WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:08.160 Okay, let's turn with me to Ruth chapter 4, verse 1. 00:00:09.019 --> 00:00:12.720 Now Boaz has gone out to the gate and sat down there. 00:00:13.359 --> 00:00:18.000 And behold, the Redeemer of whom Boaz had spoken came by. 00:00:18.600 --> 00:00:22.480 So Boaz said, Turn aside, friend, sit down here. 00:00:23.219 --> 00:00:25.280 And he turned aside and sat down. 00:00:25.879 --> 00:00:29.240 And he took ten men of the elders of the city and said, 00:00:29.239 --> 00:00:30.699 Sit down here. 00:00:31.359 --> 00:00:32.579 So they sat down. 00:00:33.320 --> 00:00:35.119 Then he said to the Redeemer, 00:00:35.879 --> 00:00:38.859 Naomi, who has come back from the country of Moab, 00:00:39.179 --> 00:00:44.159 is selling the parcel of land that belonged to our relatives at the Malak. 00:00:44.799 --> 00:00:47.420 So I thought I would tell you of it and said, 00:00:47.920 --> 00:00:50.599 Bide in the presence of those sitting here 00:00:50.599 --> 00:00:53.759 and in the presence of the elders of my people. 00:00:54.480 --> 00:00:57.239 If you will redeem it, redeem it. 00:00:57.240 --> 00:01:01.300 But if you will not, tell me that I may know. 00:01:01.840 --> 00:01:04.379 For there is no one besides you to redeem it. 00:01:04.799 --> 00:01:06.240 And I come after you. 00:01:06.840 --> 00:01:09.280 And he said, I will redeem it. 00:01:10.079 --> 00:01:11.020 Then Boaz said, 00:01:11.019 --> 00:01:14.640 The day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, 00:01:15.239 --> 00:01:19.939 you also acquire Ruth, the Moabite, the widow of the dead, 00:01:20.599 --> 00:01:24.199 in order to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance. 00:01:25.479 --> 00:01:26.739 Then the Redeemer said, 00:01:26.739 --> 00:01:31.359 I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I impair my own inheritance. 00:01:32.359 --> 00:01:36.640 Take my right of redemption yourself, for I cannot redeem it. 00:01:37.640 --> 00:01:40.780 Now, this was a custom in former times in Israel, 00:01:41.339 --> 00:01:43.679 concerning redeeming and exchanging. 00:01:44.179 --> 00:01:45.359 To confirm a transaction, 00:01:46.060 --> 00:01:48.679 the one drew off his sandal and gave it to another. 00:01:48.680 --> 00:01:52.440 And this was a manner of attesting in Israel. 00:01:53.200 --> 00:01:55.240 So when the Redeemer said to Boaz, 00:01:55.560 --> 00:01:56.880 Bide it for yourself, 00:01:57.500 --> 00:01:58.760 he drew off his sandal. 00:01:59.940 --> 00:02:03.160 Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, 00:02:03.720 --> 00:02:08.080 You are witnesses this day that I have bought from the hand of Naomi 00:02:08.080 --> 00:02:10.400 all that belong to Ademalek, 00:02:10.860 --> 00:02:13.580 and all that belong to Kilion and to Melon. 00:02:13.580 --> 00:02:18.580 And also Ruth, the Moabite, the widow of Melon, 00:02:18.860 --> 00:02:20.840 I have bought to be my wife, 00:02:21.440 --> 00:02:24.500 to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance, 00:02:25.320 --> 00:02:29.380 that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brothers 00:02:29.380 --> 00:02:32.080 and from the gate of his native place. 00:02:32.480 --> 00:02:34.380 You are witnesses this day. 00:02:35.640 --> 00:02:39.800 Then all the people who were at the gate and the elders said, 00:02:39.980 --> 00:02:41.120 We are witnesses. 00:02:41.120 --> 00:02:45.640 May the Lord make the woman who is coming into your house, 00:02:46.020 --> 00:02:47.520 like Rachel and Dea, 00:02:48.159 --> 00:02:50.159 together build up the house of Israel. 00:02:50.879 --> 00:02:53.480 May you act worthily in Ephrata 00:02:53.480 --> 00:02:55.560 and be renowned in Bethlehem. 00:02:56.340 --> 00:02:59.400 And may your house be that house of Paredes, 00:02:59.480 --> 00:03:00.960 whom Tamar bought to Judah 00:03:00.960 --> 00:03:04.060 because of the offspring that the Lord would give you 00:03:04.060 --> 00:03:05.420 by this young woman. 00:03:07.080 --> 00:03:08.640 So Boaz took Ruth, 00:03:08.900 --> 00:03:10.960 and she became his wife, 00:03:11.120 --> 00:03:12.700 and he went into her, 00:03:12.840 --> 00:03:14.400 and the Lord gave her conception, 00:03:14.759 --> 00:03:15.920 and she bought a son. 00:03:16.719 --> 00:03:18.460 Then the women said to Naomi, 00:03:18.819 --> 00:03:20.120 Blessed be the Lord, 00:03:20.360 --> 00:03:23.439 who has not left you this day without a Redeemer, 00:03:23.960 --> 00:03:26.480 and may his name be renowned in Israel. 00:03:27.060 --> 00:03:29.439 It shall be to you a restorer of life 00:03:29.439 --> 00:03:32.140 and a nourisher of your old age. 00:03:32.140 --> 00:03:34.840 For your daughter-in-law, who loves you, 00:03:35.159 --> 00:03:37.460 who is more to you than seven sons, 00:03:38.099 --> 00:03:39.379 has given birth to him. 00:03:39.379 --> 00:03:43.479 Then Naomi to the child and laid him on her lap 00:03:43.479 --> 00:03:45.359 and became his nurse. 00:03:46.000 --> 00:03:48.560 And the women of the neighborhood gave him a name, 00:03:48.879 --> 00:03:49.280 saying, 00:03:49.740 --> 00:03:52.039 A son has been born to Naomi. 00:03:53.019 --> 00:03:54.400 They named him Obed. 00:03:54.719 --> 00:03:56.099 He is the father of Jesse, 00:03:56.280 --> 00:03:57.199 the father of David. 00:03:57.199 --> 00:04:00.519 Now, these are the generations of Pirets. 00:04:00.919 --> 00:04:01.379 Pirets, 00:04:01.539 --> 00:04:02.419 Father Hazron. 00:04:02.819 --> 00:04:03.280 Hazron, 00:04:03.419 --> 00:04:04.139 Father Ram. 00:04:04.519 --> 00:04:04.839 Ram, 00:04:04.959 --> 00:04:06.039 Father Amidadab. 00:04:06.699 --> 00:04:07.339 Amidadab, 00:04:07.579 --> 00:04:09.000 Father Nishon. 00:04:09.239 --> 00:04:09.639 Nishon, 00:04:09.780 --> 00:04:10.560 Father Salmon. 