00:18:06.359 So in Ruth 1, Naomi recognizes God's hand in her suffering. 00:18:06.719 --> 00:18:10.599 But in the rest of the book, we see that she recognizes God's hand 00:18:10.599 --> 00:18:14.919 as He works in and through Ruth to bring redemption and blessing. 00:18:15.599 --> 00:18:22.619 Once they are in Bethlehem, Ruth realizes that she and Naomi have to survive. 00:18:23.259 --> 00:18:28.619 And to survive, that would mean she has to go out to the fields to glean to get food. 00:18:29.899 --> 00:18:34.919 So she goes out one morning, and she happens to end up in the field of a man named Boaz, 00:18:35.199 --> 00:18:37.019 who looks upon Ruth with favor. 00:18:37.519 --> 00:18:38.619 He's heard about Ruth. 00:18:38.619 --> 00:18:41.559 He's heard about the way that she's cared for Naomi. 00:18:42.259 --> 00:18:45.979 He also knows her story that her husband has passed as well. 00:18:46.279 --> 00:18:50.539 But rather than seeing her just as a Moabitess, as many probably did, 00:18:50.639 --> 00:18:53.779 he sees her as someone who puts Naomi's needs first 00:18:53.779 --> 00:18:57.319 and someone who's seeking refuge in God. 00:18:58.099 --> 00:19:01.079 So he tells her to keep gleaning in his field, 00:19:01.279 --> 00:19:03.299 which is his way of offering her protection. 00:19:03.299 --> 00:19:05.919 In fact, he provides food for her. 00:19:06.079 --> 00:19:08.220 He provides water for her to give her comfort. 00:19:09.240 --> 00:19:11.200 And before she leaves that very first day, 00:19:11.419 --> 00:19:15.740 he sends her home to Naomi with this ample provision of barley 00:19:15.740 --> 00:19:18.619 so that they'll be able to survive for a while. 00:19:19.319 --> 00:19:21.000 It wasn't a long-term solution, 00:19:21.460 --> 00:19:26.460 yet it was surprising enough that Naomi was curious. 00:19:26.680 --> 00:19:29.440 When she saw how much Ruth brought home with her, 00:19:29.440 --> 00:19:34.039 she wanted to know where Ruth had gleamed. 00:19:34.700 --> 00:19:36.820 And when Ruth tells her that the man was Boaz, 00:19:36.920 --> 00:19:40.539 she recognizes him as a potential kinsman redeemer, 00:19:41.100 --> 00:19:43.799 someone who offers not just a temporary solution, 00:19:44.340 --> 00:19:49.480 but hope for a future as one who can restore her family and her land. 00:19:50.440 --> 00:19:54.080 Restoring grace is evident once again. 00:19:54.920 --> 00:19:57.559 God has led Ruth to the field of the man 00:19:57.559 --> 00:20:00.019 who might be the solution to their desperate need. 00:20:01.079 --> 00:20:02.819 However, as the story continues 00:20:02.819 --> 00:20:05.500 and the barley harvest comes to an end, 00:20:06.139 --> 00:20:08.079 Naomi recognizes that Boaz, 00:20:08.200 --> 00:20:10.440 while helpful in providing temporary support, 00:20:10.799 --> 00:20:13.379 was not stepping up as a kinsman redeemer. 00:20:14.099 --> 00:20:15.319 And in chapter 3, 00:20:15.599 --> 00:20:18.700 which is my personal favorite chapter of Ruth, 00:20:19.079 --> 00:20:21.599 for the first time since arriving in Bethlehem, 00:20:21.839 --> 00:20:25.419 we get to see Naomi coming back to life. 00:20:25.420 --> 00:20:28.120 And the reason that we know that's happening 00:20:28.120 --> 00:20:32.380 is because she is thinking about someone other than herself. 