Lesson 5: The Book of Ruth - God is faithful

Hello Everyone,

I pray that everyone had a blessed week last week. I know personally, God has truly been challenging me in my life. Not only through these lessons, but through my church bible studies, personal bible studies, life challenges and faith walk.  The more I delve into the word of God and strive to walk closer with Him, the more challenged I am to make pertinent changes in my own life.  How could I possibly post this blog weekly and broadcast the word of God to all of you if I am not willing to grow in it myself?

Lately, the attacks of the enemy have been centered around my physical body and spiritual development.  It is mind boggling how the two will go together.  Both parties work harmoniously for you or against you.  If your body is weak, it starts to affect the mind which can sometime determine the spiritual health, and vise verso.  However, God is a God of faithfulness (Psalm 91:3-6).

This week we will discuss God's faithfulness. God is an ever present help (Psalm 46:1).  We cannot assess with our finite minds the level of faithfulness God has towards us.  We practice unfaithfulness as often as we can based on God's definition of faithfulness.  God was faithful to the Israelites despite their griping and complaining.  God was faithful to David despite his adulterous and deceitful ways. God was faithful to Peter, Paul, and even Judas.  Do we have the faithfulness of our Lord and Savior?

Ruth did, and God sent her Boaz.

Resource

Ruth 3: 6-18

6 So she went down to the threshing floor and did according to all that her mother-in-law instructed her. 7 And after Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was cheerful, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain; and she came softly, uncovered his feet, and lay down. 8 Now it happened at midnight that the man was startled, and turned himself; and there, a woman was lying at his feet. 9 And he said, "Who are you?" So she answered, "I am Ruth, your maidservant. Take your maidservant under your wing, for you are a close relative." 10 Then he said, "Blessed are you of the Lord, my daughter! For you have shown more kindness at the end than at the beginning, in that you did not go after young men, whether poor or rich. 11 And now, my daughter, do not fear.  I will do for you all that you request, for all the people of my town know that you are a virtuous woman. 12 Now it is true that I am a close relative; however, there is a relative closer than I.  13 Stay this night, and in the morning it shall be that if he will perform the duty of a close relative for-good; let him do it.  But if he does not want to perform the duty for you, then I will perform the duty for you, as the Lord lives! Lie down until morning". 14 So she lay at his feet until morning, and she arose before one could recognize another.  Then he said, "Do not let it be known that the woman came to the threshing floor."  15 Also he said, "Bring the shawl that is on you and hold it." And when she held it, he measured six ephahs of barley, and laid it on her. Then she went into the city.  16 When she came to her mother-in-law, she said, "Is that you, my daughter?" Then she told her all that the man had done for her. 17  And she said, "These sixephahs of barley he gave me; for he said to me, "Do not go empty-handed to your mother-in-law." 18 Then she said, "Sit still, my daughter, until you know how the matter will turn out; for the man will not rest until he has concluded the matter this day."

Faithfulness - fidelity; steadfastness; allegiance; loyalty

Lesson

The definition of faithfulness alone sparks a conviction of my own inapt attempt at faithfulness.  When the definition is combined with the biblical context, it creates a new level of desire for God's help; God's help to practice faithfulness.

Ruth practiced humility, she exhibited obedience and she was faithful.  She was all of these things to God that she hardly knew.  We know God and we have trouble practicing these characteristics.  Because Ruth was honoring her mother-in-law, a servant of God, then Ruth was honoring God.  She practiced faithfulness out of obedience and humility.

The importance of loyal love is evident in the Book of Ruth (Allen, House, & Radmacher 1999). Loyalty is a characteristic of faithfulness.  Ruth practiced a level of faithfulness without the prospect of reward.  She left her own homeland in Naomi's time of need (Allen, House, & Radmacher 1999).  Ruth's faithfulness was evident in the eyes of God.