00:04:11.019 --> 00:04:11.379 Salmon, 00:04:11.539 --> 00:04:12.379 Father Boaz. 00:04:12.759 --> 00:04:13.259 Boaz, 00:04:13.399 --> 00:04:14.500 Father Obed. 00:04:14.939 --> 00:04:15.479 Obed, 00:04:15.639 --> 00:04:16.480 Father Jesse. 00:04:16.899 --> 00:04:17.560 And Jesse, 00:04:17.980 --> 00:04:19.199 Father David. 00:04:19.199 --> 00:04:19.639 Okay. 00:04:25.519 --> 00:04:25.879 Okay. 00:04:26.099 --> 00:04:28.019 I was getting a bit carried away in that song then, 00:04:28.219 --> 00:04:30.920 and really reflecting on how much it's, 00:04:31.639 --> 00:04:33.240 it reflects the, 00:04:33.439 --> 00:04:34.759 some of the themes that will come up in the, 00:04:35.319 --> 00:04:37.060 what I say on Ruth chapter four. 00:04:38.680 --> 00:04:39.039 So, 00:04:39.139 --> 00:04:39.439 yeah, 00:04:39.500 --> 00:04:40.120 so sorry about that. 00:04:40.159 --> 00:04:40.620 I'm just kind of, 00:04:40.759 --> 00:04:40.899 yeah. 00:04:41.919 --> 00:04:43.159 So thanks for that song. 00:04:43.219 --> 00:04:43.919 Thanks for choosing that song, 00:04:44.000 --> 00:04:44.379 music team. 00:04:44.379 --> 00:04:45.659 And it's a really helpful one just to, 00:04:45.659 --> 00:04:48.379 to think through as we go into this last chapter, 00:04:48.379 --> 00:04:48.680 which, 00:04:48.899 --> 00:04:49.579 you know, 00:04:49.579 --> 00:04:50.360 the title of my talk, 00:04:50.379 --> 00:04:51.600 as you can see from your bulletins, 00:04:51.600 --> 00:04:53.159 is that redemption is costly too. 00:04:53.259 --> 00:04:54.719 We had at the beginning where we looked at, 00:04:54.719 --> 00:04:57.459 repentance is costly. 00:04:58.259 --> 00:04:59.240 We've got a flip end, 00:04:59.379 --> 00:05:01.139 the bookend to that, 00:05:01.180 --> 00:05:02.819 which is that redemption is costly too. 00:05:03.240 --> 00:05:04.240 So if you've got your Bibles, 00:05:04.379 --> 00:05:07.620 could you open them up to Ruth chapter four as we, 00:05:07.860 --> 00:05:08.879 because we're going to walk through the, 00:05:08.879 --> 00:05:11.259 the chapter as I speak. 00:05:11.939 --> 00:05:12.339 But, 00:05:12.480 --> 00:05:13.360 and as I do, 00:05:13.360 --> 00:05:16.480 one of the things that I feel I really need to say at this point is that 00:05:16.480 --> 00:05:17.020 because, 00:05:17.139 --> 00:05:19.439 because we've had some conversations in small groups and then, 00:05:19.439 --> 00:05:21.920 and outside of that as well about the book of Ruth, 00:05:22.060 --> 00:05:24.699 it seems really hard to crack this, 00:05:25.379 --> 00:05:29.080 this perception of Ruth as a romantic kind of love story. 00:05:29.540 --> 00:05:31.400 So what I want to say at the beginning is this, 00:05:32.139 --> 00:05:34.360 Ruth is not your typical love story. 00:05:35.080 --> 00:05:35.480 Now, 00:05:35.480 --> 00:05:36.920 after reading the final chapter of the story, 00:05:37.000 --> 00:05:37.780 you can be forgiven for thinking, 00:05:37.780 --> 00:05:39.340 and they all lived happily ever after. 00:05:40.060 --> 00:05:41.720 And we're conditioned to look for that kind of response. 00:05:41.860 --> 00:05:41.980 I mean, 00:05:41.980 --> 00:05:45.879 we even have this sense that you can't be just friends with the opposite sex. 00:05:45.879 --> 00:05:46.040 And, 00:05:46.140 --> 00:05:47.780 and you kind of read this story and you think, 00:05:47.840 --> 00:05:47.920 well, 00:05:47.939 --> 00:05:49.020 here is an example of that, 00:05:49.100 --> 00:05:50.400 a romance that's turned out well. 00:05:50.400 --> 00:05:50.560 And, 00:05:50.720 --> 00:05:51.200 and, 00:05:51.280 --> 00:05:51.540 you know, 00:05:51.600 --> 00:05:54.120 and what we could all be moved on to then do is to, 00:05:54.439 --> 00:05:57.420 is to share our stories of our relationships for those who have had them. 00:05:57.420 --> 00:05:57.660 And, 00:05:57.720 --> 00:05:58.259 and to, 00:05:58.340 --> 00:06:01.280 and to long for a particular kind of relationship that we haven't. 00:06:01.279 --> 00:06:01.879 So I could, 00:06:02.239 --> 00:06:02.399 you know, 00:06:02.399 --> 00:06:05.399 I could tell you my story of how I first met Joe and, 00:06:05.399 --> 00:06:06.539 and how, 00:06:06.639 --> 00:06:08.939 how many times I asked her out before she finally said yes. 00:06:08.939 --> 00:06:10.419 And then she finally did marry me. 00:06:10.419 --> 00:06:10.559 And, 00:06:10.679 --> 00:06:11.199 and, 00:06:11.299 --> 00:06:12.859 and how I, 00:06:13.000 --> 00:06:13.219 you know, 00:06:13.259 --> 00:06:16.179 I'm obviously punching above my weight and we could all have a chuckle about that, 00:06:16.219 --> 00:06:17.299 but really know that it's true, 00:06:17.299 --> 00:06:17.619 but, 00:06:17.719 --> 00:06:18.779 but still kind of, 00:06:18.779 --> 00:06:18.979 you know, 00:06:18.979 --> 00:06:21.879 try and keep it in that humorous area just for my own pride sake. 00:06:21.879 --> 00:06:22.540 um, 00:06:22.540 --> 00:06:23.600 and then we could move on and hear, 00:06:23.699 --> 00:06:24.980 and I could hear your stories too, 00:06:24.980 --> 00:06:29.319 but the one that you dream of that, 00:06:29.379 --> 00:06:31.300 that one that you think is out there somewhere, 00:06:31.300 --> 00:06:32.959 if you're not yet married, 00:06:32.959 --> 00:06:34.279 um, 00:06:34.439 --> 00:06:35.899 or the, 00:06:36.000 --> 00:06:36.279 um, 00:06:37.000 --> 00:06:37.219 or, 00:06:37.300 --> 00:06:37.899 or the person, 00:06:38.000 --> 00:06:40.860 or the person that you are actually married to this, 00:06:40.939 --> 00:06:42.100 this isn't actually about, 00:06:42.100 --> 00:06:46.399 that may not actually fit the narrative that we desire for that relationship. 00:06:47.060 --> 00:06:49.779 And to read the story through this kind of, 00:06:49.779 --> 00:06:50.659 um, 00:06:50.660 --> 00:06:56.260 modern love story lens actually would sell this story short. 