WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.540 Ruth chapter 1. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:32.240 These took Moabite wives. 00:00:32.479 --> 00:00:35.140 The name of one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. 00:00:35.759 --> 00:00:39.200 They lived there about ten years, and both Malon and Kilion died, 00:00:39.539 --> 00:00:42.500 so that the woman was left without her two sons and her husband. 00:00:43.460 --> 00:00:46.899 Then she arose with her daughters-in-law to return from the country of Moab, 00:00:47.100 --> 00:00:51.939 for she had heard in the fields of Moab that the Lord had visited His people and given them food. 00:00:52.659 --> 00:00:55.740 So she set out from the place where she was with her two daughters-in-law, 00:00:56.019 --> 00:00:58.840 and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah. 00:00:58.840 --> 00:01:01.340 But Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, 00:01:01.560 --> 00:01:03.860 Go, return each of you to her mother's house. 00:01:04.579 --> 00:01:08.800 May the Lord deal kindly with you as you have dealt with the dead and with me. 00:01:09.920 --> 00:01:13.520 The Lord grant that you may find rest, each of you, in the house of her husband. 00:01:14.200 --> 00:01:17.320 Then she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. 00:01:18.219 --> 00:01:22.400 And they said to her, No, we will return with you to your people. 00:01:23.280 --> 00:01:25.420 But Naomi said, Turn back, my daughters. 00:01:26.120 --> 00:01:27.379 Why will you go with me? 00:01:27.379 --> 00:01:31.000 Have I yet sons in my womb that they may become your husbands? 00:01:31.719 --> 00:01:32.879 Turn back, my daughters. 00:01:32.979 --> 00:01:35.359 Go your way, for I am too old to have a husband. 00:01:35.879 --> 00:01:41.079 If I should say I have hope, even if I should have a husband this night and should bear sons, 00:01:41.459 --> 00:01:43.739 would you therefore wait till they were grown? 00:01:44.439 --> 00:01:46.039 Would you therefore refrain from marrying? 00:01:46.040 --> 00:01:54.740 No, my daughters, for it is exceedingly bitter to me for your sake that the hand of the Lord has gone out against me. 00:01:55.420 --> 00:01:57.680 Then they lifted up their voices and wept again. 00:01:57.780 --> 00:02:01.520 And Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her. 00:02:02.219 --> 00:02:07.080 And she said, See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods. 00:02:07.820 --> 00:02:09.259 Return after your sister-in-law. 00:02:09.259 --> 00:02:10.599 But Ruth said, 00:02:10.599 --> 00:02:13.819 Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. 00:02:14.359 --> 00:02:16.439 For where you go, I will go. 00:02:16.599 --> 00:02:19.000 And where you lodge, I will lodge. 00:02:19.060 --> 00:02:22.679 Your people shall be my people and your God, my God. 00:02:23.359 --> 00:02:25.280 Where you die, I will die. 00:02:25.859 --> 00:02:27.039 And there will I be buried. 00:02:27.599 --> 00:02:28.819 May the Lord do so to me. 00:02:28.859 --> 00:02:31.879 And more also, if anything but death parts me from you. 00:02:31.879 --> 00:02:36.460 And when Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said, No more. 00:02:37.960 --> 00:02:40.719 So the two of them went on until they came to Bethlehem. 00:02:40.759 --> 00:02:44.719 And when they came to Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them. 00:02:45.099 --> 00:02:47.519 And the women said, Is this Naomi? 00:02:48.340 --> 00:02:50.780 She said to them, Do not call me Naomi. 00:02:51.120 --> 00:02:52.000 Call me Mara. 00:02:53.099 --> 00:02:55.579 For the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. 00:02:56.419 --> 00:03:00.680 I went away full, and the Lord has brought me back empty. 00:03:00.680 --> 00:03:04.719 Why call me Naomi when the Lord has testified against me, 00:03:04.800 --> 00:03:07.659 and the Almighty has brought calamity upon me? 00:03:08.280 --> 00:03:12.520 So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabite, her daughter-in-law with her, 00:03:12.860 --> 00:03:14.540 who returned from the country of Moab. 00:03:15.099 --> 00:03:18.379 And they came to Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest. 00:03:19.500 --> 00:03:20.700 This is God's holy word. 00:03:21.300 --> 00:03:25.020 But tonight we're going to start a new series in the book of Ruth. 00:03:25.480 --> 00:03:27.280 And if you know anything about the book of Ruth, 00:03:27.280 --> 00:03:31.500 you probably know the first thing you think about is Ruth as a love story, 00:03:31.580 --> 00:03:35.240 a story between the love between a godly man called Boaz 00:03:35.240 --> 00:03:38.620 and a poor immigrant woman called Ruth, 00:03:38.699 --> 00:03:42.840 or maybe the love that Ruth has for her mother-in-law, Naomi. 00:03:43.520 --> 00:03:47.420 Or maybe you think about the love that God shows towards his people 00:03:47.420 --> 00:03:51.199 when he brings food back to a land that was suffering from famine. 00:03:51.199 --> 00:03:58.280 But if you were an ancient Israelite, the very start of Ruth doesn't feel like a love story, 00:03:58.780 --> 00:04:01.399 because the first few words are, 00:04:01.519 --> 00:04:03.519 in the days when the judges ruled. 00:04:04.319 --> 00:04:09.599 And when the book starts like this, this is an ominous sign. 00:04:09.679 --> 00:04:12.620 And the book presumes that you know what this means. 00:04:13.139 --> 00:04:17.159 So in our Bibles, Ruth comes just after the book of Judges. 00:04:17.160 --> 00:04:20.100 And in the book of Judges, there was no king in Israel. 00:04:20.680 --> 00:04:26.220 And these judges, these tribal clan leaders, were in charge of what happened. 00:04:26.860 --> 00:04:30.580 And the book ends by saying everyone did what was right in his own eyes. 00:04:30.840 --> 00:04:34.780 So what we see in the book of Judges is to come just before Ruth is turmoil 00:04:34.780 --> 00:04:37.420 of some good leaders and some good things, 00:04:37.900 --> 00:04:40.220 some horrific leaders and some horrific things, 00:04:40.220 --> 00:04:46.520 almost in a cycle where people stray from God and things go wrong, 00:04:46.600 --> 00:04:49.080 come back to God and things go right. 00:04:49.160 --> 00:04:51.420 So if you're thinking about the days when the judges ruled, 00:04:51.500 --> 00:04:54.820 you're thinking, wait a minute, there might be trouble ahead. 00:04:55.060 --> 00:04:55.840 There wasn't a king. 00:04:56.180 --> 00:04:57.420 People did whatever they wanted. 00:04:57.820 --> 00:05:00.500 And a lot of the time, it was lawless disaster. 00:05:02.040 --> 00:05:05.400 So this love story doesn't start once upon a time. 00:05:05.400 --> 00:05:09.020 It starts with a big flashing neon danger sign. 00:05:09.019 --> 00:05:13.419 And that's the threat that hangs over this story at the beginning. 00:05:13.519 --> 00:05:16.639 But it does evolve into a story of love. 00:05:16.699 --> 00:05:18.939 After the highs and lows of the book of Judges, 00:05:19.560 --> 00:05:22.279 it reminds us that God through all is working. 00:05:23.240 --> 00:05:29.799 Yahweh, I am, our God, is not missing when things go wrong. 00:05:30.299 --> 00:05:34.039 That he is working through all these things to his glory and to our good. 00:05:34.040 --> 00:05:36.520 He's the God of the big and the miraculous. 00:05:36.740 --> 00:05:38.840 But he's also the God of the everyday. 00:05:40.520 --> 00:05:43.400 He performs supernatural sign after supernatural sign. 00:05:43.500 --> 00:05:49.740 But he also works in the lives of ordinary people to bring about extraordinary things. 00:05:50.040 --> 00:05:53.180 So over the next four Sundays, we're going to take each chapter, 00:05:53.480 --> 00:05:54.980 each of the four chapters one at a time. 00:05:54.980 --> 00:05:59.960 And tonight in chapter one, we're going to step into this account which Cody read for us, 00:06:00.020 --> 00:06:08.759 which is really, I think, an account of deep, honest suffering and apparent emptiness 00:06:08.759 --> 00:06:12.420 where it seems as though God is missing, 00:06:13.259 --> 00:06:18.660 but where in fact God is orchestrating all things to their ultimate fulfillment. 