Not only does this passage reveal Ruth's faithfulness, it also brings light to what type of woman she was and what type of man Boaz was.  In verse 11, Ruth is described as a virtuous woman.  Many commentaries describe a virtuous woman based on the Proverbs 31; which in many translations she is married.  However, when the original scriptures were translated into English the description was diluted through the translation.  Therefore a virtuous woman as depicted in Proverbs 31 does not necessarily have to be married; verse 11 of Ruth supports this notion.  Ruth was clearly widowed (single) and is denoted as a virtuous woman in verse 11 of Ruth.  The relevance of this is that she is practicing the principles of the virtuous woman; she is positioning herself to receive her blessing.  This part is for you single women! Furthermore, she is positioning herself, unknowingly, to a Godly man; Boaz!  By staying humble, practicing obedience and exhibiting faithfulness to the authority that God placed over her, Ruth positioned herself to receive Boaz!!!

Ruth's faithfulness brought her Boaz, a Godly man, unwilling to tarnish her existing identity as a virtuous woman (verse 14).  Not only does he honor her as a virtuous woman, he introduces a closer walk with God (verse 12) and covers her (verse 13), then blesses her (verse 15).  Hallelujah!!!  Oh the glory of God through our faithfulness!!!  These are the characteristics that will identify your God sent Boaz single women!!

Could you imagine the overflow of blesses that God would release if we would just practice some faithfulness!!  I am overwhelmed at the possibilities of God's greatness!!

While this message carries a strong baring to single women, it is definitely universal to areas of all lives.  We all have areas where we could be a little more humble, obedient and faithful to the avail of God.

Application

This week we will pick one area of focus in our lives where we strive to be a little more faithful.  I charge us all to take that extra step of inconvenience to ourselves in order to practice faithfulness.  Make the sacrifice and bless the kingdom of God through your faithfulness in one area.  I would love to hear some testimonials.

I pray that you all will have a blessed week!

Be blessed,

T. Carter

References

All scriptures are extracted from The Bible - New King James Version. YouVersion (2013)

Allen, Ronald B., House, H. Wayne, & Radmacher, Earl (1999). New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Thomas Nelson Publishing.  Nashville, Tennessee.

Henry, Matthew (1999). Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible.  Nelson Publishing. Nashville, Tennessee.

Lesson 4: The Book of Ruth - Obedience to Positioning

Hello Everyone,

I pray that you all have had a blessed week. Have you been practicing humility and expecting God's favor? Last week's lesson really helped me reflect on all the many times God has graced me with His favor. Just the fact that I am here living out Lord for Him is evidence of His favor. 

Additionally, focusing on humility has definitely challenged me. Placing the mirror on myself and really seeing my own pride has caused me to make some necessary changes to the blind spots of pride in my life.  This walk with Christ is a process and we should be ever changing and growing in Him. He doesn't change, BUT WE MUST CHANGE, to become more like Him (Hebrews 13:8, Malachi 3:6, Psalm 102:25-27). We are born into to sin and through redemption in Him we are saved (Psalm 51:5-6). That redemption is a source of change (Galatians 2:20, Colossians 1:14, Ephesians 1:7-14).

This redemption, this change, can only come when we open our hearts to the Lord, our Savior.  To be open to Him is to have a teachable spirit, open to changing, submissiveness, humility, and obedience. That brings us to what we will discuss today, obedience to positioning. We will see how Ruth humbled herself from last lesson, practices humility and positions herself in this lesson.

RESOURCE

Ruth 3:1-5

Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, “My daughter, shall I not seek security for you, that it may be well with you? Now Boaz, whose young women you were with, is he not our relative? In fact, he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor. Therefore wash yourself and anoint yourself, put on your best garment and go down to the threshing floor; but do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. Then it shall be, when he lies down, that you shall notice the place where he lies; and you shall go in, uncover his feet, and lie down; and he will tell you what you should do.” And she said to her, “All that you say to me I will do.” 

Obedience - dutiful or submissive behavior with respect; the trait of being willing; pleasing behavior

Positioning - putting something/someone in a certain; to be in line or in position; emplacement

LESSON

So many sermons and bible studies focus on the loyalty of Ruth to her mother-in-law; it is definitely the claim to fame for this book of the bible. However, there is so much rich content in this book and it has so many more of God's principles to offer to us. The deeper we go into the study of the Book of Ruth, the greater the possibility to learn God's purpose for us in regards to its content.