00:06:56.960 --> 00:06:58.920 So I want to stop us at this point and say, 00:06:58.980 --> 00:07:01.060 Ruth story isn't just another love story. 00:07:01.160 --> 00:07:02.980 It's not your typical love story. 00:07:03.820 --> 00:07:05.780 It's a proper love story. 00:07:06.480 --> 00:07:09.000 And it's a proper love story in every sense. 00:07:09.140 --> 00:07:10.040 There's love, 00:07:10.140 --> 00:07:11.400 there's commitment from the heart, 00:07:11.480 --> 00:07:12.580 there's genuine affection, 00:07:12.920 --> 00:07:14.780 there's risk at all kind of sacrifice, 00:07:14.879 --> 00:07:15.600 there's redemption. 00:07:16.379 --> 00:07:18.180 And an outcome to die for. 00:07:18.180 --> 00:07:20.720 But at each of these points, 00:07:20.720 --> 00:07:21.780 there's something bigger, 00:07:22.079 --> 00:07:24.439 bigger than our own imagination settled for. 00:07:24.920 --> 00:07:27.879 There's a promise that transcends life and death. 00:07:28.600 --> 00:07:30.780 There's a love story that spans eternity. 00:07:31.620 --> 00:07:33.220 And if you see the story from the right perspective, 00:07:33.220 --> 00:07:34.220 you'll see these things. 00:07:34.840 --> 00:07:36.579 So let's delve into the final chapter, 00:07:37.079 --> 00:07:37.280 uh, 00:07:37.280 --> 00:07:38.980 finish off the book of Ruth and, 00:07:39.120 --> 00:07:39.860 and we'll actually start, 00:07:39.960 --> 00:07:41.340 hopefully start to see these things. 00:07:41.339 --> 00:07:44.759 And we'll take it up at the point where Ruth has asked Boaz to redeem her, 00:07:45.199 --> 00:07:46.839 but redemption is costly. 00:07:48.339 --> 00:07:49.879 Even as we start this first, 00:07:50.099 --> 00:07:50.359 um, 00:07:50.439 --> 00:07:50.619 this, 00:07:50.699 --> 00:07:51.459 this final chapter, 00:07:51.539 --> 00:07:51.739 sorry, 00:07:52.039 --> 00:07:53.159 we face a dilemma. 00:07:53.739 --> 00:07:55.739 Boaz is a redeemer. 00:07:56.099 --> 00:07:57.399 He's the redeemer that, 00:07:57.399 --> 00:07:58.159 um, 00:07:58.239 --> 00:07:59.079 Ruth has approached, 00:07:59.079 --> 00:08:00.979 but there is another redeemer. 00:08:01.239 --> 00:08:04.759 And he has first rights and first responsibility. 00:08:05.179 --> 00:08:06.859 These are things that Boaz respects. 00:08:06.860 --> 00:08:11.879 You see the first redeemer is a redeemer by nature is Boaz. 00:08:12.379 --> 00:08:12.900 Um, 00:08:13.000 --> 00:08:14.040 this is Boaz. 00:08:14.100 --> 00:08:15.580 And we follow up in chapter four, 00:08:15.660 --> 00:08:16.100 verse one. 00:08:16.180 --> 00:08:17.060 This is the first part of it. 00:08:17.080 --> 00:08:17.740 We read this. 00:08:18.400 --> 00:08:18.500 Now, 00:08:18.540 --> 00:08:21.300 Boaz had gone up to the gate and sat down there. 00:08:22.920 --> 00:08:23.980 What's happening here. 00:08:24.100 --> 00:08:24.540 Well, 00:08:25.020 --> 00:08:28.080 while Ruth is busy telling Naomi what happened last night, 00:08:29.379 --> 00:08:33.820 Boaz is already at the town gate waiting for the other redeemer to pass by. 00:08:34.399 --> 00:08:35.480 True to his name, 00:08:35.580 --> 00:08:35.920 Boaz, 00:08:35.919 --> 00:08:37.759 which literally means quickness. 00:08:38.399 --> 00:08:40.339 Boaz has sprung into action. 00:08:40.860 --> 00:08:42.939 He rushes to resolve Ruth's future for her, 00:08:43.039 --> 00:08:44.179 just as Naomi said he would, 00:08:44.860 --> 00:08:47.399 because Boaz is a redeemer by nature. 00:08:48.360 --> 00:08:49.919 But then there's another redeemer, 00:08:50.199 --> 00:08:51.459 a redeemer by name. 00:08:51.740 --> 00:08:53.299 And if we finished that first verse, 00:08:53.519 --> 00:08:54.319 we keep reading in it. 00:08:54.599 --> 00:08:56.419 We find this and behold, 00:08:56.860 --> 00:08:59.339 the redeemer of whom Boaz had spoken came by. 00:09:00.120 --> 00:09:00.740 So Boaz said, 00:09:00.899 --> 00:09:02.480 turn aside friend and sit down here. 00:09:02.740 --> 00:09:04.539 And he turned aside and sat down. 00:09:05.919 --> 00:09:07.039 And ironically, 00:09:07.039 --> 00:09:10.679 this redeemer by name is never named in the story, 00:09:10.759 --> 00:09:12.860 except as the redeemer. 00:09:12.860 --> 00:09:14.480 And behold, 00:09:14.480 --> 00:09:16.360 the redeemer passes by, 00:09:16.480 --> 00:09:16.960 we read. 00:09:18.740 --> 00:09:21.639 Just as Ruth happens upon Boaz's field in chapter two, 00:09:22.700 --> 00:09:25.620 Boaz happens to meet the redeemer here. 00:09:26.320 --> 00:09:27.820 And it's another key moment in, 00:09:27.820 --> 00:09:28.779 in God's providence. 00:09:28.779 --> 00:09:32.299 As we understand this story where God doesn't overtly act in, 00:09:32.379 --> 00:09:33.079 in every scene, 00:09:33.079 --> 00:09:35.939 but he's very much there governing what happens. 00:09:37.100 --> 00:09:39.860 And so now what we have is there's two redeemers. 00:09:40.159 --> 00:09:41.100 So which one, 00:09:41.179 --> 00:09:41.699 the question is, 00:09:41.740 --> 00:09:44.620 which one will actually redeem Ruth and Naomi and the family name? 00:09:46.079 --> 00:09:46.559 Well, 00:09:46.579 --> 00:09:49.559 it turns out the redemption is not a simple thing because it's costly. 00:09:49.559 --> 00:09:55.219 And ultimately who will be redeemer is resolved by redemption's cost. 00:09:56.059 --> 00:09:58.559 So let's look at redemption's cost here as it unfolds. 00:09:59.479 --> 00:10:01.279 Boaz calls together 10 elders as witnesses. 00:10:01.500 --> 00:10:02.879 So this redeemer knows that he's, 00:10:02.959 --> 00:10:03.659 he's, 00:10:03.659 --> 00:10:05.199 he's come into a significant moment. 00:10:05.459 --> 00:10:06.519 All eyes were on them. 00:10:06.899 --> 00:10:09.479 And Boaz spells out the situation. 00:10:10.159 --> 00:10:11.059 He says, 00:10:11.179 --> 00:10:13.559 Naomi is selling a limelight's land. 00:10:13.559 --> 00:10:15.579 This was a big issue. 