00:06:18.660 --> 00:06:22.960 And the question for us is that wherever we are in life, 00:06:23.020 --> 00:06:26.320 however we got here tonight, however we are feeling, 00:06:27.420 --> 00:06:31.980 if we feel like we are far from God or we feel that God is not on our side, 00:06:32.760 --> 00:06:36.020 when we think our situation can't get much worse, 00:06:36.879 --> 00:06:41.420 God is in fact weaving together a plan when our faith is in him, 00:06:41.800 --> 00:06:45.540 as hard as it is for us to see, to his glory and to our good. 00:06:45.540 --> 00:06:49.760 So God's orchestrating all things, in all circumstances. 00:06:49.860 --> 00:06:54.200 And we're going to look at three circumstances that we see in the book of Ruth, 00:06:54.240 --> 00:06:57.340 Ruth chapter one tonight, three hard circumstances, 00:06:57.980 --> 00:06:59.660 but we see that God is there. 00:07:00.100 --> 00:07:01.620 When pleasantness becomes bitterness, 00:07:02.300 --> 00:07:04.340 then we're going to think about when friendship costs everything. 00:07:05.100 --> 00:07:08.280 And then finally, we're going to think about when it seems like there's no hope. 00:07:09.160 --> 00:07:12.640 Okay, so first, when pleasantness becomes bitterness. 00:07:12.639 --> 00:07:18.419 So our story begins, and my pronunciation is going to be different from Corey's, 00:07:18.959 --> 00:07:20.419 with a man called Elimelech. 00:07:21.399 --> 00:07:23.800 And Elimelech means my God is king. 00:07:24.560 --> 00:07:30.159 We're going to see that names throughout the book of Ruth are pretty significant. 00:07:31.339 --> 00:07:33.019 He lives in a town called Bethlehem. 00:07:33.479 --> 00:07:36.860 And Bethlehem, maybe you know, means house of bread. 00:07:36.860 --> 00:07:43.040 And remember, we're in the time of the judges, so it's moral and religious chaos. 00:07:43.879 --> 00:07:46.900 And we shouldn't be surprised when we read there's a famine. 00:07:47.560 --> 00:07:49.620 Because Jesus hasn't come. 00:07:50.319 --> 00:07:52.879 God's people are living under his law. 00:07:53.240 --> 00:07:54.420 They've not been obeying his law. 00:07:54.920 --> 00:07:56.540 And they're under divine discipline. 00:07:56.540 --> 00:08:04.520 So this man, God is my king, takes his family out of the land that God has gifted to his people, 00:08:04.620 --> 00:08:09.480 this special promised land, and he takes them back east to where they've come from. 00:08:10.439 --> 00:08:15.080 The man from the house of bread leaves the house of bread because there is no bread. 00:08:16.060 --> 00:08:20.500 But in verse 3, already, Elimelech dies. 00:08:21.020 --> 00:08:23.900 And he leaves his wife, Naomi, with her two sons. 00:08:23.899 --> 00:08:27.219 And the name of the first son is Malon. 00:08:28.219 --> 00:08:34.220 And the root word in Hebrew for his name is the same as the word for sick. 00:08:35.159 --> 00:08:38.079 And the name of the second son is Kilion. 00:08:38.720 --> 00:08:44.379 And the root word that can be derived from his name means something like comes to an end. 00:08:45.740 --> 00:08:47.480 Both the sons marry local girls. 00:08:47.579 --> 00:08:51.399 And then maybe given their names, sick boy and come to an end, 00:08:51.399 --> 00:08:55.019 we shouldn't be surprised that they die as well. 00:08:56.299 --> 00:09:00.579 Three verses and three deaths covers about a decade of time. 00:09:01.179 --> 00:09:06.319 And the family that's left home looking for a better life has been blown apart by tragedy. 00:09:07.199 --> 00:09:09.860 Naomi's lost all the men in her life. 00:09:09.860 --> 00:09:13.980 So as well as the hurt and the pain that she's feeling as a wife and a mother, 00:09:14.840 --> 00:09:22.180 in this highly patriarchal society, it also means that she's without a male protector, a male provider. 00:09:23.220 --> 00:09:26.940 So to a large extent, Naomi is in a strange land. 00:09:27.060 --> 00:09:28.899 She's destitute and she's highly vulnerable. 00:09:30.759 --> 00:09:35.159 And this sets up the key question that the book of Ruth answers for us. 00:09:35.980 --> 00:09:37.399 What's going to happen to Naomi? 00:09:37.399 --> 00:09:37.480 Naomi. 00:09:38.559 --> 00:09:42.000 So the idea of seed in the Old Testament is really important. 00:09:42.759 --> 00:09:45.939 Both the seeds that you sow in the ground, in the land, 00:09:46.639 --> 00:09:48.699 but also seed in terms of offspring. 00:09:49.419 --> 00:09:52.419 People who are going to protect you in your old age, 00:09:52.779 --> 00:09:55.759 carry on the family line, maintain your land. 00:09:56.600 --> 00:09:59.220 Now Naomi's lost both kinds of seeds. 00:09:59.340 --> 00:10:03.399 She's lost, she's no grain, and she's no offspring either. 00:10:03.399 --> 00:10:10.720 So the harsh reality for Naomi is that she's probably facing a couple of pretty hard choices. 00:10:11.299 --> 00:10:14.419 She can sell herself into slavery and work for her food. 00:10:14.980 --> 00:10:21.360 Or she can pursue one of the few jobs that are available to women in this kind of culture, 00:10:21.360 --> 00:10:23.559 which might include something like prostitution. 00:10:23.559 --> 00:10:26.399 So her prospects are not very good. 00:10:27.639 --> 00:10:32.019 And notice the narrator, he doesn't suggest that this is Naomi's fault, 00:10:32.819 --> 00:10:35.179 that she deserves what she's got. 00:10:36.000 --> 00:10:40.579 It doesn't explain either why God has chosen to do this. 00:10:40.580 --> 00:10:47.580 And I think that silence actually speaks quite a lot, quite loudly for us, 00:10:47.620 --> 00:10:54.139 because the Bible is ruthlessly honest about the fact that we live in a fallen world, 00:10:54.920 --> 00:11:00.920 and that all around us, terrible things happen to people who we presume are innocent all the time. 00:11:02.680 --> 00:11:09.040 In fact, the Bible's much better at dealing with grief than I think we are in modern Scotland today. 00:11:09.039 --> 00:11:15.679 We so often feel like we have to downplay our sadness or our grief or our pain, 00:11:16.139 --> 00:11:20.159 because we don't want to get a reputation as being the kind of person who complains. 00:11:21.259 --> 00:11:25.480 Or maybe we feel like we need to look inside ourselves 00:11:25.480 --> 00:11:30.279 and use our own strength to pull ourselves up by our bootstraps, 00:11:30.980 --> 00:11:33.360 reframe our problems maybe in a positive way, 00:11:33.500 --> 00:11:36.099 think about them differently so we can work through them, 00:11:37.419 --> 00:11:38.659 pull ourselves together. 00:11:39.039 --> 00:11:43.719 You see, the Bible doesn't present those as good options 00:11:43.719 --> 00:11:46.819 for how to deal with the loss of your husband, 00:11:47.339 --> 00:11:48.480 the loss of your children, 00:11:48.879 --> 00:11:52.259 or any other suffering or pain that you're going through. 00:11:53.259 --> 00:11:54.959 In the midst of pain and suffering, 00:11:55.459 --> 00:11:58.059 the Bible teaches us, to be honest, 00:11:58.860 --> 00:12:00.620 it calls this lament, 00:12:01.379 --> 00:12:03.819 true space for suffering, 00:12:03.820 --> 00:12:10.220 and a God who cares deeply about hearing the words that you bring to him. 00:12:10.220 --> 00:12:12.540 Every sad, confused, 00:12:13.340 --> 00:12:14.660 even angry cry 00:12:14.660 --> 00:12:18.740 that you deliver to our God. 00:12:19.500 --> 00:12:20.940 About a third of the Psalms 00:12:20.940 --> 00:12:22.960 are made up of lament, 00:12:24.000 --> 00:12:26.280 and the writer pouring his heart out 00:12:26.280 --> 00:12:28.080 over grief and anxiety, 00:12:28.520 --> 00:12:29.860 loss, guilt. 00:12:29.860 --> 00:12:34.279 Psalm 88, I think, is the perfect example of lament 00:12:34.279 --> 00:12:39.120 because it shows us that God's not embarrassed by your pain. 00:12:39.639 --> 00:12:42.399 He's not surprised by your suffering. 