Here we see Naomi exhibiting the qualities of the woman depicted in Titus 2 (Titus 2:3-5). Naomi is practicing obedience to the Lord our Savior, by teaching and guiding Ruth towards positioning herself. The obedience started with Naomi. Her wisdom projected these things for her daughter (Henry 1999).  Naomi was obedient to God and to the laws of the land (Romans 13). Naomi was mindful of the authority that God placed over her; she honored the present laws in place and approached them in a meek, modest, and humble manner. She instructed Ruth in accordance to the laws of the present time and guided Ruth to her God ordained position.  Naomi set the foundation for Ruth's obedience (Titus 2:7).  

Then Ruth, being the of a humble spirit operated in the example of obedience that Naomi exhibited. Ruth did just as Naomi instructed in order to position herself for God's blessing. We must step outside of our own selves in order to receive what God has for us. He knows better for us than we know for ourselves (Luke 12:7, Matthew 10:30). Yet, we operate in our might and our own will (Zechariah 4:7).  We are looking for things from God but we are unwilling to operate in His purpose for us to obtain them. We have to believe God will do what He says He will do (Moore 2008). His promises are from everlasting to everlasting (Psalms 145:13). We must stand firm on His promises for our lives and act accordingly (Ephesians 5:17).

What does this look like in our lives? We must heed the word of God when He is speaking to us directly, through people that He has placed in authority over us, and who He has sent to give us wise counsel.  Single women, you can honor God by positioning yourselves through the wisdom of a Titus 2 woman for God to send your groom and/or build a ministry in you (Titus 2:4-5)  Married women, you can honor God by willfully submitting to the authority God has placed over you in your husband and watch God bless your marriage to be a blessing not only to you and your husband, but to others (Ephesians 5: 22-23). Men, submit yourselves to Christ and watch God pour out a supernatural blessing that you could not conceive (James 4:7&10).  All of these acts start with obedience; obedience to the word of God, obedience to the authority over your life, obedience to God's plans for your lives, and most of all direct obedience to God. Obedience positions us to God's blessing for us. 

APPLICATION

This week I want us to challenge ourselves to a new level of consciousness. When we studied Esther, we talked about obedience and we practiced obedience in the application portion of that lesson. This time we will add humility, meekness, and surrending to the word of God in order to find the level of obedience that God is requiring of us. The type of obedience that will position us to receive answers to prayers, changes in our situations, inconceivable blessings from heaven, and draw us closer to Christ. I challenge us all to rise early in the morning and seek God for the areas/situations in our lives that require this type of obedience that leads to positioning. Picture yourself being blindfolded and being lead by the awesome wondrous God! You have your life's blueprint of blessings to go by, in addition to God's word, faith, trust, and now obedience. How wonderful it could be!

I pray that God will reveal His many blessings for our lives to us on this journey.

Have a blessed week!

Be blessed,

T. Carter

REFERENCES

All scriptures are extracted from The Bible - New King James Version.  YouVersion (2013).

Henry, Matthew (1999). Mathew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible.  Nelson Publishing.  Nashville, Tennessee

Moore, Beth (2008). Believing God Day by Day. B & H Publishing. Nashville, Tennessee 

Lesson 2: The Book of Ruth - Humility

Hello Everyone,

I pray that you all had a blessed week this week.  I hope that you had a blessed time in the Lord discovering and assessing your many choices.  We are granted so many choices in life that we sometimes take for granted the freedom of choice that we experience everyday.  While God is the author and finisher of all, He still provides us with the opportunity to choose (Proverbs 16:9).

Ruth's choice spoke of her humility to serve.  She was not concerned about her own livelihood.  She was most concerned about her mother-in-law Naomi.

I pray that as we move from choices to humility that we all will assess our humility towards the choices we make.

Resource

Ruth 2: 1-3

There was a relative of Naomi's husband, a man of great wealth, of the family of Elimelech. His name was Boaz.  2 So Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, "Please let me go to the field, and glean heads of grain after him in whose sight I may find favor."  And she said to her, "Go, my daughter."  3 The she left, and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers.  And she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech.