00:10:16.019 --> 00:10:17.259 The land was God's. 00:10:17.659 --> 00:10:19.559 He gave possession of it to his people. 00:10:20.179 --> 00:10:24.759 It was an expression of their stake in God's kingdom for it to pass into the 00:10:24.759 --> 00:10:27.519 hands of even another clan was significant. 00:10:28.839 --> 00:10:31.839 So God in Leviticus chapter 25, 00:10:31.919 --> 00:10:33.139 verses 25 to 27, 00:10:33.239 --> 00:10:34.000 you can look that up later. 00:10:34.359 --> 00:10:38.179 He required that the redeemer returned the lands to the possession of a close 00:10:38.179 --> 00:10:39.159 member of the clan. 00:10:39.419 --> 00:10:43.539 So the redeeming feature that we're seeing here around the land is to 00:10:43.539 --> 00:10:47.379 get that land back into the hands of another clan of a close clan member. 00:10:47.799 --> 00:10:51.059 So that when the time of Jubilee comes by every 50 years, 00:10:51.159 --> 00:10:52.839 it can return to that family. 00:10:54.740 --> 00:10:59.740 God in Leviticus required that the redeemer return the lands to the possession 00:10:59.740 --> 00:11:00.259 of the clan. 00:11:01.360 --> 00:11:06.779 And redemption here is seen as a community problem that needs to be resolved by 00:11:06.779 --> 00:11:09.000 the people and before God. 00:11:09.000 --> 00:11:11.299 So Boaz offers the redeemer, 00:11:11.299 --> 00:11:14.620 the opportunity for what on the surface appears to be gain. 00:11:15.779 --> 00:11:17.240 And he's open that he will, 00:11:17.340 --> 00:11:18.399 if the redeemer doesn't, 00:11:19.039 --> 00:11:19.139 well, 00:11:19.159 --> 00:11:20.679 the redeemer jumps at the opportunity. 00:11:20.779 --> 00:11:21.860 And we see that in these verses, 00:11:22.100 --> 00:11:24.480 he'll gladly add the lands to his portfolio, 00:11:24.480 --> 00:11:28.679 but then Boaz discloses the risk. 00:11:29.700 --> 00:11:30.620 In verse five, 00:11:30.620 --> 00:11:32.419 we take it up again and we can read these words. 00:11:34.159 --> 00:11:35.000 Oh man. 00:11:40.220 --> 00:11:43.940 Boaz said the day that you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, 00:11:44.460 --> 00:11:46.659 you also acquire Ruth, 00:11:47.039 --> 00:11:47.879 the Moabite, 00:11:48.360 --> 00:11:52.600 the widow of the dead in order to perpetuate the name of the dead in his 00:11:52.600 --> 00:11:53.120 inheritance. 00:11:53.120 --> 00:11:56.740 And the redeemer said, 00:11:56.820 --> 00:11:58.340 I cannot redeem it for myself, 00:11:58.860 --> 00:12:00.240 lest I impair my own inheritance. 00:12:01.080 --> 00:12:04.779 Take the right of redemption yourself for I cannot redeem it. 00:12:07.120 --> 00:12:11.100 What we need to bear in mind here is that this redeemer has so far ignored his 00:12:11.100 --> 00:12:11.820 duty to Naomi. 00:12:12.120 --> 00:12:16.679 And now we get the sense of why the redeemer's role is not primarily about the 00:12:16.679 --> 00:12:16.980 land. 00:12:17.120 --> 00:12:19.659 It's about the family it returns to on the year of Jubilee. 00:12:19.799 --> 00:12:20.980 That's every 50 years. 00:12:20.980 --> 00:12:22.860 It was just a moment ago. 00:12:23.440 --> 00:12:26.899 The land is simply their place in God's people. 00:12:27.680 --> 00:12:27.740 Well, 00:12:27.860 --> 00:12:27.879 when, 00:12:27.980 --> 00:12:28.440 you know, 00:12:28.480 --> 00:12:28.620 as, 00:12:28.700 --> 00:12:31.639 as even as we bear in mind that this is reconciliation week, 00:12:31.659 --> 00:12:34.600 and we think about the implications of that and the, 00:12:34.680 --> 00:12:36.120 the indigenous people of Australia, 00:12:36.200 --> 00:12:39.360 the first people of Australia who have such a bond to their land. 00:12:40.080 --> 00:12:40.560 It's, 00:12:40.620 --> 00:12:44.139 it's not a direct Israelite to land bond. 00:12:44.320 --> 00:12:47.320 It's a bond to the land because it is their, 00:12:47.700 --> 00:12:48.879 their inheritance, 00:12:48.879 --> 00:12:50.759 their possession given to them by God. 00:12:50.980 --> 00:12:53.659 It symbolizes their link directly to Yahweh. 00:12:54.940 --> 00:12:56.700 And that's why it's reflected in the law. 00:12:56.820 --> 00:13:01.060 God gave them laws concerning the land and laws to keep their names alive as 00:13:01.060 --> 00:13:01.320 well. 00:13:02.779 --> 00:13:07.460 Redemption preserves the family and their place in the land. 00:13:07.460 --> 00:13:10.379 But redemption is costly. 00:13:10.920 --> 00:13:12.060 Someone has to pay. 00:13:12.360 --> 00:13:18.920 And it's a significant cost to what's at stake here is that the redeemer would have to firstly have to buy the land out of his own pocket, 00:13:19.200 --> 00:13:21.300 perhaps even mortgage his own land to do it. 00:13:21.299 --> 00:13:24.679 Perhaps even remove a foreigner from that land, 00:13:24.679 --> 00:13:29.240 considering it's a time of the judges and things were kind of pretty messed up at that time. 00:13:29.919 --> 00:13:33.659 Then he'd have to take the widow as his wife and weddings are expensive. 00:13:33.659 --> 00:13:35.139 Now they were expensive. 00:13:35.139 --> 00:13:37.439 Then to the whole town would have been a whole town affair. 00:13:38.179 --> 00:13:39.019 If he didn't. 00:13:39.100 --> 00:13:39.339 And if, 00:13:39.419 --> 00:13:40.699 and then if he didn't have an heir, 00:13:40.919 --> 00:13:43.039 the woman that he marries, 00:13:43.159 --> 00:13:45.019 that widow's child could actually inherit, 00:13:45.019 --> 00:13:47.240 not just Naomi's estate, 00:13:47.240 --> 00:13:49.019 but his own estate as well. 00:13:50.200 --> 00:13:51.240 And finally, 00:13:51.779 --> 00:13:54.360 he'd have to marry a Moabite. 00:13:55.100 --> 00:13:56.580 Notice that Boaz says here, 00:13:56.680 --> 00:13:56.980 Ruth, 00:13:57.139 --> 00:13:57.940 the Moabite. 00:13:58.159 --> 00:14:00.200 And this wasn't an easy thing to do. 00:14:01.600 --> 00:14:02.620 Like Boaz, 00:14:03.039 --> 00:14:06.000 he knew this redeemer knew he was a redeemer to Naomi. 