00:12:43.680 --> 00:12:45.680 God never wants you to hold back 00:12:45.680 --> 00:12:48.279 or keep inside the things that you're going through. 00:12:48.279 --> 00:12:50.579 In Psalm 88, 00:12:50.959 --> 00:12:52.519 it begins with darkness, 00:12:52.959 --> 00:12:54.120 there's darkness in the middle, 00:12:54.399 --> 00:12:56.139 and it ends with darkness. 00:12:56.459 --> 00:12:58.459 And as we read it, as modern readers, 00:12:59.000 --> 00:13:00.539 we keep looking for the but. 00:13:01.319 --> 00:13:02.639 We're going, where's the turning point? 00:13:03.339 --> 00:13:05.579 When's this guy going to stop 00:13:05.579 --> 00:13:06.679 and say, 00:13:07.039 --> 00:13:08.220 but it's okay, God, 00:13:08.360 --> 00:13:09.559 you're going to save me. 00:13:09.839 --> 00:13:11.500 But God, I'd remember your mercies. 00:13:12.319 --> 00:13:13.419 See, in Psalm 88, 00:13:14.079 --> 00:13:15.819 that but doesn't come. 00:13:15.820 --> 00:13:21.300 It's purely an outpouring of sorrow to God. 00:13:21.360 --> 00:13:22.220 But the key lesson 00:13:22.220 --> 00:13:25.520 is that despite everything that's happened, 00:13:26.320 --> 00:13:29.140 the writer is still coming to God. 00:13:30.480 --> 00:13:32.640 Sometimes this is all that we can do. 00:13:34.180 --> 00:13:37.879 Sometimes with groanings that don't even form words. 00:13:39.220 --> 00:13:41.960 But God wants us to bring them to him. 00:13:42.740 --> 00:13:43.740 And he hears us. 00:13:43.740 --> 00:13:46.039 Lament says, 00:13:46.340 --> 00:13:49.060 God, I don't understand what you're doing right now. 00:13:50.039 --> 00:13:51.159 But I'm coming to you 00:13:51.159 --> 00:13:52.620 because I've got nowhere else to go. 00:13:54.539 --> 00:13:58.560 So Naomi has heard that there's bread in Judah. 00:13:59.240 --> 00:14:01.419 So despite her loss and her sadness, 00:14:02.320 --> 00:14:05.600 despite telling her daughter-in-law 00:14:05.600 --> 00:14:09.139 that God's been bitter with her in verse 13, 00:14:09.139 --> 00:14:11.259 and notice in verse 19, 00:14:11.819 --> 00:14:12.720 she doesn't just say, 00:14:12.779 --> 00:14:13.819 God's been bitter to me. 00:14:13.879 --> 00:14:15.879 She changes her name to bitterness. 00:14:16.179 --> 00:14:17.360 Mara means bitterness. 00:14:17.779 --> 00:14:18.939 Naomi means pleasantness. 00:14:19.519 --> 00:14:20.419 Mara means bitterness. 00:14:21.539 --> 00:14:22.620 And she's changed her name. 00:14:22.659 --> 00:14:23.419 She's not just saying, 00:14:23.539 --> 00:14:25.039 God's done bitter things to me 00:14:25.039 --> 00:14:26.419 or bitter things have happened to me. 00:14:26.480 --> 00:14:26.840 She's saying, 00:14:27.000 --> 00:14:28.059 bitter is who I am. 00:14:28.819 --> 00:14:29.980 That's my identity now. 00:14:29.980 --> 00:14:33.240 But despite that, 00:14:34.019 --> 00:14:37.580 she has a promise of food back home. 00:14:38.320 --> 00:14:41.080 A promise that God has been good to his people. 00:14:43.879 --> 00:14:45.060 And she heads for home. 00:14:46.539 --> 00:14:48.920 And as we carry on through the book of Ruth, 00:14:48.980 --> 00:14:49.840 it becomes really clear 00:14:49.840 --> 00:14:51.800 that Naomi's tragedy, 00:14:51.920 --> 00:14:52.700 and it is a tragedy, 00:14:52.700 --> 00:14:57.520 was not an interruption to God's plan. 00:14:58.180 --> 00:14:59.220 It was part of it. 00:15:00.400 --> 00:15:02.280 So no matter where you are tonight, 00:15:02.980 --> 00:15:04.120 no matter how you got here, 00:15:04.800 --> 00:15:06.040 whatever pain you're carrying, 00:15:06.940 --> 00:15:08.980 God is not absent from that story. 00:15:10.120 --> 00:15:12.180 And as hard as it is sometimes to hear, 00:15:12.780 --> 00:15:14.580 he's working in it all. 00:15:15.300 --> 00:15:16.520 And rather than being hard to hear, 00:15:16.580 --> 00:15:17.180 that's a comfort, 00:15:17.320 --> 00:15:18.780 because God has not left. 00:15:20.180 --> 00:15:21.420 Often, as we're going to see 00:15:21.420 --> 00:15:22.620 as we go through Ruth, 00:15:23.440 --> 00:15:24.940 God's hand is only visible 00:15:24.940 --> 00:15:26.680 with the benefit of hindsight 00:15:26.680 --> 00:15:27.740 when we look back. 00:15:29.379 --> 00:15:32.020 But as Naomi has a promise, 00:15:32.540 --> 00:15:33.820 and she's holding on to this promise, 00:15:34.400 --> 00:15:35.920 even in the midst of your suffering today, 00:15:35.960 --> 00:15:36.800 you've got a promise too. 00:15:37.740 --> 00:15:39.740 A promise of true restoration 00:15:39.740 --> 00:15:42.259 that's available for everyone through Jesus. 00:15:44.060 --> 00:15:44.920 Okay, second point. 00:15:45.560 --> 00:15:47.740 When friendship costs everything. 00:15:48.600 --> 00:15:49.840 So from the setup 00:15:49.840 --> 00:15:51.940 in this first five verses of the story, 00:15:51.940 --> 00:15:53.800 we see that Naomi's, 00:15:54.260 --> 00:15:56.560 the main character, 00:15:57.180 --> 00:15:57.740 is going to be how, 00:15:57.880 --> 00:15:59.000 what's going to happen to Naomi 00:15:59.000 --> 00:16:00.420 is what we're going to get to in the end. 00:16:00.980 --> 00:16:02.180 But Ruth's the heroine. 00:16:03.520 --> 00:16:04.680 And verse six, 00:16:04.760 --> 00:16:06.660 Naomi sets off for Bethlehem 00:16:06.660 --> 00:16:07.840 with her two daughters-in-law, 00:16:08.520 --> 00:16:09.740 Orpah and Ruth. 00:16:10.540 --> 00:16:11.540 But after a little while, 00:16:11.540 --> 00:16:12.800 she stops and she says, 00:16:13.180 --> 00:16:14.420 you guys should go home 00:16:14.420 --> 00:16:15.160 to your own families. 00:16:15.620 --> 00:16:16.220 Verse eight says, 00:16:16.220 --> 00:16:17.759 go, return each of you 00:16:17.759 --> 00:16:18.560 to your mother's house. 00:16:18.980 --> 00:16:20.779 May the Lord deal kindly with you 00:16:20.779 --> 00:16:22.440 as you've dealt with the dead 00:16:22.440 --> 00:16:23.660 and with me. 00:16:23.779 --> 00:16:24.740 And that word, 00:16:25.200 --> 00:16:25.660 kindly, 00:16:26.320 --> 00:16:27.540 that Naomi uses here 00:16:27.540 --> 00:16:28.220 is central 00:16:28.220 --> 00:16:29.680 to the whole book of Ruth. 00:16:30.680 --> 00:16:31.320 So in Hebrew, 00:16:31.460 --> 00:16:32.580 it's the word hesed, 00:16:33.240 --> 00:16:34.620 which is often translated 00:16:34.620 --> 00:16:37.379 as steadfast love. 00:16:37.379 --> 00:16:40.419 So an example of hesed love, 00:16:40.559 --> 00:16:40.980 I think, 00:16:41.059 --> 00:16:42.299 is in Genesis, 00:16:42.779 --> 00:16:43.639 right at the end, 00:16:43.820 --> 00:16:44.659 chapter 47, 00:16:45.439 --> 00:16:47.700 where Jacob is living in Egypt. 00:16:47.939 --> 00:16:49.100 He's there because of famine. 00:16:50.000 --> 00:16:51.600 And he's coming to the end of his life 00:16:51.600 --> 00:16:53.980 and he calls his son Joseph to him. 00:16:54.480 --> 00:16:56.279 And he says to Joseph, 00:16:57.200 --> 00:16:58.500 deal kindly with me. 00:16:58.939 --> 00:16:59.759 When I die, 00:17:00.379 --> 00:17:01.139 take me home 00:17:01.139 --> 00:17:03.200 and bury me in my own land. 00:17:04.039 --> 00:17:05.019 And that word kindly, 00:17:05.119 --> 00:17:05.880 deal kindly with me, 00:17:05.880 --> 00:17:07.720 is this same word hesed. 00:17:08.440 --> 00:17:09.160 And one of the things 00:17:09.160 --> 00:17:10.340 that makes this hesed 00:17:10.340 --> 00:17:12.060 is a good example of hesed 00:17:12.060 --> 00:17:13.740 is because Joseph knows 00:17:13.740 --> 00:17:14.700 that there's no way 00:17:14.700 --> 00:17:16.140 that he's going to be repaid 00:17:16.140 --> 00:17:17.340 for the love that he shows. 00:17:18.420 --> 00:17:18.900 Committed, 00:17:19.040 --> 00:17:19.600 sacrificial, 00:17:19.880 --> 00:17:20.660 faithful love 00:17:20.660 --> 00:17:21.900 with no way 00:17:21.900 --> 00:17:22.940 of getting anything back 00:17:22.940 --> 00:17:23.500 in return. 