00:20:32.960 --> 00:20:35.039 So she comes up with this scheme 00:20:35.039 --> 00:20:38.420 of how to get Ruth a husband and a kinsman redeemer 00:20:38.420 --> 00:20:41.200 who will restore the land and the family that she's lost. 00:20:42.560 --> 00:20:44.560 So Naomi instructs Ruth 00:20:44.560 --> 00:20:48.039 to approach Boaz in the dead of night 00:20:48.039 --> 00:20:49.200 at the threshing floor. 00:20:49.460 --> 00:20:51.420 Now he would have been at the threshing floor 00:20:51.420 --> 00:20:52.800 harvesting the grain. 00:20:52.799 --> 00:20:56.899 And because they were working there for a long time, 00:20:56.980 --> 00:20:58.700 they would sleep at the threshing floor. 00:20:59.259 --> 00:21:01.159 It was not a place for a woman. 00:21:01.680 --> 00:21:04.480 But Naomi tells Ruth to go 00:21:04.480 --> 00:21:06.720 and that when she gets there in the middle of the night, 00:21:06.859 --> 00:21:08.339 he is going to be sleeping. 00:21:09.059 --> 00:21:11.339 And to go lay down at his feet, 00:21:11.480 --> 00:21:14.279 to take the blanket or the robe 00:21:14.279 --> 00:21:16.440 or whatever it is that's covering him, 00:21:16.619 --> 00:21:18.639 remove it, take it off of his feet 00:21:18.639 --> 00:21:20.960 so that he'll wake up in the middle of the night 00:21:20.960 --> 00:21:21.860 because he's cold. 00:21:22.819 --> 00:21:27.000 And I personally think that 00:21:27.000 --> 00:21:29.620 she was willing to put Ruth in that situation 00:21:29.620 --> 00:21:31.240 because Boaz had a reputation 00:21:31.240 --> 00:21:32.880 of being a man with character. 00:21:33.700 --> 00:21:34.420 We don't know. 00:21:34.559 --> 00:21:38.000 They didn't know how things would end up. 00:21:38.539 --> 00:21:41.539 But the likelihood of Boaz treating Ruth 00:21:41.539 --> 00:21:43.600 as he has already treated her 00:21:43.600 --> 00:21:44.559 is pretty heavy. 00:21:44.900 --> 00:21:45.680 It's pretty high. 00:21:45.680 --> 00:21:48.980 And so Ruth listens to Naomi 00:21:48.980 --> 00:21:51.539 and she does exactly what she told her to do. 00:21:52.060 --> 00:21:52.539 And sure enough, 00:21:52.740 --> 00:21:54.160 Boaz wakes up in the middle of the night 00:21:54.160 --> 00:21:55.920 to find a woman lying at his feet. 00:21:56.299 --> 00:21:59.019 And startling, he asks her who she is, 00:21:59.120 --> 00:22:00.100 to which she replies, 00:22:00.259 --> 00:22:01.880 I am Ruth, your servant. 00:22:02.420 --> 00:22:04.340 Spread your wings over your servant 00:22:04.340 --> 00:22:05.779 for you are a redeemer. 00:22:06.580 --> 00:22:07.660 Now in that moment, 00:22:08.039 --> 00:22:09.799 Boaz fully understood 00:22:09.799 --> 00:22:13.220 that Ruth was asking him to marry her 00:22:13.220 --> 00:22:15.900 and to redeem Naomi's land and family. 00:22:17.920 --> 00:22:21.160 However, there is a closer relative 00:22:21.160 --> 00:22:22.799 who can be a kinsman redeemer. 00:22:23.519 --> 00:22:26.299 By law, he has to be given option 00:22:26.299 --> 00:22:29.620 to redeem the land and to marry Ruth first. 00:22:30.019 --> 00:22:31.940 So Boaz explains that to her 00:22:31.940 --> 00:22:33.740 and then he tells her to return to Naomi 00:22:33.740 --> 00:22:36.120 and let him deal with the situation, 00:22:36.380 --> 00:22:37.700 which he does that very day. 00:22:38.440 --> 00:22:40.299 He goes to the gate 00:22:40.299 --> 00:22:42.079 where he can meet with the elders 00:22:42.079 --> 00:22:45.500 and with this other kinsman redeemer. 