00:14:07.139 --> 00:14:09.460 Likely he had ignored Naomi as an older woman, 00:14:09.519 --> 00:14:10.320 as a lost cause. 00:14:11.000 --> 00:14:12.019 But here, 00:14:12.799 --> 00:14:15.720 Boaz was not allowing him to ignore Ruth. 00:14:15.720 --> 00:14:17.920 He was publicly declaring Ruth, 00:14:18.000 --> 00:14:23.399 the Moabite to be a legitimate widow through whom the family name could be 00:14:23.399 --> 00:14:23.840 redeemed. 00:14:24.080 --> 00:14:26.120 And this changed things drastically. 00:14:27.399 --> 00:14:29.720 Redemption of Elimelech's name was costly, 00:14:30.139 --> 00:14:31.480 costly on so many levels. 00:14:31.660 --> 00:14:34.360 And the redeemer just wasn't prepared to pay the price. 00:14:35.060 --> 00:14:36.340 He didn't even need time to think. 00:14:36.379 --> 00:14:37.740 He just walked away from the deal. 00:14:39.019 --> 00:14:39.680 And Boaz, 00:14:40.259 --> 00:14:41.639 knowing that he risked everything, 00:14:42.620 --> 00:14:43.279 stepped in. 00:14:45.720 --> 00:14:47.480 So what moved Boaz to do this? 00:14:47.540 --> 00:14:48.300 What was his goal? 00:14:48.399 --> 00:14:49.040 What was the redemption? 00:14:49.639 --> 00:14:50.920 This is the point, 00:14:51.000 --> 00:14:51.639 redemption's goal. 00:14:51.740 --> 00:14:53.480 If you're looking at where you're up to in my outline, 00:14:53.899 --> 00:14:55.340 why would he risk everything? 00:14:55.580 --> 00:14:56.879 Was it really for love? 00:14:58.160 --> 00:14:58.500 Well, 00:14:58.519 --> 00:14:59.879 we get told by in the next verses, 00:15:00.279 --> 00:15:01.160 and they show us, 00:15:01.420 --> 00:15:03.820 definitely show us the orientation of Boaz's heart. 00:15:04.060 --> 00:15:05.820 If you turn with me to verses nine and 10, 00:15:05.879 --> 00:15:06.759 we can take up there. 00:15:06.759 --> 00:15:09.779 Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, 00:15:10.439 --> 00:15:14.100 you are witnesses this day that I have brought from the hand of Naomi, 00:15:14.100 --> 00:15:18.200 all that belongs to Elimelech and all that belong to Chilean and to Marlon. 00:15:19.220 --> 00:15:19.700 Also, 00:15:20.159 --> 00:15:20.360 Ruth, 00:15:20.419 --> 00:15:21.500 the Moabite of Marlon, 00:15:22.340 --> 00:15:23.080 why Ruth, 00:15:23.139 --> 00:15:23.539 the Moabite, 00:15:23.620 --> 00:15:24.480 the widow of Marlon, 00:15:24.679 --> 00:15:26.120 I have bought to be my wife, 00:15:26.539 --> 00:15:29.220 to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance, 00:15:29.220 --> 00:15:36.340 that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brothers and from the gate of his native place. 00:15:36.759 --> 00:15:38.500 You are witnesses this day. 00:15:40.080 --> 00:15:42.240 The words I have bought might as well read, 00:15:42.620 --> 00:15:43.840 I have redeemed. 00:15:45.039 --> 00:15:46.740 And Boaz spells it out carefully, 00:15:46.939 --> 00:15:49.220 not just the part that benefits him financially. 00:15:49.779 --> 00:15:52.319 He takes on the land and the widow. 00:15:53.539 --> 00:15:55.360 And what we see here is something, 00:15:55.360 --> 00:16:02.220 something reflected in a word called a word that's occurs as kindness in Ruth chapter two and chapter three, 00:16:02.620 --> 00:16:04.740 where Ruth describes Boaz as kind. 00:16:04.740 --> 00:16:09.360 And Boaz describes Ruth as kind in turn in chapter three. 00:16:10.279 --> 00:16:12.500 And that kindness is a translation of the word hesed, 00:16:12.759 --> 00:16:14.340 which can be translated in two ways, 00:16:14.779 --> 00:16:17.139 covenant faithfulness or steadfast love. 00:16:17.560 --> 00:16:18.720 They mean the same thing, 00:16:18.720 --> 00:16:26.820 but the word actually kind of involves such a breadth of meaning that it actually involves both things, 00:16:27.540 --> 00:16:28.800 a faithfulness to a covenant, 00:16:28.940 --> 00:16:32.560 to a promise and an actual genuine affection, 00:16:33.279 --> 00:16:36.100 a love for the people, 00:16:36.259 --> 00:16:38.000 between the people involved in this covenant. 00:16:38.000 --> 00:16:42.000 And look at how Boaz describes what he's doing. 00:16:42.419 --> 00:16:45.860 He's careful to spell out what he's doing as covenant faithfulness. 00:16:47.019 --> 00:16:47.659 It's an act, 00:16:48.379 --> 00:16:48.659 therefore, 00:16:49.200 --> 00:16:52.399 that's directed primarily toward God. 00:16:53.720 --> 00:16:57.779 Boaz did the right thing because it was the good thing to do. 00:16:57.779 --> 00:17:00.959 And because it was the good thing before God, 00:17:01.240 --> 00:17:02.679 he did it willingly, 00:17:03.459 --> 00:17:04.720 despite the cost. 00:17:06.399 --> 00:17:07.339 The Redeemer, 00:17:07.960 --> 00:17:09.500 he does walk away from the deal, 00:17:09.859 --> 00:17:13.160 but he walks away with one shoe off and one shoe on. 00:17:13.440 --> 00:17:14.500 It's an out-of-date custom, 00:17:14.599 --> 00:17:18.779 even at the time that the story of Ruth was actually told. 00:17:19.259 --> 00:17:20.359 It's an out-of-date custom. 00:17:20.359 --> 00:17:23.199 And it's probably described for comical effect. 00:17:23.659 --> 00:17:25.240 Look at the man who turned it down, 00:17:25.299 --> 00:17:26.299 his covenant responsibility. 00:17:26.599 --> 00:17:27.519 People were probably thinking, 00:17:27.839 --> 00:17:28.539 walk in a way, 00:17:28.639 --> 00:17:30.159 one shoe off and one shoe on, 00:17:30.500 --> 00:17:31.439 like diddle diddle dumpling, 00:17:31.719 --> 00:17:32.719 if you know the nursery rhyme. 00:17:33.819 --> 00:17:33.919 Well, 00:17:33.979 --> 00:17:35.539 while Boaz willingly takes on that, 00:17:36.699 --> 00:17:38.019 while this is happening, 00:17:38.159 --> 00:17:40.819 Boaz willingly takes on that same covenant faithfulness. 00:17:42.379 --> 00:17:44.059 So there's covenant faithfulness. 