00:17:24.680 --> 00:17:25.980 And that's what Naomi says 00:17:25.980 --> 00:17:26.920 that her daughters-in-law 00:17:26.920 --> 00:17:28.300 have shown to her. 00:17:28.500 --> 00:17:29.380 And not just to her, 00:17:29.440 --> 00:17:31.340 but to her sons 00:17:31.340 --> 00:17:33.540 and to their father-in-law 00:17:33.540 --> 00:17:34.540 as well. 00:17:34.680 --> 00:17:35.460 They've done everything 00:17:35.460 --> 00:17:36.519 that could be expected 00:17:36.519 --> 00:17:36.980 of them. 00:17:38.019 --> 00:17:38.799 They've walked their 00:17:38.799 --> 00:17:39.340 mother-in-law 00:17:39.340 --> 00:17:40.539 to the edge 00:17:40.539 --> 00:17:41.759 of the town. 00:17:42.559 --> 00:17:43.259 They're free 00:17:43.259 --> 00:17:43.880 of their commitments. 00:17:45.299 --> 00:17:45.640 And so, 00:17:45.759 --> 00:17:47.000 here we see a contrast 00:17:47.000 --> 00:17:48.700 between the two women. 00:17:49.660 --> 00:17:50.380 And I think 00:17:50.380 --> 00:17:52.200 Orpah is a deliberate foil 00:17:52.200 --> 00:17:53.140 for us to see 00:17:53.140 --> 00:17:54.960 what Ruth is doing. 00:17:55.799 --> 00:17:55.940 So, 00:17:56.019 --> 00:17:56.860 Orpah goes home 00:17:56.860 --> 00:17:57.539 and she goes home 00:17:57.539 --> 00:17:58.140 to her family 00:17:58.140 --> 00:17:58.579 and she goes home 00:17:58.579 --> 00:17:59.079 to everything 00:17:59.079 --> 00:17:59.900 that she knows. 00:17:59.900 --> 00:18:01.680 And there's nothing 00:18:01.680 --> 00:18:02.320 villainous 00:18:02.320 --> 00:18:03.320 about what Orpah 00:18:03.320 --> 00:18:03.800 has done. 00:18:04.040 --> 00:18:05.480 She's not bad 00:18:05.480 --> 00:18:06.259 for choosing 00:18:06.259 --> 00:18:06.900 to do this. 00:18:07.560 --> 00:18:08.320 She's done 00:18:08.320 --> 00:18:10.000 the reasonable thing. 00:18:11.120 --> 00:18:11.240 So, 00:18:11.320 --> 00:18:11.880 Naomi's right. 00:18:12.019 --> 00:18:12.860 She's not got 00:18:12.860 --> 00:18:13.759 any more sons 00:18:13.759 --> 00:18:15.380 to give to them. 00:18:16.240 --> 00:18:17.360 And the idea 00:18:17.360 --> 00:18:18.660 of having a replacement 00:18:18.660 --> 00:18:20.380 son 00:18:20.380 --> 00:18:21.900 for marriage 00:18:21.900 --> 00:18:22.620 is something 00:18:22.620 --> 00:18:23.120 we'll come to 00:18:23.120 --> 00:18:24.019 later on in the book. 00:18:24.880 --> 00:18:25.840 It's a provision 00:18:25.840 --> 00:18:26.560 for widows 00:18:26.559 --> 00:18:27.399 and for land. 00:18:27.759 --> 00:18:28.299 We'll come back 00:18:28.299 --> 00:18:28.619 to that. 00:18:29.819 --> 00:18:30.960 But there's no future 00:18:30.960 --> 00:18:31.679 for these women 00:18:31.679 --> 00:18:33.059 in following Naomi. 00:18:34.399 --> 00:18:35.399 The sensible thing 00:18:35.399 --> 00:18:36.299 is exactly 00:18:36.299 --> 00:18:37.079 what Orpah does. 00:18:38.179 --> 00:18:39.119 But Ruth 00:18:39.119 --> 00:18:40.039 is clingy. 00:18:41.159 --> 00:18:41.399 So, 00:18:41.500 --> 00:18:41.919 Ruth means 00:18:41.919 --> 00:18:42.539 companion 00:18:42.539 --> 00:18:44.179 or friend. 00:18:44.899 --> 00:18:45.799 And she says 00:18:45.799 --> 00:18:46.919 that she's 00:18:46.919 --> 00:18:47.619 going to trust 00:18:47.619 --> 00:18:48.460 Yahweh, 00:18:48.759 --> 00:18:49.799 the God of Israel's 00:18:49.799 --> 00:18:50.339 hesed. 00:18:50.799 --> 00:18:51.440 She's going to 00:18:51.440 --> 00:18:52.419 trust his faithful 00:18:52.419 --> 00:18:52.759 love 00:18:52.759 --> 00:18:54.200 and go further 00:18:54.200 --> 00:18:55.099 by demonstrating 00:18:55.099 --> 00:18:56.099 hesed, 00:18:56.099 --> 00:18:56.959 faithful love 00:18:56.959 --> 00:18:58.000 to Naomi, 00:18:58.119 --> 00:18:58.719 her mother-in-law. 00:18:59.599 --> 00:18:59.839 So, 00:18:59.919 --> 00:19:00.379 like Joseph 00:19:00.379 --> 00:19:01.059 with Jacob, 00:19:01.899 --> 00:19:03.199 Ruth gives 00:19:03.199 --> 00:19:04.079 her steadfast love 00:19:04.079 --> 00:19:04.579 to Naomi 00:19:04.579 --> 00:19:05.519 and says, 00:19:05.559 --> 00:19:05.779 I'm going to 00:19:05.779 --> 00:19:06.279 come with you 00:19:06.279 --> 00:19:06.879 no matter what. 00:19:08.099 --> 00:19:09.139 And in this 00:19:09.139 --> 00:19:10.139 remarkable short 00:19:10.139 --> 00:19:11.459 speech that Ruth 00:19:11.459 --> 00:19:12.459 makes to Naomi, 00:19:12.539 --> 00:19:13.019 one of the most 00:19:13.019 --> 00:19:13.779 remarkable speeches 00:19:13.779 --> 00:19:14.359 I think we have 00:19:14.359 --> 00:19:14.939 in the whole Bible 00:19:14.939 --> 00:19:16.099 is amazing. 00:19:16.339 --> 00:19:17.539 In verses 16 and 17, 00:19:17.659 --> 00:19:18.039 she says, 00:19:18.679 --> 00:19:19.480 do not urge me 00:19:19.480 --> 00:19:20.000 to leave you 00:19:20.000 --> 00:19:20.699 or to return 00:19:20.699 --> 00:19:21.619 from following you. 00:19:21.980 --> 00:19:23.159 For where you go, 00:19:23.299 --> 00:19:23.919 I will go. 00:19:24.379 --> 00:19:25.240 Where you lodge, 00:19:25.359 --> 00:19:25.939 I will lodge. 00:19:26.099 --> 00:19:26.899 Your people 00:19:26.899 --> 00:19:27.899 will be my people 00:19:27.899 --> 00:19:29.279 and your God 00:19:29.279 --> 00:19:30.079 will be my God. 00:19:30.519 --> 00:19:31.419 Where you die, 00:19:31.519 --> 00:19:32.179 I will die 00:19:32.179 --> 00:19:33.119 and there will 00:19:33.119 --> 00:19:33.619 I be buried. 00:19:34.079 --> 00:19:34.679 May the Lord 00:19:34.679 --> 00:19:35.559 do so to me 00:19:35.559 --> 00:19:36.399 and more also 00:19:36.399 --> 00:19:37.619 if anything but death 00:19:37.619 --> 00:19:39.099 parts me from you. 00:19:39.500 --> 00:19:39.740 So, 00:19:39.879 --> 00:19:40.539 Ruth is making 00:19:40.539 --> 00:19:41.279 a lifelong 00:19:41.279 --> 00:19:42.980 commitment to Naomi. 00:19:43.779 --> 00:19:44.579 Wherever we go 00:19:44.579 --> 00:19:44.959 in life, 00:19:45.019 --> 00:19:45.779 we're going together. 00:19:47.240 --> 00:19:47.859 And see how 00:19:47.859 --> 00:19:48.519 the phrases 00:19:48.519 --> 00:19:49.839 that she uses 00:19:49.839 --> 00:19:50.439 increases 00:19:50.439 --> 00:19:51.459 in intensity 00:19:51.459 --> 00:19:52.319 each time? 00:19:52.679 --> 00:19:52.799 So, 00:19:52.839 --> 00:19:53.059 she goes, 00:19:53.379 --> 00:19:53.899 I'll go wherever 00:19:53.900 --> 00:19:54.340 you go 00:19:54.340 --> 00:19:55.360 and then she says, 00:19:55.440 --> 00:19:55.940 I'll live 00:19:55.940 --> 00:19:56.800 where you live 00:19:56.800 --> 00:19:57.480 and she says, 00:19:57.519 --> 00:19:57.920 I'll become 00:19:57.920 --> 00:19:58.980 one of your people 00:19:58.980 --> 00:20:00.120 and then she says, 00:20:00.160 --> 00:20:00.640 I'll worship 00:20:00.640 --> 00:20:01.280 your God 00:20:01.280 --> 00:20:03.300 and she's not 00:20:03.300 --> 00:20:03.940 just given up 00:20:03.940 --> 00:20:05.120 the beauty of Edinburgh 00:20:05.120 --> 00:20:05.780 for the mean streets 00:20:05.780 --> 00:20:06.300 of Glasgow, 00:20:06.700 --> 00:20:07.660 she's given up 00:20:07.660 --> 00:20:08.600 her whole life 00:20:08.600 --> 00:20:10.300 to follow Naomi 00:20:10.300 --> 00:20:11.920 till death 00:20:11.920 --> 00:20:12.540 do us part 00:20:12.540 --> 00:20:14.620 and even beyond 00:20:14.620 --> 00:20:15.320 death. 00:20:16.280 --> 00:20:16.840 She says, 00:20:16.880 --> 00:20:17.560 when I die, 00:20:17.800 --> 00:20:18.560 I'll be buried 00:20:18.560 --> 00:20:19.300 in your land 00:20:19.299 --> 00:20:21.180 and we can miss 00:20:21.180 --> 00:20:21.720 the significance 00:20:21.720 --> 00:20:22.299 of this 00:20:22.299 --> 00:20:23.240 as modern people 00:20:23.240 --> 00:20:24.899 because we aren't 00:20:24.899 --> 00:20:25.859 tied to land 00:20:25.859 --> 00:20:26.599 in the way 00:20:26.599 --> 00:20:28.000 that the people 00:20:28.000 --> 00:20:28.619 were in the ancient 00:20:28.619 --> 00:20:29.220 Near East. 00:20:29.759 --> 00:20:29.879 So, 00:20:29.960 --> 00:20:30.299 in the ancient 00:20:30.299 --> 00:20:31.099 Near East 00:20:31.099 --> 00:20:32.500 and pagan societies, 00:20:33.180 --> 00:20:34.099 specific gods 00:20:34.099 --> 00:20:34.680 were often 00:20:34.680 --> 00:20:35.419 associated 00:20:35.419 --> 00:20:36.879 with geographical 00:20:36.879 --> 00:20:37.879 locations. 