00:22:45.799 --> 00:22:46.960 And when he sees the man, 00:22:47.359 --> 00:22:48.500 he makes an offer. 00:22:48.639 --> 00:22:50.019 He says, you know, 00:22:50.119 --> 00:22:53.759 Elimelech's land is able to be redeemed. 00:22:53.879 --> 00:22:55.259 Would you like to redeem it? 00:22:55.939 --> 00:22:57.359 And we don't know the name of the man, 00:22:57.419 --> 00:22:59.119 so I always call him Mr. So-and-so. 00:22:59.500 --> 00:23:01.119 So Mr. So-and-so says, 00:23:01.199 --> 00:23:02.839 yes, he will redeem the land. 00:23:02.919 --> 00:23:04.599 He wants to take the land 00:23:04.599 --> 00:23:07.500 and add it to his property. 00:23:07.500 --> 00:23:10.819 But Boaz is very crafty 00:23:10.819 --> 00:23:12.180 because then he points out, 00:23:12.380 --> 00:23:13.339 well, if you take the land, 00:23:13.420 --> 00:23:15.440 then that means you also need to marry Ruth. 00:23:16.259 --> 00:23:18.220 And this man, Mr. So-and-so, 00:23:18.559 --> 00:23:20.420 sees her as a threat to his own security, 00:23:20.740 --> 00:23:21.299 not a blessing. 00:23:21.779 --> 00:23:25.319 So he passes the right of the redeemer to Boaz. 00:23:26.180 --> 00:23:28.680 She isn't being redeemed by law, 00:23:29.099 --> 00:23:32.900 by the one who actually could redeem her first. 00:23:32.900 --> 00:23:37.480 Instead, she's redeemed by Boaz, by grace. 00:23:38.100 --> 00:23:39.820 And they live happily ever after. 00:23:40.240 --> 00:23:42.900 No, that's not how the rest of the story ends. 00:23:43.280 --> 00:23:45.800 We are actually told that Boaz took Ruth 00:23:45.800 --> 00:23:47.019 and she became his wife, 00:23:47.880 --> 00:23:50.300 that she became pregnant and had a son. 00:23:51.160 --> 00:23:52.800 But then the writer of Ruth 00:23:52.800 --> 00:23:54.360 does something unexpected. 00:23:55.380 --> 00:23:59.560 Rather than rejoicing with Ruth and Boaz 00:23:59.560 --> 00:24:02.420 for having a baby, a son, 00:24:03.240 --> 00:24:05.779 he brings Naomi to the forefront again 00:24:05.779 --> 00:24:07.180 in the story. 00:24:07.900 --> 00:24:08.620 He writes, 00:24:09.519 --> 00:24:11.039 Then the women said to Naomi, 00:24:11.539 --> 00:24:12.600 Blessed be the Lord 00:24:12.600 --> 00:24:14.180 who has not left you this day 00:24:14.180 --> 00:24:14.980 without a redeemer. 00:24:15.460 --> 00:24:17.680 And may his name be renowned in Israel. 00:24:18.120 --> 00:24:21.420 He shall be to you a restorer of life 00:24:21.420 --> 00:24:23.519 and a nourisher of your old age. 00:24:23.519 --> 00:24:25.940 For your daughter-in-law who loves you, 00:24:26.060 --> 00:24:28.180 who is more to you than seven sons, 00:24:28.279 --> 00:24:29.360 has given birth to him. 00:24:29.900 --> 00:24:31.140 Then Naomi took the child 00:24:31.140 --> 00:24:32.420 and laid him on her lap 00:24:32.420 --> 00:24:33.840 and became his nurse. 00:24:34.220 --> 00:24:35.280 And the women of the neighborhood 00:24:35.280 --> 00:24:37.320 gave him a name saying, 00:24:37.580 --> 00:24:39.540 A son has been born to Naomi. 00:24:40.320 --> 00:24:41.660 They named him Obed. 00:24:42.000 --> 00:24:43.320 He was the father of Jesse, 00:24:43.720 --> 00:24:44.720 the father of David. 