00:17:44.740 --> 00:17:47.500 And Boaz is showing his steadfast love. 00:17:47.500 --> 00:17:48.839 You see, 00:17:48.920 --> 00:17:51.640 he seeks to receive a redeem the family name through Ruth. 00:17:52.359 --> 00:17:54.380 The land is just real estate. 00:17:54.579 --> 00:17:55.319 Boaz knows that. 00:17:55.680 --> 00:17:57.779 Boaz shares God's heart for his people. 00:17:59.039 --> 00:17:59.700 So on the surface, 00:17:59.799 --> 00:18:01.920 it can almost sound like a property and livestock deal. 00:18:01.960 --> 00:18:02.440 I have bought, 00:18:02.519 --> 00:18:03.039 I have bought, 00:18:03.319 --> 00:18:05.359 but the context here is redemption. 00:18:06.420 --> 00:18:08.460 It's about taking Ruth under his wing, 00:18:08.500 --> 00:18:09.940 as she asked in chapter three, 00:18:10.119 --> 00:18:12.359 and protecting and providing for her. 00:18:13.779 --> 00:18:14.779 In reality, 00:18:15.480 --> 00:18:17.480 covenant faithfulness and steadfast love, 00:18:17.500 --> 00:18:21.380 are two ways or two facets of the same thing. 00:18:22.279 --> 00:18:23.700 But do we see them that way? 00:18:24.460 --> 00:18:26.819 When there's a cost to being a Christian, 00:18:26.960 --> 00:18:28.000 do we pay it willingly? 00:18:30.099 --> 00:18:31.160 Have a think for a moment. 00:18:31.240 --> 00:18:32.940 What are the decisions that you struggle over? 00:18:33.140 --> 00:18:35.460 Because they're most likely the ones that have a cost for you, 00:18:35.539 --> 00:18:36.880 even if you haven't realized it. 00:18:37.400 --> 00:18:38.819 Maybe it's a hidden cost to you, 00:18:39.019 --> 00:18:40.799 but it's one that you don't want to pay. 00:18:40.799 --> 00:18:46.200 Would you turn your love life over to God's will, 00:18:46.200 --> 00:18:47.180 like Boaz has done? 00:18:47.580 --> 00:18:51.759 Would you let him determine exactly who you marry without any choice of your 00:18:51.759 --> 00:18:51.980 own? 00:18:53.660 --> 00:18:54.640 Would you do that? 00:18:55.319 --> 00:18:58.019 Or are there other things in your life that you really struggle with? 00:18:58.960 --> 00:19:01.799 Are there things in your life that you know that are so difficult to 00:19:01.799 --> 00:19:02.160 control, 00:19:02.240 --> 00:19:05.400 and you want to draw them into that area where you can control them? 00:19:05.400 --> 00:19:12.180 Is there a hidden cost that you don't want to pay in certain aspects of the 00:19:12.180 --> 00:19:13.580 obedience that God demands of us? 00:19:15.700 --> 00:19:16.140 Well, 00:19:16.180 --> 00:19:21.500 maybe there's a gain you see that God doesn't see as gain and that he warns us 00:19:21.500 --> 00:19:22.080 away from. 00:19:23.200 --> 00:19:25.700 And yet you're still tempted to go in that direction. 00:19:25.700 --> 00:19:29.100 Think about Boaz. 00:19:29.920 --> 00:19:35.120 He had no idea if the financial outlay that he was about to make would bankrupt 00:19:35.120 --> 00:19:35.480 him. 00:19:36.180 --> 00:19:39.100 They'd just seen out what was probably a 10 year long famine. 00:19:40.160 --> 00:19:44.559 Was this the best time or place to be investing in land? 00:19:45.819 --> 00:19:48.200 And he had no idea if Ruth would have a child, 00:19:48.279 --> 00:19:49.059 let alone a son. 00:19:49.420 --> 00:19:53.620 We know from chapter one that Ruth was married to Marlon for up to 10 years. 00:19:53.619 --> 00:19:56.039 And all that time she was childless. 00:19:57.119 --> 00:19:58.299 Maybe she was barren. 00:20:00.799 --> 00:20:01.239 Well, 00:20:01.299 --> 00:20:05.279 even as these things may well have been circling through the minds of the 00:20:05.279 --> 00:20:05.619 crowd, 00:20:05.859 --> 00:20:08.479 what it did was it made them realize what was happening. 00:20:09.339 --> 00:20:12.059 They were amazed by what Boaz was willing to do, 00:20:12.119 --> 00:20:13.099 his costly obedience. 00:20:13.779 --> 00:20:14.439 And so they pray, 00:20:14.519 --> 00:20:18.679 they were moved to pray some big things over them in chapter in verses 11 and 00:20:18.679 --> 00:20:19.019 12. 00:20:19.759 --> 00:20:20.699 So let me read these out. 00:20:20.700 --> 00:20:24.500 May the Lord make the woman who is coming into your house, 00:20:24.700 --> 00:20:26.080 like Rachel and Leah, 00:20:26.660 --> 00:20:28.920 who together built up the house of Israel. 00:20:29.720 --> 00:20:31.039 May you act worthily, 00:20:31.039 --> 00:20:34.180 worthily in Ephrathah and be renowned in Bethlehem. 00:20:34.660 --> 00:20:37.140 And may your house be like the house of Perez, 00:20:37.580 --> 00:20:41.920 whom Tamar bought a Judah because of the offspring that the Lord will give to 00:20:41.920 --> 00:20:43.059 you by this young woman. 00:20:43.059 --> 00:20:46.179 Wow. 00:20:46.899 --> 00:20:48.519 May the Lord bless Ruth. 00:20:48.919 --> 00:20:49.099 Well, 00:20:49.139 --> 00:20:49.639 with children, 00:20:49.779 --> 00:20:50.200 obviously, 00:20:51.079 --> 00:20:52.679 but Rachel and Leah are more than that. 00:20:53.379 --> 00:20:53.579 They're, 00:20:53.679 --> 00:20:56.559 they're calling on God to make a Moabite, 00:20:57.059 --> 00:20:58.679 a matriarch of Israel. 00:21:00.859 --> 00:21:01.339 Interestingly, 00:21:01.559 --> 00:21:02.179 spoiler alert, 00:21:02.240 --> 00:21:04.759 it's a blessing that's actually realized in Matthew chapter one. 00:21:04.759 --> 00:21:07.099 When you look at a certain other genealogy, 00:21:07.099 --> 00:21:10.039 may the Lord bless Ruth. 00:21:10.119 --> 00:21:10.819 They pray. 00:21:11.259 --> 00:21:16.119 May the Lord bless Boaz with righteousness and a reputation as a worthy man, 00:21:16.579 --> 00:21:21.160 a blessing that is actually realized in Solomon's temple in one Kings chapter 00:21:21.160 --> 00:21:21.519 seven, 00:21:21.579 --> 00:21:22.079 verse 21, 00:21:22.200 --> 00:21:25.400 where you'll discover that the right hand temple at the entrance, 00:21:25.559 --> 00:21:29.099 the right hand column at the entrance of Solomon's temple was called Boaz. 00:21:31.440 --> 00:21:32.900 Surely it was after his great, 00:21:32.940 --> 00:21:33.559 great grandfather. 