00:20:39.119 --> 00:20:39.220 So, 00:20:39.419 --> 00:20:40.139 when Ruth says 00:20:40.139 --> 00:20:40.339 that, 00:20:40.419 --> 00:20:41.220 I'll follow you 00:20:41.220 --> 00:20:41.859 wherever you go 00:20:41.859 --> 00:20:42.559 and I'll be buried 00:20:42.559 --> 00:20:44.099 wherever you're buried, 00:20:44.599 --> 00:20:45.799 she's giving herself 00:20:45.799 --> 00:20:46.480 to Naomi 00:20:46.480 --> 00:20:47.960 for life 00:20:47.960 --> 00:20:50.259 and in the afterlife. 00:20:51.079 --> 00:20:51.880 She's entrusting 00:20:51.880 --> 00:20:52.420 herself 00:20:52.420 --> 00:20:54.059 to Naomi's God, 00:20:54.180 --> 00:20:54.620 Yahweh, 00:20:55.460 --> 00:20:56.400 the God of Israel, 00:20:57.039 --> 00:20:57.480 now 00:20:57.480 --> 00:20:58.599 and for all 00:20:58.599 --> 00:20:59.059 of eternity. 00:21:00.180 --> 00:21:01.220 And then she swears 00:21:01.220 --> 00:21:01.779 to it 00:21:01.779 --> 00:21:03.259 by Yahweh as well. 00:21:03.940 --> 00:21:04.299 So, 00:21:04.339 --> 00:21:05.019 this is a truly 00:21:05.019 --> 00:21:05.720 remarkable 00:21:05.720 --> 00:21:06.640 surrender 00:21:06.640 --> 00:21:07.259 to the God 00:21:07.259 --> 00:21:07.720 of Israel 00:21:07.720 --> 00:21:09.079 from somebody 00:21:09.079 --> 00:21:11.120 who is a total 00:21:11.120 --> 00:21:12.019 outsider, 00:21:12.200 --> 00:21:12.759 somebody who wasn't 00:21:12.759 --> 00:21:14.059 born into 00:21:14.059 --> 00:21:14.720 this people, 00:21:15.160 --> 00:21:15.880 who isn't from 00:21:15.880 --> 00:21:16.640 this land, 00:21:17.220 --> 00:21:17.700 who hasn't 00:21:17.700 --> 00:21:18.360 experienced 00:21:18.360 --> 00:21:19.240 the specific 00:21:19.240 --> 00:21:19.880 blessings 00:21:19.880 --> 00:21:21.220 that other people, 00:21:21.780 --> 00:21:22.680 others of God's 00:21:22.680 --> 00:21:23.000 people, 00:21:23.260 --> 00:21:24.140 have experienced. 00:21:25.100 --> 00:21:25.360 I mean, 00:21:25.440 --> 00:21:26.260 to this point, 00:21:27.080 --> 00:21:27.840 with the words 00:21:27.840 --> 00:21:28.900 that Naomi uses, 00:21:29.560 --> 00:21:30.300 all that Ruth 00:21:30.300 --> 00:21:31.360 really knows 00:21:31.360 --> 00:21:32.520 of Yahweh 00:21:32.520 --> 00:21:34.200 is that she is 00:21:34.200 --> 00:21:35.500 punishing her 00:21:35.500 --> 00:21:35.900 mother-in-law, 00:21:35.980 --> 00:21:36.620 or she's judging 00:21:36.620 --> 00:21:37.380 her mother-in-law, 00:21:38.160 --> 00:21:38.840 and yet, 00:21:39.600 --> 00:21:40.260 she binds 00:21:40.260 --> 00:21:41.000 herself to him 00:21:41.000 --> 00:21:42.100 through Naomi. 00:21:42.880 --> 00:21:43.120 So, 00:21:43.180 --> 00:21:43.620 we see 00:21:43.620 --> 00:21:44.660 Ruth's 00:21:44.660 --> 00:21:45.400 dedication 00:21:45.400 --> 00:21:46.480 to Naomi, 00:21:46.620 --> 00:21:47.420 utter dedication. 00:21:48.640 --> 00:21:49.000 But I think 00:21:49.000 --> 00:21:49.500 we have to 00:21:49.500 --> 00:21:50.060 question 00:21:50.060 --> 00:21:51.019 Naomi's 00:21:51.019 --> 00:21:51.940 dedication 00:21:51.940 --> 00:21:52.640 to her 00:21:52.640 --> 00:21:53.280 daughters-in-law, 00:21:54.080 --> 00:21:55.940 because she 00:21:55.940 --> 00:21:56.340 tells them 00:21:56.340 --> 00:21:56.980 to go back, 00:21:57.800 --> 00:21:58.600 back to their 00:21:58.600 --> 00:21:58.940 gods. 00:22:00.100 --> 00:22:00.380 So, 00:22:00.440 --> 00:22:00.720 I think we've 00:22:00.720 --> 00:22:01.380 got maybe two 00:22:01.380 --> 00:22:02.400 different possibilities 00:22:02.400 --> 00:22:02.720 here. 00:22:04.000 --> 00:22:05.680 Either Naomi 00:22:05.680 --> 00:22:06.460 thought that 00:22:06.460 --> 00:22:07.519 Orpah and 00:22:07.519 --> 00:22:08.880 Ruth are not 00:22:08.880 --> 00:22:09.280 the kind of 00:22:09.280 --> 00:22:09.700 people who are 00:22:09.700 --> 00:22:09.980 going to be 00:22:09.980 --> 00:22:11.259 interested in 00:22:11.259 --> 00:22:11.720 her God, 00:22:11.720 --> 00:22:11.759 God. 00:22:12.640 --> 00:22:13.160 Or she 00:22:13.160 --> 00:22:14.140 thought that 00:22:14.140 --> 00:22:14.640 the God of 00:22:14.640 --> 00:22:15.019 Israel, 00:22:15.440 --> 00:22:16.079 her God, 00:22:16.579 --> 00:22:17.160 our God, 00:22:17.620 --> 00:22:18.079 wouldn't be 00:22:18.079 --> 00:22:19.440 interested in 00:22:19.440 --> 00:22:19.720 them. 00:22:21.200 --> 00:22:21.579 You might have 00:22:21.579 --> 00:22:22.480 noticed that 00:22:22.480 --> 00:22:22.880 throughout the 00:22:22.880 --> 00:22:23.600 book so far, 00:22:24.160 --> 00:22:24.940 Ruth is 00:22:24.940 --> 00:22:26.000 referred to as 00:22:26.000 --> 00:22:27.079 the Moabite. 00:22:27.600 --> 00:22:27.819 So, 00:22:27.880 --> 00:22:28.360 that's not to 00:22:28.360 --> 00:22:28.980 distinguish her 00:22:28.980 --> 00:22:29.500 from all the 00:22:29.500 --> 00:22:30.360 other Ruths in 00:22:30.360 --> 00:22:30.740 the book. 00:22:30.839 --> 00:22:31.400 There's only one 00:22:31.400 --> 00:22:32.079 Ruth in this 00:22:32.079 --> 00:22:32.380 story. 00:22:33.120 --> 00:22:33.819 But when my 00:22:33.819 --> 00:22:34.759 God is king, 00:22:35.180 --> 00:22:35.960 when Elimelech 00:22:35.960 --> 00:22:36.460 left the 00:22:36.460 --> 00:22:37.180 promised land, 00:22:37.839 --> 00:22:38.440 he didn't just 00:22:38.440 --> 00:22:39.059 go anywhere, 00:22:39.880 --> 00:22:40.759 he went to 00:22:40.759 --> 00:22:41.480 Moab, 00:22:41.900 --> 00:22:42.380 which is 00:22:42.380 --> 00:22:43.160 Israel's 00:22:43.160 --> 00:22:43.840 ancient enemy. 00:22:45.360 --> 00:22:45.880 And just 00:22:45.880 --> 00:22:47.480 an example of 00:22:47.480 --> 00:22:48.779 how far God's 00:22:48.779 --> 00:22:49.240 hesed, 00:22:49.320 --> 00:22:50.019 God's faithful 00:22:50.019 --> 00:22:51.039 love extends, 00:22:51.740 --> 00:22:52.400 is it extends 00:22:52.400 --> 00:22:53.380 all the way 00:22:53.380 --> 00:22:54.500 to this 00:22:54.500 --> 00:22:54.920 territory, 00:22:55.279 --> 00:22:55.799 where people 00:22:55.799 --> 00:22:56.320 are enemies 00:22:56.320 --> 00:22:56.640 of his 00:22:56.640 --> 00:22:56.940 people. 00:22:58.820 --> 00:22:59.559 As New 00:22:59.559 --> 00:22:59.900 Testament 00:22:59.900 --> 00:23:00.279 believers, 00:23:01.200 --> 00:23:01.860 when we read 00:23:01.860 --> 00:23:02.740 Matthew 28, 00:23:03.059 --> 00:23:03.440 and the Great 00:23:03.440 --> 00:23:03.840 Commission, 00:23:03.940 --> 00:23:04.220 and Jesus 00:23:04.220 --> 00:23:04.860 tells us to 00:23:04.860 --> 00:23:05.279 go and make 00:23:05.279 --> 00:23:05.920 disciples of 00:23:05.920 --> 00:23:06.380 all nations, 00:23:06.460 --> 00:23:06.840 I think the 00:23:06.840 --> 00:23:07.299 question that we 00:23:07.299 --> 00:23:07.799 have to ask 00:23:07.799 --> 00:23:08.420 ourselves is, 00:23:08.440 --> 00:23:09.259 who are the 00:23:09.259 --> 00:23:10.600 Moabites in 00:23:10.600 --> 00:23:11.740 our lives? 00:23:11.820 --> 00:23:12.140 Who are the 00:23:12.140 --> 00:23:12.680 people that we 00:23:12.680 --> 00:23:14.559 live among that 00:23:14.559 --> 00:23:15.900 we think are 00:23:15.900 --> 00:23:16.380 just too 00:23:16.380 --> 00:23:18.080 different from 00:23:18.080 --> 00:23:18.500 the kind of 00:23:18.500 --> 00:23:19.120 people that 00:23:19.120 --> 00:23:19.299 would be 00:23:19.299 --> 00:23:20.740 interested in 00:23:20.740 --> 00:23:21.080 God? 00:23:21.920 --> 00:23:22.380 Or who are 00:23:22.380 --> 00:23:23.299 the people that 00:23:23.299 --> 00:23:24.059 are so far 00:23:24.059 --> 00:23:24.880 off, live 00:23:24.880 --> 00:23:26.519 life so far 00:23:26.519 --> 00:23:27.100 from what 00:23:27.100 --> 00:23:27.700 is expected 00:23:27.700 --> 00:23:28.360 of a Christian 00:23:28.360 --> 00:23:29.360 that God 00:23:29.360 --> 00:23:29.700 wouldn't be 00:23:29.700 --> 00:23:31.360 interested in 00:23:31.360 --> 00:23:31.700 them? 00:23:32.980 --> 00:23:33.640 Do we try to 00:23:33.640 --> 00:23:34.580 convince ourselves 00:23:34.580 --> 00:23:36.160 maybe that 00:23:36.160 --> 00:23:36.620 they're better 00:23:36.620 --> 00:23:37.880 off in the 00:23:37.880 --> 00:23:38.360 situation, 00:23:38.440 --> 00:23:38.759 that they're 00:23:38.759 --> 00:23:39.039 in? 00:23:39.539 --> 00:23:40.039 Because we 00:23:40.039 --> 00:23:40.779 feel uncomfortable 00:23:40.779 --> 00:23:41.600 talking to 00:23:41.600 --> 00:23:42.759 them about 00:23:42.759 --> 00:23:43.380 the eternal, 00:23:43.519 --> 00:23:43.779 about the 00:23:43.779 --> 00:23:44.220 spiritual, 00:23:45.019 --> 00:23:46.160 about faith. 