00:24:44.720 --> 00:24:48.160 The translators tell us that Naomi 00:24:48.160 --> 00:24:51.079 takes this baby and lays him on her lap. 00:24:52.120 --> 00:24:54.600 However, in the original language, 00:24:55.140 --> 00:24:58.079 it probably means that she took the baby, 00:24:58.539 --> 00:24:59.720 put him in her arms, 00:24:59.799 --> 00:25:01.460 and brought him up to her chest. 00:25:01.579 --> 00:25:03.960 So she was holding him close to her heart. 00:25:03.960 --> 00:25:06.840 And it's such a beautiful picture 00:25:06.840 --> 00:25:08.759 because if you remember, 00:25:09.259 --> 00:25:10.259 in chapter one, 00:25:10.700 --> 00:25:11.559 Naomi says, 00:25:12.240 --> 00:25:13.160 I went away full, 00:25:13.620 --> 00:25:15.059 but God brought me back empty. 00:25:15.660 --> 00:25:16.799 And in chapter four, 00:25:17.120 --> 00:25:19.920 you see empty arms no longer. 00:25:21.039 --> 00:25:23.079 Her bitter heart is no longer bitter. 00:25:23.500 --> 00:25:25.160 And God was no longer someone 00:25:25.160 --> 00:25:26.600 who took away her life, 00:25:26.960 --> 00:25:27.960 but he was the one 00:25:27.960 --> 00:25:29.259 who gave her life to the full. 00:25:29.259 --> 00:25:31.759 In the story of Naomi, 00:25:32.480 --> 00:25:34.480 we can see our own story. 00:25:35.180 --> 00:25:36.200 Life is hard, 00:25:36.720 --> 00:25:38.299 but God is faithful. 00:25:39.200 --> 00:25:40.879 He has not left us 00:25:40.879 --> 00:25:42.299 without a kinsman redeemer. 00:25:42.839 --> 00:25:44.559 He gave his own son for us 00:25:44.559 --> 00:25:46.920 who not only died to redeem us from sin, 00:25:47.019 --> 00:25:48.140 but to restore us 00:25:48.140 --> 00:25:50.339 and give us life to the full. 00:25:51.480 --> 00:25:51.900 Why? 00:25:53.200 --> 00:25:56.240 God delights in restoring broken things, 00:25:56.740 --> 00:25:58.480 our souls, our relationships. 00:25:58.480 --> 00:26:01.099 Our purpose, our identity, 00:26:01.500 --> 00:26:02.700 our God-given humanity. 00:26:03.960 --> 00:26:04.700 And one day, 00:26:04.880 --> 00:26:06.140 we may meet Naomi. 00:26:06.460 --> 00:26:07.720 Can you imagine that? 00:26:08.240 --> 00:26:09.259 We may meet her. 00:26:09.460 --> 00:26:10.200 And if we do, 00:26:10.319 --> 00:26:11.440 she will no longer say, 00:26:11.519 --> 00:26:12.240 call me Mara. 00:26:12.960 --> 00:26:13.480 No. 00:26:14.120 --> 00:26:14.720 She will say, 00:26:14.819 --> 00:26:15.579 call me Naomi, 00:26:16.099 --> 00:26:19.900 because God has restored my life fully. 00:26:21.099 --> 00:26:21.940 Now, I don't know 00:26:21.940 --> 00:26:23.620 that I can say this definitively, 00:26:23.720 --> 00:26:26.099 but I think she might also say, 00:26:26.099 --> 00:26:28.859 I wish you could have known me back then 00:26:28.859 --> 00:26:31.899 to see just how amazing God is 00:26:31.899 --> 00:26:34.500 and how committed he is to restoring 00:26:34.500 --> 00:26:36.819 not just your spiritual life, 00:26:37.379 --> 00:26:39.939 but every part of your life. 00:26:39.940 --> 00:26:42.340 She looks like you still here 00:26:42.340 --> 00:26:42.340 00:26:42.340 --> 00:26:42.340 00:26:42.340 --> 00:26:43.880 as a woman who has ever told me 00:26:43.880 --> 00:26:43.880 00:26:43.880 --> 00:26:44.799 as a woman who has ever told me 00:26:44.799 --> 00:27:01.240 as a woman who has ever told me 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:01.240 00:27:01.240 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