00:21:33.559 --> 00:21:37.799 And then may the Lord bless Boaz's house. 00:21:38.700 --> 00:21:41.519 And this is an interesting one because this is Judah's line, 00:21:41.579 --> 00:21:42.759 which was the kingly line. 00:21:43.700 --> 00:21:48.179 Boaz was descended from Judah through Perez and Perez was the, 00:21:48.179 --> 00:21:51.460 the offspring of the first recorded lever of marriage that we have in the 00:21:51.460 --> 00:21:51.700 Bible. 00:21:51.859 --> 00:21:56.000 And it was a disaster in so many ways. 00:21:57.399 --> 00:21:59.519 But as we start to see this one unfold, 00:21:59.519 --> 00:22:02.799 we discover not such a disaster anymore. 00:22:03.559 --> 00:22:04.019 Well, 00:22:04.039 --> 00:22:06.339 certainly God was at work in that mess. 00:22:08.740 --> 00:22:12.879 Their hope as a crowd was that the Lord would achieve his purposes through men 00:22:12.879 --> 00:22:15.759 and women as righteous as Boaz and Ruth. 00:22:16.899 --> 00:22:18.639 They were delighted to see what was happening, 00:22:18.720 --> 00:22:19.659 but they were awed too. 00:22:19.660 --> 00:22:23.240 And as the story unfolds, 00:22:23.259 --> 00:22:26.940 we begin to see this plan of redemption as it unfolds through the Bible. 00:22:27.300 --> 00:22:29.840 We get glimpses of God's plan of redemption at different points. 00:22:29.840 --> 00:22:32.400 And we're seeing it now through Ruth and Boaz. 00:22:34.160 --> 00:22:35.880 Boaz does as he promises. 00:22:36.380 --> 00:22:37.740 And the Lord does bless them. 00:22:39.019 --> 00:22:40.120 In verse 13, 00:22:40.119 --> 00:22:40.599 we read, 00:22:40.599 --> 00:22:45.779 so Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife and he went into her and the Lord 00:22:45.779 --> 00:22:48.099 gave her conception and she bore a son. 00:22:50.639 --> 00:22:55.139 This verse stands out in the storytelling because it's only the second time that 00:22:55.139 --> 00:22:56.779 the Lord is said to overtly act. 00:22:57.179 --> 00:22:59.519 The other time is in Ruth 1.6, 00:22:59.779 --> 00:23:01.699 where the Lord provides his people with food. 00:23:01.700 --> 00:23:05.380 The Lord gave her conception. 00:23:07.259 --> 00:23:11.259 And both times that God is overtly acting in Ruth, 00:23:11.600 --> 00:23:13.819 he's providing for his people as a whole. 00:23:14.660 --> 00:23:14.960 Here, 00:23:15.100 --> 00:23:16.380 the Lord gives Ruth a child, 00:23:16.720 --> 00:23:17.680 redemption for Marlon, 00:23:17.799 --> 00:23:19.400 for Chilion and for Elimelech, 00:23:19.740 --> 00:23:21.340 redemption for Naomi and Ruth as well. 00:23:22.819 --> 00:23:26.340 God uses Boaz's redemptive act to provide a son for Ruth. 00:23:26.580 --> 00:23:27.400 And in his goodness, 00:23:27.980 --> 00:23:30.980 he weaves that into his larger redemptive plan. 00:23:31.700 --> 00:23:32.819 Look at what we read in verse, 00:23:32.900 --> 00:23:34.539 what we see in verse 17 and 18, 00:23:34.620 --> 00:23:35.620 as the story goes on. 00:23:36.720 --> 00:23:40.039 And the women of the neighborhood gave this child a name saying, 00:23:40.580 --> 00:23:42.500 a son has been born to Naomi. 00:23:43.279 --> 00:23:44.319 They named him Obed. 00:23:44.880 --> 00:23:46.440 He was the father of Jesse, 00:23:47.380 --> 00:23:48.700 the father of David. 00:23:50.360 --> 00:23:50.880 Obed, 00:23:50.980 --> 00:23:52.420 which means to serve or to worship. 00:23:52.840 --> 00:23:57.900 This child would be the grandfather of the great King David. 00:23:59.120 --> 00:24:01.080 This is a glimpse of the Lord's plan. 00:24:01.079 --> 00:24:04.659 The story begins with the last verse of judges echoing in our ears. 00:24:04.720 --> 00:24:05.139 If you remember, 00:24:05.259 --> 00:24:07.059 I spoke about that in, 00:24:07.259 --> 00:24:10.259 when we spoke and when we looked at Ruth one in verse 25, 00:24:10.319 --> 00:24:11.119 or judges 21, 00:24:11.339 --> 00:24:12.579 in those days, 00:24:12.579 --> 00:24:14.539 there was no King in Israel. 00:24:15.659 --> 00:24:18.779 Everyone did what was right in his own eyes. 00:24:18.779 --> 00:24:22.240 And now we have the story of Ruth. 00:24:22.240 --> 00:24:24.779 And now we have the story of Ruth finishing with an answer to this problem. 00:24:25.279 --> 00:24:27.759 The genealogy of the great King David, 00:24:28.119 --> 00:24:30.759 a King who would deliver his people from their enemies. 00:24:31.299 --> 00:24:32.680 Here we have our King. 00:24:32.680 --> 00:24:36.220 But we still have a problem. 00:24:36.860 --> 00:24:39.259 The problem of the second part of that verse. 00:24:40.640 --> 00:24:42.340 There was no King in Israel. 00:24:43.420 --> 00:24:47.720 And everyone did what was right in their own eyes. 00:24:47.720 --> 00:24:51.680 There's a problem that not even David could resolve. 00:24:51.980 --> 00:24:53.640 The problem of the human heart. 00:24:55.440 --> 00:24:56.600 David is a redeemer, 00:24:56.819 --> 00:24:57.180 certainly. 00:24:58.339 --> 00:24:59.100 But in Matthew, 00:24:59.100 --> 00:25:02.740 we discovered that even he is only a foreshadowing of the true redeemer. 00:25:03.259 --> 00:25:07.120 The genealogy of Boaz resurfaces in the genealogy of the true King. 00:25:07.620 --> 00:25:07.740 And, 00:25:07.819 --> 00:25:11.319 and what we see here is the birth of the King. 00:25:11.480 --> 00:25:11.799 It just, 00:25:11.920 --> 00:25:14.180 I should also mention to you that David actually means beloved. 00:25:14.180 --> 00:25:17.580 And what we see in the genealogy of Matthew. 