00:23:47.920 --> 00:23:48.500 Remember, 00:23:48.960 --> 00:23:49.519 Corey told us 00:23:49.519 --> 00:23:49.880 this morning 00:23:49.880 --> 00:23:50.460 from James, 00:23:51.140 --> 00:23:51.500 sharing the 00:23:51.500 --> 00:23:52.140 gospel isn't 00:23:52.140 --> 00:23:53.320 casting judgment 00:23:53.320 --> 00:23:54.259 on people, 00:23:54.660 --> 00:23:55.360 on the way 00:23:55.360 --> 00:23:55.759 that they live 00:23:55.759 --> 00:23:57.160 their lives. 00:23:57.960 --> 00:23:58.480 It's a 00:23:58.480 --> 00:23:58.960 mercy. 00:23:59.820 --> 00:24:00.600 Apart from 00:24:00.600 --> 00:24:01.000 God, 00:24:01.840 --> 00:24:02.640 everybody is 00:24:02.640 --> 00:24:03.279 destitute. 00:24:03.720 --> 00:24:04.240 Everybody's 00:24:04.240 --> 00:24:04.600 dying. 00:24:04.599 --> 00:24:06.359 everybody's 00:24:06.359 --> 00:24:06.899 living in a 00:24:06.899 --> 00:24:07.500 strange land 00:24:07.500 --> 00:24:07.899 with no 00:24:07.899 --> 00:24:08.219 hope. 00:24:09.799 --> 00:24:10.959 But God's 00:24:10.959 --> 00:24:11.439 chesed, 00:24:11.519 --> 00:24:12.079 his faithful 00:24:12.079 --> 00:24:12.539 love, 00:24:13.359 --> 00:24:14.359 brings sinners, 00:24:14.799 --> 00:24:15.599 all sinners, 00:24:16.419 --> 00:24:17.059 back home 00:24:17.059 --> 00:24:18.779 when they put 00:24:18.779 --> 00:24:19.339 their faith 00:24:19.339 --> 00:24:20.279 in him. 00:24:20.279 --> 00:24:22.399 and at the 00:24:22.399 --> 00:24:23.000 same time, 00:24:24.299 --> 00:24:24.639 if this 00:24:24.639 --> 00:24:25.339 person that 00:24:25.339 --> 00:24:25.879 you think 00:24:25.879 --> 00:24:26.879 that God 00:24:26.879 --> 00:24:27.379 might not be 00:24:27.379 --> 00:24:28.039 interested in 00:24:28.039 --> 00:24:28.899 is yourself, 00:24:29.079 --> 00:24:29.519 if you think 00:24:29.519 --> 00:24:31.579 God looks at 00:24:31.579 --> 00:24:32.139 your life, 00:24:32.859 --> 00:24:33.480 sees how far 00:24:33.480 --> 00:24:34.000 you've gone, 00:24:34.099 --> 00:24:34.559 the things that 00:24:34.559 --> 00:24:35.039 you've done, 00:24:36.200 --> 00:24:37.180 the lengths 00:24:37.180 --> 00:24:37.920 that you've 00:24:37.920 --> 00:24:38.660 gone to to get 00:24:38.660 --> 00:24:39.319 away from him 00:24:39.319 --> 00:24:39.759 perhaps, 00:24:40.700 --> 00:24:41.220 and that he's 00:24:41.220 --> 00:24:41.700 not going to be 00:24:41.700 --> 00:24:42.319 interested in 00:24:42.319 --> 00:24:42.519 you, 00:24:42.779 --> 00:24:43.700 look at the 00:24:43.700 --> 00:24:44.660 lengths God 00:24:44.660 --> 00:24:45.259 goes to 00:24:45.259 --> 00:24:46.140 to save 00:24:46.140 --> 00:24:47.099 one widow 00:24:47.099 --> 00:24:48.140 from Israel's 00:24:48.140 --> 00:24:48.480 enemies. 00:24:49.980 --> 00:24:50.900 No matter how 00:24:50.900 --> 00:24:51.799 far away that 00:24:51.799 --> 00:24:52.480 you think you 00:24:52.480 --> 00:24:52.839 are, 00:24:53.599 --> 00:24:54.420 know that God 00:24:54.420 --> 00:24:55.140 is a God 00:24:55.140 --> 00:24:55.839 who loves 00:24:55.839 --> 00:24:56.859 enemies. 00:24:58.480 --> 00:24:58.660 Okay, 00:24:58.740 --> 00:24:59.140 thirdly, 00:24:59.680 --> 00:25:00.379 and finally, 00:25:01.480 --> 00:25:02.500 when it seems 00:25:02.500 --> 00:25:03.740 as though all 00:25:03.740 --> 00:25:04.359 hope is gone. 00:25:05.059 --> 00:25:05.700 In the movie 00:25:05.700 --> 00:25:06.559 Gladiator, 00:25:07.299 --> 00:25:07.819 which is one of 00:25:07.819 --> 00:25:08.359 my favorites, 00:25:08.619 --> 00:25:10.059 Maximus is the 00:25:10.059 --> 00:25:11.140 commander of the 00:25:11.140 --> 00:25:11.799 Roman armies of 00:25:11.799 --> 00:25:12.259 the north, 00:25:12.579 --> 00:25:13.119 and he's been 00:25:13.119 --> 00:25:13.759 winning battle 00:25:13.759 --> 00:25:14.579 after battle, 00:25:14.579 --> 00:25:15.740 and he's 00:25:15.740 --> 00:25:16.259 amazing, 00:25:16.740 --> 00:25:17.799 and his men 00:25:17.799 --> 00:25:18.379 love him, 00:25:19.039 --> 00:25:20.059 and the 00:25:20.059 --> 00:25:21.699 Roman emperor 00:25:21.699 --> 00:25:22.699 and the rulers, 00:25:22.960 --> 00:25:23.399 they all think 00:25:23.399 --> 00:25:23.939 he's amazing, 00:25:24.039 --> 00:25:24.460 he's got all 00:25:24.460 --> 00:25:25.059 their respect, 00:25:26.179 --> 00:25:27.079 but despite all 00:25:27.079 --> 00:25:27.639 his victories, 00:25:27.980 --> 00:25:28.939 all his praise, 00:25:29.179 --> 00:25:29.679 he can have his 00:25:29.679 --> 00:25:30.299 pick of jobs 00:25:30.299 --> 00:25:31.059 wherever he wants, 00:25:31.379 --> 00:25:32.179 all Maximus 00:25:32.179 --> 00:25:32.859 wants to do 00:25:32.859 --> 00:25:34.000 is go home. 00:25:34.699 --> 00:25:35.319 He just wants 00:25:35.319 --> 00:25:36.019 to go home 00:25:36.019 --> 00:25:37.000 to his wife, 00:25:37.099 --> 00:25:37.740 to his son, 00:25:38.039 --> 00:25:38.960 to his homestead, 00:25:39.299 --> 00:25:40.099 and live a simple 00:25:40.099 --> 00:25:40.539 life, 00:25:41.299 --> 00:25:42.299 to live in peace, 00:25:43.639 --> 00:25:44.359 but despite 00:25:44.359 --> 00:25:44.879 everything, 00:25:45.339 --> 00:25:46.359 when he leaves, 00:25:46.399 --> 00:25:47.019 he gets back, 00:25:47.079 --> 00:25:47.779 he finally gets 00:25:47.779 --> 00:25:48.039 home, 00:25:48.399 --> 00:25:49.079 and his wife 00:25:49.079 --> 00:25:49.659 and his son 00:25:49.659 --> 00:25:50.339 are dead. 00:25:51.419 --> 00:25:52.199 The house is 00:25:52.199 --> 00:25:52.679 still there, 00:25:53.139 --> 00:25:54.199 but everything 00:25:54.199 --> 00:25:54.899 that Maximus 00:25:54.899 --> 00:25:55.539 had been dreaming 00:25:55.539 --> 00:25:56.799 about while he 00:25:56.799 --> 00:25:57.599 was in the battle 00:25:57.599 --> 00:25:58.559 has gone. 00:25:58.959 --> 00:25:59.439 All the things 00:25:59.439 --> 00:25:59.959 that made it a 00:25:59.959 --> 00:26:02.399 home don't exist 00:26:02.399 --> 00:26:02.759 anymore. 00:26:04.519 --> 00:26:05.959 The place that 00:26:05.959 --> 00:26:06.819 he longed for 00:26:06.819 --> 00:26:07.419 has become a 00:26:07.419 --> 00:26:09.019 place of grief, 00:26:09.259 --> 00:26:10.099 and that's kind 00:26:10.099 --> 00:26:11.159 of what Bethlehem 00:26:11.159 --> 00:26:12.039 has become like 00:26:12.039 --> 00:26:12.940 for Naomi 00:26:12.940 --> 00:26:13.740 when she goes 00:26:13.740 --> 00:26:14.039 home. 00:26:14.519 --> 00:26:15.240 So this is the 00:26:15.240 --> 00:26:16.240 place that she 00:26:16.240 --> 00:26:16.819 belongs, 00:26:17.359 --> 00:26:18.000 but everything 00:26:18.000 --> 00:26:18.659 that made it 00:26:18.659 --> 00:26:19.159 at home 00:26:19.159 --> 00:26:21.420 has been taken 00:26:21.420 --> 00:26:21.740 away, 00:26:21.899 --> 00:26:22.700 has gone. 00:26:24.180 --> 00:26:24.980 She went out 00:26:24.980 --> 00:26:25.680 full, 00:26:26.059 --> 00:26:26.700 with a husband 00:26:26.700 --> 00:26:27.299 and kids, 00:26:27.359 --> 00:26:27.799 and she's come 00:26:27.799 --> 00:26:28.119 back, 00:26:28.159 --> 00:26:28.619 and her house 00:26:28.619 --> 00:26:29.159 is empty. 00:26:31.259 --> 00:26:32.019 Except she's 00:26:32.019 --> 00:26:33.420 not empty. 00:26:35.740 --> 00:26:36.539 Naomi couldn't 00:26:36.539 --> 00:26:37.019 have timed 00:26:37.019 --> 00:26:38.139 her return 00:26:38.140 --> 00:26:39.380 to Bethlehem 00:26:39.380 --> 00:26:40.400 any better 00:26:40.400 --> 00:26:41.060 if she tried. 00:26:42.040 --> 00:26:42.700 The story 00:26:42.700 --> 00:26:43.259 started with 00:26:43.259 --> 00:26:43.920 an ominous 00:26:43.920 --> 00:26:45.460 warning signal 00:26:45.460 --> 00:26:46.280 in the days 00:26:46.280 --> 00:26:46.780 when the judges 00:26:46.780 --> 00:26:47.220 ruled. 