Humility - a disposition without conceit or pride; a lack of false pride


Lesson

Observe Ruth's humility, when Providence had made her poor, she cheerfully stoops to her lot (Henry 1997).  Ruth had lived a very comfortable life with her husband and his family.  It is alleged that she had not experienced any true labor and hardship until now.  However, she possessed the humility necessary to submit to her circumstance for survival.

Ruth practiced a good heart even though she was not truly familiar with the God of Naomi.  Ruth was a Moabitess and her people pagans; serving many gods and goddesses, but not the one true living God (Mears 1999).  Nevertheless, Ruth exhibits the principles of humility that God honors.  She is not too prideful to go work.

Some commentaries dispute the motives of Ruth, however, the common thread is that she worked in order to obtain a better circumstance, not just for herself, but for her family too, Naomi.  She left her homeland in order to be with Naomi in a time of need (Allen, House, & Radmacher 1999).  Therefore, her motives are exhibited from the initial introduction of Ruth in the bible.  She is gracious and humble from the start despite the devastation she has experienced in her own life.

We may not demand kindness as a debt, but ask, and take it as a favour, but Ruth was an example of industry and did not eat from the plate of idleness (Henry 1997). Instead Ruth exhibited humility and worked as hard as the men in the field which allowed Boaz to take notice of her.

There are so many areas in our lives where we have the opportunity to practice humility.  Silence is an act of humility; we don't always have to say what we are thinking (Shirer 2011).  Sometimes committing to the act of silence can be the grandest appearance of humility.  Christ has called us to practice humility in every area of our lives (Micah 6:8).

God wisely orders what seem to us small events; and those that appear altogether uncertain, still are directed to serve his own glory, and the good of his people (Henry 1997).   We cannot imagine His rewards if we would just practice humility and sometimes in the most smallest areas of our lives.

Application

In your prayer and quiet time, make a list of some areas in your life where you can practice humility.  Take that list and try to implement those practices this week.  Ask God to give you strength and to help you accomplish a new level of humility as you attempt it this week.


I pray that you all will have a blessed week.

Be blessed,

T. Carter

All scriptures are extracted from The Bible - New King James Version.  YouVersion (2013).

Allen, Th.D., Ronald B., House Th.D., J.D., H. Wayne, & Radmacher, Th.D., Earl D. (1999). Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Nelsons Publishing.  Nashville, Tennessee

Henry, Matthew (1999). Mathew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible.  Nelson Publishing.  Nashville, Tennessee

Mears, Henrietta (1999). What the Bible is All About.  Regal Publishing. Ventura, California

Shirer, Priscilla (2011). The Resolution for Women. B&H Publishing Group. Nashville, Tennessee

Lesson 1: The Book of Ruth - The Right to Choose

Hello Everyone,

I pray that everyone had a blessed week.  I hope that you were all able to gain better understanding of the book Ruth through the brief synopsis offered in last week's introduction in combination with your own quiet time with the Lord.  God has offered us many women in the bible as examples of how we should operate as women individually and as Christians collectively.

The importance of the Book of Ruth is it demonstrates the idea of loyal love (Allen, House, & Radmacher 1999).  Ruth is most known for her loyalty to her mother-in-law after the death of her husband.  However, the book of Ruth offers so many other key qualities that can render Christians examples of what God's expectations are for us.  There are some very interesting things to notice in this book (Mears 1999).  As we study the Book of Ruth, I pray that we will gain so much spiritual knowledge from this journey than the obvious.