00:25:17.580 --> 00:25:18.180 And then in, 00:25:18.180 --> 00:25:20.259 in Jesus baptism scene, 00:25:20.340 --> 00:25:21.019 where God says, 00:25:21.140 --> 00:25:24.299 this is my dearly loved son with whom I am well pleased. 00:25:24.480 --> 00:25:25.660 We see this, 00:25:25.779 --> 00:25:28.060 this new King in King Jesus, 00:25:28.560 --> 00:25:31.500 the King who is beloved of the Lord. 00:25:31.920 --> 00:25:37.080 And this King who actually can redeem us from the problem of our own human 00:25:37.080 --> 00:25:37.560 hearts. 00:25:38.720 --> 00:25:40.500 Another costly redemption, 00:25:41.480 --> 00:25:44.160 a redemption that requires Jesus to lay, 00:25:44.160 --> 00:25:49.860 lay down his life for us so that we can actually return into relationship 00:25:49.860 --> 00:25:50.860 with our, 00:25:50.860 --> 00:25:51.900 our savior. 00:25:54.259 --> 00:25:55.279 I want to say at some, 00:25:55.440 --> 00:25:56.420 at this point as well, 00:25:56.600 --> 00:25:59.259 that as we look at this genealogy in Matthew, 00:26:00.259 --> 00:26:04.480 you get a glimpse of how Boaz knows God's heart so well. 00:26:04.620 --> 00:26:06.100 And I'm hoping it's something that you can, 00:26:06.240 --> 00:26:07.900 you can share in common with him too. 00:26:08.680 --> 00:26:09.040 You see, 00:26:09.060 --> 00:26:10.840 when we look at the genealogy in Matthew one, 00:26:10.839 --> 00:26:11.659 four and five, 00:26:12.119 --> 00:26:17.779 we discover that Boaz himself is the son of Rahab, 00:26:18.419 --> 00:26:19.319 a prostitute. 00:26:20.619 --> 00:26:23.139 Rahab was the woman who protected the spies, 00:26:23.319 --> 00:26:25.519 lowered them out the window of the city of Jericho. 00:26:26.039 --> 00:26:30.539 And that was a city that was dedicated by God to complete destruction. 00:26:30.539 --> 00:26:33.639 Only Rahab and her family escaped. 00:26:34.659 --> 00:26:39.039 She was spared because she helped the spies and she then became a part of Israel's history. 00:26:41.240 --> 00:26:43.259 Rahab is Boaz's mother. 00:26:43.879 --> 00:26:47.859 Boaz knows what it means to be rescued from destruction. 00:26:47.859 --> 00:26:52.899 He knows the kindness of God's covenant faithfulness that opens out that, 00:26:52.899 --> 00:26:53.079 that, 00:26:53.079 --> 00:26:54.059 that's centered on Israel, 00:26:54.139 --> 00:26:56.000 but opens out to all nations. 00:26:56.000 --> 00:26:56.819 As we saw in, 00:26:57.000 --> 00:26:59.299 as we see in Genesis chapter 12, 00:26:59.379 --> 00:27:00.199 verses one to three, 00:27:00.339 --> 00:27:02.899 the promises to Abraham or Abraham, 00:27:02.979 --> 00:27:03.599 as he was then, 00:27:04.259 --> 00:27:05.439 that God desired to, 00:27:05.500 --> 00:27:07.539 to bless all nations through Israel. 00:27:08.139 --> 00:27:10.339 Boaz knows that he knows what it means. 00:27:10.339 --> 00:27:13.479 He knows the kindness of God's covenant faithfulness himself. 00:27:13.480 --> 00:27:17.839 He knows the warmth of God's steadfast love in his life. 00:27:20.759 --> 00:27:25.440 So even as we see God is weaving the story of Ruth into his eternal plan, 00:27:25.960 --> 00:27:28.700 we look at the story of Ruth and we see, 00:27:28.980 --> 00:27:30.099 and we want to see a love story. 00:27:30.180 --> 00:27:31.220 And in one sense that's there, 00:27:32.440 --> 00:27:38.620 but what we see that is that the love of Ruth and Boaz is first and foremost 00:27:38.620 --> 00:27:39.640 directed Godward. 00:27:40.559 --> 00:27:42.120 This is the love story, 00:27:42.119 --> 00:27:47.819 a God who delights in rescuing his people and two people who are thoroughly 00:27:47.819 --> 00:27:49.299 aware of how rescued they are, 00:27:49.879 --> 00:27:52.399 delighting in reflecting God's character in the world. 00:27:53.839 --> 00:27:56.399 Something that plays out fully and, 00:27:57.079 --> 00:27:59.219 and completely in the life of our savior, 00:27:59.339 --> 00:28:00.079 Jesus Christ, 00:28:00.439 --> 00:28:01.399 when he comes and, 00:28:02.159 --> 00:28:03.719 and redeems us personally. 00:28:06.679 --> 00:28:07.539 Let me pray. 00:28:07.659 --> 00:28:08.059 And then we'll, 00:28:08.119 --> 00:28:09.339 I'll hand back to Adam. 00:28:12.119 --> 00:28:16.039 Father God, 00:28:16.099 --> 00:28:16.339 we're, 00:28:16.339 --> 00:28:20.799 we're guilty in so many ways of wanting to make any narrative we come across 00:28:20.799 --> 00:28:22.859 about us to find some way of identifying. 00:28:22.859 --> 00:28:23.059 And, 00:28:23.199 --> 00:28:24.879 and I pray Lord that we would in, 00:28:24.979 --> 00:28:26.739 in Boaz's life and Ruth's life, 00:28:26.899 --> 00:28:32.879 find the right way of engaging with this story to recognize it as a story of 00:28:32.880 --> 00:28:36.920 redemption that patterns the redemption that you planned through your son from 00:28:36.920 --> 00:28:38.100 before time began. 00:28:39.360 --> 00:28:40.800 And a redemption that, 00:28:41.060 --> 00:28:42.760 that, 00:28:43.020 --> 00:28:49.120 that we actually experience just as Ruth and Boaz experienced a redemption that 00:28:49.120 --> 00:28:50.500 we know we just didn't deserve. 00:28:50.580 --> 00:28:55.980 And yet you graciously and lovingly planned out and executed our salvation. 00:28:55.980 --> 00:29:00.660 You brought us into your family and you call us your own precious children. 00:29:02.059 --> 00:29:02.460 Lord, 00:29:02.480 --> 00:29:04.200 I thank you and praise you for that. 00:29:04.980 --> 00:29:06.559 And I pray that through this story, 00:29:06.640 --> 00:29:10.500 we might have an even deeper understanding of the steadfastness of your love 00:29:10.500 --> 00:29:11.200 toward us, 00:29:11.779 --> 00:29:14.700 of the faithfulness of the covenant that you've made with us. 00:29:15.620 --> 00:29:16.980 And pray these things in Jesus name. 00:29:17.579 --> 00:29:17.839 Amen. 00:29:17.839 --> 00:29:17.940 Amen. 00:29:17.940 --> 00:29:17.980 Amen. 00:29:17.980 --> 00:29:18.000 Amen.