00:26:47.660 --> 00:26:48.420 But chapter 1 00:26:48.420 --> 00:26:49.860 ends with real 00:26:49.860 --> 00:26:50.440 hope. 00:26:51.320 --> 00:26:52.020 What might seem 00:26:52.020 --> 00:26:52.560 like an almost 00:26:52.560 --> 00:26:53.620 throwaway line, 00:26:54.380 --> 00:26:55.340 they came to 00:26:55.340 --> 00:26:56.620 Bethlehem at the 00:26:56.620 --> 00:26:57.420 beginning of 00:26:57.420 --> 00:26:58.520 barley harvest, 00:26:59.120 --> 00:27:00.220 is a promise 00:27:00.220 --> 00:27:00.980 fulfilled. 00:27:01.680 --> 00:27:02.340 The famine's 00:27:02.340 --> 00:27:02.580 over, 00:27:03.800 --> 00:27:04.840 there is once 00:27:04.840 --> 00:27:05.940 again bread in 00:27:05.940 --> 00:27:06.420 the house of 00:27:06.420 --> 00:27:06.720 bread. 00:27:07.840 --> 00:27:08.840 And it's also 00:27:08.840 --> 00:27:09.380 a sign of 00:27:09.380 --> 00:27:10.140 more to come. 00:27:10.700 --> 00:27:11.460 So barley is 00:27:11.460 --> 00:27:12.200 the first of 00:27:12.200 --> 00:27:12.900 the crops that 00:27:12.900 --> 00:27:13.259 are brought 00:27:13.259 --> 00:27:13.539 in. 00:27:15.940 --> 00:27:16.320 And that 00:27:16.320 --> 00:27:17.080 means that 00:27:17.080 --> 00:27:17.560 if barley is 00:27:17.560 --> 00:27:18.160 the first crop 00:27:18.160 --> 00:27:18.440 that's going 00:27:18.440 --> 00:27:19.100 to be brought 00:27:19.100 --> 00:27:19.360 in, 00:27:19.700 --> 00:27:20.400 there's more 00:27:20.400 --> 00:27:21.480 to come. 00:27:21.560 --> 00:27:21.759 If there's 00:27:21.759 --> 00:27:22.460 bread today, 00:27:22.580 --> 00:27:22.840 there's going 00:27:22.840 --> 00:27:23.400 to be more 00:27:23.400 --> 00:27:24.160 bread, 00:27:24.259 --> 00:27:24.640 more good 00:27:24.640 --> 00:27:25.060 stuff to 00:27:25.060 --> 00:27:25.920 follow in 00:27:25.920 --> 00:27:26.380 the future. 00:27:28.220 --> 00:27:28.759 But as 00:27:28.759 --> 00:27:29.140 well as 00:27:29.140 --> 00:27:29.279 that, 00:27:29.320 --> 00:27:29.840 as well as 00:27:29.840 --> 00:27:30.240 food, 00:27:31.779 --> 00:27:32.440 Naomi also 00:27:32.440 --> 00:27:32.960 has Ruth. 00:27:34.220 --> 00:27:34.660 In verse 00:27:34.660 --> 00:27:35.120 19, 00:27:35.220 --> 00:27:35.580 the two of 00:27:35.580 --> 00:27:36.200 them arrive 00:27:36.200 --> 00:27:36.980 in Bethlehem 00:27:36.980 --> 00:27:37.559 and the 00:27:37.559 --> 00:27:38.380 whole town 00:27:38.380 --> 00:27:38.799 is in 00:27:38.799 --> 00:27:39.440 uproar, 00:27:39.539 --> 00:27:39.680 it's in 00:27:39.680 --> 00:27:40.160 a stir. 00:27:40.840 --> 00:27:41.220 And the 00:27:41.220 --> 00:27:41.559 women of 00:27:41.559 --> 00:27:41.940 the town, 00:27:42.039 --> 00:27:42.259 they say, 00:27:42.319 --> 00:27:42.680 this can't 00:27:42.680 --> 00:27:43.180 be Naomi, 00:27:43.340 --> 00:27:43.600 is it? 00:27:44.200 --> 00:27:44.840 So they 00:27:44.840 --> 00:27:45.620 don't mention 00:27:45.620 --> 00:27:47.220 at all the 00:27:47.220 --> 00:27:47.720 young woman 00:27:47.720 --> 00:27:48.380 that's with 00:27:48.380 --> 00:27:48.600 her. 00:27:49.840 --> 00:27:50.920 When Naomi 00:27:50.920 --> 00:27:51.840 says that 00:27:51.840 --> 00:27:52.160 she's come 00:27:52.160 --> 00:27:53.039 back empty, 00:27:53.740 --> 00:27:54.319 Ruth's invisible 00:27:54.319 --> 00:27:55.140 to Naomi too. 00:27:56.380 --> 00:27:57.200 But just as 00:27:57.200 --> 00:27:57.840 we finish, 00:27:58.880 --> 00:27:59.440 let's jump 00:27:59.440 --> 00:28:00.460 back a little 00:28:00.460 --> 00:28:02.100 bit to Naomi's 00:28:02.100 --> 00:28:03.440 speech in 00:28:03.440 --> 00:28:04.200 verse 16 and 00:28:04.200 --> 00:28:04.640 17. 00:28:04.640 --> 00:28:05.940 let's just 00:28:05.940 --> 00:28:06.460 read those 00:28:06.460 --> 00:28:07.280 amazing words 00:28:07.280 --> 00:28:08.000 again. 00:28:09.080 --> 00:28:09.440 Because Ruth 00:28:09.440 --> 00:28:09.920 says, 00:28:10.920 --> 00:28:11.360 do not urge 00:28:11.360 --> 00:28:11.860 me to leave 00:28:11.860 --> 00:28:12.759 you or to 00:28:12.759 --> 00:28:13.300 return from 00:28:13.300 --> 00:28:14.000 following you. 00:28:14.780 --> 00:28:15.440 For where 00:28:15.440 --> 00:28:15.860 you go, 00:28:15.940 --> 00:28:16.420 I will go. 00:28:16.920 --> 00:28:17.340 Where you 00:28:17.340 --> 00:28:17.640 lodge, 00:28:17.700 --> 00:28:18.220 I will lodge. 00:28:18.680 --> 00:28:19.259 Your people 00:28:19.259 --> 00:28:19.660 will be my 00:28:19.660 --> 00:28:20.259 people and 00:28:20.259 --> 00:28:20.780 your God, 00:28:20.960 --> 00:28:21.440 my God. 00:28:22.000 --> 00:28:22.500 Where you 00:28:22.500 --> 00:28:22.840 die, 00:28:22.920 --> 00:28:23.500 I will die 00:28:23.500 --> 00:28:23.960 and there 00:28:23.960 --> 00:28:24.380 will I be 00:28:24.380 --> 00:28:24.640 buried. 00:28:25.220 --> 00:28:25.560 May the 00:28:25.560 --> 00:28:26.000 Lord do 00:28:26.000 --> 00:28:26.660 so to me 00:28:26.660 --> 00:28:27.180 and more 00:28:27.180 --> 00:28:27.660 also of 00:28:27.660 --> 00:28:28.759 anything but 00:28:28.759 --> 00:28:29.759 death parts 00:28:29.759 --> 00:28:30.740 me from 00:28:30.740 --> 00:28:31.000 you. 00:28:31.000 --> 00:28:31.619 What is 00:28:31.619 --> 00:28:32.440 Ruth actually 00:28:32.440 --> 00:28:33.940 saying here? 00:28:34.380 --> 00:28:34.980 So she's 00:28:34.980 --> 00:28:35.420 saying I'll 00:28:35.420 --> 00:28:35.819 be with 00:28:35.819 --> 00:28:36.079 you. 00:28:36.220 --> 00:28:36.460 She's 00:28:36.460 --> 00:28:36.799 saying I'll 00:28:36.799 --> 00:28:37.220 go with 00:28:37.220 --> 00:28:37.559 you. 00:28:37.880 --> 00:28:38.119 She's 00:28:38.119 --> 00:28:38.579 saying I 00:28:38.579 --> 00:28:39.140 won't ever 00:28:39.140 --> 00:28:39.519 leave you. 00:28:39.579 --> 00:28:39.859 But she's 00:28:39.859 --> 00:28:40.240 saying something 00:28:40.240 --> 00:28:40.920 else as well. 00:28:41.180 --> 00:28:41.660 She's saying 00:28:41.660 --> 00:28:42.680 I'll take 00:28:42.680 --> 00:28:43.319 your place. 00:28:44.660 --> 00:28:45.420 Because Naomi 00:28:45.420 --> 00:28:46.400 is a childless 00:28:46.400 --> 00:28:47.460 widow with 00:28:47.460 --> 00:28:48.099 no way of 00:28:48.099 --> 00:28:48.720 saving herself 00:28:48.720 --> 00:28:49.279 in a strange 00:28:49.279 --> 00:28:49.640 land. 00:28:50.759 --> 00:28:51.200 And Ruth 00:28:51.200 --> 00:28:52.480 is saying I'll 00:28:52.480 --> 00:28:52.740 be the 00:28:52.740 --> 00:28:53.119 childless 00:28:53.119 --> 00:28:54.339 widow in 00:28:54.339 --> 00:28:54.799 a strange 00:28:54.799 --> 00:28:56.220 land so 00:28:56.220 --> 00:28:56.740 you can go 00:28:56.740 --> 00:28:57.000 home. 00:28:57.000 --> 00:28:58.180 I'll 00:28:58.180 --> 00:28:58.519 substitute 00:28:58.519 --> 00:28:59.119 myself 00:28:59.119 --> 00:29:00.480 for you 00:29:00.480 --> 00:29:01.799 because I 00:29:01.799 --> 00:29:02.099 love you 00:29:02.099 --> 00:29:02.579 to death. 00:29:04.460 --> 00:29:05.119 So Naomi's 00:29:05.119 --> 00:29:05.660 lost both 00:29:05.660 --> 00:29:06.079 kinds of 00:29:06.079 --> 00:29:06.299 seed. 00:29:06.960 --> 00:29:07.160 She's 00:29:07.160 --> 00:29:08.000 lost food 00:29:08.000 --> 00:29:08.980 and she's 00:29:08.980 --> 00:29:09.880 lost offspring. 00:29:10.140 --> 00:29:10.420 One of 00:29:10.420 --> 00:29:10.740 them has 00:29:10.740 --> 00:29:11.319 been restored. 00:29:11.880 --> 00:29:12.099 There's 00:29:12.099 --> 00:29:13.319 food in 00:29:13.319 --> 00:29:15.019 Bethlehem. 00:29:16.940 --> 00:29:17.619 And in 00:29:17.619 --> 00:29:18.240 this moment 00:29:18.240 --> 00:29:19.700 Ruth is a 00:29:19.700 --> 00:29:21.200 picture of 00:29:21.200 --> 00:29:21.579 the other 00:29:21.579 --> 00:29:22.000 kind of 00:29:22.000 --> 00:29:23.180 seed that's 00:29:23.180 --> 00:29:23.480 coming. 00:29:24.500 --> 00:29:25.140 The great 00:29:25.140 --> 00:29:25.579 ultimate 00:29:25.579 --> 00:29:26.460 offspring. 00:29:27.000 --> 00:29:27.579 of the 00:29:27.579 --> 00:29:28.140 land of 00:29:28.140 --> 00:29:28.660 Bethlehem. 00:29:29.640 --> 00:29:30.039 Jesus. 