Resource

Ruth 1:1-22
Now it came to pass, in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land.  And a certain man of Bethlehem, Judah, went to dwell in the country of Moab, he and his and his two sons.  2 The name of the man was Elimelech, the name of his wife was Naomi, and the name of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion-Ephrathites of Bethelehem, Judah.  And they went to the country of Moab and remained there. 3  Then Elimelech, Naomi's husband, died; and she was left, and her two sons.  4 Now they took wives of the women of Moab: the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth.  And they dwelt there about ten years. 5 Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died; so the woman survived her two sons and her husband. 6 Then she arose with her two daughters-in-law that she might return from the country of Moab, for she had heard in the country of Moab that the Lord had visited His people by giving them bread. 7 Therefore she went out from the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah. 8 And Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, "Go, return to her mother's house.  The Lord deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me. 9 The Lord grant that you may find rest, each in the house of her husband."  So she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. 10 And they said to her, "Surely we will return with you to your people." 11 But Naomi said, "Turn back, my daughter; why will you go with me? Are there still sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands? 12 Turn back, my daughters, go-for I am too old to have a husband.  If I should say I have hope, if I should have a husband tonight and should also bear sons 13 would you wait for them till they were grown?  Would you restrain yourselves from having husbands?  No, my daughters; for it grieves me very much for your sakes that the hand of the Lord has gone out against me!" 14 Then they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.  15 And she said, "Look, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law." 16 But Ruth said:  "Entreat me not to leave you, Or to turn back from following after you; For wherever you go, I will go; And wherever you lodge, I will lodge; Your people shall be my people, And your God, my God.  17 Where you die, I will die, And there will I be buried.  The Lord do do to me, and more also, If anything but death parts you and me" 18 When she saw that she was determine to go with her, she stopped speaking to her. 19 Now the two of them went until they came to Bethlehem.  And it happened, when they had come to Bethlehem, that all the city was excited because of them; and the women said, "Is this Naomi?" 20 But she said to them, "Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me 21 I went out full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty.  Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?"  22 So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess her daughter-in-law with her, who returned from the country of Moab.  Now they came to Bethlehem at the beginning of Barley harvest.

Lesson 1

The Book of Ruth begins with a brief history of Ruth's in-laws.  It also distinguishes the blood line of Ruth and religious practices of her people, the Moabites.  The Moabites, the descendants of Lot, worshiped many gods and goddesses (Mears 1999).

Then we experience the death of Ruth's father-in-law, brother-in-law, and then her own husband.  During this time period, a woman was defined by her male counterpart.  A woman was considered lost without a man.  Therefore, Naomi, Ruth's mother-in-law, encouraged both Ruth and Ruth's sister-in-law, Orpah, to return to their own homeland and acquire new husbands in order to maintain their own livelihood.  Ruth refused.

While Ruth's loyalty is the main focus for this book, the experiences of Naomi, Orpah, and Ruth bring so much light to current lifestyle we live as Christians.  We are entitled so many freedoms and luxuries that they were not privy to.  Their entire existence was deemed necessary by who they were married to.

Today, we as women are allotted the privilege of maintaining our own identities in addition to our male counterparts.  While God specifically designed us to be a helpmate, (Genesis 2:20-24), He also has given us the vantage of acquiring our own purpose to this world (Proverbs 31:10-31).  Therefore we can exhibit gratitude and honor to God for His righteousness (Romans 3:24-26).

Ruth and Orpah's choices exhibits the liberties that God has given to us.  They both chose different paths, nevertheless, they both had choice as option to their situation.  Though Ruth was raised in paganism, and later converted, she made the Godly choice.   Orpah was not loth to part from her Moabitess roots for Naomi's sake, however, Ruth's resolution gained her good affection (Henry 1997).

We are blessed with many choices in life.  We can choose what to wear, what hairstyle we prefer, what peanut butter to buy, where to shop, what church to attend, what car to drive, etc....  The most important choice, that is life changing, is to serve God and how to serve God.  We must honor the one true living God that offers us such liberties (2 Corinthians 3:17).

Application

This week examine your choices; from the most minute choices that lead to the larger choices.  It only takes a small crack in the armor to defuse the forces (Ephesians 6:10-18).  Choose to gird yourself with the full armor of God, by reading His word daily.

I pray that you all will have a blessed week.

Be blessed,

T. Carter

All scriptures are extracted from The Bible - New King James Version.  YouVersion (2013).

Allen, Th.D., Ronald B., House Th.D., J.D., H. Wayne, & Radmacher, Th.D., Earl D. (1999). Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Nelsons Publishing.  Nashville, Tennessee

Henry, Matthew (1999). Mathew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible.  Nelson Publishing.  Nashville, Tennessee

Mears, Henrietta (1999). What the Bible is All About.  Regal Publishing. Ventura, California