00:29:31.200 --> 00:29:32.240 The friend 00:29:32.240 --> 00:29:32.759 who sticks 00:29:32.759 --> 00:29:33.940 closer than 00:29:33.940 --> 00:29:34.279 a loving 00:29:34.279 --> 00:29:34.980 daughter-in-law. 00:29:35.759 --> 00:29:36.619 The one 00:29:36.619 --> 00:29:37.200 who chose 00:29:37.200 --> 00:29:37.559 to put 00:29:37.559 --> 00:29:38.279 himself into 00:29:38.279 --> 00:29:39.579 exile to 00:29:39.579 --> 00:29:40.000 save his 00:29:40.000 --> 00:29:40.319 people. 00:29:41.579 --> 00:29:42.240 People have 00:29:42.240 --> 00:29:43.079 likened 00:29:43.079 --> 00:29:43.880 Naomi's 00:29:43.880 --> 00:29:44.880 story here 00:29:44.880 --> 00:29:45.759 to the 00:29:45.759 --> 00:29:46.160 prodigal 00:29:46.160 --> 00:29:46.480 son. 00:29:47.000 --> 00:29:47.240 So the 00:29:47.240 --> 00:29:47.599 prodigal 00:29:47.599 --> 00:29:48.500 son in 00:29:48.500 --> 00:29:48.720 the New 00:29:48.720 --> 00:29:49.000 Testament, 00:29:49.099 --> 00:29:49.440 the parable 00:29:49.440 --> 00:29:49.799 of Jesus 00:29:49.799 --> 00:29:50.240 says, 00:29:50.519 --> 00:29:50.799 goes out 00:29:50.799 --> 00:29:51.119 into a 00:29:51.119 --> 00:29:51.400 strange 00:29:51.400 --> 00:29:53.000 land and 00:29:53.000 --> 00:29:53.380 loses 00:29:53.380 --> 00:29:53.920 everything. 00:29:54.140 --> 00:29:54.240 Is 00:29:54.240 --> 00:29:54.940 destitute 00:29:54.940 --> 00:29:56.000 and is 00:29:56.000 --> 00:29:56.619 dying. 00:29:56.619 --> 00:29:57.319 Until he 00:29:57.319 --> 00:29:57.799 remembers 00:29:57.799 --> 00:29:58.479 his father's 00:29:58.479 --> 00:29:58.679 house, 00:29:58.759 --> 00:29:59.179 his bread 00:29:59.179 --> 00:29:59.559 enough 00:29:59.559 --> 00:29:59.839 and to 00:29:59.839 --> 00:30:00.139 spare. 00:30:00.339 --> 00:30:00.579 And he 00:30:00.579 --> 00:30:01.039 returns 00:30:01.039 --> 00:30:02.259 home. 00:30:02.699 --> 00:30:03.000 And when 00:30:03.000 --> 00:30:03.359 he gets 00:30:03.359 --> 00:30:03.639 home, 00:30:04.059 --> 00:30:04.599 his brother, 00:30:04.759 --> 00:30:05.259 his jealous 00:30:05.259 --> 00:30:05.939 older brother, 00:30:06.339 --> 00:30:06.879 won't come 00:30:06.879 --> 00:30:07.259 into the 00:30:07.259 --> 00:30:08.519 feast because 00:30:08.519 --> 00:30:09.699 he's jealous 00:30:09.699 --> 00:30:10.299 of this 00:30:10.299 --> 00:30:10.919 younger son 00:30:10.919 --> 00:30:11.759 and what's 00:30:11.759 --> 00:30:12.219 happening to 00:30:12.219 --> 00:30:12.439 him. 00:30:13.839 --> 00:30:14.239 But in 00:30:14.239 --> 00:30:14.500 Jesus, 00:30:15.039 --> 00:30:15.599 we've got an 00:30:15.599 --> 00:30:16.119 older brother 00:30:16.119 --> 00:30:16.819 as well. 00:30:18.339 --> 00:30:18.799 He doesn't 00:30:18.799 --> 00:30:19.479 just welcome 00:30:19.479 --> 00:30:20.239 his home. 00:30:21.359 --> 00:30:21.719 The older 00:30:21.719 --> 00:30:22.019 brother, 00:30:22.079 --> 00:30:22.459 our older 00:30:22.459 --> 00:30:22.739 brother, 00:30:22.879 --> 00:30:23.179 Jesus, 00:30:23.180 --> 00:30:24.019 he went 00:30:24.019 --> 00:30:24.980 out into 00:30:24.980 --> 00:30:25.500 exile, 00:30:25.660 --> 00:30:26.400 leaving all 00:30:26.400 --> 00:30:27.039 the comforts 00:30:27.039 --> 00:30:27.400 of home 00:30:27.400 --> 00:30:29.140 to carry 00:30:29.140 --> 00:30:30.500 you back 00:30:30.500 --> 00:30:31.500 on his 00:30:31.500 --> 00:30:31.799 shoulders. 00:30:32.680 --> 00:30:33.100 And this 00:30:33.100 --> 00:30:33.380 is what 00:30:33.380 --> 00:30:33.779 Ruth is 00:30:33.779 --> 00:30:34.259 pointing us 00:30:34.259 --> 00:30:34.500 to. 00:30:35.600 --> 00:30:36.080 Jesus, 00:30:36.880 --> 00:30:37.400 who's from 00:30:37.400 --> 00:30:38.160 the offspring 00:30:38.160 --> 00:30:38.779 of Naomi, 00:30:39.900 --> 00:30:40.480 who saw 00:30:40.480 --> 00:30:41.560 us poor, 00:30:42.320 --> 00:30:42.740 dying 00:30:42.740 --> 00:30:43.140 sinners, 00:30:43.299 --> 00:30:43.860 exiled in 00:30:43.860 --> 00:30:44.279 a strange 00:30:44.279 --> 00:30:45.360 land with 00:30:45.360 --> 00:30:46.060 no way of 00:30:46.060 --> 00:30:46.279 saving 00:30:46.279 --> 00:30:46.720 ourselves, 00:30:46.820 --> 00:30:47.019 and he 00:30:47.019 --> 00:30:47.340 said, 00:30:47.680 --> 00:30:48.440 I'll take 00:30:48.440 --> 00:30:49.019 your place. 00:30:49.019 --> 00:30:51.000 I'll take 00:30:51.000 --> 00:30:51.839 your brokenness, 00:30:52.119 --> 00:30:52.759 your suffering, 00:30:53.359 --> 00:30:53.900 all your 00:30:53.900 --> 00:30:54.359 pain, 00:30:55.019 --> 00:30:55.480 your every 00:30:55.480 --> 00:30:56.500 wrong turn, 00:30:57.240 --> 00:30:57.599 your every 00:30:57.599 --> 00:30:58.500 angry word, 00:30:59.559 --> 00:30:59.879 your every 00:30:59.879 --> 00:31:00.700 bad thought, 00:31:01.220 --> 00:31:01.920 I'll take 00:31:01.920 --> 00:31:02.519 them all the 00:31:02.519 --> 00:31:03.420 way to 00:31:03.420 --> 00:31:03.920 the cross. 00:31:04.559 --> 00:31:05.379 I'll substitute 00:31:05.379 --> 00:31:06.079 myself for 00:31:06.079 --> 00:31:07.720 you so you 00:31:07.720 --> 00:31:09.420 can come to 00:31:09.420 --> 00:31:09.839 your true 00:31:09.839 --> 00:31:10.859 home, to 00:31:10.859 --> 00:31:11.420 your loving 00:31:11.420 --> 00:31:12.200 God. 00:31:13.119 --> 00:31:13.839 Jesus, who 00:31:13.839 --> 00:31:14.139 the New 00:31:14.139 --> 00:31:14.680 Testament calls 00:31:14.680 --> 00:31:15.319 the bread of 00:31:15.319 --> 00:31:16.299 life, he 00:31:16.299 --> 00:31:16.920 came to 00:31:16.920 --> 00:31:18.039 save us, 00:31:18.379 --> 00:31:19.000 to heal us, 00:31:19.019 --> 00:31:19.779 from all our 00:31:19.779 --> 00:31:21.220 sufferings, and 00:31:21.220 --> 00:31:22.240 to satisfy our 00:31:22.240 --> 00:31:23.220 deepest desires 00:31:23.220 --> 00:31:23.960 forever. 00:31:25.059 --> 00:31:25.759 Let's pray. 00:31:28.259 --> 00:31:29.200 Lord God, we 00:31:29.200 --> 00:31:29.819 thank you that 00:31:29.819 --> 00:31:30.279 when we were 00:31:30.279 --> 00:31:31.079 far from you, 00:31:31.579 --> 00:31:32.200 in a strange 00:31:32.200 --> 00:31:33.559 place, lost, 00:31:34.000 --> 00:31:35.059 starving, no 00:31:35.059 --> 00:31:35.740 means of saving 00:31:35.740 --> 00:31:37.279 ourselves, you 00:31:37.279 --> 00:31:37.839 sent your son 00:31:37.839 --> 00:31:38.559 Jesus to come 00:31:38.559 --> 00:31:39.799 for us and 00:31:39.799 --> 00:31:40.420 bring us home. 00:31:40.960 --> 00:31:41.559 Now we thank 00:31:41.559 --> 00:31:42.079 you that as we 00:31:42.079 --> 00:31:43.440 journey through 00:31:43.440 --> 00:31:45.440 life's challenges, 00:31:45.980 --> 00:31:47.700 we're never truly 00:31:47.700 --> 00:31:48.579 alone because we 00:31:48.579 --> 00:31:49.000 have one who 00:31:49.000 --> 00:31:49.660 sticks closer 00:31:49.660 --> 00:31:50.200 than a brother, 00:31:50.779 --> 00:31:51.380 closer than a 00:31:51.380 --> 00:31:52.240 loving daughter-in-law 00:31:52.240 --> 00:31:53.140 who will never 00:31:53.140 --> 00:31:54.519 leave us, who 00:31:54.519 --> 00:31:55.539 demonstrated that 00:31:55.539 --> 00:31:58.539 chesed love to 00:31:58.539 --> 00:31:59.940 us by laying 00:31:59.940 --> 00:32:00.759 down his life 00:32:00.759 --> 00:32:01.980 for ours. 00:32:02.819 --> 00:32:03.579 Lord, thank you 00:32:03.579 --> 00:32:04.119 that in Jesus you 00:32:04.119 --> 00:32:06.000 reveal to us the 00:32:06.000 --> 00:32:06.700 extent of your 00:32:06.700 --> 00:32:06.980 love. 00:32:07.839 --> 00:32:08.240 So tonight, 00:32:08.339 --> 00:32:09.779 right now, we 00:32:09.779 --> 00:32:10.440 can lay all our 00:32:10.440 --> 00:32:11.160 hurts, our grief, 00:32:11.259 --> 00:32:12.000 our sorrow before 00:32:12.000 --> 00:32:13.460 you because we 00:32:13.460 --> 00:32:14.059 know that you're 00:32:14.059 --> 00:32:14.619 the one who can 00:32:14.619 --> 00:32:15.339 offer us peace, 00:32:15.339 --> 00:32:16.500 and who will 00:32:16.500 --> 00:32:17.279 ultimately wipe 00:32:17.279 --> 00:32:18.039 every tear from 00:32:18.039 --> 00:32:19.339 every eye and 00:32:19.339 --> 00:32:20.220 satisfy your deepest 00:32:20.220 --> 00:32:20.679 desires. 00:32:21.699 --> 00:32:23.299 We pray this in the 00:32:23.299 --> 00:32:23.839 name of Jesus, 00:32:23.980 --> 00:32:24.779 the bread of life. 00:32:25.459 --> 00:32:25.819 Amen. 00:32:25.819 --> 00:32:25.879 Amen.